Ethereal Catastrophe | Tom Riddle

chapter three

The Slytherin common room was enough to make any person insane.

Gloom engulfed the capacity with the slight emerald hue emitting from the windows that looked out to the deep depths of the Black Lake. Few goblets were lit probably to make the room more intimate for this 'party'.

There was subtle music in the background of the crowded common room that was illegible due to the noise coming out of everyone's mouths.

Some shouting.

Some talking.

Some singing.

Some moaning.

It all faded into one big riotous thunder.

"This could have been yours!" A loud voice roared from behind Asteria.

The golden-eyed girl pivoted around focusing on the smirk painted on Kade Mulcibers face, his chocolaty eyes dreary due to his excessive alcohol consumption.

She analysed the crevices, the way his mouth moved, his creases within his lips, etcetera.

The colouring was correct.

"Pity," Asteria said with a tight smile, now she just had to make him laugh.

How do you make people laugh?

Asteria had never been particularly comedic, so what she would normally do is delve into someone's mind to find out their likes and dislikes and thus calculate how she needed to come across so that they would interpret her in the way that she wanted them to. She could then manipulate their strengths and weaknesses to work in her favour.

A drunk mind is like a puzzle that had not yet been completed, you have to put the pieces down into a specific place for it all to fit together so you could see the picture perfectly - meaning it takes a whole lot longer to decipher what's actually in a person mind.

Normally, Asteria will look at this completed puzzle in a sober person's mind and instantly see exactly what she is looking for.

In this case, it was much harder and therefore would take much longer so she would just have to try and make him laugh or get him to give her a toothy smile through her intuition and charm.

"It had always been my dream to live underwater."

"Sweetheart, my dorm will always welcome you; plus I can make other dreams come true." He said suggestively.

You make me want to peel my skin off and feed it to Abraxas.

Asteria laughed in response hoping that he would mimic her actions but he just stood with a lazy smirk, drink in hand and a sultry glint shimmering in his pupils.

Normally she was quite talented in situations like this, but she had absolutely no desire to bed Mulciber.

However...

No.

Not in Hogwarts.

"I'm being absolutely serious," he said as he traced his index finger along her jawline until he reached her chin placing his thumb to caress her cheek, looking down at Asteria with stars in his eyes as if she was the only other person in the room. "It will always welcome you."

She placed her hand on his wrist to pry his digits off her face and said in a tight voice, "I doubt Abraxas would be too happy about that."

"Please, you have him wrapped around your little finger. Plus, correct me if I'm wrong but you two are not together as of yet so," he crept forward and whispered into her ear, "Let me make you feel good."