Kolybel'naya

Chapter 10: A Set of Cards

"If I were you, I wouldn't underestimate a love potion, my boy. They are strong and Amortentia is the strongest of them all. Just because its name is not as strong as those of other potions, it does not mean it's weak."

"I understand, professor." Tom watched the teacher organize his materials on his table, separating his empty crystal vials from the ones filled with potions of different colours. "But... Surely there must be another group that wants Amortentia more than us. I bet the girls want to take a good look at it."

"Tom, my dear boy!" The older wizard laughed, putting an empty vial on the table and walking up to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I know you have an open mind, and you should use it now. Amortentia is not, as most seem to think, a girl's potion. Believe me, Tom, there's much to learn from it."

"It is a love potion, professor..."

"And what is love but the strongest thing we have in our world, Tom?" asked Slughorn. He didn't seem to notice the boy's face turn into a soft grimace as he said that. "Amortentia is a good potion to work with in a project. Its mechanisms of action have not been completely elucidated yet, you see? That means you can go and find them by yourself! Isn't that great? There's nothing holding you back with this, Tom, and, if you find it difficult to find everything – which, I believe, won't happen -, you can simply bring me what you do know about the potion... I won't take points from you for not coming back with a full description of how Amortentia works. Don't worry about that, but I would love to see what you can bring me, Tom..."

"I... I understand, Professor."

"Good. I'm actually happy you're the one who got the love potion, you know? Other groups would probably stick to the textbook but you, my boy, oh, I know you'll go deeper in your research."

"Yes, sir." The Slytherin forced a smile to appear on his lips as the teacher looked at him. "I'll do my best, sir."

"I'm sure you will, Tom." Slughorn patted his shoulder lightly before going back to his table. "Now, let me know if Mr. Malfoy is giving you any trouble. I bet Miss Elston will not be a problem; she seems to be an intelligent young lady with a good hand for potions but Abraxas... I've heard he's a good student but I do not trust him with a cauldron."

"Don't worry, sir. I'm sure Abraxas will not be a problem."

"Good... We don't want your Amortentia be spoiled by him, right?"

"Yes, sir."

"All right. Now, Tom, I believe you should go and have lunch; otherwise you'll end up having to rush to... Transfiguration, am I right? Yes. You'll end up having to rush to Transfiguration without anything to sustain you during the whole afternoon."

The boy nodded and said a quick 'good bye' to the man before leaving the classroom with the books the teacher had given him in his arms. As soon as he left the room, Riddle let a noisy breath escape from him as he closed his eyes and tried to calm himself down. Indeed, Slughorn was right... Amortentia was a strong and rather unknown potion when it came to its mechanisms of action but still, it was a useless thing. The only ones he had already seen using or expressing the wish to use a love potion were young witches whose platonic love for some boy was stronger than their intelligence. Why would someone create a potion for that? If love in its natural state was already pretty silly and useless, then the fake love created by love potions would be even more stupid and useless. It was a waste of time to research such a potion.

"Oh, you've got the books then." Tom opened his eyes to see Hermione Elston in front of him. The girl's dark eyes were fixed on him and that familiar annoyed expression that did not seem to leave her face when he was around was also there. "Slughorn mentioned he had them in the beginning of the class but Minerva practically dragged me outside the classroom after the bell rang. Well, there are three books." She pointed to the three books he was holding. "One for each of us." She approached him, quickly grabbing the biggest book. "You and Malfoy can have the other two."

"Excuse me, Miss Elston," said Tom, narrowing his eyes as the Gryffindor turned around. "You got Moste Potente Potions... That's the most complete book."

"Yes, that's exactly why I chose it."

"And you left me with two horrible books."

"I bet you can get Moste Potente Potions at the library anytime you want," she said, laughing quietly.

"It's a restricted section book, Miss Elston, and, although you're new here, I believe you understand the meaning of that."

"Of course I do. But I really do believe you can use that..." The girl's eyes travelled up and down on his form before she continued. "Charm of yours to get in there."

"Charm of mine?" The wizard raised an eyebrow.

"Yes... Everyone talks about it, you know? About how charming Tom Riddle is, how he's such a lovely and helpful boy." Hermione's lips curled up in a smirk the wizard was used to seeing on people from his own house, and not on the lions from Gryffindor. "So different from a boy I used to know back in London."

"Elston," Riddle whispered, his voice sounding threatening. "What did I...?"

"What? Aren't I allowed to talk about an old acquaintance of mine?" The girl shook her head, sighing. "But I won't keep you here, Mr. Riddle, enduring my talk about people I know from the Muggle world." She tapped the book's cover, before continuing: "Thank you for getting the books, by the way. I'll try to read it as soon as possible for us to start that project already."

Hermione had decided that she enjoyed Professor Merrythought's classes. The teacher was actually quite different from what she had expected – for some unknown reason, the Gryffindor had imagined a female version of Dumbledore when she heard Galatea Merrythought was the one teaching Defence Against Dark Arts: with her short stature and petite body, Galatea could easily pass as one the girls that studied at Hogwarts if it wasn't for her greyish, short hair that was, most of the time, tied up on the back of her head, and the few wrinkles that were on her face. But, to Hermione, the most fascinating thing about the teacher was that, behind her apparently harmless form, she had a sharp tongue, a rather dark sense of humour, and huge magical power.

"So, yes, you've already seen this spell before, in Charms, but now you'll learn how to use it in a duel." Hermione watched the woman closely as she walked in front of the class, twirling her wand between her fingers. "The Arctus spell can be a silly one when used by someone on a hot summer day in order to chill, but it can be harmful when used in the middle of a fight. Can someone tell me how a spell can be both harmless and risky at the same time? Oh, yes, Mr. Riddle?"

"It all depends on how the wizard controls the wind he's creating." Hermione turned her head to look at Riddle, who was sitting a few tables in front of her and Minerva. "You have to control the speed of the air movement. The faster it goes, the more dangerous the spell becomes."

"Exactly," said Merrythought as she pointed her wand at Abraxas Malfoy's face. The boy blinked a few times as the woman whispered the incantation. "Mr. Malfoy here just felt the effects of a mild Arctus spell. Now..." The teacher extended her wrist in the direction of roll of parchment that was on the top of her table and muttered the spell. A rather loud whistle echoed inside the room before the parchment divided into two halves that were blown off the table by the rush of wind the spell had created. "And that's a strong Arctus... Had I done this while pointing at Mr. Malfoy's face, I probably would've opened a nice gash on his cheek." The woman stopped and looked at her class while playing with the pearl necklace she always wore – a little detail that Hermione loved. "What are you waiting for? This is a practical Defence class! Get your wands out of your pockets and pair up to practice!"

The students quickly got up and the tables were pushed to the sides of the classroom, leaving a big empty space in the center of it for them to practice. As she and Minerva were sitting together, the two girls ended up pairing up to practice. In the beginning, it was a rather boring exercise... They decided that the best way to start was with really weak winds, just for them to learn for to control its direction, and then, slowly, they would increase the spell's intensity. As she created soft drafts, Hermione looked around to see the other students – boys, all of them, as she and McGonagall were the only girls that chose practical Defence instead of theoretical classes – amusing themselves with blowing air against one another without too much strength and wondering where Merrythought wanted them to go with the spell. The only boy who was actually getting close to what the teacher had done with the parchment was Tom Riddle, who was creating drafts strong enough to push Malfoy back a few meters.

"Arctus!" Hermione heard Minerva's voice and, before she could even notice, a strong wind hit her in the face, blowing her hair back, and forcing her to close her eyes. "Oh, that was a good one! Your turn, Hermione."

The Gryffindor laughed, blinking the dry sensation from her eyes away, before pointing her wand at the other. She concentrated on how fast she wanted the wind to blow; just how Merrythought had said the wizard or witch who performed the Arctus spell should do, before saying the incantation. The girl had pictured a draft strong enough to push Minerva back, like Tom had done to Malfoy, but she didn't expect the full speed wind that was created by her spell and that rushed towards her friend. McGonagall, hearing the loud whistle from the wind, jumped aside, managing to escape from the spell for a split second. The draft, instead, hit a glass bell jar that covered the skeleton of a pixie. The glass smashed, just like the fragile skeleton making a loud noise echo inside the classroom.

Both Minerva and Hermione kept staring at the spot the spell had hit with their mouths open in shock before turning to look at each other. McGonagall, although still with the surprised expression on her face, started to laugh quietly, shaking her head, while the other simply looked down at her wand, not believing what it had just done.

"What in the name of Merlin happened here?" The girls turned around to see Professor Merrythought approaching them, her dark eyes narrowing behind her glasses. "How…? Who did this?"

"I did, Professor." Hermione heard someone snickering behind her and tried to ignore the noise.

"How?" The woman laughed, walking up to the broken skeleton and, with a switch of her wand, put it together once again.

"It got out of control, I'm sorry, ma'am," said the girl while twisting her wand in her fingers.

"It happens, there's no need to worry," she said while fixing the bell jar. "Just work on controlling it next time you use this spell. Had it hit Ms. McGonagall, you would've had to carry her up to the Hospital Wing. A draft as strong as this one would be enough to cut someone."

The Divination classroom was close to how Hermione remembered it from her time. The circular room with the circular tables, the fat pouffes and chintz armchairs, the colourful scarves wrapped around everything… The only difference was that the curtains were open, which gave the place an aerated look, making it easier for someone to stay awake during the class now that the classroom was not only illuminated by the dim light of the lamps, but also by the sunlight that streamed through the windows. The Gryffindor found herself sitting at the same table as Dorea and Irina Akins, because, even if a few girls from Gryffindor were in the class – Selina and Cecilia -, Dorea insisted that she share their table, reassuring her that she and her friend wouldn't bite or do anything against her.

If the class was the same, the teacher wasn't. Professor Aisling Pesty didn't wear the odd and ragged clothes Sybill Trelawney did… All right, her clothes were colourful, and she had a blue scarf with silver stars on it wrapped around her head, but she didn't seem to be as eccentric as Sybill. As she talked, she kept her hands still and didn't shout out of nowhere, nor did she start to make predictions about her students in the middle of her explanations, which, to Hermione, was a relief. The girl had no idea how much she would be able stand a Divination class if she had to endure another Trelawney.

Their class work was to read the future of their partners on Tarot cards. Hermione, who had no idea how the cards worked and what each of them meant, simply served as the guinea pig of their table: she picked the cards they offered her while Dorea and Irina tried to read her future in them. As the two Slytherins discussed the meanings behind each card she chose, Hermione made a mental note to remember to study those damned cards and what they meant.

"I don't really understand what this means," said Irina, staring at a card with the picture of a man on a carriage pulled by two horses of different colours. "I remember The Chariot means a victory but I also read somewhere it also meant something about unity."

"The Chariot brings change and victory," said the other Slytherin. "But only if it's complete. If you take the horses or the driver away, it won't move… Maybe that's it, right? You have to keep yourself together, Hermione, in order to achieve something you want."

"Keep myself together?"

"Yes, like… When we're under stress, we tend to break down," explained Dorea. "Maybe you'll pass through a lot of stress but if you keep yourself together, in the end, you'll win."

"What have you got here, Mr. Peters?" The teacher's voice sounded from behind their table and Hermione couldn't help but turn around to see if, whoever the teacher was talking to, was someone who was actually able to understand those cards, because Dorea and Irina seemed to be as confused as her.

"Er, there is the Hermit, which means that it's time for him to stay alone, by himself, like the card," a Ravenclaw boy with auburn hair and freckled face explained as he handed the card to his teacher. Hermione couldn't help but let out a frustrated sigh when she saw whose cards he was reading. Apparently, Tom Riddle was in every single class of their year because there he was again, sitting next to Peters with an interested look on his face and a somewhat gentle smile on his lips. The girl noticed that, from his little group of friends, Riddle was the only one taking Divination, which, most likely, forced him to get together with the two Ravenclaw boys who were sitting with him. "Also, the Moon, which is the card of magic and genius. Death, symbolizing something that will end." The Ravenclaw boy eyed Tom with a worried look, before continuing. "And the Hanged Man which means… a traitor?"

Professor Pesty took all the cards in her hands and stared at them for a while before waving her hand and making a red pouffe appear next to Riddle. She sat down and put the cards on the desk.

"Indeed the Hermit means you ought to spend some time alone, Mr. Riddle, in order to catch up with your thoughts, but it can also represent a mentor or a friend." She put the Hermit down and held another card for Tom to look. "The Moon, Mr. Riddle, is one you must be careful with. As Mr. Peters said, it is the card of powerful magic and genius, but it's also the card of betrayal and illness, so I would advise you to keep an eye out for these as much as for a trial that may appear in your way. Death," Hermione could see how Riddle moved in an uncomfortable way in his chair, "does represent the end of something, but death is not the only ending that exists… Death is not only about ending; it can mean a change, most of the time a surprising change. And then we have the Hanged Man, which, indeed, Mr. Peters, is also called the Traitor, but it's not because it represents a betrayal, but because he sacrifices himself for a cause and ends up seeing things from another perspective… The Hanged Man also represents suspension between two phases or two worlds."

"That makes no sense, Professor," said Peters. "How can he get Death, which means a change, and the Hanged Man, who represents someone who is stagnant?"

"Good question, Mr. Peters." Professor Pesty extended her hand, showing more cards to Riddle. "Take another two. Let's see if we can understand what they want to say." Hermione watched the Slytherin choose two random cards without hesitating, and give them to the witch. "The Devil. Once again, Mr. Riddle, betrayal, but its greater meaning is ambition, commitment and resourcefulness. Additionally it may suggest an addiction. This one, though..." She waved the other card in front of his face and smiled. "Represents power, creation, an idea, a solution for a problem. When it comes to a person, The Magician, it's talking about someone who has his or her way with words, who has a light hand or a healing hand."

As soon as the teacher stopped talking, a few murmurs started to echo inside the classroom. Professor Pesty kept staring at Riddle with a curious smile on her lips while the boy looked down at the cards in front of him on the table.

"Professor?" It was Dorea who broke the silence. "You said the meanings of the cards but what do they mean as a whole?"

"I don't know. What do you think, Miss Black?"

"That… There'll be a surprising change in Mr. Riddle's future?"

"Good, what else?"

"There'll be power and he may find a traitor," said Dorea, biting down on her lower lip as she stopped to think about how to go on. "But there'll be someone to help him, the Hermit?"

"What about the Hanged Man and the Magician?" asked Pesty, tilting her head.

"I don't know, professor. I guess the Magician also means there'll be power in his future but I'm not really sure of what the Hanged Man is trying to say."

Hermione was tired and the only thing she wanted was her bed and a good book about Charms or Potions. After a whole period of Divination, the girl needed something less ethereal to work with, something certain and logical.

"Miss Elston?" The girl stopped on her tracks when she heard Professor Pesty's voice calling her. "Miss Black talked to me a few days ago and told me some things about you."

"Ah, yes, it was her who… convinced me to take the classes." The younger witch laughed nervously as she watched the teacher organize the now empty classroom with a few spells. "Unfortunately I don't think Divination is my thing."

"Nonsense, you don't have to be a Seer to give Divination a try," said the woman. "I've never done a prophecy and I don't think I ever will, but I can predict people's future using other methods. Our magic is enough to give us a hint of what is coming, Miss Elston, but it's only a select group of wizards and witches that can have visions and make prophecies. Now, Miss Black told me you were interested in dream interpretation."

"Yes, ma'am." Hermione watched as Aisling sat down on one of the chintz armchairs and gestured to a pouffe. "Although I'm not sure if dream interpretation is the right word for it."

"Sit down, please. If you're interested in dreams and what they mean, why wouldn't it be called dream interpretation, then?"

"I don't really… Oh, well, I'm sorry if this sound stupid or if this is not your area, Professor, but is there any way for a wizard to communicate with another one through dreams?"

The older witch hummed while playing with the tip of the blue scarf that she wore on her head and Hermione wasn't sure if that meant she knew something about the subject or not.

"Did you know that, in our sleep, our body is almost paralyzed? Witches and wizard that study dreams know the differences between the two greater stages of the sleep: the dream sleep and the dreamless sleep. We usually interpret dreams from the dream sleep even if the dreamless actually has dreams. The dreamless sleep is a stage where the whole body is relaxed: you do not move unless it's to change your position, your temperature lowers, your heartbeats and breathing get slower and your brain relaxes. During the dream sleep it's a bit different: you cannot move, your body is paralyzed and the only things that will move are your eyes, your heartbeat and breathing increases and gets irregular, and your brain… Your brain gets mad, really. Your mind hallucinates and that's what gives you your dreams."

"Then dreams are just a physiological process and not something to predict the future with…"

"I didn't say that, Miss Elston. It's a physiological thing, indeed, but who says your magic can't influence your physiology? You probably have already experienced that, when you practice your magic for too long, your body gets tired because magic is part of your body and they depend on each other," explained the teacher. "As I said, those who interpret dreams as a way to predict the future will focus on the dream sleep and I believe that the situation you presented me with would also be referent to this stage… I mean, in order to use magic we need concentration and it's known that during the dream sleep our mind is at its highest when it comes to concentration and activity."

"So, it's possible?"

"It's not impossible. I've read a few studies about this, Miss Elston, but most of them used Legilimens as their object of study, and most of those witches and wizards managed to pass information to someone else when they were asleep. But, as I said, they used Legilimens and we know that those people have their minds completely unlocked."

"I see…"

"I don't know if this is what you were seeking, Miss Elston," said Professor Pesty, smiling at her. "And I don't know if Divination will bring you the information you want but, as the teacher of the subject, I can't help but say that I hope you continue with the classes. I know you don't like it very much, it's clear with the way you were during class, but Divination is not as mad and silly as you think it is."

"I don't think it's mad and… Silly," Hermione said quietly even though she knew she was lying. "I just think it's not really reliable. The cards were a good example of that. One card has so many meanings. How do you know which is the right one? And how do you know the person didn't pick the card simply because he or she wanted to and not because destiny made her choose it?"

"That's the art of Divination, dear." The woman laughed, sticking her hand into her skirt's pocket and taking out a set of cards. "If it was something right and static, it would be mathematics. The interesting thing about it is to be able to interpret the results you get. But I won't keep you here any longer, you must be tired. Good night, Miss Elston, and I do wish to see you here again."

"Good night, Professor," said the girl as she got up and walked up to the door.

"Oh, by the way, which cards did you get earlier when your friends were practicing?"

"I just got one, Dorea and Irina were having trouble with discovering the meaning of the Chariot." She laughed, looking back at the woman.

"Confidence, unity and opposites reunited." Aisling giggled and shook her head. "Make of that as you will, Miss Elston."

The boy rubbed his face with his hand while trying to fight the heaviness that seemed to have taken over his eyelids. It had been a good few minutes since the class had ended and Hermione Elston hadn't come out of the classroom yet… Not that Tom needed to wait for her or anything, he simply wanted to talk to her and he knew the only way to do so was to get the girl by surprise because, otherwise, she would do everything to avoid him. That behaviour was starting to get on his nerves… Sure, he hadn't really been nice to her back at the orphanage, but how could she expect him to be? He was trying now to gain her trust, mostly because he didn't like having too many people disliking or suspicious of him; after all, Dumbledore was already enough.

Riddle jumped when he heard the noise of the trapdoor that led to the classroom being opened, and straightened himself. Elston didn't seem to notice him at first and it was only after he cleared his throat that the girl turned around to look at him. As always, Hermione restrained herself from appearing annoyed but the Slytherin could see the way her nostrils flared in annoyance, or how her jaw clenched.

"Riddle."

"Miss Elston." He smiled, hoping that, this time, it would work.

"Do you need anything?" she asked, looking around as if trying to find someone else even though they were the only ones there.

"I just wanted to talk about what happened yesterday at Defence." Tom waved his wand at the staircase coming from the trapdoor and it quickly went up, closing the door. "You know, the wild spell."

"I wasn't concentrating, that's all." The Gryffindor sighed, hugging her books to her chest and starting to walk away.

"It's your wand," said Tom, cursing himself for speaking loudly enough to hear his voice reverberate around them.

"My wand?" the girl turned around again and raised an eyebrow.

"It's new, I can tell, and it's Ollivander's." Riddle approached her, stretching out his hand. Hermione, understanding his action, took her wand out of her robes and showed it to him but didn't let him take it from her hand. After analyzing it for a few seconds, the wizard took his own wand out of his robes and put it next to the girl's. "Yew, as I thought. And the core?"

"Dragon heartstring."

"As I said, that wand is new, what was your former wand made of?"

"Vinewood."

"Yew is much more stubborn than Vinewood, did you know that?" The boy laughed, stepping away from her and twirling his own wand in his long fingers. "Vinewood is loyal since the beginning, I've read, while Yew must be mastered."

"You're telling me that my wand is not letting me perform my spells?" Hermione shook her head. "Did you forget about how…"She looked around and then whispered. "How it healed your nose? It worked amazingly well back then."

"Indeed, with a light spell, but Yew is made for strong spells… Come on, didn't Ollivander tell you about how it's good with curses and duels? Apparently he didn't." Tom clicked his tongue and licked his lips before continuing. "They are made for power, Yew wands, it does not matter what their core is. When you use it with a spell like Episkey, it'll work at its maximum power and the spell will be amazing, but when you use in a curse or attacking spell, it'll also try to work at its maximum… And sometimes you don't want it to be so powerful."

"So my wand wants to beat everyone?"

"Basically, yes." Riddle shrugged. "You need to learn how to control it. And, if you want to, I can help you with that."

"Wait, what?" Tom narrowed his eyes as he watched Hermione start to laugh. "Why would you want to help me master my wand? I mean, Mudblood, remember?"

"Because, Miss Elston, I'm Hogwarts' Head Boy and it's my duty to help other students," said Tom in a low, soft voice, while a smile spread across his lips. The Gryffindor stopped laughing and was now staring at him. "And, before you say you can do it by yourself, let me tell you I have no doubt a skilled witch like you can, indeed, master a wand without any help. After all, most children who are chosen by Yew wands do so… But they take their time and they are first years. A teacher won't be bothered with a first year that makes a feather levitate too high because their wand wants power; it's normal and it's harmless. First year spells are harmless because of that: teachers know they're dealing with kids who don't have enough control over magic yet. But seventh year spells are dangerous and the student must know how to control them. Professor Merrythought may have found it funny to see your wild spell today, Ms. Elston, but she won't be so pleased if you do that on her practical test or if the situation repeats itself, believe me."

Hermione remained in silent, watching him. Tom wished he could just use Legilimency against her in order to know what was going through her head but something inside himself stopped him from doing so, saying that he didn't know Hermione Elston very well yet and there was still the possibility of the girl being able to feel his invasion to her mind, and the last thing he wanted was to have someone know about this ability of his. But, reading her mind or not, Riddle could see the Gryffindor was ready to accept his offer… That was good, it would be a chance for him to make her like him, and that would be one less problem for him to think about while in Hogwarts. Also, spending some time with Hermione would allow him to know the extent of her power. Since he discovered she was a witch, Tom couldn't help but become curious – Mrs. Cole would always say that his curiosity would lead to his downfall but he liked to think that it would only lead him to greatness -, especially after she used her magic to fix his broken nose. The boy was quite sensitive when it came to magic, and Elston's magic was strong from what he was able to feel during a simple Episkey spell.

"So, what do you say, Miss Elston?"

A/N: As before, the stuff about this chapter (about Professor Pesty and the Sleep Stages she describes) is on my tumblr (which, btw, changed its URL, now it's captainbrax DOT tumblr DOT com, as before it's under the tag "stuff for fanfiction"). It took me longer to post this one not only because of the tests by the end of the semester but because I started writing another Tomione fic which I was trying to finish as quick as possible, so I spent a bit more time on that other story, which I'll post here sooner or later.

As always, thank you so much everyone who reviewed it, even the Guest who said that he/she is reading on Nyah and here ehehe :3 about your offer about posting Kolybel on Wattpad, I'll take a look on the website and I may create an account there (:

Reviews are always welcome, you know that, and I hope you liked this chapter. (: