Crimson || Tom Riddle [1]

𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖊𝖙𝖊𝖊𝖓

The first person to break the silence was Izar Avery, his low whistle slicing through the tension like a knife. He dropped his gaze onto Arabella with a glint of amusement in his eyes. "Well, well," he drawled. "I must say, Princess, you've got quite the bite."

Rosier and Lestrange joined in, their slow claps punctuating the stillness of the room. Rosier's smirk widened as he exchanged a knowing glance with Lestrange. "Tell me, what does 'va te faire foutre, salope' mean?" Rosier asked with a wide grin.

Arabella smirked, her lips curling into a mischievous smile. "Oh, just a little French lesson for our dear Colette," she replied. "I told her to go fuck herself."

Avery burst out laughing, while Rosier and Lestrange shared an amused glance. "I like her," Lestrange remarked to Rosier, pointing at Arabella.

Malfoy, who had remained silent throughout the exchange, finally spoke up. His tone was cool and composed, but Arabella could sense a hint of begrudging respect beneath his words. "Well, you did make me lose 10 galleons, but... at least we don't have another 'brooding and boring' leader," he said, his silver eyes piercing as they met her own silver ones, a hint of a smile on his face.

"Thank Merlin for that," Rosier chimed in.

Arabella shook her head."No. Thank Arabella for that."

Even Valerie was smiling. No one had ever talked to Colette like that, and she was quite glad it had happened. Someone needed to put her in her place and she was eternally grateful it was Arabella.

Arabella tilted her head to the side while she looked around at the group with a small smile. "I thought we were playing Exploding Snap?" Her tone was light and playful.

Avery laughed softly. "Right you are, Princess." He suddenly jumped up from his spot and squeezed in between Edmund and Arabella, slinging an arm over the latter's shoulder. "And I call dibs on being partners with Miss Chambers here."

Arabella chuckled, rolling her eyes at Avery. "Unfortunately for you, Exploding Snaps doesn't have partners."

"I guess it does now. Thank Izar for that."

"Well, lucky me," she teased, nudging him lightly with her elbow. "Just don't distract me too much, Avery. I plan on winning."

"You two are going to be the death of me," Edmund said, but there was warmth in his tone as he shuffled the deck of cards.

•••

Izar had somehow managed to find a way to make Exploding Snaps a partners game, and while Arabella had been hesitant at first, the pair were dominating against Abraxas + Valerie and Raymond + Romeo. Edmund had gone somewhere in search of snacks to sneak into the common room.

As the game progressed, Izar and Arabella shared secret glances and exchanged knowing nods as they worked together to beat the others. She quickly deflected an explosive card, earning glares from Raymond and Romeo.

"Nice move, Princess," Izar whispered into Arabella's ear with a smirk. She sat in between his legs, her back pressed against his chest.

Arabella grinned in response, a spark of competitiveness in her eyes.

Their teamwork paid off as they emerged as winners for the fifth time, their hands meeting in a secret handshake they had devised after their first win.

It was late when they finished the game, the common room empty of any other students, so the group settled comfortably into the plush armchairs and couches, the crackling fire casting a warm glow across the room.

Arabella sat with her head in Izar's lap as he stroked her hair, Raymond and Romeo occupying armchairs while Abraxas and Valerie were sitting close together. Their heads were bent in conversation, laughter occasionally escaping their lips.

"Hey, Malfoy, hands off my sister, alright?" Romeo interjected, disgust clouding his face but his voice full of warning.

Valerie rolled her eyes at her brother's comment. "Oh, please, Romeo. I can handle myself just fine," she retorted, shooting Abraxas an apologetic smile.

Just then, Edmund returned with an assortment of snacks, balancing a tray loaded with Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and a plate of Pumpkin Pasties. "Hope you're all hungry," he announced, setting the tray down on the table in the centre of the room. Everyone lunged for them as Edmund moved out the way. He pointed at the food as he said, "Thank Edmund for that. Took me way too bloody long to get these. I expect a repayment of 15 galleons minimum. From each of you."

Raymond wrapped his arms around Edmund, swinging him back and forth. "Thank you, Edmund!" he shouted with a grin, secretly shoving 30 galleons into Edmund's pocket.

Edmund pried Raymond off of him and sat on the ground, leaning his back against the couch. "You're welcome, Ray," he said with mock seriousness, a faint grin on his face as he gave pointed looks to the rest of the group.

As they indulged in the snacks, the conversation flowed effortlessly between them. Malfoy turned to Arabella. "So, how did you find the Chamber of Secrets?" he inquired, genuine interest colouring his voice while Valerie played with the rings on his fingers.

Arabella turned her head on Izar's lap, staring at the flickering flames while he absently started braiding a section of her hair. "Wasn't too hard, really. It's in the girl's lavatory, so I guess that's why Tom had never found it."

"That lying bastard," Raymond remarked, shaking his head in disbelief. "Riddle didn't find the Chamber. He just likes to take credit for everything."

Arabella nodded in agreement, a smirk playing on her lips. "Exactly. He's a perv for claiming he found it in the girls' bathroom... Always knew he was trouble."

Romeo noticed the look on her face and raised a single eyebrow. "Trouble never looked so goddamn fine, though. Isn't that right, Chambers?" he joked, indirectly asking her if there was anything going on between them.

Arabella shot Romeo a playful glare. "Ferme ta bouche," she retorted in French, the words rolling off her tongue with ease.

"Were you always this bad at French, Princess? Maybe we should ask Colette to teach you," Izar teased, finishing off the third section of hair he had braided.

Arabella turned her head, laying it flat on Izar's lap and staring up at him in mock offence. "Were you always this rude, diablotin?"

Izar raised an eyebrow at the unfamiliar nickname, but grinned nonetheless. "I'm going to pretend that means something good. And don't worry, Princess. I used to be nice."

But the comfortable atmosphere was suddenly shattered by the sound of the common room door creaking open. All heads turned to see Tom Riddle standing in the doorway, his piercing gaze sweeping over the group. A tense silence descended upon the room as everyone visibly stiffened.

Arabella could feel the tension thickening in the air as Tom glanced at her head in Avery's lap.

To their surprise, he didn't say anything, his gaze merely sweeping over the rest of the group before he crossed the room and strode down to the dormitories without a word.

Tom had more important matters to think about than his group of Death Eaters slacking off and laughing. Slughorn was going to catch them with how loud they were. But that wasn't Tom's problem.

The tension slowly dissipated, replaced by a collective sigh of relief from the group before they all silently decided it was time for bed.

•••

a.n. ok so apparently izar's name is pronounced ee-zar, but i've been pronouncing it eye-zar this entire time, and in my opinion, eye-zar sounds better so that's just what i'm gonna say his name is. but you guys can pronounce it however you wish. also feel free to comment. 💕