Chapter 10: Tom's Collection
Tom's scream stopped, and he stared intently at the wardrobe, his dark eyes flickering with renewed excitement.
Clearly, Dumbledore's display had truly shocked him.
Theo also focused his gaze on the wardrobe.
He knew that Dumbledore, even when demonstrating his magic, would never resort to such drastic measures without a special reason.
And indeed, there was a reason.
Dumbledore calmly said, "I believe there's something about to come out of your wardrobe."
Sure enough, a creaking sound immediately came from inside the wardrobe, and Tom suddenly looked a little scared.
"Open the door," Dumbledore said unequivocally.
Tom hesitated for a moment, but ultimately walked over and opened the wardrobe door.
On the top shelf of the wardrobe, a paper box rested on a pile of old clothes.
"Take it out," Dumbledore said.
Tom looked flustered at the command, his hands even trembling slightly as he took out the box.
"Is there something in the box that you shouldn't have?" Dumbledore asked.
Tom kept his head down, his lips tightly pressed together, his hands hesitatingly placed on the box's lid.
Dumbledore noticed that his gaze swept across Theo, who had been silent all along, seemingly reluctant to open the box in front of him.
"Tom?" Dumbledore prompted again.
"Yes, I think so, sir," he finally said stiffly, slowly opening the box and tipping it out onto the bed.
It was a pile of miscellaneous everyday trinkets, including a yo-yo, a silver thimble, and a tarnished harmonica.
Once the box was emptied, they stopped trembling and lay quietly on the thin sheet.
"Return them to their respective owners and apologise," Dumbledore said calmly, putting his wand back into his jacket.
"I'll know if you do it or not. I also want to warn you that Hogwarts does not tolerate theft."
Tom glanced at Theo, who was watching with a half-smile, his hands tightly gripping the box lid, his face full of embarrassment.
He would rather be confined to the dark room for a month straight than give that bastard Theo another chance to mock him!
But now...
Finally, he responded in a voice that Dumbledore could barely hear, "Yes, sir..."
"At Hogwarts," Dumbledore continued, "we not only teach you to use magic but also how to control it."
"You have been, inadvertently... I'm quite sure the way you use magic is neither what our school teaches nor will it be tolerated by us."
"You're not the first, and you won't be the last, to lose control of magic in your hands. But you should know that Hogwarts expels students, and the Ministry of Magic... yes, there is such a department."
"It punishes those who more seriously break the law. All new wizards entering our world must accept this and abide by our laws."
"Yes, sir," Tom responded, then suddenly asked, "But why are you only talking about me? I'm not the only one using magic here."
As he spoke, he looked at Theo, who had been watching the show for a while.
"That's because Theo has never used innocent people as targets."
Dumbledore's gaze on Tom also sharpened. "I have a very clear understanding of your past actions, Tom. Especially what you did to Amy and Dennis in that cave."
Tom's face was pale, his lips moving but no sound coming out. After all, what Dumbledore said was true.
Theo had indeed not used any magic on the other ordinary people in the orphanage, unlike him...
Because he found such behaviour childish and boring... yes, he must think I'm childish now! Boring!
Thinking of Theo's mocking gaze, a sense of humiliation rose in Tom's heart again.
He had clearly made up his mind not to give that bastard another chance to ridicule him...
Dumbledore looked at Theo and asked gently, "Theo, would you be willing to help me keep an eye on Tom?"
"Of course, Professor. In fact, he has already begun to change. Perhaps these things are just things he hasn't had time to return yet."
Theo took the box from Tom's hands and put the items back inside.
"I will return these things to their owners with him."
Tom looked up at Theo in surprise, his expression inscrutable.
"With you watching, I'm very relieved, Theo..." Dumbledore said, then looked at Tom again. "Tom, I'm glad you've made so many changes recently, and I hope you can continue like this and not repeat the same mistakes. Magic is wonderful, but it's also extremely easy to lose control of... I don't want it to get out of control in your hands again."
Tom nodded expressionlessly. "I understand, sir."
Theo put the box aside and then asked, "Is there tuition for Hogwarts? As you can see, both Tom and I are penniless."
Hearing Theo ask the crucial question, Tom, at this moment, couldn't care less about his discomfort and looked at Dumbledore with the same concerned gaze.
"Oh, that's easy to solve..." Dumbledore took out two leather pouches from his pocket. "Hogwarts has a fund to help needy students who need to buy books and robes. You'll need to buy some second-hand spell books, but..."
"Where do you buy spell books?" Riddle interrupted him, taking a heavy pouch without thanking Dumbledore and taking out a large gold galleon to examine it carefully.
The current Tom was more eager than ever to become stronger! And buying spell books and then learning magic was the easiest way!
"In Diagon Alley, I can take you to buy everything you need."
"You're going with us?" Tom asked.
"Of course, if you're willing."
"No, I..." Seeing that Theo didn't stop him, Tom continued, "We don't need you; we can do it ourselves. Just tell us the address of that... Diagon Alley."
Tom couldn't wait for Dumbledore to leave immediately; why would he want Dumbledore to go shopping with him?
Dumbledore didn't insist but gave the two envelopes containing the admission notices and shopping lists to Theo and Tom, respectively.
After explaining in detail the route to the Leaky Cauldron and other important information, Dumbledore got up and left.
Some time after Dumbledore left, Tom hefted the leather pouch in his hand and couldn't help but ask, "When are you planning to go to that... Diagon Alley to buy things?"
Theo picked up the box on the bed, a smile appearing on his face. "Why, after returning your little trinkets to their owners, of course."
Tom's pale face flushed again at these words...
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(End of this chapter)