❝ I'm sorry you were not truly loved and that made you cruel ❞ Unknown
Celeste Baker just wanted her home and family to be safe and if that meant travelling back in time to stop it all, she would.
However, she wasn't prepared to be thrown into a gam...
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𝕮hristmas morning was cold. Or perhaps, Celeste felt the cold more because it was her, alone in her dorm room with none of her friends. It was empty without them there, Celeste was starting to realise.
Pulling her slippers and a robe on, Celeste grabbed the book that Walburga had got her and headed for the common room. For Christmas, the feast was always later in the morning for breakfast, so she had time to sit by the fire and read her book. It was warmer there.
She found an open spot by the wizarding chess board, sinking down into it and pulling her feet up beneath her as she began to read, growing immersed into the book as she waited for breakfast time.
A cough sounded to the right of her and Celeste paused, looking up to find Riddle extending something to her.
"Abraxas asked me to pass this on to you. He forgot to give it to you before he left."
"Oh." Celeste put her book down, taking the present as Riddle sat down opposite her. He was already dressed for the day, in slacks and a dark green jumper that Celeste supposed was Christmas-sy in a sense. She opened the present, smiling at the sight of Honeydukes chocolate that she had been eyeing but hadn't brought last time they went to Hogsmeade.
"What did he get you?"
"Crackling chocolate. The one that pops in your mouth." Celeste sat further up. "What did he get you?"
"Cufflinks."
"That's nice of him." Celeste replied, placing the chocolate down beside her as she picked her book up off of the chessboard.
"Do you play?" She paused before opening her book, seeing him motion to the board ahead of them. Shrugging, Celeste wondered if she could play it off before remembering Walburga's words. She hadn't truly had social interaction for a bit, so perhaps, despite it being Riddle, she should play chess with someone.
"I haven't in a while, but I remember the rules well enough."
"Do you want to play?"
"Sure." Celeste put the book down, sitting up as the pieces appeared on the board. It seemed fitting that she got the white pieces and he got the black one, letting her make the first move of the game. The entirety of her plan, of coming back to the 1940s, was her making the first move against Riddle. "I might need a reminder."
"Rook can move horizontally and vertically, however many spaces are necessary. Bishop moves diagonally, however many spaces you wish and the knight can move in a L shape in any direction." Riddle began to explain, pointing at each position. "The queen can move anywhere on the board whilst the king can move everywhere but only one space at a time. Pawns move forwards two spaces on the first go and one space for the next time. They take the pieces diagonally."
