AN: Hope you enjoy this update. Please review if you can!
The morning after the Halloween dance was a Saturday, so most students were taking the opportunity to sleep off the late night and alcohol. The Slytherin Common room was almost completely empty, with the exception of a handful of younger students, and Riddle, who was working on an essay for History of Magic.
The sound of a door closing caused Riddle to look up from his work. Katherine was coming down the stairs from the girls' dormitory. She wore the grey uniform V-neck sweater and black pleated skirt, but hadn't bothered with a white collared shirt, socks or robes. Her hair hung in messy curls, and some of her makeup from the night before was smudged under her eyes. Her bare feet made no noise as she crept down the stairs, looking around surreptitiously.
"Looking for something?" Riddle asked, leaning backwards in his chair. He was freshly showered with his hair perfectly coiffed.
Katherine jumped slightly as she noticed Riddle sitting at one of the study tables, but recovered quickly. "I was looking for a house elf. I thought one of them might be able to bring me a coffee and some food – I'm not really feeling like going down to breakfast."
Riddle smirked, clearly enjoying Katherine's hungover state. "I can get one for you." He stood up and walked towards the fireplace. Reaching upwards, he pulled a small lever on the side of the mantle.
Almost immediately, a house elf appeared in front of the fireplace, with a wrinkled orange tea towel wrapped around his waist. "How can I be helping you, Master Riddle?"
"Miss Morrigan would like breakfast brought up to her room. I know it's not usually allowed, but perhaps something can be arranged?" Riddle smiled ingratiatingly at the elf.
The house elf beamed broadly up at Riddle. "Of course, Sir. For you, that can be arranged!" Turning on the spot, the House Elf vanished with a sharp crack.
Katherine pushed a stray curl out of her face. "Thank you," she said with a smile.
Riddle opened his mouth to respond, but closed it again as he was distracted by a distraught figure running down the stairs from the boys dormitory. Eleonora Burke was sniffling loudly as she descended the stairs and crossed the Common Room, her dress from the dance twisted around her. "That can't be good," he muttered, furrowing his brows.
Katherine did not hear him, as she had already begun to walk across the room, intercepting Eleonora before she could reach the stairs to the girls' dormitory. "Are you alright?" she asked, grabbing Eleonora's arm gently.
Eleonora whimpered slightly, but didn't respond. A dark purple bruise was blossoming along her jawline.
Katherine sighed. "Dolohov?" she asked quietly. Eleonora nodded shakily, looking at the floor.
Katherine squared herself to face Eleonora and fixed her with an intent stare. "Listen to me, Eleonora. Whatever happened last night, you will be fine. You are a woman, and women are stronger than men. Men are metal; they seem strong and hard, but they bend easily when you apply a little heat and force. Women are diamonds. We may sparkle and look delicate, but we are stronger and sharper than almost anything. A man may try to crush us under his heel, but we will not break. Don't give him the satisfaction."
Eleonora nodded shakily, seeming to pull herself together. She started to turn towards the stairs, but Katherine stopped her.
"And Eleonora, the next time Dolohov, or anyone else, does something like this to you… Hit them with the worst curse you know, and then come tell me," said Katherine, her eyes glinting dangerously. "I'll handle it."
Eleonora's eyes were wide, but she looked more confident than she had a few moments before. "Thank you," she said, looking gratefully at Katherine, before darting up the stairs to her room.
Riddle shook his head dismissingly, crossing the common room to stand near Katherine. "You should give up these attempts to win loyalty from people," he said, smirking. "True power doesn't stem from gratitude or friendship; fear and ambition will win every time."
Katherine's lips flattened into a tight smile. "Not everything I do is about appearances, Riddle. Most things, maybe, but not everything."
Riddle cocked his head. "You're very good at what you do, Katarina, I'll give you that. But it will never be enough. No matter how much someone may profess to love you, they will betray you if pushed hard enough."
Katherine gave a tinkling laugh. "Spoken like a man who's never been in love. You underestimate its power over people."
"I really don't think I do," said Riddle condescendingly.
Raising an eyebrow, Katherine crossed her arms. "I'll prove it to you."
"And how do you plan to do that?" asked Riddle archly.
Katherine's mouth curled into a smile. "I'll make you a bet. Give me three weeks, and then send Orion Black to torture me. Tell him you need some sort of information; make something up, tell him whatever you want, but you can't mention the bet. If he does as you say, you win, and I'll leave you and your plans alone. If he refuses, I win."
Riddle looked suspicious. "And what do you want if you win?"
"I imagine you hold some sort of meetings with those involved in your plans. I'd like to attend them," said Katherine calmly. "Do we have a deal?"
Riddle looked at her like a tiger watching its prey. "You're going to lose."
"Do we have a deal?" repeated Katherine impatiently.
"Game on," said Riddle, sticking his hand out towards her.
Katherine shook his hand firmly. "Three weeks. I'd better not waste my time looking like this," she said, gesturing at her messy hair and smudged makeup. "Anyways, I probably have breakfast waiting for me upstairs by now." With a wink, Katherine turned and jogged up the stairs.
By lunchtime, most of the Slytherins had recovered enough from the previous evening's events to make it to the Great Hall. Katherine was back to looking like her usual made-up self, while the other Slytherins looked relatively normal, if a little tired. Eleonora Burke was absent from the table, which did not go unnoticed by Katherine.
The conversation was centered on the upcoming Quidditch match against Ravenclaw; the game would make-or-break the Slytherin team's chances at winning the Quidditch Cup.
Abraxas was leaning lazily back in his chair, rocking it on the two back feet. "It shouldn't be too much of a challenge. The Ravenclaw team is good this year, but we've got the better Seeker, and better brooms. We're pretty much guaranteed the win, as long as Orion doesn't fumble the quaffle every time it comes his way."
Orion shot Abraxas an annoyed look. "It wouldn't have been a problem last game if you could pass the quaffle properly for once instead of trying to do everything yourself."
Abraxas shrugged. "I'd pass to you if I thought you could do anything with the quaffle once you got it."
Orion opened his mouth, possibly to say something nasty, but Katherine interjected. "I don't know what you're talking about, Abraxas. I was at the last game, and as far as I'm concerned, Orion made the play of the game when he scored from halfway down the field. It was incredible."
"That was one play; hardly enough to win the game," said Abraxas sourly.
Katherine gave Orion an encouraging smile. "I thought it was really impressive."
"Thanks, Kat," said Orion, looking pleased as punch that she had noticed his best play.
Riddle watched the exchange quietly, noticing how Katherine had shifted her almost entirely to Orion, where previously she had divided it amongst the Slytherin boys. Her strategy was clear; whether it would work had yet to be determined.
"No problem," said Katherine, smiling warmly. "Maybe you could help me brush up on my Quidditch skills after breakfast?"
Orion perked up. "We could go right now, if you're finished, that is."
"Sure!" said Katherine, standing up from the table. "I'll see the rest of you at dinner tonight."
Katherine and Orion strode quickly away from the table, avoiding any chance of another classmate inviting him or herself along.
The next day classes resumed again. The first class of the day was Herbology, so the 6th year Slytherin and Hufflepuff students meandered their way through the cold early November air to the Greenhouses. Professor Diggle quickly gave them their assignment, which was to re-pot the Fanged Geraniums, before returning to his struggle to prune a large Venomous Tentacula.
The students wore heavy dragonhide gloves to prevent the poisonous fangs of the geraniums from piercing their skin, but still had other dangers to contend with. The fearsome flowers would spray venom whenever their roots were touched, which made transferring them to a new pot a significantly more difficult task.
Katherine stood at one of the long greenhouse benches, in between Orion and Abraxas, and across from Riddle. She had prepared her larger pot for the transfer, but had yet to begin extricating her Fanged Geranium from the dirt. Orion had already successfully transferred his, and was packing in additional soil to support the stem of the plant.
Katherine leaned towards him and whispered conspiratorially in his ear. "Don't tell anyone, but I'm absolutely rubbish at herbology. Do you think you could help me re-plant this? I'd be very grateful."
Orion nodded, and subtly reached his arm over towards Katherine's plant. She held the pot for him as he pulled the plant out of the smaller pot, and without touching the roots, deftly inserted it into the larger prepared plot.
"My hero!" said Katherine lightly.
Orion beamed back at her, clearly happy to be an expert at something. "It was nothing," he said modestly.
Katherine sent him a pointed look. "It was most definitely something," she said, smiling.
Again, Riddle observed the scene without interference, taking note of the exchange. He was interested to see what Katherine's strategy would be, although he was almost certain that it would not be enough to win their bet in the end.
Another several days passed in which Katherine went out of her way to spend time with Orion. She laughed at his jokes and made him laugh at some of her own; she asked for his help in some classes and helped him in return, and she complimented him when the appropriate moments arose.
Although they had already gotten along well, Katherine and Orion now seemed considerably closer. When she spoke with him, it now seemed different than when she spoke with Abraxas or Avery. Orion felt special, in a sense.
So when Katherine asked Orion to sneak out after curfew to watch a meteor shower, he agreed without hesitation. They met in the Slytherin Common Room at midnight, and snuck silently out the door. Hearts pounding with the excitement of the forbidden, the pair snuck through the dungeon, and climbed staircase after staircase until they reached the solitude of the astronomy tower.
"Thanks for doing this with me," said Katherine quietly, as they sat dangling their legs out a window. It was a clear night, and the dark sky sparkled with the light of thousands of stars.
"I'm happy to do it. It's helping to get my mind off of tomorrow," said Orion somberly.
Katherine quirked an eyebrow, turning her head to face him. "What's so terrible about tomorrow?"
"It's boggart day in DADA," he said, as if she should have known something so obvious.
Katherine nodded slowly. "Ah, yes. And are you worried about finding out what you fear, or about facing it?"
Orion sighed. "I know what my fear will be – not being able to do magic. I'll be a squib, and burnt off my family tree. The Black family doesn't take kindly to Muggles or squibs," he said bitterly.
Katherine furrowed her eyebrows. "Orion, surely you know that's ridiculous. You are so talented at magic; your family must be proud."
He turned to look at her, brown eyes wide and unblinking. "I've never done anything important. I've been mediocre at everything my entire life."
Katherine reached an arm around Orion, and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Orion, you shouldn't listen to your family, or anyone else who tells you that you don't have value. You are kind, and loyal, and brave. You stand by your friends through thick and thin. I would trust you with my life, and I don't say that lightly."
Orion's lips curved into a small, tentative smile. "You think so?" he asked.
"I do," said Katherine, quietly but firmly. The pair sat in silence for several minutes, watching the meteors light up the night's sky with their bright streaks. "Beautiful, isn't it?" asked Katherine.
Orion turned his gaze to her face. "Yes," he said, "it is."
The next morning passed in a blur, as all the 6th year students spoke frantically about the upcoming DADA class, in which each of them would face off against their fears as they dealt with a boggart. Although DADA didn't start until 9 am, a crowd of students had gathered outside the classroom by 8:30 am.
Some students were listing off potential fears that their boggart could imitate, while others paced nervously, bit their nails and avoided eye contact as best they could. When Professor Nortings appeared and opened the classroom door, a silence fell over the group as they filed in and took their seats.
Katherine sat in her usual seat at the front of the room, next to Riddle. As Professor Nortings fiddled with the wardrobe containing the Boggart at the front of the class, Riddle leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Pretend that you're ill."
"Excuse me?" asked Katherine, looking at Riddle as if he were crazy.
Riddle rolled his eyes impatiently. "Pretend to be sick, so I can take you to the hospital wing. I don't need all of these idiots knowing what I'm afraid of."
Katherine narrowed her eyes calculatingly. "If I do, will you tell me what your boggart would have been?"
Riddle sighed exasperatingly. "The whole point of this charade is to avoid showing people what my fear is," he said as if speaking to a particularly idiotic child.
Katherine sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. "Either you can tell me, or the whole class can find out in a few minutes."
Riddle glanced quickly around the room, looking more nervous than Katherine had ever seen him. "Fine. Just do it now."
Katherine shot him a satisfied smile. "Your wish is my command."
Turning to face the front of the room, she suddenly let out a gasp, and brought both her hands to her forehead. Several students turned to look at her, but Professor Nortings remained unaware.
With a quick twitch of her wand while her head remained down and hidden by her hair, Katherine cast an illusion charm. When she sat up, her skin appeared pale and clammy enough to cause Orion to ask her if she felt alright.
"I feel fine," said Katherine, purposefully adding a shaky quality to her voice. "Just a little light-headed." She placed a hand on her desk, and began to stand up, before collapsing back into her chair.
Orion stood up from his chair, while Riddle leaned over towards Katherine from his adjacent desk.
"Professor!" called Riddle. "Miss Morrigan appears quite unwell. I'd like to bring her to the hospital wing if that's alright with you."
Professor Nortings turned around and started at the sight of Katherine looking pale and shaken. "Yes, absolutely, Mr. Riddle. Please accompany her there immediately."
Riddle stood and took Katherine's arm, making a show of supporting most of her weight.
Orion looked concerned. "Maybe I should come with you, to make sure she's alright."
Riddle shot him a sharp look. "I'm Head Boy, Orion. This is my responsibility. Your responsibility is to stay in class and learn this important lesson from Professor Nortings."
With that, Riddle turned and walked out of the classroom, with Katherine leaning heavily on his shoulder.
As soon as the two of them had left the DADA classroom, Katherine stood up straight and removed the illusion she had cast. She was grinning broadly, having impressed even herself with her acting abilities.
Katherine gave a little bow towards Riddle, as if ending a performance. Riddle smiled despite himself, pleased that his idea to get out of DADA had worked so well.
"So Riddle," said Katherine. "Now's the time we find out if you are a man of your word. Will you tell me what your boggart would have been?"
Riddle frowned slightly. "Only if you tell me yours as well."
"That wasn't the deal," said Katherine, shaking her head disapprovingly at him. "But since I like you, I'll tell you anyways. You first, though."
Riddle ran his hand along the stone wall of the corridor as they walked to the hospital wing. "Death," he said simply, as nonchalant as possible.
"A reasonable fear, indeed," said Katherine, nodding. "Mine is in the same vein, I suppose. My boggart transforms into my corpse at my funeral, which is completely empty. No one comes."
Riddle looked questioningly at her. "That seems unlikely. I've rarely seen you without a flock of admirers nearby."
With a shrug, Katherine looked away. "Such admiration is fleeting. Even professed love fades faster than one would think. My own family forgot me almost immediately."
Riddle's eyes sparkled with curiosity. "I thought your family died, leaving you the sole survivor. How would they forget you?"
Katherine scoffed. "They forgot me long before they died."
Riddle's eyebrows furrowed as he tried to piece together the clues. "Were you living with your family when the fire happened?"
Katherine ignored the question. "My fear stems from wanting to be remembered in the long sense of the word; I want to be significant enough that there are whole chapters of books devoted to my accomplishments. In short, I desire greatness, and I fear mediocrity."
Riddle said nothing for a long moment, considering her words. They resonated with him, like a bell reverberating deep in his core. Finally, he spoke. "I'll come to your funeral. I'll remember."
Katherine smiled playfully at him. "Even if I win our bet? Will you still come then? You won't hate me?"
Riddle motioned forward, and the pair continued their walk. He replied with a smirk, and a voice dripping with arrogance. "I'll come even if I'm the one who killed you."
