Seven Devils ★ T.M.R ★

Chapter Seven

╔═══*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═══╗
THE SECOND PAGE
╚═══*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═══╝

"IRRESPONSIBLE, RECKLESS, SELFISH, stupid, completely foolish –" McGonagall paced in front of Marina, clearly saying what the rest of the room was thinking. "And now you say he's completely vanished! Stopped replying! Clearly, whatever foolhardy excuse of a plan you had did not go as you intended –"

"He'll come back," Marina said weakly, mostly to herself. "He will, he just needs to mull things over –"

"'Mull things over'?" McGonagall repeated looking scandalised. "You have risked everything! On what basis? What evidence do you have that he will simply 'mull things over' and then come straight back to gallivant around collecting Horcruxes? What was going through your head –"

Marina stood angrily. "None of you even believed that this was even happening yesterday! Riddle was going to quietly eat up whatever lifeforce he needed without you being the wiser! Your way of doing it wasn't working –"

"Enough," said Dumbledore, voice so intense that both Marina and McGonagall immediately turned to him, silenced. "I understand your frustration, Minerva. Frankly Marina, I am at a loss." His laser like gaze rounded on Marina and she felt herself shrivel. "You claim to have this world's best intentions at heart and yet you continue to gamble recklessly with our future. I expected more from you."

Marina withered under the quiet force of his words and took her seat again feeling crestfallen. This plan was going wrong at every turn, and it always seemed to come down on her.

"As for how to proceed, I think we only have two options," Dumbledore continued. "Either we trust that Tom will take Marina's outburst to heart and make the right decision, or we destroy the diary once and for all."

Marina sat straight up in her chair. "How are you going to do that? Fiendfyre?"

Moody gave a start where he stood heavily at the far end of the circle. "Fiendfyre? Surely you're not considering it Albus –"

"No," Dumbledore held up a placating hand. "No, should it come to that I have other methods I intend to try." He offered no further elaboration. "However, it is only fair we give Tom a chance, now that he knows what his future holds. As it stands, he does not yet have the power to try to escape. It is – I think – safe to give him some time to think."

"Albus," Lupin said warily. "Every day we wait gives him more time to plan ahead, figure out some way to manipulate us we have not foreseen. If this plan was dangerous before..."

"How long will you give him?" asked Marina.

Dumbledore considered her. "A week will suffice."

"A week?" Lupin and Marina said simultaneously in the same tone of voice for very different reasons.

"That is far too long, we cannot know what he could plan –"

"A week is nowhere near long enough to consider –"

"Please," Dumbledore said wearily, holding up his hand again. "Rest assured I will be keeping a close watch on the diary. If Tom decides to try any of his tricks, they will not go unnoticed."

"But sir, it's still my week with the diary. I thought I could –"

"Given your conduct I think it only appropriate that you have no further contact with Tom," Dumbledore's eyes glinted.

Marina gaped at him. "What... but..."

"Your actions run far too closely to your emotions, Marina. To Tom this only presents him with opportunities to exploit you. It has crossed my mind that he put on an act that he knew would rile you into just such a state, causing you to divulge too much. If that is the case, you played exactly into his hands."