Previously on 'The Redemption'... Cho wakes up with no memory of Christmas day and Tom Riddle manages to convince himself that what he did was for the best.

Chapter 22 - Consequences

"Miss Chang!"

Cho turned around, looking merely curious and only a hint wary as she took in the appearance of a boy she had seen Tom with on numerous occasions. With platinum blonde hair and striking silver eyes, he was undeniably a Malfoy… His name was Abraxas wasn't it?

"Hello Mr Malfoy" replied Cho cordially, "What can I do for you?"

Abraxas gave her a charming smile that reminded her distinctly of a snake before it ate its prey "Nothing. I just wanted you to know that I'm glad you made a quick recovery"

Nonplussed, but touched all the same, Cho gave him a polite smile. "Thank you"

Abraxas gave a small mock bow, his eyes glinting "Then I bid you farewell Miss Chang. It was lovely to meet you" and to her supreme amusement and shock, he took her limp hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it before striding away as though nothing had happened.

Dumfounded, Cho was about to continue to make her way to her common room when she bumped straight into a solid chest that smelled lightly of clean soap and distinctly of familiarity.

"Oh hello Tom" she said, backing up so that she could observe his face.

He held onto her shoulders to steady her, his eyes casting over at a point past her head, "What did Malfoy want?"

His hardening tone and suspicion caught Cho off guard considering she thought they were quite good friends, "Nothing" she replied honestly.

Tom searched her face, seeing no deceit but not believing "Are you sure? He didn't ask you anything?"

She laughed, hoping to dissolve the tension in his jaw but failing as he continued to look completely serious and almost angry, "Of course I'm sure Tom. He was quite pleasant actually"

A beat of silence passed before he said anything "Really?"

She smiled at his scepticism, grasping his hand and squeezing gently "Yes, for the millionth time"

Not quite cajoled by her teasing tone, Tom chose to file the incident away for another time to mull over while something else occurred to him. Turning to Cho, he raised his eyebrows "I thought you weren't to be released till tomorrow?"

She grinned, ducking her head slightly to avoid his probing eyes "I can be fairly convincing when I want to be"

The smallest of smirks twisted his lips "I bet you are Miss Chang"

"Abraxas. A word"

Abraxas turned at the voice, allowing the rest of his curious peers to file silently from the room before allowing the door to close with a light snap. He approached Tom, his silver eyes giving nothing away as he stood tersely before his master.

"It has come to my attention that you have disobeyed me Malfoy"

His voice was frigid, though Abraxas could not yet judge how furious he was with his back turned. The air seemed to crackle with a dark kind of energy, emanating from the man that stood before him. It seemed impossible that a boy just shy of age could hold so much power over others but there was something mesmerising about his persona and words, a bond that could not broken unless they chose death. His followers were all too aware of his capabilities and none were foolish enough to challenge them.

Choosing to be cautious, he chose to stay silent till Tom continued.

"Do you know what you've done wrong Abraxas?" asked Tom in deceptively soft tones.

"No my Lord" muttered Abraxas, his head bowed

Tom whirled around, his face carved from stone "Do you remember those ground rules I stated?"

"But I didn't harm her-"

"But did you not associate with her Malfoy? Did you not approach her while I explicitly told you not to?" spat Tom, the fire in his eyes startling Abraxas.

"But my Lord, I didn't-"

"Excuses" seethed Tom, disgust marring his tone as he looked upon Abraxas "It's always excuses". Withdrawing his wand from his pocket, a chilling smile dawned on his face as Abraxas begged for mercy that he knew wasn't going to be granted.

"Crucio"

The news of Abraxas Malfoy spread like wildfire the next morning and inevitably to the Ravenclaw table. While few people truly cared for the boy, all were extremely intrigued in the story of his semi-demise that landed him a spot in the emergency ward in St Mungo's. It was rumoured that he had fallen victim to a dark curse, a curse so terrible that not even Madam Reed or the professors could alleviate it. Details were not given though the student's overactive imaginations compensated for it.

Cho however felt sympathy for the boy who seemed quite kind to her yesterday. She had no doubt that he must have had another agenda in there somewhere (He was a Malfoy after all) but he had never done anything to her to warrant her immediate dislike. For all she knew, she could be completely different to the arrogant and annoying Draco back in her time. Talking about Draco, what did happen to him…?

A sharp pain erupted in her head, making her eyes blur and her vision spin as she struggled against the brief spasm. Since she had come out of the Hospital Wing, she had been experiencing sharp pains that usually only lasted a few seconds. The seemingly random flashes of pain was enough to paralyse, causing her to violently drop whatever she was holding or doing.

"Are you okay Cho? You look a little peaky" asked Arlene, sliding over a glass of water which Cho took gratefully "It's those headaches again isn't it?"

Cho grimaced, the iciness of the water clearing her head "I wouldn't call them headaches…"

Arlene gave her friend a serious look "You should go and see Madam Reed. Maybe it's just an after effect of your spiel in the bathroom"

Cho shrugged it off, not wanting to set foot in that Hospital Wing again in case the matron decided to permanently imprison her, "I'll be fine"

"Arlene's quite right Cho, I won't have time to watch you as well as the quaffle at the next match" commented Henry dryly, sliding onto the seat next to Cho before grabbing a shiny red apple.

"You don't need to Henry" said Cho in clipped tones "I promise you both I'll be fine"

Arlene held her hands up in mock surrender "You can count on me to say 'I tell you so' later"

"I'll be looking forward to it" smiled Cho, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere to be"

Henry and Arlene exchanged a meaningful look though they said nothing on the matter, just bidding her goodbye before Cho scampered away lest they say anything more about her headaches.

As planned, Tom was waiting outside the doors of the Great Hall, his hands held behind his back as he stared at the golden plaque of a rather ugly statue. His head swivelled in her direction as he heard her approach, a tight smile on his face.

"Hello" he said quietly, the smile dissolving into a more natural one which Cho returned easily "Did you sleep well last night?"

In truth she woke up several times with head splitting aches and strange dreams but the lie slipped out easily enough. "Much better than at the Hospital Wing"

He studied her face for a moment, noting the circles under her eyes and the slight sallowness of her skin "Perhaps you should get a sleeping draught from Madam Reed"

Cho agreed to placate Tom but quickly changed the subject "So what warrants our meeting today?"

"Can't I ask you see you outside of study sessions or class?" asked Tom, a slight teasing note entering his tone which Cho wasn't accustomed to.

She grinned up at him, taking his hand in hers and walking towards the entrance of the castle "You can, but I'm still getting used to it"

He gave her a small smile in return, steering them towards the Hogwarts grounds where snow was beginning to melt. Several times, Cho cast a drying spell over her and Tom to keep the cold out of their shoes and robes. When they had almost reached the Herbology greenhouses, Cho tugged him to a stop. Dropping his hand, she disappeared behind one of the creature enclosures and pulled up a box about the size of shoebox.

At his inquisitive glance, she tucked a piece of loose hair behind her ear and adjusted the box between her hands "It was your Christmas present but I didn't quite get around to giving it to you and I've only just remembered it was here" she explained "I was going to lead you on a super fun treasure hunt where it would lead here but instead I had to get Arlene to take care of it for me while I was in the hospital wing"

Tom ignored the dreaded mention of Christmas, instead responding in what he hoped what a light tone "A super fun treasure hunt?"

He raised his eyebrows incredulously, causing Cho to colour pink. Hiding her embarrassment, she carefully put the light box into Tom's arms "Open it then, you prat"

Tom let the insult pass since it sounded much more like an endearment. Prying open the top of the lid, he was completely surprised to find a small green snake comfortably nestled in its little mock grassy environment. It opened its eyes blearily, noticing Tom and hissing in what could only be described as an officious manner.

"What is your name young master?"

Deciding that perhaps it wasn't the best time to start conversing with snakes in front of Cho, he put the lid back on and faced Cho who looked so nervous she was avoiding his gaze altogether.

"Do you like it?"

He smiled, a real genuine smile that felt so strange he quickly tampered it down "I like it Cho. Thank you"

At the sincerity in his voice, she looked up "Really? I don't think you have any pets and you look like the kind of person who would like a pet snake and I'm not just saying that because you're Slytherin-"

"I love it Cho, Really" interrupted Tom, ceasing her rambling with an affectionate squeeze of her hand. He had always liked the low maintenance nature of snakes and Cho was quite correct in her assessment of him. He didn't own any pets and had never thought of it but a snake would suit his personality perfectly.

"I think I'll name her Nagini, after a female snake goddess" he added absently, peering through the breathing holes that smattered the lid.

An odd expression came across her face, her brows knitted in confusion. Where had she heard that name before? She swore she had heard it before… a long time ago, from Harry Potter during one of their Dumbledore's Army meetings? The more she thought about it, the fuzzier the image got and soon her head was wracked with pains so sharp it felt like knives were being driven repeatedly into her skull.

"Cho? Cho? Are you alright?"

The familiar voice anchored her back to the present, slowly alleviating the pain. She rubbed her temples and blinked a few times before looking into Tom's uneasy eyes.

"I'm fine. Just a few headaches that's all" she explained weakly.

He studied her carefully, his expression guarded though he said nothing else on the matter.

"Come on, let's go back inside – class is going to start soon"

Excusing his odd and cold behaviour, Cho followed him back to the castle while steadfastly ignoring the alarming nature and intensity of her headaches.

What was wrong with her?

A/N: Uh oh, it's only a matter of time now... ;)