Tom said he was sorry because he had already made his choice. He was going to bring Harry to Voldemort; only then could he truly survive.
But Harry thought he was apologizing for arriving late, and did not take it to heart. Instead, he said, "We got here earlier than the others, but there's only this mirror here. I didn't see the Philosopher's Stone."
He doesn't suspect me?
Tom was a little surprised, but that was fine too. This way, Harry would not be on guard against him.
He thought for a moment, then gave up on the idea of knocking Harry unconscious right away.
Find the Philosopher's Stone first.
He thought.
Harry can't beat me anyway.
"This magic mirror... is it..." Tom also looked toward the huge mirror.
"Yes, it's the one we saw before," Harry said. "Dumbledore moved it away later. So it was being used here. I think this must be Professor Dumbledore's trap."
Tom came to the mirror and once again saw Tom Riddle.
But this time, there were no longer any chains wrapped around him. He saw himself sitting beside the long table in the Great Hall, with Harry sitting beside him, along with Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and even Murphy and Cho Chang...
For a moment, that image left him dazed, but he knew it was impossible. This scene would never happen again.
He would take Harry away and hand him over to Voldemort. If he did that, he could not possibly stay at Hogwarts anymore. These people—he would never see them again.
He would become the Dark Lord's assistant, a dark wizard and a criminal...
This was the price he had to pay if he wanted to survive.
"Dumbledore said this magic mirror reflects what people desire most deep down," Harry said. "Tom,