Scorned

"Tom..I think we're done."
Tom freezes and reaches, grabs for my hand that was combing through his hair.
"Say that again."
I stare at his hands.
Long, beautiful fingers. Piano hands, Tom hands.
It would be the last time I would be able to hold them.
"I think we should end things."
Tom, who had been lying on my lap, straightens up to stare at me.
He roughly grabs my face, smushing my cheeks together.
"You better beg me, to have misheard you."
I shake my head, well as much as I can between his tight grip.
"I am tired Tom."
Tom just stares at me, with those beautiful blue eyes of his.
Blue blue blue.
All I see is blue.
"You love me." He grits out.
I nod, it's true.
"Yes, I do."
Tom frowns and my hands itch to reach for him and smooth the wrinkle between his eyebrows.
Instead I reach for his hand grabbing my face, and kiss his palm softly.
"I will always love you Tom..but Im tired."
"I..do not understand."
I grin, it's a rare thing for Tom to admit he does not understand something.
I put his hand in mine and start massaging it.
"I love you Tom, but loving you means losing me. I told you I understand, I accept, your version of love.."
I look into his eyes.
"But I think, accepting one thing, and liking it is completely different."
I reach for his hair soft and curly, who knows when I'll be able to run my fingers through them again.
"I understand your love. But I.."
Tears well up in my eyes, I'm hurting him, I know, but staying with him is breaking me.
"I want to cuddle in bed, I want to have conversations about mindless things. I want to celebrate love holidays and go on cute dates."
A tear falls and I wipe it away.
His hands stay limply on my lap.
"I want to talk about my feelings and I want to argue like couples do. I want.."
I let out a watery laugh and continue wiping my tears.
"I want to be held and kissed, comforted when Im crying god damn it."
Tom hands twitch but remains on my lap.
"I don't want to play mind games anymore, and Tom merlin, I want to hear I love you back."
I look up at him.
"And you dont show your love that way, and I understand. I'm not judging you Tom."
I reach for his hand, but he pulls away.
"Please, Tom. Im asking you to understand me."
"You said you loved me."
I nod.
"I always will, you are scorned into my heart Tom. You were the only thing that made me want to take another breath, made me want to wake up sometimes."
I reach for his hands once more, he doesn't move them away.
"But, I fear, that one day, all of these wants of mine will burst and I will be bitter and resentful, towards you.. I never want that."
I raise his hand and place a kiss on his palm once more.
Our eyes meet, and I stare at Tom, pleading with my eyes for him to say something.
He tightens his jaw, before wrenching his hand out of mine.
He stands up and leaves the room of requirement without a single word.
When the door shuts, I crumble into the couch and cry some more.

Xoxoxo
(10 years later)

"Marcus, honey, will you please grab your sisters hand?"
My son whined out loud
"But mom! Biancas hands are sticky! "
Bianca, my little sweet devil stuck out her tongue at her brother.
"They are not! Its just a little icecream!"
"Icecream and your saliva!"
I internally roll my eyes, Helga, why had I thought bringing them out would be a good idea.
After ushering them into an slightly less bumbling alleyway, I squat to clean Biancas sticky hand with a hankerchief.
(She's at the lovely age of claiming she's allergic to magic.)
"Marcus, there, will you hold your sisters hand now? Mommy hasnt been here in a while and she needs to focus."
I play my sly card.
"Im sure you can be mature enough to take care of your sister."
My little boy freezes at the word before grabbing his sister's hand.
"Fine, but only until we find dad."
I kiss him on the cheek.
"I'm sure we're close to Gringotts, we'll meet daddy soon."
I stand up, (legs slightly cramped) and am about to turn when I bump into someone.
"Gosh, Im so.."
"Elizabeth?"
My heart stutters slightly.
My eyes meet blue.
"..Tom, long time no see."
His hands unravel from my waist and he steps back.
"It certainly has been a while, last i heard you were in America studying Arthimancy..these your kids?"
I nod, and gesture to my children.
Bianca is fisting my skirt, while Marcus is trying to guard her with his little body. My heart slightly melts.
"Marcus and Bianca, meet my friend from hogwarts. His name is Tom."
He stands looking down at them.
Inwardly I snort, he never knew how to handle kids, even when we were young.
"Hello, Im Tom Riddle."
Marcus is the first to reply.
"Im Marcus..and I have a Tom too."
Tom furls his eyebrows.
"You have..an atom?"
I laugh lightly. Both look at me confused.
I run my fingers through Marcus's hair while looking softly at Tom.
"Marcus Tom Loxias. Thats his full name."
Tom eyes widen.
"You named him after me?" He softly asks.
I nod. "..Tom, you helped me survive the Orphanage..you will always be a big part of who I am today..I meant and still mean, what I said."
I will always love Tom.
Whether it be in the form of romantic or platonic, my heart would always love Tom Marvolo Riddle.
He was the one who stayed with me at the orphanage.
He was the one who taught me all there is about magic.
He was the one who made Hogwarts home.
He was my first friend, my first family, my first love.
Tom Marvolo Riddle was scorned onto my heart.

Tom stares at me, and I see his hands clench into a fist.
I know about his cresent moon scars, and almost reach out, to unfurl his hands like I always used to do.
But I stop myself, its not my place anymore.
With neither of us talking, Im about to say goodbye when Tom takes a ring off of his finger.
He hands it to me, and without thought, I take it.
Its a pretty antique ring.
A golden band, and a large dark stone in the middle.
"Tom?"
He stuffs his hands in his pockets, while his eyes refuse to meet mine.
"I understand."
What does he understand?
I am about to ask, when a memory flashes by.

"And you dont show your love that way, and I understand. I'm not judging you Tom."
I reach for his hand, but he pulls away.
"Please, Tom. Im asking you to understand me."

I clench the ring tightly.
"..Thank you."
He nods and still refusing to look at me, he gestures to the ring.
"It's. Yours. It was always supposed to be yours."

Tom never expressed his feelings the way society was used to.
And I looked at the ring in my hand.
I knew it wasnt a proposal.
It wasnt even a 'i had been planning to propose to you'
The ring Tom had given me, was an apology, a thank you, a greeting and farewell all in one.
The ring was his way of saying I was scorned into his heart like he was on mine.

I let go of my sons hand, (who had been looking at us confusement clear in his eyes) and walk towards him and hug him tightly.
"Thank you..I wish you to be happy Tom."
He looks at me, and his eyes look at me with flames.
Like he is memorizing every inch of me, as if he's drinking me in.
He gives me a smile.
"And I you."

With a snap, he apparates and disappears.

Marcus tugs my hand.
"Mom, what was that."
I look down, tears clouding my vision.
"That was a goodbye, that was 10 years late..now lets go find Dad."
Xoxoxoxo
That night I find comfort in my husbands arms.
He holds me as tears quietly fall down my face.
"I dont know why Im crying."
He leans down and pecks my forehead.
"Cause youre happy love. Youre relived. You now have a beautiful and worthy ending to your story..you got to say goodbye."
He pauses before summoning a box from his bag.
"I have something for you."
He pulls out a champagne gold chain, my favorite.
"A chain so you can wear his ring around."
I look at the chain in hand and tears start falling once more.
"Arent you angry to see me cry about someone else?"
He shakes his head softly before kissing me sweetly on the lips.
"I said it with Marcus, and I'll say it again. I thank Mr.Riddle. Because he is someone who played an important and big part in your life. He's someone who made you happy..now turn around darling, I'll put it on you."

Xoxoxoxo
In this universe, Harry Potter died at the battle of Hogwarts.
He never found all of Voldemorts horecruxes.
Britian was swallowed by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort,
And just like Grindelwald had, he started to swallow France, Germany..all of Europe little by little.
But unlike Grindelwald he succeeded.

The one country Voldemort never attacked, never threatend, was America.
There were many myths on why.
An arch nemisis, an obscurus, perhaps he had made a deal with the devil.
None guessed, it was all because of a woman, and her descendants that kept Voldemort at bay.

The ring, Voldemorts horecrux you may ask?
It was buried next to Elizabeth Loxias, as written in her will.

It wasnt until the later years that Elizabeth truly understood what Tom had meant that day.
A horecrux, a piece of his soul.
It was hers, he had said.
It had always been hers.

And when the time finally came.
When Voldemort was no longer afraid of death.
Had finally learned to accept death as an old friend, he opened the letter that was sent to him hundreds of years ago.
'I must open at the close'
He chuckled at Elizabeths Riddle, wished to no longer play mind games she had said.
The letter was short but full of love and written in such an Elizabeth way.
After finishing the letter he folded it and pulled on his magic core.
He appeared in a grave yard, and infront of him was a tombstone.
"Here lies Elizabeth Loxias loving mother, wife, and friend..
-You are scorned into my heart.- "

Voldemort, Tom, kneeled to lightly kiss the tombstone before whispering his final words, before embracing death like an old friend.

"I love you"

Toms final words flew into the air before disappearing forever like its owner.