Murphy doesn't believe in the notion that "Tom's birth was a product of a love potion, so he can't sense love."
Is every child's birth a product of love? Not really, right? And, is every union of a man and a woman because of love? Not necessarily, right?
What about women who have children through IVF alone? How is that accounted for? In Murphy's view, the reason Tom Riddle becomes Voldemort, the reason he doesn't understand "love", is only one: he has never truly felt love; no one really loved him.
Love is not a natural gift, but a skill, a technique, much like eating, drinking, or walking. It's an ability that needs to be acquired.
Growing up in an environment devoid of love, it's quite normal for Tom not to understand the skill of love.
On the contrary, Harry in the original story is incredibly resilient. In such a growing environment, he still maintained the spark in his heart. To some extent, he is indeed stronger than Tom.
Murphy has a plan for Tom, which, besides achieving certain goals, also serves an experimental purpose. He's quite curious about the power of this "strongest magic" mentioned by Dumbledore.
...
Diagon Alley.
Hermione is sick as a dog, feeling like she's about to die.
For an eleven-year-old, Apparition is too stimulating.
This time, Murphy gave her a bottle of invigorating potion to drink.
It's like a stimulant, able to restore some abnormal bodily states.
Tom, on the other hand, seems unaffected.
His body is actually dead, only kept together with Tom's soul by a soul seed placed by Murphy, along with some dark magic activating the body's heartbeat, breathing, and other systems. His brain has only the electrical reactions similar to a comatose state; he is essentially a vegetable driven by Tom's soul.
After a while, Hermione's spirit finally revives, and Murphy takes the two kids to Gringotts to arrange a student loan for Tom.
Then they went shopping for cauldrons, dragon leather gloves, books, etc., mostly second-hand.
Watching Tom carefully counting his coins and budgeting, Murphy feels sentimental. He was poor when he went to school and had a similar experience.
Therefore, when he sees the second-hand cauldron shop owner trying to sell an old cauldron to Tom for a galleon, he couldn't hold back.
"Boss, this cauldron is dented, non-foldable, with this black ash, it's obviously been used for over three years, and you dare ask this much? Three sickles, no more."
In the protective gear shop, "The cotton inside these gloves is almost coming out, and there's a hole burnt here, four sickles at most."
In the bookshop, "A galleon for a complete set of textbooks? Are you robbing me? These aren't new! Good condition, right? Fine, we'll pick ourselves."
"Look, this one has no cover, this one's corners are gnawed, this one's yellowed, plus this sheepskin paper and pen, nine sickles in total, do you sell or not?"
Leaving the second-hand bookshop, Murphy finds a place to sit down, takes out the old books, and starts working on them.
While working, he teaches Tom, "These old, yellowed books without damage are just dirty. Use a cleaning charm to remove most of the mold. Dry them, and for stubborn stains, try alcohol or a brightening cleaning agent; they can mostly be restored to seventy or eighty percent of their original state."
"The ones without covers are easy to fix. Just make a new one."
He cuts the sheepskin paper to the right size with his wand, wraps it around the textbook without a cover, then creates a beautiful cover design with his wand and attaches it to the book.
"For those with missing corners, it's not a big deal, and it doesn't affect usage."
He trims the damaged corners into a smooth curve with his wand, making them look neat and not out of place.
After all the treatment, the old books don't look so old anymore, but rather uniquely exquisite.
He then treats the gloves and the cauldron, restoring their functionality and making them look much better.
Hermione is amazed, "That's incredible, these items look as good as new, all for a galleon! I spent thirteen galleons!"
"Well, necessity is the mother of invention," Murphy smiles, "If you don't learn to budget, you can't get by."
"Were you really... poor before?" Hermione asks.
"Yes, very. I was an orphan like Tom, my parents were dark wizards, died in prison, left no money. Back then, my character was also quite twisted, not very adaptable, so I've always been poor, living tightly."
Tom glances at Murphy's obviously expensive attire and recalls the respect the goblins at Gringotts showed him. It's hard to imagine he was once a poor kid.
"Alright, let's go buy school uniforms and a wand." Murphy doesn't say much more, leading them to a second-hand robe shop.
They find two fitting robes, but there's no suitable one left for Tom. Tom initially wants to buy the remaining oversized one, but Murphy stops him, "You should have enough money left, go to Madam Malkin's for a custom fit."
"But that's going to be expensive, right?"
"Books and cauldrons are for use, so it's okay if they're old. But clothes, besides being comfortable, are for others to see. Shabby clothes always lead to disrespect. It's not about vanity; it's about saving more energy to focus on more important things."
"Finally, the wand."
Murphy is about to take them to Ollivanders but spots two people through a crow he placed at a high point in Diagon Alley and overhears their conversation.
"Huh?"
"What's wrong, Professor?"
"Oh, nothing, let's go."
Just then, Tom feels a sudden intuition.
He excuses himself, saying he forgot something in the fitting room, and goes back to check his diary.
The text in it has updated.
"Diagon Alley trip, I learned many lessons from Professor Murphy."
"But what made me happier is that at Ollivanders, I met a friend for life."
"We have astonishing similarities, our souls resonate and attract each other; he will become my most loyal friend, my most reliable partner."
Tom frowns. The diary first talked about changing destiny, and now a friend for life.
It all seems a bit too good to be true.
But just as he thinks this, the diary updates again.
"But I don't believe in fate's arrangement, so I deliberately delayed and went to the wand shop much later. I got the wand I wanted."
"It was a beautiful morning, I was practicing the Sectumsempra spell, suddenly the wand broke in half, the spell backfired on me."
"I died."
"Before I died, I shed tears of regret, if only..."
Fine, fine, I'll go, okay?
Tom is also curious about the diary's mentioned friend for life. Who could it be?
Soon after, Murphy takes the kids to Ollivanders.
As they enter the shop, someone else comes in right behind them. Murphy turns, "Sirius? What are you doing here?"
"Oh, took Harry to Egypt for a trip, just got back yesterday, and today I'm taking him to school, just remembered he still needs a wand."
"Hello, Mr. Darkhome," Harry Potter, following Sirius, also sees Murphy and greets him.
At this moment, Harry feels a tingling on his forehead, touches the scar there, and then looks at a boy standing next to Murphy.
The boy also sees him.
In an instant, Tom is sure that this is the boy the diary mentioned.
The same thought occurs to both.
"Who is he?"
"Why does he seem familiar?"
___________________
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