Extreme Ways ( A Tom Riddle fanfiction )

Chapter 3

"As an unusually talented and very good-looking orphan, he naturally drew attention and sympathy from the staff almost from the moment of his arrival. He seemed polite, quiet, and thirsty for knowledge. Nearly all were most favorably impressed by him.”
- HP6

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Adapting to a House she didn't know well wasn't easy.
Evelyn took the habit to bring books with her, in order to have something to read when she got stuck out of her Common Room because she didn't give the right answer to the riddle and had to wait for some housemate to let her in.
She was alone most of the time, so studying was her main hobby.
Even if she thought that Katrine became her friend, Kat seemed to avoid her in public and in the classrooms.
And her other classmates were just more apathetic.
Books were her true friends.

"The Grey Lady meets the Blue Lady" Evelyn muttered when she noticed her House's ghost hovering past her.
"Why are you feeling blue?".
The girl looked up surprised. She didn't expect the ghost to talk to her.
"I'm trying to fit here, but I still feel like I don't belong here".
"You're new here. You can't pretend to feel home after just few days. You'll get used to this place without even noticing it".
Evelyn slightly nodded "I've been thinking and dreaming of how it would have been to live here for years, but it turned out so different".
"It will be more adventurous if you're not expecting it" the ghost became one with darkness, leaving the girl alone with her thoughts.

Evelyn didn't have much interest in flying and playing quidditch. There was a time when she loved it, but after an accident caused by Milly that made her fall and almost break her neck, she lost interest.
Now she was having her first lesson of flying and her House was matched with Slytherins. Worse, Milly had a gap hour and decided to be a spectator.
"Come on! More determination!" The teacher was inciting those who still didn't make the broomstick fly.
Evelyn was looking down at hers, unwilling to see what progress her mates were doing.
"Up!" She called loudly, after some failed attemps.
Too fast the broom raised hitting her hard on her face.
She clenged her mouth soppressing a cry and felt her eyes watering.
She heard people around her bursting out laughing.
Milly was cackling. Her voice was the highest.
"It's alright. It can happen" the teacher said to her mumbling a spell that freed her from the pain but not from the humiliation.
Her hair turned jet black and people were criticizing that too.
Evelyn used all her patience for not leaving the pitch. Rage and thirst of revenge were boiling inside here, so much that they could have burned all the land around.

People started to call her freak.
Evelyn felt it was better being ignored and avoided. Her only way to distract herself was to obsessively study.
She started to bring books also at meals, when she wished she could have her meals in private. And Milly was never getting tired of teasing her. It became her favourite hobby.
The lovely letters from Milly's parents were more a curse than a blessing. They just worsened the war between the two cousins.
The only one Evelyn liked to keep in touch was her other uncle, but she didn't dare to complain to him, she couldn't afford to appear weak and childish.

It was late in the evening and Evelyn skipped half of the dinner to send an ordinary letter to her relatives, when she bumped into Tom Riddle.
He was avoiding her too, but sometimes they sat together in their mutual lessons and she didn't dislike it, since he was quiet and incredibly brilliant for being a muggle born or halfblood.
A sense of competition grew spontaneously between them.
Evelyn straightened her back, worried that he might have noticed her troubled feelings.
"This is where you hide?" He asked nodding to the owlery tower she was coming from.
"I don't hide" she scoffed "I had to send letters. Do you have someone to write to?".
"No, no one" he said blankly.
"What about...?" She was tempted to ask about his family, but he harshly interrupted her.
"What about yours?".
"I live with my cousin and her parents" she said gloomily, hoping that it could push him to share something about him.
"And your parents?" He snapped boldly.
Evelyn fought the bad feeling that teased her throat, but after commiserating herself for Milly's recent bullying acts and her inability of making some allies or friends, she just wanted to stay alone and try to wait for that desperation to let her tired mind in peace.
"My parents died in an accident. Years ago" she whispered walking past him to hide her face when she couldn't hide her hair.
"I grew up in a filthy muggle orphanage" he replied fast, making her stop and shyly turn.
"I think I'd rather..".
"No, you don't know" he cut her off icily "Nothing can be better than what I've been through".
Riddle was now the one who turned to walk away.
"You don't know as well!" She snapped back "To be forced to live with someone who hates you because she thinks you stole her parents' love, not to have the ability to hide your feelings behind a blank face because your silly hair reveals everything everytime!".
The Slytherin boy just shot her a fast glance, but didn't stop and soon left her alone, confused and so deeply angry against the world.

Competition between them grew sharp. And when they took their first hard exams at the end of the term, Evelyn was keeping high hopes, knowing she gave her best.
The papers were ordered from the lowest grade to the highest, so everyone knew who did the worst and the best.
Evelyn was proud that her name was never the first to be called, but amongst the last ones.
Professor Merrythought was slowly walking around the classroom, her cold eyes lingering on those who failed or did a bad job, a warmer face was reserved to those ones who got good grades.
Evelyn saw her parchment placed in front of her, an E in plain sight.
The old teacher gave her a smile, but she still one last parchment in her hands. And she moved to place it in front of Riddle with the brightest smile.
"First and only Outstanding of the year. Well done" she said patting his shoulder.
Evelyn tried to enjoy her result, but now the bitterness couldn't be taken away from her mouth.
The bell rang and she barely noticed it.
A shadow covered her and when she looked up she saw Riddle moving his eyes from her parchment still into her hands to her eyes with a mocking grin.
"You can do better" he hissed lowering to whisper to her ear, then he walled away, leaving her petrified and enraged.