He was darkness.
He was death.
He was pain.
He was suffering.
He was a mystery. One she intended to solve.
"You wouldn't kill me, Tom." "Avada Kedavra!"
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November Twenty Fourth, 1943
Time passed quickly for the next month. September went by in a blur. Arabella now tended to stick close to her friends, and Tom Riddle spent more time in the Room of Requirement than at meals. Jake Carson was expelled immediately before a Wizarding Court after a lengthy process in which his wealthy and important family were said to have sued.
Arabella was usually found in the library or next to the blazing fire in the Slytherin common room. She didn't talk much now, in fact, the whole ordeal seemed to have broken something inside of her. She was no longer curious of the world around her, the memories of the paintings and S.S were just moments of the past that Arabella Caerwyn wanted to just forget.
Now, loud noises made her flinch, other people made her afraid and dark shadows on the walls made Arabella tremble.
However, the strangest thing of all the strange occurrences since the incident, was that Arabella Caerwyn found herself missing two people in particular.
Edmund Luca and Tom Riddle.
Both were boys with whom Arabella had forged bonds with. Different, and incredibly odd bonds, but they were connections nonetheless. Often, Arabella found herself lying in bed, watching the sunrise through the lake water and imagining Edmund was beside her. "Sunshine!" Imaginative Edmund would exclaim, then he would pull her close and they would lie together until the sun was bright in the sky and streaming through the murky water into her window.
But sometimes, in the dark of the night, when her room was lit by the eery glow of the merpeople's lights, Arabella found herself pining for his lips against hers. She ached for the strange feeling he made her feel and the warmth of his embrace.
But since he knelt by her side after the incident in the Great Hall, Arabella had not talked to or caught Tom Riddle's eye. He was always focused on something during meal times then gone when the bell chimed the beginning of each period.
Edmund, was the opposite.
He seemed to be getting better. Colour was returning to his cheeks and his body appeared less thin under the hospital sheets. Arabella visited him as often as she could.
And although she didn't realise it on the morning of the twenty fourth, that day, was going to be a great one.
That morning, Arabella had double charms with the Gryffindors. She packed up her parchment and quills and headed straight to the classroom, missing breakfast, like she usually did. In the classroom, she quietly completed homework and waited to breakfast to end, and class to begin. O.W.Ls were coming up fast, and with all the drama, Arabella's studies had been put on a back shelf in her life. Not anymore.
When the bell chimed, and students began milling into the class, Arabella had completed the assigned homework and sat, waiting for Jaelyn to arrive.
But she never did.
Susan Finch leaned over across to Arabella's table during the lesson, as the Professor's back was turned. "Jaelyn had to go to Professor Slughorn's office this morning," Susan said softly. "Something about not doing her homework?"
Arabella smiled softly, laughing to herself. Jaelyn was incredibly lazy, and had a reputation for leaving her homework until the last minute, so Arabella wasn't surprised to hear Slughorn had called a meeting.
About twenty minutes to the end of the lesson, there were footsteps from the hall and the door to the Charms classroom swung open. Arabella was busy writing extra detailed notes for Jaelyn, and she didn't notice.
Professor Lindra, the head of Ravenclaw walked down the isles of desks, her blue robes billowing behind her. Her silver hair was pulled into it's usual tight bun on top of her head and her nimble fingers were curled around a scroll. She handed it to Professor Fey who opened it quickly. Now watching, Arabella let the quill fall to the parchment and saw Lindra mutter something quietly to Fey. Fey smiled brightly and her youth shone through.
"Thank you, Evannah," Professor Fey said, and rolled the parchment back up. With a flick of her wand, the scroll flew into the brown case at the front of the class. Professor Lindra gave a small smile and bowed her head. She turned around and walked quickly out of the class. Turning back to the class, Professor Fey frowned. She motioned to the blackboard. "If you don't complete this work by the end of class, it will be homework," she warned.
Immediately, the heads turned down and the scratching of quills resumed. Arabella gazed at the case where the scroll went. She wondered what the note contained. But one more statement from Fey got her working again.
"I will be checking if it's completed."
Fey was true to her word. However, Arabella had completed her work and left Charms that morning without any homework. As she walked through the castle to her next class, Arabella peered through the glass and saw fluffy clouds floating through the blue. The air was cold and Arabella was glad for her jumper under her robes. Winter was almost upon Hogwarts.
As she rounded the corridor, something stopped her in her tracks. In the midst of students, hurrying through the halls towards their next class, Arabella saw someone heading towards her. His blue tie hung loose around his neck and his robes were undone, blowing in the breeze. He was walking alone.
She knew he hadn't seen her yet but Arabella still laughed loudly and felt her heart soar for the first time in weeks. "Edmund!"
His head flew up. His beautiful eyes met hers. "Sunshine!"
Still weak from all those years in hospital, Edmund Luca didn't dare run for fear he would collapse, but he hoped Arabella could see he wished he could. But Arabella didn't have that fear. She sprinted the few metres to Edmund and in an instant, she had her arms wrapped tightly around him. In the middle of the hallway, the pair collided. The scent of lavenders from the hospital wing was still on his skin, Arabella noted as she squeezed him tighter.
"What are you doing?" She exclaimed in wonder.
"I don't have time," Edmund said, grinning broadly. In that moment, looking down at Arabella, Edmund noticed just how her eyes lit up when she was happy. "But meet me at the Ravenclaw table at lunch, and I can explain everything."
Arabella was giddy. "OK," she replied. She wasn't sure she would be able to concentrate in Defence Against the Dark Arts now.
