The words faded quickly, but only after Severus Snape began writing on the page.
"Hello, Tom. Who are you? Why can you communicate with me?" He didn't answer Tom's question, instead feigning curiosity.
Narcissa held her breath, eagerly awaiting Riddle's response.
"No, this isn't true communication," Riddle wrote back flawlessly in the diary. "I'm merely a memory, a recollection preserved in this diary, no different from a portrait hanging on a wall."
Snape stopped writing. He glanced at Narcissa, who wore a thoughtful expression, her eyes fixed on Riddle's words as they slowly faded from the page.
Then she looked at him, mouthing silently, "Is Tom Riddle the Dark Lord?"
"Yes," Snape nodded, speaking softly. "Give me a moment."
He closed the diary and tucked it into his robes. Picking up a blank piece of parchment from the desk, he wrote down the intricate connection between Riddle and the Dark Lord, then showed it to Narcissa.
"Understand?" Snape asked.
"I understand," Narcissa murmured, her eyes gleaming brightly in the light, filled with a mix of fear, shock, and a strange hint of excitement. "We'll keep this secret."
"That's what I like about you," Snape said sincerely, waving his wand and muttering an incantation. A blue flame, resembling a bellflower, shot from the tip of his wand.
The parchment burned to ash in the flames.
With a quiet "Evanesco," Snape made even the ashes vanish.
"Hey," Lucius interjected in a low voice, his silver-gray eyes filled with confusion and impatience. "What are you two talking about?"
"None of your business, Lucius," Snape replied. "Just listen to Narcissa. She'll decide what you need to know."
Lucius shot Snape a disgruntled look, his Adam's apple bobbing. But out of respect for the wand in Snape's hand, he fell silent.
"Sir," Lucius said at last, his tone laced with reluctant politeness, "since you've got the diary, can you leave peacefully now? If you have any other requests, please state them."
"Thank you for your cooperation. I think that's all," Snape said, placing their wands on the desk and untying the ropes binding Narcissa.
"Good night, Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy," he said, pointing his wand at them with one hand while reaching into his pocket with the other, pulling out a piece of parchment wrapped around a Portkey. "Have a pleasant evening."
"Wait, sir," Narcissa called out before he could unwrap the parchment. "It would be better if you left Malfoy Manor the normal way, as you came."
Snape paused, slipping the parchment back into his pocket and nodding. "Fine, but I'll need your cooperation once more."
He smoothly pocketed their wands, then untied Lucius.
"Come," he said. "Walk with me."
Snape hid his wand in his sleeve, letting Narcissa take his arm while keeping the wand pointed at her.
"Lucius, you go ahead," he instructed.
Under the watchful eyes of the Malfoy ancestors' portraits on the walls, they left the manor, chatting and laughing as if nothing were amiss.
"No need to worry," Narcissa said in the drawing room. "Lucius and I will visit the house-elf relocation office to request a better, more obedient elf."
She lowered her voice to a whisper, addressing Snape. "I'll contact Abraxas immediately afterward to learn more about Dobby."
"Excellent," Snape said approvingly.
Outside the manor, standing by the wrought-iron gates, Snape turned to them. "No need to see me off. Wait here, and I'll leave your wands on the ground."
He walked down the country path, moving out of range of the Anti-Apparition wards.
Unexpectedly, Narcissa whispered something to Lucius and approached Snape, her footsteps echoing clearly in the quiet night.
"Anything else?" Snape asked, turning at the sound of her steps.
"Severus," Narcissa said in a hushed, anxious tone, "is it true what you said about the deadly danger facing Abraxas Malfoy?"
"Of course," Snape replied. "I wouldn't lie about something like that."
"What exactly?" Narcissa pressed.
"The Defense Against the Dark Arts post," Snape explained. "The Dark Lord cursed it. No one has ever held the position safely for more than a year."
"We've heard rumors about that," Narcissa said. "But Lucius told me he suggested Abraxas take the Hogwarts post with the Dark Lord's approval."
"Do you think Death Eaters are the Dark Lord's friends or disposable servants?" Snape gave a mocking smile. He knew Narcissa saw the Dark Lord's true nature more clearly than Lucius did.
After a moment of silence, a flicker of agreement passed through Narcissa's eyes. "Servants," she said slowly.
"Severus," she continued, "Abraxas's appointment was also approved by the Ministry."
"Well," Snape shook his head, "you lot playing politics are truly…"
"By the way," he shifted topics abruptly, "did you know your brother Regulus Black has become a Death Eater?"
"What?" Narcissa's voice sharpened, nearly losing control of its volume. "Regulus is a Death Eater?"
Snape looked at her with pity and nodded.
Narcissa's already pale face seemed to glow coldly in the moonlight, her golden hair cascading down her back, making her look like a drowned ghost.
"He's not even of age," Narcissa said, her chest heaving, her voice low and venomous with anger. "Lucius never told me this. Isn't Bellatrix enough for the Black family?"
Snape shrugged. "The Dark Lord clearly doesn't think so."
From Kreacher's stories, Snape knew Regulus had joined the Dark Lord's ranks willingly, with pride and joy. But why tell Narcissa that? Keeping her anger toward the Dark Lord suited his plans better.
Looking into Narcissa's blue eyes, burning with hatred, Snape understood why, in the final battle, she would choose to deceive Tom.
From her perspective, even setting aside Sirius, the "family traitor," the Dark Lord had truly killed her brother, imprisoned her husband, and, due to Lucius's failures, repeatedly assigned her beloved son impossible, deadly tasks.
With her intelligence, she could easily see that by saving Harry's life, all of the Malfoy family's sins could be forgiven.
"I'll find Regulus and check his arm," Narcissa said, breaking Snape's thoughts. Her voice was calm again, but the fire in her eyes still burned.
"Good," he said. "That way, you'll see I'm not lying."
"I don't think you'd lie to me, Severus," Narcissa said. "I just want to confirm. Also, a word of warning: Bellatrix is looking for you. The scar you left on her face isn't exactly flattering."
"Ugh," Snape sighed, adopting an exaggeratedly melancholic tone. "I always leave an indelible mark on women, whether on their bodies or their souls."
"Why would you say something so odd?" Narcissa rolled her eyes.
"Seriously," Snape's tone turned grave, "you'd better tell her not to come after me. I can't guarantee next time it'll just be a shallow scar. She was ready to kill your other sister and her family last time—including a four-year-old girl."
"I will," Narcissa said. "Goodbye, Severus. Stay in touch."
"Stay in touch," Snape replied, stepping back and placing Lucius and Narcissa's wands on the ground. "Keep your wands safe. Don't hand them over to just anyone—especially the Dark Lord."
With that strange parting advice, Snape vanished into the night.
The gates of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry were even grander than those of Malfoy Manor, flanked by stone pillars topped with winged boar statues.
At that moment, Snape felt an odd sense of lightness. Not only had he successfully retrieved the soul-draining Horcrux diary, but he'd also gained an unexpected ally—Narcissa Malfoy. This clever, family-driven woman might prove a vital force against Voldemort.
As Snape raised his wand to open the gates, a hook seemed to yank him forward from behind his navel, and he was lifted off the ground. The muddy earth beneath his feet and the gates before him vanished.
"Damn," Snape muttered amid swirling colors and rushing wind, realizing he'd forgotten about the Portkey around his neck. "It's midnight already. Just a few steps more, was that really necessary…?"
Less than half a second later, his feet slammed into the floor, and his legs buckled, sending him to his knees.
Snape looked up. Dumbledore was still seated behind his desk.
"Get up, Severus. No need for such grand gestures," the headmaster said kindly. "How did the mission go?"
"Pfft," Snape spat, standing and pulling the black diary from his robes. "Smoother than expected, Professor."
He walked to Dumbledore's desk and handed him the diary. "Don't write in it yet, Professor. Let me handle talking to Tom."
Dumbledore took the diary, examining it closely. He saw Tom's name on the title page, his fingers brushing lightly over it, his expression turning pensive.
After confirming the inner pages were blank, he flipped to the back cover, where the name of a newsstand on Vauxhall Road, London, was printed.
"Winstanley's Book and Stationery Shop," Dumbledore read softly. "Interesting. Isn't that next to the Prewett family's place?"
"What?" Snape stepped behind the desk, peering at the text on the back cover. "Well, that's a coincidence. It seems Tom bought this diary before he knew about magic. I wonder if he ever noticed anything unusual about the Prewetts."
"I doubt he paid much attention to Muggle streets," Dumbledore said, shaking his head. "What do you plan to do with it next?"
"Oh, that's an interesting question." Snape sat across from Dumbledore, slipping the diary into a small bag and tucking it into his robes before continuing. "I haven't decided yet, Professor."
He held up three fingers. "But I have three ideas.
"First, I could threaten to destroy the soul fragment in the diary to force Tom to help me absorb Nagini's soul while keeping her alive.
"Second, I could trick him into helping me achieve the same goal.
"Third, I could negotiate a mutually beneficial deal with Tom's Horcrux."
"Negotiate?" Dumbledore asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes," Snape said. "Splitting a soul weakens the main body's stability. The Tom in this diary seems to have independent consciousness. I think he might not mind elevating his own status."
"Are you sure about negotiating with Tom?" Dumbledore's brow furrowed.
"Of course—" Snape paused. "No, I'd rather not. He'd likely outsmart me. Any deal would just be mutual deception.
"Next, I'll focus on finding a way to destroy Horcruxes and, in extreme cases, a way to preserve Nagini's life."
"Proceed cautiously, Severus," Dumbledore said, seeming relieved. "Have you considered letting me keep the diary? It might be safer."
"I found this, Professor. And I found Ravenclaw's diadem, too," Snape said with a deep sigh. "To be honest, I'm a bit disappointed in you, Professor.
"When I gave you the diadem, I hoped you'd take a real shot at it, find a breakthrough quickly. Being Headmaster of Hogwarts, Chair of the International Confederation of Wizards, and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot isn't just about doing your job well.
"You need to think systematically. What's the value of what you're doing? Why you, and not someone else? I think it's time you made some changes—"
"Enough!" Dumbledore cut off Snape's lecture, raising a hand to rub his forehead. "Keep talking, and I'll show you why I have all those titles."
"Fine, Professor. It seems we're on the same page," Snape said cheerfully. "Since your workload isn't heavy enough, I'll entrust you with the critical task of finding a way to preserve Nagini's life. Don't let me down."
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