You're Fiona Perkins, a rather shy Ravenclaw student in your sixth year at Hogwarts. He's the last person you expect to see, especially at this hour. As you both battle your insomnia Tom Riddle and you form an unique bond. You're connected by someth...
You lie in bed again, wide awake. This shouldn't make any difference compared to the last few nights, but this time... sleep is the last thing you desire. You look at your alarm clock again.
11:33. You can't believe only ten minutes have passed since you last checked. You sigh. You're not sure how you'll be able to wait for another half an hour until your meeting with Tom. Meeting with Tom. The realization kicks in once again and makes your stomach flutter with excitement.
Jane and you had a lot of fun just a couple of hours ago. You were rummaging through your closet trying to find the perfect "cute, but effortless" outfit. You settled on a simple red sweater and a black skirt. You're not sure if it really conveys as much as Jane wants to tell you it does, but you trust her. Thankfully, the other girls weren't in the dormitory at that time, or they definitely would have questioned what you two were doing. Instead, they were playing a round of Exploding Snap with the boys in the common room, a popular card game among the students.
Their suspicion about why you two were even more secluded today than usual only rose, though, as you declined their offer to play with them. But they probably concluded you were scheming something, and since they knew they wouldn't be able to get anything out of you, they just accepted that fact. Anyway, Jane and you haven't been as giddy as you were this evening, since you were young girls.
11:42. This can't be real. Not even in Professor Binns's boring History of Magic class, time passes this slowly for you. An idea pops into your head. Maybe it would help to read a bit in the common room instead of just lying here in the darkness, driving yourself crazy with your own thoughts.
So you quietly leave your bed and put on the already mentioned outfit. For the two hours between bedtime and your meeting with Tom at 12, you preferred your comfy pajamas. Because the room is dimly illuminated by the full moon, you can see your silhouette in one of the mirrors. Jane wasn't lying. This combination does look quite flattering on you... maybe you should ask her for fashion advice more often. For a second you think about doing something to your hair. But then you just settle on brushing through it quickly, since you're not talented at making hairstyles, like Leontine is for example.
You snatch the book you're currently reading from your nightstand, take your pocket watch with you and make your way downstairs into the common room. Of course, it's empty. Even though there's no rule against residing in this living area after curfew, all the other students seem to be in their beds at this time. No wonder, since it's a regular school day tomorrow. The room is still comfortably warm from the fire that was burning the whole evening in the fireplace. You sit down on one of the soft couches and open your book.
You read the first line.
You wonder when he decided to write that note...?
Wait, what did that sentence say again? You read it again.
Did he tell anybody that he's going to meet you, like you confided in your best friend...?
Again, you didn't register single word you just read. Frustrated, you close the book up again. This is pointless. You have no choice but to wait. The minutes creep by, but finally... you almost can't believe it now – you check your watch for the last time and midnight has finally arrived.
You're shaking a little with anticipation now. With wobbly knees you walk over to the painting, that serves as the common room entrance of your house. Like yesterday, it swings open on its own, as soon as you're close enough. You slip out the opening and look around. And then you already see him. He stands to your left, casually leaning on the wall. You're startled, to be honest, you kind of expected to have to wait for him, even just a few minutes.
He looks up, as you come out the room. For a second no one says anything and you just look at each other. "Hey there," he finally breaks the silence. "Hello," you answer, softly. You smile at each other. "Listen, we shouldn't stand around here too long. We could easily get caught here. I know a place a little bit more private, if you want."
Private. Private sounds a bit like intimate. And intimate sounds a bit like... Again, you begin to feel the panic you already experienced earlier, when Jane asked you, if you thought he would want to kiss. You can feel your palms getting sweaty. On the other hand, his words are true. There's a high chance of a teacher or the caretaker Mister Pringle coming by around this area. So you take a deep breath and try to sound as unbothered as you possible can: "Sure. I'll follow you."
He nods, turns around smoothly and begins to lead the way. While walking, he pulls out his wand from his cloak and you hear him mumble "Lumos". Immediately the tip off his wand lights up and the hallway gets covered in a soft glow. You're not sure how long the journey takes you. But it seems like you're walking down hundreds of stairs. You're also not speaking a single word the whole way. You're wondering if it's out of caution not to get caught or your nervousness around each other? Or at least your nervousness. Tom seems calm as always.
Finally, you arrive in front of a heavy wooden door. Tom clears his throat and mutters with a low register voice: "Caput Draconis". The door, obviously being password protected, magically swings open. Curiously, you peek inside. You have never been here before, not even in this part of the school, you're pretty sure. This is not really shocking, since the premises of Hogwarts are so enormous in size. Sometimes you think not even Headmaster Dippet could possibly know every nook and cranny of this castle. Tom confidently strides into the room and motions you to follow him. As you enter, you're surprised. This doesn't look much different than the room you just left. It appears to be a pretty standard common room, the only thing that's different is, that it isn't themed in one of the house colours. Instead it's kept pretty neutral, with brown leather coaches and dark wood furniture. The door smoothly falls into its lock behind you.
"What is this place?," you ask as you take it all in. "It's a common area for us prefects." Tom says this with such a self-evidence that you feel a little silly for your question. This of course makes perfect sense and would also explain why you have never been here before. You don't hold this position, neither are you close with someone who does. Tom gives you a crooked smile now. "To be honest, I'm not really in here much. The other prefects can be a little... irritating, in my opinion. But at this hour it's nice, since none of them are here." He laughs and takes a seat on one of the couches in front of the fireplace. You continue to stand in the middle of the room, still looking around.
"Don't you want to sit with me, Fiona?" His voice sounds raspy and hearing your name out of his mouth feels unfamiliar. "I don't bite."
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