Chapter 2
i.
Unlike mother and father's assurance, the world did not revolve around Tom. He learnt it the hard way.
His folly had yet to reach other Houses, thanked Morgana. No matter what his housemate's opinion of him, they kept to themselves; not a word got out despite the fact he had missed classes for almost three days. Even Professor Slughorns paid no heed to Tom's misbehaving.
Tom considered dropping out of Hogwarts and studying at home if word got out; he could ask his father to change the muggle money to Galleons and hire a professional tutor.
Mother had not attended Hogwarts, and she turned out just fine. But Tom knew if he were to do that, he would hate himself. He was too proud to do such a thing.
So on the fourth day, when Petunia Leverrette told him to meet her at the library at five o'clock, he complied. Whether he liked it or not, Lady Magic had granted Petunia Leverrette a right of him.
ii.
"Do you know what a mudblood was supposed to mean?" Petunia Leverrette asked the moment he sat down in front of him, scribbling something on the parchment.
Tom bit his inner cheeks. "It was a term—of people undeserving of magic. Their blood was dirty as mud,"
Petunia Leverrette put up her quill and stared at him. "Yes, but do you know how that word was created?"
Tom honestly had no idea. Mother always muttered it in the house, saying it was a fitting term for someone with muggle ancestry, no magical parents whatsoever. His father was an exception; he was intrigued by magic and revered it, revering his mother like a goddess.
"No."
"The term of mudblood was created back in the dawn of time," Petunia Leverrette began. "When magic was abundant, and Lady Magic bestowed it to people, making them capable of doing some wondrous things."
Her voice carried a nostalgic tone, but Tom must have imagined it. "People always had been scared of something they had no way of knowing, so when wixen was widely known back then, people started something called a witch hunt. Do you know what a witch hunt was, Master Gaunt?"
"It was a hunt—to hunt witches and wizards." Tom opened his mouth. "To kill the wixen."
Petunia Leverrette nodded. "Have you ever thought that, despite having magic, wixen was almost undistinguishable from ordinary people? How do people know which wixen to find, which house to search, which one to kill?"
Tom had never considered that before. He nervously twisted his robe.
"The first witch hunt was started because some wixen sold their brothers and sisters for their own gain. They betrayed their coven and watched as it burned to the ground, and their sisters and brothers in magic slaughtered like animals. Do you know what happened after that, Master Gaunt?"
It was a horrifying thing to hear. Moreover, Petunia Leverrette told him in a calm voice, but it vibrated in the empty library in echo, filling it with dread.
Sweat trickled down his temple.
"Lady Magic Hecate used to be Mother Magic Hecate, but when the first witch hunt happened, she wailed, her tears poured down the earth like no other, and then she raged. Gone was the benevolent Mother; in her place, Lady Magic took in. As a sovereign of magic, she punished the wixen that betrayed their coven, turning their skin full of pus, then their blood to mud. Lady Magic Hecate took away their magic as they lay on the ground, whimpering and dying. They would die a painful death, watched by others whom they betrayed. So, Master Gaunt, when someone was unworthy of their magic, all of us would know."
iii.
Petunia Leverrette handed him a blue envelope sealed with golden wax, bearing a fancy cursive letter L on top addressed to his parents, particularly his mother.
Tom had no need to read it to know what kind of letter Petunia Leverrette wrote to his mother. He dreaded it, but he knew he was in the wrong on this matter.
Theodorus Nott was behind him as he released his owl, Medea, to bring the letter to his mother.
"I have made folly of myself, Theo," Tom said, looking at Medea, who looked smaller in the sky.
"The fault also lied with me, My Lord." Theodorus Nott said. "Had I known, I would forewarn you."
"It mattered not," Tom said before turning to him. "Tell me about her, all of the things you knew, no matter how small."
Theodorus Nott seemed hesitant, but then he said, "Lady Leverrette seldom have interaction outside of her circle, but she was not a cruel witch. She was more than capable of harming people when she wanted to—Evior Yaxley was the living testament of that."
Evior Yaxley was the one who ended up in the hospital wing after calling Petunia Leverrette mudblood in her second year; thirty bones were broken, and several were missing. Even Healer Pomfrey had difficulty mending it, the bones broken all over again after it had healed.
"She said two people called her mudblood before. Who was the other one?" Tom walked out of the owlery with Theodorus tailing behind him.
"Lady Walburga Black, cousin of Lady Lucretia Black and niece of Lady Dorea Black." Theodorus answer with bated breath after walking down the flight of stairs. "No one knew what happened, as they solved it in the girls' dorm, but it had ended up peacefully, considering Lady Black was also in Lady Leverrette's circle."
Walburga Black and Lucretia Black were a year older than Tom, so it probably happened in their first year. He had seen Walburga Black, tailing behind Petunia Leverrette like a personal handmaiden.
Seeing someone from House of Black ever considering following after a person was laughable.
iv.
Tom received a letter from home, but it was his father's penmanship instead of his mother's. Father told him to follow as Lady Leverrette instructed, to be on his best behaviour, and they will see him at Yule.
Father's letter was curt, as did their home conversation. Tom was raised that way; his father was not someone who openly gave affection to him, but Tom knew father loved him.
v.
When the Yule holiday came, Tom was brought to the Evenfall, Petunia Leverrette's house. It was on the outskirt of York, a little village hidden by magic. The houses were built on red bricks and white stone pavement; it clinked every time Tom walked, making an echo in the empty road.
Mother was talking with Petunia Leverrette when father ushered him to the back and looked at the vast greenery.
"I understand you said something you shouldn't and brought the problem upon yourself," Father said, hands tucked behind his back.
Suddenly, Tom felt small. "I apologise, Father."
"One thing you failed to understand, Tom, you shouldn't mock someone in front of them unless you are sure they would lose." Father turned to him; his face looked serious. "Moreover, over a lady."
"You taught me that I'm better than everyone else because of the name Gaunt, are you not, Father?" Tom almost, almost raised his voice. "I'm doing everything you taught me."
"Yes, but I also taught you how to watch your surrounding, did I not? You told your mother about Lady Leverrette being The Honourable Emerald of House Slytherin, a title gained from merit alone, yet you recklessly opposed her?"
Tom shut his mouth.
"Books can teach you a lot, Tom. But not everything is recorded in them. Everything we know, including what your mother knew, came from books," Father said, bending down to his level with a tired look on his face. "I blame myself for this. We should introduce you to the wizarding world sooner than later, familiarise ourselves with the culture."
Mother firmly decided not to let anyone know about Tom before he went to Hogwarts. Father had opposed it for years, but then mother would cry, and father relented.
"It could be beneficial for you, son." Father finally said, patting his head. "Just don't forget to write to your mother, okay? Family came first."
There were so many things Tom wanted to say, but in the end, he just nodded. "Family came first."
vi.
Tom was to be fostered in Petunia Leverrette's home and be her ward until he came of age, or at least until he learnt enough.
Tom wondered how much was enough for her.
He was still eleven and in his first year, while Petunia Leverette was in her fourth year, almost a woman grown. When she came of age, it would not be proper for her to host Tom, whether he was her ward or not.
Tom hoped two years would come by quickly.