Merope marveled at the cleanliness of the infirmary. The place was very sanitary, with its pristine white sheets and shiny hygienic objects. Everything was in order, every item in its place. She wondered how long it took for them to keep it so immaculate. She’d always been cleaning at her father’s house when she had lived there. Her father and brother were such slobs that she was forever straightening up, from sun-up to sundown. Living with Tom had been much easier. She had strived to keep a neat and clean home for them, but it had never been this spotless. She wondered if the ladies were using some type of magic to keep the place so tidy and fresh.
“How are you feeling?” said the young woman who entered the room. She was a lovely young lady who was just a little older then Merope. She brought in some fresh towels for the birth.
“Alright, I guess,” Merope said, trying to get used to the pain.
The woman sat on the bed with Merope and took her hand. “Just take some deep breaths whenever you start to feel a contraction. Breathing keeps the blood flowing, which will help you to relax.” This made sense to Merope since she always took deep breaths when she felt under stress. Merope and the woman started to breathe in and out together. Sure enough, the discomfort was subsiding and Merope started to feel more at ease.
“Are you a doctor?” Merope asked.
“No. I’m just the nurse here. I would like to study to be one, but my father thinks that nursing is more of a womanly role. He said it would help prepare me to be a good wife, since I will need to take care of my husband and children,” the lady said with a slightly annoyed tone.
“Do you have a husband … or children?”
“No. I’m not as lucky as you are with your little bundle of on the way. Your husband must be very proud,” she said with a smile.
“I’m not so sure of that … since he left and all,” Merope said, feeling a little dejected.
“Mercy, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have assumed. I suppose it is best that I am a nurse, since my bedside manner is too horrendous for me to be a doctor!” the woman said, looking very apologetic as she rubbed Merope’s hand.
“It’s alright. I’ve been on my own for so long that I’ve gotten used to his absence.“
“Well, he must have been a fool or very dimwitted. Here you are, going through the pain of childbirth, and you still remain very pleasant. I can’t imagine a husband not wanting a wife who is so strong in times of struggle,” the woman said proudly.
“I doubt it was my strength that drove him away,” Merope said. More like her lies that put an end to her marriage, she thought to herself.
“In any case, you are still fortunate. Children are a blessing and babies are so precious when they’re born. You are lucky to have one. To think, you are hours away from the New Year! We should dress the baby with a top hat and sash when it arrives.” The two laughed as they pictured the little baby New Year lying in the bassinet. “By the way, my name is Rose and I’ll be assisting Mrs. Cole with your birth.”
“Rose. That’s such a pretty name. Girls should be given pretty names when they’re born. If I have a girl, I will name her something pretty like your name.”
“Well, Merope is just as beautiful as Rose. As a matter a fact, there are several Meropes written of in Greek Mythology. Perhaps the most famous one is the Merope who was one of the seven daughters of Atlas; they were known as the Pleiades. Mythology says that the sisters were walking in the countryside when Orion, the great hunter, caught sight of them. He fell so in love that he immediately began to chase them. And he did this for seven years.”
“Seven years! That man was obsessed,” Merope said.
“Indeed he was. The chase was so stressful that the sisters began to pray to the gods for help. The gods answered them by turning them into doves, then later into stars. The stars are known as the Pleiades cluster, which is part of the constellation Taurus. It is said that Merope’s is the fifth-brightest star in that constellation. So your name is actually associated with the heavens.”
“Fascinating!” This bit of information amazed Merope. She had never realized that her name could ever mean something so wonderful. She had been brought up to believe that she was nothing, since she’d been treated as such. So to hear this from Rose uplifted her sense of being.
The two women talked for a few more hours on different things, including their love lives … or lack thereof. Every now and then they took a moment to breathe through another of Merope’s contractions so that she could feel more comfortable. Rose told her that she’d had a man in her life a couple of years ago. They’d been about to marry when the military had called him into service. He was going to be shipped off for a dangerous mission, so he did not want to make Rose a young widow. The engagement was broken off and he left for some part of Germany. She had written to him a few times but had never heard anything back. Rose had finally given up on him only about a month ago. Merope could tell that she’d given up on love, too.
“Well, maybe something happened to him,” Merope said trying to sound hopeful.
“Maybe something, like being killed in the line of duty?” Rose said, trying to be sarcastic but coming up short. Merope started to rub Rose’s hands in the same comforting way that she did her own. Rose smiled in appreciation. “It is very likely that he did get killed. Which is why he did not want us to marry, because he did not want me to worry. He wanted me to move on with my life in case his life ended. So I suppose it is for the best.”
“Still … the ones that truly love you don’t really leave, even when you say goodbye. And besides, who knows what can happen. He may show up, right as rain.”
“If only a man could be so lucky,” Rose said. She still continued to smile at Merope, despite having to talk about her failed romantic life.
The mood suddenly broke with another contraction. Some hissing noises arose in Merope’s ears also. Merope went back into her deep breathing, but the pain was so overwhelming that she feared she would suffocate. Her eyes closed tightly as she tried to bear up through the pain.
“BREATHE, MEROPE. COME ON … BREATHE.” Rose’s voice sounded calm but it was very commanding as she tried to get Merope to concentrate past the anguish. Merope struggled to inhale as the contraction got stronger and the hissing grew louder.
Just then it stopped.
When Merope opened her eyes, she saw that she was not in the infirmary but in a modest-sized room with beds on either side. Rose was nowhere to be seen.
She could hear a child crying.
“Stop! STOP! I’m going to tell! STOP IT!! PLEASE!!” screamed the child.
Merope looked to one side of the room to see two children standing near a corner. There was a cute little boy dressed in a nice suit with neat black hair, and a little girl in a baby blue dress with lovely long blonde locks. The little girl was crying as she held her hands to her ears. However, the little boy was standing there calmly staring her down … speaking in Parseltongue.
“You want to tattle on me, and you think that I would not find out? You don’t tell me what to do! And your precious Mrs. Cole is not here to protect you now!” the little boy said.
For a child, he had a fearsome look on his face. He went to his pants pocket to pull out something that looked like string. But the long string started to move around the boy’s hand, and then slowly made its way around his neck.
“Master, I am hungry. When do I eat?”
“Well Nagini, I have this morsel right here that should fill you up.” the boy pointed to the little girl. The small snake looked to the crying child, then back at the boy.
“Forgive me, Master, but as generous as you are, she looks so distressed that she might upset my delicate nature. And then, as tasty as she is, I’m afraid she is too big for me to eat,” the snake said politely. The little boy stroked the small snake in his hand. The girl started to wail even more since she did not understand anything that was being said. To her ears, the hissing conversation between the boy and the snake sounded very sinister. She started to soil herself as she looked at the two of them.
“Well, if you don’t want her, then I suppose that will be fine. But soon you will grow up to be big and strong, and some day you will eat people as tasty as this little tart here. But for now I’m sure there is a rat somewhere here to satisfy you,” said the boy
“Young Master is so very kind. Will the girl be alright?”
“She’ll calm down in a moment. Why don’t you go around the house and look for something to eat. I thought I heard a squeak in the corner.” The boy put the snake down on the floor. The girl started to scream even louder.
“STOP! STOP IT NOW! TOM, STOP!”
Merope felt a flash of cold around her head and neck.
“BREATHE, MEROPE. INHALE AND EXHALE. DEEP BREATHS.” Merope recognized Rose’s commands and started to breathe in and out as Rose had told her. The vision passed with the pain, and Merope could see that she was again in familiar surroundings.
“There you go. That must have been a strong one! You looked like you were going to pass out for a moment. So it won’t be long now. I’ll go get Mrs. Cole and a few more things. The baby should be here soon.” Rose left the room, leaving Merope to contemplate her situation by herself.
Merope took in more breaths as she tried to calm herself down. She tried as hard as she could to push her doubts and fears to the back of her mind as she struggled to remain focused. But she had to admit that she was getting scared as the time passed.
If she had this vision with that contraction, then how much more was she going to see?
Panic started to bubble within her as she felt another contraction coming on. It was coming rather quickly and Rose was not back yet. Merope tried to breathe like Rose had instructed her to do, but it was very strong this time – much stronger than before.
“OH GOD! I – CAN’T – DO - THIS!”
There was a flash of light in the room. Then she saw her son standing in a dark cave in the middle of a small island, surrounded by unnaturally black water. She saw him do something very familiar that she remembered from when she was in the cold alleyway not too long ago. With the same gestures and motions, he muttered the words that she still did not understand. With a slight yell, he went rigid and a light began to emanate from his body and out his mouth. He then held out his hand with something very familiar dangling from it … her locket. As before, the radiant light passed from his lips onto the object. The light was so brilliant that the entire cavern was aglow.
With the ritual completed, he placed the locket in the stone-like basin. He pulled out a bottle from his robe and proceeded to pour out the contents into the bowl with the locket. Then with a wave of his wand, the stone structure glowed green. His task was completed. Her son looked very frail and almost shaken. Merope thought the soul-splitting must have left him weak, since he stood still for a few moments trying to collect himself. Finally, her son made his way to a boat at the edge of the murky lake.
More contractions rippled down her spine; they were coming more frequently and strongly. Merope tried to keep breathing but found it very difficult to inhale, as her mind was being assaulted with more revelations of despair. This time a myriad of deathly images passed before her eyes as a new vision played out in front of her. Monsters, beasts, and men in black hoods were all gathered in a field of tombstones to bow before a cloaked figure that she instantly recognized as her son. This time when she eyed him, he had none of the distinguishing good looks of his handsome father. He barely had any features that resembled anything remotely human. But she knew it was her son, for her heart told her so. And with that, her maternal instincts kicked in, trying to reach out to him. She tried so hard to appeal for him to turn back from what he was doing. But the boisterous sounds of the gathered beings drowned out her plea.
Her heart was breaking as she tried to reach out to him. But there was nothing she could do. The awesome pain, along with her grief, was breaking her down mortally and spiritually. She knew she was going to die as she was trying to give life to her son. And she knew her son was going to take lives as he went on without her.
“MEROPE! BREATHE, CHILD … BREATHE!”
Merope could feel Rose’s comforting arms surrounding her. She turned her face into Rose’s shoulder as the contractions came back-to-back. Merope could feel herself leaving, as if her life was being drained out of her.
“COME ON, MEROPE! PUSH!”
“Yes, dear. You can do it …”
“Cassandra?” Merope wondered as she heard the voice, “is that you?”
“I am with you, child. Don’t give up. You’re almost there ….”
“I don’t understand …” Merope felt so tired. She thought her very essence was being siphoned from her body as she tried to bring her baby into the world. She felt so useless, yet so frustrated that nothing was happening. Her hand held Rose’s tightly. The pain was getting so unbearable that she thought she would breathe her last breath.
“Don’t give up …”
Then suddenly the room filled with the cries of her baby.
“It’s a boy! A healthy boy!” Rose said excitedly.
Merope’s vision was a little blurry from exhaustion, but she could see Mrs. Cole cleaning up the baby at the other end of the room. She could also see Rose’s great beaming smile as she looked down on her. Then the baby was laid in her arms. Merope’s heart was brimming with joy and pride.
“What shall we name him, dear?” asked Mrs. Cole.
“Thomas Riddle. Thomas Marvolo Riddle, for his father and mine,” Merope said drowsily.
“Well then. Welcome, little Thomas Marvolo Riddle.”
