You don't own me, Riddle

Chapter 10- Knights of Walpurgis

Suddenly a door started to appear before them, and Tom covered Ari's mouth with his hand before she could gasp loudly.

He held out his hand towards the door gesturing for her to enter, and she did, with a firm grip of her wand.

The room was painted in black and green and had walls decorated with silver snakes. The ceiling had a large chandelier with lid candles in it, throwing shady dancing shadows across a large dark stone table that stood coldly in the center of the room.

Surrounding the table was several chairs, decorated in the same silver-green and black theme as the rest of the room. In almost each of the chairs sat a person.

Ari quickly recognized Abraxas Malfoy, the boy she had dueled with earlier that day. If you even could call what they had done dueling. Malfoy snorted and rolled his eyes like he could hear what she was thinking.

In order not to take any risks, she made sure to use her well-practiced occlumency to shield her mind.

She continued to look around the room, noticing that Tom's whole friend group was seated in from of her. Besides Tom and Malfoy there were 6 other boys, all of them watching her with curios or mischievous glances. She could not decide which one.

While Ari had stopped walking just as they had stepped inside the door, Tom had walked past her and now stood at the table. She noticed the two empty seats in front of him. One was a chair identical to the rest of them, at the corner of the longer side of the table.

The other seat resembled a throne more than a chair and stood alone at the shorter tableside.

When Ari did not move, Tom slowly resumed his position beside her. Ge gently pulled her hand and led her to the vacant chair which he had pulled out for her to sit on.

After she did, he himself sat down on the throne.

This was probably the first time Ari was in Tom's presence, while still feeling completely undistracted by him. She was on edge, waiting for the slightest irregularity or sign of danger, desperately clutching her wand inside her robe.

She turned her attention towards Tom, who had cleared his throat. Gaining her attention from the room, and the room's attention from her.

"Ari, you already met Abraxas Malfoy" Tom started and gestured towards the blond boy. He refused to meet her eyes at first until Tom repeated his name. His voice carried a strange authority that made goose-bumps appear on Ari's skin.

The boy's eyes shot towards Ari, and his expression looked like a three-year-old whose parents just found him doing something he knew he was not allowed. He nodded at her, his previous attitude nowhere to be seen.

Strange.

Tom continues to the next boy "This is Antonin Dolohow" He introduced a chubby boy with short dark hair. The boy grunted in response. "Opposite him is Benjamin Nott." He said and Ari turned towards a smaller blond boy with large front teeth. The boy nodded.

"That is Everett Milciber" tom continued, and barely let Ari look at the boy until he continued "Leon Rosier, Nicholas Lestrange, Al-" "Alvin Avery" The blond boy beside her interrupted Tom, reaching out a hand towards her. She took it, as she felt the temperature in the room drop. She looked back at Tom.

He did apparently not like being interrupted.

Alvin did, however, not flinch from Tom's eyes like the rest of the table seemed to do. Ari furrowed her eyebrows. They seemed almost afraid of him.

The boy who sat opposite from her, Nicholas Lestrange if she remembered correctly, also extended his hands towards her.

"Tom, why am I here?" She finally spoke after she realized that she had been quiet ever since they entered the room.