Chapter 407: The Cave
"Why Borgin and Burkes?" Sean asked, following the natural thread of the conversation.
"Ah, you don't know that part of the tale?" Dumbledore looked at him, his eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles. "Well, once we enter Hokey's memory, you will see exactly what that place offered him. But Borgin and Burkes was not Tom Riddle's first choice. Very few people knew it at the time—I am one of the few who heard the account directly from the former Headmaster. Tom Riddle first approached Professor Dippet, asking if he could remain at Hogwarts as a teacher."
Dumbledore paused, as if waiting for a reaction. Sean remained silent.
"Do you know what subject he wished to teach?" Dumbledore prompted, taking a sip of his tea.
"I expect it wasn't Defense Against the Dark Arts," Sean noted, offering a small, timely joke.
Dumbledore let out a soft laugh.
"I believe he had several reasons, though he shared none of them with Professor Dippet," Dumbledore said. "First, and perhaps most importantly, Tom Riddle felt a deeper connection to this school than to any living person. Hogwarts was the place where he was happiest. it was the first place that felt like home—the only place, really."
Sean blinked but offered no comment.
"Of course, if it were you, child, I would be more than happy to have you succeed Minerva one day," Dumbledore added with a mischievous glint in his eye. "Though if you ever intend to replace me, you'll first have to find a suitable place for a tired old wizard to spend his days."
Dumbledore's smile widened.
"The second reason is that this castle is a bastion of ancient magic. Tom Riddle undoubtedly discovered more of its secrets than almost any other student, but he suspected there were still mysteries to be unraveled—treasures of magic yet to be unearthed. Ironically, the treasures of this world usually belong to those who care for them the least.
"And thirdly, as a teacher, he would have had immense influence over young witches and wizards. He likely learned that lesson from Professor Slughorn, who was his favorite mentor. Slughorn showed him how much power a teacher could wield in shaping the future. I never believed Tom intended to stay at Hogwarts forever; he viewed it as a fertile recruiting ground where he could begin to assemble an army."
Sean had already deduced where this was going. He couldn't help but think of the massive "clubs" currently dominating student life. His mind drifted, and a surreal image manifested: Dumbledore standing in this very office, facing him and asking, "Well, Headmaster Green, when do you plan to stage your coup?"
He gave his head a quick shake, only to find Dumbledore watching him with a deeply knowing smile.
"A fascinating thought, isn't it?" the Headmaster noted. "In any case, Tom Riddle's ambitions left me deeply unsettled. I advised Armando not to hire him. I didn't give him the reasons I've just given you—Professor Dippet was very fond of Tom and believed implicitly in his honesty—but I did not want that boy back in this school, especially in a position of authority. Fortunately, Dippet told him he was only eighteen and far too young. He invited Tom to reapply in a few years, should he still feel the calling."
"And so he went to Borgin and Burkes," Sean said, guiding the topic.
"Exactly. Tom Riddle took a job at Borgin and Burkes. Every teacher who had admired him called it a waste—a young wizard of such brilliant talent working as a shop assistant. But Tom was more than a clerk. Because of his charm, his looks, and his sharp intellect, he was soon given the kind of specialized work only a place like Borgin and Burkes could offer.
"As you know, Sean, that shop specializes in objects with... unusual properties. Tom was sent to persuade people to part with their private treasures so the shop could sell them. By all accounts, he was exceptionally good at it."
Sean nodded. He knew that while Tom eventually lost his wisdom to the madness of splitting his soul, at that point in history, he was not yet the monster known as Voldemort.
"Yes," Dumbledore said with a weary smile. "Now, it is time to hear the memory of a house-elf named Hokey. Her mistress was a very old, very wealthy witch named Hepzibah Smith."
Dumbledore tapped a small glass phial with his wand. The stopper flew out, and he poured the swirling silver memory into the Pensieve.
"Together, Sean?"
They spent a long time within the memory. Through Hokey's eyes, they witnessed Tom Riddle murdering Hepzibah Smith and stealing two of her most prized possessions—a cup and a locket. Finally, they saw him frame the poor house-elf for the crime.
"Hepzibah Smith passed away," Dumbledore said as they both rose from the Pensieve. "The Ministry ruled that Hokey had accidentally put poison into her mistress's evening cocoa. By the time the elf was convicted, Hepzibah's family realized her two most valuable treasures were missing."
Dumbledore's voice was heavy with melancholy. "It took the Ministry some time to confirm the theft; Hepzibah was notoriously paranoid about her collection and had numerous secret hiding places. By the time they realized the cup and locket were gone, the young man from Borgin and Burkes—the one who had visited her so often and flattered her so effectively—had resigned and vanished. Even his employers had no idea where he had gone. Tom Riddle disappeared from the world for a very long time."
"But you found something," Sean said, his tone certain.
"Indeed," Dumbledore smiled. "As you have seen, this time his motive wasn't revenge—it was greed. He wanted the treasures the old woman showed him. Just as he stole toys from children at the orphanage, just as he stole his uncle's ring, he murdered for the cup and the locket.
"Shall we take a walk?"
They stepped out of the castle and onto the path as twilight settled over the grounds. The rain began to fall as quickly as their footsteps; by the time they reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest, it was a downpour. The windows of Hogwarts glowed warmly in the distance.
While Hogwarts slept, some wizards had to remain awake.
"I cannot be entirely certain which object is hidden where," Dumbledore said, his boots squelching in the grass. "But I believe one of them lies in a cave by the sea—a cave I have spent a great deal of time searching for. In the memory we viewed previously, do you remember the cave where Tom Riddle once terrified two other orphans during their annual trip?"
Sean looked at the Headmaster. The information he had been waiting for had finally arrived.
[End of Chapter 407]
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