𝔅𝔢𝔞𝔲𝔱𝔦𝔣𝔲𝔩 𝔓𝔞𝔦𝔫

ℭ𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔱𝔢𝔯 𝔗𝔢𝔫

𝕶𝖗𝖎𝖙𝖆𝖓𝖆'𝖘 𝖕𝖔𝖛

"I can have us packed in a few minutes," Rhysand says, fumbling with his tie. I shake my head at his words. "No." If we run now before knowing for sure that we are unsafe, it will only put us in more danger.

      He continues fumbling with his tie as anxiety eats away at him. Eventually, he rips the tie apart, throwing it to the ground. "Hey," I say, turning around. "Calm down," I whisper. "We talked about this last night when he made his little threat. Whatever they want, we will say no. We will listen but that is it. Calm down."

He scoffs. "You actually trust him to keep his word?"

"Yes," I say, leaving no room for argument. Though he is annoying, and his mere presence causes me to feel like I am suffocating, I can tell he is the type of man to keep his word. And if he isn't, we can apparate out of this school in a second.

"If he tells anyone who I am, I am going to be execu—"

"Enough!" I yell, cutting him off. We didn't cast a silencing spell on our dorms, and if Tom Riddle hears either of us utter the word 'executed,' we're fucked.

I walk over to him, placing my hands on his chest. "Calm down. We survived shit that not even the most skilled of wizards could have, Tom Riddle included. We will be fine."

      He looks down at me, letting out an exhausted huff.

"Don't forget that we were put into Slytherin for a reason. We have a knack for self-preservation," I tell him. When I notice his chest rising and falling in short, choppy breaths, I whisper, "just breathe." He intakes a deep breath before letting it go. He repeats this process a few times before swallowing. "Okay."

"Good." I take my hands off his chest and walk back to the mirror I was at. I throw my hair up into a ponytail and put on my leather jacket.

"What do you think his offer will be?" Rhysand asks. "I don't know," I answer, "but it's going to be something I won't like. I already know that."

"I knew something was off with him when I met him in the forest," Rhysand says, and I make a sound of agreement. "Do you feel it?" I ask him. "The darkness when you're around him?"

Rhysand doesn't say anything for a few moments, but slowly he nods. "It's hard not to."

"I don't understand it," I admit. "Power isn't dark or light. Evil or good. It is just power. It's not supposed to be possible for power to be dark or light, but Tom's is. It doesn't make sense. Did you ever read or learn about anything that could explain how power like Tom's can be so dark and suffocating?"

"I read the opposite," he tells me, and I sigh. Putting this conversation out of my mind because I know it will lead nowhere, I turn around to face him. "Let's go." Together, we walk out of our shared room and make our way to the room of requirement. Upon getting there, we stand in front of the stone wall, waiting for the door that leads to it to appear. It does in only a few seconds. I grab the large, metal handle of the door and pull on it, walking into the room of requirement. Rhysand follows closely behind me, closing the door behind him. When I look ahead of me, I see Tom Riddle standing, his hands clasped behind his back with the rest of his followers lounging on the sofas in the small room or sitting at the circular table.