Tom Marvolo Riddle . . .
I Am Lord Voldemort . . .
The clank of Harry Potter's wand hitting the ground echoed through the damp corridors of the makeshift prison.
Tom. Marvolo. Riddle.
"Voldemort is my past, present, and future, Harry Potter . . ."
I. Am. Lord. Voldemort.
"It was a name I was already using at Hogwarts, to my most intimate friends only, of course. You think I was going to use my filthy Muggle father's name forever?"
Staring at the man with wide, disbelieving eyes, Harry staggered backwards, away from the cell, not stopping until his back collided with the wall.
The man who claimed to be Lord Voldemort stared back, seemingly puzzled at Harry's reaction.
"You . . ." Harry croaked, his voice suddenly rough and dry. "You aren't Tom Riddle."
'Tom' didn't reply. He just stared at him with that same puzzled look, tilting his head to the side like an animal does when they see or hear something particularly curious.
No, no - this wreak of a human being before him wasn't Tom Riddle. He couldn't be. Riddle was tall, proud, and arrogant, not beaten, broken, and fearful. He was the exact opposite of the man in the cell.
Harry felt hysterical laughter bubbling up to the surface at his next thought. Tom Riddle didn't exactly look like a human, anymore did he? Oh, he was still tall, still proud, and still incredibly arrogant, but he wasn't a man! He was a bloody snake! A snake!
And really, the man in the cell didn't look at all like a snake. He had hair, for thing, and a nose—
Hair just like Tom Marvolo Riddle's, don't you think, Harry?
"No," Harry growled to himself. "No, no, no!"
"Why can't I be Tom Riddle?"
Harry startled violently at the sound of the man's hoarse voice. "What?" he demanded sharply.
The man blinked at him, seemingly processing the question. Several seconds of silence later, he spoke.
"Why can't I be Tom Riddle? I am."
"No, you're not!" Harry spat. "You're not! You can't be! You're lying!"
"I'm not lying!" countered the man, his voice cracking from strain.
Harry gritted his teeth and wrung his hands. "Fine, then. Fine. "Tom". If you insist that you're him, then when were you born? What day? What year? Where?"
'Tom' stared at him blankly for several seconds, thinking. "I - I - I don't know!" he finally admitted, blinking rapidly. "I can't remember! Why can't I remember?!"
Harry smirked, a flood of relief crashing over him. "You aren't Riddle." He let out a little laugh that had a hysterical edge to it. "You don't know Riddle's own birthday," he breathed. "You're not him." He bent over, picked up his wand, and started back off down the hall, trying to put the man out of his mind. He was past the neighboring cell when the man's voice rang out.
"December."
Harry stopped dead in his tracks. "What?" he croaked.
"December. I - I remember! December! Thirty - thirty-first! Nineteen twenty six! Nineteen twenty six! December the thirty-first, nineteen-twenty-six. In London."
Harry's hand tightened painfully around his wand. Slowly, he began to walk backwards, until he was standing in front of the man's cell. He slanted his eyes towards him, and saw that 'Tom' was smiling weakly yet oh-so-self-righteously at him.
"Excuse me?"
"That's my birthday," 'Tom' croaked, his voice getting stronger. "December thirty-first, nineteen twenty six. London, England."
Harry licked his lips nervously. "Where in London?"
Tom swallowed. "An - an orphanage. I was raised – raised there, yes - because my mother died. Giving birth to me."
"What was your mother's name?" Harry demanded.
". . . . Merope."
"And her last name?"
"Gaunt. Merope Gaunt."
"Father's name?"
". . . It was my name. Tom." His self righteous smile grew to be even wider. "I can remember. I can remember!!"
Harry sagged back against the wall. "This - this is not happening. This is impossible."
"Harry?" a voice spoke up from behind him.
Harry glanced behind him, where Tonks had just come back down the corridor.
"Tonks," he moaned. "I've just found Lord Voldemort locked in one of his own prison cells. What do you think I should do?"
Author's Note: I'm so sorry I haven't updated for so long! Writers block, a long distance move, and serious computer trouble have really delayed me. The italic quotes in the beginning of the chapter are taken from The Chamber of Secrets. The next chapter should come faster than this one!
Thanks a ton for all the reviews! They really encouraged me!
-Snarryvader81 (aka Anna)