Harry suddenly remembered that dream: Ron lifting him from his warm bed and carrying him out of the dormitory.
That wasn't a dream? it had really happened?
The thought appeared in Harry's mind without warning.
"I don't believe it. Ron wouldn't betray me." Harry's voice was barely a whisper, "You must be mistaken…"
"Oh, look at that. Poor, foolish Potter is still defending his dear friend." Riddle's smile deepened.
"Unfortunately, when Ron confided in me, he was completely open, his very soul laid bare.
"And I have a natural sensitivity to lies, Potter. I believe everything he told me, especially when he was so weak."
Harry felt a sharp pain in his chest. "I'm warning you, if you've hurt Ron in any way—"
"Hurt him?" Riddle chuckled, sounding amused. "Well, I did take something from him. That process must have caused him pain.
"But I didn't force your dear friend, Potter… I pride myself on being fair and I despise coercion.
"You can ask Dumbledore if you don't believe me. He understands me as a father understands his child.
"Of course, that analogy may lack warmth... after all, I did kill my own father. He was a Muggle and an idiot who abandoned my mother..."
"Ah, my tragic family history…" Riddle murmured softly, "it almost makes me sentimental."
But there wasn't a trace of sadness in his tone, only the satisfaction of revenge.
Harry instinctively recoiled, fear twisting in his stomach. His voice rose sharply. "So, what exactly did you take from Ron?!"
"Oh, that's a fascinating question," Riddle said cheerfully. "Where do I begin...
"For the past several months, Ron poured his heart out into the diary, telling me all about his sorrows and frustrations.
"Five older brothers... never anything new for himself... Bill's old robes... Charlie's old wand... Percy's discarded pet, Scabbers, that delightful rat."
Harry noticed that Riddle paused slightly when he mentioned Scabbers.
"Living in poverty wasn't the worst of it... The twins earned money and bought things for the family, even bought Ginny new robes and books, but nothing for him."
"Then there's his hatred for Malfoy, his envy of Stark, his annoyance with Hermione for being too smart but not exactly likable... and, of course, his best friend, the famous Harry Potter."
Riddle recited Ron's private thoughts without a shred of hesitation.
"Tell me, Potter... Why does Ron have so many worries? Why is he so insecure?" Riddle sneered.
"It was exhausting, listening to a twelve-year-old boy go on about his childish grievances.
"And I even had to write back to him, pages of replies!
"You must understand, Potter, by the time I was twelve, I had already gathered a group of followers, snuck into the Restricted Section of the library, learned the preferences of every professor, and was contemplating how to conquer... death."
"But I was patient. I wrote kind responses to comfort him."
Riddle's smile was dazzling. "I'm not boasting, Potter, it's simply true. I've always been able to charm anyone... except Dumbledore."
"So, Ron willingly opened his soul to me.
"I used a special form of magic to connect with his soul, to absorb his life force… That is what I took from him."
"Of course, such magic isn't without cost," Riddle added.
"That particular spell demands an equivalent exchange. In return, I had to follow Ron's wishes…"
"What did Ron ask you to do?" Harry's throat was dry, his voice hoarse.
"You've already guessed, haven't you, Harry Potter?" Riddle whispered.
"Ron hated Filch... That Squib made him clean the trophy room's display cases by hand. So, I lent him my power, enough to lash out at that old fool!"
"No way!"
"There's nothing impossible about it," Riddle said with a grin. "Remember before Halloween, when Ron disappeared for a while?
"I took him to open the Chamber of Secrets. But the entrance was littered with disgusting debris!
"I told Ron to clean it up. He got covered in filth, and since there were still students in the common room, I sent him to the Black Lake to rinse off, pretending he'd fallen in by accident. The mud masked the smell."
"After that, I had Ron appear in front of Filch at just the right time, follow him into his office, and then ambush him, leaving him unconscious in the hallway."
"And that's not all," Riddle continued, "Ron despises Colin, that Mudblood who constantly followed you around with his camera, snapping pictures and fawning over you... So, I attacked Colin."
"What about Eloise? She had nothing to do with Ron."
"Eloise... she was just unlucky. She was supposed to be heading to class but wandered near the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets instead."
"That's not true! The night of the Duelling Club, the diary was already lost… Justin's attack had nothing to do with Ron," Harry argued weakly.
"Yes, yes," Riddle said, his grin widening.
"That's because I made a fascinating discovery, something hidden right under Dumbledore's nose.
"That made me change my plans. I decided to abandon that foolish Ron… I taught him some Dark Magic, and then I left."
"But even after I left, I was still feeding off his soul, which meant I was still bound to his thoughts.
"Ron told me more than once how much he hated that fraud, Lockhart... and how Justin had humiliated him with a punch at the Duelling Club."
"See? Every one of those five attacks was carried out according to Ron's wishes," Riddle whispered.
"The more I helped him, the stronger I became... That's the essence of equivalent exchange!"
"Ron would never attack anyone!" Harry shouted in fury.
"Of course not. He didn't have the guts to do any of it himself, which is why he was unaware when I acted," Riddle sneered.
"That's where my brilliance comes in... I only needed to use magic to amplify his darker emotions slightly, and I turned 'equivalent exchange' into a series of attacks that I desired."
Harry felt an overwhelming urge to lunge at Riddle and slap him across the face.
"But enough about Ron. It's time to talk about you and me, Potter," Riddle said with a smile.
"As I said from the beginning, I summoned you here for a reason.
I need you to willingly forge a magical bond with me."
"I won't help you with anything," Harry said fearlessly, meeting Riddle's gaze with a defiant glare.
"Then I'm afraid your beloved Ron may..."
"You just said you don't like to force people!"
"I'm not forcing you, Potter," Riddle laughed, his eyes glinting with malice.
"I simply no longer like little Ron. I feel like getting rid of him... Such a pity, isn't it? Ron trusted his beloved Harry so much, yet because Harry refuses to cooperate…"
"You're despicable!" Harry roared in fury.
"Despicable?" Riddle repeated in astonishment, as though Harry had just told the funniest joke in the world. He took a couple of steps forward, then burst out into uncontrollable laughter.
"Look at you, what has Dumbledore been teaching you? Does he want to turn you into a saint?
"You really have no idea who Albus Dumbledore is, do you? When it comes to being despicable... who could compare to him?"
Harry took a deep, furious breath.
"I'll help you, but you have to let Ron go first! I'll stay behind and help you. Otherwise, kill us both!"
Riddle slowly calmed down, shaking his head in disappointment.
"You really don't get it, Harry. I'm beginning to doubt whether you even understand the reality of your situation."
Riddle's eyes gleamed with an icy coldness, and a hissing sound emerged from his throat.
Suddenly, Ron clutched his chest, his face contorting in extreme pain. A horrifying, guttural scream escaped from him.
A thin, slithering snake broke through Ron's chest, drenched in blood as it wriggled free.
Hate me,
Oh, my foolish Potter.
Riddle's smile widened once again.
The stronger the emotions, the more powerful the energy that would be released once the ritual was complete!