Before Forever|| T.M.R

Chapter thirty-nine: Selfish reasons

"And things are pretty good from here
Remember everything will be alright
We can meet again somewhere
Somewhere far away from here"
-Sign of the Times, Harry Styles

***

The rain poured upon the ground, splatters of water marking areas of dryness. Upon the wet grass and withered trees, laid the spring storms, clouding swirling with the intention of bringing beautiful hail onto whatever land stood in its path. With the dawn of the morning and the shade from the barricade of white in the sky, the sun was hidden perfectly, shielding Hogwarts from its blinding rays.

Tom Riddle had been called to meet with the rest of the Knights, the tension still potent compared to the rest of the evenings. It had been only a mere week since their last encounter, and somewhere deep inside he knew what they had requested his presence for. He just didn't want to admit it, the small pang of self disgust in his abdomen making it clear that this was some sort of warped intervention.

He stood in front of the wall, head filled with something rather than knowledge and facts. This time he was preoccupied with something else entirely, he had to make some sort of move. Despite his affection toward his witch, that did not need to stand between him and what he has been playing for since child hood.

The stone rumbled a powerful melody, shaking until it began to shift into an opening for someone to enter. He casually, not showing the slight worry in his head on his expression, he looked impassive, almost annoyed to be attending, strolled inside. They had called him in the worst of times, when he was to be spending time with Valencia in his dormitory.

He did not have on his robes due to the fact that almost everyone had went to bed, including his girlfriend that he had left alone in their sleeping placement. He was certainly irritable, and though perhaps an intervention was called for to remind him of what his motive was and his endgame, it did not mean he wanted to hear it.

He looked at the table in the middle of the room, and he saw only two people rather than the six he had been expecting. The ones that were in there looked almost as menacing as he. Their figures shadowed by the darkness of the corners they were stationed in. He almost couldn't make them out, but luckily their faces were barely lit by the candles.

"Lestrange, Avery," he greeted quietly walking toward them slowly, his stare would've made the other two cower down a few months ago. However, it seemed Riddle had become more forgiving when his witch was with him. So, they held high hopes that he wouldn't harm them in worry that he would lose Valencia.

Little did he know he'd lose her either way.

"My Lord, thank you for joining us this evening," Nicholas smiled, it would've looked genuine to any gullible fool that didn't know that expression from each muscle that pulled up. Tom didn't fall for it, he was quite the smart young man, and he knew far better when he was practically the one whom made that.

"I had no choice, your owl seemed urgent, is there a reason it had to be so late at night?" He questioned sliding a long finger across the surface of the table. His tip collected dust from the wood and he rubbed two digits together, watching the particles flutter down onto the flooring.

"Yes, we apologize for the inconvenience, I'm sure you were with Valencia, am I correct?" Icarus spoke up finally, the sharp edge to his tone making Riddle snap his head to him as a warning. Which for a brief moment it went unseen, but quickly he avoided his gaze and understood that he was standing on thin ice.