The World is Yours | Tom Riddle

chapter xlvii.

I hope my last breath is a sigh of relief

-unknown

Atarah.

Three knocks. Always three. The lock clicks open and the door slides open a few inches. A tray slides through the gap but before the woman slams the door shut I stick my foot in between the gap. She gasps in surprise as the door swings open and I yank her through the doorway. My hand covers her mouth and I quickly slam the door shut.

"This may hurt." I should feel guilty for doing this to her. A small part of me screams in protest, questioning the possibility of her being innocent in all of this. But I already know she's not. She has to know what Dumbledore does and what I will do now is only a portion of the pain I have endured.

Without wasting any more time I enter her mind. My hand muffled the shocked scream that came from her. I search through her memories- looking specifically for information on where I am located. But it's almost as if her memory has already been messed with. There are very few memories that go back to before a few months ago. So I move onto plan b.

I know I only have a few minutes so I gather as much information on the layout of the house. Forcing myself to remember every detail that I see. I stop myself after a few moments so I have enough time to do what I need to do next. Let's hope this works.

I recall a book I found while doing extra credit for Slughorn. I remember finding a dark arts notebook and I had to take a look. One spell that stood out to me was a spell that would give the victim a false memory. I should have paid more attention to what it said while I had the chance but right now I will have to go off what I can remember. I mutter a few words as I visualize what I want her to remember. Slowly I watch as the memory changes. The new memory shows her sliding the tray of food into the room and locking the door behind her. 

Her eyes have clouded over slightly and I feel my lips pull up slightly as I realize what I just did. I don't relish in the joy for long before I open the door and push her through.

I lean against the door once it shuts. A familiar feeling courses through my body as the reality of what I did fully sets in. The same as when Tom and I were practicing the dark spell and as much as I know I shouldn't revel in it, I do.

...

Tom.

If she says another word I swear I will reach across this table and strangle her in front of every single person here. Atarah is most likely going through hell right now while Annalie sits here laughing with Francis. It's killing me that I can't do a fucking thing about it.

I know well enough by now that I cannot let my emotions control me. It's all about the long game, it always has been. I turn my head to the side as I see Vittorio lean closer to me. "You doing alright?" He speaks in a low enough whisper so only I can hear him. "Why wouldn't I be?" I realize how it sounds once I speak the words. His eyebrows raise slightly and I swear I see amusement in his eyes before he looks towards my hand.

I follow his gaze only to see that I've had a death grip on my knife. I loosen my hold and drop it onto my still full plate. I haven't been able to stomach more than a few bites lately. "I'm fine." We both know it's bullshit but he knows better than to question me further.

...

The only light in the room is a small candle burning in the far corner. Leaving the rest of the room in the shadows. It will soon be morning- not that it makes any difference to me. When I've been able to sleep it's not for long and it's filled with dreams that leave me even more restless.