After Tom had come to enough senses to put that information into storage for now, he looked at the demon cautiously. He wasn't sure how long he was baffling inside his own mind over the new information, but he could gather that it wasn't long enough for the demon to notice. He nodded and they continued on with their conversation like no pause had ever taken place in the first place.
Harry, on the other hand, wasn't fooled. He knew that Tom had just come to a major realization, probably something along the lines of the one he had come to a few hours ago.
Harry wasn't sure what he wanted from Tom just yet, but he knew that eventually he was going to either get out of him what he just was thinking or he'd have to tell him they were mates at some point or another.
He also knew that a certain someone had just entered the wards with a non-ward detector spell on his person, and the only person who could pull off moving through wards and being undetected was someone with a very long, very white beard. As he talked on with Tom about the perfect living conditions that he liked simply based off of instinct, he could feel him getting nearer, probably invisible so that way Tom wouldn't see him. And since the type of magic he was using was something that only Dumbledore knew of, he could guarantee that Tom didn't know how to detect it, as it wasn't shared with anyone but with the creator himself and probably his shoes.
And so it came as a great surprise to Tom when Dumbledore finally revealed his arrival by becoming visible once more just inches behind one certain Viper.
"And so, I have you now, Riddle. I had so hoped that I would be able to take you out in some epic battle that you inevitably would have started, but as Severus was so foolish to think that I didn't catch on to his little spying game I slipped him some truth serum. Now, you and your little death eater can come with me and this will all go away. Or I can kill you now, either one. And since you don't have your wands..." He held up two wands, one being Tom's and the other being just a random wand Harry had ordered from Ollivander's some months ago in case this situation ever arrived. "I think it'd be best to comply.
That was when Harry lost it.
The shadows swirled around his head and surrounded his body, lifting his hair every which way and the sun lost it's vibrancy it had possessed only moments before. Dark anger clouded his mind, but not his judgment, and he turned around slowly.
"I'm sure that Severus did fall for your little trap, no doubt you hid the potion in some form of tea or muggle candy you forced upon him. But did he tell you exactly what has happened to the famous Harry Potter?" Dumbledore blanched. "That's right, I have him here. And I'm sure he'd be willing to talk to you, if you hadn't angered me so much. So for now you only get to see him." He morphed his face into the one he had posed in most of his life and let it sink into the old man's mind while the shadows took him to a secured Dungeon where no magic could be performed by anyone but him.
"Come Tom, let's find out what the idiot has to say to my story, shall we?"
They entered the dungeon where Dumbledore lay on the floor in utter shock.
"Well Dumbledore? Any ideas as to what was done with Harry? No? Well, Harry and I are the same. You see, the one thing you failed on counting into your little scheme was the fact that I'm a Shadow Demon, if the display I put on outside was any indicator. I've been faking the whole innocent Potter act ever since I came to Hogwarts, and more so when I found out that your real plan was to take over the entire Wizarding World and to leave it to suffer under your ruling. I'm sure you never expected me to die in the end, at your own hand, and I can tell you right now that I'm much meaner when it comes to backstabbers and betrayers like you. And the worst kind is the ones who lie, and that's what he's done, don't you think Tom?" Tom nodded his head in agreement, ready to tear the old man apart at the first sign he could see.
"Ah now Tom, we mustn't be in a hurry. Go, gather your troops, I have a treat for them all." Tom reluctantly left Viper and Dumbledore alone. They waited, Dumbledore trying to reason to deaf ears until Tom arrived back with twenty ravenous-looking death eaters.
"Look, here they are Dumbledore!"
"You might try to break me, but you never will." His head was held high, something that Harry had expected from the moment he had crossed the wards.
"I was hoping you might say that. See, your death will be quick and painless." He took great pleasure in seeing the old man's face lift a slight bit, the relief that he wouldn't have to undergo hours upon hours of torture showing plainly on his face. "Oh yes, a quick and painless death." The death eaters and Tom had enough sense to remain quiet to see what would happen. "However, since you're so fond of taking care of the dead and have a duty to respect the dead out of pure selfishness because you killed your sister, they are going to abuse your dead body. Rape it, mutilate it, I don't care. But I'm sure they're going to take great pleasure in telling you what they'll each do to you before you die. Have a nice time in hell, you rotten, lying son of a bitch."
Harry took Tom and shadow-walked them to the other side of the castle, so Tom couldn't hear the pleading, or to see what was going to become of the body. Normally, he would have told himself it was because he didn't want him to have nightmares and come to his room asking for reassurances, but now it was inevitable. Tom was his mate, and he didn't want his mate around that kind of violence, where accidents might happen.
"Why the hell am I not allowed to stay and torture his dead body?! I, of all people, deserve a part in that! AND WHY WON'T YOU LET ME GO!?" Harry held on to Tom despite his squirming and yelling he was doing, and when the other man finally stopped yelling to breathe, he interjected his opinion.
"Because I don't need you in that kind of atmosphere where dangerous accidents can occur. At least with potions I have Severus to counteract accidents. However, I am not skilled enough in wand magic to know what to do should something happen to you down there. But I can assure you, your death eaters will be more than happy to recount the events of what will be happening down there and I'm sure more than one would be happy to share their memories with you of their own free will, don't you think?" He could tell he had taken Tom by surprise with his concern when he stopped moving around in his vice-like grip, and was immensely pleased that he had actually listened for once in his life.
"You care about what happens to me? Why?"
"You of all people should know why based on your own feelings. It's the same reason you wouldn't want me down there in the fray of the action and it's the same reason that I am going to let you go and make a choice." He did as he said and let his captive go so he could move about of his own free will and hoped that he wouldn't try running off again.
"Okay, what's going on here. You have me stumped." Harry knew otherwise, but he didn't argue with him. Instead he conjured two chairs and wordlessly lit a fire in the room they had ended up in. It seemed to be what remained of a library of sorts, but that would have to be sorted out later.
"Fine. Look, the shadow demon gene is passed down from generation to generation, no matter the genetic combinations it's mixed in with and it only comes out when a major shift is about to take place in the world. As such, a shadow demon has a very limited amount of time to find their mate so they can pass down the gene again. It's why everyone with the gene will inevitably find someone to have kids with-even if they're of the same sex. From what my research has told me, most if not all shadow demons are paired with someone of the same sex, why I don't know. I'm assuming it's because the same sex typically knows better what the other person wants in a relationship rather than the opposite sex, but that is just pure speculation."
"But what does this have to do with me?"
"Think about it." He watched as Tom's face went from immediate horror to understanding to resigned within a matter of seconds. "I know you don't like to be forced into anything, and that's where honor comes in. All shadow demons have an immense understanding of honor, and as such cannot take a mate without asking permission first. I don't plan on just taking you to bed either. With a mate comes an extremely large urge to protect you and over the weeks I've come to think of you as more than a friend anyway. I want you to just consider it, maybe give it a try if you want. I'm not going to demand anything from you, and I want you to understand that it's not your duty in any way to accept me. Shadow demons have mates, sure. However, if the mate declines, the demon is left to find someone they consider suitable for them to keep them under control. All I ask is that you think on it and try to stay out of trouble in the meantime."
"But why didn't you tell me this sooner?" The confusion was showing in his eyes, and Harry shrugged slightly.
"I didn't want to alarm you or to pressure you. But now that I'm looking at things from a victorious standpoint, I realize that this was only the beginning. The diehards for the light will likely never accept what has happened here today, and we must make sure we avoid any riots or breakouts. The last thing we need is another Order of the Whatever Animal They Choose coming after us and trying to spy on us and what we're doing. And I'm sure the Ministry will have an issue accepting that Dumbledore will no longer be able to give Fudge any advice like he's been doing nonstop about every issue that comes up since Fudge took office. Before we weren't in danger. But now the real danger approaches...and at a rapid pace too."
He turned and walked down the hallway, leaving Tom to think about what he had said and to hope that somehow, Tom decided to give him a shot.
Because if he didn't, Harry didn't know what he would do.