Fictitious Facts

Chapter Six

I had never officially met Tom Riddle, apart from when I first arrived at the orphanage, even though I lived in the same building as him. And it was completely intentional. I kept as far away from him as possible and staying away from him proved even easier as he mostly tried to stay away from everyone else.

I could see his disdain when he watched the other kids and even when talking to adults. It was clear he thought them insignificant, and though that was not a very good way of thinking, it certainly helped me in convincing him I was irrelevant when he already thought so.

Unfortunately, my times of peace appeared to be over as I with a clash finally entered his line of sight. Literally.

The collision that brought me to the floor made Tom stumble back several steps before he eventually regained his balance and looked on me. Panic was beginning to rise within me as I felt the distress of running from one boy only to end up in front of another much, much more dangerous one. This was not my day, huh?

In reality, I really shouldn't be so scared of a child. Even with magical powers and a psychopathic mind, he was still only a child. But then again, so did Dumledoor think too, right? At least, I think he did. Point is - Tom managed to fool the adults he was harmless, I could not let him fool me too, not when I knew the truth. Or well, most of the truth. Truth is, I actually don't know so much about Tom apart from him being a complete and utter sociopath unable to love. That's what I gathered from my friends when talking about Harry Potter, at any rate.

So with the information I did possess, the facts all told me to be cautious of Tom. Which was the exact opposite of this situation I found myself in now.

As he sneered down at me, my nervousness took over and I started to blabber out excuses, trying to explain my situation, gesturing wildly with my hands. "Dead bird... he's crazy... I'm really sorry... running... crush... completely deranged..." Tom did not look entertained, and the expression he sent me made me freeze in place, feeling shivers running down my back and my breath got caught in my throat. I was near tears because oh-my-god-I'm-gonna-die.

"So sorry," I whispered, still on the floor with him standing there and looking down on me with those dead, black eyes. They reminded me of the dead bird Dennis caught. I did not like the resemblance, at all.

Tom continued to glare and when he finally said something, his voice was so cold I felt goosebumps upon my arms. "What are you doing?"

I timidly tried to answer him but found the words lodged in my mouth, refusing to come forward. Instead, it sounded like a choked animal croaking desperately and my eyes widened with horror.

Yep, I was definitely going to die. He'd kill me, get rid of all evidence and no one would be the wiser. This was the end. I was done for. Better say my goodbyes now, before it was-

-from behind, the sound of footsteps approaching fast suddenly reminded me of what I had been running from in the first place and brought me out of my internal panic attack.

Dennis, apparently catching sight of Tom, sped up his pace and started yelling threateningly. "Get away from her! Freak!" Said "freak" snapped up his gaze and pinned the other boy down with a bone-chilling glare. His sneer actually made Dennis shrink for some seconds, before straightening up and ignoring all basic instinct that told him to run the other way. Not a bright kid, him.

Instead, Dennis pointed accusingly at the wizard, the dead bird still clutched in a tight grip. "Weirdo! Emma, get away from him! He's a freak!"

If possible, Tom became even more menacing and he took a step forward. As Dennis stood and tried to keep from trembling, Tom slowly raised his hand. The focused look that took over his face created a heavy air around him.

The previously dead bird suddenly gave a shudder. Startled and scared, Dennis dropped it to the ground were it continued to move. Now he looked up at Tom with a fearful gaze.

"Stop it! Stop that!" He tried to order Tom to stop, but the other sadistic boy ignored his shouts and the bird released a cry of its own, stretching its rumpled and broken wings. Dennis staggered back.

With a cruel smile that could've easily won the first prize of villainous grins, Tom commanded the newly arisen bird to attack, forcing Dennis to a retreat. Following the screams of the other boy, Tom let out a laugh of his own, sadistic glee twisting his otherwise handsome albeit very young features.

As the boy disappeared around the corner, chased by the picking and angry bird, Tom turned back to the spot on the floor where I had been sitting, only to find the corridor empty save for himself.

Self-preservation having taken over, I was long gone the second Tom's attention had been directed elsewhere. I was not planning on dying today, or anytime soon.

The next couple of weeks, I tried to steer clear of Tom's radar as much as possible, avoiding him with a fiery determination that could've moved mountains. Dennis was even warier, but being the stupid young boy that he was, it only took him a little less than a month or so to get over the fact that Tom Riddle had apparently resurrected a bird and commanded it to attack him.

Really, self-preservation did not in any form exist in that boy's vocabulary. I doubt he could even spell it. I, however, had plenty, and the lengths of which I went to avoid Tom were nothing short of great. I tried to be as inconspicuous as possible, making an effort to appear unaware of even his presence. It was decidedly hard, especially as I could feel his eyes boring into me whenever I was around.

Thankfully, however, my ignorant and relaxed attitude seemed to appease him and as his attention gradually got drawn back by Dennis, who was starting to push the incident out of his mind and regain his confidence, and Amy, who started hanging out even more with Dennis, both driven by their mutual goal of making life as hard as possible for Tom.

In my opinion, their efforts completely backfired, as they only created more work for themselves, as well as prematurely dooming themselves with a scary commitment to die. Suicide was not something seven year old kids should indulge in, but they just didn't have the common sense to realize that.

The only good thing that came out of the meeting was that it seemed Dennis was starting to lose his previous creepy interest in me. It was a relief to no longer have to worry about him ambushing me or entertaining his annoying antics and stories.

I was starting to relax more and more, but, as was beginning to seem custom in my new life, I could never catch a real break.

By now, I would be more worried if nothing happened at all for a few weeks.