The Death of Ciara Avaran

Chapter 1
Fated Meeting

Tom Riddle sat in The Blue Note, the jazz club where he worked part-time, reading the last few chapters of his book for school. He was very glad to be graduating at the end of the year. He'd saved enough money to get a nice house somewhere, and even enough to get married. That would be nice... He always dreamed of having a home somewhere with a small, quiet family. Of course marriage usually requires falling in love, something he hadn't managed to do just yet. He was working on it, though.

Saturday nights were usually very crowded, even at this late hour of midnight. Unfortunately for this night, there was only one customer left, and after he'd cleaned out his last glass of gin, he departed. Tom would be stuck there another two hours all alone. Things would have been better if the 10:00-2:00 gig had shown up, but no.

He picked up a newspaper and checked the date. It read January 5, 1927. Great. A lot of good a newspaper from two months ago would do him.

He began flipping through it anyway as a last resort, when the door burst open and nine girls bustled in. Though they were all very beautiful, their odd clothing distracted him a bit.

Then one of them met his gaze. She surely was the most beautiful of all of them, probably of every female in the entire world. Her cheeks were pale, all of her features being like those of a delicate porcelain doll. Her eyes were a deep grey, and her long black hair shimmered in the dim light. But as soon as their eyes had met, she turned away as one of her friends called, Hey, Clio! Is this one of those Muggle jazz club kinda things?

The girl called Clio cleared her throat and tilted her head towards Tom. The friend sort of giggled and blushed as she scurried closer to Clio and whispered in her ear. Tom was still caught up in wondering what a Muggle was.

The next thing he realized was that the friend of Clio was advancing towards him. He would have preferred Clio herself, but ah well. This friend had some sort of instrument in her hand (which Tom couldn't remember seeing there before), as well as did most of the other girls. Except for Clio. The other girl stepped up to him and said, Hello, sir. I noticed there's not a band playing tonight, is there some sort of problem?

He grinned and answered, Yes, actually. The band didn't show up. Do you and your friends play?

Ha! Of course! We're not called The Muses for nothing!

Very cute.

Of course we are, but I know who you think is exceptionally cute. You've got your eye on Clio, don't you.

Is Clio her real name?

No. It's Ciara Avaran. And if you're thinking about something with her, forget it. You are far out of your league.

Tell her... that my name is Tom Riddle....

The friend sighed exasperated. You won't listen, will you? Ugh! Whatever. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Are you going to play or not?

Of course we will! You'll like it a lot. Clio's our singer.

I'm sure I will. So are you going to start any time soon?

Come on, girls! Let's go!

A dreamy tune began to play, and Ciara sang in an equally enchanting voice, competition for even the most talented of sirens:

Come, take my hand. You should know me.
I've always been in your mind.
You know I will be kind.
I'll be guiding you.
Building your dream has to start now.
There's no other road to take.
You won't make a mistake.
I'll be guiding you.

You have to believe we are magic.
Nothing can stand in our way.
You have to believe we are magic.
Don't let your aim ever stray.
And if all your hopes survive, destiny will arrive.
I'll bring all your dreams alive for you....

From where I stand you are home free.
The planets align so rare.
There's promise in the air.
And I'm guiding you.
Through every turn, I'll be near you.
I'll come any time you call.
I'll catch you when you fall.
I'll be guiding you.

You have to believe we are magic.
Nothing can stand in our way.
You have to believe we are magic.
Don't let your aim ever stray.
And if all your hopes survive, destiny will arrive.
I'll bring all your dreams alive for you....

And Tom Riddle almost believed it was magic. Some charm in her mystical voice must have cast a spell to enchant his heart to follow her, because now he knew...

He was in love.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~


Her heart fluttered as Tom lifted her hand and delicately touched her knuckles to his lips. I love you, Ciara... I know we met only last night, but I have never felt like this before. Promise me... promise me I will see you next weekend.

I'll try as hard as I can, Tom, but I can't promise...

You have to promise, Ciara. You are so special to me, I want to be with you every second of my existence. I don't know how I will even be able to say goodbye for a few days. Nothing should be able to get between us. Eventually, I promise you right now, nothing will be able to tear us apart.

Ciara closed her eyes, sighing heavily. Do you mean that, Tom? Absolutely nothing will tear us apart?

Nothing. Not miles, not people, not death, not anything. I will do everything in my power to be with you for the rest of my life.

If you only knew... she whispered as she turned away, stopping in mid sentence as her voice caught and tears threateningly stung her eyes. What if he ever found out?

Knew what? he asked, gently touching her shoulder and trying to turn her back towards him. Tell me anything.

She turned back with a smile on her face, though her heart felt ever so heavier. It's nothing, really. She laughed lightly and grabbed his hands playfully. Can you believe this? Falling in love so quickly... It's like something out of a fairy tale... so magical....

He rolled his eyes and said flatly, Magic. Right. He laughed and hugged her. You're so cute, Ciara. I love you so much.

She nodded slowly, her smile fading and her soul despairing. I should be getting back. I don't know how I'll make it back to the cas... the... the school... by morning..... unless I leave now....

Oh, alright. He tilted his head and asked, Did I say something wrong?

No... it's nothing...

He nodded, kissed her pale lips timidly, and watched her walk away under the lonely, dark, Sunday night sky.

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