"...It was christmas eve in 1927. You were born amid heavy snow, and only after giving you this name did your mother close her eyes..." The kind old woman reached out and stroked the delicate boy, angelic as a little cherub. His jet-black hair beneath her hand was as soft as feathers.
Tom's dark eyes gleamed as he lay across the old woman's lap, listening to a story he had heard countless times. "Matron... why did my mother never wake up again? Did she not like me, so she left me behind?"
The Old Headmaster sighed. Faced with a three-year-old child, she truly could not bear to tell the adorable little boy what death was. "Little Tom... she was your mother. How could she not love you? She merely became Taurus in the sky. Just like her name, Merope Gaunt, she will always, always watch over you."
"Really?" The light in Tom's eyes blazed brighter. He climbed down from the Old Headmaster's lap, pattered to the window on his short little legs, climbed onto a stool, and stretched his soft white hand toward the night sky. "Mom... I'm here! You have to watch over me properly!"
Watching the child's innocent actions tenderly, the Old Headmaster prayed in her heart for the pitiful boy. May God bless Tom and let him keep his pure soul forever, as clean and untainted as the snowstorm on the day he was born.
"All right, Tom, come here quickly. It's time for bed. Do you still want a story tonight?"
Hearing the Old Headmaster call him, Tom gave a delighted cheer. In the orphanage, the person he liked most was the Old Headmaster. She was nothing like awful Mrs. Cole, who always pinched his arm when no one was looking, nor was she like the other children, who bullied him.
"Matron, I'll grow up quickly and earn lots and lots of money. I'll give it all to you!" Tom held the Old Headmaster's rough, thin hand and looked up with a solemn little face. He had seen the matron secretly give her food to others, filling her own stomach with nothing but water. If they had money, the matron would not have to go hungry like this!
Suppressing the itch in her throat, the Old Headmaster smiled lovingly. This little boy was the prettiest, the most obedient, and the most sensible child in Wool's Orphanage. He was also the one who broke her heart the most. Even when he was bullied, he never came to complain to her.
If only that young woman were still alive...
"All right. The matron will wait for you. We're here now, so lie down quickly. I'll stay here until you fall asleep."
Tom nodded obediently and climbed onto the thin, hard bed. He took off his clothes and slipped into the icy covers, shivering instinctively before smiling and bidding the matron good night. "Matron... can you tell me what Mom looked like again? I'm afraid I'll forget."
Reaching out to tuck in Tom's blanket, the Old Headmaster chuckled softly and kissed his forehead. "Of course. I'll keep telling you until you remember."
"Your mother had long black hair, just like you. Though she was very frail at the time, her eyes were full of love... 'Tom Marvolo Riddle. Tom, I love you.' Those were her final words. I think she must have looked forward to your birth, because she truly loved you, Tom..."
Tom closed his eyes contentedly. He still did not understand what love was, but he was happy nonetheless. At least he knew his mother had not abandoned him here. Perhaps one day, he would find other family members. Then he might understand what the matron meant by love.
But there was one thing he knew for certain: he liked this kind and gentle matron very much. He truly hoped she could stay with him forever, until he understood "love."
In his dream, Tom saw a woman—small and plain-looking, her eyes fixed on his face. It was a strange feeling, as though she were looking at someone else through him.
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