An Otherworldly Experience (Tom Riddle Era)

Chapter Two

It was a long journey to get to Hogwarts. Yeah, she knew it practically just took the whole day. But when you read it, it doesn't feel like it because it's over within minutes, how many depends on what book and how fast you read. But this? Experiencing it. Being excited. Being nervous. Being terrified of the person you're in the same compartment in. It didn't feel like hours; it felt like days. Her distractions hadn't worked nearly as well as she had hoped, because every now and again, she'd remember exactly what situation she was in.

But they'd eventually made it. And she had learned a few more spells.

"First years!" called someone as they were heading of the train. "First years to me!" He continued that call until what looked like the last people were off the train, everyone older heading off while the first years stayed close to the station.

He introduced himself as Professor Stone. He was quite elderly, but he had quite the strong voice for someone who looked like he could fall over if the wind blew lightly. Kelli wondered what subject he taught. She also wondered how well he would make it to the boats - then again, it wouldn't make very sense if they didn't have someone physically fit to do this.

Kelli decided to keep his health in mind as he soon led them off down a dark path through the Village. The Village of Hogsmeade was so much more than she had imagined. She had imagined it to look quite similar to the film's portrayal of it, a quaint little English Village. But it was a lot better than that. Yes, it did look very similar to a normal English Village, except it was a tad smaller and quite a bit more jam packed, the odd window lit up with the yellow hue of candlelights, others lit up with blue lights that just had to be magic. It looked like a shorter, film version Diagon Alley. And the real Diagon Alley was absolutely marvellous, she hadn't seen anything like it and she doubted any muggle would be able to build it.

She'd love coming here in her third year, even if she had to sneak out. And if she had to create her own version of the Marauders map, then she damn well would. Strange how the original creators, her inspiration to do something like that weren't even born yet.

Kelli slowed and caught a snippet of a conversation that made her blood boil.

"Girl's should be good at magic," one boy was saying, "so they could keep the house cleaner."

She didn't so much as see red, but she stopped and turned in the direction of that conversation and started to walk towards it.

"Yeah, there would be no excuse for the house to be messy."

"You two will be damned if you two get girlfriends, let alone a freaking wife," snapped Kelli at the pair of them, her voice quite loud.

"Yeah," piped up another soft female voice. "Why can't you keep the house clean?"

"Well, girls only want-"

"How the hell do you know what a girl want?" Kelli cut off. "You're not girls."

"Good," sneered one of them. "Girl's can't do anything - they can't earn money, they'll be too distracted looking for a husband."

"Girl's can do men's jobs thousand times better than you two ever will," Kelli sneered. "And better than most men."

"A girl's not strong enough to lift and they're too emotional."

"Oh, I'll show you strong and emotional," she muttered, before raising her fist and punching his cheek. He fell back and hit the ground. His friend stepped back and tried to grab her.

But Professor Stone had caught her in a jinx. Kelli's legs locked together and she fell back onto the path, but she was fuming and struggling.

"You're crazy!" the one who got punched shouted at her.

She had managed to get to her wand and used the countercurse for the leg locker jinx and she started to get to her feet, moving to put her wand away - she wanted to punch the other one. The way that they both flinched away from Kelli when she was on her feet. Her wand went flying out of her hand and Professor Stone caught it swiftly.

"Young lady!" Professor Stone shouted sternly, and Kelli stilled, realising she was in front of a Professor and she was making a scene. "You need to calm down."

She glared at the two before looking away from them and taking a breath. "Sorry, Professor," she muttered bitterly.

She wasn't looking at him, so she didn't see his reaction. "You'll be staying back before we enter the Great Hall," he told her. "To sort out your punishment. This is not a good first impression of you, young lady."

"Sorry," she apologised again, though a little more sincere than the last.

"Hm," was his short reply, before calling, "Nothing to see here. Let's continue."

~

Before they entered the Great Hall, they were crammed into the entrance hall, Professor Stone stepped into the hall where there was an echo of chatter from students on the inside which was made louder when the door opened. When it opened a second time, Professor Stone came back in with Professor Dumbledore.

Professor Stone pointed out Kelli before leading the others into the Great Hall.

Professor Dumbledore and Kelli were soon left alone in the entrance hall. "You started a fight in Hogsmeade, Miss Watson? Why would that be?"

"He was saying that women weren't as good as men," she replied bitterly, getting annoyed at the thought of the prick's saying.

"And you don't believe this?" he asked curiously, his eyes twinkling with a form of amusement.

"Are you saying you do?" Kelli asked, her stare snapping back at him intensely. Then she saw the look on his face.

"I most certainly do agree with you, Miss Watson. Those thoughts are not accepted in our society of wizards and witches. I'm merely surprised that you, a muggleborn, do not agree."

Kelli almost rolled her eyes.

"Even so, you cannot attack those who have a differing opinion to you," Professor Dumbledore told Kelli.

That was fair.

"Tomorrow, after class, you'll be attending a detention with me. You'll be writing lines," he told her. She smiled softly. "Is there anything else, Miss Watson?"

"Actually," Kelli started, but found her mouth wasn't opening, that she couldn't even make a sound from her mouth. She wanted to tell him about Tom Riddle, about him being the Heir of Slytherin, about him going to be one of the most dangerous Dark Wizards ever. But she couldn't even speak, open her mouth, make sound. It was as though she had forgotten.

"Actually?" he prompted.

"Nothing," she said. "I . . . I don't actually know what I was going to ask. I'm sorry."

"I see," he said, frowning. "You should go in."

Kelli nodded, feeling oddly numb. She had a world of knowledge that could stop Tom Riddle and she couldn't say it. Had she done something wrong? Kelli felt sick. She was numb again. She entered the Great Hall quietly as the sorting hat called out, "Gryffindor!"

She didn't care. How was she going to deal with knowing that Riddle was going to grow up to be one of the best, darkest wizards the world had ever seen.

"Watson, Kelli!" Professor Stone called.

Kelli was on automatic, she walked straight up to the stool, took a seat. The hat touched a hair on her brunette head before it called, "Hufflepuff!"

The table cheered and she knew what she wanted to do. If she couldn't tell someone, she was going to become friends with Riddle. She was going to try and change the future.