...Basilisk...
I lay my head in Keres' lap and she strokes my hair. "Did you finish all your scenes already?" she asks reading over her script. I nod and she taps my cheek. I sit up and pout. "When's Alana getting back from Spain?" she wonders getting up to get her water. "A week. Jesse's supposed to be on the same flight." I add the last part looking at her to gauge her reaction. The air around them has been awkward for some time now and everyone's beginning to notice.
She chokes on her water and I smirk. "Are you two closer than I think?" I wink. "I don't know what's going on in your head but shut it. Who taught you this bad behavior? I'm going to kick them." she mumbles. I get to my feet and change out of the photo shoot clothes. "Not telling. I was just wondering if you two were dating yet." I shrug and begin to hum a little ditty. "ME? Dating that date? Fat chance! He just likes being surrounded pretty girls. You should've seen him! He asked me out to dinner then spent the next week ignoring me and talking to his little fans!" she pouts flopping back on the couch.
"Ah, I saw that in the magazine. Everyone's talking about you two. It's extremely awkward. Haven't you two noticed?" I ask sending her a worried glance. She drops her water. "What do you mean everyone knows?!" she gasps. I pull a gossip magazine from my bag and flip to the article. "Everyone knows. Wizarding world and muggle. Congratulations!" I smirk handing it over.
Her jaw drops as she reads and I have to close it several times. Ms. Jones walks in with a man I nearly mistake for Mr. Wilson. They're damn near identical except this new man has teal eyes and is possibly four or five years younger. "Girls, this is Levi. He's Adam's younger brother and will be your PR consultant and newest manager. He came all the way from Japan to help." she waves the man forward. I smile and nod politely but Keres is still gaping at the article. "You girls are getting older, dating, and that may not attract the right attention." she continues but then Keres screams.
"Ms. Mulciber! We've all seen it, keep your voice down!" Ms. Jones huffs as Keres tries to show her the article. Levi gets her some tea and sits her down. "AS I was saying it might attract the wrong kind of attention so do be careful from now on!" Ms. Jones gives Keres a disapproving look. I sip my water carefully trying not to laugh. "You too Ms. Riddle. You may not have noticed but you've been receiving a fair amount of attention too. I want you two to promise me you'll be much more careful." she looks at us with the kind of worry a mother might have. I nod and Keres follows suit.
We wait patiently at the airport for Alana and Jesse to arrive. I read a book of poems while Keres sketches some designs in her notebook. We're supposed to go to lunch before rehearsals and it's getting dangerously close to 10 in the morning. We hear a familiar squeal and our heads snap up. Alana is running towards us after dumping her bags on Jesse. We meet her halfway in a giggly three-person hug.
We make our way to the exit Jesse carrying all the luggage as we talk about Spain. Jesse stacks the luggage as we pile into the backseat. Jesse climbs into the front with Ms. Jones who explains about Levi. Then she shoots him a meaningful warning look. We giggle quietly and avoid Ms. Jones eyes.
We dine at a three-star Michelin restaurant before going to our rehearsal. We're starring in a musical and we have to get there for dress rehearsals and the final fitting. I opt for a light but filling meal and listen to the others teasing each other.
I keep especially quiet as we walk into the theater. I walk purposefully straight to the girls' changing room for a final sizing. I change into the simple slip dress for sizing and slip my robe on for extra comfort. I wait patiently talking and gossiping with the others as we're sized one by one by the costume designer.
I walk forward when my name is called and slip my robe off. A few of the girls let out wolf whistles when I do making me blush. I raise my arms so she can measure me and she raises an eyebrow. "Your bust has grown considerably!" she smiles. I clear my throat and look away as my blush darkens. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. You've got the perfect hourglass figure." she laughs as she continues measuring.
I hurriedly put my robe back on as I walk to the girls who've already been measured. I take several gulps of water trying to calm myself. I wait while the rest of the girls are measured then we go out for rehearsals in our altered costumes. Rehearsals goes so smoothly we're released hours early and opt for going out to dinner.
On opening night, I pace back in forth in the dressing room nervously. "Aniela?" Tom asks. I run to the door and fling it open. "Nervous?" he chuckles as I jump into his arms. I nod trying not to cry. "Do you remember the breathing exercises I taught you?" he asks leading me back inside and to my chair. I nod biting my lip. "You've got this. I may not be in the front row but I'll be watching you all the same." he smiles ruffling my hair.
I allow Alana to tighten the corset of my dress while Keres takes the curlers out of my hair. My hair falls just past my waist now and brush it into a high ponytail. The curls fall neatly down my back and I slip into the shoes set out for me. I give my face a light dusting with the glitter making myself look more like the fairy I'm supposed to be portraying as an older girl fastens on the delicate yet intricate wings. I hurry to the stage and get into place taking a deep calming breath as the curtain rises.
I accept bouquet after bouquet after the show. I spot Tom and his friends and flit over and hug him. "You were great up there!" he smiles. "Was I really?! I thought for sure I messed up a little bit." I bite my lip. "You were amazing as always!" Tom chuckles poking my cheek. "Where's Alana?" Rosier asks. I point to the group of girls nearly buried in bouquets. "Why did you come over here instead of waiting over there?" Tom asks. "They've been teasing me." I pout hiding behind him.
They lead me back over to the girls. "Evan? When did you get here?" Alana jumps to her feet. "Same time as Tom or did you forget we all went on a hiking trip together." he scoffs. I tilt my head in confusion. Tom pokes my side as if to say he'll explain later. "What's wrong Avery?" Evan asks. "The number of guys staring at you girls for all the wrong reasons is unnerving." he mutters. Tom follows Avery's eyes and frowns. "Is there something wrong with your eyes?" Tom asks a boy around my age who's staring at my chest.
Tom steps into his line of sight with a polite but menacing smile. "Do you need something or do you want me to fix your eyes?" Tom growls quietly so as not to attract unwanted attention. The boy jumps, shakes his head, and takes off. I tilt my head in confusion as Tom turns back around. He tilts his head too. "The sense of dread and danger is gone." I mumble to no one in particular.
"Why were you guys' teasing Aniela earlier?" Tom chuckles at someone. I snap back to reality. "Ah, that. The costume designer the other day. 'Your bust has grown considerably! You've got the perfect hourglass figure.' Then Aniela blushed so badly you could've seen it on the moon." Keres smirks and she and Alana look at my chest while pretending to draw an hourglass figure in the air. I take Tom's jacket and wrap myself in it then hide behind him as my blush returns full force.
Everyone laughs as I hide my burning face in Tom's back. "Are you going to hide there forever or did you want to change and go to dinner?" Tom hisses quietly. I take off for the dressing room and change into to my most comfortable body hiding clothes. I skip back out feeling much more comfortable and hand Tom his jacket back.
He frowns taking in my clothing. "Your shyness is bleeding vibrantly into every facet of your life." he teases. I smack his arm and he laughs. "Come on, you must be hungry after that nervous fit earlier." he smiles as I nod excitedly at the thought of food.
Tom carries me up to my room as I doze in and out of consciousness. "Are you happy now?" he asks putting me on my bed. I nod sleepily. "I feel much safer now." I mumble. Tom tucks me in and kisses the top of my head. I smile and pat his head before falling into a deep sleep.
I wake to find that it's midday. I jump out of bed, wash up, and get dressed. I knock on Tom's door an hour later. "Come in." he hisses quietly. I walk in and close the door behind me. He's at his desk working on a charms paper and I sit on the empty space next to him. "Are you going to explain?" I hiss. "I got you some food from your favorite sandwich shoppe. Eat first." he nods at his bed. I pick up the food examining and smelling the sandwich first.
The delicious smell wakes me up faster than hot tea. A glorious turkey breast sandwich with lettuce and onions with a spicy mayo and banana peppers, a chicken Caesar salad packed to the brim, a small pasta salad, a small potato salad, macaroni and cheese, chips, fried pickles, and a summer fruit tea. I start to dig in doing a little happy dance.
"I didn't get a chance to tell you because you were so very busy but I've been looking into our family lineage. The guys were merely helping me track our uncle down after his release from Azkaban, I was wrong Aniela. Our father was not a wizard. Our mother was a witch and our father left her." Tom sighs. I hold out a chip and he opens his mouth. I toss it in.
There's a knock on the door and I jump. "You have visitor Tom!" Mrs. Cole calls. "Did you do something again?" I ask worriedly. Tom gets up with a laugh and ruffles my hair. He opens the door revealing Avery. I nod and turn back to my food. "Wow, so this is what it feels like to be dismissed." Avery sighs. I continue eating ignoring him. Tom pulls him into the room and nods politely to Mrs. Cole before closing the door.
He hands Avery a bag of food and sits back down at the desk. They begin talking but I'm too wrapped up in my food to notice. I put the trash in the bag and curl up on Tom's bed. They're talking about the musical and I tune in. "So, you found him. That's good. He left before explaining himself. I was so worried." Tom sighs. "Who?" I ask sitting up. "The guy who was staring at you last night." Avery shrugs.
I lie back down with a shiver. "The creeps guy." I mumble to myself. I hear Avery chuckle and roll onto my side. "Are you going to fall asleep?" Tom asks. I shake my head. "I'm just killing time until tonight. I have another performance." I murmur. I close my eyes and begin to run over my lines and the songs while they talk.
"Oh, Aniela, who was the new guy backstage?" Tom asks. I sit up with a confused pout. He smiles apologetically. "What new guy?" I huff. "The one who looks like Mr. Wilson." Tom chuckles. "That's Mr. Wilson's younger brother, Levi. He's our new manager and PR consultant." I look out the window. "PR consultant?" Avery mumbles.
"Yes, it's been a bit of a mess since Keres and Jesse went on that date. So, Mr. Wilson hired his brother to help. He came to help all the way from Japan. He's really nice too." I smile and lie back down. "Are they dating and that's why he's helping?" Tom asks. I shake my head. "They went on one date and then he was spotted on numerous dates. Ms. Jones says we're all getting older so it's normal for us to go on dates, but the air around Keres and Jesse has been so awkward and uncomfortable that even the staff at shoots and such have noticed." I murmur.
"You wouldn't happen to be dating anyone would you Aniela? You sound extremely fond of Levi." Tom wonders with a hint of protectiveness in his tone. "No, I'm not dating anyone. Besides, I think Levi is sweet on Ms. Williams." I whisper. "You don't fancy anyone?" Tom asks still suspicious. "I'm too busy living my best life to fancy anyone." I giggle at him.
I hear him mumbling and Avery laughs. "Give it ten years and then I'll reconsider but for now I'm perfectly content with my life.", I smile then frown, "Are you trying to get rid of me?!" "I'm not, I'm merely curious!" Tom chuckles. "You're so mean! You want to get rid of me and pawn me off on someone else!" I sigh dramatically.
We spend the rest of the afternoon joking around. The rest of the shows go well and the reviews are excellent. I follow close behind Tom as he leads me through the station. I wore the least attention drawing clothes I have but people are still staring at me. I hide my face in his back and he chuckles. "Still so shy. You're starting your third year you can't hide behind me forever." Tom sighs pulling me around. I whine in complaint but he refuses to let me hide behind him anymore.
I'm seriously pouting by the time we make it onto the platform. Keres and Macy wave at me but freeze when they see the expression on my face. I hurry onto the train with them ignoring Tom's teasing smirk. I fling myself into the first empty compartment and lie down dramatically on the seat my hand over my face. "Oh, woe is me!" I wail.
They shake their heads and walk in to put their things away. "Tom is right you know. You're too shy sometimes." Keres pinches my cheek. I yank away and pretend to bite her hand. "You're too much. I think that's why we get along so well. We're on to opposite ends of the spectrum." I huff. Keres giggles uncontrollably at this.
I don't each much at dinner. I keep my head down and read a book of Italian poetry. Tom nudges me and I glare at him. "Wow, a new attitude and feature has been unlocked!" Theodore, Macy's brother, gasps. Tom shoots him a look that says he's being unhelpful. I turn back to my book eating bits of cake while I read. Tom snatches my book and I whine trying to get it back.
It doesn't work. He's two heads taller than me with longer arms too. "You should eat Aniela." he frowns at me. I push my plate away defiantly. "I'm done eating give me my book back." I demand. He raises a questioning eyebrow at my tone. I hold my hand out and stare at my book. "No." Tom states flatly. I growl quietly and punch his side. When he doubles over in pain, I snatch my book back.
"That was not nice!" Tom growls in my ear as we walk down to the dungeons. I shrug and freeze. I lean closer to the wall. Luckily everyone else had gone ahead already while Tom scolded me. I tug on Tom's sleeve and he walks over. There's a definite hissing sound. "Who's there?!" Tom hisses. The hissing in the wall stops as if surprised. "What was that?" I hiss. Tom ignores me still focused on the wall, listening intently. "Corvinus?" the earlier voice hisses.
Tom and I spend the next few weeks researching and trying to find the source of the voice in the walls. It's a late Saturday afternoon in October when I find a clue. I nudge Tom with my elbow. "Corvinus Gaunt." I whisper holding the book out to him. "Nice work." Tom smiles. "Nice enough that you'll let me go to Hogsmeade?" I ask hopefully. Tom sighs and nods reluctantly. I do a little happy dance before going back to my research.
I skip down the path to Hogsmeade arm in arm with Alana and Keres as Macy and Phoebe spin around ahead of us. Giggling we stumble into the joke shop and begin to look around. I'm perusing the shelves when I feel chills. I look around but don't see anyone that could make me feel worry. I shrug and take the products I want to the counter.
We hit up the sweets shop next and then go for butterbeers. By the time we make it up to the castle we're giddy from the day's events. Macy waves when she sees her brother but pauses and tilts her head in confusion. Tom, Avery, Mulciber, Nott, Lestrange, and Rosier are all standing around a vaguely familiar boy and they do not look like they want to be disturbed. "Isn't that the boy from the opening night?" Alana asks. Keres nods and I take another look.
"Tom's been looking for him. Said he thought he might've been a little bit harsh and wanted to apologize." I lie easily and guide them to the dungeons. I'm sleepy by dinner and put my head on Tom's shoulder as I eat. "Had a fun day?" he whispers. I nod and realize I'm fighting to keep my eyes open. "I had a lot of fun today." I mumble.
When I open my eyes, I'm in my bed. I sit upright and look at my clock. It's just 5 in the morning. I groan and go take an early morning bath. I go to the sink to wash my face and pause after splashing some water onto it. The taps are moving. I jump back in shock and then race down to the dungeons. I run into Tom who's just getting up. "Where's the fire?" he teases. I hold up a finger and race to put my things away. I return properly dressed my hair tied back.
"What's wrong Aniela?" Tom asks sounding worried now. I grab his hand and we race along the deserted corridors. "Aniela, this is a girls' bathroom!" Tom gasps when I try to pull him inside. I yank him inside. "No one's going to be in here for another three hours. Now come on! The taps. They move. I swear it." I murmur pushing him towards the sink.
He examines the taps. I run my fingers over the ornate details. "OPEN!" I hiss at the moving snakes. There's a loud clang in the empty bathroom and a sound like old gears moving after a long time of being unused. Tom stares in mute fascination as the sink slowly opens showing an opening. I nudge Tom. He nods towards the opening and waves for me to follow as he descends. I slide after him and he catches me at the bottom.
It's dark and damp and we slid for what felt like hours. I follow close behind him as we trek through the dark tunnels. I feel my hands brush something scaly in the darkness and swear under my breath. "Language!" Tom chuckles as he walks over to me. I push him gently in the direction of the thing that made me swear.
"Snake skin. I have a few ideas of what might be down here. It's quite a big snake. Are you going to go hide now?" he asks teasing and testing me. "Basilisk." I hiss touching the snake skin once more before continuing. Tom follows me chuckling. The hissing returns and we turn to each other and smile.
After a few more minutes of walking, we come to a door that is ornately decorated with two intertwined snakes. "OPEN!" Tom hisses. The door creaks and groans just like the sink did. Tom walks in first and I follow looking at the floor. I hear something slithering through the pipes. "Who's there?" Tom hisses. "I should be asking you that! You're not Corvinus but you slightly smell like him. There's a girl with you. She smells tasty too." the voice hisses.
"Stay right here Aniela." Tom orders. I nod and hear him walk away. Something slithers by me and I straighten still looking at the floor I hiss "Don't you dare even think about it." The Basilisk goes on its way after Tom. I look up watching the creature make its way towards Tom. "Gorgeous!" I hiss. Tom smiles. I turn to the camera as if peering through to the readers. "Tut. Tut. Tut. Do you really think we're going to let you see how we tame a Basilisk and control it? No way, turn around. Go get something to eat or something. Come back in 30 minutes." I huff turning the cameras away.
Tom and I stumble tiredly back to the common room after stopping by the kitchens for food and drink. I flop onto the first empty couch I stumble into. "Are you two, ok?" Avery yawns coming down from the boys' dorm. Tom nods tiredly and taps my shoulder. "Time for bed Aniela." he whispers lifting me up. I put my head on his shoulder giving him a tired hug before heading up to bed.
Phoebe and Macy try to wake me in the morning but I don't budge until the next day. I nibble on toast as I try to make up my missed schoolwork. I'm making good time until I get to my transfigurations paper. I pout and put my head on the table. Then an idea hits me. I turn to Avery who just sat down and smile at him. "No." he states firmly.
"Aww, I didn't even say anything!" I whine. "No, every time you get stuck on transfiguration paper you turn to me for help. I'm not helping you anymore." he mutters. Pouting I tug on his sleeve and stare at him with big puppy dog eyes. "Please! It's the last time I'll ask you for help with homework." I promise. "Deny her!" Tom chuckles sitting down.
"I did. She's exceptionally stubborn today." Avery scoffs. "Are you saying no because you have a date and you'd rather not or are you saying no because you find me annoying?" I ask. The conversations arounds us come to a screeching halt and even Tom leans forward eager to hear Avery's response. I know that I just asked him a double-edged knife of a question but I'm slightly irritated now.
He merely laughs and ruffles my hair. "Neither, you've been asking for help for three straight years now and you spend 98% of the time teasing me instead of working. So, no, I'm not going to help you." he smirks. I frown and sniffle. "You're so mean!" I huff taking the knife in his hands and slamming it down mere millimeters from his fingers. I yank it out and place it safely in his hands going back to my own breakfast.
"What the hell was that?!" Avery chokes out. "Ah, Aniela's anger. Oh, don't worry! It rarely comes out. No, I'm not going to help you get out of what she has in store for you. You could have just offered to help her with a few reference books you know." Tom chuckles highly amused. Ailia swoops down with several owls with a box for me and I squeal happily. I give them all treats and they fly away happily to the Owlry to rest.
I open the box taking out a prettily wrapped gift. I hop up and hand it to Macy. "Happy early birthday girlie!" I smile and hug her. "You didn't!" she gasps. "Oh, I did." I giggle. She tears into the package wrapping flying everywhere. I cover her mouth before she can shriek earning a thankful look from our roommates. Then she starts crying. "Oh, oh no. Not that. Anything but the waterworks!" Phoebe sniffles.
"You really got it for her." Alana laughs and shakes her head. "I do believe the words you are looking for would be: Thank you Keres and Aniela! Thank you so very much for your support!" I hug Macy. Keres laughs but gets up to hug Macy who's literally bawling uncontrollably. "Geez, what did they get you that has you bawling like a baby?" her brother Theodore scoffs. Macy begins to pull the things out of the box.
Colored pencils, markers, pencils, and various other necessary fashion designing tools and things tumble out of the box. Tom chokes on his juice. "Macy is always sketching away on her notes and we just thought she'd like to have a place to put her sketches." Keres smiles wiping away Macy's tears. "You guys are spoiling her!" Theodore whines in complaint. "Oh, I nearly forgot." I gasp snapping my fingers.
I hurry back to the box and take my parcels out. "Help me!" I pout at Phoebe. She laughs as she gets to her feet. Together we pull a tub sized box from my box. "Ta-da!" I gasp breathlessly leaning on the box. Phoebe does tiny jazz hands before slipping to the floor. "Sewing kit, fabrics, and a sewing machine. Just tap the box with your wand and it'll follow you to the dorm." I pant dropping onto the floor beside Phoebe.
"Ah, I should tell Ms. Williams and Ms. Jones to do something about your lack of strength and stamina." Alana teases. I scoff "My lack of... my lack... I'll show you." I jump to my feet chasing her out of the hall and out onto the grounds. She turns around for a second and screams "Help me, Tom! Help me, Evan!" I swear under my breath and speed up tackling her into the lake. We emerge spluttering and gasping for air. It's ice cold and the winter air aren't helping.
Tom and Rosier lean on trees on the shore watching with disapproving faces. We splash onto the shore and Tom doubles over laughing. "It's-s-s-s-s no-n-no-not f-f-f-f-fun-n-n-y-y-y-y!" I pout my teeth chattering. Tom does a quick drying spell on us and leads us back up to the castle and straight to the Hospital Wing for a Pepperup Potion. "Oh, don't make that face Aniela. You shouldn't have tackled her into the lake in the winter." Tom scolds pinching my cheek.
I lay in front of the fire working on my transfigurations paper and sipping lemon and honey tea Tom got me before heading to the library. A pair of shoes stops near me and I sigh. "I could help you if you want." Avery mumbles just loud enough for me to hear. I stuff my things in my bag and drain the last of my tea.
I shove the empty cup in his hand and smile "Do be a dear and tell my brother I went to bed for the night." he nods sadly and I walk past him. Keres and Macy are watching from the top of the stairs. "You just might be right Macy. It does seem more like a lover's quarrel." Keres smirks. Rolling my eyes, I laugh and pass them too. Macy giggles and winks conspiratorially at Keres.
Tom walks in with the rest of his friends joking about something and before I can stop my friends Macy shouts "Hey, Avery! Do you like Aniela? Like romantically?" the entire room freezes and tom's smile fades so fast people actually begin to pack their things away and leave the common room. I grab Macy and Keres by their shirt collars and drag them to our dorm.
"Wow! Are you blushing Aniela?" Macy giggles. "Yeah, that was embarrassing! How could you ask something like that! Go out and apologize right now!" I order. They leave grumbling and I change for bed. I slip under my covers and braid my hair. I slap my sleep mask over my eyes and roll over.
In the morning I keep my head down and read my book of poems until Mr. Wilson's owl comes swooping down. It goes to Alana and Keres. "Are you not working this break?" Alana gasps. "No, there wasn't anything I was interested in so I'm taking the time to look into investing and Tom's going to help me." I reply lazily. Macy drops her cup and it crashes to the floor. "Merlin's beard! Do you two know how to take it easy? Just the other day you told me you were going to try and pick up a few languages!" Phoebe gasps.
"And I am. The best ways to pick up a new language in my opinion are music, food, culture, people, work, and money. I always feel bad when I go to other countries and they assign me a translator. Besides if someone is badmouthing me behind my back, I don't trust the translator to tell me the truth." I murmur. "Smart girl. You should learn new languages." Tom chuckles.
We wave from the courtyard as the others make their way down to the carriages. "How many times have you let the Basilisk out now?" I hiss quietly. "A few times. Really likes the fresh air." Tom smirks. I roll my eyes. "About what Macy shouted in the common room a while back. She came down and apologized for causing a disturbance. You wouldn't have anything to do with that would you?" he asks.
"I might have but only because it was highly embarrassing. I scolded her then went to sleep." I shrug. "Are you sure you two don't, aren't, you know..." he trails off. "I think he's gotten a bit used to me asking him for help. I give it a year maybe two tops. Be it a crush or something different he'll get over it. It's best that he gets over it." I sigh looking up at the sky. "If it is Avery or someone else in my circle that you end up with, I wouldn't necessarily mind all that much." he sighs. I giggle and pinch his cheek "I could say the same thing for you." We both double over with laughter as we head inside out of the cold.