[008] an act of kindness
Camille is used to going out on romantic dates and being treated by boys vying for her affections. But this felt far more special than those other dates.
Tom was totally attentive, listening to Camille as she spoke. He'd open the door for her, and he held her hand and he laughed at her little jokes, no matter how stupid they really were. He was so charming, going to Madam Puddifoot's with her even when most boys didn't care to go at all. Camille felt so lucky but she couldn't help but admit that something more was missing. Something related to Tom. Camille felt a little guilty talking about herself when there was so much she didn't know about Tom. And Camille wanted to learn everything, from his past to what he wanted his future to look like.
And so, that's exactly what Camille intended to do while on her date with Tom.
"Tom," Camille dreamily sighs, looking over at the handsome boy who sat across from her. They were holding hands on the table, surrounded by other couples who looked equally lovestruck with each other. "Is it alright if... I ask you some things now?"
Tom nods. "You can ask me absolutely anything you want to. I won't refuse you."
"Tell me about your family. You already so much about mine. Everyone knows so much about mine. I'd like to learn about yours," Camille replied.
For a moment, Camille saw the way his charming little smile finally faltered. It was enough to make Camille hesitate, wondering if she was making a terrible mistake. Maybe she was being too pushy but Camille didn't think asking about his family would be too much of an issue. No one really knew about his family or past. Tom just showed up to Hogwarts like everyone else, assimilating himself into the world of Slytherin's elite with ease. It was almost terrifying how he managed to climb up the ranks so quickly. And yet no one knew his secrets. Camille supposed that was how he managed to maintain his power and status in school. No one was able to get inside the impenetrable fortress that was his mind.
Until now.
"If I tell you, you must promise that you cannot tell anyone else," Tom remarked.
"Your secret is safe with me, Tom. I swear it," Camille nods, shaking her head.
"Let's go for a walk. I think we're finished here," Tom replied.
Camille nods in agreement. As much as she loved the shop, she also knew that there were far too many people here for them to talk about something so personal. If Tom was ever going to trust her, they'd need to talk alone. Just as they made their way towards the exit, the door opens. Daisy and Louis walked inside, holding hands with each other. They seemed to be becoming an item ever since the party. Camille felt happy for them. Louis noticed Camille with Tom as Daisy kept talking to him, sending her a brief wave and a small smile.
Camille waved back at him and Tom grabbed her hand, nearly dragging her out of the tea shop roughly. Camille looked over at Tom in surprise as they walked out of the shop. He had never been so rough with her before. It shocked her, of course. But Camille was trying her best to rationalize it. Perhaps Tom was in a hurry and he didn't want to delay any more time. He didn't mean to be rough or rude, he was just trying to rush out of the store.
"Now that we're alone, we can talk more freely," Tom replied, continuing to hold onto Camille's hand tightly. "I guess, the best place to start is the beginning, hm?"
"Yes," Camille nods in agreement. She was eager to hear what Tom had to say. She desperately wanted to learned everything she could about him.
"My mother was Merope Gaunt. You've heard of the Gaunts, haven't you?" Tom began.
"A bit. I heard that they were an ancient Wizarding family but they died out. One of the Sacred Twenty Eight. No one's heard from them in a long time," Camille answers. She was so busy looking at Tom, not realizing that he was leading her further away from the shops and to the wooded areas blanketed by pristine white snow.
"Indeed they were. They were a very wealthy and prominent family, descended from Salazar Slytherin himself. They had a habit of marrying their cousins just to maintain blood purity and Salazar's very own trains. Particularly the ability to speak parseltongue," Tom responds, "Although they were powerful, they were also incredibly violent and mentally unstable. Couple that with a love for the finer things in life, you can only imagine how quickly they spent their money and gold until the money dried up. A powerful and wealthy family reduced to nothing in such little time."
"Who's your father?" Camille inquired.
"Patience, Milly. I'm getting there," Tom replied. "My mother was one of the very last descendants. By the time she was an adult, the money was gone. There was absolutely nothing left. She grew up in a squalor ridden shack in Little Hangleton with my grandfather and uncle. They were absolutely abusive towards her."
"I'm sorry," Camille immediately apologized.
"In a lot of ways, she deserved it. She wasn't exactly a saint. Of course, the abuse probably made her even more mad in the end. She was just as corrupted as the rest of them by the time she met my father, Tom Riddle," Tom responded, a frown breaking out onto his lips the moment he mentioned his father's name.
The same name Tom had.
"Oh, you're named after him?" Camille quickly realized with a small smile.
Tom nods, although he didn't look too pleased about it.
"How did they meet?" Camille asks. She was so used to hearing how her parents met, she was eager to hear how Tom's parents met. Maybe it was love at first sight too. Maybe that was just Camille's naivety talking, hoping for the best even despite the already bleak odds Tom had painted out for her the moment he first spoke of his family lineage.
"My mother stalked my father. It was hardly romantic. She was obsessed with him, determined to make him hers. He was a muggle-born but that didn't stop her. He was handsome and he was wealthy, finding him as her way out. She made a love potion just for him and after he drank it, he fell in love with her and they got married," Tom recalled, immediately shattering Camille's hopes. "My mother did all of this after my grandfather and uncle got arrested and sent to Azkaban for a while. I'm not too sure how long it took before the effects of the love potion wore off but they did while she got pregnant with me. My father found out and fled. She did rape him after all, no matter what way you look at it."
Camille went silent. That was the opposite of romance. It truly sounded like something out of a horror story.
"My mother was alone in London, pregnant and disowned from her family. She had nowhere to go and she ended up at Wool's Orphanage, giving birth to me before dying. I don't miss her. I don't even love her. My mother was a rapist, and my father was a coward. Not to mention, a muggle-born. My parents sound lovely, don't they?" Tom remarked, his tone taking on a bitterness that Camille had never heard before.
"What was it like at the orphanage?" Camille reluctantly asked. She had a feeling that she didn't want to know, but her curiosity wouldn't be satisfied until she got answers.
"Terrible. I hated every single day that I was there. The other kids picked on me and called me all sorts of names. None of the other kids liked me very much. I was different. I knew it from a young age that I was different from the rest of them. Better than them. And that fact was only proven when Professor Dumbledore showed up to the orphanage and told me about Hogwarts and magic. Hogwarts was my escape from the terrible world around me," Tom replied.
"Not only was I born into a life of poverty, but muggles seem to really love war. You can't imagine the terror of going home from Hogwarts and not knowing when you were going to die from a bomb at any moment. I wanted to stay even during school breaks. Eventually, I decided to stay with friends of mine. Abraxas mostly. Living him showed me what my life could be like. What my life is going to be in the future," Tom continued.
"You know, you can stay with me if you need to. My parents won't mind. I won't tell them about your situation. They won't have to know a thing," Camille immediately offered.
They definitely wouldn't have approved of Tom if they found out that he was a half blood. Come to think of it, none of his friends would have either. They were incredibly strict about blood purity. Anyone who wasn't a pureblood was practically beneath them. Tom hadn't told any of them. Tom hadn't told a single soul except for Camille. She truly felt special.
"I appreciate that, Milly. I feel so much better now that I told you the truth. I have a feeling that you and I are going to be together for a very long time. We should be able to tell each other everything. And also keep secrets for each other if the situation calls for it, right?" Tom replied, smiling at her once again.
"Right. I'm very happy that you told me. I can only imagine how difficult it was for you to tell me all of this," Camille replied, giving Tom's hand a small, assuring squeeze. "How did you find all of this out if your mother was dead and your father had left? Did... your father come back into your life or something?"
"Oh, no. I've never met the man," Tom shook his head.
"So how did you learn the truth?" Camille inquired.
"I wanted to learn more about my family. At the time, I had been convinced that my father was the one who was a wizard. I was so sure of it. I tried to find any sign of him at school but there was none. Obviously, it was because he was a muggle. My mother was the one with power. And when I finally learned her identity, I tracked down her side of the family several years back. It... wasn't a very pleasant conversation," Tom answered.
"I am so sorry you had to go through all of that. You don't have to worry about it anymore after this year is over. When Hogwarts is over, you'll officially be free and then...," Camille trails off.
"Then I'll finally be able to leave and begin the life I was destined to have," Tom finished for her.
"And what life is that?" Camille asked.
Before Tom could answer, the desperate sounds of a bird's cries could be heard a distance away. She looked around, trying to find where it was coming from. Tom let go of her hand, following the direction of the noises until they grew louder and louder. Not wanting to be alone, Camille quickly joined Tom and found him standing over a wounded bird. Its wing had managed to get broken but it still tried to fly away, even while lying on the ground. Camille's heart instantly broke at the sight of it, and she closed her eyes, hiding her face in Tom's arm.
"Oh, how horrible. Someone needs to help this poor bird," Camille cried.
Tom suddenly pulled away from Camille, forcing the blonde to open her eyes now. She watched as Tom grabbed a large rock and bent down to get even closer to the bird. Camille had a bad feeling, her heart sinking all the way to the pit of her stomach. But Camille couldn't move. All she could do was watch what was about to happen.
Camille flinched as Tom slammed the rock down onto the bird's head, ending its desperate pleas for help. A brief yet uncomfortable, tense silence had followed, and Camille couldn't tear her eyes away from the gruesome sight. The bird's head was unrecognizable, a mangled and bloody mess, and Tom quickly tossed the bloodstained rock onto the snow-covered ground. Camille took a step back while Tom stood up, turning to look at Camille with an expressionless face. He had just ended a life and he looked completely normal about it. Camille was more upset, and she hadn't even done anything.
"There, I put it out of its misery," Tom explained calmly.
Camille sniffles, blinking away her tears. "I'd like to go now. We should be heading back to Hogwarts pretty soon."
"Of course. I'll walk you there," Tom replied, holding out his hand for Camille to take.
It was the same hand he had used to kill the bird. Camille paused for a while before she decided to grab his hand, remaining by his side as they left Hogsmeade together and went back to Hogwarts. For hours after the incident, Camille hadn't been able to forget about the dead bird. Or the look on Tom's face after he killed it.
( 👱♀️💘🍒 )
word count: 2296
notes: now the tone's slowly beginning to get dark and it's only going to get darker! as always, vote and comment your thoughts to let me know what you thought!