AUTHOR'S NOTE: So this is my second fan fiction, and I apologize for abandoning my last one (The Prince's Captain), but that's just for the time being. I'll be uploading more for that. Anyway, the idea for this one came to me after I bought the first half of the seventh movie, because I got Salazar Slytherin's locket with it, so yeah. I'm not bragging. But seriously, I hope it's going to be good. It's a romance between Tom Riddle Jr. and an OC. It's my OC from www. hexrpg. Com (take out spaces there and you can add me or RP with me: IAmAFizzingWhizbee). I'm going to try and make it as dark as possible, and really interesting. Clarice is my OC and she's been sent to the same orphanage as Tom for the time being but you'll find out why later on. I really hope you like it and I wanted to write it in Tom's point of view so I wrote the prologue to kind of get the fact that she's in the orphanage with him, but yeah it will make more sense later so just read it! Thanks and I hope you enjoy! XOXO, xXxVoldy's-Gone-Moldy-xXx
The Hiss of a Serpent
Prologue
The wind was just a roar in her ears, the rain falling like that of a translucent sheet in front of her. The woman beside her dug in an over-sized purse for that Clarice hoped was an umbrella. The storm would only get worse from there, and she was sure the orphanage was still a few blocks away. A shiver ran through her body, causing her to bring the thin jacket tighter around her body. Glancing up at the woman, who's name had been long forgotten in all that had happened, stared straight ahead.
"I've forgotten the brolli in my office," she said with sigh. "But it isn't far now. You can change into some dry clothes when we get there." Clarice nodded. She didn't trust herself to say anything, for fear that her teeth would start chattering. She squinted her eyes for any sign of the orphanage in the distance, but even the houses across the street were proving difficult to see.
A car drove past them, the water it sprayed missing them by inches. Clarice shivered and looked down at the wet sidewalk. How far wasn't far to ... was it Mrs. Cole? Given the amount of events that had happened in the past week and a half, Clarice hadn't made remembering the matron's name a top priority. She'd remember it some how, or sneak the question in one way or another.
After what felt like years of trekking through the cold wind and rain, they arrived at the gate of Wool's Orphanage. The gate was a tall, wrought iron door with a pad-lock over the handle. The vine, crawling and weaving its way through the rungs reminded Clarice of snakes. For a moment, she imagined them moving and the leaves turned into hissing, tongue-flicking snake heads that seemed to follow her every move. Blinking a few times, Clarice mentally erased the image her mind had conjured, and followed Mrs. If-Her-Real-Name-Is-Cole up a cobble stone footpath and to a tall wooden door.
"Here we are," the woman said and pulled the heavy-looking door open. She walked through and ushered Clarice inside. "Come, out of the cold. You can dry off and then come down for some warm soup." Stepping inside, Clarice heard the echo of the door closing behind her. She already felt out of place: the room she stood in looked up at three flights of wooden stairs. They were the colour of damp wood, and a dim chandelier hung over top of her head, suspended by an old rusting chain. Clarice noticed that about four bulbs were burnt out. How dark did this place get on a night, let alone a rainy day? She wondered vaguely if the other children turned into demons or vampires and such at night. Despite the image of being brutally attacked that entered her mine, Clarice was positive that it was just nerves. Being in this place now was scarier than ever.
"I'll show you to your room and you can change. Then come down for some soup and after, we'll get you sorted." Clarice jumped and turned to see the matron standing directly behind her.
"Right," she said. She followed the woman up the rickety stair case, each creak and groan of protest rebounding off the walls. Outside there was a crack of thunder, and the dim building suddenly lit up with lightning. Downstairs, Clarice heard a door open and slam shut with the scuffling of feet and children giggling and shrieking. The matron seemed not to notice. Either that or children making noise like that was a regular occurrence. This woman didn't seem particularly strict.
"You'll be right here." Clarice was led into a fair sized room with a large window over-looking a small playground in the back of the orphanage. On either side of the window hung two cream-coloured curtains made out of lace with a solid purple curtain stitched to the back of each. A twin-sized bed sat in the corner of the room, made up with thick purple blankets and a single white pillow. There was a lamp on the wooden night table beside the bed, and an old, thin brown throw rug under a tall dark wardrobe at the end of the bed. It was nice, she supposed, for such an old orphanage.
"You can rearrange the furniture as much as you like, and if you get lost, Tom is right across the hall." Clarice froze in the midst of placing her suitcase down. That name, though as common as it was, sounded familiar to her. And the fact that this Tom lived in an orphanage made it even more questionable. Clarice was soon brought out of her thoughts by the woman's next words:
"I'll leave you to dry off and change. Then come down for dinner." She turned to go, but Clarice was quick to stop her.
"Mrs. ... Cole?" She bit her lip and hoped she had got her name right.
"Yes dear?"
"Where do I put my wet clothes?" Apparently she'd gotten it correct.
"Just hang them on the back of the door, and I'll collect them later." Clarice nodded and Mrs. Cole turned and left, closing the door behind her.
Clarice stood for a moment, surveying her new surroundings with a certain dismay, knowing that it was going to take her a while to get used to them. It could have been months before she saw her parents again, and even then she wondered.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: R&R? I'd really appreciate it! Tell my what you think, and thanks, and I hope you enjoyed this and I'll have the first chapter up by next Wednesday or so I hope and yeah thanks. XOXO