HP Cronos

When Nora woke up, she found that she was lying on a warm and comfortable bed with a steaming cup of something sweet and fragrant next to her.

She vaguely thought she was back at Hogwarts.

She saw a kind face.

"You're awake." The woman said happily.

"You are……"

"I'm Elaine Hussey, a friend of Tom's," she said. "It's a terrible thing to think of, fainting alone in the woods. Luckily Tom thought of going and looking."

Where is fainting.Nora thought angrily.She was clearly fainted by Riddle that night.She obviously just fed him out of gratitude.

Those dark jealousies aside, Elaine is a very nice girl, kind and gentle and compassionate.Not only did she brew a potion for Nora, but she insisted that she travel with them.

"It's too dangerous for a single wizard to go on the road alone," she said, "and there are often dangerous creatures in this forest."

Nora was very touched, and she felt that if Elaine had been to Hogwarts, she must have been a kind Hufflepuff.

During the day, Elaine was busy collecting plants, and Riddle was reading one book after another or writing or drawing something on the parchment, and Nora had to stand alone with her chin in a daze.

She began to miss the diary, and she could chat with him.

But this silence made her feel used to it.Since many years ago, she has been used to watching Riddle busy, doing some boring things in her opinion, such as studying wizard law and social system.

"Do you want to be a politician?" She once asked him, "Sitting in the office every day bossing around, or pushing reforms or something?"

"Politicians?" There was a smile on the corner of his mouth, "The power in the hands of politicians is nothing but a top-down lie. Once they are abandoned, they have nothing. I want something more reliable, something that will never be lost. "

She thought of the past again.These memories are entangled in her mind, and sometimes she is too lazy to distinguish which memory belongs to the original her and which belongs to her in other worlds.

Elaine was not in the car.There were only the two of them in the carriage, and Nora pretended to look at the scenery outside the window, and secretly glanced at Riddle on the opposite side.

Riddle hadn't spoken a word to her since that day.

"I told you to get out of here." Riddle broke the silence.

Nora pouted.It's no wonder she left because of that sentence.

After a moment of silence, Nora said, "Thank you."

Their eyes meet.

"Thank you for saving me."

"You said—" Riddle said slowly, "I've saved you many times."

"Yeah, saved me from an exploding cauldron many times, and kept me from being kicked out of Potions by Professor Slughorn." Because their seats were right next to each other.

"I want to hear the truth."

"It's not a big deal, maybe you have forgotten it yourself."

"I want to hear it," he repeated.

Mr. Voldemort was as arbitrary as ever.

At this time, Elaine came back with a large bag of plant seeds.

"It's been a long time, everyone." She said with a smile, and she seemed to have gained a lot.

Riddle's eyes moved to Elaine, and he didn't ask about it again.Nora felt a little rejoiced and a little disappointed.Riddle and Elaine would often get together without her, whispering.Obvious intimacy.

Keep the wizard's eyes from you.

It said so in large, colorful and flashing letters.

None of them appealed to Nora as much as the wonderful array of pastries in the bakery next door.She was starving, was rejected by 34 shops in a row, and had to use the Stinging Curse on several malicious wizards. Finally, she finally found a job with difficulty.

The job is located in a perfume shop.

Paris is a romantic and fashionable city.

It's not rainy here like in London.The sun was shining brightly when they arrived.

Nora jumped out of the carriage, stretched herself, and bathed in the bright sunshine to her heart's content.Riddle squinted at the sunlight.

Nora knew he had never liked the weather.

Elaine invites them to Hussey's house, but Nora is too embarrassed to bother her, so she falsely claims that she has relatives in Paris.

So Elaine looked at Riddle, and the look in Nora's eyes was full of affection: "Of course, Tom, you must come with me. My grandpa will be very happy to see you and..."

"I'll find a suitable time to visit." Riddle interrupted her and said politely, "Before then, I still have some things to deal with."

They look so good together.Nora thought a little gloomily.English gentleman and French lady.

Elaine left her address and left.Only Nora and Riddle were left now, five steps apart, one standing in the sun and the other in the shadows.

"Then I'm leaving," Nora said.

"Where can you go? Do you really have a relative in Paris, Miss Nora Gray?"

Well, he had already discovered her nonsense, Riddle was Riddle after all.Nora hung her head, staring listlessly at the bright sunshine in Paris.

"I can give you a place," said he, "on the basis of our old friendship, Miss Gray."

He rereads the word "old days".

This is Tom Riddle, who understands the weaknesses of others.When he makes an offer in this tone, it's usually an offer that no one can refuse.

Nora thought for a while and replied, "No, thank you very much, but our friendship is not that good yet."

Tom smiled instead of anger: "Are you going to beg here with your poor French?"

"There is always a way." Nora raised her head, "Also, I will pay back the money."

She thought he would at least say a few more words, be it sweet talk or ridicule, but he didn't.

He withdrew his gaze, turned and left without saying a word.

Hateful.Nora thought as she watched his leaving back from afar.Hateful.Doesn't he know how to keep her?Isn't he a smooth-talking Dark Lord?Even though she knew that these complaints were just making trouble for no reason, she couldn't restrain the sense of loss in her heart.

I really want to give myself a forgetfulness and forget everything about Tom Riddle.

How to save a mad soul that has been shattered?Nora didn't know, and she hadn't thought of a good way so far.

The only thing she could do was to assume that all the man's requests or suggestions were malicious, and then she was determined not to act according to his instructions.

"Teach me Parseltongue, Tom."

"Of course." The boy narrowed his eyes, arrogant like a monarch, "but—this ability is not available to everyone. If you want to get it, you must pay some price..."

"The price, aren't we friends? Dad said that there are only sharing among friends, there is no transaction."

"It's not a deal, it's an exchange, Nora."

"Well... then what price do you want?"

"It's different from cakes or toys. Those things are everywhere, but I'm the only one who has mastered Parseltongue—unique. You have to pay an equal price." A smile appeared on his gloomy face.

"What price?"

"Like—obey me."

Four hours after she turned down Tom Riddle's invitation, Nora regretted it.

Finding a job in Paris is not easy.

Especially for Nora, an unaccompanied and penniless Englishman with poor French.

Paris is a romantic city, for Muggles as much as it is for wizards.

This is simply a love potion paradise. There are all kinds of perfume bottles in the store, with attractive descriptions:

One drop can get your husband's thoughtfulness throughout the day.

Or: Want to be the center of attention at the dance party?Just three scoops will make all wizards fall for you.

Nora was pretty sure the business here wasn't entirely legal.When some customers come in and say something mysteriously, the clerk will lead them into the secret room behind.

Of course, as a temporary worker, Nora is not qualified to know such a high-level secret.Her job is to sort the shelves outside, move merchandise, clean the store, and make deliveries to customers.

The male shop assistants are tall and handsome, with a row of shining teeth when they smile.The female shop assistants are beautiful and patient, and all of them are as beautiful as Veela blood.They are the best signs when they stand in a row in a store.

And the boss is a shrewd man with a moustache, and he doesn't allow any flaws in his shop.Finds a hair on the floor and yells, "Grey!"

Fortunately, most of what he criticized her Nora didn't understand.At this time, you only need to stand honestly and show a repentant expression to get away with it.

All in all, it's not bad.Except she lost Riddle's whereabouts again.But she sensed that he was still in Paris, perhaps with Elaine...

Stop thinking about these things and take the opportunity to save some money is what matters.She never wanted to sleep on the streets again.

Riddle called on the Hussey house that morning.

The Hussey family moved to France 200 years ago and was rewarded by the French royal family.Not surprisingly, Hufflepuff was the most Muggle-friendly of the four founders of Hogwarts.

He saw Elaine again, and Riddle politely leaned over and kissed the back of her hand: "Nice to see you again, Miss."

A trance flashed across Elaine's soft and fair face, and then a smile broke out: "I've been waiting for you, Tom."

The Hussey family is not obsessed with inheriting the family business.The sons went to all over the world to do their favorite jobs.For example, Elaine chose to become a botanist.

The rest of the family was not alarmed by Riddle's visit this time.

They walked through the winding corridors of the house and came to a large door.

"Grandpa Zeng is inside." Elaine said, "He's not quite sober now." She opened the door for the sake of it.

Bruno de Hercy sank into a soft old man's chair, with his feet on a low stool.He was very old, even among wizards, with a ravenous face like a wrinkled rag, and cloudy eyes struggling to open a slit.

"Hello, Mr. Hussey." Riddle calmly sat down, "I am Tom Riddle, the one who brought Hufflepuff's gold cup."

"Ah... thank you very much..." the old man said slowly and hoarsely.

"What do you know about the secret that Hufflepuff keeps in the cup?" Riddle continued.He still maintained the politeness in his tone, but his words were no longer polite.

"The secret in the golden cup..." the old man was thoughtful.

"There must be a secret hidden here." Riddle tempted, "What does the heir of Hufflepuff need to reveal? Talent, blood, or life?"

"You are wrong, young man," said the old man quietly. "A Hufflepuff will help those who need help, whoever they may be. You pray for kindness, and she will answer. You mean evil, and she will keep silent. "

The old man, who had struggled to say hello just now, finished the long sentence evenly.Riddle looked into his eyes, which were blurry in those old eyes.He can't see anything.

He got up: "So, goodbye."

"You are wrong," said the old man behind him. "Heir of Slytherin, you are wrong."

Riddle didn't look back.