The King And Queen「Tom Riddle」(slow updates) [UNDER EDITING]

Chapter 6 - Bound by Magic: The Reluctant Apprentice

𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘦, 𝘥𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘮, 𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘱𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘶𝘮𝘢, 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘶𝘴𝘦 (𝘤𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦 𝘴𝘮𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨), 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘺𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤. 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥, 𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘴.

***

Adeline despised having to relive memories, not because she lacked the strength to confront them, but because it meant facing them as her naive, obedient younger self. Even at her current age, Adeline remained stubborn as ever, making it feel like an endless battle, where defeating one challenge only led to the emergence of another, even stronger one.

A commanding voice roared like a lion, "GIRL, GET IN HERE!"

Confused, Adeline blinked and turned her gaze towards the kitchen, where her younger self knelt on the floor wearing an oversized, raggedy red shirt that extended past her knees. As she approached closer, Adeline noticed her younger self cleaning up urine. The initial confusion was swept away from Adeline's mind, similar to leaves being carried away by the wind. This was the day that she stopped. "Yes, Uncle Vernon," Younger Adeline meekly obeyed, scurrying towards him like a house elf.

"Did you break Dudley's toy?" Vernon inquired with a red face, trying to maintain an appearance of calmness despite his clenched fists, something her younger self failed to notice.

Adeline observed herself looking up, her eyes clouded with confusion. However, from the corner of her eye, her younger self also caught sight of Dudley grinning like a maniac, holding a piece of the broken toy of which Vernon was speaking. Dudley believed he looked handsome when he grinned, but Adeline thought it only accentuated his double chin... 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘪𝘴.

Adeline couldn't help but snort at her younger self's thoughts.

Younger Adeline winced, realizing there was no escape from this situation. Denying the accusation would result in Dudley claiming she was lying, leading to an even harsher punishment. Admitting to it meant she would be punished nonetheless.

Gulping, younger Adeline decided, "Yes, Uncle Vernon," and lowered her gaze to the floor, submitting to his authority.

Adeline's face twisted with disgust as her mind replayed the memories of her past. She scoffed at herself, unable to comprehend how she had been so weak. She clenched her fists, frustration surging through her veins. Adeline was determined to shed the label of weakness that had haunted her for far too long.

She despised the feeling of vulnerability, the sense of powerlessness that had held her back. Adeline had witnessed countless opportunities slip away due to her own inability to stand up for herself. It was a bitter pill to swallow, and she refused to let that define her any longer.

The living room fell into suffocating silence, tension soaring like a kite in the sky. The silence shattered when Vernon grabbed Adeline's arm with a firm grip, causing her to struggle and apologize in a stuttering panic, "I'm sorry Vernon it won't happen again." Nobody noticed the fact that she didn't call him uncle.