Metanoia~ Tom Riddle

Chapter 10

Veruca awoke the next morning and for a moment she was terrified. It took her a few seconds of panic before she remembered where she was and why she was here. She sighed and washed her face before getting dressed in some casual 40's clothes. Her outfit consisted of a black, flowy, skirt that came just below her knees and an off-white jumper. She then brushed her hair and shook her head at herself in the mirror.

"Moony, love, I'm leaving for my 'tour'." She thought as she pat the sleeping cat.

The lean, black cat let out a yawn and stretched, its claws extending and retracting. "Alright dearest, let's go."

Veruca left her bedroom and locked it with a simple but powerful spell; "Mille cultri interpellatores dolere videamus." She whispered. She then turned and entered the common room to find Tom already waiting.

"When you said you'd be down here by 7:00, I hadn't thought you'd be any earlier than you said. I thought women liked their beauty sleep." He spoke in a tone so modulated, that Veruca found herself hoping he'd say something more. When he didn't, she smiled slightly, hoping her voice sounded as charming as his, "I'm a surprising person, Mr. Riddle."

He quirked a brow and she shrugged, coming to a stop in front of his chair. He looked her over, curiously. "Is something wrong?" she asked. She knew perfectly well that nothing was wrong but, Tom Riddle could start thinking about anything at any time and the less quiet she left him with, the better.

"Nothing at all, Ms. Fouix. You look lovely." Tom said, standing and formally taking her hand to place a kiss on the back of it. Veruca blushed, the cool feel of his mouth against her warm hand startled her to say the least, but internally she rolled her eyes. Tom Riddle was known to be a charming young man, but she would not let herself fall for his deceptions.

"Shall we?" he asked, again he didn't wait for an answer before leading her out of the Slytherin commons. Veruca wanted to hex him for his arrogance. She was getting tired of it and she hadn't even spent more than a day with him. They walked out of the maze of cold cement that was the dungeons, and up towards the Great Hall. She wondered if they started breakfast earlier in the 1920's than in the '70s.

"Breakfast starts at 7:00 and ends at 9:00, I'll show you the library and the kitchens, then we'll head to some of the classrooms and offices." Veruca nodded at him, getting lost in her admiration of the castle as she was so used to doing. There really wasn't too demanding a need for her to pay attention during this little 'tour'. After all, she knew most everything there was to know about Hogwarts.

And so, Veruca didn't pay much attention to Tom's tour. He did notice that she didn't look particularly interested and the fact that she wasn't listening to his words did irritate him, however, he didn't care if she got lost or not. He thought it would be rather interesting to observe how she reacted to getting lost in such a gargantuan castle.

Veruca, on the other hand, wasn't at all worried. She was waiting for a moment alone, perhaps sometime tonight, when she could sneak off to the Room of Requirement. She wanted to set up a special room, all to herself. One she could go to whenever she felt the need. One, that could hopefully remind her of home, a place she could be- and feel- normal.

"This is the owlery and our last stop. You are welcome to use any of the school owls or when and if you purchase your own it will rest here." Veruca perked up at the words 'last stop', which Tom noticed. She shook her head at the thought of purchasing an owl with her money. When and if, as Tom put it, she made more a pet owl would be the last thing on her list.

"Alright, if you haven't got any questions I have somewhere else to be. Curfew is at 8 during the week and 9 on the weekends, the Dark Forest is forbidden to all students and if your lucky enough to not get caught in the library passed midnight, I congratulate your patience, Filch is a nasty pest after 10:00 p.m."

"Thank you." Is all Veruca could muster. She was anxious to get back to Moony and her room, her only sanctuary as of now. She needed help; ideas on how to make back her money, how to set up the Room of Requirement, how to save Tom Riddle.

The last thought paused her movements to the door, and she turned back to the window. How on Earth would she save him? How on Earth could she save him?