warnings on first chapter
disclaimer/note, etc. bottom of page.

Chapter Five

Tom watched as Dumbledore walked out of the orphanage from out of his window, making sure that the man had disappeared from his view before he jumped off his bed (the one that he had been using as a boost) and practically ran out of his room.

'I'm a wizard.' Tom said to himself, feeling a strange burst of elation at the thought. Wizards existed. And he, Tom, was a wizard. He was going to a school where he would meet other wizards like himself, where he would be trained to become a proper wizard. He would be getting out of the rotten orphanage known as Wool's, and forever leave the place in the past.

'I need to tell Harry about this-' Tom said to himself, his ste And then he had to stop mid-step, realization dawning upon him. 'Harry. Harry hasn't gotten his letter yet.' But did that necessarily mean Harry wasn't a wizard? Dumbledore had said that his room mate was merely too young to go-

But then again Tom had never seen Harry do anything that he would consider special. He had only heard stories of Harry's powers, - but his stories of his powers matched his own - never actually seen Harry use his powers (no, magic.) and besides Tom was special, after all he knew how to control his powers and Harry didn't, and he doubted that Harry had lied to him about the whole thing. But, perhaps Harry was just a really good liar and he had been played a fool for so long? No- no, Tom wasn't the type to be fooled so easily. And Harry wasn't the type of person to do that. Was he? Tom didn't really know. He didn't really know anything about his 'friend'. And it irked him to no end that he didn't know anything important about Harry, even when he had lived with the boy for- for how long?

He didn't even remember!

Tom pursed his lips, turning around swiftly and walking back to his room. There was no reason why he needed to talk to Harry about Dumbledore's visit, anyway. It was really none of his business.

"Tom."

Tom paused, recognizing the voice. He turned around to face the stern face of Mrs. Cole. "Yes, Mrs. Cole?" He asked, politely.

"Mr. Dumberton- oh, Dunderbore is gone, then?" Asked Mrs. Cole.

"Dumbledore." Tom corrected. "And yes, he just left."

"Ah. All right, then." Said Mrs. Cole, ignoring his correction. A pause, and then. "Well? Go back into your room. Don't cause any trouble."

"Of course Mrs. Cole." Tom said, already turning around to head back into his room. And then he turned back around, deciding to ask Mrs. Cole about his room mate. " Is Harry still outside?"

"Yes, though I'm quite certain he's done with his chores by now." Mrs. Cole responded blandly.

"All right, then." Tom said, and turned back round and walked back to his room.

-x-

The door banged open with a loud thud, and then Harry ran inside.

"Tom! Tom, you wouldn't believe what I just saw!" Harry gushed, practically pouncing on his room mate. Although in the end it wasn't his room mate whom he had pounced on, but his bed. "There was this really funny man-"

"Albus Dumbledore, yes. I know." Tom interrupted, sneering down at Harry, whose face was flushed, and clothes damp with sweat. "Off my bed, Harry. You're getting it all sticky."

Harry acquiesced, his mouth forming a thin line as he slid off of Tom's bed. "Fine, fine." He mumbled, taking off his shirt and throwing it onto the floor. "So you met him too?" He asked as he began changing his clothes.

"Yes, I did." Tom replied vaguely, turning his attention back to his book.

"He seems like a really nice man. His clothes are really cool. I don't think that I'd ever be brave enough to go out wearing that. I wonder what he was here for, though. Do you know, Tom? Huh?"

"Hm." Tom hummed in response, flipping to another page of his book. "Harry, how old are you?" Tom asked, ignoring Harry's question.

"Me? Oh, uh. Ten, I think. Why?" Harry answered, gathering the clothes on the floor and throwing them into a hamper next to the door, which he noticed he hadn't closed yet, so did.

Tom blinked, turned to Harry, and then shrugged. "No reason. Just- ... Wondering. Professor Dumbledore came to offer me a position in his school on a scholarship."

"Whoa- Really, Tom? That's so cool!" Exclaimed Harry, and then once again pounced on Tom's bed, shuffling into a comfortable position next to his friend. "I always knew you were smart, I mean you're probably smarter than all those adults at our school. So what school are you going to?"

"Hogwarts. Its a boarding school." Tom answered, scooting further away from Harry and subsequently causing Harry to shuffle closer until he was cornered into a wall, in which he then gave up attempting to move further from his room mate.

"A boarding school? Sounds cool. Wait, boarding school? That's uh..."

"It means I'll be living in the school, idiot." Tom explained.

"Oh! Cor - hey wait a minute. Doesn't that mean that you'll be living at your school?" Asked Harry, frowning.

"Yes. Didn't I just say that, Harry? Now stop scooting so close. Haven't you ever heard of something called personal space?"

"But won't that mean that you'll be leaving Wools?" Said Harry in a quiet, worried voice.

"Not forever, idiot." Tom sniffed, "just for most of the year."

"Oh. When will you be back?"

"I haven't even left, you know."

"Yeah, but. Still. When are you leaving, then?"

"September first. Now, stop hogging all my bed space - don't you have your own?" Tom asked, pushing Harry off of his bed, causing the younger boy to fall down with a thump.

"Fine." Harry grumbled, rubbing his back side as he slunk back to his own bed. "What about your school stuff? You don't have any money."

"Its on a scholarship, the school know's I don't have any money. They have a thing called student loans, you know."

"Oh." Harry mutters defeatedly. "Okay. Where are you going to get your supplies then?"

"Tomorrow. Professor Dumbledore is going to help. Now shut up, Harry. I'm trying to read." Tom snapped.

"Fine, whatever, Tom."

-x-

Albus Dumbledore returned to Wools Orphanage the next day. That day his wardrobe consisted of a pink-coloured muggle suit, overlapped by a bright orange robe. The colours clashed madly against each other, and everyone that had walked past him had eyed his clothing curiously, wondering if the man was mad or merely lacked any sense of fashion. Albus Dumbledore never seemed to notice, though, or if he did, he probably thought that they were sending appreciative glances towards his new wonderfully stylish wardrobe, if the twinkling of his eyes and the cheery whistling as he walked down the path to Wools Orphanage was anything to go by.

"Mr. Dumbledore, sir?" Came a familiar voice, and Albus looked down to see the small, green-eyed youth that he had met just the day before. "Are you here for Tom?"

"Why yes, yes I am my boy. Do you know if he's in?" Asked Albus, smiling down at the boy - Harry, was it?

"Yeah, Tom's outside. He's been waiting for you - but don't tell him I said that." Harry said, quickly, and then led Albus to where Tom was situated at. Tom was sitting down under a tree, an open book in his lap, and he seemed to be slightly distracted as he read.

"Hey, Tom!" Harry called out, immediately gaining the attention of said boy. "Mr. Dumbledore's here!"

"Hush, Harry!" Tom admonished, closing his book and making to stand up. "There's no need to shout. Professor Dumbledore, sir." Tom greeted, smiling charmingly up at him. Albus, however, wasn't fooled, but decided to play along.

"Hello to you, Tom." Albus returned chipperly. "How are you this fine day?"

"I'm fine, sir. Yourself?"

"Good, good. Well, are you ready to go now?"

Tom nodded, and handed the book to Harry. "I'm leaving. Take care of yourself. Don't get into any trouble, and remember what I said about Dennis and-"

"Yes, yes, Tom. Just go." Harry groaned, and Albus chuckles, watching as the younger boy takes Tom's book and gives (a very much surprised) Tom a hug, before running away.

"Well?" Albus says innocently, and Tom immediately snaps out of his reverie. "Are you ready, my boy?"

"Y-yes. Of course, shall we go, sir?"

"Have you brought your item list with you?"

"Yes, sir."

"Have you brought your money?"

"Yes, sir."

"Have you told Mrs. Cole you'd be leaving yet?"

"She won't mind." 'He hasn't told anyone but Harry he's leaving.' Albus' mind corrects.

"Well, if you say so. Come now." Albus says, and soon they begin their journey to Leaky Cauldron, with Albus explaining to Tom the directions to get to the wizarding pub, and about the magical world in general as they walked. Tom seemed to be genuinely interested in what Albus had to say, though that was no surprise - most (if not all) muggleborn children were when they're first introduced to the wizarding world.

"So, only wizards can see the pub?" Tom questions, as soon as they arrive in front of the Leacky Cauldron. "How?"

"Magic, of course, my boy!" Was Albus' reply, and Tom scowled, for clearly that wasn't the answer he was hoping for. "And of course, there are also wards preventing muggles from seeing wizarding places. An example of one such charm is the muggle repelling charm."

"I see." Tom cocked his head to the side, processing the new information in his mind. "Thank you for the explanation, Professor."

"Always glad to help, my boy!" Albus said cheerily, as they both entered the pub. The Leaky Cauldron was, as usual, dark, damp, musty, and smelt of alcohol. Firewhisky, to be more precise; really, who would be drinking firewhisky so early in the afternoon?

"Hello, Tom." Albus said, sliding easily into a stool. Tom the bartender looked up from the glass he had been polishing, and gave Albus a toothy smile.

"Albus, the usual?"

"Can't, Tom, I'm on Hogwarts business. Tom, this is my charge for the day, Tom. Tom, this is Tom." Albus said bemusedly, inwardly giggling at his own joke. "Say hello, now."

Tom - his charge - didn't hesitate as he stuck out his hand towards Tom - the bartender. "Nice too meet you, sir."

"A polite one, aren't you?" Tom - the bartender - said, taking Tom - his charge's - hand and promptly shook it. "Well, shouldn't you be off now? Diagon Alley's going to get crowded soon."

"Do you want to order anything before we go, Tom m'boy?"

"No thank you, sir."

"Well, all right then." Albus said disappointedly; he had been hoping to impress his charge with various kinds of magical foods. Well, there was always next time. "We'd better get going, Tom." Albus nodded in the bartenders direction, slipping off the stool, and headed towards the back door.

"Professors, I think you entered the wrong door."

"Nonsense! This, Tom, is the entrance to Diagon Alley. I'm quite certain of it."

"But its just a brick wall-"

"Well, not everything is as it seems." Albus smiled mischievously, and took out his wand, tapping a few select bricks. A moment later, the wall began to shift and change, and soon there was no wall, and in place of it, was the entrance to Diagon Alley.

Tom's face remained impassive, but Albus knew that the boy was secretly in awe at the sight.

"Well, we'd better get going. You brought your shopping list, didn't you?"

"Yes, sir. Its right here-" Tom said, as he reached out into his pocket and fished out a neatly folded piece of parchment. "Where are we headed off to, first?"

"Why don't we get you some new robes first?" Albus suggested, and Tom nodded. Albus could practically feel the waves of anticipation and eagerness to get started.

Shopping with Tom had gone smoothly. They started at the North side of Digaon Alley, the first shop they entered was called Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, in which Tom had bought all of his wizarding clothes,

(Such bright colours as usual, Professor Dumbledore. What a polite young man your charge is! Oh, dear, you're making me blush-)

and had successfully charmed Madam Malkin so much that they had been given a discount.

Their next stop was to the Apothecary to get Tom's potions supply and ingredients. Afterwards they went to Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment to get all of the necessary equipment, which included a set of glass phials, a telescope, a set of brass scales and a cauldron. These were then stored in Tom's newly-bought trunk, that had been purchased along with his equipments at Wiseacre's.

Their next stop was Florish and Blotts, where Tom seemed to have spent most time at, browsing through books and reading over them quickly before moving on to the next shelf. In the end, Albus had to practically drag Tom from the store, telling him on how he had to get his wand.

Needless to say, it was soon Tom that was dragging Albus to Ollivanders. Not literally, of course.

Albus had decided to wait outside, as Tom entered Ollivanders, wanting the boy to experience the most important moment in a wizards life on his own. Albus hoped it Tom's wand choosing wouldn't take too long. Or that Ollivander would scare his charge too much.

-x-

As Tom stepped into the establishment, he heard a bell above his head ring. As soon as he was inside, the door slammed shut behind him, causing Tom to jump in surprise.

"Well, hello there. I wondered when I'd be seeing you! Come in, come in, don't be shy. About time you came to me for a wand, isn't it?"

Tom turned around, and doubled backwards, once again in surprise, as a tall, lanky man with whitening hair approached him, grinning toothily.

Tom forced himself to smile back at him.

"I haven't seen you before. Here for your first wand?" The man questioned, and Tom nodded. "Good - excellent! What's you name?"

"Tom Riddle, sir." Tom said, and began to straighten up.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Riddle. Call me Ollivander. Now, your wand hand, Mr. Riddle?"

"My wand hand? Right, I suppose." Tom answered, sticking out his right hand.

With a snap of his fingers, a measuring tape floated by and began measuring as Ollivander began taking notes as well. With a snap, the measuring tape fell to the floor, and Ollivander began to shuffle towards the back of the store, only to return a minute later with stacks of boxes.

"Chestnut, Eight three-quarters, Dragon Heartstring. Give it a wave, Mr. Riddle." Ollivander said, handing over a wand, which Tom took, and began waving. Somewhere inside the store a vase broke. Ollivander snatched the wand away from Tom's hand.

"I apologise-"

"No, no. Here, try this, Hawthorn. Ten inches, hair from a particularly vain unicorn. No, not that either-" Tom hadn't even held the wand in his hand for a few seconds before once again Ollivander took it, and replaced it with another wand.

This went on for a quarter hour, in which Tom figured out that Ollivander's joy was in proportion to the number of wands that didn't suit him.

"A difficult one, aren't you? Here, try this. Ash, 12 inches unicorn hair- no, not that either. Hm, what about- yes, lets try that! Ah, here, Mr. Riddle. Yew, thirteen and a half inches, core of Pheonix feather. Well, give it a wave?"

Tom did, and immediately he felt a tingling sensation rush up his arm, and he suppressed a rather undignified shudder.

"Yes! Perfect - it seems we've found you a match."Ollivander seemed to whoop for joy, and somehow Tom couldn't blame him for doing so.

"Mr. Ollivander," Tom said, looking dazedly at his wand. "Could you perhaps explain to me more about wands?"

"The wand chooses the wizard, Mr. Riddle. That much has always been clear to those of us who have studied wandlore... These connections are complex. An initial attraction, and then a mutual quest for experience, the wand learning from the wizard, the wizard from the wand." Ollivander explained in a monotonous voice, moving to the back of the cashier. "That'll be ten galleons, Mr. Riddle. Thank you for your purchase."

-x-

In the end Tom's shopping Trip took approximately four hours, most of which were spent at Florish and Blotts. Dumbledore had walked him back to the orphanage, after expanding Tom's trunk ("this'll be out secret, won't it, Tom?" Dumbledore asked, winking mischievously at him) and storing all of his purchases in it. Dumbledore had also applied a feather-light charm on his trunk, so that he didn't need to drag his new trunk around because it was too heavy for him to carry on his own.

"Professor Dumbledore, sir. I have a question." Tom said, as they stopped in front of Wools.

"Yes, my boy?" Albus prodded, curious as to what Tom might want to ask him. Tom was a very curious young man, with seemingly infinite questions. A Ravenclaw, perhaps?

"Can we use Hogwart's owls to send messages? I couldn't afford one on my own, as you know, and I was wondering if there was anyway to send messages without needing to buy one."

"Well, of course, my boy! The owlery at Hogwarts holds hundreds of owls - you can use any owl that you want to send your posts. That is, if the owls let you." Albus beamed down at Tom. "Well, its getting rather late, isn't it? I'll be seeing you on September first, my boy. Take care."

"Yes, thank you sir. You, as well."

a/n happy halloween, guys.
uh. late update.
i was pretty uninspired to write this
so yes. sorry ; u ;
but um just for halloween, y'know? yeah.

pretty much wrote this in a hurry in, like, two-three days. but um, at least update? q u q