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Chapter Text

Harry sat in the room of requirement hugging his legs close to his chest as he cried softly underneath a small desk that rested amongst the clutter the room had provided as a hiding place. He had stumbled upon the room after fleeing from a rather aggressive group of Hufflepuffs claiming thy where getting 'revenge' for his attempt at attacking Justin Finch-Fletchley. 'It's not fair!' he thought bitterly 'I saved him!' He was broken from his thoughts by the sound of a ghost passing through. The air around him in the room grew colder yet calming in an odd way.

"little lion?" A voice called out with concern. It was soft and soothing, it reminded him of Tom Riddles voice but a bit higher pitched with a small Celtic accent not quite as noticeable as professor McGonagall but still notable. Harry tried to remain silent as he ducked under the desk only to give himself away as a small hiccup escaped his throat. The room fell silent before the ghostly figure of a boy floated in front of him. "Don't worry little lion, I wont hurt you" The voice reassured as its host floated a few feet in front of his hiding space. Harry hesitated before slowly crawling out of his cubby space and looking up to the ghost, taking in his features despite the grayscale in which the boy appeared.

Soft black locks rested in a wavy fringe on the boys head. Harry was unable to figure out his eye or skin color but he was dressed in Hogwarts robes, Ravenclaw to be specific. The Ravenclaw boy offered the timid raven haired boy a soft smile before crouching down to his height. "Poor potter cub" The spirit cooed as he opened his arms to Harry as if inviting him closer. The sniffling boy hesitated before walking closer "Now, tell me what happened young one" Harry wasnt sure why but this ghost made him feel calm, he trusted the man as if he had known him his whole life. So, he broke, he started crying as he explained what had happened earlier that day. The spirits eyes widened at the news he was hearing "oh you poor thing" he mumbled before he stood "I'll take you to the hospital wing, see if Madam Pomphrey can do anything for those bruises"

Harry offered a silent nod as he stood and followed the ghost boy through the halls in a comfterable silence. Harry wasnt sure what time it was as he hadn't had a clock in the room while he was hiding but he assumed it was past curfew since no one was out except the ghosts. "Mr. Potter!" The two stopped and turned to see Professor Snape walking towards them, his cloak billowing behind him. "I do believe you know it is past curfew? By now I hope it is clear that you are not exempt from the rules of this school" The dungeon bat professor drawled looking down at the boy who nodded.

Before Harry could speak the ghost beside him spoke up instead "Excuse me Professor, I was escorting the boy to the hospital wing" He mused with a slight charm to the way he spoke. "He has a few bruises that I think best to be looked at" Severus raised a brow at the spirit before curtly nodding "I would like to see you afterwards Mr.Shafiq" The spirit nodded before motioning for Harry to follow as they continued down the halls.

"Here we are little lion, im sure I dont need to walk you inside, tell Poppy I sent you" The spirit mused turning to leave sending the young Potter boy a final wave before disappearing from sight. Harry sighed and walked inside, like usual he was met with a distraught Madam Pomphrey who was rushing around to get the boy what he needed. Once she had finished he was sent back to his common room where he snuck inside silently before laying on his bed. His thoughts swirled as he tried to recall where he had heard the name Shafiq before he fell into a deep sleep.
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"He's found the book then?" The spirit asked as he floated by the door of Snapes office "If the boy speaks the snake tongue he must be helped Severus" Snape sat at his desk with his hands clasped together and his chin resting on top. "The old goat would find out to easily if we were to try, we must hope Mr. Riddle can sway the boy properly before we are forced to intervene" The spirit sighed before nodding and leaving the room in a small whisp 'Gods above please dont fail him Tom'

Chapter Text

Over the next few weeks harry often found himself in the Room of Requirement hiding from other students. It had only gotten worse after he met the his new ghost friend. The two had been spending more time together than Harry had ever willingly spent with Ron and Hermonie, they just seemed to tag along behind him. Meanwhile Shafiq only appeared when Harry called for him or needed someone to confide in.

"Shafiq!" The young raven haired boy called out as he entered the secret room, a dusty and tattered book clutched to his chest. Harry noticed that the room seemed to shift to a different type of room every time he entered, when he asked his friend about it the ghost informed him that the room was meant to give him what he needed. This time it had taken the form of a large and vast library with books flying around on their shelves and a decently sized sitting area tucked away in a corner.

The young lion smiled when he spotted his ghoulish friend hovering by an unmarked section of books before running over. "Ah there's my little lion" the Ravenclaw spirit chuckled as he floated down to the floor before crouching down. "Have you been reading the books I've given you?" he asked with a raised brow chuckling once again when Harry nodded quickly with a bright smile. "Well then, would you like to tell me what you've learned?"

Harry once again beamed up at his older friend, this one of the many reasons Harry enjoyed the spirits company so much. He was allowed to talk nonstop about things he found intriguing, he'd barely been allowed to speak at the Dursleys and any knowledge gained at Hogwarts was always spoiled by Hermonie. "Did you know there used to be wizards who could see ancient magic?" The boy asked in slight awe earning a curt nod from the older boy.

"Yes, I believe one transferred to Hogwarts quite some years ago, although im afraid my knowledge doesnt go past that" he informed the younger boy with a sad smile. Harry seemed unaffected as he quickly fell into a rant about all the new things he had learned. How magic wasnt really classified before Grindelwald, he had missed how Shafiq had tensed slightly, or how wizards celebrated special holidays like yule and Samhain. This caused Shafiq to freeze before he turned to Harry quickly "what do you mean used to?"

Harry looked up with a raised brow. "Well at Hogwarts we celebrate Christmas and Halloween but-" Harry was caught by surprise when Shafiq appeared in front of him quickly "Harry" serious talk time "Many wizarding families still celebrate the ancient holidays, maybe not like they used to but balls and festivities are still held" The spirit explained "Have you never attended a Yule ball?" Harry shook his head silently.

"I usually spend Chris- Yule at Hogwarts" The young halfblood explained earning a soft sigh from the spirit "is everything ok Sha-" "call me Atticus" Harrys eyes widened slightly before nodding "Ok then, Atticus, what's wrong with me not attending a Yule ball?" Atticus sighed as he floated to sit on a nearby couch before patting the spot next to him. Harry quickly rushed forward and sat next to the older spirit before a book floated down to them.

"Back in my time, around the time of your grandparents I'd recon, being invited to a Yule ball was very important" The Ravenclaw started "It meant you were considered the best of the best, and it was a chance to gain connections for your house" Harry tilted his head slightly "your family house, like the Malfoys" Harry held back a small frown "They usually hosted Yule balls for Pureblood families and had only the most prestigious guests"

Harry let out a small snort at the thought of Draco and his family hosting a massive social event like that. "What were they like?" he asked as his curiosity peaked, Atticus smiled softly into the distance as he recalled the Ball he had gone to in his time. "Oh they where wonderful, friends and family joking with one another, everyone dancing the night away and oh the clothing Harry" Harry had discovered very early on that Sha- Atticus had a passion for fashion.

"Everyone was always in their best dress robes and more often than not with their lord or heirship rings to show their pride in their family" Harry couldn't stop the smile that graced his face at the thought. It sounded much better than any of the Dursleys small family get togethers.

The two spent much of the night after that working on Harrys school work, turns out he was vastly behind and Atticus would have none of it. By the time they had finished Harry had almost perfected three different potions he had been struggling with before aswell as caught up on his DADA work.
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"Atticus?"

The spirit looked over to the young boy who was studying on the table next to him in the library of the school. "yes little lion?"

"Am I evil?"

Atticus jumped up and floated to Harrys side quickly with a worried expression "What? Of course not, why would you think such a thing?" He asked sitting beside the boy who was doing his best to hold back tears. "Ron said only evil wizards can be parsletongues because they descend from Salazar" Attius felt both his heart and his temper break at hearing this. He kept a rather calm face as he stood "Harry, follow me, I wish to show you something" Harry obediently stood and followed the Ravenclaw spirit until they reached a bathroom on the second floor. "Myrtle isnt here, thank merlin" the spirit mumbled before taking Harry to a sink with a small snake engraved on the tap. "Speak to it, tell it to open"

Harry hesitated before focusing on the tap, as he spoke the words he felt the ground below shift before the sink disappeared, revealing a large and deep hole that went straight down. "How do we get down?" The young Gryffindor questioned as he looked to the spirit who was hovering behind him. Atticus hummed softly before something clicked in his memory "Ask for stairs?" And so Harry did and just like that stairs appeared allowing the two to walk down the steps before they reached the bottom. "Do you have the book Harry?"

Harry looked up to the Ravenclaw in shock before nodding dumbly "Let me see it" Harry hesitated before pulling the Diary out of his robes and handing it to the spirit, his eyes widened when the boys body became solid. Transparent skin turned to a soft almond as Avada Kadavra green eyes met Nordic blue. "Now then, do you want to meet Tom?" Harry had his wand out and pointed at Atticus causing the boy to put his hands up with a small step back "Harry" he warned with a stern look Harry kept his wand raised with narrowed eyes of his own.

"You're working with him, with Voldemort!" Atticus felt his own eyes widen before sighing "Very clever little lion, but trust me I have no intention to harm you and neither does Tom" Harry shook his head quickly "Why should I trust you?" he demanded "You led me to the chamber, to what? Kill me?" Atticus felt his heart break in two "Harry I wish to help you, please, just trust me" He pleaded. Harry wavered slightly at the older boys tone before returning to is sternness. "Prove it"

Atticus raised a brow "Im sorry?" Harry held his wand up to point it the boys chest "Prove it" He repeated. What happened next, Harry hadn't expected, Atticus slowly lowered himself into a small bow. "Please Harry" he begged quietly.
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Atticus was playing around with Harry near the forbidden forest. "Bow to the heir of Slytherin!" Harry joked standing on a hill. Atticus froze and glared at the boy before appearing before him so suddenly that Harry fell back "Never command me to do anything for you, you filthy halfblood!" Atticus froze when Harry looked up at him with fear "Oh Harry, I didnt mean to..Im sorry" He apologized quickly as he kneeled next to the frightened boy "I-its's ok, I forgot what times were like back then" he reasoned earning a small sigh "No, it was my fault, I shouldn't have blown up like that, its just..back when I was in school showing weakness to anyone was a one way ticket to mudblood status" He explained looking down. Harry nodded in understanding before the two wandered back to the castle
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And here he was, bowing, because Harry wanted him to. Begging to someone he considered below him. Harry sighed as he lowered his wand "Explain, now" the younger boy demanded. Atticus stood slowly keeping his hands in Harrys line of view. "Harry, the Voldemort you know isnt how we imagined it in the past"

The boy sat and motioned to the place in front of him. Harry sighed and sat down before nodding to the older student. "You and Tom were alot alike, both mistreated by muggles and pushed yourselves far to hard" Harry cringed slightly a being compared to the murderer of his parents. "But, Tom didnt have the same friends you did, sure he had me but I was a year below him and a fellow halfblood aswell as in a different house" Harry looked down, he couldn't imagine how bad his last year would have been without Ron and Hermione, hell this year had been hell without them.

"But Tom wasnt one to just give up, he worked. Hard. He spent every moment of every day studying so that no matter his status he was always on top" Sounds like Hermonie "Then he found out he was a descendant of Slytherin and everything changed" Harry tilted his head in curiosity. "He made sure others knew what he was capable off, and soon he rose to the top of his house"

Harry was in slight awe, he couldn't deny the similarities and knowing that dark magic was a well practiced study back then only added to his curiosity. "But then, he fell. He started creating Horcruxes and well..splitting ones soul isnt exactly good for your sanity" Harry looked down at the Diary and felt a wave of realization "The Diary" He mumbled earning a small nod from his ghostly friend.

Atticus took Harrys hands in his own before looking him in the eye "Harry, I sense him inside of you, if we can conjoin these two soul fragments we can help him and the wizarding world can be a much safer place" the older boy pleaded. Harry looked in thought before shaking his head "Wait, I thought Voldemort wanted to kill all the muggleborns" Atticus simply chuckled

"Harry, you attended muggle school correct?" Harry nodded "Think of how dangerous inbreeding is for muggles, now imagine the effects that would have on magical folk" Harry felt his eyes widen slightly before he nodded "We can fix this Harry, but we need your help to do it"

Harry looked in thought for a moment, if he could do this then he'd still be saving the wizarding world. "Fine, how do we do it?" Atticus smiled and hugged the boy before pulling back "Well first we should et old Tommy boy out of your head" Harry was about to question this when suddenly letting out a cry of pain as Atticus mumbled a spell while holding Harrys head straight.

It felt as if his skull was splitting in two, he could feel something trickling down his head as the room felt colder before he fell unconscious.
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When Harry woke he was laying on a soft couch, his head was throbbing as he sat up and looked around. The room was mostly empty with a few bookshelves and a small desk sitting in the center. A large carving of Slytherins head on the wall surrounded by snakes. He could hear two people arguing, one he recognized as Atticus, the other however he couldn't quite place.

"Why would I ever do such a thing!?"
"It was a part of you! We can still fix it!"
"He's just a boy!"
"So were you Tom!"

Harry was met with silence before the door opened revealing the man he had seen in the Diaries memory. He looked just as he had when Harry first saw him, not the monster on the back of Quirrles head. "Tom Riddle" he mumbled as he shrunk slightly under the older boys gaze. "Harry Potter"

Atticus walked out of the small side room and smiled down at Harry "How do you feel little lion?"

"Tired" The younger mumbled earning a small chuckle. Harry felt someone pick him up but his eyes were already closed and he quickly slipped into unconsciousness. "I'll take him to Severus, you feed your little pet" Atticus teased as he held the oddly small boy in his arms. Tom simply sighed before nodding and exiting a secret passage in the scriptorium that would lead him back to the chamber.