And yet another chapter! I'm trying my best to update often guys. Some chapters might be shorter than what you're used to, but I'll try my best to make it lengthier, or update more. It can go either way.
Thank you for all the great comments and continuous support to my stories, guys! It means a lot!
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to J.K Rowling and Warner Brothers Inc. However, I do own Alex.
Pairings: Tom Riddle Jr./Alex Potter, mentions of Harry/Draco, Harry/Ginny, Ron/Hermione, Blaise/Daphne and Past!Alex/Theo
Warnings: Language, Character Death, Adult Scenes, False Twincest, Sadism
"Speaking"
'Thoughts'
"Parseltongue"
Months passed, and it was finally June of 1943, and this seemed to be the month Alex dreaded the most, as she awaited Dumbledore's next move. She was certain that he knew about the chamber now, if the expectant glances he sent her and Tom were any indication. She had forewarned Tom to be careful with opening the chamber whenever he did so, and she had warned Kronos not to slither up to the surface whenever the entrance is opened.
Six months since she and Blaise had joined the Knights, and it had gotten difficult for them to sneak around with the numerous eyes of Tom's followers constantly spying on them. Alex didn't know what Blaise had been thinking when he vowed to protect her with his life. What if she had gotten hurt, and he wasn't by her side? He would still pay the price for it.
For someone who was often rational and tactical, Blaise was awfully stupid.
Tom had only asked her to make one vow, that she would never betray him intentionally. Alex knew that she couldn't; she was starting to, dare she say, like the basta - err, the bloke.
Even if he was a bit demented. And sadistic. And a control freak.
She blamed Fate and bloody teenage hormones.
Which brings her back to her initial problem at hand. If she succeeded in stopping the making of the first horcrux, she had six more to worry about.
The next would be the Gaunt ring, and she needed to prevent Tom from finding the Riddle house, or at least, diminish his interest in finding out his heritage with something bigger. Or get them both out of the orphanage, away from the muggle world and the rest of the Riddle family. It would just be the two of them, looking out for one another...
Alex blinked at the last thought. Had she really just —?
"What troubles you mistress?"
Alex, who sat cross-legged on top of the low flat surfaces of the Slytherin statue, turned to at her familiar with her brows furrowed in frustration. "Many things, Kronos, but none for you to be concerned about."
"Is it your mate, the master?"
Alex scoffed, a light pink tinge threatening to flood her cheeks, "Mate. Why do you keep calling him that? He's my brother."
Denial. The traitorous, Harry-like voice quipped in her head, making Alex mentally hiss in anger.
Shut up!
Kronos glanced at her with something akin to amusement, "You are bonded by the threads of fate, chosen solely for one another, to bring balance. Blood is nothing but a convenience for a stronger connection."
If you were someone else, Riddle wouldn't look twice at you...
"I see your point." Alex begrudgingly conceded, a thoughtful look crossing her face before she spoke again, and an idea struck her, "If Tom and I are his remaining heirs, does that mean we can claim Lord and Ladyship to the Slytherin name?"
"Certainly, mistress." Kronos nodded in affirmation, and a wide — almost devious — smirk made its way onto her lips, her thoughts racing.
If Tom claimed Lordship to the House of Slytherin, he would be seen as a legal adult in the eyes of the ministry and the Wizengamot. They would be able to leave the orphanage, and Tom wouldn't be motivated to learn the rest of his heritage with the benefits that came with being Slytherin's heir. He wouldn't need to approach Morfin Gaunt, and wouldn't learn about Riddle Senior's abandonment. Summer was near, and at that time, she could have Blaise get the ring and hide it before Dumbledore finds it.
"Thank you, Kronos!" Alex chirped, heading out the chamber with a new skip in her step, her smirk never wavering.
She ignored the somewhat bewildered looks the students — or fearful in the Slytherin's case — shot her as she passed them in the corridor on her way to the dungeons. It was time to put the next plan in motion.
She needed to send a letter to Gringgots; hopefully Abraxas would let her borrow his eagle owl.
June 13, 1943
Alex sat stiffly at the Slytherin table, next to Tom as per usual. She was on high alert, even though her hard gaze never strayed from her book. Her fellow housemates chatted around her, and none seemed to notice her paranoid behavior. Of course, none but Tom and Blaise, though the latter knew better than to mention it.
"You look tense, sister." Tom murmured in hushed tones, but enough to draw the attention of the surrounding Knights. "What's bothering you?"
Alex's emerald orbs met his forest ones, momentarily startled, before she shook her head, "Nothing to be concerned about, Tom. I'm fine, if not just a little under the weather."
"Liar." Tom drawled in that infuriating all-knowing tone she had come to adjust to over the years, "I've seen that face a dozen times before, usually when you're upset or something's troubling you. Now, tell me what's going on."
She didn't know what to say. She couldn't lie to Tom; he could see right through her. To him, it was as if she were a mere Gryffindor, who wore their emotions on their sleeves. It was extremely unnerving, and awfully annoying how he would often call her out on it when the situation presented itself.
But she relented, casting a quick silencing spell around them and the Knights with a flick of her wand underneath the table. She observed each one of their expressions carefully, before she spoke.
"Something bad is going to happen, I can feel it." It wasn't a complete lie. "Something that has to do with the chamber. I don't think it's safe to open for now."
Tom raised an eyebrow inquisitively, "It's Dumbledore, isn't it? The old coot has something up his sleeve, and it's making you jittery." Right on the mark. At her hesitant nod, he added, "Then, we won't open the chamber, for now. Not until the danger has passed."
"That's the thing, Tom, it won't. Not as long as Dumbledore is here to keep a close eye on us." said Alex, briefly glancing at the Head Table where Dumbledore was indeed, watching them as they conversed. Alex suppressed the unpleasant shudder that wracked through her body. The old man was a bloody creeper.
"What do you suggest then? Get rid of Dumbledore?" Rosier snorted, "Not bloody likely, if you ask me."
"Well technically, no one asked you, Rosier." snarked Avery, earning a sneer from Rosier.
"He is right, though." admitted Lestrange, "Getting rid of Dumbledore — it's almost impossible feat. Dippet and the rest of the professors respect the man too much to simply toss him out."
"Not entirely impossible." the almost malicious smirk on Blaise's face took Alex and the rest of the Knights off guard, "I heard from a family friend once, that Dumbledore had been involved with that Dark Lord, Grindlewald."
All of them, except Alex, were visibly shocked by the news. Silence reigned as they seemed to contemplate this, glancing at one another questioningly. Alex met Blaise's gaze, and he nodded in affirmation. She almost smirked outwardly. The 'source' he had been talking about had been Severus Snape, who had managed to gather tidbits of information from the old coot without being noticed. They weren't much, but it had been enough for them to piece everything together. After her parents' deaths, Snape had been suspicious of Dumbledore, and rightfully so.
Looking back on the story, it made Dumbledore seem even more pathetic.
He and Grindlewald had opposing views on magic, muggles, and wizarding society, which eventually lead to their split, destroying their soul bond when their magic began to clash violently, one continuously fighting for dominance over the other. After Grindlewald was defeated, Dumbledore wanted to prove he was in the right, that his view on their society was one they should follow, with him on top and in control of everything. Tom comes in, and Dumbledore molded him into the new Dark Lord for her and Harry to defeat so he, later on, could take the credit for it after Voldemort's death. But of course, Dumbledore didn't count his demise during her and Harry's sixth year.
Power. It was always about power.
Maybe that's where they went wrong. The soul bonds were made to have each individual treat each other as equals, balancing each other out.
Damn, Blaise was right. Again.
If she wasn't careful, he'd be like another Hermione. He had her going to the library often enough.
"So Dumbledore's a poofter." Alex couldn't help but quip snidely, seeing as no one would talk, "Somehow, that doesn't surprise me."
That seemed to break the ice, because Tom chuckled, followed by the rest of the group minus Rookwood. He didn't appear the least bit convinced.
"Dumbledore? Involved with someone like Grindlewald?" Rookwood scoffed, "What have you been smoking, DeAngelo?"
"It's true!" Blaise argued. "Not many know, but Dumbledore is partly the reason this thing with Grindlewald started." Alex bit her lip to to keep herself from scoffing. Partly? Try entirely his fault. "Even blokes like Grindlewald just don't turn evil overnight. Something drove him 'round the twist."
"Oh? Like what?" inquired Mulciber, his tone condescending, "A broken heart?
"Close. Try a broken soul bond."
Alex felt her blood run cold, the boys' remarks drowning out as her heartbeat pounded loudly in her ears. Why? Why did he have to bring that up? Tom wasn't supposed to know about the soul bonds! Risking a glimpse at her aformentioned brother, she saw him stare at Blaise with renewed curiosity, obviously interested in what the Italian had to say. No doubt he would try to research more about it on a later date.
She was going to kill Blaise, slowly and painfully.
"Soul bond, you say?" asked Tom, clasping his hands on the table, "Explain, DeAngelo."
Blaise paid no mind to Alex's scathing glance at he responded. In his mind, she needed the push to establish the soul bond; if she won't, then might as well encourage Riddle to do something about it, "A soul bond is a bond between two people, purposely chosen by fate to keep the balance between light and dark; good and evil — or something of the sort. Usually, only one soul bond exists every generation." he explained, carefully gauging their expressions. Alex, as expected, was livid; though her face remained impassive, he could practically see the fire in her eyes, as well as the fear. The rest were fairly contemplative, letting the new information sink in. And Tom... the emotions in his forest eyes ranged from calculating, to hopeful, to frustration. "Breaking a soul bond, would be like ripping apart half of your magic — your very being, and well... you can't be completely sane if that happened, now would you?"
Later that night, Alex's nerves had somewhat calmed. She laid on one of the couches, her head rested on Tom's lap, her eyes shut peacefully as Tom combed his fingers through her hair. Blaise and the rest of the Knights surrounded them, chattering quietly about — thankfully — other topics that didn't relate to dark magic or Dumbledore.
She hadn't realized she had dozed off, until —
"You bloody idiot, you woke her up!" she heard someone, probably Abraxas, exclaim as she stirred awake.
"That was the point, you wanker." the offender retaliated, and Alex opened her bleary eyes to glare at them all.
"Well then, you better have a good reason for waking me up, or I'll toss you into the Black Lake and feed you to the giant squid." she growled. Honestly, she wasn't really that angry at being woken up, but she could have done without all the yelling.
Hearing Tom chuckle above her, she turned her half-lidded eyes to him. "Oh, so you think this is funny?" she teased him. Tom felt his loins stir at the sight of his sister laying on his lap, her heavy eyes staring up at him, and her lips curled into a half smirk, but desperately pushed down his arousal. The last thing he wanted was his member standing at attention while Alex was on his lap, and bound to notice something twitching underneath his pants.
Tom shrugged in faux nonchalance, before turning back to the foolish boy that had marched up to them, interrupting their conversation and waking Alex. Winky Crockett was a sixth year student, and didn't associate with many. "Did you need something, Crockett?" he asked politely, though his voice held a bit of an edge.
"The headmaster wished to see you, Miss Riddle." said Crockett, as Alex sat up and quirked an eyebrow expectantly, ignoring how everyone else seemed to tense around her.
"What for?"
"He didn't say." Either Crockett didn't notice the high-strung atmosphere, or he chose not to mind it as he turned and walked away, and throwing, "Password's Draconus, by the way." over his shoulder.
"Odd. Why would Dippet call for you now? It's nearly curfew." said Lestrange, and Alex shrugged.
"I suppose we'll find out." She rose, only for Tom to grasp her hand.
"Malfoy and I are going with you." he said, his tone leaving no room for argument "I have a bad feeling about this."
"You and me both." Alex remarked offhandedly.
Blaise stood, "I'm coming too. There's no way I'm letting you do this on your own."
Tom looked ready to protest, but the words died on his lips when Alex squeezed his hand in warning. He relented, his face clearly conveying his displeasure, much to Abraxas and Alex's amusement.
The four headed off to the Headmaster's office, anticipating the worst. Alex's mind was overdrive. Was it about the letter she sent to Gringgots? The chamber? Was she caught sneaking out the castle to attend the Knight's meetings? Her clammy hand gripped her wand tightly in the pocket of her robes on instinct.
"Draconus." Alex spoke to the gargoyle, and it slid aside to reveal the stairway tot the Headmaster's office. When the four had entered, Alex knew she was right to worry.
"Good evening, Miss Riddle." Dumbledore greeted her, and eyed the three boys with slight surprise, "I see you've brought company. No matter; we have important things to discuss, my girl."
In case any of you are wondering where I came up with the name 'Crockett', it was stated in the wiki that Winky Crockett was the original Slytherin Quidditch captain from years 1940 - 1944. I merely put Orion as captain in this story because I found it convenient.
Also, for those who have put what Blaise said together: yes, there's a possibility for both Alex and Tom to go mad if something happened to their bond. So not only will Alex have to look after Tom's well being, she needs to monitor her own as well. So be prepared to see more of Alex's dark side in future chapters.
Please review! It would make me really happy!
~Cassandra