What if the person you admire most is accused of murdering your parents? That was the dilemma now facing Harry. Only moments ago, he'd asked Hermione why he was so famous, and she'd told him the unbelievable story of how he'd single-handedly defeated Voldemort as a baby.
Hermione, in turn, had learned that the handsome young man before her was the enigmatic figure spoken of in the Transfiguration Book Club texts. Furthermore, this 'Mystic' was to be their professor at Hogwarts. The revelation spun her head. What was going on? Was everything written in those wretched books a lie?
Seeing Harry and Hermione lost in thought, Tom nonchalantly plucked a Chocolate Frog from the treats Cassandra had just bought and began to eat it. Cassandra herself wasn't particularly fond of sweets, but Tom was. She leaned against the window, gazing at the passing landscape, though whether she truly saw it was another question.
"Hmm?"
Tom examined the card he'd pulled from the Chocolate Frog wrapper. It was Newt Scamander. Gazing at the animated image of Newt, a thought occurred to Tom: what if he were on one of these cards? In a way, Voldemort was a pretty great wizard, wasn't he?
Harry remained deep in turmoil. Although he'd never known his parents, it was precisely because of this that he'd constructed perfect, idealized versions of them in his mind. And yet, this Newt Scamander was also perfect in his own way – the first person to show him kindness, the first to remember his birthday and offer him a gift...even if it was delivered with a somewhat twisted sense of humor...A twisted sense of humor.
Seeing Harry's conflicted expression, Tom was immensely amused. He could reveal the truth now, but what would be the fun in that? He wanted to witness Harry's reaction, to see if he actually dared to raise a hand against him. When he said he'd make the boy his subordinate, he'd meant it.
Three minutes passed, and all of Harry's internal debate seemed to dissipate with a sigh. He looked at Tom with a grave expression. "Sir, I, Harry Potter, will be a Death Eater for a day..."
Click.
"Excuse me, has anyone seen my toad?"
A chubby-faced boy pushed open the compartment door. Finding everyone staring at him, he awkwardly retreated.
Bang.
"Sorry to bother you."
Harry seemed unperturbed. Regaining his composure, he continued, "I'll be a Death Eater for a day, and for a lifetime..."
Click.
"Has anyone seen Neville Longbottom's toad?"
A red-haired boy with freckles pushed open the door. The chubby boy from before hid behind him, peeking at Harry.
"I haven't seen any toad. Why don't you go look in the other carriages," Harry said impatiently. What a stupid toad! Interrupting my vital declaration of loyalty.
"Ron, I think we should go." Neville Longbottom seemed unable to bear the situation any longer and quickly pushed Ron Weasley out.
Unable to argue, Ron Weasley allowed himself to be shoved from the carriage. "Fine."
Bang.
The door slammed shut again.
This time, Harry was prepared. Before another interruption could occur, he blurted out, "Like I said, once a Death Eater, always a Death Eater!"
He barely finished the sentence when...
Snap.
"I still think the toad is..."
"Damn it! What is it with this toad? I think you're a toad!"
Interrupted yet again, Harry was incandescent with rage. He drew his wand and pointed it at Ron Weasley, ready to cast the only spell he knew – the Stun Spell.
"Hey, hey, hey... what are you doing? If you don't have one, you don't have one! Why are you so angry?" Ron Weasley was also intimidated by Harry's aura and beat a hasty retreat with Neville Longbottom, looking resentful.
The brief interruption did nothing to disturb Tom's amusement. Indeed, Harry's pique only added to it.
Tom was equally satisfied with Harry's pronouncement and immediately reassured him that he wouldn't be forced to eat Avada Kedavra.
Then Tom added, "However, Harry, you are mistaken about one thing."
"What is that, sir?" Harry asked, confused.
"I did not kill your parents."
"..."
Hearing this, Harry fell silent once more. What was the point of all that agonizing? Was he the clown in this scenario?
Hermione's reaction was muted this time. After learning Tom was Voldemort, she'd already decided to throw The History of Hogwarts into the nearest toilet. Now, no matter how much the facts deviated from the written accounts, she wouldn't be surprised – or so she thought.
Cassandra looked at Tom and smiled enigmatically. "Teacher, you're so naughty."
Tom merely smiled in response to Cassandra's teasing, not taking it to heart.
Then, he glanced towards the compartment door. "Standing there for so long... Aren't you going to come in, Malfoy?"
Hearing this, Draco Malfoy, who was lurking outside, broke into a cold sweat.
Gritting his teeth, he pushed the door open and stepped inside.
"Uh... Master," Draco Malfoy greeted stiffly.
Crabbe and Goyle, who were standing behind Draco Malfoy, stared in disbelief. They couldn't believe their ears; the arrogant Draco Malfoy had never uttered those words to anyone.
Realizing that he'd already addressed him as "Master," and that these two idiots hadn't reacted at all, Draco Malfoy was furious. "You two fools! Haven't you seen the great Dark Lord?!"
The Dark Lord… Voldemort?!
Crabbe and Goyle exchanged glances, both of them wide-eyed with disbelief. Then, a beat later, they reacted, kneeling down and calling him "Master" as well.
At the same time, they finally understood why Draco Malfoy had distanced himself from their group earlier.
Tom calmly sipped the hot tea his apprentice had prepared. "What is it that you want, Malfoy?"
Draco Malfoy took a deep breath, feigning composure as he explained his purpose.
Clearly, Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Malfoy's upbringing had had some effect; at least Draco Malfoy wasn't too intimidated to speak in this situation.
After hearing Draco Malfoy's words, Harry's first thought was… Nice idea, but don't even think about it. Isn't this guy just trying to steal my position?
However, Tom greatly appreciated Draco Malfoy's show of loyalty.
Let the system detect him...
[Name: Draco Malfoy]
[Gender: Male]
[Age: 11]
[Occupation: Wizard/Student (Hogwarts Freshman)]
[Magic: D]
[Talents (Max Level 10):]
[Charms: 6 (Excellent)]
[Transfiguration: 4 (Average)]
[Dark Magic Defense: 5 (Decent, but nothing special)]
[Dark Magic: 6 (Could be a bad guy, but doesn't understand it well)]
[Potions Mastery: 5 (Good)]
[Alchemy: 5 (Even a screwdriver needs to be a screw factory manager)]
[Prophecy: 2 (Where did I put my dice?)]
[Special Talents: None]
[Spells Mastered: Alohomora (Level 1), Toothpick (Level 1), Levicorpus (Level 1)...]
[Item: Hawthorn Wand (Unicorn Tail Feather) "Quality: Excellent"...]
Not bad. From now on, you're one of my henchmen.
"And, like Harry, you may refer to me as 'sir.'"
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