Catharsis [Tom Riddle]

Chapter Thirty-Three

Avalon's arms reached over her back as she fumbled with the zipper on her gown.

"I just don't understand why flying with a broomstick couldn't have been a valid answer. I understand that levitation may be more practical but-"

"Z, I love you. But, if you keep talking about that bloody exam I'm going to lose my mind," Avalon laughed as her roommate let out a groan.

After several days of intense exams and hard-core cramming taking up every last second of their lives, exams had finally come to a close and the term quickly wrapped-up, leaving a few days between the end of classes and the start of their winter break. While Avalon had studied for her exams, most of her time was spent researching Fiendfyre, trying to figure out everything she could about the destructive spell. After countless hours of research, she had finally concluded that the magical inferno was her best option for destroying Riddle's Horcruxes-- but, the task of finding them still remained.

He had been avoiding her ever since their incident with the Veritaserum, but she had given up on approaching him for the time being. In all honesty, him ignoring her was a good thing. Her mind had been plagued with doubts and hesitations, and she had hoped that with distance would come clarity: so far, it hadn't.

The rest of the castle had a newfound life beating through its revived heart. The students were all alight with joy as the weight of final exams eased off their burdened shoulders and, in their wake, came the excitement of the Yule Ball.

"All I'm saying is that Merrythought was wrong about that question," Zelda grumbled, still angry at the one problem she had missed on the written portion of their Defense Against the Dark Arts exam.

"And all I'm saying is that exams are over, you did incredible, and you deserve to have a nice night tonight! Let it go, love," Avalon said, earning an exasperated sigh from her distraught roommate.

"You're right, you're right," Zelda mumbled, making her way over to the mirror as she flattened down her outfit. "How do I look?"

Avalon looked at her with a bright smile on her lips. Zelda was dressed in a dazzling, double-breasted black suit that gleamed like the starry ceiling of the Ravenclaw common room. From the structured shoulders hung a glimmering black cape that elegantly draped down to the small of her waist, the ends charmed to appear as though a million shining crystals were falling off the ends of the fabric with every slight movement she made.

"Absolutely stunning," she said. "Jane is going to be the luckiest girl at the Ball."

"And Avery the luckiest boy," Zelda grinned. "Need help with your zipper?"

"Yes, please," she sighed, turning her back to her roommate as she walked up and quickly did up the back of her dress. When Avalon felt the dress finally hold in place, she turned around and looked at herself in the mirror, pulling her lightly curled hair over her back, making sure the scar on her skin was perfectly hidden underneath her dark locks.

She had kept her makeup light, though her lips were painted the same shade of red as her dress. It felt strange to see herself like that: done up and dressed in an elegant gown. It had been quite some time since she'd been able to attend anything like this.

She grabbed her wand and suddenly felt a feeling of panic overtake her as she bit her bottom lip. Zelda raised an eyebrow at her. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know where to put my wand," she said. "The dress has no pockets."

"What do you need your wand for? We're going to a dance," her roommate laughed.

Avalon chewed on the inside of her cheek. She never went anywhere without her wand. The thought alone scared her. She took in a deep breath and muttered, "Orion's going to kill me," before she pointed her wand at the dress and watched as the fabric tore from her thigh down, creating a long slit in the side.