Thanks to all who commented. Here is the first part of the chapter written from Buffy's pov.

I hope you enjoy it.

…...

The return

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Buffy shivered, still cold from being soaked by a heavy rain shower just as she'd run from the forest for Hogwarts. Once inside, she'd been able to cast a Drying Charm, but she still felt chilled after having two soakings in one night.

At a blank section of wall inside the dungeon corridor, she stopped and said, "Snake Venom."

The door to the Slytherin Common Room opened, allowing her to walk through into the greenish gloom of the private rooms. The door closed behind her but she barely noticed; her mind on the Pook, the mysterious Babylonian Devil Traps, and wondering what Lovell's reaction would be when she told him that she'd fought a Unicorn. As it was a Saturday, her cousin – being a typical teenage boy – would be having a lie-in and she wouldn't see him until lunchtime. They'd also need to find somewhere secluded to discuss her adventure. That reminded her...

Would Tiptoes know about the hidden room Dumbledore had told her about? She was desperate for a new training space now that the Scottish weather had taken a turn for the worse and a hidden room sounded ideal. Buffy decided that she'd find Tiptoes and speak to her about the Come-And-Go Room.

Inside the Common Room area, the fire was out. Buffy shivered again. Was it her, or was it unusually cold in here? Taking out her wand, she cast a Warming Charm and got it just right– a nice one that was neither too hot nor too cold.

"Been sssomewhere nice?"

Buffy jumped. Oh Crap!

"Tom! I could have -. Um, why didn't you cough, or yodel or something instead of sneaking up on me?"

He was standing by a pillar, easily visible to the Slayer's eyes despite the semi-darkness and a Disillusionment Charm covering him. Why hadn't she checked before waltzing in here? What was he doing lurking around in the darkness anyway? And what was with the annoyance? She glanced at the clock – 6 am. The grumpiness could be because he wasn't a morning person.

Tom glided over to her, his footsteps hardly making any noise on the thick rug. He stopped, so close that his shadow fell over her, and Buffy had to bite back a giggle and a snarky remark about space invaders. Instead, she ran her gaze over his face, taking in his smooth features, black tousled hair, and pursed lips. He didn't just sound annoyed, he looked it as well. Her eyes dropped to his prefect badge sitting high up on the collar of his robe.

Did he know that she'd been out all night? How would he even know that she was missing? All the beds in the dorms were curtained and the rule was that once they were closed, no one bothered you. Could he have seen her leaving? What if... he'd followed her?

Tom's lips moved, casting a Lighting Charm and then throwing the lighting orb upwards, to hover above their heads. That was a neat bit of magic! She'd need to look that Charm up.

"Tell me, where you have been?" he demanded. "Don't bother to lie. Believe me, I shall know if you do."

His voice sounded so cold and unlike his normal speaking voice. Was he trying to frighten her? She was a Slayer who could stare down demons, a fifteen year old prefect had no chance. Buffy stepped forward, closing the gap between them even further.

"Um... I wasn't about to," she lied, keeping her face innocent whilst keeping an eye on his wand. She could easily grab it at this distance.

He wouldn't hex her though, would he? He was Tom, her friend from her orphanage days. But... hadn't he been acting oddly since she'd arrived at Hogwarts? Sometimes, she'd had the impression that he really liked her and then a shutter would come down. Why? Was there something about her that he found repulsive?

Aware of the way his eyes were raking over her, she shifted – a little uncomfortable at the close scrutiny. What was he looking for? Was her hair a mess? Drying Charms were all very well, but she still felt dirty from the lake and badly needed a hot shower. Tom's nostrils flared. Oh God, she didn't smell, did she?

"You were going to lie," Tom hissed. "Admit it."

Maybe she was, but really it was for the greater good. Even by telling him some of her secrets, she'd be putting him in danger with the Ministry. If they ever found out that she was an illegal vampire killer they'd want to know about accomplices. It was bad enough that she'd drawn Lovell into all this and he'd helped her clean up after stakings.

"Tom, I..." Buffy reached out, trying to make him listen, to say... she wasn't sure what. Dropping her hand, she accidentally brushed his prefect badge with her fingers.

"Kindly explain where you've been until now."

Buffy peeked at him from under lashes, feeling guilty and gauging what to say. If she told him a little – not about the slaying, but about looking for Dementors – would he take her to Slughorn? "The answer... depends."

He regarded her suspiciously. "Depends?"

"Are you are asking me as a prefect or as Tom?"

He shot her a scathing look. "There should be no difference."

"Oh, but there is!" Buffy gave him a little smile, trying to convey to him that she wasn't being awkward. She thought Tom could be trusted to keep secrets, but this new Tom – the prefect Tom – she wasn't as sure about. "Because if you're gonna be Prefect-guy, I went to find a favourite quill that I dropped... um, in the hall... just outside the door. On the other hand, if you're asking as the Tom I know and love –."

Love? Her stomach flipped. Crap! Not daring to meet his eye, she stammered, "Ig-ignore that! I-I didn't mean... I'm not saying... I don't..." She took a deep breath, realising Tom wasn't laughing at her – which was good. "Yeah, so... now we've got that straight." She looked up, met his eyes and nearly got lost in them. They were pools of dark blue, layered with currents of emotions. What was he thinking? What did he think of her? "...where was I?"

"Hopefully," he replied, "explaining where you sneaked off to."

She caught her bottom lip between her teeth as she thought. "Um, if I tell you, are you gonna go prefect on me?"

"I may be a prefect, but..." Tom tapped the space on his robe where his badge should be, and his jaw dropped. "My badge! I've lost my badge! Lumos! I don't see it. Can you see it?"

Panic poured off him. Buffy grabbed his forearm. "Tom!" She opened her hand and showed him the badge. "It's right here."

Tom frowned. "How did... Oh, never mind."

When he reached for the badge, Buffy closed her fist and put her hand behind her back. "Promise me... promise you won't go to Sluggy if I give it you."

His face dropped as he realised she'd stolen it. "You took it off my robe?"

Buffy couldn't deny it.

"Give it back, please," he asked.

"Promise me first, Tom. Promise me, not to tell."

Tom eyed her, angry because she wouldn't give him the badge. "Why should I?"

Buffy regarded him silently, wondering what to do. "What happened to you, Tom?" she asked quietly. "What happened to the Tom that I knew from Wools? The Tom who snuck out under Coley's nose, broke into the town hall, and wasn't afraid of fighting his enemies." She preferred that Tom to the boy who was such a model student when she wasn't. Disappointed that their paths seemed to be diverging, she handed him the badge. "You've let this badge go to your head."

Tom smiled, happy to get his badge back. "You have no idea of the long game that I'm playing, Buffy. Never fear, the old Tom you knew from the orphanage is still very much in here," he said, tapping his chest.

"What long game?" Buffy asked, curious. Was Tom not as perfect as he appeared?

"I want to be Head Boy."

Buffy rolled her eyes. She could see him now, the perfect Head Boy, proudly strutting along and shouting at the first years to stop running in the corridors.

"Where did you go tonight?"

Buffy perched on the arm of the nearest sofa. "I went out... seeking revenge." She peeked at him from under her lashes again, to see if he disapproved.

Tom sat on the arm of a sofa across from her. Buffy was pleased to see he looked thoughtful than disapproving.

"Explain further. Revenge on whom?" He looked at her keenly, dark eyes boring into her. "And who were you with tonight? Was it Lovell? Or someone else?"

Someone else? Why would she endanger someone else? She was the Chosen One, it was her destiny to hunt the Creepies. It wasn't as if she had Giles here and the Scoobies. "No one went with me. I went on my own – ."

"Leaving behind a House-elf as your accomplice," Tom interrupted. "I've met your friend Tiptoes."

Buffy gave him a bright smile. "Isn't she nice?"

"She was distraught," Tom replied crisply, looking a little reproachful. "She thought that she'd sent you to your death by letting you out. It took ages to reassure her. Once she'd calmed down, I sent her to bed and left the door unlocked for you."

Buffy bit her lip. That didn't sound good. "Ah, guess I'll need to speak to her tomorrow."

Something hit the window pane, and Buffy looked up warily. That better not be Rory out there in the lake. The Phouka had told her he'd meet her when he knew more, made a nuisance of himself by skipping alongside her, and then vanished without saying goodbye.

"So... this revenge you went to seek..." Tom prompted.

Something large and dark swam past the window. The water was dark and there was a lot of weed, but had it hovered, trying to see in? Buffy's eyes narrowed. He's said he'd speak to the Grindylows for her, not spy on her.

"Probably a Mer or a Kelpie," Tom said, quietly. "Don't worry about it."

"Hmm." Buffy turned her shoulder on the dark shape and faced Tom. Here goes... "I went searching for the Dementors. Dippy said they'd been spotted around Hogsmeade and I wanted to find them."

"Are you daft?" he exclaimed. "It isn't your job to take them on."

She gave a little shrug, knowing that it was her job – in this world, just like the last.

Incredulous, he asked, "Have you forgotten what they did to you?"

"I had to," she responded a little too brightly. "That's what Dumbledore said I should do. He said, get back on my Hippogriff and overcome the trauma."

"Dumbledore is an arse," Tom muttered dryly. "But even he'd never tell you to sneak out in the middle of the night to face Dementors."

That made her laugh. "Maybe not. But he's bossy. And he's nosy too."

"Unquestionably." The smile tugging at Tom's lips turned him into a Dark Angel. "Looking at the shape of his nose, someone else thought the same as us and bopped him on it."

She snickered, glad there was something they still could agree on. "Yep, busted for putting it where it wasn't wanted." Remembering his questioning when she stood in front of the Mirror of Erised, she rolled her eyes. "I know the feeling."

"So do I."

Buffy went on, "So... despite my best efforts tracking the dark and creepies down, it was a complete bust. I didn't find any sign of Dementors or Dumbledore's Hippogriffs."

"So what happened?"

She looked at him, wondering how he knew, and he went on, " You come back without your cap, your clothes are full of mud, and your coat is buttoned up all wrong..."

Buffy looked down and hurried flicked at some of the mud.

"Then there is your hair..."

"My hair?!" Her hands went to her head. "What's wrong with my hair?"

Tom frowned, looking at it critically "It's stood up at right angles -."

Buffy squealed and ran to the nearest mirror to check her reflection. Casting a Lumos without even thinking, she leaned in and moaned. What had Rory done? There were sections of hair stuck up all over her head! It made her look like some kind of crazy cave-girl. Horrified, she began pushing and teasing at the errant locks, growing more agitated as they sprang back up again. Fuming, she snapped, "I'm so gonna kill him for this!"

"Him?"

"Rory."

"Who's Rory?"

Buffy stilled. Should she tell him Rory was a Phouka who'd been a horse and taken her on a death-ride? He might say she needed to tell Slughorn. "A guy, I met. I, er, accidentally fell into the lake with him."

"Is he a student?"

"Um, no." She began to pull at one of the knotted sections of hair. "Rory is..." How to describe Rory? 'Horse-guy comedian' and 'smugly handsome' were the only phrases that came to mind. "...he's older than us. He's also a bit on the weird side with a whacky sense of humour."

Buffy tugged at her hair; it was a complete mess. She was so going to kill him for doing this. Why did she keep meeting infuriating people in the lake? She'd thought Rigel Black was hard work, but the Pook was a thousand times worse. That led to an amusing thought. "You know what's crazy?" She laughed. "Every time I take a dive in the Black Lake I get a proposal of marriage. Is it a British thing?"

"No." Tom's eyes locked hers in the reflection. "Are you meeting this Rory again?"

Buffy gnawed her bottom lip, considering how much to tell him. "He's getting me some information on... Dementors and other things." She gave up on her hair. "I don't feel comfortable meeting him near the Black Lake, so I said it had to be in a public place. Somewhere dry." The Pook had looked affronted when she'd said that. Then he'd grinned and said if he couldn't be wet on the outside he'd be wet on the inside. "He's arranged to meet me in the Hog's Head. I don't know when. Guess that depends on if he can get the information or not."

"Ten points from Slytherin, for breaking curfew."

"Hey!" She turned to find him standing and holding his wand. "I thought you were my friend?"

"Friend?" Tom's face was white. "You're lucky that I'm not taking you to Slughorn and letting him deal with you. Not only would he dock you fifty points, but he'd give you nightly detention for the next six months."

Buffy's jaw dropped.

Then Tom did something worse – he sneered, looking her up and down as if she was dirt. "If I reported you to the Headmaster, Salazar only knows what he'd say. A young girl, sneaking off to meet older Wizards in the middle of the night and coming back with her clothes filthy and in disarray? I'm sure he'd draw unpleasant conclusions."

Buffy had her wand out and the Jelly-Legs Curse thrown at him almost without thinking. How dare he say that about her? She'd gone out to hunt, not to be skanky whore of the year.

"PROTEGO!"

The Jelly-Legs Curse hit his Shielding Charm and dispersed harmlessly.

He regarded her, a cold sneer on his lips. "That's pathetic, Buffy. If you want to take me on in a duel, you'll need to do much better than that."

…...