Title: Not Yet Monsters
Author: Spookykat
Category: X 
Keywords: HP, Tom Riddle
Summary: Young Tom Riddle and a young Morley-Smoker have a meeting.  
Implied slash.

He looked like he had a purpose. He looked like 
the rest of them.  

But Tom Riddle could ignore the rest of them—even 
hate them.  But there was something about this 
man that Tom could neither ignore nor hate.

Later he decided it was the way in which the 
puffed his cigarette, like he was sucking the 
life from the rest of the world out of that one 
inhalation.  

Inhale.  

Annihilation.

It was as though every time he flicked the 
desperately glowing embers mercilessly to the 
wind, it was one step closer to the end of the 
world.

Tom had no idea who this man was. He'd never seen 
a cigarette before.  But he was mesmerized.

"It's rude to stare," the stranger said it like 
no option remained but to look away.  "People 
will think you're out of control."

"Beg pardon?" Tom stammered, "I've just never 
seen one of those."

"Have you lived in a cave all your life?"

"Something like that," Tom said with a small 
chuckle.

"You don't want to start this habit," the man 
said with a Cheshire-cat grin.  "They'll give you 
cancer."

"Only if you die," Tom answered quickly. 

"You're wrong, kid," he said, taking another 
gratuitous puff.  "That's where you make your big 
mistake."

"How can you presume that?" Tom snapped.  

"Because everyone makes that mistake."

"I'm not everyone."

"You're right.  You're no one.  No one at all.  
Just like me."

"I don't put something that gives me cancer to my 
lips.  Forgive me if I don't see the connection."

"You didn't give your name right away.  For most 
people, a name is everything.  They spend their 
lives trying to be immortal.  They try to beat 
death. Even cheat it.  If you make a business of 
trying to fight death, it's going to kill you.  
But then, so does cancer.  The point is, if death 
doesn't know your name, you'll live forever.  
Conquer your fear of death, and you're immortal. 
We're afraid of that which we want to be afraid 
of.  For people like us, a name is a liability."

"What are you afraid of?"

"Nothing.  I fear nothing because fear is 
useless.  Fear does nothing to achieve The 
Greater Good.  Fear only defeats the Greater 
Cause."

"But fear is love."

"The sooner you learn that love is more 
destructive than hate, the better off you'll be, 
my friend."

"What girl brought you to that conclusion?"

"No girl," he said, taking another puff, "only 
the knowledge that respect is the only thing you 
can truly call your own.  And a man in love has 
lost all his respect."

"I never asked you," Tom said as he left the 
money at the bar.  "What business are you in?"

"I write books," he answered.  And with that, was 
gone.