Of Monsters and Men- Tom Riddle x OC

11

The night was a warm one, although certain corners of the castle were as drafty as always. Animo shivered as she pulled her Slytherin jumper over her head before rubbing the fabric against her arms for warmth. She had made sure to keep her arms covered, which was really no different than her last few months in the future. Except this time, it was much riskier. Tom Riddle could not find out that she bore his mark. Animo feared the lengths Tome would go to attain her knowledge and she was fairly certain most of his "knights" already had been branded.

She paused in her stroll as a flash of dark hair caught her eye. Avril Zabini glanced over her shoulder suspiciously before she waved her wand, summoning a rope ladder to fall from the ceiling. Animo ducked around the corner and watched while the girl ascended, disappearing through the trapdoor above. Curious. The room would one day be Trelawney's divination classroom, but Animo knew the class was currently taught by a centaur out in the Forbidden Forest. Much more interesting, in her opinion.

Checking to make sure there was no one monitoring her actions, Animo darted forward and snuck up the ladder right as it began to rise. Swinging herself into the room rather clumsily, Animo stood and waved her wand, lighting up the darkness.

The space was full of cobwebs and musty with the smell of disuse, the occasional broken bit of chair or charred desk toppled across the way. However, in the center of it all stood a small round table, covered with a periwinkle tablecloth. Animo stepped forward, fascinated as a sliver of moonlight glinted off the crystal orb resting upon the table.

Suddenly, she felt the tip of a wand press into her back, making her wince.

"Why are you following me?"

Avril's tone was not at all friendly and Animo turned slowly, not wanting to alarm the Slytherin. Today, her face seemed more drawn than usual with dark circles that outlined her glowing eyes. "I'm not." Animo grimaced at Avril's unimpressed scowl. "Alright, I wondered what you were doing up here."

Avril stalked past Animo, her wand still clasped carefully at her side. "I don't think you got the hint, Wallis, but Slytherins generally keep their noses in their own business. If you want to eavesdrop, perhaps you should join the Gryffindors."

"That's not true," Animo lightened her voice as she observed the fatigue that laced the girl's movements while she muttered a quick "reparo," righting a chair in front of the circular table. "Slytherins spy on everyone. If you're one step ahead, then you're less likely to be hurt, right?"

A slight pause hovered above them as Avril's brow furrowed, creasing her smooth skin. "I take it back. Maybe you've learned the ways already."

Animo shrugged, waving her wand and setting up a chair for herself across from the fourth year. "Self-preservation is key in our house," she tilted her head, undoing the loop of hair she had piled on top of her skull, "makes people fairly predictable, I would think."

There was a slight screeching sound as Avril leaned her chair back, returning her attention to the crystal ball, which Animo had noticed had begun to swirl with a light fog. "Unfortunately, yes. Now go away."

Biting back a smile at her childish command, Animo tapped her fingers on the table, waging an inner debate her in head. Meanwhile, Avril remained affronted, like a bird with its feathers ruffled. "My brother's a Seer."

The offering hung in the air between them while Avril remained stiff, a flare of surprise flickering in her amber eyes. Animo continued, hoping that she wouldn't regret this revelation. Very few were aware of Gellert's abilities anyways. The Ministry certainly hadn't caught on. "He would see visions sometimes. His descriptions never made much sense to me, but he would get so excited," Animo's eyes darkened as she lowered the barrier she had kept up around the memories of her past. "Thought they were signs that he was meant to change the world." Glancing down at the crystal ball, Animo looked into Avril's eyes. "Are you one too?"

The girl opened her mouth to retort, but catching the honesty in Animo's gaze, her shoulders slackened. Avril returned her attention to the tablecloth, running her finger along the frayed thread. "Sort of.. I don't know." Her whisper was barely audible. "I see pieces of strange images in my dreams and they've been happening more often. I read that crystal balls were supposed to help channel your magic," Avril nodded to the center orb, "but I can't feel any change."

Animo scanned the Slytherin's drained expression, her lips chapped and her braids hanging limply around her shoulders. "When was the last time you slept?" When the girl simply pursed her lips, Animo raised an eyebrow. "I'm rather good at a Dreamless potion. If you want, I could make a batch for you. But you have to be careful when taking it."

Narrowing her brows, Avril gazed at Animo with suspicion. It wasn't exactly the reaction she had hoped for. "What do you want?"

"To be your friend," Animo smiled weakly, holding out a pale hand and hoping her fingers weren't shaking too much. Her nerves had been rubbed raw from the past several days.

There was a slight pause as Avril stared at her hand, waging some sort of internal debate. Slowly, the girl accepted her handshake, her skin dry and cool against Animo's. Suddenly, Avril flinched back, letting out a small gasp and releasing Animo's hold instantly.

"What's wrong?" Animo stood at once, knocking her chair back to the floor. Worry flared in her chest as Avril's eyes grew distant, brightening with some sort of understanding.

"You hold great pain," the girl whispered, her voice cracking slightly as her vision began to clear. "And suffered great loss." Blinking, Avril tilted her head at Animo, her gaze less hostile, but more uncertain. "Who are you?"

Animo sighed, trying to release the panic that flowed in her veins. Sitting down weakly, she looked back to Avril with a slight smile. "Would you accept my answer if I said I couldn't tell you?"

To her surprise, after a pause, Avril grinned and revealed a daring smile.Her features were heavily shadowed in the dim room. "We all have our secrets." She leaned backwards with a new glow to her expression, still tired, but less so. "I'll just have to figure out yours."

A similar grin split Animo's cheeks while she looped an elbow over the back of the chair. "I would like that." She nodded towards the crystal ball. "Now let's try to figure out this orb of yours."

A bit of the stress returned to Avril's posture as she redirected her attention forward. "I don't even know where to start anymore."

Shrugging, Animo stretched out a finger and ran it delicately over the glass surface. Not to her surprise, the fog didn't budge. She knew that she did not possess Gellert's gift. "Well, the library's a wonderful place to begin."

A slight groan escaped Avril's lips when she caught the excited gleam in Animo's eyes. "Forget Gryffindor. You're a total Ravenclaw."