A/N: I may start a HGSS or a HGRL after this one.

Darkness-Lightness - I'm starting to love Nagini too. She appears in this chapter.

rubyinnle

Rowen Lovecraft

Monnbeam

Hotkat144

-jellyacey- - For now, Malfoy has decided to lie low, and will continue to do so until I think of something. I mean, with Tom threatening to do something to him if he gets near Hermione, there's not much he can do... yet

CherryGrlZuli

f i r e f l y o f h e l l - yeah, Tom is slightly OOC, but I'll try and make it up to you guys.

deeps85

luv-icecream-hyper

killtheenviousmoon - Sadly, I won't have much time to update, due to coursework and various other evil bits of homework. But I'll try.

Olivia - I don't have much of a choice. If I kept the first chapter, and ended it with a happy ending with both of them surviving, the first wouldn't make sense. And I don't want to take it off. I could twist it so it could be a happy ending though... but that would make it weird.

nAuGHty NiKkI13

Chapter 14 - Oh How The Mighty Have Fallen

Lovingly, Tom remembered every moment after she cried. He felt like he understood her loss, and hugged her back, and attempted to comfort her. Her tears had dried and she had said, "Thank you."

Usually, 'thank you'-s to Tom were pretty shallow. After kissing some serious teacher-butt by helping them out, he would get a 'thank you', like protocol. After helping out with homework, people would say 'thanks', to make sure Tom would help them out again.

But the kind Ana had murmured that night was something much more. It was different – like she had meant every word of it, with her feelings backing it up.

"MASTER!"

Tom snapped out of reverie, and growled. "What?" Gabriel Nott looked like he was almost going to empty his bowels right then, with the fright in his face.

"We… were talking about initiating new members… And you seemed…"

Swearing on the inside, Tom decided to pay attention to the workings of his 'little study group'.

Ishmael Lestrange, Tom noted, a muscular yes-man in his group, seemed to be bursting with ideas. "How about Burke, my Lord? She's the most powerful all-round witch in the school?"

Malfoy, who was still peeved at having been stuck with Clarissa Putnam at the Halloween Ball, glowered at Lestrange.

"You think I haven't suggested that?!" he snarled, continuing, "I've tried everything apart from physical violence upon her herself!"

Lestrange bit back. "Well, why didn't you ask us to help?"

The two kept scowled at each other, but soon after, a younger member ran in. "Prince has finally woken up!"

Malfoy's in deep shite, once Prince tells. Along with Crabbe and Goyle. And Prince… Doesn't he…?

"If we want her in, we need to get to her before Prince can stop us," Tom boomed, finding the cold, calculative side of him had taken hold, "She must be heading for the Infirmary now."

Passing a mirror, he saw his reflection. Eyes, red. They looked pretty neat too.

---

The girls, being their gossipy little selves, were still talking about the 'mystery girl' who danced with Tom Riddle.

Hermione didn't care. As long as they don't know it's me.

She had been told that Adonis had woken up, but was still weak and needed to stay for a little longer. Nevertheless, she felt she needed to see them.

Running to the Infirmary, she found her way blocked, by a group of Slytherin boys led by Tom Riddle.

Tom Riddle, with crimson red eyes. Great.

"Get out of the way," she spoke, trying to withhold her temper.

"Now, now, Burke, we just wanted to waylay you to give you a proposal," spoke Malfoy, on Tom's right, hands in robe pocket. Hermione knew he was ready to grab his wand and Gabriel Nott too.

"We'd like you to join our secret society. As the first female to," spoke Nott sweetly.

Hermione already knew the answer. "No. Now, let me through," she snarled, gritting her teeth, and itching to blast them away.

Tom didn't want to say anything. It looked like she was going to explode, and yet Malfoy was signaling to him to deal a blow.

Ana… or the Slytherins?

He had spend the first few years gaining their respect, to get them to band together, to form his own Death Eaters. Yet, in front of him, was a rebel to his cause. A rebel he had only knew for a few months, and had felt something unexplainable towards.

His Death Eaters were tense. In Slytherin, you had to be in control to sway minds. You had to be in control to gain their respect.

Torn, Tom could hear the voice in his head musing.

Think of the greater good.

It was an ambiguous signal. But the logical side of him won over.

"Well," came Tom's voice, "I'm afraid we have a little problem." The tension in the Death Eaters dissipated. "We don't take 'no' for an answer that well…"

Hermione was angry and couldn't control it anymore. "I'm sorry, my Lord Voldemort," she spoke sarcastically, giving him a mock curtsey, "It's definitely my problem that I'm not joining your motley crew of Death Eaters."

The whole group seemed taken aback. Tom had been used to surprises, and thought nothing could have shocked him more than finding out she was heir to Slytherin, or when he found out he was a wizard.

"How.."

"Stay away from me, Riddle," she growled; and seizing the chance, she pushed through the crowd before anyone could stop her.

---

"So you rejected joining Tom's group?" asked Adonis weakly, still concerned, "What did he do?"

"Well, I called him 'Lord Voldemort' and his group of idiots 'Death Eaters', and they let me through," she recounted, still chuckling at their looks.

Adonis was shocked. "You've only been here for a few months, and you know the names already? It took me forever!"

Playfully, Hermione patted him on the head. "I have my ways, Adonis. Anyway, he's a prick." Adonis relaxed visibly.

"So how was the Ball?"

Sighing, she described the night, and how different he had been.

---

You screwed up big time, mister, hissed Nagini, slithering into the Head's Common Room.

Tom was sitting at the table, looking down, his arms cradling to his head. "I know, Nagini," he whispered, sitting up and looking at the snakeling.

Perhaps I made a big mistake, she hissed, perhaps I chose the wrong person. Perhaps Adonis Prince would be a better master for my mistress…

Electricity seemed to shoot through Tom. "No, not him… please tell me, what I can do? I know I screwed up big time, but how do I make it up to her?"

Nagini smiled inwardly. Oh how the mighty have fallen…