Flight of the Stars

Chapter Eight

Disclaimer: Harry Potter does not belong to me, although I belong to Harry Potter. Just kidding. Mostly.

o-0-o

Tom frowned to himself as he walked down the empty corridor to the Great Hall for lunch, his eyes narrowed in thought. He hadn't revealed his worry to her, of course, but Granger knew far too much about him for his comfort. She knew that he had a Horcrux (how? could she somehow sense the Dark magic in it?), she knew he was a half-blood, which he hadn't revealed to anyone, even his closest, and she knew, furthermore, that he loathed his father, even before he had lashed out at her (which was incredibly foolish of him, as she now knew much, much more than she had).

He needed to do something about her.

Yes, she was powerful, and yes, she was integrated into his "friend" group (although he didn't know whether or not she knew that they were simply his followers, and not his friends even in the slightest), and yes, although he wouldn't admit it to anyone except himself, he did enjoy their verbal spars, as she was the only one who could keep up with him...

She knew too much. And therefore, she was a threat.

Tom decided to do something about it that afternoon. And so, when he spotted her in the Great Hall, he headed straight for her, walking right past his usual seat. It took her a minute, but when she finally turned and saw him, she stiffened noticeably. "Yes?" she said coolly.

He tilted his head toward the double doors of the entrance, and she seemed to understand that, at least, because she huffed irritably and got out of her seat, following him to the entrance. He nodded to himself slightly. It seemed that her natural curiosity would overcome whatever misgivings she had about a situation. Having completely ignored her for an entire week (it seemed petty on the outside, but it actually served to perfectly set up situations such as these), he knew that she was thinking there must be an important reason for him to deign to talk to her, and she was quite curious as to what it would be. He could feel it in how quickly she was walking beside him.

He ducked into an empty classroom and she followed close by him. Wandlessly locking the door, he regarded her with narrowed eyes. He could see the slight panic in her eyes, but she schooled her face into a defensive mask and casually dropped her hand near her wand. He almost smiled. Almost.

"Listen, Granger," he said, dropping all pretense, "either we do this the easy way, or we do it the hard way."

"What do you mean?" she asked, her voice quiet, controlled.

"I am going to use Legilimency on you. You will submit to having your mind read, or you will have it done by force. One choice will hurt much less than the other. Oh, and I wouldn't bother using that," he added, as her hand crept to her wand. He summoned it effortlessly, and it flew out of her pocket and into his hand. Granger glared at him with as much venom as she seemed to be able to muster, and Tom finally allowed himself a small smile as he rolled her wand back and forth in his hands.

"So," she said through gritted teeth, "either I will allow you to read my mind, or you will make me allow you?"

"Precisely."

She seemed to be struggling with herself, her jaw clenched, and Tom allowed her to argue the issue with herself. It would be far better for him to do it with her consent, for her sake especially. He didn't want to risk breaking her mind, as he had done with some of his other unfortunate victims. They hadn't even remembered who they were, when he had finished with them. He smiled slightly. Of course, they had completely deserved it. No one double-crossed him without suffering the consequences.

Granger glared at him fiercely, then suddenly her eyes widened slightly and she seemed to wilt. When she again looked up at him, her gaze was full of defeat. "Fine," she murmured.