Dark Paradise

Chapter Twelve: Duelling the Dark Lord

"I presume you know how to duel"

It took Cordelia a moment to recover from her initial shock of the situation, a hand raising up to defensively rest against her wand nestled within the green Slytherin robes.

"Really Riddle, a duel? Are you that desperate to prove yourself?"

As always, the honey-eyed brunette boy sent her a glare akin to that of Satin's, a smirk following right after as he dropped down into the black armchair behind him, opening a book and skimming through the contents.

"Scared, Black?" (A/N: if you get the Draco reference then I love you cuz we think alike.)

Cordelia hadn't expected the taunt, her mind contemplating more dangerous waters yet receiving a shallow pool. However, she couldn't tell whether or not she was more comfortable with their usual banters, after all, uncharted waters were the most dangerous.

"If I were scared, I would've hexed you and left for the common room the instant you reached for my arm."

It was true, the Black-McMillan heir had wished to use a simple stinging jinx on Riddle and vacant the premises several times, but her curiosity had gotten the best of her and led Cordelia into a situation she couldn't quite decipher. Tom Marvolo Riddle wasn't one for direct threats and fights, so why would he propose a duel to settle their little banter when Cordelia knew he enjoyed their game as much as she did?

What are you playing at Riddle?

"Well, at least I know you aren't weak enough to crumble when faced with a threat."

As Tom spoke, his right palm slammed the book shut, the noise prompting the aspiring Dark Lord to rise out of his armchair and once again take up the vacant position right in front of the back wall. Just as Cordelia went to reply, his eyes shut for a brief second and transformed that part of the room into a slightly raised platform to properly allow them to duel.

"Come along, Black, I promise not to hurt you too much."

Against her better judgement, the blue-eyed brunette abandoned her robes and tightened her high pony, her yew-wood and dragon heartstring wand slipping into her right palm as she walked towards the other end of the platform.

The traditional Slytherin smirk graced her lips as the brunette stepped forward, her fingers fiddling with the tip of her wand as she mulled over various curses and hexes. One thing was for certain, neither of the snakes was keen on holding back as each of them compiled a list of their favourite curses and hexes, their minds reeling a mile a minute.

"Aren't you going to bow, Riddle?"

Rather than sending her a sneer or the usual insult, Tom merely walked forward towards the centre, prompting Cordelia to follow after until their backs touched. Each wielded their wands in their right hands and mentally counted to three before turning and firing their spells.

"Crucio!"

"Locomotor Mortis"

While Cordelia started off with a harsher curse, Tom chose one that was calculative and assured several injuries. That is, of course, if the spell would've hit Cordelia had she not ducked away. The young Black's 'Crucio', however, successfully landed on its mark causing Riddle to fall over and groan out in pain.

Unbeknownst to his opponent, Tom had a high spell tolerance due to his experiments on his Knights, which in turn allowed him to battle the Crucio enough to send a hex her way.

"Stupefy."

If the Black heir was lucky before, this time her luck and reflexes had failed her as the hex hit Cordelia right in the stomach, sending the witch tumbling back. Thankfully, she found purchase and ground her knees into the carpeted stage, allowing her to remain on the elevated platform and not fall off.