Don't Save Me

Chapter 15: Tom Riddle

A few more days passed and I still hadn't spoken to any of my Gryffindor friends. I continued to eat at the Slytherin table and no one really questioned it. I was sitting in the Great Hall, eating, when an owl came swooping in to drop a letter into my hands. I turned the envelope over in my hands. It was black, with green embellishments and a snake wax seal. The letter M was written on the envelope flap. Severus looked over at me, smiling, holding a similar letter in his hands. We tore open the letter and pulled out a piece of parchment. Lucius and Narcissa's wedding invitation stared up at me and I smiled as I looked at Severus.

I looked down at the date and breathed a sigh of relief as I saw it was during Christmas Break. Maybe I would be able attend the wedding after all.

"Hey, wanna go together?" Severus asked, smirking at me as he placed the parchment back in its envelope. His question surprised me and I started choking on my water.

"Woah, you good?" Rodolphus asked, laughing and patting my back.

"Yeah, no, I'm good. The water just went down the wrong pipe," I replied, laughing. "Sorry, Severus. What did you say?" I asked, looking up at him.

"I said... do you want to go to the wedding with me? We could go as friends and make fun of Lucius in a tux..." Severus and I chuckled at this idea.

"Sounds great, Severus," I smiled, taking a sip of my water.

The next few weeks passed in a blur of wedding and Christmas excitement. Everyone was excited for the union of Narcissa Black and Lucius Malfoy. When the day finally arrived, Severus, Regulus, Rodolphus, and I were getting ready together. I finished up my makeup and hair before walking out of the bathroom to change.

I walked out of the changing room wearing a green flowy dress that was shorter in the front and long in the back. Severus's eyes locked with mine as he watched me walk out of the changing room.

"Woah..." Severus breathed as I moved closer to him. "You look beautiful, Y/n," he said as he took my hand in his. My cheeks turned a bright red and I looked down.

"Thank you, Severus," I said as he moved his hand under my chin, lifting my face to meet his eyes.

"Don't look away, beautiful. You're cute when you blush."

"He's right, you know," Rodolphus replied, laughing at how red my face had become. Severus led me out of the room and into the corridor. The four of us walked outside of Hogwarts and apparated to Malfoy Manor where the wedding was taking place.

The Manor was beautifully decorated and peacocks roamed the grounds. We took our seats as Lucius stood at the front of the altar waiting for Narcissa to walk down the aisle. The music started playing and we stood up, waiting in anticipation for Narcissa. She stepped into view, her white, perfectly fitted gown flowing behind her as she walked down the aisle, Cygnus Black holding her arm. She gracefully glided down the aisle and Cygnus placed her hand in Lucius's, patting his back and taking a seat. Severus squeezed my hand as Lucius and Narcissa said their vows and the ceremony completed.

The reception followed soon after and Lucius and Narcissa began to dance. Severus offered me his hand, asking if I wanted to dance and I allowed him to pull me onto the dance floor, giggling as he wrapped his arms around my waist. For the first time in a very long time I felt truly happy and accepted. Narcissa and Lucius took a break from dancing to come talk with me and Severus.

"Y/n! I am so glad you could make it!" Narcissa exclaimed, pulling me into a hug.

"You look beautiful, Cissy," I said, smiling at her. Her smile widened as she held up my hands and admired my dress.

"As do you, dear," she replied.

"Lucius, you better treat her well, or you are a dead man, am I clear?" I asked, trying to sound much more threatening than I looked. Lucius gulped slightly before a smile broke out across his face and we all laughed.

"You got it, Y/n," Lucius replied, still laughing. At that moment, a man walked over and stood beside Lucius. He was tall, pale, and had jet black hair that seemed perfectly placed. His dark brown eyes stared into mine as he spoke to Lucius.

"I don't believe I've met this child yet, Lucius. Who, might I ask, is this?" the man asked, his eyes still staring into mine. I couldn't help but feel that his eyes looked so familiar to me... almost as if I had seen them before.

"This is Y/n. We met in her first year of Hogwarts and my final year. She appears to be an excellent student," Lucius replied.

"Hmm... What house are you in, child?"

"I'm a Gryffindor."

"Hmm... a Gryffindor who shows up wearing Slytherin colors... How interesting. Lucius? Is this Y/n Y/l/n? The young lady you were telling me about?" the man asked, turning his attention to Lucius.

"Yes, my Lord. This is Y/n Y/l/n."

"Hmm... you are quite the interesting child, my dear. The hat took 10 minutes to sort you. Tell me... what took so long? What houses was the hat debating between?"

"Well... the hat said I would be a good fit for any of the houses... but it seemed to be focused on Gryffindor and Slytherin the most."

"Hmm... and what made the hat choose Gryffindor?"

"Oh... uhm... it saw a memory of mine and decided I was a good fit for Gryffindor," I replied, beginning to feel slightly uncomfortable with all the questions.

"Hmm... and what memory might that be?" I felt a pull at the back of my head once again and I immediately put up my walls.

"Just a memory of me protecting a friend," I replied, brushing it off. The man looked taken aback as he couldn't read my mind.

"Very interesting. I would be interested to learn more about your talents, my dear. My name is Tom Riddle," he said, stretching out his hand for me to shake.

"Nice to meet you, Tom," I replied. Lucius looked horrified when I used his first name but Tom didn't seem to mind.

"Not to worry, Lucius. She is only a child, after all. The girl may call me Tom... but if anyone else does, they're dead," and with that, the man walked away, leaving a confused Lucius and Narcissa staring at me, inquisitively.

"I have never seen the Dark Lord take an interest in a child... or anyone, for that matter... so quickly," Lucius whispered. I tried to shake off the strange feeling and pulled Severus back onto the dance floor.

"What was that all about?" he whispered in my ear.

"I have no idea... but I don't think that was the end of it."