The train back to Hogwarts could not come fast enough, living in the same house as Tom was killing me. I hated myself for being so weak.
I was his intellectual equal, I vowed to myself I would keep up our friendship for the sake of that. I wasn't going to sulk about what had happened over the holidays, I'm not a child, I reminded almost constantly.
"Poppy darling, are you playing exploding snap?" Abraxas asked, in the compartment on the train. I shook my head and continued to stare out of the window, watching rain soaked fields shoot past. Abraxas and Cedrella shared a look and a shrug.
The start of term feast was a drag, Lizzie kept sending me worried glances but I ignored them.
I left alone from the feast but before I made it to the Grand Staircase, someone had caught up with me. But it was no one that I was expecting.
"Liam?"
"How was your Christmas?" he asked. "I saw you at the party, but I didn't want to disturb you in front of everyone." I smiled.
"It was good, thank you," I said, ignoring the image of Tom that flashed through my mind. He was smiling, eyes lit up. I could almost smell cinnamon. "I got a lot of reading done. How was yours?"
"Good thank you, we went to Italy for Christmas, skiing," he explained. I smiled as if I was interested and walked up the staircase. About half way up, we stopped and sat, looking down over the moving staircases, it was quiet, everyone was still at the feast.
"How is your ankle?" he asked.
"Better," I said. "I start running again in the morning."
"I see," he said. "Poppy, I think we could be friends, publically I mean." I frowned.
"I thought we agreed it would be too dangerous."
"It's different than we imagined, people talk to people in different houses all the time," he said.
"What do you know about Charlus Potter?" I asked bluntly. "Are you friends with him?"
"Of sorts," he admitted. "He's friends with Septimus and Harfang, I fly around the lake with them sometimes."
"What does he say about Dorea in the common room?" I asked. "They have a marriage contract now, you know. He's going to propose to her."
"He's crazy about her," Liam said. "From what he says in the common room, I'd say he really loves her." I gave him a forced smile and thanked him for putting my mind at ease.
I got up earlier in the morning than the previous term, I would sit by the lake, legs crossed and clear my mind. A priestess had to seek enlightenment, and here at far side of the lake the wilderness encroached enough onto the grounds that I just could hear the old gods whispering.
But they murmured no answers.
Infuriating.
Then after each day getting the same results, I ran to the top of the hill closest to Hogwarts, the cold weather making the steep trail hard and unforgiving, and down again in time for breakfast. Abraxas could not run with me if I didn't run in his sight.
Raimond and I sat on his large bed, I was tossing him a fizzing whizbee for every goblin king he remembered in the right order.
"I've been thinking about something," he said abruptly. I put down the text book to give him my full attention.
"Go on," I prompted.
He looked away, as if embarrassed.
"I don't want to make anything weird Poppy," he said. "But I've been thinking about New Year and that kiss we shared."
He never was one to beat around the wiggenbush.
"I've thought about it too," I admitted. "It was… different."
He nodded.
"You felt it too?" he sighed in relief. "I thought I was going crazy."
"So it's not always like that… for you?" I asked tentatively. He raised an eyebrow and I laughed. "It's just… people say…" I trailed off. "You're descended from royalty you know!" He chuckled and shook his head.
"No," he said pointedly. "It's not usually like that."
"It was probably just… the alcohol or... something," I tried lamely. Raimond looked thoughtful.
"Poppy we both know it wasn't," he told me. I nodded. "Come here," he gestured. "Only one way to find out what this is." I lifted my eyebrows at him.
"Oh don't be a chicken," he scolded, lips upturning at the corners. "I promise not to try and go up your skirt," he added, wrinkling his nose at the thought, trying to annoy me.
My expression only got stonier.
"It's science. Kiss me you absolute pansy!"
I sighed in defeat, rolling my eyes. He grinned and leaned into me, as casually as you like.
And just like that I let him kiss me, his warm soft lips were just as skilful as the last time. When his tongue touched mine the world melted away and my head was emptied off all thoughts, just the thrum of contentment.
Eventually, I don't know how long it took, but he pulled away.
"This is bad," he murmured, his lips still a hairs width from mine. I looked into his eyes. He wasn't worried, more curious. "You know what this is, don't you?" he questioned.
I was silent. Of course I knew.
It couldn't be. It wasn't fair.
"You're the priestess here," he pointed out. "You know what this is just as much as I do." I opened my mouth to protest, but he cut me off.
"We're soul mates."
"But… but… I'm not… I don't…" I tried to formulate my words by they wouldn't come.
"You're not attracted to me," he said bluntly. "A foreign concept for me I know," he flashed a grin. "But I'm not the person who you dream of spending the rest of your life with. Serenity is not passion, and that's what one should feel in our situation."
The old religion states that sometimes, Fate makes people soul mates, people who are destined to be together for all eternity- the perfect match. And those people would make each other the perfect lover and they were destined to create children who would have significant roles in the way the future was shaped.
"I love you Poppy," Raimond stated, shrugging his shoulders. "I love you very much but you aren't the one I want to spend the rest of my life with either. No offence."
"It's our friendship," I said in a small voice, searching the corners of my mind for anything I had absorbed during my meditation. "Our friendship is what is significant, not love."
"What kind of deity makes a pair of soul mates who aren't made for love? That seems completely counterintuitive," he sighed, rubbing his temples. "It's official. We've been fucked over, by Fate."
January passed quickly, many evenings I would sit in the common room with Lizzie and Hazel, until we could sneak Elena and Cedrella in and we would laugh and talk about what pathetic attempt at seduction Elena had received that week, until Casper and Ignatius got annoyed and made us play games and talk about other things. Each week I flew with the Quidditch team, joined Dorea, Charlus and Liam in the library and made sure to finish at least two extra-curricular books each week. Sometimes Tom would ask me come to the Slytherin dorms, and I would and we would talk about current issues in magic and then I would leave, more often I would go to Raimond's dorm and we would discuss philosophy, meditation and politics. It made my chest hurt every time he spoke of how he was going to join the resistance movement when he left in July, Hogwarts seemed a much darker place without him.
It was the weekend before Valentine's day that I was dragged to Hogsmeade with Lizzie and Elena.
"You have to buy a dress," they goaded, pushing me from shop to shop.
"But I'm not going to this stupid ball," I tried to tell them. They wouldn't listen. "I don't even have a date!" Both of them stopped in their tracks, eyebrows furrowed.
"But girls ask boys this year," Lizzie pointed out.
"And I don't want to go with anyone," I said firmly.
"Don't be so ridiculous," Elena said firmly, linking our arms together. "I shall find you someone by this evening, now get your arse in that shop and find yourself something beautiful."
I did not find anything beautiful, I hated everything, which was testament to what a bad mood I was in. In the end, Elena got Cassie to lend me a red dress and told me she had someone lined up for me to go with, but it was a secret.
I would not even have gone to this stupid dance if Lizzie had not practically forced me into the dress herself.
"You can't stand him up Poppy," she scolded. "He's nice, and handsome too." I could have punched her, however much I loved her.
We went down to the Slytherin common room together, and I was at least thankful that Cassie had decorated tastefully. I accepted a cool flute of champagne and went over to Elena and Dorea.
"You look exquisite Poppy," Elena complimented giving her rare, bright smile and leaning forward to speak with me privately. "Your mystery man has not arrived yet."
"Fantastic," I sighed, my expression deadpan.
"Cheer up Poppy my darling," Dorea instructed, giving me an indulgent smile. It wasn't long before the portrait door opened again, I was surprised to see Charlus and Liam enter the dungeon.
"I thought Gryffindors were not invited," I whispered to Elena.
"Well, when one is intended for Dorea and the other is here as your date, we can hardly complain."
"Me?" I repeated, I sighed as the pair made a beeline for Dorea. Charlus kissed her on the cheek and took her arm.
"Poppy you know Liam," Elena said proudly. "He is your date for this evening."
Liam looked uncomfortable; I gave him an awkward smile.
"We just had to set you two up," Dorea laughed, sharing a smile with Charlus. "We were saying just the other day how adorable the pair of you would be."
I laughed uncomfortably and shared a look with Liam.
"Who is your date anyway Elena?" I asked the blonde, changing the subject.
"Alphard," she replied. "I don't know where he is, we agreed I could go with him so I wouldn't have to put up with anyone else." I nodded understandingly. Orion remembered none of the conversation about her we had on New Year.
Liam and I joined Raimond and Lizzie on the dance floor a few minutes later. Lizzie had been too nervous to ask anyone herself, so I had said I would speak with Raimond, I told her he would not mind at all to be going with her because we were such good friends… and the small fact that he yearned after her night and day, of course. I smiled as we passed them, they were absorbed in conversation.
"How did you get roped in this scheme?" I sighed as Liam and I danced.
"Charlus," he replied, rolling his eyes. "I didn't want to go with Walburga, she asked me. So I stupidly said I already had a date which left me in deep shit seeing as we were the only Gryffindors going. Charlus said he'd talk to Dorea and sort something out."
"I see," I said. "Well I didn't want to come, so Elena and Dorea found me someone suitably desperate." I smirked at him. "My friend Casper got bullied into going with Walburga instead."
"I pity him," he sighed, laughing a little. I laughed with him, but it died in my throat when I caught Tom's eye. I licked my lips suddenly they were very dry.
I turned my gaze back to Liam, forcing a smile.
I would not let Tom rule my mind.
"I didn't know you were dating Gryffindors now, it seems your taste has worsened," Tom said, locking me with a hard dark stare. I fumbled with the bottle in my hand. "Allow me," he said, taking it from my hand and pouring me a glass of wine.
"You are mistaken," I replied, accepting the glass with an easy smile. "I am not dating Mr Bones and as to my standards you must be referring to it in regards to Abraxas. I can't think of anyone else I have been involved with, who would warrant higher status than the heir to the Bones family." My words were acidic and well-aimed. His face hardened and jaw set.
Kick him where it hurts, right in the family.
I smirked wickedly when he did not reply and instead took a deep drink and looked darkly at the wall.
"If you will excuse me Mr Riddle," I said making to walk away. His hand was quicker than I could have guessed, and before I could pull away his fingers were clenched around my wrist, pulling me into him.
"You would do well to remember who you are dealing with, Miss Black," he said in a low, dangerous voice, right at my ear.
I wrenched my wrist from his grasp, my gaze disdainful as it met his.
"And you would do better, to remember that last name Mr Riddle."
(Poppy is actually starting to fight back are you happy now? Haha. I've written most the subsequent chapters from here, so I hope she gets back to being as acid tongued as you all desire quick enough. Because otherwise everyone is going to be really annoyed at me, but changing how fast that happens will mean rewriting the entire plot.
I got asked about the time frame. Obviously this is part 1, and despite it being only February, it only has a few chapters left. So I hope you're appreciating Cassie and Raimond still being at school! Part 1, 2 & 3, are 5th, 6th and 7th, years at Hogwarts. I've written part 1 obviously and most of part 2, and I think part 1 will be the longest. But part 4, which I have written a few chapters of already skips ahead to five years after part 3 leaves off, when Poppy and Tom are 24ish? I think. So yeah, do not fear. You will get to find out the fate of the wizarding world, I have many things planned.
Thanks )