Chapter 9: Momentum

[Houa POV]

Rey Tadeas Potter…

Is he...is he related to Har—

"Miss Songly, I would like a word with you," Tom interrupted her thoughts with his cold voice, completely ignoring the Gryffindor beside her.

Houa bit her lips, hands clenched at her sides looking at the floor as she strengthened herself to remove the pain on her skin.

"If you're referring to the vomit incident, she didn't do it on purpose," Rey crossed his arms on his chest, turning to Riddle.

Though the Head Boy remained unaffected on the outside the increasing pain on Houa's skin told her otherwise.

"Back off Potter! He's not talking to you!" spat the Slytherin boy with long flowy white hair and green eyes.

"Give it a break Malfoy! She's new!" Mr. Potter pulled out his wand.

Two other Slytherin boys entered the room and slipped out their wands alongside Mr. Malfoy.

If Tom joins them, there's no way Rey would win when it's four against one!

Houa made a risky decision then, "Stop! I can't talk with you. I'm talking with Rey right now, so please excuse us," she stepped closer to the Gryffindor.

"You heard her. We're having a conversation together," Mr. Potter added stepping in front of Houa in a protective stance.

If it weren't for Rey's positive energy shielding her, she would have felt the slices on her skin as Riddle and Potter faced off in a glaring contest. The air was getting thicker by the second and Houa was sure only a knife could cut through it.

Just when she thought the two would explode into a duel, Tom feigned a modest smile, "But of course Miss Songly. We can always talk next time."

Houa gulped at how soon next time would come around and watched as the Head Boy left the room with his followers joining him.

She lets out a breath she has been holding in and looked at the Gryffindor who pocketed his wand, "Thank you for standing up for me um Rey, was it?"

His face lit up, making him even more handsome, "You can count on me to stand up for you all the time when you vomit on the Head Boy!"

The Hufflepuff couldn't help and giggled, offering her hand to him, "I'm Houa, Houa Songly."

The rest of her afternoon was spent alongside her new friend. She learned quickly that the brave Gryffindor was quite popular among his peers and the female population.

Though Houa could sense a hint of delinquency in him, he was well mannered for the most part, funny, confident, courageous and handsome. Throw that on top of being on the Quidditch Team, coming from an esteemed pureblood wizarding family who is not only wealthy, but powerful and well known, the entire female student body was praying they'd be the recipient of his romantic proposal before school ends.

Next to the Head Boy, he was a major catch on their list of husband-to-be. Unlike Tom though, the young Mr. Potter revels in attention from others, particularly his female counterparts, flirting with them through winks and hand kissing.

One may even think the young Mr. Potter to be a player and Houa his latest conquest, but the Xellarius had disregarded it.

She had seen a vision through their handshake.

A well groom butler took the coat off of the young Mr. Potter and seated him down on a deluxe chair at a dinner table with food enough for a family of ten. Every corner of the dining room was garnish in luxurious ornaments and the crystal chandelier dangling above sent sparks dancing throughout like fairies. The window beyond only adds to the room's magic, providing a perfect view of the sun kissing the sky peach on the horizon yet something about the lively room gave off a melancholic vibe.

It was just so grand, so vast, so empty, so lonely…

"Sir and Madame Potter are currently attending an important meeting with the aristocrats and will be away for a week. They will be unable to make it to your eighteenth birthday celebration and have hand picked your gifts ahead of time."

"Anything else," the hazel eye teenager stared off into the landscape, but not really seeing it.

"If the Young Master requires anything else for his birthday then all he needs is to ask and it shall be provided."

"Thank you Albert, that will be all. I would like to be alone please," the young wizard excused himself from the table, his footsteps echoing off in the distance revealing how stark the house really is.

It was quite simple for Houa to connect the dots after seeing the vision and feeling Rey's emotions.

The pureblood son was essentially born with a silver spoon in his mouth, lavish with all the goods he'll ever need; however, was denied the only thing he ever craved: Love and attention from his parents.

This of course led him to seek it elsewhere and through other means, having clashed several times with Malfoy and eventually the Head Boy who he stated was abnormally perfect, it seems pretentious. Houa gotta hand it to Rey for listening to this part of his intuition at least.

Hence why the Gryffindor had been curious as to who this Vomit Girl was and upon discovering her in his Care for Magical Creature class after she tamed the nine tailed fox, wanted to befriend her.

Long after Houa had thanked him again and they parted ways for him to go to Quidditch practice (with him promising to see her again soon), her earlier thoughts returned.

Is Rey Tadeas Potter related to the future Harry Potter?

The only way to truly find out would be to gaze into his hazel eyes for extended minutes as she had done with Tom.

Ugh, but how am I to do that without coming off as creepy or interested in him?

Houa sighs remembering her Aunt's words to NOT abuse her abilities again lest it change the wheel of destiny right now.

This is something I must do alone. I will not involve anyone in it.

Shaking her head, she opened her book bag and took out the wit-sharpening potion.

I don't know how long this will last. I will have to make the most of it.

Quietting her mind, heart, body, and soul, Houa concentrated on the single statement that would lead her to ensnare Tom Marvolo Riddle.

Please...help me find a way to reveal Tom's wicked deeds.

Removing the stopper, Houa still drank the entire violet solution and waited.

Nothing happened at first and so Houa began walking back to her dorm. On her way there she continued to hold onto the thought of Tom's wicked deeds.

When she was by the library she felt a tingle at the top of her head and her mind suddenly launched off in different directions.

The pony tailed student saw visions of the young Dark Lord strangling her neck in that room, then going further back showing the faces of the people he had murdered in that house, then the Great Hall appeared.

Houa took off towards the Great Hall. Something about it was key. She arrived and looked up at the staff table and around the four house tables, seeing students gathered here and there.

Ugh, what is it about the Great Hall? Think what did I do here?!

I ate here. I first saw a glimpse of Tom here. I talked with April and Vivienne and Estelle—

Houa's eyes widen!

We talked about the girl who died! Tom was the one who found the culprit! He—

A new vision from Houa's ocean bank assaulted her eyes and once again she saw a young Tom talking to the same young boy of twelve again in that dungeon, grinning impishly how he was the one who unleashed the basilisk beast on the muggleborn brat!

OH MY GOD! Tom was the perpetrator, not that Gryffindor student Rubeus!

He blamed it on another innocent person again! Both her hands were on her head now the truth thundering in her head, making her brain hurt.

Where did he kill her? Where did April say she died again?

Looking around she saw two Gryffindor girls walking back from the direction of the Girl's restroom.

She left the Great Hall and went into the first floor restroom. There was a Slytherin and Ravenclaw girl in it, but other than that she felt nothing off about it. After checking around for a few minutes like a cleaning lady she exited.

It's not this one.

Heading upstairs, Houa made her way towards the second floor Girl's restroom.

She made her way past students and noticed that not a single soul was present at all in the corridors leading to the Girl's restroom.

Strange. Her heart thumping loudly against her chest and an ominous aura increased with each step closer to the door.

And when she stood just outside of it, a daft chill traveled down Houa's spine causing her body temperature to drop. Something indeed happened beyond this door.

Taking a deep breath, the Xellarius reached for the door handle. This is it!

"HOUA!"

The Squib Girl turned to see her Hufflepuff prefect coming up beside her.

"April?"

"Girl, I saw you in the hallway and called, but you didn't hear me! Then I saw you headed over here, I was concerned and followed you!" The Hufflepuff prefect was heaving out of breath.

"Oh, I needed to use the restroom," Houa reached for the door, but April's hand stopped her.

"Oh No! Not this restroom Houa! I forgot to tell you! No one ever uses this restroom," her friends' eyes were shocked and fearful, "Not after—," she immediately covers her mouth.

"What do you mean?"

April continued to shake her head and looked around, finding no one, she lowered her voice to a whispered, "Let's go back to our common room. I'll tell you."

Houa was about to fake that she really needed to use the restroom, but then caught a movement at the end of the hallway from the corner of her eyes.

The wit sharpening potion encouraged her to sprinted down the hallway and peered through the arch doorway in time to see a Slytherin slipped amongst the sea of students.

April rushed again to her side, "Something the matter? You suddenly ran back."

Tom's follower! They're spying on me! This can't be good...

Houa grabbed her friend's hand, "Let's go back to our common room, April."

Alone in the prefect's dorm room, April sat on her bed and went into detail how after the death of Myrtle none of girls ever used the second floor restroom anymore while Houa half listened and half strategized how she would infiltrate the restroom without Tom knowing she did.

There's definitely clues in that restroom!

The wit-sharpening potion must have worn off because Houa could think of nothing as April continued, "There are rumors going around that you can hear the sound of water and crying coming from the restroom even when no one is inside. And I can tell you it's no joke!"

Now that sure got Houa's attention, "What do you mean?"

"I mean that Myrtle's ghost is haunting the restroom," April began looking around, afraid the said ghost would show up in her room.

Houa stood up and grabbed her friends by the shoulder, "Are you most definitely sure April?"

"Yes, I'm sure! I even tested it out myself being a prefect and all. Patrolling the corridors have gotten me spooked hearing the sounds of a girl talking to herself inside the restroom or worse screaming her head off."

That's it! I need to talk to Myrtle! I just have to explain everything to her. Once she knows who murdered her, she can back me up and we can reveal everything to the Headmaster! But how can I enter the restroom without Tom's follower reporting back to Tom?

"Houa are you alright?" April looked up at her in concern placing one of her hands on top of Houa's own.

Sighing, the Xellarius removed her hands from April's shoulder, "Thank you for warning me April. I didn't know it happened in that restroom. But I'm not alright."

The tall witch pulled her shorter companion to sit on her bed, "What do you mean? Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Not unless you know how to change me into someone else for my research project," Houa laid back on the bed of her friend.

Just when she was about to uncover the evidence, it seems that there was another issue. If it's true that no girls ever enter the restroom on the second floor then Houa entering would definitely alert Tom. Knowing what he was capable of, he could slit her throat and frame it as an accident before she even managed to speak to Myrtle.

And unlike before, she could no longer claim ignorance between Riddle and Dumbledore now that she has the Dark Lord's future in her memory bank. Trap in a solitary room with Tom, it would only be a matter of time before she let something slip. And then poof the entire wizarding world would alter once again.

If only I can change into someone else to talk to Myrtle so Tom or his followers wouldn't know.

Houa sighs again, lost in the crisis of her strategy.

"What kind of research project? Because I'm sure polyjuice potion could do the trick!" April laid back next to Houa.

"Polyjuice potion?"

"Yea! I never brewed it before since I had no use for it, but I heard it could change you exactly into whoever you anticipated to be for a certain period of time. No one can even tell the difference!"

The Xellarius sat up in excitement, "Wait! April, are you serious?"

"Of course I am silly. I studied a lot of potions and their effects and what not," her friend laughed.

Well duh! April wanted to be a potioneer, did you forget that Houasaying?

Already a plan started formulating in her mind, "How long does it take to brew?"

"It's kind of complicated, requiring wand magic and some of the ingredients like fluxweed that have to be picked on a full moon. So I would guess by the end of this lunar cycle?"

This can actually work! I can move forward with this!

Pulling her friend up into a sitting position beside her, Houa held her friend's hands together and gazed into the blue eye witch seriously, "April, I have an important request to ask of you."

TBC

Let the race begin!
Veritaserum vs. Polyjuice Potion :D

Note: Houa only has knowledge of Tom's future from the time he cast Legilimency on her and forward. Anything he did before, she does not have access to unless it is shown to him through touch (for example the vision of Tom killing his biological father and grandparents). Because Tom opened the Chamber of Secrets before he cast Legimens on her, Houa did not see him opening the Chamber of Secrets in her vision since Tom had never opened it again in their current school year. Thus she did not know it was in a girl's restroom.

Feedback is greatly appreciated. :)