Hermione woke with her whole body aching in pain. Wishing Tom died a very painful death she forced herself out of bed and drank two vials of pain killing potion. She walked into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. She looked terrible, her lips were slightly swollen with dark bruises and her right hand had blisters. It hurt when she washed herself and she tried to avoid using her burnt hand as she changed into her school uniform. She glanced at the clock and mentally groaned. She had woken up late and breakfast was almost over but she had one hour free time so she didn't have to worry about being late for class. Feeling awfully hungry she searched in her bag and took out a pack of chocolate chip cookies. Her lips stung as she tried to eat them and she broke the biscuit into pieces to make it easier. She conjured a goblet and filled it with water. She accidentally picked it up with her right hand and she momentarily closed her eyes in pain. She quickly switched hands and trying not to brush it against her lips she slowly drank from the goblet.
She would have to go to the hospital wing to get healed and she started to think up suitable excuses for the injuries. After a while she had the answers and she was about to walk out of her room when she paused with her hand on the door knob. Right now she didn't feel like running into Tom and she took a peek outside. No one was in the common room and there wasn't a broken furniture in sight. He must have fixed everything when he's anger had cooled and she hoped he hadn't destroyed her books. She stepped outside and ran down the stairs. She found her books stacked in a neat pile on the table and they didn't look damaged. She flipped through the books just to make sure and all the pages were still intact. Thank Merlin, the books were okay. She had imagined all sorts of horrible things like being banned from the library and Dippet cutting of her allowance to pay for the damages. She split the pile in two and putting more strain on her left hand she carried them up to her room one at a time.
She stepped out of the heads quarters and started to walk towards the hospital wing. Something suddenly tapped her on the shoulder and she turned to find it was Susan.
"Why weren't you at breakfast?" Susan asked.
"I woke up late and by the time I got changed--"
"What the hell happened to your lips?" Susan interrupted and Hermione lowered her head feeling self conscious. She was about to tell Susan her made up answer but Susan started talking again. "I think I know what happened" Susan said excitedly. "Did Tom bite your lips of to prove himself after Xavian's accusation?" Susan said lowering her voice and Hermione looked up glaring at the girl. Why did Susan always have to come up with a twisted explanation for everything? She had bitten them to deal with the pain while Tom had tortured her. She hadn't gotten injured during some wild kissing session.
"No he didn't" she snapped. "How many times do I have to tell you? We're not involved like that"
"If you say so" Susan said rolling her eyes and Hermione started to angrily walk off.
"Hey Maya" Susan called running up to her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you angry" she continued to walk on ignoring Susan. "I'm sorry" Susan said looking apologetic. "Sorry a billion times" Her anger suddenly vanished at the girl. Susan was just being Susan and she probably couldn't even help it.
"It's alright" she said pausing.
"Are you going to the hospital wing?"
"Yeah"
"Me too, let's walk together" Susan said smiling at her.
"Okay" they both started to walk forward.
"You don't look ill" She said narrowing her eyes at Susan.
"There's nothing wrong with me, I'm going to see Xav" She'd temporarily forgotten about Xavian Potter but now she remembered. "You could say hello, he'd be pleased to see you"
"Is he okay?"
"Madam Whittaker said he could be out of the hospital wing by tomorrow" Susan said cheerfully. "You know, Tom got let of lightly. Xav told me, all he got was one month's detention with Slughorn"
"One month" She said disbelievingly. When she had attacked Malfoy she had gotten one year detention with Slughorn and she hadn't even hurt Malfoy that badly.
"I can't believe he picked a fight with Tom knowing that no students ever defeated him in a duel" Susan said waving her hands. "But then again love does weird things to people"
"What do you mean by love?" Hermione said turning to look at Susan with creased brows.
"You know Xav likes you" Oh Merlin, her suspicion was true. Xavian thought she fancied Tom and what happened yesterday was an insane act of jealously. "Well, he thinks you like Tom so he wanted to humiliate him in front of the whole school"
"I see" She suddenly felt guilty and it showed on her face.
"Don't feel bad though, this isn't the first time they've fought" She wasn't really surprised. After the way they had acted towards each other at the Halloween ball she had a feeling they hated each other before she came into the picture. "First year they used hex each other all the time in the corridors but in a couple of weeks Tom became unbeatable so Xav just gave up" Susan suddenly smiled at her. "So if it isn't Tom then who's the lucky guy that kissed you with such violent passion" Susan said in a dramatic voice and crossed her hands over her chest.
"There is no guy" she said moodily.
"So what happened to your lips?" Her made up excuses were firmly implanted in her mind and she answered without hesitation.
"I had a bad nightmare, I bit them in my sleep"
"That's terrible" Susan said patting her on the back. "You should get a dreamless sleep potion in case it happens again"
"I will" She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and she took in a sharp intake of breath as her hand stung. She had accidentally used her right hand again and she blew on it to make the stinging disappear.
"Your hand" Susan said pointing. "How did you burn it?"
"In potions yesterday, I accidentally touched the cauldron"
"You never mentioned" Susan said looking at her hand closely.
"I didn't realise until I got to my room"
"What, you never felt it?" Susan said looking at her disbelievingly.
"I did, I--er--I just didn't realise how bad it was until I looked at it" she hoped that sounded believable. Soon they arrived at the door of the hospital wing and they could hear lots of shouts and cries from the inside.
"Sounds like there's a whole class of injured people in there" Susan said turning the door handle. Hermione stepped in after Susan and it appeared to be packed with injured students covered in blood and grey slime. It was utter chaos in the room, people were crying and shouting and Madam Whittaker was yelling instructions. From the sizes of the students she could tell they were first years and she noticed Slughorn standing in a corner with a worried expression. "First years" Susan said crossing her arms. "Someone must have blown up something in potions"
"Horace I need more Seeze sap" she heard Madam Whittaker shout and Slughorn ran out the door. "Everyone stop panicking and sit on the benches" Madam Whittaker shouted pointing. "I assure you the injuries are not life threatening but your treatment will be delayed if you don't follow instructions" The mass of noisy students immediately moved towards the benches and Hermione noticed Crabbe and Xavian sleeping in their beds undisturbed. How could they sleep through so much noise? They must have been fed a strong sleeping potion. She suddenly noticed Turner's bed was empty and she wondered where he was. "Maya" Madam Whittaker said noticing her. "You won't believe the day I'm having" she said grabbing some bottles of the shelf. "Oh, hello Miss Brewer" she said noticing Susan at her side. "If you came to see Mr Potter I'm afraid you'll have to come back in the afternoon. He's still under the sleeping potion"
"Oh" Susan said with a disappointed expression.
"I've never had to deal with so many patients in my entire career at Hogwarts" Madam Whittaker said uncorking the bottles. "A first year thought it would be funny to drop some--" Madam Whittaker paused noticing Hermione's lips. "Oh Merlin, you need treatment as well" She sighed and poured the contents of the bottles in a medium sized cauldron. "Miss Brewer, could you take this to the headmaster's office" Madam Whittaker said grabbing an envelope from a bedside table and holding it towards Susan.
"Sure" Susan said taking the envelope. "See you later Maya" Susan gave her a brief hug. "Hope you make it out in time for divination" Susan called out as she left. That was one class Hermione wanted to completely miss. She would pick spending time in the hospital wing over divination any day, even if it was filled with hysterical first years. Madam Whittaker rummaged through a drawer and pulled out a brown packet. She suddenly turned and took a closer look at Hermione's lips.
"You're going to have to wait until I've seen all the first years" Madam Whittaker said turning back around and tearing open the packet.
"My hands burnt as well" Hermione said holding up her right hand with a guilty expression.
"How did all this happen?" Madam Whittaker said glancing at her hand as she poured some white powdery substance into the cauldron. "I'll understand if you want to keep the lips injury private" she said chuckling and stirring the cauldron.
"It's nothing like that" she said hastily realising that Madam Whittaker was drawing the same conclusion as Susan. "I had a bad nightmare, I did it in my sleep"
"Didn't you take a bottle of dreamless sleep potion the other day?" Madam Whittaker said turning to look at her.
"It didn't work, I think I've become immune to it" She wasn't lying. After her parents had died she had regularly taken the potion but after a couple of months it had stopped working and the nightmares had returned.
"Oh dear" Madam Whittaker said pouring the liquid in the cauldron into a huge bowl. "I'll try and make up a stronger version for you"
"Thanks"
"So what happened to your hand?" Madam Whittaker said waving her wand over the bowl and the liquid inside turned blue to white.
"In potions yesterday I accidentally touched it against the cauldron" Madam Whittaker levitated the huge bowl into the centre of the room.
"There are spoons in that dish" Madam Whittaker shouted pointing and all the first years immediately became quiet. "Everyone take two spoonful's of the potion" The first years all stood up at once and rushed to get a spoon. "Get into a straight line" Madam Whittaker shouted but the first years continued to crowd around struggling to get their hands on a spoon. "Oh well" Madam Whittaker mumbled. "As long as they drink the potion" Madam Whittaker suddenly turned and lifted Hermione's hand for closer inspection. "Hmm" Madam Whittaker said narrowing her eyes. "This looks like a deep burn, are you sure it was the cauldron?" She couldn't have Madam Whittaker realise it had been a dark spell and she wracked her brains for an explanation.
"Erm--I could have touched the flames at the bottom, I can't remember which part of the cauldron"
"That's possible" Madam Whittaker said releasing her hand. "Sorry to say I have to prioritise the bleeding first years"
"I don't mind waiting" Hopefully she would miss divination and she wouldn't even get into trouble because she had a valid reason.
"Do you want to sit over--" Madam Whittaker paused noticing all the chairs were occupied. "Just sit on one of the beds"
"Okay" Hermione walked to the unoccupied bed closest to the door and sat down near the head board. Most of the first years were now fighting to dip their spoons into the bowl and it looked like they could accidentally tip it over.
"Get back everyone" Madam Whittaker yelled. "Or you'll all be reported to your head of house" the students slowly moved back. "Get into a line like civilised people" the students slowly shuffled into a line. The hospital wing door opened and Slughorn came in carrying a large bottle.
"Are you alright Miss Granger?" Slughorn said noticing her.
"I'm fine, minor cuts and burns" she said waving her burnt hand and pointing at her lips.
"Wish you a speedy recovery" Slughorn said giving her a smile.
"Thank you sir" Slughorn walked up to Madam Whittaker and handed her the bottle. She poured the contents into a black bowl and added in some green powder. She waved her wand over the mixture and muttered an incantation.
"If you have drunk the potion then go up to Professor Slughorn and he will remove the slime. He will be using Seeze sap so take care not to rub it into your eyes" Madam Whittaker drew her wand. "Afterwards you will queue up near that wall" Madam Whittaker said pointing. "And I will heal you one at a time. I will not tolerate crowding like last--" the hospital wing door suddenly burst open and a levitating stretcher floated through accompanied with sounds of sobbing. "Not another one" Madam Whittaker cried out. The person levitating the stretcher stepped inside and Hermione sat up straighter when she realised it was Tom Riddle. He stared directly ahead and he didn't notice her presence. His face was completely expressionless and he glanced at the first years with mild interest before he lowered the stretcher to reveal Turner. "Mr Turner" Madam Whittaker said hurrying towards the boy. "Oh Merlin" Madam Whittaker levitated the boy onto a bed and made the stretcher vanish. The boy's old broken arm was still bandaged but his other arm was all bloody. Chills went down her spine as she took in the brutal way the boys arm had been broken. It was twisted at such an odd angle and she was sure she could make out a bone poking out near the elbow. Some of the first years screamed and Madam Whittaker started to cut away Turner's shirt and waving her wand she made a blue light appear on his arm.
"Merlin's beard" Slughorn said stepping closer. "Tom my boy, what happened?"
"I found him at the foot of a staircase" Tom said staring at Turner unblinking. "It's likely he tripped and because his other arm was already broken it must have been difficult for him to regain balance" Hermione knew that was a pack of lies. He had obviously broken Turner's other arm because he saw him as the reason for having to play quidditch and after everything that had happened last night he must be in a murderous mood. Hermione suddenly felt guilty for causing Turner pain but then she reminded herself it was for the greater good and Turner would eventually recover.
"Thank God you found him Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said making complex movements with her wand. "A major blood vessel has severed and I don't think any other student would have been able to stop the blood flow"
"It was my duty as head boy to protect a student" Tom said emotionlessly and a slight smile suddenly tugged at his lips but it vanished instantly.
"If only all the students were kind and caring like you" Madam Whittaker said uncorking a bottle.
"You speak to highly of me Madam" Tom said looking down at the floor. "I was doing what any other fellow human being would do" How did he manage to act like that? The way he was looking at the floor with that expression made him appear like a humble boy with everyone's best interest at heart. He always managed to say the right thing at the right moment and no one saw through his mask. If she hadn't known what he really was she would have fallen for the whole saint Tom Riddle character.
"Believe me when I say you're one of a kind Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said smiling at him. Yeah, he was definitely one of a kind just not the type they were thinking of.
"Someone talented as you deserves recognition" Slughorn said loudly. "I don't think any students done more for Hogwarts than you have"
"Thank you sir"
"Horace you better take care of the first years before the slime permanently sticks to their skin" Madam Whittaker said pointing towards the queue of students.
"I momentarily forgot" Slughorn said turning. "I'll get right to it"
"I'll be with you once I fix up Turner" Madam Whittaker said muttering more spells over the boys arm.
"Sir" Tom said making Slughorn turn. "Is that an explosion caused by the combination of velinick acid and poppy seed?"
"Yes is it is but I really shouldn't be surprised that you know the answer"
"Then don't forget to wear gloves sir"
"Right you are my boy" Slughorn said cheerfully. "We wouldn't want another casualty now would we?"
"Heavens no" Madam Whittaker muttered. Slughorn walked away towards the first years and Tom glued his eyes back on Turner. "Mr Turner, you said you were going to the toilet so how did this happen?" Madam Whittaker asked but the boy continued to cry. "Mr Turner?" The boy started to cry even harder and he suddenly looked at Tom with a terrified expression. "Mr Riddle says you tripped on the stairs, is that true?" The boy continued to cry but he didn't answer. Tom pulled out something from his pocket and Turner suddenly went quiet. Hermione realised Tom was holding a small owl feather and he slowly started to crush it between his thumb and finger.
"Perhaps you need help refreshing your memory? Tom said with coldness creeping into his voice. She knew what Tom was doing. He must have killed an owl in front of Turner and showing him the feather was his way of saying, your next if you tell the truth.
"I remember" Turner suddenly shouted. "I tripped on the stairs, it's all my fault. I tripped, I tripped" Turners voice suddenly broke into a sob and Tom let the feather fall to the floor.
"Calm down Mr Turner" Madam Whittaker started to apply brown cream on Turner's arm. "Mr Riddle could you do me a favour?" Madam Whittaker said pausing.
"Of course Madam" Tom said automatically.
"I normally wouldn't ask but my hands are full with the first years and now Mr Turner"
"I would be happy to help, what would you like me to do?"
"Could you heal Miss Granger for me?" Madam Whittaker said pointing and Tom turned to face her. Hermione froze and wished the earth would swallow her up. His blank expression instantly changed and he looked absolutely furious. He was obviously still angry with her from last night and she reminded herself to remain calm no matter what happened.
"I'll heal her" he said in a controlled voice and one of his hands slowly clenched into a fist.
"There's no need" she said jumping up from the bed. "I'll wait"
"Now Maya, there's nothing to be frightened of" Madam Whittaker said looking up from Turner's arm. "I assure you, Mr Riddle is excellent at healing and he has healed students before" Madam Whittaker winked at her then she went back to fixing Turner's arm and Hermione felt like strangling her. She didn't have life threatening injuries that required immediate attention but Madam Whittaker was obviously trying to play matchmaker by getting him to heal her. Tom slowly walked up to the bed glaring at her and she looked down at the floor. He paused at the foot of her bed and she slowly looked up to find he looked angry as ever. The hospital wing door suddenly opened and Dumbledore walked inside. Tom's face went blank and he turned sideways. He hatefully bore his eyes into Dumbledore and both of his hands momentarily clenched into fists.
"I just heard" Dumbledore said. "Are the first years okay?"
"Well, there're a bit shaken with large cuts" Madam Whittaker said looking back down at Turner's arm again. "But otherwise fine"
"The slime's hard to get of" Slughorn said trying to get it of a boy "I'm definitely not having first years make it next year"
"Never thought of you as a healer Horace" Dumbledore said chuckling.
"Well, desperate times call for desperate measures"
"I only have two hands" Madam Whittaker said. "If the rate of injuries keeps up then Hogwarts is going to have to employ another healer"
"What happened to Turner?" Dumbledore said walking closer.
"Broke his arm again, he's lucky Mr Riddle found him" Dumbledore looked at Tom with a grave expression and Tom stared back unblinking.
"Where did you find him Tom?" Dumbledore asked.
"At the foot of a staircase sir" Tom said without hesitation.
"Which staircase?"
"The one near the owlery" Dumbledore narrowed his eyes at him.
"Was there anyone else who saw you?"
"No sir" Tom said coldly.
"Albus stop asking the boy so many questions like his on trial for committing a crime" Slughorn said loudly. "All he did was help a student in need"
"I'm not saying he did anything wrong" Dumbledore said crossing his arms and he suddenly noticed Hermione. His eyes became fixed to her lips and then they flickered down to her burnt hand. Realising Dumbledore was staring at her, she turned sideways without trying to be obvious and Tom visibly tensed. Dumbledore looked back and forth between her and Tom with a calculating look and he was about to say something when the hospital wing door opened. Dippet stepped inside with an irritated expression.
"There you are Albus" Dippet said appearing out of breath. "Some men from the ministry arrived in my office and they want to see you" Hermione felt relieved watching Dumbledore step outside and Tom appeared more relaxed.
"Did you get the letter headmaster?" Madam Whittaker called out as Dippet turned to leave. "Don't worry, I owled all the parents to say they're safe and Horace I can't thank you enough for doing what you're clearly not paid to do"
"Don't worry headmaster" Slughorn said momentarily turning to look at Dippet.
"Tom" Dippet said suddenly noticing him. "I guess you're helping out, I should thank you to"
"There's no need sir, it's my duty as head boy" That was probably the killer line he used with all the staff so they didn't feel guilty for using his help but what they failed to notice was that he was conditioning their minds to favour him above the other students. If any of the staff ever bothered to read the heads hand book they would know that all of the things Tom did was way above the duties of a head boy.
"30 points to Slytherin" Dippet said beaming at him. "Miss Granger" he said acknowledging her presence. "Hope you get better soon" he said narrowing his eyes at her lips and she instinctively lowered her head feeling self conscious. Dippet left the hospital wing and Tom started to stare at her with an angry expression. Slughorn was busy with the first years and Madam Whittaker was still healing Turner while their presence at the far end of the room became temporarily forgotten. They continued to stare at each other for some time then he suddenly took a step forward making her jump. He drew his wand and started to walk closer. He paused in front of her at an arms length and her pulse quickened as he pointed his wand at her lips. It was obvious from the fury in his eyes that he wanted to kill her instead of heal her, and she knew he wouldn't do anything in front of people but the expression on his face was still frightening.
"Aequor aveho" he said tracing the air above her lips and she felt the skin on the surface of her lips tighten followed by a slight pulling sensation. He lowered his wand and turned towards a shelf near the wall. While he searched for something she touched her lips and the skin felt good as new but for some reason it still hurt. For a couple of seconds she was puzzled by this until she realised the injuries on the inside of her lips were still unhealed. Were the full effects of the healing spell meant to kick in after a couple of minutes or had he not realised there were cuts on the inside of her lips? Tom suddenly turned holding a pack of bandages and a dish. He placed the dish on the bed and waving his wand he filled it with water then he turned it into ice. For a while he stared at her hatefully then he grabbed the right sleeve of her robes and slammed her hand down on the bedside table. The palm of her hand stung from the impact and she glared at him. He took out a roll of bandage from the pack and grasping her sleeve once more he lifted her hand up. He looked back and forth then he unrolled a sheet of bandage and started to wrap her hand with it. What the hell was he doing? Why was he bandaging her hand before using the healing spell? She stared at him with a confused expression and he suddenly smiled at her coldly.
Her eyes widened as she realised what was going on. He was putting on a show of having healed her and no one would be the wiser. He had fixed the outside of her lips because it was visible but he must have deliberately left the inside of her lips unhealed. He didn't have to use any spells on her hand as the bandage covered everything so in the end it would appear as if he had healed all her injuries. He poked the tip of his wand against the burnt skin and it wasn't enough to burst the blisters but it was enough to cause pain. He looked at her with a murderous glint in his eyes and she glared back at him. That had been his way of warning her not to tell anyone and she expected him to say something threatening next. He continued to remain silent and she figured he must be so angry with her that he didn't want to speak to her. He let go of her sleeve and let her hand drop on the table. He pulled the sides of the bandage over the top of her hand and she noticed the way he was being so careful to avoid touching her.
Why did he treat her like she was infected with something deadly? He always sat two seats away from her in class and he never came any closer than an arms length unless he was hitting her. She suddenly realised something else, whenever he had to grab her or drag her somewhere he avoided directly touching her and he always held her by her clothing or her hair. Even when they were fighting she couldn't ever recall him using his bare hands to hold her by the wrist or any other body parts and now that she thought about it, it was the same with other people. She had seen him grab Malfoy and his gang by their collar or their hair but he never made any direct contact with them. She momentarily wondered why he didn't have a problem with touching people's hair if he was so against touching but then she figured that hair was technically dead with no feelings and it was probably the same thing as clothes in his eyes. What the hell was his problem? Why did he have to act so weirdly around people? Dumbledore did say he only loved himself but he didn't have to go to such extreme lengths to keep himself to himself. The dark lord probably thought he was too godly to be touched by mere mortals and she wondered what made him think he was above everyone else.
Tom walked back to the foot of the bed and she examined the material covering half of her hand. It was bandaged neatly and not a piece was sticking out. Like everything he did, it was perfectly done but it was too tight. The pressure was making her hand hurt and there was no doubt he had intentionally wrapped it like that. A knowing half smile crept onto his face and she stared at him hatefully.
"All done" Madam Whittaker said coming up.
"I've healed her to the best of my knowledge" Tom said turning towards Madam Whittaker. The best of his knowledge, what utter crap. He hadn't even bothered to heal her hand.
"Did you use the avexi avectum incantation for the lips?" Madam Whittaker said taking a closer look at Hermione.
"Yes" he said without hesitation. That was a lie, she clearly remembered him using a different incantation. He gave her a threatening look and she narrowed her eyes in hatred but she kept quiet.
"It was a deep burn so the spell will take about four to six hours then you can take off the bandage" Madam Whittaker said looking down at her hand.
"Okay" she said knowing that nothing was going to happen in four to six hours.
"Did you remember to use ice to reduce the spells after effects?" Madam Whittaker said turning towards Tom.
"I used ice" he said pointing at the dish on the bed. He had put it there as evidence to back up his lie and she wasn't surprised that he had planned everything from the beginning. He held her gaze for a couple of seconds and she stared back hatefully.
"Well, you've done a fine job Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said smiling at him
"Thank you Madam" he said looking at her again and a slight smile tugged at his lips.
"Maya, does anything still hurt" Madam Whittaker asked.
"No" she lied and she continued to stare at him hatefully. She wouldn't be able to get Madam Whittaker to actually heal her because it would expose him as a liar and he knew she wouldn't dare to do something like that. He had meant for her to suffer and she would for the sake of her mission.
"You two may leave" Madam Whittaker said stepping out of her way. "Thank you for helping Mr Riddle"
"You're welcome Madam" he said nodding his head slightly. With his long strides he managed to get to the door first and he held it open for her. She abruptly paused glaring at him and he stared at her with a blank expression. As if he hadn't done enough already, why did he have to put on his Mr gentleman act right now? She forced herself to step through the door and she hastily walked away trying to get as far away from him as possible.
She sat on her bed undoing the bandage and cursing Tom Riddle. She wrapped her hand again at a loser hold and she glanced at the clock. Divination was going to start in five minutes. What a useless class, she felt like skipping it but being head girl it would get her into serious trouble and so she couldn't. She slung her bag over her shoulder and grabbed her books. Her right hand hurt and she tipped the weight of the books more to the left. She couldn't wait to see his dead body lying on the ground and she hoped he died a slow agonising death. She left the heads quarters and started to walk down the corridor.
Hermione entered the smoke filled classroom and blinking rapidly she made her way towards her usual small circular table. She sat down and shortly afterwards Tom slid into the chair opposite her. He glared at her and she forced herself to look away. She felt like crucioing him for what he had done at the hospital wing and it took all her strength to restrain herself. After what happened last night she didn't want to ever get on his bad side and no matter what he said or did she was going to keep calm. It would all pay of in the end when she successfully killed him and getting rid of Voldemort was what mattered.
"Silence" the divinations professor shouted and the class become quiet. "We are going to try and open the inner eye once again" the professor said in a high pitched voice. Great, one more wasted hour on staring at a crystal. "But this time the crystal balls have been soaked in" the professor paused "Moon water" the professor said dramatically waving her hands. What the hell was moon water? She couldn't remember reading about it in her divinations text book. "Who can tell me what moon water is?" the professor asked and Tom immediately raised his hand. Hermione hated divination so much that she didn't bother reading any other book expect the specified textbook but Tom had obviously done a lot of background reading. He suddenly looked at her and he continued to stare at her with a blank expression. He was probably wondering why she hadn't raised her hand and even if she had known the answer she wouldn't have competed, because she didn't want to take the risk of sending him over the edge in case the professor picked her over him.
"Mr Riddle" the professor said making him look away.
"Water that has been placed in moonlight of a full moon for a whole night and kept away from daylight afterwards" he said putting his hand down.
"Correct, 10 points to Slytherin" the professor said smiling at him. "The lunar energies empower the tools of divination and assist in the opening of the inner eye" the professor said in a low dramatic voice and Hermione felt like shouting, you're talking crap. Honestly, it was just water. It didn't matter if it was bathed in moonlight or sunlight as far as she was concerned it was still water in the end. The professor waved her wand and crystal balls appeared at the centre of each table. Silence filled the room as everyone started to crystal gaze and Tom's eyes were already fixed to the crystal ball. This was such as waste of time. She could have been doing other things like writing her potions essay or gathering ingredients for the broom cursing potion. Her eyes rested on Tom for a couple of seconds then she looked away knowing it would anger him if she stared.
She looked down at the crystal ball and feeling tired she closed her eyes. Hermione started to think about the broom cursing potion. She had to brew it for two days and she could make it in her bathroom but there was a risk that a female student or a professor might find it while she was away. No, she couldn't make it there. She had to find a secure place that staff and student wouldn't have access to but she couldn't think of one. Should she just risk it and use her bathroom? No, she couldn't take any risks with her mission and she continued to search her brain. After a while the answer popped into her mind and she felt like smacking herself for not thinking of it earlier, the room of requirements was the perfect place. She opened her eyes and her heart jumped violently when she found Tom staring at her with an angry expression. Why was he looking at her like that? She had been on her best behaviour today and she hadn't said a word to him so why was he angry? For a moment she felt scared that he had looked into her mind but she knew it couldn't be true as she had the power to block him with occulumency. He must be still angry with her from last night and she felt annoyed that he didn't think the punishment she was going through was sufficient enough to pay for what she had done. It didn't look like he was going to forgive her anytime soon and she wondered if she had accidentally done something new to offend him but nothing came to her mind. Well, he was the dark lord and she had destroyed his Zulfitack flowers. It would probably take some time for his anger to cool and she hoped he would get over it soon. His expression suddenly went blank and he started to stare at the crystal ball again. Hermione relaxed and looked around the room feeling bored. Once in a while she found Tom staring at her with an angry expression and she couldn't help but feel worried. It was uncomfortable sitting so close to him when he was looking at her like that and she was glad when divination was over.
At lunchtime she decided to skip her meal. She rushed down to her room and using her left hand she placed the dark magic books on object cursing in her bag. She walked up to the seventh floor and paused in front of a tapestry. She looked back and forth to make sure no one was watching then she turned towards the blank wall.
'I need a room to brew a potion' she said loudly in her head and concentrating hard she paced back and forth. After a while the door of the room of requirements materialised and she stepped inside to find a perfect potions lab with all the right equipments. She took out the dark magic books and her list of ingredients for the broom cursing potion. She opened up the book and double checked to make sure she had listed all the ingredients correctly. She planned to steal the ingredients from Slughorn's stores tonight and there were two ingredients listed under the heading, may not find. Those ingredients were exclusively used in dark potions and she knew Hogwarts or Slughorn wouldn't stock them. She tapped her quill impatiently against the ingredients list trying to think of a way she could acquire the remaining two and she suddenly gasped in pain. Her right hand was hurting from holding the quill and she switched hands. She gingerly touched her bandaged hand and read more about the ingredients in the book. Both of them were a plant or derived from it and she had a feeling one of them might grow in the forbidden forest. But the other one was from somewhere exotic and obtaining it was looking hopeless. She stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder. She left everything else in the room as she knew it would be there when she came back again.
In her afternoon classes she was starving and she couldn't concentrate. Once in a while she glanced at her wrist watch counting down to dinner time but time seemed to move slowly. Holding the quill with her right hand was painful and writing with her left hand was proving difficult. Throughout the classes Tom had stared at her with an angry expression or given her hateful glances and she started to get a bad feeling that he might know about her plan to kill him, but she knew it was ridiculous the minute the idea entered her head. He was just having a hard time getting over her burning the flowers and knowing he had to play quidditch was probably making things more difficult for him. So far he hadn't said a word to her and she preferred to keep it that way to avoid arguments.
The last class of her day was transfiguration and she was dreading it. Dumbledore had seen her injuries in the hospital wing and she was afraid he might question her about it. Her occulumency shields could prevent him from looking into her mind but she wasn't strong enough to stop him from knowing when she lied. She knew he was suspicious of her after he had caught her lying numerous times and she didn't want to fuel his suspicions further but it looked unavoidable. Hermione forced herself to enter the classroom and made her way to the back. Tom was already seated and he was staring ahead unblinking. Dumbledore suddenly fixed them with a piercing gaze and Tom clenched both his hands into fists while she stared at fingernails feeling uncomfortable. Once everyone was seated Dumbledore introduced something known as double transformation. He demonstrated by transfiguring a needle into a sliver spoon and then the spoon into a silver goblet. Tom easily managed to do it in seconds while the rest of the class struggled after converting it into a sliver spoon and Hermione was stuck at the same stage herself. Gripping the wand with her right hand was painful and it killed her concentration but she didn't dare hold it with her left hand as Dumbledore would notice. After a while she started to get frustrated and she jabbed her wand at the spoon violently then she regretted it as her hand badly stung.
"Miss Granger" Dumbledore's voice said sounding close and she looked up startled. Fear flickered across her face and she quickly changed her expression to appear apologetic. Tom looked towards at her and Dumbledore with a blank expression and one of his hands clenched into a fist.
"I'm sorry Professor, I didn't mean to do that" she said avoiding his eyes.
"It's quite alright Miss Granger, some people have snapped their spoons in half" Dumbledore said smiling at her kindly. "Double transformation is difficult to master, I myself wasn't successful on the first attempt" He stared at her bandaged hand for a couple of seconds then he looked at Tom and Tom stared back at him boldly. She felt relieved when Dumbledore walked back to the front of the classroom and Tom started to give her a death glare. What was he getting so worked up about? She hadn't told on him. He must be pissed of that Dumbledore suspected he was the cause but it's not like Dumbledore could do anything if she didn't accuse him in the first place. She tried the spell again and she managed to successfully transform the spoon into a silver goblet. She looked around the room to find Tom and her were the only two people who had completed the double transformation. She couldn't help but feel pleased with herself and she was sure she would have done it sooner if the pain wasn't there. She noticed him staring at her goblet with a blank expression then he gave her a hateful glance and she looked down at the table to avoid his gaze.
At the end of class Dumbledore awarded them both equal house points and showed of their goblets. He dismissed the class and everyone started to pack and file out the classroom. Tom was already out the door and she suppressed a gasp of pain as she picked up her heavy text book. She quickly left the classroom feeling glad that Dumbledore hadn't asked any questions. She separated from the mass of students and turned into an empty corridor leading towards the heads quarters. "Miss Granger" she heard Dumbledore's voice call and she abruptly paused. She knew it was too good to be true, Dumbledore would never let her off without asking any questions and she didn't have a choice but to answer them. With her pulse racing she clutched her book tightly and turned to face him.
"Yes Professor" she said with a strained voice.
"I couldn't help noticing your injuries at the hospital wing" he said walking closer. "If you don't mind me asking what happened to your lips?" Dumbledore would know if she lied but there was no way she was going to tell him the truth besides he was already suspicious from her previous lies.
"I had a bad nightmare, I bit them in my sleep" she said avoiding his gaze and when Dumbledore didn't say anything she forced herself to look at him. He had a serious expression on his face and when he looked into her eyes she quickly looked back down.
"And your hand" he said with a heavy voice.
"I burnt it in potions yesterday" she said looking up again.
"I see" he said staring at her bandaged hand with a grave expression and he suddenly bore his eyes into her. She immediately looked down and took in a deep breath. "Well, I hope your hand heals soon" he said in a resigned voice and Hermione felt relieved when he turned to leave. She watched him walk away and when he was out of sight she turned and continued down the corridor. After a few seconds Tom Riddle stepped out of a class room nearby and she jumped startled. She gasped in pain as the weight of the book shifted to her right hand and she glared at him angrily. She doubted him being there was a coincident and he had obviously been eavesdropping on her conversation with Dumbledore. For a while he stared at her with a blank expression then he started to walk towards the heads quarters and she followed. Soon they both stood in front of Persephone and Hades painting but Persephone and Hades were missing from it. She was about to tap on the painting and call Persephone when Tom poked his wand into the painting muttering an incantation. To her surprise Persephone and Hades immediately appeared looking windswept. She didn't know there was a spell to summon portrait people back into their portrait and she wondered what the incantation was. Persephone and Hades looked momentarily confused then Hades looked annoyed and Persephone looked furious.
"Horrible boy" Persephone shouted. "I was in the middle of a conversation"
"Calm down darling" Hades said placing an arm around Persephone.
"It's your job to guard the door not wander off" Tom said coldly.
"I do have a life you know" Persephone shouted placing her hands on hips.
"You don't, you're a painting" Tom said sneering at her.
"How dare you" Persephone shouted aiming punches at him but her knuckles remained trapped within the painting.
"Enough of this" Tom roared jabbing his wand into the painting and Persephone and Hades backed away with expressions of fear. "Open the door"
"Password" Persephone whispered.
"Medusa" Tom said making the door open and he threw a spell at the painting. Persephone and Hades screamed and fled the painting before the spell hit them. She stepped inside after Tom and shut the door. He disappeared into his room slamming the door shut and she entered her room a few seconds later. She placed the heavy book on her table and sat on the bed. She slowly stroked her bandaged hand to find it was more painful than it had been in the morning. She had used the hand to write, cast spells and carry heavy books throughout the entire day so she wasn't really surprised and for minute she entertained herself by imagining Tom Riddle meeting his death in various grisly situations. There was still a long time left till dinner and she was starving. To keep herself occupied she started to do some research for her potions essay and once in a while she glanced at the clock hoping time would move faster.
At dinner time she mostly used her left hand to pick up things and she found the inside of her lips stung if she tried to eat or drink something. Now more than ever she wished she had mastered healing magic properly and she scrunched her eyes in pain as she placed another spoonful of hot food inside her mouth. She opened her eyes to find Tom staring at her and she glared back at him. He knew it was hurting her to eat and he was probably getting some sick pleasure from watching her like this. She looked away and picked up another spoonful. She was way too hungry and she didn't care how badly it was going to hurt. Trying to ignore the stinging of her lips she started to stuff her face with food and she swallowed spoon after spoon as quickly as she could.
"Maya, what the hells gotten into you?" Susan said looking at her.
"Hungry" she said with her mouthful.
"Not surprising since you missed breakfast and lunch" Susan said giving her a disapprovingly look and still busy eating Hermione nodded in response. "Guess what?" Susan suddenly said sounding excited.
"What?" she said spooning more food onto her plate.
"I've got this new picture book" Susan said raising an eyebrow. "You wanna come over later?" She knew what kind of picture book Susan was talking about and she had no desire to be looking at pornographic images with a bunch of giggling girls. She had better things to do like homework and planning the assassination of the dark lord.
"Can't I'm busy" Susan looked disappointed at her response.
"Oh come on Maya, just for five minutes"
"Sorry can't"
"They have a chapter on BDSM" Susan whispered. "I've heard Slytherin's like that kind of stuff"
"I'm not seeing a Slytherin" she said angrily knowing that Susan was referring to Tom and a few Ravenclaw's nearby looked at her curiously. She had no idea what BDSM was and she really didn't want to know about weird sexual practices.
"Okay, sorry" Susan said holding up a hand. "But can't you still come over"
"I have to write the potions essay, it's due tomorrow"
"How comes you left it till the last minute?"
"I started writing the herbology essay, I forgot the potions one was due sooner" she lied. The truth was she had been so busy with the murder planning that most of her homework time had been used up.
"Another time then" Susan said looking hopeful.
"Maybe" she said uncomfortably but she knew there was no way she was ever going to willingly view that picture book with Susan.
She sat in the heads common room writing her essay for potions and Tom sat close to the fireplace reading. Bones and Longbottom were whispering quietly in a corner and they were looking at a charms book. At first Hermione had thought they were discussing something class work related until she saw the full title, charms and decorations for weddings, when they lifted the book up higher. Looks like they were getting serious if they were discussing wedding decorations. She dipped her quill into ink and alternated between writing with her right hand and left hand. But she mostly tried to use her right hand as it was faster and neater. A couple of times she noticed Tom staring at her between his reading and being used to his stares she carried on writing without discomfort. Longbottom and Bones left when she was half way through writing her essay. The scratching of her quill filled the air as she continued to work in silence. When she finished her essay she re-read it and feeling satisfied she rolled it up. She looked up to find Tom wasn't sitting in his armchair anymore, instead he was standing near the fireplace staring at the flames and his book lay on the table. She put her things into her bag and placing the straps on her shoulder she started to walk up the stairs to her room.
"Granger" Tom said making her halt and with her heart racing she forced herself to turn around. He was standing sideways near the fireplace and his face was expressionless. "Come here" he said gesturing at the space in front of him. She gripped her bag tightly feeling scared. Why was he asking her to come down? Today she hadn't said or done anything to displease him and she hadn't told Dumbledore the truth, but maybe he was blaming her for Dumbledore suspecting him. Well, he was talking to her again but she didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing in this situation. She looked at his face for a clue but it was emotionless and his hands weren't clenched in fists. He didn't appear angry but the dark lord was hard to read and there was no way of knowing for sure. "Can't you understand simple instructions" he said in a colder voice. "Walk back down the stairs and stand here" he shouted pointing at the space in front of him and she pulled on the straps of her bag feeling more scared than ever. If she didn't obey then he would get very angry and she couldn't have that happen. She slowly walked down the stairs and he watched her every movement like a predator watched his prey. Merlin knew what he was planning to do, maybe he was regretting not crucioing her yesterday and he had decided to crucio her now.
Fear started to pool in her stomach as she walked closer and the hand gripping the straps of her bag was slightly shaking. "Stop" he said making her pause at an arms length from him. He drew his wand and her heart jumped violently. He stared at her for a while then he raised his wand hand and dropped it back to his side again. He did this one more time and an unsure expression flickered across his face then he suddenly pointed his wand at her. Hermione's eyes widened and blood drained from her face, any second now she was expecting him to shout crucio. He slowly moved his wand closer to her face and she watched its every move with her pulse racing. He lightly touched his wand onto her lips and she immediately drew back with a horrified expression. What the hell was he doing? "Don't move" he snapped making her jump and he took a step forward. He touched his wand onto her lips once again and she shivered in fear but she forced herself to remain still. "Part your lips" Did he actually say that or had she heard incorrectly. "Do I have to repeat myself?" he hissed making her flinch.
She hadn't heard incorrectly and he was probably going to use a torture spell that she wasn't familiar with, but she was glad he wasn't going to crucio her. She slightly parted her lips and she felt so scared she couldn't stop her bottom lip from trembling. "Avexi avectum" he said softly as he lightly traced the outline of her lips and she immediately recognised the incantation, it was the healing spell Madam Whittaker had mentioned. A tingling feeling developed on the inside and the outside of her lips then she felt a pulling sensation. She ran her tongue over the insides of her lips to find the injuries were gone and it no longer hurt. Tom stared at her for a while and she stared back at him with her mind too numb to think about what had just happened. He conjured a dish and filled it with ice then he placed it on the palm of his left hand. "Lift up your right hand" he suddenly said and she raised her hand feeling no longer afraid. "Evanesco" he said making the bandage vanish and a huge patch of brown wrinkled skin with slightly leaking blisters came into view. "Sanialtus" he said circling his wand over her hand three times and his forehead was creased in concentration. "Abstergo" he said flicking his wand and a blue light enveloped her whole hand. The blisters disappeared and the brown wrinkled skin became replaced by a shade of deep pink. Hermione suddenly felt burning heat all over her hand and grabbing her by the sleeve he thrust her hand deep into the dish of ice. She let out a gasp feeling the sudden coldness and relief spread through her as the burning stopped. After a while he pulled her hand out and it wasn't burning anymore but the skin was still pink. He made the dish of ice vanish and put his wand away. "Hold your hand up" she held up her hand once again and he pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket. He folded the square cloth into a triangle and taking great care not to touch her, he carefully tied it around half of her hand excluding her thumb. Tom picked up his book and silently walked up to his room leaving behind a confused Hermione. She slowly walked up to her room with her eyes fixed on the handkerchief wrapped hand and she was still finding it hard to believe that he had healed her.
She shut the bedroom door and dumped her bag on the floor. She touched her right hand to find it didn't hurt anymore and the pink skin would probably disappear in four to six hours like Madam Whittaker had said earlier. Why had he healed her? She didn't know why and the question was dominating her mind. He didn't benefit by healing her so why would he do it? Maybe he had done it as the professors would notice in the morning that her hand was still bandaged and it would reveal that he hadn't healed her. That had to be the reason why, he had healed her to save himself from being exposed as a liar so in the end it did benefit him. But he didn't have to heal her lips as no one would have noticed that so why did he bother then? She thought and thought but she couldn't find an answer to show how he benefited. After a while she gave up thinking about it. It didn't matter why and from his actions it looked like he wasn't angry at her anymore and she hoped she was right. Hermione lifted up her right hand and observed it more closely. The handkerchief covering her hand was plain white and she wondered if it had his initials or some sort of symbol like his last hankerchief. Feeling curious she lifted up one of the triangle ends and a snake sewn with green thread met her eyes. Above the head of the snake was the letter T and below its tail was the letter R. It obviously stood for Tom Riddle and the snake showed he was in Slytherin. Hermione suddenly felt dirty wearing lord Voldemort's handkerchief and she started to take it off. She dumped the handkerchief in her drawer and to protect her right hand she put on one of her winter gloves. She glanced at the clock and she decided to wait an hour before she went down to steal the ingredients for the broom cursing potion.
An hour later she put on her hooded cloak and sneaked out the heads common room. She walked down the corridor looking back and forth and she climbed down a couple of stairs. She was about to turn into another corridor when a sound made her stop and she grasped her wand. She was sure someone was in that corridor but at least no one had seen her. Who could it be? A professor, students like her wandering outside curfew or one of the heads patrolling. She heard the sound again and she was sure it was a low moan. What was going on and why could she hear sounds like that? She carefully snuck her head around the corner to take a peek and a couple kissing deeply came into her view. With the help of the dim light from a burning torch hanging on the wall she recognised who the couple were. It was Bones and Longbottom and they were meant to be patrolling tonight but it looked like they had something else on their minds. She had to go through that corridor to get to Slughorn's office and there was no other way. She waited for a while hoping Bones and Longbottom would move somewhere else and when she couldn't hear anymore moans she took a peak again but they were still tangled in each other. Longbottom pulled back and she thought they were going to leave but he suddenly shoved Bones against the wall. He pinned her down with his body weight and he started to kiss her neck making her moan loudly.
"Cynthia darling, you're going to get us caught" Longbottom whispered.
"Can't help it, with the things you do" Bones whispered weaving her fingers into his hair. Longbottom slid his hands under her blouse and Bones yelped in surprise.
"William no" she whispered removing his hands.
"Come on sugar" Longbottom attempted to touch her again but she batted his hands away. "You said everything above the waist was fine before marriage"
"Okay, I'll let you" Bones whispered looking down with a shy expression and Hermione felt like screaming in frustration. She had no desire to watch them touch up each other and she wondered why they couldn't move to a broom closet or some other place. "But not here" Bones whispered pushing him away and Hermione breathed out in relief.
"How about that empty classroom" Longbottom whispered pointing down the corridor.
"Okay" Bones whispered back and he put his arms around her waist as they walked towards it.
"They have desks that we could----" Longbottom started.
"Don't you get ideas" Bones cut in. They soon disappeared into the classroom and Hermione hurried down the corridor. She paused in front of Slughorn's office and looking back and forth to make sure no one was watching she muttered the password. She stepped inside and took out the list of ingredients from her pocket. She removed the available ingredients from Slughorn's store room and resetting the password she sneaked out again.
She walked up to the seventh floor and wishing exactly the same thing as before she entered the room of requirements. Everything she had left at lunchtime was still there and she placed the bundle of stolen ingredients on a desk. She took out the ingredients list and she stared at the two items under the heading, may not find. She had been right, Slughorn didn't have them and one of them was called silver bell flower. She had once overheard Snape asking Hagrid to pick silver bell flowers and she hoped they still grew in the forbidden forest in the past. She took a look at the picture of the flower in the dark magic book and read the description. It wouldn't be hard to recognise but she had no desire to go down to the forbidden forest at the dead of night, especially after the way the hyenas had attacked her. Going there early in the morning before everyone woke up seemed much safer and she shut the book yawning.
She left the room of requirements and sneaked back into the heads quarters. She entered her room and started to change into her nightclothes and it was weird having a gloved hand while she did that. She decided to go down to the forbidden forest in the morning and she set her alarm clock at 5 am. She slid into her bed feeling really tired and soon she was fast asleep.
Thank you for the reviews everyone and I'm sorry for the late update. I did write up this chapter earlier but then I didn't like it and I re-wrote the whole chapter again. I have a feeling my writing doesn't flow properly in this chapter and I'm sorry if it's hard to read.
Ekaterina has made a lovely comic strip of chapter 16 and there are other awesome pictures from the story. The live journal link is on my profile page, please check out her work and scroll down once you load the webpage.
Please leave me reviews and I'll try and update faster.