Crush

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Harry supposes that having a crush on your teacher is something that everyone has to suffer through at some point. He remembers their old Charms teacher substitute Professor Lockhart after all and the way Hermione used to pant after him, as much as she might primly deny all recollection. It’s just that this mad obsession with his Defence tutor has been going on for a while now, ever since he walked into his first class as a wide-eyed tree frog faced twelve year old and met with the sight of Professor Riddle standing at his blackboard, hefty text book in one hand and wand in the other. Harry took one look at the tall charismatic wizard with his slanted scarlet eyes and angular masculine face and knew he was in dire trouble. But it sort of seems that at seventeen years of age the universe should be cutting him a break and not reducing him to a red faced stuttering moron every time Riddle so much as glances sideways at him. Harry has tried to move on, has attempted to appreciate the sparkly shine of Ginny’s hair or Bill’s muscular toned arms but as much as these things are nice they’re not Tom and Harry’s heart (and his libido) will accept no substitutes.

Having a crush on Professor Riddle doesn't make Harry unusual by any means. He’s well aware that he is one panting adolescent admirer in a sea of hopefuls, judging by the misty eyed looks he sees on some of the girls in class, especially Pansy Parkinson who frankly looks like she’s going to pass out from batting her eyelids and swooping forward to show off her cleavage every time their Professor walks by her desk. Harry doesn’t know who she thinks she’s kidding, but there is no way she just happens to drop her pen every time Riddle saunters by, the bloody slut. Draco Malfoy has a more than passing interest as well, if the weasels attempts to get Riddle to engage on some ‘one on one’ tutoring are any indication. The most unfair part of that is that Draco’s parents actually know Riddle through some hoity toity pure blood family connection. Of course Draco loves nothing than to rub this in everyone’s faces in his usual obnoxious fashion, if Harry has to listen to the little ferret drawl on one more time about what a charming and exclusive dinner Tom had enjoyed at the Manor over Christmas break Harry is going introduce the git to the business end of a blast ended skrewt.

To make matters worse he knows that the chances of his own family having his professor over to dinner any time soon are slim to none. The first time Harry ever mentioned Tom at home his Dad had launched into a rant about ‘known dark wizards who should be in Azkaban’ and ‘what was Dumbledore thinking when he hired that slimy git to teach children for Gods sake?’ Harry’s attempt to point out that that Dumbledore might have his head screwed on straighter than his Dad gives him credit for if Riddle’s popularity is any indication of his teaching ability only causes his dad to to turn a funny puce colour and ask him in a hushed urgent tone if he thought Riddle was ‘Infiltrating the establishment to brainwash the unconverted.’ Harry has no idea what any of this means but he’s pretty sure his dad might have a screw loose where all ex Slytherins are concerned. He loves his Dad but sometimes he wishes he was less embarrassingly Gryffindorish about everything. Apparently Riddle has some chequered past that has him all worked up, something about possession in Bolivia, or it might be Moldova. Harry doesn’t know but he thinks it doesn’t make Riddle a ‘slimy Slytherin git’ so much as it makes him mysterious and cool. He guesses that it’s probably a good thing that Riddle will never see his house anyway, although Harry loves his family’s homely little cottage in Godric’s Hollow it’s no where near as nice as Malfoy Manor. To make matters worse Harry’s Godfather Sirius is always hanging around waiting to embarrass him ever since he moved into the apartment above the garage when Harry was ten. Thinking of the things Sirius might say to Tom makes Harry want to curl in on himself and never emerge. Yeah, probably a good thing that Riddle will likely never make it to Harry’s house given that the only member of his family Harry would be able to introduce him to would be his Mum and possibly his pet owl Hedwig.

The worst part of the whole thing is that Harry is pretty sure Riddle knows about his little crush. Would have to be blind not to know what with how Harry tends to lose the power of speech and coordination in his presence. In fact the last time Harry had Defence detention (Ron’s fault don’t ask) the man spent the whole time hovering around Harry while he polished desks and filed dark creature index cards as if he was actively trying to tease him. Riddle’s constant presence, combined with timely interventions to whisper advice or comments right in Harry’s ear had pretty much reduced him to a gibbering wreck by the time his hours were up. In fact if Harry didn’t know any better he’d say the professor had been flirting with him. He knows it’s unlikely, even if Riddle was actively showing an interest in him it was probably only some cunning attempt at revenge for the constant stream of letters James sent to Dumbledore asking him to fire ‘that pretentious Slytherin tosspot excuse for a Defence professor.’ Still, it’s the one ray of hope Harry has in this whole mess of a crush that he’s not the hopeless case he’s always believed himself to be. In fact, he’s meant to be going to see Professor Riddle tonight about some research project or other. That is another badge of honour for Harry, when he can stop dreaming about how much he wants to kiss the professor he’s actually really good at Defence. In fact he’s probably the best in the year, bar perhaps Hermione, which must be why Riddle has chosen him above all the others to help him with whatever this new project is.

TBC...