The Only One He Ever Loved

Chapter Five: Riddle's Sweetheart

"'He will pay.'"

"He will pay? Clara, what have you done to Tom Riddle?" Allison clapped her hands, shaking her head in amusement. "Men. So they really are all the same."

"What do you mean?" Clara rolled her eyes but also smiled a little, taking a bite of her buttered toast as they spoke of last night's events.

"Avery should really be worried right now. He messed with Riddle's sweetheart!"

"I don't need Tom Riddle to fight my battles for me," Clara said, smirking. "And I'd much prefer to not be associated with His Highness, the Prefect. But you're right, Avery should be worried. He doesn't quite realise who he's pissed off here!"

Allison chuckled and took a final sip of her morning coffee before dragging Clara along with her to Transfiguration, the first class of Clara's second at Hogwarts. "Let's just get to class now, shall we?" Allison said mockingly.

;

"MERLIN'S BEARD!" a loud shriek came from the Boys' Dormitory, startling everyone in the Common Room. Clara stifled a laugh because she knew exactly who it was. A roar of laughter ensued when a very distressed looking Marcus Avery came down, panting and in lounge robes.

Allison, who was sitting on a chair by the fireplace, shot a knowing smirk to which Clara just giggled. Marcus looked at Clara in disbelief when he caught the little exchange between the girls and huffed, "You know that's not how I meant it, Clara."

Clara gave him a blank stare and raised an eyebrow. "Are you insinuating I did this?" Anthony Lestrange smirked, beaming with pride to see that the plan had worked. Clara had asked him to sneak a fake, bloody severed arm into Avery's room when he went to bathroom for a shower. 

Believe it or not, Clara Grey was going easy on him, this was only a silly prank. For the way he had treated her the previous night, he could have had it much worse. Marcus shook his head and walked back to his dormitory with his shoulders slumped, sparing Clara an apologetic glance before going out of her sight.

Tom entered the Common Room with Susette by his side, both the Prefects looking around to figure out what the commotion was about. "What's going on in here?" asked Susette, in her annoying, high pitched voice.

"The new girl just pranked Avery!" A dark haired boy laughed with the rest of the students in green and grey. Tom's gaze landed on Clara and he smirked, seeing through her poker face. "Wasn't me," Clara raised an eyebrow at the boy, waiting for him to challenge her.

Susette instantly shot a glare in Clara's way. She was about to take a step towards Clara when Tom held out a hand to stop her. "Don't." 

Susette huffed, muttering a "Why her?" under her breath and stormed out of the Common Room. Without breaking eye contact with Clara, Tom addressed all the Slytherins gathered. "Head to your dormitories. It's 12 minutes past curfew."

Everyone groaned but eventually went to their dorms. Clara waited for the crowd to clear, spotting Allison and Anthony chatting their way up the stairs. The cupid in Clara mentally noted the smiles on their faces and the sparks flying between them and she decided to not intervene.

"You know you're not above the rules, right, Grey?" 

Clara watched Tom sit next to her on the couch, awfully close, and smirked with a mischievous glint in her eyes, "And? Are you going to punish me? I'm into it."