Chapter 55 - 56

Ron was like a discarded doll, his face was as pale as marble, cold and colourless.

"Ron!" Harry dashed to him, knelt down, and shook him, "Ron, don't die, please, don't die!"

"He won't wake up." said a voice softly.

Evan turned towards the voice; he saw a tall boy leaning against a nearby pillar.

"Tom Riddle!" said Evan softly while he pointed his wand at Tom.

"It's no use mud blood, it's all over! There's only us here, no one will come and save you, and there's no rooster! Victory shall be mine; you will soon be like this boy and stay here forever."

"What did you do to Ron, why is he like this?" shouted Harry as he stood up.

"That is a very interesting question, it's a long story," said Riddle cheerfully, "But let me tell you before you take the eternal sleep. As far as I know, the real reason Weasley is like this because he opened his heart to a complete stranger and told all his secrets to that person."

"What are you talking about?" asked Harry, surprised.

"The Diary!" said Riddle, "Ever since my servant gave my diary to Ron, he has written his secrets in it for several months, he told me his troubles and sorrow. He is the most ordinary one of his family, his friends are better than him, no one notices him, he is weak and poor."

"What?" Harry paused.

"Harry Potter, you are the famous saviour, you have never understood that Weasley is jealous of you, he envies your fame, he envies your talent!" Riddles eyes twinkled, "He told me he is worse than a first year even though he himself is a second-year student."

Riddle glanced cautiously at Evan, and turned back to Harry, his eyes concealed an almost greedy expression.

"It was so boring to hear a twelve-year-old boy talk about his childish troubles."

Tom continued, "But I am tolerant, write a few words to answer him, I am kind considerate. I gradually gained his trust, he thought I was his only friend."

Harry looked pale as a ghost, "I don't know why he would think that but we have been friends since we meet."

"Obviously you haven't!", Tom gave a cold, shrill laugh, "After months of talking, Ron opened his soul to me, it was exactly what I needed."

"I swallowed his most secret fears, his deepest secret, his most intense jealousy. I grew stronger, stronger than little Weasley, strong enough to control him, to accomplish what I had always wanted to do, and it was all in...."

"Stop your tricks, Tom! It isn't going to work, when Ron wakes up, I will kick his but until he figures out that I have always treated him like my best friend."

"Fucking Mud blood! I knew you were a problem, I wanted to kill you the moment you took out that fifty-year-old newspaper clipping," said Tom as he turned his head to look at Evan in disgust.

"So is that why you, attacked me with a corrosive curse at duelling club."

"Ron's broken wand weakened my magic but it was a mistake of mine, you were more cunning than I thought and I should not have exposed myself so early if Dumbledore had noticed that it was me that put Ron under the imperious curse I would have."

"Is that why you tried to make him use the killing curse on me?"

"No, without me controlling his body he couldn't pull it off so it was just a simple green light." said Riddle proudly, "The imperious curse was just to throw off Dumbledore but he was still suspicious. Ron didn't disappoint me though; he was cowardly and concealed the diary from everyone. He was afraid that people would figure out that he was a person that helped in the attacks."

Upon hearing Riddle's words, Evan held his wand tightly and Harry clenched his fists tightly.

"But since that moment, Ron didn't trust me anymore," said Riddle, "He finally got suspicious and tried to throw away the diary. Harry how I hoped that you would pick it up, as I said I desperately wanted to see you!

"Why did you want to see me?" asked Harry angrily

"Oh, Harry, Ron told me everything about you," Said Riddle, "you are breath-taking, your enchanting past."

His gaze turned to the lightning-shaped scar on Harry's forehead, his face began to look like a starved beast.

"I must know more about you, talk to you, and see you in person if possible." Riddle once again turned his eyes to Evan and said in disgust, "But I didn't think it would be a filthy mud-blood to pick up my diary. I tried to control you like I controlled Ron, I tried to gain your trust, I even wanted to tell you about the chamber of secrets opening fifty years ago but..."

"Unfortunately, I saw through you," said Evan with a face full of disdain.

"You are indeed a crafty mud blood, a nuisance, as I initially thought."

Riddle's voice soon returned to being calm, "I felt you were on guard against me, but you had a powerful lust for magical knowledge so I changed my plans, I decided to slowly lure you in with the promise of power."

"You failed once again, Tom!" said Evan as he began to accumulate magic.

"Obviously, but can you tell me why?" asked Riddle eagerly.

"A girl once told me Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure." said Evan as Luna figure came to mind, "The most important thing is to believe in friendship, believe in family, believe in love, believe in all things good! Tom, you can never do this, besides your own strength, you do not believe in anything so you are doomed to fail."

"Love?! It's ridiculous that you think these things are more reliable than power, typical mindset of the weak. Well, let's get back to business, I have a lot of question to ask you, Harry Potter!"

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"What are your questions?" Harry snapped; his fists were still tightly clenched.

"There are many, for example…."

There was a wry smile on Riddle's face, "How does a baby, without any powerful magic, defeat the greatest wizard of all time? How could you escape unharmed, leaving only a scar and kill Voldemort?"

His eyes were like a starving wolf with a strange red glow.

"It's funny that you were defeated by Harry but you don't know how you failed. Voldemort, is this your so-called powerful magic?" smiled Evan

Evan was looking for the diary.

Now Riddle is just a memory without a physical form, he is absorbing Ron's vitality and forming a body, attacking him would not get anywhere.

Only if we find the Horcrux can we solve everything?

"I underestimated you again, Mud blood! It seems that you already know who I am, I am Voldemort, he is my past, present, and future."

He took Ron's broken wand and wrote in the air: Tom Marvolo Riddle

"Voldemort is my own new name!" whispered Tom, "Do you think I'm going to use my filthy Muggle father's name my entire life? In my veins flows the blood of Salazar Slytherin, I won't keep that repulsive muggle name. He abandoned me before I was born because his wife was a witch!"

"That's impossible! I'm going to give myself a new name, which means freshman! I know that one day when I become the greatest magician in the world, wizards everywhere will be afraid to say my name!"

Although Harry already knew Tom was Voldemort, Harry still froze when he saw the name written in the air.

He looked at Riddle, the man, who had killed his parents and so many others.

"No, you are not." Harry forced himself to speak, his quiet voice was full of hate.

"Not what?" asked Tom sternly.

"Not the greatest wizard in the world!" Said, Harry, while being a little short of breath, "I'm sorry to disappoint you but the greatest wizard is Albus Dumbledore. Everybody says that even when you were strong, you didn't dare step foot in Hogwarts. You feared Dumbledore then and you still fear him now."

The smile on Riddle's face vanished, and he put on a very ugly expression.

"From the first time we meet to the end, Dumbledore never believed me, when I first saw him in the orphanage, I knew. But it doesn't matter, I know spells that he never imagined, I am the most powerful. Now tell me, Harry Potter, how long do you think your words can keep you and that mud blood next to you alive."

"Why did you fail once you laid hands on me? I don't know myself," said Harry stiffly, "But I can see why you didn't kill me, as Evan said, because my mother died trying to save me, she stopped you with her love for me!"

Harry was shaking with anger, "She stopped you from killing me, I saw the real you, I saw you last year. All that is left of you is a husk, it's the end of the line, you are evil, you are ugly, and you are disgusting!"

Riddle turned and looked at the statue of Slytherin, his grinning face was more visible.

"Now let's see can you and that mud blood escape from the greatest dark wizard of all time."

Tom spoke in Parseltongue, the huge stone statue's mouth opened and formed a giant dark hole.

Evan looked at the face of the statue of Slytherin which was barely visible. He then saw the diary that he was looking for above the statue.

The basilisk slowly slithered out of the statue, its body was full of scars, Snape's attacks, and the rooster's crow has made it unusually tired and weak.

But for two young wizards, the basilisk is still deadly even in its weakened state.

"Kill them!" cried Tom frantically.

The basilisk slithered towards them, Evan wand produced a pink light, it was the Conjunctivitis Curse but it was neutralized by a spell from Riddle.

"Are you stupid, do you think I would let you do the same thing twice." Riddle screamed, "Now mud blood smell the sweet embrace of death..."

Before his words finished, music filled the chamber of secrets.

It was eerie, spine-tingling, unearthly.

Evan saw a crimson bird descend suddenly, it was the size of a crane, playing its eccentric music. It had a glittering tail which was as big as a peacock's, a pair of glittering claws, and a parcel on his talon.

"It's Fawkes, Dumbledore's Phoenix!"

He flew over and threw a tattered hat to the two men's feet, Evan saw that it was the school's sorting hat.

"That's hilarious!"

Riddle suddenly burst out laughing, he smiled, and trembled, it was as if there were ten of them laughing at the same time, "This is what Dumbledore sends his defender, a singing bird, and a tattered hat! Do you feel brave, Harry Potter? Do you feel safe now?"

As Tom's voice fell, he saw Fawkes fly towards the basilisk and circle its head.

The basilisk tried to attack the Phoenix with its fangs.

But it was no use, Fawkes swooped down, and plunged its long golden beak into the head of the basilisk. Fawkes sang a strange song, from time to time it pecked the basilisk, black blood soon gushed out, the Phoenix had pecked it blind.

"No, kill the boys! Leave the bird alone, the boys are behind you!" screamed Riddle loudly.

"Harry, believe in yourself, Evan shoved the sorting hat into Harry's hand, he then turned towards the statue of Slytherin and shouted, "I'll get the diary, you have to destroy it."

Harry blankly stared at the tattered hat, he then felt something hard in the hat, he looked down and saw a glittering silver sword, the hilt was studded with dazzling rubies the size of eggs.

Harry pulled it out, the rubies faintly glowed.

The proof of courage, the sword of Gryffindor!