Chapter 1- The Devil's Eyes
Snap.
My eyes opened.
My fists clenched.
My breathing laboured.
I was awake.
Without even a thought as to where I was or how much my body protested, I rocketed upwards. My vision still a blur I blinked furiously at the world around me. The light, like one I had not seen in months was bright and clinical, suggesting I was not where I thought I was. Heaven? Hell? Somewhere in between.
I lifted my hands quickly rubbing at my eyes, remembering how damaged they were from curses I pulled them away staring down. They were clean, my nails no longer held the grime of months of war and torment.
"Ah you are awake dear." I look up rapidly sending a sharp pain through my body, subconsciously forcing me to grab the back of my neck.
"You came to us in quite a state." My vision suddenly cleared and I was faced with a small short haired woman in a white uniform. Her face was rosy and cheerful as she carried a tray of coloured potions to the end of my bed. I realized automatically where I was. Hogwarts hospital wing. I swung my legs over the side of my bed and stood stark still. I wanted to scream. The hospital wing was in perfect order and not how I had seen it last.
"Oh no sit down please miss, you are in no fit state to be standing. Please lie down." It was then I realized that the stout woman was wearing a healer's uniform.
"No get away!" I shouted taking a step backwards, falling into the bedside table. "Where am I?! Tell me now!" I screamed at the woman. I was confused and scared, even though my voice would not lead anyone to think so. I had learned to hide fear.
"You are at Hogwarts School dear. My goodness I shall call for the headmaster!" she started as she swiftly turned away. "Yes and Albus too" she whispered under her breath...Albus...I knew that name...
Despite the excruciating pain in my legs and the crushing feeling in my head, I began to run out of the hospital wing. My feet pounded heavily on the stone floor, the same floor my head a fallen to not moments ago? I ran and ran through the corridors of...my home...
I had no wand no concept of how or why this was all happening, but I knew I had to run. It all become too much, I placed my hand onto the nearest corridor wall and collapsed to the floor sobbing. I couldn't be back here. I turned my head quickly to the wall placing my cheek against the cold stone, I traced the wall quickly with my fingers, knowing this to be the charms corridor, but it wasn't destroyed; it wasn't covered in the bodies of my dead friends. I screamed. I couldn't stop. The doors on the corridors opened one by one, and students poured onto the corridor starting down at me with shocked and scared faces. The faces or Hogwarts students in their neat uniforms, unharmed. Before I could even take my next labored breath I was scooped up into the arms of a bearded man and carried down the corridor. My vision began to blur as I managed to make out a faces. Faces of people I did not know. A figure hovered about me, black hair and blue eyes. He said something. Another figure entered my view. A face I thought I knew. A face I could have seen in a dream, an old friend, the face of Albus Dumbledore.
Blackness once again took hold of me.
I once again woke up with a start to find myself staring up at the ceiling of the hospital wing. I went to sit upright with a start when I friendly hand clasped my shoulder.
"Please stay still miss." I recognized the voice, that friendly tone I had become accustomed to during my 6 years at Hogwarts. Albus Dumbledore.
"How...what?..." I managed my throat raw and burning.
"You appeared in the courtyard a week ago, beaten nearly to death...with dark magic. You gave our students quite the scare. I have to say even I could barely look upon you." He looked curiously at me, unsure what to say maybe? Or just terrified I would scream again. Dumbledore spoke softly. It was then that I noticed his face. Youthful and near free of the wrinkles that plagued the face I knew.
"Where am I?" I asked, I couldn't hear my own voice, shocked filled my every sense, I was numb, staring at his face. I wanted to reach out and touch, to see if this was real.
"You are at Hogwarts dear. A wizarding school in..."I quickly interrupted.
"I know. Hogwarts." I soon regretted saying this. Dumbledore's face scrunched into a frown as he peered over his spectacles.
"I do not recognize you." He mumbled quickly under his breath. Realization dawned on his face, he stood quickly and begun pacing. "When you were found, you possessed one wand, and a time turner. A broken time turner. I did not know at first that is was a time turner as it was badly damaged beyond repair." he glanced sideways at me "that explains..." he mumbled again turning away.
The time turner. I was suddenly bombarded with memories. The battle. The defeat and the figure of death.
"I believe what I feared has come true..." Dumbledore spoke softly as he sat back down on the small chair. "You are not from this time" Noting my confusion before I had even registered it he carried on. "The year is 1944."
Before he could continue the doors to the infirmary opened, and a tall slender figure glided towards my bed. The boy seemed to be supernatural being. An angel at first sight perhaps? He glided like a phantom, glided like a ghost, glided like death.
Death had light blue eyes and slick, slightly wavy dark brown hair. His lips pursed, he started at me with no emotion. He was a blank canvas, or so he appeared. I had learnt that seeing was not always believing.
"Professor" his voice chimed." the headmaster sent me to see if the girl was awake." His voice was almost melodic and he spoke with a sense that he has whoever was listening in the palm of his hand, demanding and dangerous.
I was utterly captivated with the boy. Like when seeing Dumbledore again, it was like looking into the face of an old friend. I was snapped out of my haze by another voice.
"Yes I will be escorting miss?" he looked at me. He wanted to know my name...I could trust him.
"Crimson." I spoke softly.
"Crimson Méfier."
Death smiled.
The pearly white teeth of the boy were sharp and straight, they reminded me of a shark, they were a warning...a warning of danger...
"Thank you that will be all." Dumbledore dismissed him with a wave of his hand.
Riddle.
Riddle.
Riddle.
The name tumbled through my head as the phantom stalking gracefully out of the room.
That boy was no ordinary boy, that boy was Tom Riddle.
I had yet again come face to face with the man who killed my friends, my parents and ruined me. And he smiled.
As the door closed I regained my composure. I held in all the feelings I had for Tom Riddle and made sure Dumbledore did not notice although I knew it was in vain. My face, I had been told, told a thousand stories, and clouding my feelings was never a strong point of mine.
"The dark magic that was inflicted upon you has been reversed; you will be left with some curse marks however they will heal with time...much like the mental scars." He spoke softly placing his hand on mine. The comforting weight of human touch that I had been deprived of made my heart soar.
"You do not need to tell the about the future or what has happened to you, one day I will know and I can wait until then." I felt a pang of sadness hit me in the chest as I pictured his lifeless body at the bottom of the astronomy tower. His face so different to the one I was facing now. I like this face better.
"Now Miss Méfier, whilst you are here you will attend classes with the 7th years as I am lead to believe you are 17 nearly 18 am I correct?" I nodded swiftly. "Term only begun 3 weeks ago so catching up will not be difficult...You must tell the other students nothing of the future." He added with haste. "This I stress to you, consequences come to those who meddle with time...if you would like to take my arm I will lead you to be sorted." I followed him...
I followed Dumbledore through the empty corridors, it must have been late at night as the student s were nowhere to be seen after my episode in the corridor this morning. I was thankful of this, I couldn't be doing with the stares and questions just yet.
Letting my thought become trivial and worry free we were soon outside the headmaster's office. "Honeydukes" announced Dumbledore loudly as the wall moved slowly aside to lead into the office.
It was different to how it was in my time. Not as much clutter...not as homely but of course I thought to myself, Dumbledore was not headmaster yet. The walls were still lined with rows and rows of books. Papers lay littered on the floor, desk and up to the platform behind the desk that help the telescope. The red drapes that covered the room in my time where a midnight blue and made the room seem dark and cold.
I was snapped from my thoughts when Dumbledore waved his hand mindlessly and the sorting hat floated to his outstretched hand. The hat looked the same as it did every year I had seen it. I quickly stopped myself from thinking of my past. This was my life now and if I compare it to my 'future' I would never be satisfied.
The hat jolted with a start and stared (if hats could stare into your soul this would could) straight at me. "Please take a seat miss..." "Please call me Crimson" I interrupted I said with a faint smile ghosting my lips. He smiled warmly.
He summoned a small stool in front of me and I carefully sat down, realising for the first time I was wearing one of the strange hospital gowns with small green dots on.i had always thought this was an ugly thing, but I guessed this was better than the old clothes that I had worn for a week before the battle. I began to feel anxious...the material was uncomfortable against my pale thighs as I sat on the seat awaiting the hats verdict on my fate for the second time, although this time seemed more daunting.
Dumbledore placed the hat carefully on my sleek blond hair, again I was intrigued with myself, I hadn't seen my hair this smooth since...well since Hermione had brushed it, in the tent when she had attempted to cut Harry's hair, I sighed sadly returning my eyes to the floor.
"AH" the sudden voice startled me out of my trivial day dream and back into the room. The hat has begun to talk. "Not from this time I see, yessssss, but sometime later...now let's not dwell on your past...or future...clever...a thirst to prove yourself...darkness, you have suffered a great deal" I cringed back into myself willing for the hat to leave my thoughts alone... "You feel like you a disappointment...oh to your friends yes...but your skills with the dark arts and your thirst for approval can only leave me to place you in...SLYTHERIN!" The hat screeched.
I froze.
Slytherin.
"Ah very well" spoke Dumbledore, a hint of disappointment in his voice. He took the hat from my head and walked away slowly. "You will reside in the Slytherin head girls dormitory as we don't have one this year and I am guessing you would like your privacy?" I nodded, keeping my head hung towards the floor. "Very well, your uniform will be waiting and your books will be ready for when you begin lessons on Monday. I look forward to teaching you...Crimson." He smiled from the corner of his mouth, a worried expression crossed his eyes and I pretended not to notice.
"Mr. Riddle will be here in a moment to escort you to your dormitory." He said the name with malice and my breath froze in midair.
Riddle.
Riddle.
Riddle.
Moments later, not giving me time to think, there was a small but sharp knock on the door.
There he was.
Tom Riddle.
As much as I wanted to kill him there and then I restrained myself...but only just.
"Ah Tom, please would you take Crimson to the Slytherin dormitories, head girls if you please. And give her a tour around the castle, I'm sure she is in need of some sort of comfort in what is where." He winked at me, knowing I knew exactly where I was. I smiled briefly.
"Of course Sir." And then Riddle did something unexpected...he walked up to me, his eyes locking with mine,
...and offered me his arm.
Up to now I had branded the dark lord as many things...but chivalrous was not one of them. The act was superior and again just how Harry has described him in our second year. Dangerously calm. Dangerously delightful.
I slowly took his arm barley touching it, merely hovering , his slender fingers closing over mine and pressed my fingers to his arm, he lead me out of the room.
Once the door closed a cold chill travelled the length of my spine...He look at me again and smiled. This smile was empty, and was merely for show I knew this. But as I stared into the devils blue eyes...I knew I would not escape and somewhere buried inside me was the feeling that I did not want to.