DISCLAIMER: We own no characters, settings, etc. Please, don't sue.
This chapter by (in order of appearance):
ProFool, Half-N-Half, June, Pheloneous
CHAPTER TWO : SEPTEMBER 1ST
Dippet cast a glance around his office at all his little house heads. First he looked over at Professor Malfoy who returned the look with his ice-cold stare. Dippet decided to rest eyes on Professor Pomfrey until it was awkward. So, he lowered his eyes to Professor Flitwick who was sitting up trying to look alert. . . or maybe just taller. He shifted his gaze over Dumbledore who was looking serene as usual. Bored he went back to eyeing Pomfrey. He hated these dumb meetings.
"So. . ." Dippet began, "I think we need more corn on the menu. Like some kind of corn cake or. . . bread, or nugget!"
Professor Pomfrey shook her head, "I think we need more health food on the menu, not corn, corn isn't always good you know..."
Dippet spoke out again with out really paying attention to Pomfrey, "Or pork! Or beans and maybe. . .prunes!"
"Prunes are healthy!" Pomfrey exclaimed.
"Perhaps we should add some lemon drops to the menu," Dumbledore said, pressing his fingertips together and peering over at the other professors.
"Lemon drops aren't healthy!"
"That is a matter of opinion," Dumbledore smiled.
Pomfrey gave Dumbledore an evil glare and then exhaling heavily said, "Fine. Have your lemon drops."
Professor Malfoy leaned forward in his chair, "Don't you think we should discuss the muggle war?"
Dippet looked at Malfoy like he'd said something vulgar, "Muggle war? Who cares about what the muggles are doing?"
Flitwick half-raised his hand but then put it back down again.
"I know a lot of men fighting in that war." Pomfrey sighed.
"Don't you mean a lot of men in that war know you?" Dumbledore said with a mild smile.
Pomfrey glared.
Flitwick peeked over the table with a lot of effort, "Um... I think we should make... um, the school more accessible to the... um, shorter... please."
Dippet chose to ignore this last bit completely, "Right, so, we're going to add corn and prunes to the menu." Dippet stood up and smiled at them all then walked over to a door in the back of his office. He looked back, "That was a very productive meeting. Glad we had it, well, you know the way out," he stated with a grin then shut the door behind him.
"No it bloody wasn't." Malfoy growled. "Blasted Dippet," he muttered angrily.
The castle rose up in the distance, a specter of black dotted with a thousand windows of light. Tiny little figures moved about inside one of the larger windows.
Staff meeting, Tom thought.
The coach in which they sat hit a bump and the whole carriage jumped. Tom, thin as a skeleton was thrown in the air—everyone was—but none quite so high as he. He hit his head on the satin ceiling, and put a tender hand to his oil-slick hair.
"Are you all right?" Acacia asked.
"Fine," he replied, pretending to adjust his hair, "just fine."
The carriage rolled on into the darkness until the fleet came to the front steps. Hundreds of students poured out of the coaches into the night. Once all other passengers had exited Tom slid along the seat and stepped out onto the first step, looking about, breathing the fresh air. It was so pure he nearly choked. The harsh change from the smog of London did him no favor, and the sight of the thestrals that pulled the carriages only worsened his demeanor. They were hideous things. Ever since the first time he saw one he found them repulsive.
"Are you coming, Tom?" Acacia looked at his blank gaze with mild discomfort.
Tom nodded and descended more fully from the carriage, taking her arm and heading toward the castle, just one of the blind masses.
Acacia watched Tom anxiously before he took her arm and lead her toward the castle.
She watched as a group of Hufflepuff Mudbloods walked past.
"Filthy Mudbloods," She sniggered under her breath, "I wonder how many new ones we'll get this year."
"I dare say more than we'll get purebloods," he said brushing dust from his sleeve, "the pickings are really quite slim this year. Bet you we have less than five new Slytherins this year."
He shook his head in disgust.
"It's embarrassing really."
They mounted the steps and entered the castle.
"Where the hell is Jereth," Tom asked looking about for a moment, then thought it better not to press the question.
They entered into the great hall and the scent of a thousand different dishes met his nose.
Dinner, real food.
Acacia smiled as she and Tom entered the Great Hall.
"I hope the shorting doesn't take too long," Acacia thought out loud, "I really am hungry."
She grinned at Tom. He really was the reason she loved coming back to Hogwarts every year.
"Just think," She laughed, "We're prefects, that means, we get to boss people around."
Tom laughed.
"I already did," he smiled and the two sat at the table.
Kyle always attributed the carriages being pulled by invisible forces to be just part of the... side effects. Even still, it was creepy.
Kyle hadn't even had a hit since before the train ride so he wasn't so much on seeing things as he was... hungry. Kyle Wadims remembered the feast at the first of the year and he was relieved. He had a major case of the munchies.
As Kyle was walking up he noticed Tom Riddle and his girlfriend, Acacia. Suddenly everything in his brain went dim as if a sheet had been spread over everything, distorting his view. Kyle stopped being Kyle.
"The shell will die as the heir rises. His power grows," Kyle's body had seemed to take over and left the real Kyle completely unaware of what was happening.
Everyone turned to look back at Kyle right as he snapped back, "Wow, did my stomach growl really loud again? Man, I think we should get inside cause I need something to munch on."
Jereth took the steps up to Hogwarts main entrance two at time. All the students (minus the first years) were already in the great hall. Jereth paused for a moment at the door, he spotted Ogg, the groundskeepers, lumbering up the path. Jereth decided he may want to wait just out of sight for a moment.
Ogg ran past him sure enough and entered Hogwarts bellowing, "The first years are in the lake!"
Jereth could hear Dippet respond, "Aren't they supposed to be in the lake?"
"No, I mean," Ogg continued, "they're not in the boats! They're in the lake!"
There was a general confused jabbering and then someone, Jereth assumed it was the Hufflepuff head, "Maybe we should join them?"
"Bloody hell!" Professor Malfoy yelled then came storming out of the main hall fallowed by Dippet, Ogg, the rest of the heads.
After they passed Jereth crept into the great hall completely drenched with his hair plastered to his head. In all actuality he'd only flipped one boat over. Full of filthy mudbloods that were in serious need of a bath, but then they had tried to climb into the other boats and it all went down hill from there. Jereth wondered if Ogg would recall that he'd offered to help him lead the first years across the lake.
For a second he tried to feign innocence then he realized how obvious it was that he was soaking wet. "Oh well." he muttered while trying to spy out Tom at the Slytherin table.
"Good god," Tom exclaimed as Jereth made his approach. He lifted his wand and pointed it at Jereth whispering the word, "scourgify." and the water instantly evaporated. Jereth was completely dry (though his hair was still plastered to his head in a very odd, emo manner).
Acacia laughed. Tom smirked. Jereth fought with the hair until it all stood straight up and then became a total mess.
"Keep your nose clean for tonight," Tom said in a quiet tone, "we don't want any... professors on... guard."
Acacia laughed at Jereth's hair and tried to help him fix it, which made it worse. She shook her head and gave up.
"What are you planning?" She asked, turning her attention to Tom, "Or is it a guy thing?"
"Planning?" Tom asked off handedly, looking around and adjusting his pants, "nothing."
"God," Tom exclaimed in disgust sighting the troops of bedraggled first years that were entering the hall. They were draped in heavy blankets, under which they almost disappeared.
"They look so..."
For a moment he was at a loss.
"Common. Like dirt on the bottom of your shoe."
As they passed to line up in the isles, waiting for the sorting one of them sneezed in Acacia's hair. Tom winced. Acacia did more.
Acacia's eyes went wide as she felt and heard the Mudblood first year sneeze into her hair.
"Tom..." She shuddered; her eyes closed in disgust "Get it off me." She shuddered at the thought of Mudblood anything on her, let alone snot.
With a slight smirk he ministered a cleaning spell on her hair then patted her back. Her eye was twitching slightly.
"Don't worry, I'll clean it better tonight... in the shower... naked. I'll use shampoo. Cinnamon flavored shampoo."
God, I hope that keeps her quiet.
Acacia's eyes shot open at Tom's last comment.
"A...shower...naked?" She grinned at Tom, "I like cinnamon."
Tom nodded, and, escaping her gaze, turned his attention to the front of the room where the sorting was nearly halfway through.
Jereth sniggered a bit not really paying attention to his friends. He was still far too amused by the sight of the drenched first years. "Do you think the sorting hat can catch cold?"
"I hope so!" Acacia snickered, "That ancient thing is so disgusting! I can't believe I put it on my head!"
She looked up at the left over first years, "I bet they're all Gryffindor and Hufflepuffs," She shook her head, "I hope they get pneumonia."
Jereth looked over the last few first years; he spotted a rather sorrowful looking girl at the very end of the line. For a moment the corner of his mouth twitched. "The one at the end nearly drowned me. Had her grubby little mudblood hands all over me saying, she couldn't swim. Had a hell of a time getting her off."
Acacia laughed, "Filthy mudblood can't even swim." She eyed the girl with a look of hate, "You should have let her drown."
"Acacia, darling, I give you my word that I tried my very hardest to make sure every last one of them drowned." Jereth said jokingly.
Tom gave him a brief glare for the 'darling' bit, but as usual Jereth ignored him.
"Well, now that we've gotten the first years and professor Crockshanks out of the lake. . . again. . . I suppose it's time for a speech!" Dippet began, he grabbed a goblet and raised it up over his head. "To life, merriment and good friends. . . I bring you corn and prunes for dessert, so lets eat." He went to take a swig, but realized his goblet was empty. For a moment he starred at it then decided he better sit down.
For a moment the rest of the room stared at him. He stared back. "Well, dig in!" He demanded as he forked a prune.
Hagrid walked up behind Acacia as she ate.
"Well hullo there Acacia. I'm hopin' ya had a goo' summer away from 'ogwarts." Then Hagrid leaned in close to Acacia's ear and whispered, "An' don' ya worry 'bout the little guy ya gave me before summer. He was a bit fiesty a' firs' but I was able ta tame the little gioy," Hagrid said with a smile.
Acacia's eye twitched as she felt, and smelt, Hagrid's breath close to her ear.
"You mean the acromantula I wanted to kill you?" She mumbled under her breath.
She sighed and put a very fake smile on her face.
"That's great Hagrid." She said, through clinched teeth, "Where, may I ask, are you keeping it...since you have to live here all the time."
"Well I can' keep the little fella' in me pocke' any more. He jus' go' too big. So now I keep the little giuy in a trunk, up in my room. I can' keep him in the cottage cause I wan' ta have a close eye on the little giuy," Hagrid said starring down into Acacia's face of pure horror.
"Oh and di I mention I found a name for the fella? I called 'im Aragog," Hagrid said beaming.
Acacia looked horror struck, "Yo...you keep it here! At the school!"
She took a deep breath and thought for a second. This could be good she thought to herself, Maybe it will kill some mudbloods...
She placed the face smile back on her face, "That's great Hagrid," Her eye twitched again, "I think you should go eat with the Gryffindors now," she turned, but then turned back to him, "Oh, and Hagrid? Don't tell anyone about Gargoyle, he should be our little secret."
"Oh alrioght Acacia, I ge' it," Hagrid said with a wink.
Hagrid then thought for a second, "Hey, wan' ta go togethar on the firs' Hogsmeade trip?"
Acacia shuddered.
"Aww, gee Hagrid, that sounds great," Her eye twitched as she forced a smile at him, "But I think I already have plans."
"Plans, for Hogsmeade already?" Jereth asked, "You can't have made plans already." he added wickedly. He knew Acacia would rather see the half-giant tumble over a cliff than accompany him anywhere. Jereth's eyes flicked up at the half-troll for a moment. There'd be plenty of time to plan around him later. For now he just wanted to make Acacia twitch. She looked so funny when she wasn't allowed to kill things, it took all he had not to bust out laughing. "I'm sure you could make time for him and the lil' goiy ya gave him. . ." Jereth laughed, quickly covering it up with a false cough.
Acacia was ready to kill Jereth, and Hagrid, but because she was at school, and a prefect, she restrained.
"No Jereth," Her right eye was now twitching uncontrollably while her left looked ready to bulge, "I'm sure I've already made plans,"
She gave Hagrid a forced look that was meant to seem friendly, but really made her look as though she was about to bite his head off.
"I think," She said through tightly clinched teeth, "That you need to go eat with the Gryffindors...before the foods all gone."
"Okay, well I guess I'll be seein more of ya now that I get ta go ta Hogsmeade too. May'be we ca' talk after the supper here, eh?" Hagrid said with a smile as he walked towards his table.
After much partying and Acacia harping at him about the whole Hagrid thing it was time for bed or at least Jereth thought that until Tom woke him up again.
"What?" Jereth whined groggily as he sat up in bed. Tom just held out a picture of a scantly clad woman at him. It was a very un-Tom-like thing to do Jereth thought confusedly.
Then his eyes snapped fully open, "Is that Pomfrey?" Jereth gasped trying to snatch the picture away from Tom, but the other boy pulled it away.
"Come on. We have work to do." Tom said with a mischievous grin.
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