Forever Yours, Tom Riddle (Completed)

Year Four

My smile wavered and I sighed. "Aren't you happy for me?" Tom looked up from his book and let out a little laugh. How had his eyes gotten bluer and his hair darker since last year? "Yes, Harley I'm very happy for you." I crossed my arms, there was no way he'd been listening to a word I said. "Why are you happy for me Tom?" He held back a laugh and smiled in amusement. "Because you've decided to grow your hair out?" I felt the ends of my blond hair, shorter than last year but still at my shoulders. "Why? Don't you like it? But that's not what I said at all!"

Tom shook his head slightly. "I like it short too but it looks more like you when it's long." I stuck my tongue out and plopped down across for him. "Quidditch, Tom. I made Chaser!" Tom's smile fell off his face and he folded his arms across his chest. "You can't! You'll get hurt!" I frowned too realizing he was serious. "Is there a plot against the Quidditch team I didn't know about?" I put my hands on my hips and stood there scowling at my best friend. There was no way he was stopping me from playing Quidditch. "It's just a lot of people get hurt especially as chaser." I rolled my eyes and plopped down in the chair beside him. "What are you reading thats so entrancing anyways?" I held my finger in the page and flipped to the front cover; Dark Magics and Potions.

"What is this?" I turned to look at Tom and raised my eyebrows. "I've found something about the chamber of secrets in here." That peaked my interest, of course we'd looked for it last year but not as frequently as in second year. Maybe we'd find it this year... "Anything new?" Tom closed the book and I followed him as he put it back in the restricted section. "Not really, just the same stuff." I sighed and decided to change the subject. "Alright. So I've been thinking about your Christmas gift. It's tomorrow and I still have no clue what to get you. And then there's your birthday... Your so... Tom Riddle. And Tom Riddle can't have just anything... Any ideas?" Tom smiled obviously thinking of something he'd like. "Draw me something. You are an amazing artist and if you draw me something I'll hang it on my wall." I smiled, if that's what Tom wanted that's what Tom was getting.

I scribbled and sketched the whole day but nothing was good enough for Tom. That and I continually drew his blue eyes and I thought he might think that was strange... So before nightfall I gave up and went into Hogsmead to look. I found a black leather diary with gold corners. I liked it and Tom really could use a diary. He was rather bottle up. I got it inscribed with his name: Tom Marvolo Riddle, in neat gold letters. I tucked the wrapped book inside my robes and went back to the school as soon as I could. I found a green bow and tied it around the fabulous wrapping job the store owner had done. The house elves came and took the present to Tom for me.

When I woke up I found a few presents at the end of my bed. My mother had sent me green hair bows and I couldn't help but smile a little, green was Slytherin colours. She remembered. Which means she put some thought into my gift. I tied my hair in a pony tail and the bow sat neatly on top of it. I opened my present from Cedrella and Lucretia, magic lights that you hang on your bed and look like stars. My father sent me candy from around the world. I'd left Tom's gift for last on purpose and I lifted the lid. Inside was a photograph of Tom and I when we were in first year. I looked so happy and Tom was even laughing along with me. I don't remember this picture being taken... Tom rarely laughed like this. Then I caught a bit of a tree in the background and remembered. It was actually one of my happiest memories. I'd been feeling down and Tom had made me laugh and laugh for hours.

I lifted the photo out and hung it straight on my wall. I smiled and looking at the picture made me want to see Tom. It was already late in the day and he was probably in the great hall. He wasn't. On my way to the owlry I stopped to use the washroom. I was washing my hands and saw something on the side of the tap. I cleared it off, I was some kind of marking. It was a snake. It practically screamed Tom. I pulled out my sketch book and began. I made changes from the original and smiled as it got better. A day before Toms birthday I decided it was ready and I liked it. I had several copies of it some big, some small but all seemed to mean more than just a drawing for Tom. It was a snake and a skull so it symbolized Slytherin, I was so proud of it. But I think Tom would like it even more, it's exactly what he asked for.

On Toms birthday I started running down the stairs to the common room, the box of all the different drawings in my hands. Then I realized something. I hadn't seen Tom since he told me what he wanted. When he wasn't in the common room I put his present in my closet and snuck up to his room he shared with Dolohov, Mulciber and Rosier. I hated them all but I wanted to find Tom. I knocked loudly on the door and fingered my wand in my pocket, my magic was much more powerful with a wand. Rosier answered the door and I kept my distance. He swore and Dolohov came to the door and shouted "Yes! Pay up..." Rosier held up a hand. "You know where he is? Or are you looking for him?" I scowled at their betting at my expense. "Looking for him." Rosiers hopeful face fell and he tossed Dolohov a gallion.

"We haven't seen him. He left before Christmas." I looked past them and saw a few presents piled on Toms four-poster bed. I pushed past them and looked around for a note or anything. Dolohov spoke up, "We're going to breakfast, just close the door when your through and let us know if you find him?" His voice was small when he asked, they were so lost without Tom... They closed the door behind them.

I opened a few drawers. There was no clue to Toms whereabouts anywhere. Then I found a secret compartment under his bed consisting of an envelope full of papers. It somehow felt wrong to read something Tom had kept hidden but it had been a week... I opened it up and started reading the papers; ripped out pages about the chamber of secrets. A few pages about the orphanage he lived in. And a news article about a Tom Riddle returning home after three years of him missing. My mouth dropped, the photograph was a handsome older man that looked the same as Tom. The man was Toms father.

I pushed the papers in, if Tom wanted me to know he'd have told me. I mean his father didn't want him if he was in an orphanage... It made sense that Tom wouldn't want to tell people. But me? I couldn't help feeling a little hurt Tom was hiding things from me. Okay so a lot hurt. And angry. Tom knew everything about me besides my wandless magic but not telling me about his father? I pulled the papers out again and looked through them again. There was a page I'd mistaken for one about the chamber of secrets. About Horcruxes. What was Tom doing with this? I put it back and felt tears in my eyes.

The door burst open and slammed behind Tom. I jumped up. He looked as angry as I felt. "Where have you been?!" I asked, trying to be calm but still angry he was keeping things from me. "I was looking for someone." Tom said flatly. "Your father?" I couldn't help but ask partly out of curiosity and partly so it was out there and he knew. I saw his eyes move to the base of his bed and he scowled. "You went through my things!?"

"You went missing for a week! No note, nobody knew where you were!" I screamed, quite honestly I'd been terrified for him. He glared so menacingly that for a second Tom disappeared. "We were best friends Tom, I thought we told each other everything." I said quietly and pushed passed him out the door. Cedrella found me a little later crying my eyes out in our room.

"You don't need him, Harley! He was always a jerk anyways." But that just made me feel worse because I did need him and he wasn't a jerk, I should've followed my instincts and not gone through his stuff. But it was too late for regrets now...

We didn't talk for the rest of the year but I kept his drawings in their box in the back of my closet. And when I packed them in my trunk to go home I promised that next year I would give them to him. Next year I would fix everything...