OF SERPENT AND ANGEL ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎➝ tom riddle ¹ | ✓ |

TWENTY

Eliza's lungs contracted, her heart felt as if it had stopped beating altogether. "Why am I here, Tom?"

"Well, I decided that it was time for you to find out who I truly am," he said with a sick grin. "Pretending to be some good, charming, boy gets very exhausting - though of course, patience is a virtue, and it will all be worth it in the end. But, so that you never doubt my authority again, I thought I could share this little secret with you."

"What happened to you?" she asked quietly. "What could possibly have happened to compel you into murdering innocent students?"

At first, she feared he may be offended but a second later the grin only grew on Tom's lips. "Well, let me tell you. I was raised in a Muggle orphanage, as you well know due to our gossiping classmates, with no clue of the existence of the Wizarding world. But I was different from the other kids, I knew I was. I could move objects without touching them, I could make animals do things without training them, I could punish those who mistreated me ... but most importantly, I could talk to snakes.

"And then one day when I was eleven, Albus Dumbledore appeared at the orphanage. He told me of Hogwarts, of the world of magic, of Diagon Alley. And I arrived here to live amongst others seemingly just like me ... but still, I knew I was different, I didn't blend ... I knew I was better."

Tom began to walk around the Chamber a little as he spoke, moving to stand behind Eliza's statue-like figure before moving into her line of vision once more. And she stood frozen still, her breaths short and heart pounding.

"So I began to search into my family. Some may have called it an obsession but I had to know, I had to understand why I was still so different. My mother died giving birth to me in the very orphanage I grew up in, but before her death, she named me. Tom after my father, Marvolo after hers.

"She was weak. I didn't believe she could be a witch, for if she had the use of magic, she would not have died. So I searched everywhere for the name of Tom Riddle, but never found a trace of such a person. Finally, I had to accept that it was my mother, as pathetic and disgusting she may have been, who was a witch. A witch who I soon discovered to be related to one of the greatest Wizard's of all time; Salazar Slytherin himself."

He paused for a moment, studying the way her body was shaking, her eyes wide, loving the fear he had already inspired in the girl.

"Once I discovered my true heritage it did not take long for me to find this place, and when I did, I quickly awakened the basilisk from its slumber to cleanse this school of Mudbloods. Sadly, they threatened to close Hogwarts forever which would have meant that I would have had to return to the Orphanage and I was forced to close the Chamber once more before the noble work of Salazar Slytherin was complete.

"But it's no matter. Soon we will be out of here and then ... well, then I will be able to continue it once more without the shackle of keeping appearances. Slughorn, that daft silly man, swears I will be Minister for Magic, but why settle for that when I can rule the world? And I will reset the natural balance, Wizards on top and every filthy Muggle and Mudblood will be killed."