As a fan of AU's where Harry isn't the Boy Who Lived with James and Lily alive, and the TomxHarry pairing, I've decided to combine the two. Only I'm doing things a bit differently to the typical AU!stories , and by that I mean James and Lily won't be abusive and Harry won't be a perfect, super being. Also, this story will be very dark. Not light bashing, but still, very dark. The title of this story is from the song 'The Horrors of Our Love' by Ludo, which was the inspiration for this story. You should listen to it; it's a good song.

Summary – AU! In a world where Neville Longbottom was declared the Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter grew up in a happy, loving family, but all of that changed when he was twelve; the year he met Tom Riddle. TMR/HP slash. Dark!Harry.

Warnings – Slash, alternate universe, character deaths, language.

Disclaimer – I am not the J. K. Rowling, so I own nothing you recognise, and I make no money from writing this. All I get is the twisted satisfaction of making fictional characters act out my fantasies xD

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31st October, 1981

Lily and James Potter looked up at the old wizard in shock, not quite believing what they had just heard.

"You mean Harry's safe now?" Lily asked, heart leaping when Albus Dumbledore nodded; her baby boy was safe.

The Hogwarts Headmaster had flooed into their home and told them that the Longbottoms had been attacked by Lord Voldemort. Frank and Alice had been killed, but their young son Neville had somehow survived the Killing Curse, the curse itself rebounding on the caster and vanquishing him.

Albus offered the young couple a reassuring smile, though his eyes weren't twinkling as they normally did.

"Poor Alice and Frank" James uttered, resting his hands against his forehead. "What will happen to their boy?"

"His grandmother will take care of him. Voldemort is not fully dead, and one day he will find a way to return. Her blood will protect him from harm, and I believe Augusta will make sure Neville does not grow up spoiled. His name will be famous in our world from this day, for reasons he won't understand until he is much older, but that can't go to his head."

Lily and James nodded solemnly, a tear rolling down the red-haired woman's face. James clasped her hand, and she laid her own protectively over her stomach.

1st September, 1991

Harry Potter stood in the Great Hall of Witchcraft and Wizardry, looking nervously at the hat which was currently sorting the other first years into their houses. He had to get into Gryffindor, he just had to. He couldn't imagine what his dad would say if he ended up in Slytherin, although he probably wouldn't get a chance to find out; Snivellus, or rather Severus, as his mother insisted he called him, would likely kill him first. Snape was the Godfather of Harry's nine year old sister Heather. He adored the girl who looked much like Lily, only with her father's hazel eyes, but the greasy haired man and Harry did not get on at all.

He winced as the strict looking woman at the front called his name and he stepped forward nervously, sitting on the wooden stool. His world went dark as the hat dropped over his eyes.

He bit down on his lip as the hat's voice filled his head.

"Hmm, interesting. A difficult choice I have with you. I can see you have plenty of courage, but you also aren't afraid to do what you must to get to where you want to be. I can see at the same time you feel you belong in one house, though you could truly be of both. You will be a snake in lion's clothing, as I believe that the best choice for you is…Gryffindor!"

20th June, 1992

A bright smile crossed Harry's face when he spotted his family waiting for him at the platform, having just arrived back in London from Hogwarts. His sister saw him first, and she dashed forward, wrapping her arms around him tightly.

"I've missed you, Harry" Heather said, pulling him over to their parents, who were stood with Sirius Black, Harry's Godfather, and Remus Lupin, another man Harry was close to.

They all took their turns to embrace Harry tightly, especially Lily who was acting as if she never wanted to let Harry out of her sight again.

They all went together to the Potter's home where Harry told them all about his first year. He told them about his classes and his professors, and how Snape picked on him in Potions just because he knew him already. He told them about Neville Longbottom, and how he managed to stop You-Know-Who, and he told them about his dorm mates, and the girls as well, and how nice they all were. What he didn't tell them was that Snape was horrible to him in Potions class because he couldn't get the potions right. He didn't tell them that when he offered to help Neville, Ron and Hermione save the Philosopher's Stone that he was told he didn't have to worry because they didn't need him. He didn't tell them that as much as he liked the other Gryffindors, and as much as they liked him, none of them were really friends with him. He was always the one who was left out and so often he felt alone. But he wouldn't tell his family any of that; he wanted them to be happy, and they wouldn't be if he told them about his worries, so for now he decided to keep it all inside.

17th August, 1992

Harry was hiding away in a corner of Flourish and Blotts, balancing several heavy books in his arms while his mother was busy pretending not to swoon over Gilderoy Lockhart. His dad and sister had stopped for ice cream, much to Harry's displeasure, and now he was stuck waiting for his mum to get her autobiography of Lockhart signed. On top of the books he needed for school, he also picked up a few others for general reading. He was by no means a bookworm like Hermione, but Lily had taught him the importance of reading from a young age. All the books he had piled up blocked his vision slightly, and so when he turned around he didn't see the blond haired figure. He crashed into the form, dropping everything onto the floor.

"Sorry miss" he muttered, crouching down to pick up his items.

The person cleared their throat in a very manly way, and Harry looked up nervously. The figure had indeed been a man, though from the back the long hair certainly had seemed feminine. Harry presumed this man must be Draco Malfoy's father, for they looked very similar.

"Sorry" Harry muttered again. "I didn't mean to say miss." He looked back down nervously and started to gather his books up when the man dropped down opposite him and started to help him gather them up. They stood together and the blond conjured up a bag for Harry's books.

Harry smiled at him gratefully. "Thank you Sir. I'm sorry for walking into you."

The man simply smirked, reminding Harry even more of Draco. "That is quite alright. At least you have manners. Potter isn't it?"

Harry nodded slowly as the blond's eyes seemed to examine him. His eyes flickered over to his mother and he smirked further, walking off without saying a word. Lily hadn't noticed anything had happened with Harry, only asking later where he had gotten the bag from. Harry just told her a nice man gave it to him to help him carry everything and they said no more on the subject.

When Harry got home later that afternoon, he emptied out all of the books onto his bed. He shifted through them, when one in particular caught his eye. It was an old, battered thing, with a faded date from fifty years previous just legible on the front cover. It seemed to be a diary of some sort, but when he opened it the pages were blank, with only a smudged 'T M. Riddle' on the first page. It must have gotten mixed up with his books by accident, but he wasn't going to pass up a free book. His mother wrote in her diary all the time, and she told Harry it was a good thing to do if he ever needed to get anything off his chest.

Harry felt he had a lot to get of his chest so he pulled out a quill and set it against the page, nibbling on his lip as a feeling of dread filled him for a moment, disappearing almost instantly.

'My name is Harry Potter' he wrote 'and I can't tell my worries and secrets to anyone else.'

He was going to write more, but as he finished his sentence, the ink began to fade into the page, being replaced with new words.

'Hello Harry, I would be happy to listen. My name is Tom Riddle.'

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And there is your short introduction to Harry's world. The next chapter or two will be (longer) and based on key moments in Harry's second year, but after that the chapters won't jump around in time, and will be set in the sixth year (which is when the slash will start.)

I hope you liked what you've read so far and let me know what you think.