The Darkening of Your Soul

Chapter 19

It was a subtle kind of torture, Harry decided, to be able to ride along with Tom, but not to feel him. Harry was trapped in a glass box, or so it felt. He saw through Tom’s eyes, but couldn’t sense his soulmate and it was maddening, to be so close and not be complete.

Tom was having similar sentiments, if his pacing and snarling were any indication. They were back in the reception room of Riddle Manor and Harry wondered how much time had passed.

“Something happened,” Tom muttered as he paced around the room like a caged dragon. Barty was sitting in a chair at the coffee table and Harry did a double take when he saw Barty’s new face through Tom’s eyes.

Barty’s dirty-blond hair was now a rich, chestnut brown, his watery, blue eyes were a dark grey, and even his normally pale skin had the slightest olive hue. The shape of his nose was different, a little pointier instead of the blunt nose he’d had before, and his cheekbones were higher and lips just a bit fuller. He still obviously looked related to the Crouches, but nothing that would specifically remind one of Bartemius Crouch Jr. All in all, he looked good, and Harry was disappointed he couldn’t tell him that.

“It’s been 24 hours. The kid probably fell off his broom and is sleeping it off in the hospital wing,” Barty said, but his tone was unconvincing and he was wringing his hands in his lap.

“If he was sleeping I would feel him,” Tom snarled at Barty, who looked at him with wide eyes. “And I cannot feel him. I haven’t felt him in twenty four hours. He might be dead for all we know!” Tom kicked against a side table, sending it scattering across the floor. “That blasted Quirrell is useless. He knows Harry is important to us yet he sends no news!”

“If Harry was dead it would be in the papers, I’m sure,” Barty said, but his tone suggested he was trying to convince himself of this even more so than he was trying to convince Tom. “I’ll try my mirror again.” Barty took his mirror out of his pocket and held it against his Dark Mark to activate it. Harry knew it was useless since his own mirror was locked in his trunk and Harry was stuck in Tom’s mind and in no position to answer it.

“We need someone on the ground at Hogwarts to protect Harry. He is far too important to lose.” Tom stopped pacing and ran a tired hand across his face. “I’m going to call in Severus.”

“My Lord?” Barty looked up at Tom in shock, fumbling with the mirror in his hands and almost dropping it. “If you call Snape, he’ll tell Dumbledore immediately you’ve returned before answering the summons. I thought we agreed it was of the utmost importance that the old man never gets confirmation who Thomas Gaunt really is.”

Tom snarled at Barty. “I know, but Harry might be dying or dead! And I will not sit on my arse and do nothing when there are people I can call in to take action.”

Barty pursed his lips, brow furrowed as he held up a finger. “If we send in Winky to tell Snape he cannot let Dumbledore know before you call him it might work to keep it from the old fool.”

Tom paused for a moment and turned to look at Barty. “Yes, that might work. Send Winky, have her tell Severus that if he so much as breathes a word to Dumbledore about the upcoming summoning his life will be forfeit and then I can call him without alerting the old man. And once Severus is here, he’ll take an Unbreakable Vow or he dies.”

“That’ll work,” Barty said with a smile and he called Winky to give her instructions. Meanwhile, Harry wanted to tell Tom there was no need to kill Snape, but of course he was still trapped in this metaphorical glass box so he could only sit and watch. Winky popped away and Tom resumed his pacing. No more than five minutes later, Winky popped back into the room.