Chapter 6
Chapter 6: Decisions, Decisions
April 25, 1982- Tom's Office, Slytherin Manor, Unplottable Location
Tom paced up and down the length of his office for what seemed to be the thousandth time. Confused, questioning emotions and thoughts swirled throughout his mind, creating a whirlpool of things he didn’t want to deal with at the moment. The Slytherin Lord growled, frustrated, as he ran his hands through his hair, tugging at the ends in aggravation.
“Tom, love, you’re just going to end up pulling your hair out at this rate.” Tom spun around, surprised. He had hardly seen his Lillian since the- ahem- incident in the woods. He still didn’t know how to deal with it- what they were going to about it, he didn’t know how to proceed with any of it. Right after they had landed back into the garden in front of the Manor, Tom had come up with multiple plans on how to deal with Helena Ravenclaw’s proposition.
He had dug up every possible option on how to proceed, yet he wouldn’t- couldn’t- go through with them, because anything he decided would be at the risk of his family. His small family of three- soon to be more, Tom thought. Lillian was just under three months pregnant, which was surprising, seeming as they had been celebrating the other’s presence quite frequently since the past Samahain. Tom shivered. Even though he hadn’t gone through with creating any horcruxes, he still felt uneasy every year on October 31. At the time, Tom had thought that getting back his wife and child on Death’s double-damned day just in spite would make him feel better about Thanatos in general- but apparently not. The thought of losing any of the people he cared about- which was an admittedly small group of people- to Death’s cold hands still made him tense up agitation and uncomfortable paranoia. Tom’s frame tensed reflexively and he scowled. This was supposed to be over! He shouldn’t still have doubts about whether or not he should be able to keep his family safe or not- it wasn’t natural! His instincts reared up at the thought, hissing in agitation. He would be protect his bonded, his child and their unborn baby at any cost- including his life and he would destroy anyone who said otherwise!
Tom took deep, slow breaths to steady himself and bring him away from the inhuman rage he had inherited from his ancestor.
“Did your colubri odium try to come out again?” Lillian asked softly, concern etched into her very being. Tom gritted his teeth to stop himself from hissing out a reply on reflex, before straightening and looking at his bonded once more.
“Unfortunately.” Tom replied in a casual drawl, fluidly gliding across the room towards his bonded. Lillian stepped forwards, stepping into Tom’s large and comforting embrace. She buried her face into the folds of his robes and breathed deeply, letting her magic come out and embrace Tom’s after being separated for the days after the relavations in the woods.
Lillian knew that her way of coping with traumatising events wasn’t particularly healthy, but it was the only way she knew how to deal with them. She suspected this was due to her training to becoming the next Lady Black, because if there was one thing that stuck in her mind after all those years was to never show weakness to anyone, even in the direst of circumstances. Therefor, whenever something happened that could let any of her emotions come through to direct or affect herself in any way, Lillian made sure to shut down any and all emotions that she felt until she became a vessel for cool, harsh-yet needed- logic. It was one of the reasons why she made such a formidable foe, both on the physical and magical battlefield as well as during a battle of wits. This coping mechanism was the only reason that she hadn’t lost her sanity from the idiotic actions of some of the population who believed that they could usurp her and Tom as the Leaders of the Dark Sect.
Due to this coping mechanism, Lillian had holed herself up in the Slytherin Library ever since the incident in the woods, trying to find the perfect solution to their dilemma.
Eventually, she had found an option that was both logical and accepting without being too needy- Lillian nearly shuddered at thought of acting like some loyal, eager puppy waiting to please its master. She had been raised as The Black Heiress, and nothing would make her act so plebian, even to a goddess as powerful as Hecate.
Tom- most likely guessing what she had been pondering about over their link- drew his face slightly to murmur, “Have you found a solution yet, my Lillian?” He let one of his hands draw down her cheekbone before tucking a strand of crimson hair behind her hair in a subconscious gesture of affection towards his only equal. Lillian sighed, pushing back to look up at Tom in pained determination.
“We must return to the forest.” She started, ignoring Tom’s aggravated hiss at her statement. “If there is any chance at all that the Grey Lady was telling the truth, then I do not wish to go against the one who is the reason for our magic’s existence, the reason that we are even bonded,” Lillian prodded, hoping that mentioning their coupling- however low of a move it may be- could convince both her husband and his instincts the logical points of her arguments. She took a breath, before continuing at a leisurely pace. “If anything, we can get more information out of the late Lady Ravenclaw before deciding what to do. However, I have found reason to believe that she is telling the truth, as I have found evidence in diary entries and the like from our ancestors which alludes to the much more accepted- and even casual practice of more powerful magics. If the Ministry, or whatever rudimentary government system existed at the time started to ban and ignore these more obscure branches of magic- wandless and elemental magics among them- that means that the average witch or wizard would be less connected and in tune with their own magics, as we both know most of the branches the Ministry currently consider dark” She sneered with distaste at this, “take much more focus and power from someone who is can entwine and merge with their magical stores at will.”
Tom smiled a feral, seemingly fanged grin as he quickly gained an idea on how to manipulate this into his favor within the Ministry, the Wizengamot and the double-damned International Confederation of Wizards.
Tom continued his bonded’s train of thought, speaking in a low, melodical whisper that grew with passion from every word that flowed out of his mouth. “We can use this to covertly spread our- and Lady Hecate’s- goals and wishes into the Ministry and beyond by letting someone, ah, discover this bit of information and by the time that idiot Fudge has even thought about denying it, everyone will already know and form their own doubts and conclusions from it. It’s perfect, love, because they will find enough evidence that supports it if we somehow make the knowledge somewhat available to the public, and we will not have to deal with the revolting masses that would want to deal with the fact that we all have been slowly killing off magic!” During his monologue, Tom’s face became more and more animated as he planned and plotted more ideas to use to get to their end goal.
“Easy, love.” Lillian smiled gently as she looked at the real-life excitement on her bonded’s face that was reflected through their bond. “We haven’t gone back to Helena’s cottage to find out if she was telling the truth yet.”
Tom deflated slightly at her words before brightening again. “But we can go now, right darling?” He grinned widely at Lillian’s small nod and fondly exasperated smile at her bonded’s antics and grabbed her hand, foregoing the proper pureblood etiquette that was required of him due to his Lord status, because damn it all, he hadn’t been this bloody excited about anything work-related in a long time!
Lillian gave a delighted shriek of laughter as her bonded rambled about his ideas for the Ministry while he simultaneously twirled her around on the grounds outside in his giddy state of excitement. As the world spun around in a blur of colorful anticipation that was reflected in Tom’s eyes and smile, she was reminded of the eagerly cunning man who had hid behind a charismatic mask whom she had originally fallen in love with.
-HCR-
April 25, 1982- The Cottage, Forests Outside Slytherin Manor, Unplottable Location
As soon as the delighted duet appeared at the edge of the clearing the cottage sat it, Helena Ravenclaw observed the Dark Lord and Lady’s attitudes. She was worried that she had gone too far- as she usually did on the extremely rare occasions that she got to talk freely about her Lady. In fact, she might have sounded slightly delusional in her speech. After all, she hadn’t told them about how they could help Lady Hecate or about any of the others. Well, she internally sighed, this was as good of a time as ever.
The Lady Ravenclaw appeared on the path that went from the cottage, snorting internally in amusement as Tom and Cassiopeia- although Tom and the rest of her family called her Lillian- Riddle immediately straightened, their pureblood masks firmly in place. In front of her was not the go-lucky couple that entered her clearing only minutes ago, but the Leaders of the Dark Sect. Cassiopeia- otherwise known as Lillian- bowed her head slightly in respect and acknowledgment of the timeless ghost, and Helena curtsied in return her lip briefly curling upward in amusement, waiting for the inevitable barrage of questions and demands regarding her statements and accusations from the previous day.
Apparently- out of the two of them, anyways- Tom was more eager to learn about the truth, as he began his and Lillian’s long list of questions in his deeply smooth tone of voice that has the slight wavering undertone that gives away his anxious excitement to finally get some answers, though it has only been minutes since Tom had become completely fixed on the topic.
“What proof do you have that Lady Hecate is communicating to you- to anyone- and that she wants to be saved, Lady Grey?” Tom started off with an easy enough question in his mind, as it is the easiest way to loosen up the person you are interrogatin- um- questioning.
The Ravenclaw Ghost breathed in once before starting her monologue. “When I originally looked to Lady Hecate for guidance after accidentally seeing a possible future of yours, Tom, and then altering it to avoid that future of death and destruction, I was the first soul that had ties to both the spiritual and mortal planes that had come to her seeking aid. My Lady offered me guidance and in exchange I became her vessel and gate to the two planes, as my lady has been pinned down by the harsh rules that are put upon most deities to restrict their interference in certain fixed events in time. This is the reason why even though Lady Hecate has been steadily weakening, she still hasn’t been able to tell anyone because she couldn’t interfere directly in any current events. I am now an extension of my lady and will serve her until she no longer has any need of me. I do not know how to convince you of this- but I will swear a Soul’s Oath if needed.”
“A Soul’s Oath?” Asked Lillian, curious as she had never heard of such a thing before. In response, a darkening silver patch appeared on both of the Lady Ravenclaws cheeks- was she blushing? Apparently so, as Helena answered Lillian’s question in a clearly embarrassed tone of voice. “It is the living’s version of an Unbreakable Vow, except that instead of tying the oath to my mortal magic or life force, the oath will tie onto my soul, which exists both in life and death- and therefore on both planes. To break a Soul’s Oath,” She shuddered at the mere thought. “If it doesn’t tear my soul apart into a painful non-existence, well, it will stain my soul’s regeneration states- reincarnation as most of the living call it- and I will bear terrible burdens in all of the rest of my lives until it is decided by the council that I have lived out my sentence.”
Tom felt the urge to cringe in sympathy, as that did not sound like a pleasant existence to live out- but stopped himself because as the Dark’s Lord and Leader, he could not afford to show any weakness, ever. Lillian squeezed his hand in a small show of comfort in response to the direction Tom’s thoughts were taking.
Helena Ravenclaw answered Lillian and Tom’s seemingly never ending list of questions until they were convinced of the truth of her statements, although that might have had something to do with the multiple Soul’s Oaths she had to take at the Riddles’ request. After multiple hours of speaking and answering their questions nearly non-stop, Helena asked her own infinitely important question to the Lord and Lady Slytherin.
“Do you accept?”