The Potions Master's Daughter (Book Five)

Chapter 34

We delved into the pensieve to look at the memory before us. We were transported into a plush looking room and an old woman was looking in the mirror putting on pearl earrings and talking to the House Elf next to her.

"He will be here soon, go set up the parlor," the woman told her.

The door rang and the House Elf went to the door, coming back with a slightly older ,but still clearly, Tom Riddle. He had only become more attractive with age, and he produced a bouquet of flowers from behind his back.

"For you," he said kissing her hand.

"Oh Tom, you sure know how to spoil an old woman, you shouldn't have!" yet she had an empty vase nearby, as though she was expecting this.

"Anything for you."

"Now what brings you here this time Tom?"

"Business. Mr. Burke had sent me to offer you 500 galleons for that goblin made armor. He feels as though this is more than fair."

"Oh business schmisness! Who wants to discuss that. They overwork you at that job of yours Tom. I have something much better to discuss, can you keep a secret?"

"Of course," Tom said smoothly.

"Oh Hokey! Bring Tom our finest treasure to show him. He will truly appreciate it for what it is, not what it's worth. I will never sell it."

Hokey the House Elf came out carrying two leather bound pouches in his hands. SHe took the first pouch from Hokey and carefully unwrapped it, revealing a small golden goblet.

Voldemort looked at the object with unmasked lust and greed, "It has a badge on it. Does that mean this is-"

"Helga Hufflepuff's golden goblet, yes! I told you I was distantly related to Helga herself haven't I? It's a very powerful goblet you know."

She took it back from Tom and began to place it back in the pouch. Voldemort's face darkened as the cup was taken from his hands, but Ms. Smith didn't notice.

Now she unwrapped the other pouch and Tom's face lit up even more than it had for the goblet, "Why that's Salazar Slytherin's mark," he exclaimed.

"Yes, it's Slytherin's locket. I had to pay an arm and a leg for it, but there was no way I'd let such a precious treasure slip from my fingers. I bought this from burke himself a long time ago when he was just starting out. He said he got it from a poor woman who seemed like she had stolen it, and didn't even know what it was worth."

Voldemort's eyes flashed at this bit of news and the greed in his eyes was even more prominent than it had been for the goblet, yet the old woman still appeared to not notice. Or if she did, she quickly wrote it off.

"That's all for now," Dumbledore told us, pulling us back to the present moment.

"What happened to her?" Harry asked.

"She died two days after that little scene we saw. Her House Elf was accused of poisoning her and killing her."

"Surely Voldemort altered the House Elf's memory then, to make her confess," I mused.

"I would believe so also, though of course nothing was ever proved."

"What happened after that?" Harry asked of Dumbledore.

"It took some time, but soon her relatives realized that her two most beloved possessions were missing, the locket and the goblet. By this time Tom Riddle had resigned from Borgin and Burkes and had simply vanished into thin air. No one was sure of where he had gone. This was the very last that was heard about Tom Riddle for a long time."