[HP] Dearest Enemy

Because most people knew about Harry's accident during the holidays, and Tom's grades there, no one disputed that Tom became Harry's teaching assistant.However, after the faculty meeting, Principal Dippet and Dumbledore kept the two of them to finalize some details of Tom as a teaching assistant.

Tom didn't need an extra vacant room for an office, Harry's was big enough, and every head of the student union got a separate dormitory, he didn't need that at all; salary, which was not even enough to buy biscuits for Nagini.He proposed donating those salaries to the Hogwarts Bursary Fund to help children who could not afford textbooks.

Harry was slightly taken aback when Tom made the suggestion.He didn't think Tom was sympathizing with the penniless orphans, it seemed to him more like a strategy.But Harry just frowned and said nothing.

Because Tom didn't go to buy textbooks on the day Harry came back, and Harry had to buy some necessities, the two went to Diagon Alley together on the last day of the holiday.By the end of the holidays, Tom was as tall as Harry.Tom is very familiar with Diagon Alley, and the two quickly bought all the necessities.Tom put everything in his enlarged backpack.

Harry subconsciously glanced there as he passed Knockturn Alley, and then his eyes fell on his godson.Tom raised his eyebrows in surprise, his first thought was that Harry knew about him?Then he remembered that Harry had been lying in the hospital for half the holiday, so he felt relieved.

But Harry didn't say anything, just turned his head away nonchalantly.

Tom decided to find a topic: "Alex left suddenly, is it because of the Palampion family?"

Harry thought for a while, then shook his head: "Not all, he is helping Dumbledore."

Tom waited for Harry to continue, but Harry changed the subject to Knockturn Alley: "Dumbledore told me he met you at Knockturn Alley. You also have a part-time job in Knockturn Alley?"

Tom's heart skipped a beat, and Harry asked this anyway.Tom thought it over a little, and decided to tell the truth.

"Yes, I sometimes work for Mr. Borgin," replied Tom calmly, but carefully averting Harry's eyes.

"How long has it been?" Harry asked, no emotion in his voice.

"Two years," replied Tom dryly, not intending to tell the whole truth.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" Harry asked again.

Tom pursed his lips and frowned imperceptibly: "Sorry."

Harry shook his head: "I believe you have a measure."

Tom looked at him in surprise, and couldn't help thinking that Harry didn't pursue Nagini before, and felt a little weird for a while.Is this because Harry trusts himself, or doesn't trust himself?

Harry smiled back at Tom and patted him on the back.

"Let's go."

A bright red steam locomotive carries young wizards north.Tom gave instructions and orders to the prefects of the various houses tersely, and finally said that he was going to take the position of assistant teacher.Tom had a grin on his lips as he walked back to the cubicle in Alphard, and the students were sure to know the news soon.

As expected, when Principal Dippet announced the appointment at the dinner, many students already knew the news and did not show much surprise.The Slytherin table applauded neatly when Tom got up as if it had been rehearsed, and then Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff joined in the applause.Only the Gryffindor table on the other side of the auditorium had the sparsest applause. Out of the corner of his eye, Tom noticed that Billy Weasley was staring at him like he was an enemy, and smiled contemptuously.This was to be expected, and if Weasley was happy about it, it was because the troll had stepped on his brain.Tom glanced across the teacher's table, saw Harry's gaze, and couldn't help but curl his mouth up a bit.

"Tom, how did you and Harry discuss it?" Alfred asked after entering the dormitory. Tom saw that he had been holding back during the dinner with his friends, "Why did he ask you to be his teaching assistant?"

"Am I not qualified?" Tom restrained his smile a little, and sat down in his armchair.

"Of course not," said Arafat, "but doesn't he know that you treated him—"

"Even so, I'm still his godson." Tom raised his legs leisurely, resting his head casually with one hand.

"Isn't he thinking of giving you a chance?" Alphard held his chin in thought, "Could it be that Harry has figured it out?"

Tom said nothing.It wasn't that Tom hadn't thought about the question the day before Harry announced it, but he didn't think he should ask Harry anything.Harry needed him, and that was enough.

"Tom, you haven't given up on Harry, have you?" Alphard said excitedly, "This is a good opportunity!"

"Al!" Tom shook his head and walked over to grab his face, "No nonsense."

"I swear to Merlin, I'm absolutely not talking nonsense!" Alfred said quickly, but with a smile on his face, "I think this is the opportunity Harry deliberately gave you."

Tom let go with a soft snort.Whatever Harry's reasons for putting himself next to him, Tom had no intention of letting this chance to be near Harry again slip by.In a year's time, Tom can't guarantee whether Harry will undergo the transformation he expects after a year, but he will at least make Harry stop treating him like a child.

The next day Tom came to the auditorium early for breakfast, and then went straight to the third floor to prepare for the first class.There was a Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson for the third year in the morning, and because there were so few Slytherins in that class, they took it with Gryffindors.

It seemed that because their seniors were coming to class, the three Slytherins came to the classroom and sat down very early.

"Good morning, Mr. Riddle." Irene greeted Tom nervously, "Sorry, Professor Riddle."

"Good morning, Irene." Tom nodded to them with a smile, "Sit down, Professor Potter will be here in a while."

The three little wizards sat down at the front table, and after a while, the Gryffindor students also came in one after another.Harry was the last to enter the classroom and closed the door behind him.

"Good morning." Harry greeted the students as they walked.

"Good morning, Professor Potter." The students responded unevenly.

"Good morning, Tom, you're so early." Harry nodded to Tom, who was standing to the side of the podium.

"Good morning, Professor Potter," Tom replied politely, a little stiffly.Harry smiled and patted him on the shoulder lightly.

"I think everyone is having a good time this holiday." Harry glanced at the students in the classroom and said gently, "Then let's see if a fulfilling summer vacation has made everyone forget that we have learned something in the last semester." What."

Harry turned around, Tom flicked his wand lightly, and all the questions that had been prepared appeared on the blackboard.

"As before, five points for each question," said Harry. "Clawson, you answer the first one."

Lessons in the lower grades were easy, and all Tom had to do was follow Harry's instructions and help correct the students' mistakes, which made him feel like he could handle it alone.Harry needed to use as little magic as possible to avoid passing out on the podium.

There were two classes in the morning, and because the content of the first grade was not much, Harry asked Tom to take his History of Magic.Tom was a little unhappy. He seldom went to Binns's class. Self-study from textbooks was more interesting than what the ghost taught.He went to History of Magic classroom, though, and found a seat by the back window.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw his slender friend, so he sat down beside Tom consciously.

"How was your first class, Professor Riddle?" Alphard asked with a smile.

Tom didn't answer, but smacked Alfred on the forehead.

"Tom." Alfred helplessly and aggrievedly stared at his friend reproachfully while clutching his sore spot.

"It's easy." Tom tilted his head and smiled at his friend, "The lower grades are easy to deal with."

"What about the seniors?" Arafat asked.

"Except for our level, the rest have to help." Tom replied, "Dumbledore told me to try not to let Harry use magic, otherwise he will recover very slowly."

"It sounds like some kind of curse." Alfred scratched his chin with a quill. At this time, Binns entered the classroom through the wall. "Although I didn't disclose the details, it seems that the injury is really serious."

Of course he was seriously injured, otherwise why would he need to be his assistant.But Alphard's inadvertent comment made Tom pay attention, Harry's injury must not be that simple, could it really be because of a curse?

Tom has been thinking about this question throughout the class.

Tom is much busier than the other seventh graders.First of all, he is the newly appointed chairman of the male student union, and there are many trivial matters that need to be dealt with by him.But since the fifth grade, Tom has known what a student council president needs to do. Sitting in this position is just a matter of going along with the flow, and those necessary tasks are not difficult for him; Classes are given to students in grades one to six.This was not too difficult for Tom, he had already learned all the spells that would appear in the NEWTS exam in advance, and Defense Against the Dark Arts was his strong point.However, compared with the previous grades, the defense skills above the fifth grade were obviously not at the same level, so Harry would demonstrate and explain it himself in many cases.

Tom's biggest headache is the avalanche of homework in seventh grade.Although the professors have reduced his homework according to his situation, Tom still needs to complete complex potions, cumbersome spells, and systematic and precise papers.Tom didn't allow himself to get less than an E in class. An A was no different than a P for him.

But Tom soon got everything in order.Watching Harry carefully in class, he felt more and more that Arffate's views were likely.Harry used to look tired after teaching the older years, but not the younger ones.Dumbledore reminded Tom to let Harry use magic as little as possible, so most of the work that required magic was still done by Tom.However, at Harry's request, Tom had to sit back next to Alfred during the Defense Against the Dark Arts class in the seventh grade, listening or watching Harry lecture on the more advanced methods of Dark Arts and defense.

Tom took advantage of the privilege of not going to class and Nagini carefully looked up all the details of Harry's holiday accident, and soon found the house elf who had taken care of Harry during the holiday from the kitchen.The elf didn't want to tell Tom about Harry at first, she said it was Dumbledore's order.Tom frowned slightly when he heard Dumbledore.He didn't like condescending to ask the house-elf for information, but it seemed that the elf was determined not to say anything, and he decided to slowly grind something out of the elf's mouth. Of course, if Harley would tell him everything, then It couldn't be better.

As before, Tom came to Harry's office three times a week to help him correct his homework, but this time there was no Alex, the arrogant guy, sitting by and drinking tea.Harry only gave Tom homework for students up to the third grade, not because he thought Tom could not correct the papers of the middle and upper grades, but because he didn't want to burden Tom any more.

"That's no problem for me, Harry," protested Tom. "Give me another grade and I could do it."

"No, Tom, this was originally my job." Harry refused gently, "You've helped me a lot."

Tom was a little deflated and annoyed, and Harry's tepid attitude was as repulsive as his stubbornness.