Danielle kept silent about her strange illness for the next two months, despite the symptoms getting worse. She hadn't felt nearly as bad as she had in Defense Against the Dark Arts, but she would suddenly stumble or feel dizzy at the most inopportune times. Sometimes she would black out and have to take several deep breaths before she could see properly again. The episodes were becoming more and more frequent, but she refused to tell anyone. She didn't want to worry Dumbledore, not when he was so concentrated on the happenings outside of the castle.

Tom was being himself, cold and indifferent as usual. Danielle didn't see him reading any more books that might contain information about Horcruxes—at least, not when she was around. She hoped Dumbledore had made good on his word to hide all the offending texts. At the very least, it was obvious that his power was dwindling. He was consistently performing below average in school and Danielle had even beaten him in some tests, which frightened her and infuriated him. She could feel his desperation growing stronger as the only thing that could save him—his power—was steadily draining away.

Seemingly overnight, the brilliantly coloured leaves fell off the trees and a chill fell over the grounds. The first snowfall came late that November and the students were rewarded with hot cocoa instead of pumpkin juice during meals. Danielle now had to brave snowstorms and falling icicles in order to get to Herbology and since Alyssa insisted on bringing her to the twins' Quidditch matches, she had become quite adept at casting small, containable fires.

One day in early December Danielle finally put her foot down and hid in the Prefects' common room instead of going to watch the game like the rest of the school. She was engrossed in a book when Tom walked in. "Pace yourself, Clara," he said dryly as he glanced over at her. "You will have finished this entire library by the end of the holidays."

She shrugged. "I suppose I'll have to sneak some to the orphanage."

Tom slowly turned back around to her, his mask slipping to reveal a look of mingled revulsion and disbelief. "You are going back to the orphanage?"

Danielle hadn't thought about this problem before. Of course, Tom wouldn't want to go back for the holidays. "Yes," she said. "I suppose you're staying here, then."

His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Why do you want to go back there?" he asked in disgust. "You will risk getting killed in an air-raid."

"Because I promised Billy I would," Danielle hotly replied. "Do you have a problem with that?"

He shot her a poisonous glare before striding out of the room.

Danielle sighed and stretched out on the couch, ignoring the slight rush of dizziness she felt. She had no energy to deal with anything anymore; not even to follow Tom like she would have once done. She was sluggish; even her brain felt like it was working slowly. It wasn't as sharp as it had once been. Normally she would be in the library, searching for ways to find the diadem or prevent Tom's curse, but for the past several months all she had wanted to do was sleep. At least her nightmares no longer plagued her, thanks to the large supply of Dreamless Sleep potions Dumbledore had given her.

She would surely miss Tom, but a part of her wanted to go back to London, despite how dangerous it was. Maybe someone there would have an idea about what was going on with her or know ways they could sneak out of Britain. Next summer, if Europe was still occupied, she would ask Tom if he wanted to go to Albania. She hoped she would have gotten over whatever illness was plaguing her by then.

Danielle thoroughly searched the castle for Tom before leaving, but couldn't find him anywhere. She boarded the Hogwarts Express with a heavy heart: they had been growing apart since the beginning of the school year, and it wasn't just because they had to feign indifference. It put even more strain on her already frayed nerves.

Alyssa, Dylan and Alphard were going to Spain again during the holidays—Dylan was thrilled he would get to see Felicity again, while Alyssa and Alphard were happy they would get to spend time alone. From what Danielle could tell, their parents were delighted by the match. Since Alyssa and Alphard were both pure-blood, their future children would safely carry on the family name.

"Why so gloomy, Clara?" Dylan asked halfway through the ride. "You've barely said a word today."

"She's missing Tom already," teased Alyssa. "I'm sure they had a snogging session before we left."

"No, we didn't," Danielle said firmly. "I haven't seen him at all today, actually."

An awkward silence ensued. "Riddle's been acting a bit strange lately," Alphard finally offered. "He's been doing poorly on his schoolwork. It's not at all like him."

"Do you know what's going on?" Alyssa asked her.

Danielle met her eyes guiltily and glanced down at her feet. "No," she lied. "I think he's just a bit stressed."

Dylan snorted. "Riddle? Stressed? I've never even seen him sweat. But I think it has something to do with what's wrong with him."

He looked closely at Danielle, who let out a sharp intake of breath. The twins and Alphard knew well enough that Tom was ill, but she had never divulged the exact details. "I don't think so," she said. "He's gotten over that."

"He has?" Alyssa said curiously. "I thought you said he didn't find Ravenclaw's diadem. Wasn't that what he was looking for?"

"He didn't find it," Danielle replied, and refused to say another word on the matter. She knew it wasn't fair to lie to her friends like this, but Tom would murder her—possibly literally—if he found out.

She made her way to the Prefects' meeting reluctantly, not keen to listen to the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws argue pretentiously about who had primary usage of their private common room during exam time. Danielle took her seat next to Tom's empty one, feeling his absence more acutely than ever.

But just as the meeting was about to begin, the compartment door slid open and Tom himself stepped in, looking politely interested. "I hope I am not too late," he said quietly, taking his seat next to an open-mouthed Danielle.

"No, you're not," the self-appointed Ravenclaw leader, Adela Patil, said smugly. "Now that everyone's here, let's talk about the matter of students having unauthorized parties in their common rooms and taking the house-elves for granted…"

Danielle barely listened to the debate—she was too busy marveling at the fact that Tom had chosen to come back to London. He despised the orphanage.

When the meeting was finished at least, Danielle, still reeling in shock, followed him outside and into an empty compartment. "Why did you come back?" she asked.

"I am not leaving you on the own, Clara," he said firmly. "You have a penchant for spreading disaster wherever you go."

She narrowed her eyes, unsure whether to believe his words. Was that just another way of saying he didn't want to leave her on her own? "I appreciate your trust in me," she said sarcastically.

Tom smirked, mouth twisting upward, and Danielle's heart stuttered. She was sick of the distance between them, sick of trying to keep their relationship a secret. She threw her arms around his shoulders and pressed her mouth against his, willing him to respond.

To her delight, he hesitantly kissed her back. Tom pushed her back several steps, pinning Danielle to the wall so she couldn't get away.

She couldn't hide her elation; he very rarely took control in these situations. Pulling back slightly, she whispered, "Why the sudden affection?"

"Shhh, Clara," he murmured, his mouth upon hers again. This kiss was different from their previous ones; there seemed almost a desperate need to it. They didn't break apart until they both heard footsteps in the hallway, relieved to see it was only Alphard. He rolled his eyes at them and winked before pulling down the curtain, casting the compartment into darkness.

"I see Mr Black has a sense of humour," Tom said. Danielle sat down on the seat beside him, keeping their hands intertwined. She opened her mouth and was about to tell him about her bizarre illness, but decided against it a second later. She didn't want to disturb this fleeting moment of peace; they were so rare these days.

Aaaand they're about to get even rarer, thanks to the next turn of events. :)