Chapter Twelve. Tom, the beginning of the Game
I thought about it for a long time, but finally decided to give Tom a present. I stand there, waiting for him on the stairs, and... Just then, a classmate runs past and slaps him on the back, and the boy falls head over heels down the stairs — not without the help of some non-verbal communication...
"Tom? Tom!?" his friend shakes him, then rushes to help, running down the corridor and shouting, "Tom's fallen!"
I step out of the alcove and cut the skin above my collarbone with a knife, pulling my robe slightly. I feel like some kind of pervert... I attach a tiny pea-sized artefact... and it sinks in, sticking to my collarbone. Pour some potion on it, wipe off the blood, and run.
I'm probably the only one in the whole castle who can pull this off — I made an artifact that imitates natural occlusion... How did it not happen before? But after the blow to the head, it appeared! It's not ABSOLUTE protection, but you can't think on your feet, and it'll be easier to hide the necessary items. I'll say it again — it's unlikely that anyone else could pull off a similar trick in the Castle. And I do have a Master's degree in Healing, so they won't be able to detect the cut. As for artefacts, I don't have a degree in that, but I'm an Apprentice in healing and related fields. The same goes for potions.
Toma was kept in the hospital for almost a week, but I highly doubt it was due to the injury. Most likely, Dippet and Co. were alarmed by the occultive protection that appeared, so they checked to see where it came from and if it could be broken. The boy came out looking very pale, with circles under his eyes — yep, those damn mentalists... And yes, I don't really want to end up with the Hogwarts Quidditch doctor. Judging by everything, he's the same story as Poppy Pomfrey in... the future-past, in other words, the headmaster's man. Maybe I'm wrong, but... whatever.
I'm not particularly worried about the artefact; it was created based on developments by the Department of Mysteries in... ugh... 2007, to cut a long story short. It can't be hacked, even potions of a similar nature won't work. And they won't find it — it's made of bone and is now part of my collarbone.
I didn't show any particular activity until summer. So... I continued the story with the treasures and several times threw coins or small artefacts from the past to particularly active seekers. The upperclassmen found something (and quite a lot) in addition to my "gifts" — mainly Ravenclaws, as the most well-read, and Slytherins, as the ones with the best connections. In general, it wasn't exactly a frenzy... but I did stir up some interest, and the question of "What is Dippet doing at the Castle if he's not teaching anyone?" was also raised, without me. I don't think I made his life too difficult, but if you plant the idea in the students' heads that "something is wrong with the headmaster"...
At the very beginning of the summer, through the same agency, I patented and pushed through the idea of comics in the world of magicians. Well, there are already spellcastings with moving pictures, so imagine what would happen if you added captions to them?
Yes, pictures are not the same as spell graphics, but... I already mentioned that as an artefact maker, ritualist and potion maker, he was not bad, and he was also skilled in charms... and there was plenty of free time at Hogwarts. So I got down to it and... it turned out to be surprisingly easy: apparently, magicians simply hadn't attempted this task before. Although... Hmm, looking at the solution, which is "normal," I see that my Sidovian worldview was already beginning to emerge — the solution was simple, but very... unconventional.
Ah, never mind! The idea is patented, the secret of moving pictures has been given to production under the Unbreakable Vows, and... In early July, the comics were released in Europe — immediately in the nineteen largest magical enclaves. Nothing political, satirical or otherwise "dangerous" — just simple, funny stories, and that's enough for now. I don't get involved in politics on principle, it's just that the laws in the magical world are quite simple — the one who is right is the strongest. So if you try to "show off," they'll shut you down in a heartbeat.
The same...
"During the summer holidays, the boy found himself back in the orphanage. A 1939-style orphanage in England is a nasty place in itself. There is little food, the staff treat the children badly, with officially permitted corporal punishment, solitary confinement and deprivation of food... And then there are the young beasts.
They didn't like Tom before, subconsciously sensing that he was "different." And consciously... a child is a child, and it's not always possible to hide your powers. As a result, he was treated appallingly by the staff and the other children. However, by the time he left for Hogwarts, he had earned himself a respectable place in the Pack.But his departure ruined everything: Dumbledore, who arrived to take him away, made no secret of the fact that the boy was going to a private school. You have to know England at that time to understand that Tom had become part of the elite simply by attending such a school. And such "upstarts" are not liked. And then he returns for the holidays...
After the first year, the consequences were relatively minor, and Tom managed to talk his way out of it... For the most part, he was simply absent from the orphanage, showing up only occasionally, just to keep the teachers happy... But now it was as if someone had pushed the management, and they, previously indifferent to his "absences," had tightened the rules.
And now... It's only his second night at the orphanage, and he's already in solitary confinement — a cold storage room in the basement. He managed to get beaten up by his "comrades," then whipped and caned by the orphanage teachers...
Tom sniffed and licked a tear hanging from his lip.
"Why are they like that... It would be one thing if he had broken a rule... But no — you're standing wrong, you're doing it wrong... and you get beaten up. And then the teachers punish him as an 'aggressor'."
The boy clenched his fists angrily...
"And you can't do magic during the holidays, they even took away our wands!
"You can't," he remembered the indifferent words of Dumbledore, who had been assigned to him as a guardian by the school.
"You must learn to get along with people without aggression," and such... condemnation in his voice, as if he were the main aggressor. And also — a carefully concealed note of malice. The boy, who had caught this, fell silent, even though he had wanted to ask Dumbledore to use a little magic so that the Muggles at the orphanage would at least not pay attention to him...
Tom's thoughts were interrupted by pain in his collarbone. He pulled down the collar of his shirt, which was too tight for him, and saw a thin trickle of blood. Frowning, "Damn Muggles," he carefully touched the spot where the blood was coming from with his finger — there was no wound... But the blood suddenly turned into a scarlet patch on which a message was written in golden, slightly glowing letters...
"Hello, Tom.
The spell was supposed to activate when you were conscious and unsupervised. I suspect this wasn't your first day at the orphanage. Am I right?
If so, that's bad — as you understand, the orphanage administration doesn't care much about you, or the children for that matter. That means you're being watched with magic.
Yes, Tom, magic. You are a victim of the Great Game, or, if you prefer, a pawn on a chessboard.
Let me reassure you — you're not alone. The game began centuries ago and is not for the good of the magical world. But for whose good... I'm sorry, it's too soon for you to know.
I'll just say that I tried to help you much earlier, but you've been "covered" since childhood, so alas... I suspect that it's not just you, but your parents too, and possibly others as well.
Yes, the situation is sad and despicable, I agree. So, let's get down to business. You may have already noticed that you are NOT a Muggle-born — you don't have that Power. Am I right? And also, you know Parcelang and the basics of mentalism, which you naively shared with Dumbledore. I couldn't see his reaction, but I suspect it was very negative and you closed yourself off and started hiding... Otherwise, things would have been much easier for you at the faculty.
But don't rush to share your abilities with them — it will be better at the faculty, but the teachers will treat you worse. And the Players, and that's dangerous.
As you may have guessed, Dumbledore is a representative of the Players, as are Dippet and a number of other teachers. But I don't have any reliable information, so you can't trust anyone YET.
I want to confess — I arranged for you to fall down the stairs and end up in the hospital. This gave me the opportunity to perform a clever procedure that made you less susceptible to Legilimency.
Please don't be angry or offended. Think about it, and you'll understand that I acted in your best interests. Let me explain: it was arranged so that after you fell down the stairs, you became almost inaccessible to Legilimency. This means that Dippet, Dumbledore and other mentalists will only be able to "read" you with a great deal of effort. Imagine them trying to read scraps of newspaper in a car speeding down a very bad road. Some information can be obtained this way, but it is more than an order of magnitude more difficult. And it will be easier for you to hide it.
There is another effect: when such "natural" occultive protection appears, mental abilities usually suffer greatly. That is, now you will be able to engage in mental practices, and the mentalists around you will consider this IMPOSSIBLE IN PRINCIPLE. Nice, isn't it?
Tom was torn by conflicting feelings: on the one hand, it was unpleasant that someone was manipulating his life, but on the other hand, it was almost the first time anyone had ever tried to show him any concern. However, he could think about the situation later; now it was better to finish reading the message.
"The protection is not eternal, so I ask you to practise occlusion as diligently as possible. It should come fairly easily to you.
And when you have mastered it sufficiently, I will be able to tell you PART of what I know. I am telling you this now so that there will be no hard feelings later. Then, when you grow up and IF you prove your strength and intelligence, I will tell you most of it, if not all (because there are some personal secrets).
I have plans for you as an ally, but that's in the future. Right now, you need to study, study, and study. Don't forget maths from Muggle science — it will come in handy in the world of magic. The same goes for chemistry, physics, biology, history, and geography.
From the magical sciences, study Occlumency and the basics of wandless magic. I assume you don't have any textbooks either, because of the Statute of Secrecy, right?
I have enchanted the Letter to serve as your textbook. After you finish reading the letter, smear it with your blood, and then an "excerpt" from Occlumency, prepared especially for you, will appear on it. There will also be assignments on children's wandless magic that you will have to complete. Complete one, and the next one will appear. This will help your power from deteriorating over the holidays, and in the future, you will become a normal wizard who only needs a wand for particularly powerful spells.
To hide or retrieve the Message, you will need to make a drop of blood appear near your left collarbone. If no one is watching you, the drop will turn into a piece of cloth, which you can pull on. Hiding it is easier — just press it against your collarbone so that it touches the blood. It's not very pleasant, but relatively painless. Bonus: if you are being watched by Muggles, magicians, house elves or artefacts, the wound on your collarbone will remain a normal wound.
I suspect... Actually, I'm pretty sure you're hungry at the orphanage! I can't help you much without arousing suspicion. But you can find a chipped brick at the entrance to Bald Mike's bakery. I'll put a copper ring with a portal in it.
Unfortunately, the portal won't transport you — you're being watched closely. But if you put it on the little finger of your left hand and lick it (or spit on it, it doesn't matter), a small piece of dough made from sprouted wheat mixed with honey will appear. The ring is set for twenty small portions the size of a thimble per day. The portion is calculated so that you can eat it without arousing suspicion.
Now, regarding your behaviour: do not show anyone that you have an ally. I think you have already noticed that something VERY strange is going on around you. I hasten to assure you that this "strangeness" is much more global than you can imagine. So do not be surprised by these precautions — I am simply afraid.
I'll sign off for now. Your well-wisher and (perhaps) future ally."
Tom reread the message. And again. And again... Without thinking, he pulled out the razor blade and slashed his forearm. Blood flowed, and the boy pressed the scarlet rag to it. It flashed with a dull light, and new words appeared in place of the message...
"Occultation. The beginning."
With wild eyes, Riddle scratched his collarbone and pressed the scrap to the wound, where it stuck. A wild, sinister laugh rang out in the punishment cell...
And the boy said into the void...
"Players, then... they started the game before I was born... Thank you, unknown 'possible ally in the future'. Now I know that I... my... family has enemies. And I will not rest until I destroy them all, down to the seventh generation. I swear it!
A flash of magic sealed the oath.
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