Sneaking in
Marvolo was almost annoyed by how easy it was to sneak into Hogwarts. Sure Dumbledore was out for the rest of winter break, but Hogwarts was meant to be a safe place, and if a dark lord was able to break into the school it obviously wasn't very safe. It suited his purposes at the moment so he couldn't complain, not yet. Especially when it came to acquiring his horcruxes.
Retrieving his diary horcrux went as he thought it would. It required a little more stealth due to the fact that the main entrance was in the fucking girls bathroom. Salazar Slytherin was either a pervert or a genius to hide it there and boy did he hope it was the latter.
After all one of the best ways to hide something is to hide it in plain sight. He'd learned that years ago when Dumbledore began scrutinizing his every move. It did neither of them any good. Marvolo simply buried himself deeper in half truths and cunning shows of power, doing anything that it took to survive. That's what children born of wars do, what they must do: they do whatever it takes to survive. No matter the cost they will fight to live. They will burn and scream and lie to survive.
That is what he had done. As a young child living in an orphanage survival was key. It didn't matter what you did or who got hurt as long as you survived. Marvolo had wanted to do more than survive, he wanted to live. So it became a game, one where he was on the offense. If defending equaled survival didn't that mean offense would lead to living? Even if it wasn't the case he wouldn't (couldn't) stop anymore.
He did what he had to and Dumbledore, in all his ignorance and prejudice, didn't understand. The man couldn't understand what it was like to go hungry because the older boys took his food or the cook just 'happened to forget'. Nor could he understand what it was like to be locked in a cupboard for 24 hours because of accidental magic. The old coot simply looked at his room, burned his cupboard that had his prized possessions in, and labeled him a villain.
There would never be acceptance in Dumbledore's eyes, not when he spoke parstletongue and was in Slytherin. He ignored him, ignored his pleas for help and forced him to return to the orphanage each summer. The magical world may call him a villain but Dumbledore was the true villain. How could he not be considered so with everything he's done?
Dumbledore, in all his ignorance and prejudice, labeled him as the villain. But that's what Dumbledore does. He uses people as chest pieces in a large scheme and assigns them a role they never asked for. The bastard looked at a child, a child, and labeled him as a villain. In pursuit of his self righteous ambitions he created a villain.
Villains are created you see. They aren't born inherently evil, no one is. Villains are children of despair, the result of a constant loop of pain and misery. They are the ones who were never saved, who faced harsh discrimination that never ended. All of the harsh things in the world and never ending pain come together to create someone that will one day become a villain. Villains are just children who were never saved. It's something Dumbledore never saw.
Marvolo fits this mold, he knows this, is self aware of it to some degree. He too is a child who was never saved, a victim to his circumstances. His childhood is a broken record, one worn with age and filled with cracks of grief.
He was a child conceived in deception and born to a dying mother, left in the orphanage as his mother shattered into a million pieces. She lived and died, forgotten to time. Living in the orphanage was hell, especially when underaged magic was factored in. People fear what they don't understand, and 'accidental magic' was one such thing they didn't understand. Their fear turned into disgust and hate so Marvolo did what he had to do in order to survive. Bones were broken and lungs squeezed, and while part of him felt guilty, it was easy to push it away. Surviving was far more important than remaining soft and getting hurt.
As the slight feelings of guilt and remorse fled his body Marvolo got more violent. The defensive movements he was used to came easy, magic coming at the slightest call to his finger tips. It led to the beginning of offensive magic. Starting the attacks became so much more satisfying than simply fending them off; It is exhilarating to see cruel faces turn to fear in the face of an odd twisted sort of karma. Thus the hunted became the hunter and the hunter became the prey.
Dumbledore's intrusion in his life was a cruel gift, akin to a carrot dangled above a pig. The visit had revealed the existence of a world unknown to him, one that he might find acceptance in. It wasn't an option though, not when the man looked at his belongings and saw them as trophies of cruelty rather than his. He looked at an abused, neglected child and saw evil. From the very beginning, his fate was set.
Before he knew it Marvolo had reached the room of requirements, the place where his diadem had been left. It was safe here, he could feel a hum of content-happy-smugness from the bond between them. The presence of his Harry and his child explained it. All of them were rather taken with the idea of him, even himself- though he would hardly admit it out loud.
The both of them were asleep on a couch, Harry curled around Delphini in a protective embrace only a mother can provide. In that moment he looked like fae royalty, dark curly hair fluttering in a nonexistent wind. His diadem was cradled in those curls, wicked waves entangling it. The look was further completed with pale, flawless skin. There were no blemishes to be seen, only a slight dusting of moon freckles coating his cheeks.
Delphini, still held in a loose embrace blinked sleepily at the red eyed man. While quiet he was unable to entirely mask himself from the child- it wasn't surprising considering who her parents were.
"Hello Darling." His voice was soft, surprisingly gentle.
"Papa?" Delphini yawned.
"Hey sweetheart." He knelt down in front of the couch, unable to deny their relation.
Reaching for him, she tumbled off the couch.
He was quick to catch her, instinctually cradling his child as she settled on his hip. Delphini truly was a tiny child, small in a way that belayed her strength. Even young he could feel her power, feel the strong magic lingering beneath her skin. Their magics entertwined, coiled around each other as he nurtured hers. While the feeling was odd, to nurture and care for a child, he welcomed it; Delphini was his flesh and blood, a family he once dreamed of as a child.
Marvolo paused as Harry stirred. While a conversation with him wouldn't end too badly- considering their child was present- he'd rather not have a confrontation so soon. So he stayed quiet.
"Delphi?" Harry murmured, eyes remaining closed. "Are you okay baby?"
"Yes mama." He could almost hear her sunshine smile. "I just wanna play with my toys."
Assured of her safety the green eyed boy allowed himself to drift back off. His child was safe. He was safe. Delphini was safe and that's all that mattered.
With Harry drifting back off to sleep he felt comfortable to move away. He, of course, wouldn't leave the room; It would be cruel to give the appearance of kidnapping a child. No parent deserves that, to wake up only to find their child missing. Marvolo can only guess such an event (such a life) would be hell.
"Are you here to save mommy?" She gripped him tightly as they walked away, chin hooked over his shoulder.
He hummed. "Does mommy need to be saved?"
"The bad people hurt him," she whispered before leaning back slightly.
Marvolo couldn't help but to frown, looking back and forth between Delphini and the mother of his child. Was it true? Was there something going on that hurt him far more than anything else ever had?
"Do you know who hurt him?"
She looked at Harry and bit her lip before responding. "I heard Aunt 'Mione and Uncle Ron talking with Mommy about it."
He stroked her hair encouragingly.
"It's the people he lives with. They like to hurt him."
"They do, do they?"
"Mommy has a lot of scars," she whispered. "I saw a lot of them in the before and they're here too papa."
"Don't worry, I'll take care of it."
His smile, blood thirsty with too much teeth should have scared her. It was more assuring than anything. Her father was a man of consistancy. With the exception of the horcrux induced insanity, he never wavered or strayed from his ideals and that was something Delphini liked. It meant that if her father cared for her now then he always would. Perhaps it's a twisted way of thinking but she can't quite help it.
Delphini, after all, is a combination of both of her parents: Harry Potter and Tom Marvolo Riddle. She is the best and worst traits they have twisted into one snap shot. She is her father's daughter, tempered by her mother's nature.
It shows in the way she loves. Delphini loves with all her being, it's something inherited from her mother. Only it's tinged with her father's possessive nature. Tom Marvolo Riddle has always been a possessive being, holding tight to what is his so that it won't be lost. Growing up in an orphanage and under Dumbledore's thumb had solidified a once childish trait. Still, it softens in the face of her mother's smile, a gentle softness that beckons to all those that look upon her.
"What are you doing here papa?" She asked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "Are you going to take me and mommy home?"
Her voice was hopeful, heterochromia eyes shining brightly.
"I've gotta take care of a couple things first but then I'll come for you and your mommy." He promised.
"When?" Delphini demanded, eyes narrowing at him. "I want to live with mommy and you."
"In a little bit, Delphi." He sent her a stern look.
Her lip wobbled. "Why did you come then if you aren't going to take us home."
"I need something I left here a long time ago." Marvolo brushed her hair back. "Don't fret, we'll be together before you know it."
"Promise?" She sniffled. "You won't let anyone hurt us or take us away again?"
"Never," he swore. Then softer, "never sweetheart."