That evening, Amy rushed away from the Gryffindor common room to meet
Professor McLellan in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. After
an hour and a half of cleaning out jars that contained funny little animals
that gurgled and spit up all over the place, Professor McLellan released
her from detention.
"I trust you learned your lesson," he grumbled, not any happier about being stuck there than Amy was.
"Yes, sir," Amy replied, eager to get back to the common room where Harry and Ron were battling it out in a game of wizard's chess when she had left. Running out of the room, she accidentally ran into Tom Riddle, who had been waiting outside the classroom door. Stunned for a moment, unsure of what to say, Amy awkwardly blurted out, "Hi!"
Tom smiled that oh-so-gorgeous smile and replied, "Hello. Amy, right?"
Unable to speak, Amy nodded her head. Extending his right hand, Tom said, "I'm Tom. Tom Riddle. New student here. But then I guess you already knew that."
Shocked (and elated) by his openness, Amy took his hand and shook it gently. Before she could stop herself, she asked, "Why are you out here? Did you want to talk to Professor McLellan?"
Tom smiled again. "No. Actually, I wanted to talk to you."
"Me? What would you want with me?"
"You caught my eye earlier. I just wondered if you were interested in giving me a tour of the castle. You don't have to, of course," he added, quickly, seeing the doubt in her eyes.
"No, no! I would love to!" Amy smiled back at him and grabbed his hand. "Come on, let's go!"
It was an unusually chilly night for October and Amy shivered as they walked down by the water. It had been half an hour since Amy had left Professor McLellan's classroom, but it had felt like minutes. She had quickly shown Tom around the main floors of the castle before walking outside with him. The water was rippling under the breeze of the night and Amy felt content. This was nice.
"So tell me about yourself, Tom," she said, immediately regretting it. Tom's face filled with an intense hate and an unmistakable revulsion.
"My family isn't much to speak of," he said, his voice cold enough to send shivers down Amy's spine. "My mother was a witch and my father, a Muggle. They didn't get along much before my birth. My father left shortly after he found out that my mother was pregnant with me and my mother died in childbirth. I was raised in a Muggle orphanage. I attended Durmstrang until now, when I decided that I needed a change of scenery. So here I am." Once again, his face took on a charming grin. "What about you? Tell me about yourself."
Sighing, Amy thought. How could she fit her entire life into a few sentences? "My mother and father are high pillars of the community," she began. "We're treated like royalty in the sense that we can never go far without a reporter tagging along at our heels. I think I was a mistake to my parents, for they never visit me much here. The past few summers and holidays, I haven't gone home, but have been invited to both Hermione and Ron's often. Once I even went with Harry to his aunt and uncle's." She sighed again. "I'm sorry. I must be boring you."
"Not at all!" Tom cried. "Tell me more."
"There's not much to tell," Amy replied honestly. "Sometimes I think my parents want to pretend I don't exist. They're too busy with all their work. It's hell, sometimes, it really is. That's why I'm always glad to be here, at Hogwarts." Looking up at the great castle, Amy felt a great sense of pride well up in her chest. Hogwarts was more of a home to her than anything now. She had been here for six years, and had only been home to visit her parents maybe four times since then. She rather be here any day, for no one bothered her here.
Glancing back at Tom, she noticed that he had a hungry look in his eyes. Taking a second look, the hunger was gone and Amy thought that she might have imagined it. She smiled at him. "So that's my life. Pretty sad, huh?"
Before Tom could respond, Hermione came flying over the hill towards her. She was running at such a speed that she couldn't stop in time and collided with Amy, sending both of them flying towards the water. When they had straightened themselves out, Hermione cried, "Amy! You've got an owl from your parents! It's urgent!" Noticing Tom there, Hermione blushed.
"Hermione, this is Tom Riddle. Tom, this is my best friend who is a girl, Hermione Granger." Tom held his hand out to Hermione and kissed her hand gingerly, leaving Hermione to burst out in a fit of giggles. Trying to pry her away from Tom, Amy headed back to the castle, yelling over her shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Tom! We'll have to try this another time! I'll see you tomorrow in class. Oh, and good luck with the sorting tomorrow evening!" Since Tom had entered the school so late in his education, he was to be sorted tomorrow evening.
"He's such a sweetheart!" Hermione crowed as they rushed down the hall towards the Gryffindor common room. "You're so lucky to have had a few minutes alone with him!"
"Hermione, where's this letter from my parents?" Amy asked, anxious to see what they had to say. She hated when her parents sent these urgent messages, for they were usually useless to her, but often she worried that something had happened to her older sister or brother. Shane and Teresa Wilkinson were four and two years older than Amy and both worked for the Ministry of Magic in the Defence Against the Dark Arts Department. Amy was always worried that something awful was going to happen to them.
Finding the envelope sitting on the table next to where Harry was sitting, she snatched it up, ignoring Harry's comment: "Took you that long to serve a detention, I see?"
Reading the message scrawled on the parchment carefully, Amy let out a whoop of joy. "My sister is getting married!" she cried and all was forgotten as her friends crowded around her.
"Tell her I said congratulations!" Seamus yelled from somewhere behind the group of people. Amy rolled her eyes. Seamus had met Teresa the previous year and developed a huge crush on her.
Just then Professor McGonagall bustled through the portrait hole. "Everyone to bed!" she cried. "It's getting late!" Hurrying over to see what the whole commotion surrounding Amy was, Amy thrust the letter in her face.
"Professor, my sister is getting married!"
Professor McGonagall's stern face softened. Amy knew that Teresa had been a favourite of Professor McGonagall years ago when she attended Hogwarts. "Tell her I said congratulations," the professor said softly. "I will send an owl when I get a spare moment of time. Now everyone to bed!" She ushered them upstairs to the dormitories and bid them all a good night. The boys went straight to their dorm and started discussing the girls and how strange they were while Hermione and Amy went to their dorm and lay in bed for a long time, giggling.
"I trust you learned your lesson," he grumbled, not any happier about being stuck there than Amy was.
"Yes, sir," Amy replied, eager to get back to the common room where Harry and Ron were battling it out in a game of wizard's chess when she had left. Running out of the room, she accidentally ran into Tom Riddle, who had been waiting outside the classroom door. Stunned for a moment, unsure of what to say, Amy awkwardly blurted out, "Hi!"
Tom smiled that oh-so-gorgeous smile and replied, "Hello. Amy, right?"
Unable to speak, Amy nodded her head. Extending his right hand, Tom said, "I'm Tom. Tom Riddle. New student here. But then I guess you already knew that."
Shocked (and elated) by his openness, Amy took his hand and shook it gently. Before she could stop herself, she asked, "Why are you out here? Did you want to talk to Professor McLellan?"
Tom smiled again. "No. Actually, I wanted to talk to you."
"Me? What would you want with me?"
"You caught my eye earlier. I just wondered if you were interested in giving me a tour of the castle. You don't have to, of course," he added, quickly, seeing the doubt in her eyes.
"No, no! I would love to!" Amy smiled back at him and grabbed his hand. "Come on, let's go!"
It was an unusually chilly night for October and Amy shivered as they walked down by the water. It had been half an hour since Amy had left Professor McLellan's classroom, but it had felt like minutes. She had quickly shown Tom around the main floors of the castle before walking outside with him. The water was rippling under the breeze of the night and Amy felt content. This was nice.
"So tell me about yourself, Tom," she said, immediately regretting it. Tom's face filled with an intense hate and an unmistakable revulsion.
"My family isn't much to speak of," he said, his voice cold enough to send shivers down Amy's spine. "My mother was a witch and my father, a Muggle. They didn't get along much before my birth. My father left shortly after he found out that my mother was pregnant with me and my mother died in childbirth. I was raised in a Muggle orphanage. I attended Durmstrang until now, when I decided that I needed a change of scenery. So here I am." Once again, his face took on a charming grin. "What about you? Tell me about yourself."
Sighing, Amy thought. How could she fit her entire life into a few sentences? "My mother and father are high pillars of the community," she began. "We're treated like royalty in the sense that we can never go far without a reporter tagging along at our heels. I think I was a mistake to my parents, for they never visit me much here. The past few summers and holidays, I haven't gone home, but have been invited to both Hermione and Ron's often. Once I even went with Harry to his aunt and uncle's." She sighed again. "I'm sorry. I must be boring you."
"Not at all!" Tom cried. "Tell me more."
"There's not much to tell," Amy replied honestly. "Sometimes I think my parents want to pretend I don't exist. They're too busy with all their work. It's hell, sometimes, it really is. That's why I'm always glad to be here, at Hogwarts." Looking up at the great castle, Amy felt a great sense of pride well up in her chest. Hogwarts was more of a home to her than anything now. She had been here for six years, and had only been home to visit her parents maybe four times since then. She rather be here any day, for no one bothered her here.
Glancing back at Tom, she noticed that he had a hungry look in his eyes. Taking a second look, the hunger was gone and Amy thought that she might have imagined it. She smiled at him. "So that's my life. Pretty sad, huh?"
Before Tom could respond, Hermione came flying over the hill towards her. She was running at such a speed that she couldn't stop in time and collided with Amy, sending both of them flying towards the water. When they had straightened themselves out, Hermione cried, "Amy! You've got an owl from your parents! It's urgent!" Noticing Tom there, Hermione blushed.
"Hermione, this is Tom Riddle. Tom, this is my best friend who is a girl, Hermione Granger." Tom held his hand out to Hermione and kissed her hand gingerly, leaving Hermione to burst out in a fit of giggles. Trying to pry her away from Tom, Amy headed back to the castle, yelling over her shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Tom! We'll have to try this another time! I'll see you tomorrow in class. Oh, and good luck with the sorting tomorrow evening!" Since Tom had entered the school so late in his education, he was to be sorted tomorrow evening.
"He's such a sweetheart!" Hermione crowed as they rushed down the hall towards the Gryffindor common room. "You're so lucky to have had a few minutes alone with him!"
"Hermione, where's this letter from my parents?" Amy asked, anxious to see what they had to say. She hated when her parents sent these urgent messages, for they were usually useless to her, but often she worried that something had happened to her older sister or brother. Shane and Teresa Wilkinson were four and two years older than Amy and both worked for the Ministry of Magic in the Defence Against the Dark Arts Department. Amy was always worried that something awful was going to happen to them.
Finding the envelope sitting on the table next to where Harry was sitting, she snatched it up, ignoring Harry's comment: "Took you that long to serve a detention, I see?"
Reading the message scrawled on the parchment carefully, Amy let out a whoop of joy. "My sister is getting married!" she cried and all was forgotten as her friends crowded around her.
"Tell her I said congratulations!" Seamus yelled from somewhere behind the group of people. Amy rolled her eyes. Seamus had met Teresa the previous year and developed a huge crush on her.
Just then Professor McGonagall bustled through the portrait hole. "Everyone to bed!" she cried. "It's getting late!" Hurrying over to see what the whole commotion surrounding Amy was, Amy thrust the letter in her face.
"Professor, my sister is getting married!"
Professor McGonagall's stern face softened. Amy knew that Teresa had been a favourite of Professor McGonagall years ago when she attended Hogwarts. "Tell her I said congratulations," the professor said softly. "I will send an owl when I get a spare moment of time. Now everyone to bed!" She ushered them upstairs to the dormitories and bid them all a good night. The boys went straight to their dorm and started discussing the girls and how strange they were while Hermione and Amy went to their dorm and lay in bed for a long time, giggling.