Tom Riddle found the Riddle Manor to be comforting at times like this, where he would be at his desk writing down his plans for the future, with you in the same room doing whatever interested you. You would come up to him, asking him the most random questions, yet Tom never minded. Over and over, he would indulge you with whatever you wanted.
He would find himself staring at you occasionally, his eyes moving away from his parchment to find you and a comforting feeling would wash over him every time.
Tom had always wondered how much he loved you.
He loved you, undoubtedly, but did he love you enough to stay with you forever? Did he love you enough to keep you?
You were intelligent and powerful, and he liked those about you. Those were what drew him to you, after all. Even after both of you left Hogwarts together, you were still the brilliant person he knew. Fortunately, due to that, it would seem like he would be keeping you for a long time.
It was also due to love, that he would be keeping you for a long time as well.
How long? How he wished he knew.
As he continued to stare at you, his mind drifted back to his main question—How much did he love you?
Much to his suprise, he found the answer in his own soul.
When Tom found you admiring his first ever Horcrux, he didn't give much thought into it. If anything, he felt quite proud at how you were still amazed by the idea of a Horcrux. He even considered helping you to make one.
The next following days, he noticed you spending more time with the Diary.
He kept a close eye on you. After all, Horcrux was considered to be the most terrible of all Dark Magic. You were no stranger to Dark Magic, yet a part of him was worried about how it might affect you, how his soul would affect yours.
He had seen you writing in the Diary quite a lot, even chuckling to yourself at times.
For safety precautions, he decided one day, to confiscate the Diary, despite that it was clearly, his.
As expected, you had approached him regarding the Diary.
"You've been obsessed with it, darling," he said smoothly, paying full attention to your reactions as always.
He watched how you frowned slightly. "I'm not obsessed."
Then, you tilted your head. "Well, I am obsessed with bullying the teenage you."
He raised an eyebrow. "You have been bullying my Horcrux?"
"Not exactly," you said, sighing. "I enjoy talking to him—you. Plus, you're busy most of the time."
"You can still come to me," he said softly. "You know I wouldn't mind."
"I do mind," you remarked. "Just give me the Diary."
"No."
"He'll get lonely."
Tom raised both his eyebrows incredulously.
"Whatever!" you huffed. "Ask him, he'll say I'm right."
He watched as you walked away and left the room, no doubt finding new obsession to occupy yourself with.
He contemplated for a moment. It sounded ridiculous, asking the Diary about you. Yet his curiosity got the better of him and he found himself writing in the Diary.
He started with a simple greeting, and almost immediately, a response came.
It's you.
Tom wanted to scoff, because he could feel the disappointment coming from his younger self. He was just writing his response, when a writing came up at the same time. The moment he saw "Where is..." he knew very well what the question was going to be. He had just greeted the Diary, and he could already tell that you were right.
The Diary is with me now, Tom wrote.
Why?
Give it back.
Tom felt a bit offended at that. The Diary was his, not yours. Out of pettiness, he refused to respond anymore and immediately left the room with the Diary in his hand.
You were about to drop the "I told you so!" when you saw him approaching with the Horcrux, but he just wordlessly gave it to you before leaving while muttering something about ungratefulness.
Tom had been deep in his thoughts, as he stared at you from his desk once again. You were on the floor, wearing Slytherin's Locket, which was his latest Horcrux, while being surrounded by books. Of course, one of the books was his Diary.
You were oddly close with his Horcruxes, he noticed. Sometimes, being near him, you would even take his ring off of him just so you could wear it.
Perhaps, he thought, if he should keep you by his side, then he would let you protect and keep his Horcruxes. You definitely would love that.
That was if he should keep you by his side.
He almost sighed at the thought. He did plan this, he really did. He had thought far into the future back in Hogwarts, and he had already envisioned what his future would be like with you. He loved you, and he would gladly keep you by his side.
But were you his strength or his weakness?
Would you be the one to keep him going, or the one that would pull him down?
As he watched you take off the Locket and place it down in front of you, he fell deeper into his own mind.
It seemed that the choice was already made, considering you were here with him, at his home, your home.
Love was never something he was an expert at, and in life, you were the only thing he loved. He wondered if it was genuine, he wondered if it was useful and he wondered if it was—
"Op...en"
—real.
"O...pen."
He blinked. Was that Parseltongue?
"What are you doing?" he questioned immediately, now realising why you had taken off the Locket and placed it carefully in front of you earlier.
"Open."
His eyes widened. The perfection pronunciation.
"Don't—!"
He was too late—the Locket had opened.
A burst of black smoke emerged from the Locket, reaching the ceiling. His papers had flown everywhere but he didn't care. He didn't care that his work became a mess and was flying around the room because he had to get to you.
"I have seen your heart, and it is mine."
That was his own voice, he recognised and it was oddly...
Loving.
The smoke was gradually dissipating, becoming less violent and he noticed a blurry and misty figure coming into view from the smoke. It was him.
The Locket was walking slowly towards you, who were now standing and Tom noticed how you were a bit far from your previous spot on the floor. He wondered briefly if you got hurt somehow when the Locket had opened.
Tom should be getting to you, he should be closing the Horcrux and check up on you but curiousity got the better of him again, because the Locket had his eyes on you with a look that was far from malice.
"I have seen your dreams," continued the Locket. "And I have seen your desires."
He then said your name, so softly that Tom almost couldn't believe that this was a form of Dark Magic.
"My sweet, little love," the Locket purred, as his hand came up to caress your cheek, or at least, he tried to. The Locket didn't seem to mind at all as his blurry hand still hovered near your face.
"My intelligent darling," praise the Locket, giving into your desires. Tom noticed this immediately. You loved validation, you craved for it, and this Locket was giving you exactly that.
His Horcrux was indulging you with your desires.
Why?
His answer came immediately.
"My love," said the Horcrux softly. "My love with a brilliant mind, and a beautiful heart."
He watched as how you were smiling and looking back at his Horcrux so lovingly that he almost felt jealous.
"Close," Tom ordered in Parseltongue, approaching you quickly.
The Locket turned around to gave Tom a cold stare before it was sucked back into the Locket. You had somehow made his own Horcruxes dislike him.
Tom picked up the Horcrux from the floor and looked at you with a raised eyebrow, demanding an explanation — several explanations.
"If this is about the Parseltongue," you started. "The Diary taught me."
"The Diary taught you," he repeated slowly.
"Yes! I was absorbed into the book several times and I asked him to teach me to say that one specific word," you explained, almost sounding proud. "Also, the last time I opened the Locket—"
"You've opened it before," Tom repeated dryly.
"It was outside!" you defended yourself quickly. "I forgot about the smoke!"
Tom inhaled slowly. "Just why were you opening it just now?"
"Well," you started shyly. "You saw how he treated me."
Tom looked at the Locket in his hand, contemplating. "The first time you opened it, it didn't attack you?"
"No," you replied. "He was very sweet."
"Sweet," he chuckled. This was a Horcrux, for Salazar's sake.
"Please don't take it away," you begged sincerely, causing him to look at you again. "I really like this one."
He sighed, before stepping closer and hanging the necklace around your neck. Right where it belongs, he thought.
"I won't," he said softly, while pressing his hand on your chest, where the Locket was. Warm. "It seems that... even my soul is fond of you."
"Even?" you whispered.
"Yes," he said, without missing a beat. "I am fond of you."
"Thank you," you murmured. "You haven't been... I feel like you..."
He frowned at your words. "You were under the impression that I don't love you anymore," he stated.
"Don't say it like that," you said shamefully. "It didn't feel like that, I thought maybe... just not as much as you used to."
"So you resort to my Horcruxes."
"Kind of," you admitted.
"I will let you know now, then," he said firmly, holding your shoulders. "I love you, and I don't plan on letting you go anytime soon. You will stay by my side for eternity."
Yes, he had made up his mind. If his Horcruxes loved you too, then it must meant something. What he felt for you was genuine and he did love you enough, and more. He loved you dearly to keep you with him in his forever.
You beamed up at him for his words. "I love you too."
He inhaled sharply at your response.
How much did he love you?
He loved you enough along with his soul. He loved you enough that his soul was intertwined with you.
"Considering you're so fond of my Horcruxes, how do you feel about becoming one?"