Tom had to be insane!
That's what Hermione thought, anyway.
The Acromantula opened its massive jaws, a foul, fishy stench pouring out as jets of black venom shot toward them.
Hermione only saw Tom flick his wand—no incantation at all—and the venom flew harmlessly up into the air.
Silent casting!
Hermione's eyes went wide.
"The Levitation Charm is pretty amazing magic. If you really master it, you can do stuff like this. Though a truly skilled wizard would've sent those spiders flying. I'm still not quite there yet."
"Forget that for a second!" Hermione pointed at the approaching spiders. "They're coming right at us!"
Incendio—flames roaring!
Tom combined both spells, thrusting his wand forward.
"BOOM—!!!"
A huge blast of fire erupted from the wand tip, surging toward the Acromantulas. In the blink of an eye, it pierced straight through their bodies.
The lingering flames burned the spider corpses to nothing—not even ash remained.
Hermione's mouth slowly dropped open as she stared at Tom in disbelief. "You... when did you start learning magic like this? Tom, you're secretly an Auror, aren't you? I've never seen a first-year—no, not even a seventh-year—pull off something like that!"
Tom was shocked too, staring at his own wand.
That spell just now... it wasn't him.
The flames had been denser, hotter than his own.
Tom sniffed the air. There was a faint licorice scent—something only someone who spent a lot of time around potion ingredients would carry.
Professor Snape?
Snape must've been standing right beside him, using magic to kill the spiders.
Honestly, Professor Snape—hiding under a Disillusionment Charm like it's something shameful...
Tom pouted a little.
Hermione's already seen you. Hiding won't help.
"Come on, let's go. I originally wanted to invite you to come to school with me, but I never got a reply to my letters. When I got to your house, I realized something had happened." Tom naturally took Hermione's hand, and they left the cave together.
"Wait! I remember reading in a book that Acromantulas were bred by wizards. They usually use them to guard really important treasures, so maybe..."
"Don't even think about it." Tom lightly knocked on her head. "Know when to quit. You're lucky to be alive—that's a miracle. Curiosity stops here."
Hermione's curiosity was worse than a cat's.
She'd barely escaped with her life and still wanted to dig deeper.
Pulling Hermione along, Tom hurried them out.
They'd already gotten plenty of rewards—venom collected from the spiders could sell for at least 150 Galleons. Any treasure could stay with Professor Snape, who'd been lurking nearby.
As they left the forest, they didn't encounter another creature.
Hermione wrapped her arms around herself, breathing out a cloud of white mist. Trailing behind Tom, her eyes fixed on the little braid he had tied at the back of his head. "Tom, how did you know I was here?"
"A potion. I added some of your hair to it—it lets me see footprints."
"I guess I need to hit the library more too. Anyway, where are we staying tonight?"
At this hour, getting home wasn't an option. Walking wasn't possible.
Hermione had no idea where they even were—she'd fallen asleep on the trip and woken up in the middle of this forest.
"How about the Leaky Cauldron? We can head out early tomorrow to catch the train. You got all your stuff?"
Hermione lifted her trunk to show she was good.
Tom glanced back, hoping Professor Snape might help, but the cave had been cleared out—no sign of life, just a heavy boulder blocking the entrance.
So we're really on our own to get to the Leaky Cauldron?
"Professor Snape, are you there?" Tom asked quietly.
No answer.
"Professor Dumbledore, could you help us out? Get us to the Leaky Cauldron...?"
"How did you know I was here, little one?" Dumbledore appeared from the shadows with a chuckle. "Tom, you really shouldn't be so reckless. If luck hadn't been on your side, you'd both be Acromantula food right now.
But—" Dumbledore changed tone, "—going to such lengths for a friend... Tom, you're a good kid. Hold my hands, both of you. I'll take you home. The Leaky Cauldron isn't suitable for children."
Apparition!
Hermione felt the world spin, her stomach churning.
Next thing she knew, she was in front of her own house.
"Miss Granger, you need to get inside—your parents will be worried. Tom, you..."
"I don't have parents. If I go back, Misha would just worry about me." Tom shrugged. "Leaky Cauldron's fine. I can catch the train early tomorrow."
"Alright..." Dumbledore couldn't argue with Tom and took him to the Leaky Cauldron.
The barman jolted when he saw Dumbledore in person. "Blimey, what a day! No wonder the goddess smiled at me this morning. Mr. Albus, the Leaky Cauldron welcomes you, my friend."
Dumbledore's name carried a lot of weight in the wizarding world—except with Voldemort and the Malfoys.
After settling Tom in, Dumbledore left.
He returned to the forest.
Reappearing, Dumbledore looked at Snape beside him. "I had no idea this place even existed—with so many trolls and Acromantulas planted here.
Severus, did you find anything?"
Snape sighed and shook his head. "Nothing. Not a single trace. If we hadn't followed Tom, we wouldn't have discovered it at all.
But Albus, your suspicions should be cleared now, right?"
"Suspicions?" Dumbledore smiled. "I never suspected Tom."
"Yes, you did! The moment you heard his name, you suspected him right away. There's no way it's that much of a coincidence!
But if he really was... the Dark Lord, Granger wouldn't have made it out alive tonight. We were all one step behind."
Dumbledore felt the same.
Same name, incredible talent at such a young age—it was impossible not to suspect. They'd both been quietly on guard around Tom.
But Severus's words just now... did he not suspect at all?
"Severus, you've never once thought Tom could be the Dark Lord?"
"Absolutely impossible!" Snape's tone was firmer than ever. "But after tonight, the Dark Lord might target Tom. He—meaning Tom—could be even more terrifying to him than Potter!"
Snape emphasized "Potter" as "broken" with a hint of dissatisfaction—or maybe just annoyance.
"Enough, Severus. We shouldn't waste more time on this. We both have things to do. No matter what, our students need to start school safely tomorrow. Hogwarts has to be the safest place in the world."
"You're right." Snape shuffled off like a big bat.
"You're not coming back with me?"
"I'm heading to Diagon Alley for some ingredients."
Dumbledore watched Snape's retreating figure, a small smile tugging at his lips.
Diagon Alley?
The Leaky Cauldron's in Diagon Alley!
Looks like Severus really does like Tom.
...
"Dobby! Dobby is a bad elf!"
In the Leaky Cauldron, the house-elf was banging his head against the wall over and over.
"Dobby didn't want to hurt you! Dobby just... Dobby can't say!"
Tom sipped his lemon water, watching the elf continue.
"Calm down. We don't blame you." Tom finally grabbed him to stop it.
"Did you take Hermione to the forest?"
"Dobby didn't!"
Tom pressed his lips together. "Then you intercepted Hermione's letters, right? And mine too."
Hit the nail on the head—Dobby's eyes filled with tears. "Dobby just didn't want you to go to school! You... you can't go! Someone... Dobby is a bad elf—he betrayed his master!"
Before he could say more, he tried banging his head again—but Tom held him back, preventing a bloody mess.
Master? Draco's dad?
Tom let out a long sigh.
So Lucius Malfoy was targeting Hermione? Why? If he wanted to go after someone, it should be Harry. Why these two? Hermione hadn't changed much...
Oh no!
Was it because I let Hermione win the championship?
Tom suddenly remembered—at Lockhart's competition, Draco Malfoy had entered too, and got absolutely crushed by him (in Hermione's body).
Tom rubbed his forehead. This was getting complicated.
But it didn't quite feel like Lucius's style—Dobby had only blocked the letters, but hadn't interfered at all with Hermione leaving home.
"Dobby, I want you to do something for me."
"Dobby can't help Tom! Dobby's a bad elf—Dobby only messes things up..."
Tom patted his head.
He was great with kids.
"Listen, little guy. Everyone makes mistakes. Making a mistake isn't scary—what matters is reflecting on it and doing something right to make up for it.
I grew up in St. Lydia's Orphanage. As a kid, I wasn't very likable—because I was a wizard. I thought I was better than everyone else, like I didn't fit in.
One day, a boy named Lawrence got fed up with me and hid a rat under my pillow. I was furious and beat him up. That was the biggest mistake I ever made."
Dobby stopped crying, listening intently to Tom's story.
"The other kids saw me hit him. They got scared of me—I had no friends, everyone kept their distance. Once people dislike you, it's really hard to win them back, you know?
So I let go of my pride. From then on, I was just Tom. I was kind to everyone because I wanted friends—I wanted them to know Tom wasn't a mean guy. Hey, you listening?"
"Dobby is listening."
Tom spent a while telling stories about changing at the orphanage—selling flowers with friends, using his last coins to buy them flower cakes.
And how he made a great friend named Misha.
Of course, Tom made it all up. His reputation at the orphanage had always been good—only Lawrence had a problem with him.
"So, Dobby." Tom took a sip of lemon tea to wet his throat. "Like I said, mistakes aren't the end of the world. What's scary is not making amends. You almost got Hermione killed, so you need to make up for it. That's what a real man does, got it?"
After a long silence, Dobby lifted his head, looking at Tom with those big green eyes. "What does Tom want Dobby to do?"
"Great—you've got green eyes like me. That means you'll grow up to be a real man just like me. There's only one thing: If Hermione's ever in danger again, tell me. Okay? Don't act on your own—tell me."
"Dobby... Dobby will..."
The little elf nodded, stopping his self-punishment and bowing his head to Tom.