Change → Tom Riddle

09.

i'm so sorry! i've been so busy with exams! don't worry tho, xmas hols are coming up, so hopefully I'll have more for you then. enjoy!

"I can't believe he did it again!" Eve exclaimed, pacing their dorm room. "I mean, why? What is his problem?" 
"Good question, Eva," Olivia sighed, rolling over on her bed. "I don't know. This time he said my name. My first name. And I think he likes it when I speak Spanish." 
"Liv, everyone likes it when you speak Spanish." Eve stopped pacing and turned to Olivia. "I actually think he likes you. There's nothing else for it." Olivia raised her eyebrows. Then she snorted. "Oh, come on! You're pretty, and you're kind, and you're practically as smart as him. Why wouldn't he like you?" 
"It just does not seem like Riddle. I feel bewild," Olivia told her friend. 
"Bewildered," Eva corrected automatically. "I'd say leave it. See where it takes you. I mean, you may do this job quicker than you thought."

And so Olivia left it to the side. The next day, the girls went down to the Lake to sit by it and work (it wasn't so cold that day; they could clear the snow, and both girls were wearing their coats.) They'd spent an hour actually working and another half working on Olivia's English; she was not good at idioms. It was at this point that Andrew and Tom joined them. Olivia suspected Andrew had forced Tom to come with him, which made her want to laugh, but when she looked at Tom, her breath hitched and she got distracted a little too quickly. 
"So, what are you two ladies doing?" Andrew asked, sitting on the clear patch next to his sister. 
"I'm teaching Olivia idioms and homophones," Eve explained, shuffling to the side. Tom sat next to Olivia, and it was kind of funny how you could tell he didn't want to be there. 
"Cool. So, you're still in the process of learning English?" Olivia nodded. "I think it's cute. Like a little quirk." 
"Well, Liv is a perfectionist and after so many years of it, it does bother you, so Gabbie and I have been teaching her. We've had some success," Eve told her brother. 
"Some? ¿Bastante?" Olivia parroted. Eve ducked as Olivia threw her quill at her, but laughed nevertheless. 
"Well, you're a lot better now," Eve added, still giggling. Olivia just rolled her eyes. 
"Oh, is that the Charms homework?" Andrew (who'd been looking at their sheets) asked. 
"Oh, yeah. I'm just about to finish..." As Eve talked to her brother, Olivia went back to her own work. Tom had been quiet throughout that small exchange, but Olivia was not surprised at all. 
"How are you getting on with the homework?" Olivia asked him. 
"Finished," Tom told her. Olivia nodded. 
"I should've seen that coming. What about for Muggle Studies, then? What have you got for your extensive research?" Tom pulled out a sheet that looked like some sort of fact file. Olivia took it from his hands and started to read it. 
"That's wrong," she said, pointing to a part of the sheet. "Alfonso VIII did go into exile, but he did not resign. And it was due to unrest in the cities." Tom frowned. 
"Thank you." 
"Tom, where did you get this information? A lot of it is incorrect." 
"The library," he said curtly. 
"I can correct it for you," Olivia offered. 
"Alright. The library tonight, then? Nine?"
"Works for me."

"Olivia! How exciting," Eve exclaimed, watching as Olivia pulled her pencil case from her bag. 
"Eve. I'm just correcting his homework," Olivia reminded her. 
"A one in a million chance. He's letting you!" 
"Yes, Eve, I know. And I have to go. It's nearly nine." Olivia put her pencil case back in her bag and picked it up again. "See you!"