Star Crossed

Chapter Seventy Three- All Hallows Eve

I pulled my hood up over my head as we walked towards the edge of the forest, the sun within its final moments before it would descend beyond the horizon and cast us into darkness. The cheerful conversations and rich foods of the Halloween Feast were now a world away as the cold wind blew through your clothes raising goosebumps upon your skin, the only sounds the crunching of footsteps over the bed of fallen leaves but I was ready. 
We followed Tom's black cloaked figure as it weaved in between the many bare trees which had grown old with the year. 
"Tom says he has already 'prepared'... what does he mean 'prepared?" Lazarus hissed from behind me but neither myself or Wiglaf replied as in all honesty I did not know myself and nor did it seem did Wiglaf. 
Finely Tom came to a halt in the centre of a clearing his black cloak billowing around him in the breeze giving him a ghostly/otherworldly appearance himself. As we drew closer I began to see what Tom had meant by preparation. 
Upon the ground was a marked out pentagram, surrounded by candles which remained as of now unlit, a bowl of what looked like a swirling black potion sat off to the side. 
"Nope. Look at that!" Lazarus groaned. "Look at it! No, absolutely not. That's some dark magic right there!" he looked a little flustered and certainly reluctant as he stared down at the ritual setting. 
"Riddle you do know what you are doing don't you?" Wiglaf questioned, his eyebrows furrowed. 
"Can't we use a simple spirit board?" Lazarus whispered looking around himself uncomfortably. 

"This way is more efficient." Tom said quietly as he focused bent over the small bowl of potion sat upon the floor he staired it slowly clockwise with a stick beside it was an old worn looking book that was flicked open to a certain page. 

"This way is going to get us killed." Lazarus hissed. "If we summon a demon and he wants one of our souls as a sacrifice this is his fault I want us all to remember that." he said nodded towards Riddle. I walked over closer to Tom and crouched down beside him leaving Lazarus muttering on to Wiglaf in an anxious tone. 
"What is that?" I breathed entranced by the pearly black substance. Tom turned his head towards me his face half concealed in shadow beneath the hood of his cloak, his pale skin illuminated by the straw rays of moonlight which had broken through the mass of trees. A few moments passed were we merely looked at each other before he smirked and straightened up waving his hand effortlessly over the pentagram causing the candles to flicker to life casting the dark clearing in a fiery glow. 
"Space yourselves out around the pentagram." Tom instructed, he carried with him a strong auror of power which seemed to disperse any fear as I trusted him, if there was anyone that I trusted with this magic it was Tom.
Wiglaf and Lazarus reluctantly took their places, I stood between Tom and Wiglaf, Lazarus directly opposite me. 
"Is this a joke? It's all a joke?" Lazarus breathed looking between us nervously. 
"No." Wiglaf replied curtly before Tom could reply, Tom smirked as he levitated the bowl of potion up into his hands. 
"Close your eyes." Tom breathed, hesitantly I dropped my eyelids struggling not to peek through them. "See the darkness... embrace it... sink within it." I listened to Tom's voice as it floated on the air light, clear and quiet. 
"No I'm out! I don't play with this." I heard Lazarus exclaim. "Wait why... why can't I move!?" His voice was panicked but I didn't dare open my eyes. 
"You have entered the game you can not leave until it is played." Tom replied silkily. 
"Game!? This is not a game!" Lazarus shouted.
"Shhh!" Wiglaf breathed beside me. 
"Shall we continue," Tom said calmly, when no-one spoke he continued. 
"We have succumbed to the darkness in which the souls reside, we share their space and we offer ours in return." I could hear uncomfortable sniffs and groans from opposite me, I felt a pang of pity for Lazarus who was clearly disturbed by the whole situation. 
"The flames that connect us are your energy, they are your power and strength. I offer you magical blood in return for the opening of the doorway between our worlds, I implore you to come forwards to us, enter into this world once more. We open our eyes and leave rise from your darkness to meet you in the light." 
I cracked my eyes open before slowly opening them fully, Lazarus looked grey as if we was about to sick, Wiglaf was staring down at the floor intently and Tom, Tom was stood his hand outstretched in front of him, the flames of the candles dancing within his eyes as the shadows defined his already chiseled features, he looked powerful, Godly almost. 
Suddenly there was a blast of wind and the candles were extinguished plunging us into complete darkness, I covered my mouth to stifle a scream as I focused on steadying my breathing. 
"What was that? Who was that?" Lazarus asked panicked. 
"Lumos." Wiglaf whispered before his wand emitted a small radius of bright pulsating light around the clearing. 
A loud crack made me jump and turn around, there was somebody with us... and they were playing with us. 
I closed my eyes and bit my lip. 
"Father is that you?" I breathed but I was only met by an eerie silence, before Tom suddenly stepped back a little from the group I frowned trying to see through the darkness I drew my own wand and casted lumos. 
Tom was looking a little less stoic than he had only moments before, he looked... confused... concerned?
"Tom? Tom what's happening? What's wrong?" I asked gently, his eyes turned to me and what I saw sent a shiver down my spine for the first time I had saw a small flicker of what looked to be fear in Tom's eyes... 
"I don't know who it is." He whispered more to himself than to others. "But they are focusing on me." He hissed twisting his neck and massaging it with his hand. 
"Oh great!" Lazarus spat. "That's it, it's over!" 
"No. Don't move!" Tom shouted holding his hand out to Lazarus. 
"Like hell Riddle." Lazarus spat back as he strode forward.
"No!" Tom yelled but Lazarus had already been picked up by some unseen force and slammed back down to earth in the spot he had been previously occupying. 
"Tom how do you shut one of these down?" Wiglaf asked firmly. 
"They have to be within the pentagram... they aren't in the pentagram." Tom whispered.
"Then how do we get them back?" I breathed. "Who are you? What do you want?" I called.

Suddenly the air seemed to stop around us, there was no more breeze, no more sound, no more movement and then a bright flash of light made me shield my eyes protectively. 
As my eyes readjusted I stared mouth hanging open in shock and in horror as one of the tree trunks surrounding us was engulfed in flames before the fire suddenly died as soon as it had roared into life... in its wake was three smouldering black letters which had been scorched into the bark... S... O...N. 
"Son," I breathed... I looked to Wiglaf and Lazarus who were also looking towards Tom who was staring intently as the words... we shared a concerned knowing look as there was only one of the boys who had lost his parents or at least one of them... 
"Tom..." I breathed, I forgot myself and made to approach him but he quickly held out a hand without taking his eyes off of the tree. 
"The game is not over, you can not move." He breathed before he spun around in a whirl of black fabric the candles ignited once more. 
"Close your eyes." Tom instructed. 
"Bu-" 
"Lazarus." Wiglaf hissed under his breath, I closed my eyes and tried to calm my beating heart. 
"We enter back into your darkness, as we do we lead you back here, we return you here. Our living souls condem your perished soul to the darkness from where it came. Our magic is corporal, we demand our submission." The air around suddenly felt... lighter... the air seemed to move again. 
"We demand the closure of the doors that separate our worlds as we open our eyes and return back to the light." 

The candles flickered for a moment before steadying themselves as I tentatively placed a foot forward I realised that I was able to move. 
"You did it..." I breathed looking at Tom who looked exhausted his usually pale face even more ashen than usual. 
"Remind me the next time Grisha makes a suggestion just pretend not to hear it." Lazarus groaned running a hand threw his hair. 
"Can you imagine if we got caught? And-" Lazarus stopped at Wiglaf had placed an elbow into his side and sharply. 
"We will scoot a little ahead." He whispered to me. "Be cautious." He looked towards Tom who had staring intently at the tree again his back to us, I nodded. 
"We are not far, call us if you should need us. We can't be long ten minutes maximum, we need to get back to the castle." he added before leaving myself and Riddle alone in the clearing.

"Tom..." I breathed as I walked up beside him I bit my lip. Tom did not reply. 
"Tom..." I repeated.
"Do you think... do you think that was your... Mother or... do you know if your Father is alive?" I hesitated. 

"The ritual may only summon the souls of magical beings." Tom replied quietly. 
"Your mother..." I breathed more to myself than to Tom. That... presence... that soul had been Tom's mother... what had she wanted?
"What do you think she-" I began. 
"I do not know." Tom interrupted my bluntly. "I do not need to know. I have survived my whole life alone, she is gone and has been my whole life." 
"Sometimes there is comfort in closure... we revisit old feelings for the same reason we re-read old books- comfort in words familiar even though we know the ending." I breathed. 

"You wanted closure." Tom replied. "I had my closure... I" he stopped suddenly looking a little surprised... was he surprised by what he was going to share? I looked at him encouraging him to continue but he remained silent. 
"With or without him you will be just fine..." Tom whispered his eyes still focused upon the tree as he spoke. "But I get it... I suppose... you'd have prefered to be just fine with him." 
I felt my eyes sting as tears began to well within them, I pushed them back. 
"I have found that people can stay, leave, save, or destroy you but by far the most dangerous thing they can ever do is come back." He breathed and for the first there was vulnerability in his words. 
"We should leave now," I whispered gently, Tom turned his eyes to me their blue hues glistening, dancing in the reflection of my own. 
"You're right... we can leave this behind." I whispered as I took a step back and waited for Tom to follow me, he took one last glance towards the tree before he turned from it before we walked side by side back towards are home... the orphans who had found solace in a castle of mutual belonging.