Loyal | Tom Riddle

23: Trust

The Great Hall was humming with activity, as it always was in the mornings. The clinking of cutlery and constant conversation filled the grand room, which let in great beams of sunlight as owls swooped in majestically from the rafters, clutching parcels in their sharp talons.

Oblivious to everything around him, Tom Riddle sat at a table far away from most other students, his plate of food left untouched. His Death Eaters surrounded him, eating in near silence as he contemplated the previous night's happenings with a stone face, as he always did before the day began. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

"Marmalade," he ordered distractedly, snapping his fingers at Cadmus Carrow, who barely avoided dropping the jam jar as he passed it hurriedly to the Prefect.

"Don't be quite so incompetent the next time I ask you to do something simple, Cadmus," Riddle said icily. "Your own shadow might frighten you half to death, and I'd have to finish the job -- you know how I hate doing the dirty work."

The boy bowed his head, shame colouring his cheeks a flaming red. "F-forgive me, my Lord."

Tom surveyed the table, settling his attention on a pale classmate of his, and pasted his most charming smile onto his face. "Abraxas," he said smoothly, buttering his toast while ignoring Carrow's confused expression that lingered on the marmalade jar with mortification, "I'd like for you to bring that girl along today."

Before Malfoy could reply, Nikolai spoke, his fork clattering to the table as his mouth hung half-open. "You don't mean my sister by that, do you?" He carefully set his knife down, forcing a laugh as an uncomfortable silence reigned. "Because -- oh, Merlin -- you better not mean Arabella, Tom. She's nothing like us, she'd be an accident waiting to happen!"

His objection was swiftly ignored, as it was Malfoy's turn to sputter in protest.

"Please, Abraxas," Tom urged him, smiling widely still. "She could do great things with us. . . . with you."

At this, Nikolai slammed his fist down on the table, causing the plates to rattle. "I think not!" he roared, drawing the attention of the entire Great Hall. The unease subsided slowly after nothing more was said.

Riddle turned his sharp gaze to the green-eyed boy whose fists were drawn so tightly that circulation seemed to have cut off. "Would you care to explain why not, Nikolai?" he asked evenly, his tone laced with malice not unlike unseen thorns woven in with the undergrowth of a forest.

Nikolai clenched his jaw and swallowed. "No, my Lord."

"Pity," Tom sighed, a smirk quirking upwards at his lips. "I would have loved hearing your opinion, Travers." As he took a quick bite of toast, he pointed a long finger at Malfoy. "Bring her, Abraxas. It's time that she learns just what it is that we do."

✧ ✧ ✧

After his Herbology lesson had let out, Abraxas raced towards the outermost courtyard of the castle. There, a gnarled, ancient tree that was more dead than it was living stood guard over the way to the greenhouses, well avoided by most students. That fact alone made it the perfect meeting spot for two people who definitely did not want to be seen together under any circumstances whatsoever -- even though only their peers who never ventured outside of their respective common rooms did not know of their relationship.

Arabella already stood there, a small smile spreading across her lips as he came into view, panting slightly. "Hey."

"Hey yourself." He grinned at her, taking her hand in his own. "I have something to show you --"

"If it's the secret passage near the tapestry of the discovery of magic, let me tell you now that I use it loads already," she laughed. "That's how I'm always here so early."