elysium | tom riddle

11 | act i, scene xi

╔═════ °• ✠ •° ═════╗

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖊𝖑𝖊𝖛𝖊𝖓

╚═════ °• ✠ •° ═════╝

𝐀 𝐅𝐄𝐖 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐅𝐀𝐒𝐓, four of Tom's acolytes were sitting in the grand Common Room. Tendrils of condensed smoke haloed their outlines, and Tom finally realized they were smoking cigarettes. His Right-Hand turned when he arrived, and his eyes darker than thunder greeted him. Malfoy bowed respectfully, and the others followed suit once they realized he was in the room. Tom sat opposite them and lifted a sharp brow at them, questioning such illicit affairs at the unholy time.

"Riddle, we are just waiting for someone to come out," Nott acknowledged, but he did not use the usual title to greet him; anyone could drop by in any second of ticking fate and question the use of it.

"Dare I ask, who that may be?" Tom queried, narrowing his eyes and manspreading his legs on the sage seat.

"She's coming in thirty seconds," Zabini answered as he raised his left hand to look at the silver watch around his wrist.

Thirty long seconds passed. When they heard someone coming from the spiraling staircase from the dorm that led to the Common Room, they turned their heads to the sounds. Ariadne descended, fingers gripping the handrail and dressed in her Slytherin robes, and almost made a beeline to the door until she realized that five princes of chaos were in the room.

Malfoy stood up suddenly, and the assassin only narrowed her eyes at him until she flicked her chestnut locks over her shoulders. She quickly swept the room with her green eyes as she took in the figure of Tom first. He nodded, not directing a word to her. Draco was still standing.

Ariadne turned to leave quickly, disappearing from the Common Room, and Draco followed her like a lost puppy.

Alexis puffed smoke and said, "He's down bad."

"There are few Draco can pursue, so if he wants to pursue her, let that be. I'm sure his parents would be glad it's her and not another. . . Muggle-born," Zabini replied after a pause. He stroked his chin and propped his elbow on one knee, watching the rest of them.

Alexis quickly turned the subject from a muggle-born to something far more interesting. "Hey, Riddle. How was it with Crowell? Did you enjoy it?" Carrow asked, his timbre questioning, and the look in his obsidian eyes was full of curiosity.

"Last I checked, that does not concern you," Tom's timbre was steady and full of authority. There was no room for discussion. Alexis rolled his eyes but made no further comment.

It seemed that Nyx, the goddess of the night, had made the night for dreams and nightmares, and how he had spent it with Velasquez had resembled both. It felt like someone had connected a wire to another part of his somewhat flawed system. After yesterday, his psyche remained a broken piece of art, only with more indents than before. He had thought that she was a nobody, someone he could recruit because of what her name meant.