[ r e v e l a t i o n ]

Hadrian found Tom Riddle out in the Malfoy gardens.

He found the albino peacocks a bit pretentious but had no time to comment on them as Riddle's attention turned to him.

"Hello." 'Hello?! Honestly, I shouldn't be the one feeling weird here..' The green eyed boy tried to remedy his previous, albeit awkward, greeting yet no words came out.

Riddle watched him closely, eyes shining with amusement. His lips quirked up in faint smirk before deciding to finally break the silence.

"I wondered how long it would take for you to find me. Though I must remark, and of course I mean no harm when I say this but, I now understand why you have to wear glasses," He chuckled before continuing "You've passed the garden two times before finding me, and might I add, I've not exactly been hiding from you."

The boy's glasses slid down his nose and with a quick practiced motion, he pushed them back up. He coughed embarrassingly at the mention of his impaired vision and heat rose from his neck to the tip of his ears. Tom Riddle marveled quietly at him, witnessing a display of emotion he'd never seen from the Ravenclaw before.

The tall grass caressed Hadrian's trousers in a gentle way as the willow tree swayed. Butterflies seemed to appear out of nowhere, as if they were only present for this, for Hadrian. The bespectacled teen's blouse had come undone, something that wasn't supposed to be intimate yet ended up being so. Tom was sure that if anyone else was present in the garden, they would gaze in astonishment. After all, who in their right mind would disregard this beautiful boy?

He startled, flinched so hard that Hadrian had asked if he was okay, touching his face with blatant concern. Green eyes searched his for an explanation, perfectly groomed eyebrows knitting together in frustration when he didn't answer.

The blue-eyed boy could feel it, the realization, the dawning horror. But soon after that he felt the amazement, the anticipation of something great, then came the acceptance.

The acceptance that this wasn't just 'like' or 'affection', such mundane terms for what he felt at this point in time. He found in himself that he had meant every word of what he said to Lily Potter. Hadrian's hand in marriage was truly something he wanted.

This was the exact moment Tom Marvolo Riddle realized that he, a descendant of Salazar Slytherin, had fallen in-love with Hadrian James Potter, second born of the Potter family.

Truthfully, he wished that he came to this revelation a lot sooner.