Chapter 4 - The Library

Hogwarts - 5th September 1942

Amelia skipped breakfast the next morning, suddenly finding herself not that hungry. She had been shaken up by the incident with Riddle the night before and knew he was far more dangerous than he appeared. She knew it would be best to stay away from him but she also wanted to know more about him. Maybe that was why she wasn't running to Dumbledore in hysterics.

She found herself in the library and knew her Ravenclaw days were beginning to return. She realised that Slytherins were rare in the library but old habits die hard. Being a prefect also had its perks, meaning she could be out of bed before hours and use the excuse of being on patrol if anyone enquired. Luckily, that morning there was no one around. The library was empty apart from the librarian who never seemed to sleep (did she even have a bedroom?) and a couple of ghosts. Helena Ravenclaw, or the Grey Lady as most knew her, even floated past and locked eyes with Amelia. She jumped as the ghost paused in her movements to give Amelia a shocked look before flying away, muttering to herself. Amelia rolled her eyes. Though she never met the ghost personally back in the nineties, Amelia had heard stories of her temperamental attitude and secluded nature.

Amelia moved to the back of the room, a pile of textbook in her arms. They all had links to time travel. She was determined to find out how she had travelled so far back in time. She was sure that the Ministry had never made such time turners. Was it possible to charm a time turner to go back this far?

She went through the four books: A Tale Of Time, Time Turners: A Complete Guide, Time Travel and Contraptions, The Department of Mysteries: The Time Room.

Amelia scoffed. A complete guide indeed! It barely touched on the subject and contained nothing of use to her. It was quite an obstacle too that the only time turners mentioned in any of the books so far were limited to days at most. Glancing up at the clock, Amelia saw that she only had 20 minutes before the rest of the school would begin to emerge. Other students may also come to the library instead of attending breakfast so she knew that if she was going to go into the restricted section, it would have to be now.

Standing from her spot, she peeked around the corner at the librarian who was engrossed in her work. Perfect. Quietly, she tried the handle. The door was locked but she knew a simple unlocking spell would work. If they used a charm stronger than 'Alohomora' then even the teachers would struggle to get the books they required. Anyway, as a prefect, it was acceptable for Amelia to be inside… if she had a note.

"Alohomora." She whispered, the tip of her wand hovering by the handle.

"Works like a charm." Amelia sniggered to herself as the lock flicked back and the old door drifted ajar slightly, allowing a gap to form. It was big enough for Amelia to slip in through without causing any unwanted attraction.

The restricted section was smaller than she anticipated, but she assumed that Hogwarts wouldn't risk having a big store of books that students weren't really allowed to get their hands on. It would cause havoc. But Amelia had to try, this was important. The curiosity within her was like an infection and with every waking moment, the need to find out more was spreading and becoming more urgent.

"Lumos." The room was dark, Amelia could only see a obscure shapes in the shadows before her. Her holly wood wand lit up the long shelves, allowing Amelia to make out the spine of each book with a squint. Brushing each novel with the tips of her fingers, Amelia muttered each title, trying to look for the right one. Surely, there had to be something in there. There was only a few books in the main area of the library that contained information about time turners and time travel.

Time travel was a frowned upon subject, a taboo in the wizarding world. Amelia knew why. It was problematic. If time was messed with and someone, like Amelia, had the chance to mess up time, it could all go wrong. For all she knew, Amelia was slowly erasing herself from existence. Wizards and witches went insane through misuse of time turners; the idea wasn't particularly appealing. Suddenly, being a half-blood Slytherin didn't seem such a bad thing.

That was another thing that Amelia worried about, as if the stress of adjusting to a new time period, losing her family and friends and being a Slytherin wasn't enough. She'd left halfway through the Battle of Hogwarts. She had no idea who would prevail. It was a situation that could go either way, although Amelia was losing faith that they would have defeated the Death Eaters. Despite the battle being years into the future, it was only days ago for Amelia and it was a topic that always seemed to linger at the back of her mind.

"Aha!" Amelia let her lips form a small grin. A small, black hardback book stood out, with its battered edges and fading gold cursive that read 'How to Meddle with Time and Get Away With It'. Amelia nearly snorted at the title. Even in her own time, wizards had a habit of creating the most elaborate, lengthy titles to books. She stuffed the book into her robe's pocket and reshuffled the books to make it seem as if nothing had been taken.

"Students are not allowed in the restricted section without permission from a teacher." A voice sounded next to her ear. Amelia jumped and pushed the light into her assailant's face. Riddle's stoic face twitched with annoyance as he pushed Amelia's wand away.

"Why are you here then?"

"I am a prefect. I am an exception to the rule."

"I am a prefect too." She could see a flash of anger behind Riddle's usually stoic demeanor.

"Ah yes. You were checking the shelves for rebel students, I presume?" His words were laced with sarcasm as his stormy blue eyes challenged her.

Amelia laughed nervously, "You can never be too thorough. I'll be off then. Bye."

Amelia practically ran out of the restricted section. It was all too much. Being in an enclosed space with Riddle felt like she was trapped in a cage with some kind of predator. As she gathered her books she left on the library table, she could feel Riddle's piercing gaze on her back but she expertly ignored it. She didn't rush, knowing that if she did, Riddle would know she was caught doing something she wasn't supposed to be and that she was panicking. Out of all the people in the school who had caught her in the act, it had to be the boy who already had reason to be suspicious. Amelia could only guess at what Tom Riddle thought of her. Passing out, bloodied up in the middle of the hallway at night, starting lessons days late, an odd past, no family and caught in the restricted section. To even the most dense wizard would know something was out of tune.

"Never reveal your true fears." Those useful words that saved her life so many times. She really did owe her parents everything.

Walking away from the library, Amelia felt a sense of pride. She didn't panic and she left with what she came for, although she realised she'd have to return it at some point. The hardback felt heavier in her pocket at the thought but she knew now was not the time to dwell on it. Riddle may have his suspicions but he doesn't know anything about Amelia really. He had no idea.

Tom was furious. This girl had only been at Hogwarts for mere days and she was already presenting herself as a problem. He would usually avoid someone like her but that seemed impossible since she had somehow acquired the position of Slytherin's prefect. That thought alone fueled his anger. She had never been to a school, she had no business becoming a prefect. Every time he had tried to extract information from her, to find out who she really was, he got nothing. Just more nonsense that conjured up more questions. He realised that when she'd left the restricted section and he had gathered no more information than he already had, which was little. She had a way of avoiding his questions or answering them without really answering. There was also the issue of her occlumency. He couldn't infiltrate her mind. He had been thrilled when he perfected the art of legilimency the previous year. It was rare for adult wizards to gain the skill yet 15 year old Tom Riddle proved that he was one of the most powerful young wizards out there. He could do what others could not. However, this young girl could somehow reflect his invasions. She was more powerful that she let on, and to Tom, that meant she was a threat. And threats were to be removed at all costs. He couldn't have her thwart his plans. He was the Heir of Slytherin and he would find the Chamber of Secrets and Amelia Wilde would not be a hindrance. He tried to restrict his use of legilimency to avoid suspicion, especially with old Dumbledore not being as susceptible to his charms than all the other professors. There was also the risk that Amelia knew what she was doing if she performed occlumency. From now on, he had to be nice, form a friendship with her. If she was going to be around, he'd rather she was on his own side than against him. Amelia was nowhere near as powerful as him, although she was intelligent. Rather than an obstacle, Wilde might as well be an asset to him after all.

The rest of the day passed without any significance. For the first day since Amelia had arrived, her classes had gone by and there was nothing strange to report. Apart from, maybe, Professor Binns entering the class through the door rather than the blackboard. It was quite a shock when she discovered he was alive. Throughout her time at Hogwarts, Amelia had never seen the man in any other form than a ghostly one so it never occurred to Amelia that the History of Magic professor was once living.

Amelia had arithmancy last, without either Joe or Ellen or anyone else she knew for that matter. It was a class the Slytherins shared with the Ravenclaws. There were only about 5 Slytherins who didn't seem keen to introduce themselves to Amelia. The Ravenclaws refused to even acknowledge her apart from a few wary glances. Amelia sat through the entire lesson with a scowl on her face in the back corner, scribbling down her notes. As a Ravenclaw, Amelia had no problem ignoring the Slytherins but on the receiving end, she wasn't as content.

"Viridi." Amelia muttered to the stone wall and tapped her foot impatiently for the entrance to the common room to appear. Despite having a calm, uneventful day, Amelia was frustrated. It seemed that with all the action she had partaken in the last year, normal life at Hogwarts had become somewhat boring. It was a horrible thought, she admitted to herself, to think she was discontent with an uneventful day and seemed that she yearned for the exhilaration and action her previous life brought her. That was why Amelia ended her academic day with a frown. She hated herself for not being happy with the safety this age distributed but couldn't help the unsettling thought that she needed more. Finally the opening took shape and Amelia walked through into the dark room. She spotted Joe and Ellen already on the sofa in front of the grand fireplace. They were both chatting idly as they worked on an essay.

Starting towards the two, Amelia walked into a first year, nearly knocking the small, scrawny thing to the ground. Usually, Amelia would have apologised profusely and helped them up to make sure they were okay. However, Amelia's boredom and frustration only increased when she saw the terrified look on the first year's face. Amelia was not the kind of girl you'd be frightened of and it only reminded Amelia of her new house and reputation. Fueled by her anger, she glared down at the poor boy and the pile of books that surrounded him.

"Watch where you are going." She hissed under her breath. If she was going to be thought as the evil, new Slytherin prefect then she would sure as hell live up to their expectations. She didn't think their ideology would change anytime soon.

She collapsed onto the sofa, huffing as she landed next to Joe, crossing her arms. The nerve of that first year! What had Amelia ever done to him? Just because she was a pref-

"What did the chair do?"

Amelia snapped her head to the side at the sound of Ellen's voice. Both Slytherins were gazing at her with confusion and amusement.

"What?"

"Well, you're glaring so hard at the chair I wasn't sure whether or not you would somehow burn a hole in it. So what did it do?"

Amelia rolled her eyes, muttering a few curse words.

"What's got you in such a bad mood?" Joe chuckled.

Amelia opened her mouth, ready to rant. She faltered as no words came. Closing her mouth, she frowned. "I don't know."

"Riddle piss you off anymore?"

"No. I haven't even seen him today." Amelia hadn't noticed him in any of her lessons.

"Then what?"

"I don't know, I guess I'm… bored?"

Ellen laughed in disbelief, "You're in a new school, Hogwarts of all places, which you haven't even discovered half of. You probably have homework to do, a library full of books to quench your never ending thirst for knowledge. And you're bored?"

Amelia ignored the Hogwarts part, she'd memorised all of Hogwarts' secret passageways by the time she finished third year. It hadn't changed much since her own time, apart from the people. Even the portraits were the same. Sir Cadogan still had his temper and habit of challenging everyone who passed him to a duel.

"I was so active, I was always on my feet doing something for the past year or two so I guess it is just habit to be actually doing something. Not reading or writing. I'm restless."

She didn't expect Joe or Ellen to understand. She didn't mean she was out on the streets, taking walks, playing Quidditch or shopping in Diagon Alley. She meant fighting dark wizards, learning legilimency and occlumency, duelling and spying for the Order. She was only 15 years old and she had taken on such a responsibility. She matured too quickly but age didn't matter in her situation. They would have all been dead if Hogwarts students had stood back and done nothing.

"Well, we can go down to the Great Lake on the weekend? Hogsmeade is coming up in October for Halloween, it'll be so fun showing someone around who hasn't been before."

"Yeah, sure. Sounds great." Amelia smiled weakly, trying to force some enthusiasm into her tone.

Ellen seemed to believe her and began babbling to them both about how Pringle - the caretaker who was worse than Filch, which Amelia didn't think was possible - was on the hunt for a group of students who had pranked him. Joe seemed to think it was Peeves but he couldn't be sure. As the conversation went on, Amelia found herself zoning out and their words becoming white noise in her mind. For such an uneventful day, there was too much going on.

It was only when Amelia was settling down in bed and her fury disapperated that she realised the true consequences of her actions. She was supposed to show others that there didn't need to be a Slytherin stereotype, prove that she wasn't the girl they thought she was. In her effort, she only fortified their predictions. It was at that moment, Amelia realised the sorting hat had put her in the right house. The Battle of Hogwarts had changed her, she wasn't the Amelia Wilde she knew anymore.

Tom smirked behind his copy of Magical Draughts and Potions. He was sitting in the common room, sat on an armchair by himself. As if his presence was a repellent, nobody sat within a few feet of him until Joseph Mercer and Ellen Adley sat down on the sofa in front of him, oblivious to him. Adley was complaining about their increases of homework and the extra two inches Professor Babbling had added to her Ancient Runes essay. Tom rolled his eyes violently and found his lips curling into a sneer at the girl's ignorance. It was fifth year and they were to take their Ordinary Wizarding Levels at the end of it. It was without doubt there would be more homework.

He ignored their mumbling and proceeded to read the next chapter of the textbook. In order for his professors to overlook any mishaps or to continue believing his polite pretence, he needed to ensure he was top of the year once again. Wilde was appearing to be an obstacle in this. He'd seen the way her arm would shoot up in lessons like a mudblood Ravenclaw who was all too eager to please. It repulsed him to see another student suck up to the professors, he had a reason to do so; she did not. As if summoned by his thoughts, Riddle glanced over the top of his book to see Amelia walking through the common room entrance. Her expression was stony and her eyes seemed to burn - but with what? He sat up straighter in his chair, his back stiff as a board as he subtly examined the girl. Riddle couldn't explain his infatuation with the girl. It was a curious desire to know more about her. There was things she was hiding, things that didn't add up about her and he was determined to discover what they meant.

In her stupor, Wilde didn't see the first year behind the pile of books and barrelled straight into him. Unexpectedly, the girl just glowered at the petrified boy and spat down at him. She then headed straight towards her idle friends on the sofa in front of him. He raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her actions and perched on the edge of his seat, appearing as if engrossed in the words of Arsenius Jigger. Concentrating on their conversation, he flipped a page every now and then.

"I'm… bored." He heard Wilde explain herself and found he only had more questions than answers. His annoyance grew, yet his face was still impassive.

"Well, we can go down to the Great Lake on the weekend? Hogsmeade is coming up in October for Halloween, it'll be so fun showing someone around who hasn't been before."

"Yeah, sure. Sounds great."

To anyone else, Wilde would have sounded excited but Tom was accustomed to seeing past someone's dissimulation. Why wouldn't Wilde be eager? What was she hiding?

Tom realised then how he would have to satisfy his insatiable hunger for answers. He'd have to befriend her. She was lying to her friends, she was hiding something from them. So in order to get Wilde to open up to him, he'd have to become her confidante. Someone who she would trust with anything. Fooling the teachers at Hogwarts was a simple task but someone like Amelia would take a lot more effort and time. If he decided to do this, there was no backing out.

He'd have to be careful around her. Her habit of lying, not very well, infuriated him. Riddle knew she was lying and he could tell Wilde knew he knew yet didn't let anything slip. But little things like her book, her trip to the restricted section and her spontaneous changes of attitude caught his attention. He'd never been so intrigued yet so hateful of someone, perhaps except Professor Albus Dumbledore. But he was another enigma altogether.

Long after Wilde and her friends retreated to their dormitories, Riddle still sat on the edge of his seat. The book he had been reading was discarded onto the small coffee table next to him. His hands were clasped together under his chin and his gaze upon the fire was unwavering. He looked perfectly serene, thoughtful even, but truthfully, he was having an internal debate. Was Amelia Wilde worth it? Then he remembered the first time he saw the girl, battered and bruised in the middle of a deserted corridor. With a time turner around her neck. For Riddle, that fact alone ended the argument. He had to know, who was Amelia Wilde?

A/N: Thank you so much for all your support, I'm sorry for being slow at replying to reviews but I only have a few more months of sixth form left, with university applications and coursework deadlines, writing is in the back of my mind right now. Just remember that I still have about four more chapters written up and edited, and once May is over, exams with it, I'll have months to write to my heart's content! I hope you all enjoy the chapter and please please let me know what you think! PM me or review or even just fave/follow. I love every single one of you - Lotty x