"What do you mean ? "The boy whispered, eyes blazing.

Harry couldn't help but smile. He had been a professor at Hogwarts a long time ago, and this revelation was always one of his favourite parts of the job.

"Would you mind having a hot chocolate for this conversation? I'm afraid I need a little rest."

"No. Tell me now."

Harry could sense the faintest compulsion against his brain. Surprised, he looked again at the boy. His face had become very cold.

"That wasn't very polite. You shouldn't do that to people."

It was the turn of the boy to look surprised. But then he looked incredibly excited.

"So you are… You are like me. You know what I'm doing ! Magic, is it?"

"Oh well, I see you're too impatient for a drink. Come, we should at least sit on this bench."

The boy obeyed easily, but Harry could see the contained tension in his shoulders and the briefest look of irritation on his face. This boy was very strange, indeed, but Harry found himself weirdly fascinated by him.

"Before we begin, do your relatives know about your powers ?"

The boy raised an eyebrow.

"I'm an orphan. And the people at the orphanage may suspect something, but they will never have any proof."

Harry could see a wicked light in the eyes of the boy. He also raised an eyebrow.

"Alright. Do strange things appear around you, like when you're very angry or very happ-"

"Yes !" interrupted the boy, looking like he might jump right off the bench. The wicked light had invaded his face, and he looked… "I can move objects. Animals obey to me. And I can punish the ones I dislike. Hurt them, if I want to."

Harry examined the boy. Something… Something that he said…

"Really? I will not immediately talk about the fact that you use magic to hurt people, even if I disagree with that..." (and the boy looked just a bit disdainful for a second) "...But that's very impressive. Most wizards and witches can't control their powers at this stage."

"That's not all." The boy smiled shrewdly, his eyes fixed upon Harry. "I can talk too snakes. Is that special, too?"

Harry stared at the boy.

"I forgot to ask, but what's your name?"

The boy straightened himself, a defiant look in his eyes.

"I'm Tom Marvolo Riddle."

(And really, Harry should have guessed at the very moment Tom ran into him.)

"What's your name?" Tom asked imperiously.

Harry was suddenly torn from the blankness that had invaded him.

"Oh, I'm Harry Potter."

He looked again at the little boy. It wasn't the first time that he encountered a variation of a person of his first life. Sometime it was fine, he had become just a bit nostalgic when he had found a Susan Bones and a Theodore Nott working as servants for a yohutian empress.

But he had felt his heart die just a little when he had gazed upon a Ginny who didn't recognize him or a Ron and a Hermione living together on Mars who were a bit irritated by his staring at their first meeting.

(He didn't want to think about it…)

But it was the first time he saw a new version of the dark lord that had tormented his youth. Harry… found himself curious.

"How old are you?"

Tom glowered.

"I'm eleven years old."

Harry smiled.

"Soon, you'll go to Hogwarts. Well, if we are in a world like the one I knew."

"What do you mean? Are there also other worlds out there?"

"Yes, plenty. But I'm new to this one."

"Are all wizards able to travel between worlds?"

Tom had an avid expression on his face, his body entirely angled towards Harry.

The latter smiled.

"You're a clever one. I'm special, a bit like you. No one else but you can talk to snakes in this world, if it's like my old one. And no one else but me should be able to travel like I do. Obviously, there are always exception, but these are few and far between."

"I need to think." muttered Tom, a dazed look in his eyes.

"But of course." said Harry pleasantly, looking around him.

After a few seconds, he stood up.

"What are you doing?" Tom said harshly.

"I'd like to see if the magical part of London is like the one in my world. Do you want to come with me?"

"There is a magical part?"

"Potentially."

"I'll come."

Tom stood up quickly and began to walk. Harry adapted his steps to Tom's.

"You're taking this rather well.", he commented.

"I knew… I knew I was special. That there wasn't just the orphanage for me."

Tom seemed to tremble with excitation.

"Of course, of course..."Harry muttered.

There was a silence, both of them lost in their thoughts.

"You knew me. In your old world."

"Indeed. But we weren't friends, that's for sure."

"What do you mean?", Tom asked coldly.

Harry sighed again. The situation had gotten away from him. He was a bit unprepared to meet Tom. Oh, well… He didn't necessarily like secrets…

"We were what you could call enemies. It didn't end well for either of us."

Tom fixed him uncomprehendingly.

"Why are you approaching me, then?"

"Well, do you really think that you are no different from the Tom I knew in another world? And even if you are no different, I think the circumstances of our meeting are different enough to not hold any prejudices against you, or you against me. Don't you agree?"

Tom'face was completely blank. Finally, he declared:

"A wise speech."

Harry smiled.

"Thank you. Oh, look, we have arrived."

And while Tom looked around him with a perplexed look, Harry couldn't help but feel accomplished.