Tom Marvolo Riddle. The most infamous dark wizard of all time. His legendary rise to power as the Dark Lord will forever strike fear in the hearts of those who hear the tale. Still, little is known of Tom's life before his transformation into Voldem...
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Tom stood in the corner of Slughorn's office, nursing a small glass of pumpkin juice. The room was rather large for an office, and was very quaint. The room's typical décor had been replaced, this evening, with large Christmas trees adorned with bright lights and obnoxiously shiny ornaments.
Tables stood, with various hors-d'oeuvres and desserts in the center of the room, and an even larger Christmas tree stood in the middle of them. The room was filled with students who had been lucky enough to be invited to the party, and of course, he had been one of them. Tom scanned the room, looking for one person in particular. He spotted her near the door.
She was wearing long satin dress robes in a pale blue, and the loose curls that normally framed her face, were pulled back. She was breathtaking ... and she wasn't alone. A boy with dark hair who was a bit taller than Tom, and considerably more muscular stood by her side, a triumphant grin on his face.
Tom briskly crossed the room, grabbing another glass from one of the tables, before closing the remaining distance between them.
"Pumpkin juice?" He held out the glass to Ellison, who smiled and accepted.
"Fancy seeing you here." She said, as she took a sip.
"So I see you're running a charity now." He said smoothly, ignoring all pleasantries. He leaned against the wall nonchalantly and took another sip from his glass. The smile faded from her lips and she shot him a warning glance.
"If you're referring to Neil, I didn't agree to go with him out of charity."
"Neil Lament hasn't had an intelligent thought in his entire life. In fact, I don't think he's ever had a thought that didn't revolve around Quidditch ... doesn't seem like your type is all." Tom eyed Neil, who had become engulfed in a band of Slytherin Quidditch players on his way to the drink table.
"Not that it's any of your business, but we're going as friends." Tom snickered.
"Is something funny?" She asked, her tone icy now.
"I just find it amusing that you think Lament asked you as 'friends'". She was facing him now.
"Is there something you know that I don't?" She retorted.
"Nothing that isn't obvious to everyone in the room." He didn't look at her but kept his eyes firmly on the sea of people before them, watching Neil as he high fived his teammates, probably over some stupid play he had made in the game two weeks ago.
"And just what would that be?" Her tone was even colder now.
"That the poor boy has it bad for you," Tom replied matter-of-factly. He took another sip from his glass.
"It wouldn't be right to lead him on ... No one likes a tease you know." He added with a smirk. The glass she had been holding slammed down on the table beside them, pumpkin juice sloshing onto the white tablecloth underneath.
"Keep your pumpkin juice." She said, her tone venomous. "My date was going to get me some before you interrupted." And with that, she stormed off, leaving Tom standing alone once again.
~
Who did he think he was?? Ellison strode down an outside corridor. She had been in no mood to stay at the party after her encounter with Tom, and had soon left with Neil in tow. They were now walking together, overlooking the dimly lit courtyard.
She had accepted Neil's invitation out of spite. Tom despised the boy. And if she were honest, Ellison had never really cared for him either. He was brutish and a bit dim. But it had been a better alternative than going alone, especially after hers and Tom's conversation in the library a week before. She shivered involuntarily.
"Would you like my jacket?" Neil asked. He was sweet. He really was. But God, the boy was thick. Tom had been right. The entirety of their conversation that night had centered on Quidditch. Who his favorite team was. How much he enjoyed playing as beater on the Slytherin team. How he planned to take up the position of captain in the upcoming year. It had all disinterested Ellison, whose mind had been replaying hers and Tom's conversation.
"No, that's okay." She said curtly, but he had already taken off his coat and was placing it around her shoulders. His hand lingered for a moment, before sliding down to her waist. She glanced sideways at him. "Neil, what are you doing?" He stepped in front of her, placing his hand on the other side of her waist, and smiled.
"I was just thinking, maybe we don't have to head back to the common room so soon." She stepped back, her back pressing against the wall. Neil stepped with her, his hands gripping her waist firmly. "I like you Ellison ... and ... I think you like me too." He was leaning in now, his face inches from her own.
"Neil, I-" He had slammed his lips against hers and was now attempting to kiss her. She pushed his chest, but he was pressing against her, pinning her against the wall. She reached into the pocket of her robe and pulled out her wand, digging it into his ribcage.
"Ouch!" He pulled away, halting his assault on her lips.
"Get your hands off of me, or I'll use a bat-bogey hex that will have you blowing bats out of your nose for a year." Her tone was calm, but deadly.
"You're mad..." He said, but he backed away, removing his hands from their previous resting place.
"Go." She said flatly, hurling his jacket at him. He caught it against his chest.
"Ellison..." He started, but trailed off as she shot him an icy glare. With a huff, Neil strode away down the corridor.
Ellison pressed her back against the wall and let out a sigh. Tom had been right, and she had known it too. Of course Neil had asked her with more in mind than going as friends. Still, she had said yes, because she knew it would annoy Tom.
She pushed herself off the wall and had taken only a few steps before a voice sounded down the corridor.
"I hate to say I told you so..." Tom had strode around the corner, his hands in his pockets, a smug smile painted across his face. "But-"
"Oh shut it Tom!" She bit back, cutting him off. She had spun on her heel and was facing him. "God, for once in your bloody life, could you think about someone other than yourself?" Anger was bubbling up inside her, and she continued, without giving him a chance to respond. "Of course you can't," She sneered, "I forgot who I'm talking to." The smug smile that had shown brightly on Tom's face just moments before, had disappeared. He had undoubtedly been taken aback by her sudden outburst. She shook her head, turning to walk away.
"Ellison, wait..." Tom had closed the distance between them and grabbed her hand. She turned, looking at him expectantly. He peered down at her for a long moment before finally speaking. "I'm sorry ... I didn't realize..." he trailed off. Her hard expression faltered for an instant, but she regained it quickly.
"There are a lot of things you don't realize Tom ... But how can I expect you to be attuned to other people's feelings when you're not even attuned to your own?" She turned and walked down the corridor, leaving Tom and the bitter night air behind her.
Happy Saturday lovelies! WOW has this week been busy! I honestly don't know how I've found the time to update this many times! I hope you like this chapter! Things are starting to heat up if you can't tell! ; )
