The plan that night hadn't been to share her bed with Rue again, but given her panic attack that afternoon, they made a special circumstance. But then, the plan hadn't been to share a bed the next night, either.
Juniper had been lying awake for what felt like hours before finally crawling out of the bed as quietly as she could so she didn't wake Rue up. Grabbing a sweater, she pulled it over her nightgown and pulled her fingers through her hair. She hadn't had the time to think about the diary Riddle had accidentally left her on Monday, but it was nearly all she could think about on Tuesday. Even if it didn't have anything written inside of it, it clearly indicated that there may be a lot more to Tom than she had realized.
Grabbing the diary with an ink pot and quill, she snuck her way down to the main common room. Poking her head out, she looked around the room, thankful to find it completely abandoned, the fireplace only embers. Tiptoeing her way to a small table on the side of the room, she glanced around again before taking a seat and inspecting the book again. Flipping through the blank pages, Juni considered what she did know about Tom.
He was arrogant, bold, a goody-two-shoes, teacher's pet. He was fake yet no one seemed to notice. He charmed and used sickening amounts of charisma to get almost whatever he wanted. He hated her because he knew that she didn't fall for it. He…
He helped her. When she had a full-blown panic attack in the middle of the common room, he helped her. He told them to get everyone else out so they couldn't watch, and he… Was able to calm her down. There were several deeper questions there that she didn't want to know the answer to, but… Why did he even bother helping her? It wasn't like they were friends - they didn't even like each other.
Flipping through the book, Juni turned in her chair to look at the room behind her. She knew she was alone, but something about having Tom's book just made her paranoid. And he had developed an annoying habit of turning up when she least wanted him to. Still, the room was empty and quiet. Turning her attention back to the book, she considered. Picking up her quill, she dipped it lightly in the ink. Should leave him a note and get rid of it so that he'd never read it. Say whatever she wanted to him. Satisfying, almost.
'Why didn't you even write in this stupid book? I wanted to be nosey.' Juniper wrote, frustrated as she stared at her words. 'Well, then again I can't exactly picture you writing in a diary to begin with, but still. You own one, apparently.'
Sighing, Juni lowered her quill and resting her forehead in her other palm as she glanced around the room. This was stupid. She knew it wouldn't matter what she wrote, she would just get rid of the ink - or the page if that didn't work, and he would never read it. Stopping short, she thought about it more. He would never read it. Maybe if she wrote out what she was thinking as if he would read it, it would make her feel a little better- especially because she knew he never actually would. Sitting up straight and dipping her quill in the ink, she wrote beneath what she had already written.
'I don't understand you. At all. You lay on the thick charm with everyone but me (though that's probably because I see right through that shit). Then you go and constantly act as though I'm the worlds-biggest-inconvenience to you. So why did you help me? I don't get it, Riddle.'
Juniper glanced around the room again, as though suddenly paranoid that someone would walk in and somehow know exactly what she was doing and that the book didn't belong to her. Satisfied that she was still alone, she looked back at the book, jaw dropping slightly in surprise at the now-blank page in front of her. She hadn't accidentally already charmed it, had she? Or did someone else? Spinning around in her seat, she looked around the room again. Still she saw and heard no one else in the room.
Maybe he charmed the book himself. The thought ran through her head quickly as she looked back at the book. That could be why it's completely blank. Maybe he does write in it, but just made it so everything vanishes so no one can pry.
Flipping through a few of the next pages, she felt the need to double check that they were still blank. Juni dipped her quill in the ink again, only to drop it on the table as soon as she looked back at the book.
'Who are you?' was written on the page, the handwriting clearly recognizable as Tom Riddle's smooth and elegant letters. Feeling her heart rate spike, she snapped the book shut and hugged it tightly to her chest. All the hairs on her arms stood up as she sat straight upright in her chair, as though afraid to turn around and face the room. Cursing herself for choosing a seat with her back to the room, she cautiously turned in her chair, relieved to find the room still appearing empty.
Looking up at the clock above the fireplace, she was both relieved and annoyed to find that it was already five in the morning. She might have stayed up all night and have to go to class today, but she was allowed to leave the common room and not get in trouble for it.
Forgetting about the spilled ink on the table, she quickly and quietly went back into her dorm room and grabbed a few of her things, setting them on Rue's bed. Taking a short glance at Rue, curled up on her own bed, Juni felt a small pang of guilt for leaving her here. But she had other things to do right now. Changing silently and making a brisk visit to the restroom, she came back and scooped up the pile on Rue's bed and exited the room. Tugging her robe tightly around her, Juniper made the long trip to the library as fast as she could without getting out of breath.
As she walked through the large set of doors into the library, she was surprised to see that the librarian was already awake and sat at her desk, the torches already lit around the massive room. The woman didn't even bother to look up as Juni passed, but did offer a 'good morning', indicating she did at least know she was there.
Sneaking through the aisles, Juni skimmed through the different titles of books on the shelves until she found just what she was looking for. A Delve into Enchanted Books. Sliding the book off the shelf silently, she took it with the rest of her things to a secluded-seeming desk surrounded by shelves and pushed up against a dark window. Settling down, she kept the diary hidden on her lap underneath the table as she flipped through the pages of the new book.
After what seemed like ages, Juniper found nothing useful in the book on enchanted books. Shifting in her seat, she brought the diary up onto the table, almost hesitant to open it up again. Suddenly thankful she had an extra quill and ink pot in her bag, she cursed under her breath for forgetting her other one in the common room. Getting her things ready, she watched the book, as though expecting it to open on its own or start yelling out loud at her in Tom's voice.
Crack!
A loud slap of thunder echoed through the hall, making Juni nearly jump out of her skin, let alone her seat. The sound of wood scraping on the stone floor from her chair seemed impossibly loud and Juni looked down the aisle closest to her for several moments.
Why was she being so paranoid? No one else is going to be up or caring what she's doing at this hour.
Finally resigning, she as quietly as she could scooted her seat forward again and opened the diary, finding the page that still contained the words 'Who are you?' Grabbing her quill and dipping it in ink, she paused. Shouldn't the words have vanished by now if the book really was charmed already? Chewing on her lip, her eyes drifted back to the page, considering her options.
"Screw it," she muttered softly under her breath as she brought the quill to the page again and began to write.
'Who are you?' she wrote back, half expecting a reply, half not. After several seconds, she was about to give up already as the page faded suddenly, going blank again. Watching intently, Juni's stomach dropped slightly as Tom's handwriting reappeared, slowly as though he were writing it right in front of her.
'You know who I am. You've already said it. So I ask again: Who are you?' Juni chewed on her lip again nervously as she dipped the quill in ink again.
'Why did you help me if you hate me?' Juniper hoped that by giving some context, she wouldn't have to outright tell him her name, that he would be able to guess. Stopping short, Juni sat up straight.
Was it actually Tom responding to her? Juni felt her face flush pink, an uneasy feeling washing over her as she thought about the prospect of it. Was this some sort of two-way communication system? And they were actually speaking to each other right now? Part of her didn't even want to look back down at the page, but her overwhelming curiosity made her look down.
'I don't hate you, I don't hate anyone. Who are you?' the book asked for a third time and Juniper couldn't help but scoff at the 'I don't hate anyone' claim. It was probably the boldest and most outright lie that she had ever seen him make to date.
'Juniper.' She wrote back simply, sitting back almost smugly as she watched the words slowly fade from the page. Despite the smugness, her heart was racing still at the thought of facing Tom later today. It was Wednesday, and they had potions at 8 am. It was easier to talk to him when it wasn't face to face, but when he confronted her about having his book in person later… Just the thought made her uneasy.
'I don't believe I know anyone named Juniper, my apologies. But you seem to know me… When did we meet?'
Furrowing her brows at the book, a whole new set of thoughts flooded her brain. He could be lying just to see what she would say. Though she didn't see what the point in that would be. Maybe it wasn't really him and it was just a charmed or hexed book to prank anyone who picked it up? An idea popped to the front of her head and without thinking, she wrote.
'How old are you?' Several moments passed and the writing vanished once more, replaced with a very simple '16.' Sitting back in her seat, Juni considered this. It very well could be Riddle… Only a past version of himself. How he could have accomplished this, she'd simply have to find out.
'You meet me when you're 17.' She wrote, chewing on the inside of her cheek as she decided what to write next. 'How did you make this, Tom?' If Juniper knew anything about Tom, which she liked to think she at least knew this much, she knew that he wouldn't tell her how he made it. But perhaps she could outwit him into giving her a clue.
'Why would I tell someone who believes I hate them?' Juni held back a short laugh, a smirk playing on her lips as she dipped her quill in ink again.
'Come on now, Tom. I said you helped me. You wouldn't help me if you actually hated me. We're friends.' Screwing up her face, she considered what she had just written. Glancing out the still-dark window, she watched rain as it trailed its way down the glass, illuminated briefly by a bolt of lightning.
'How did we meet, Juniper?' The page replied as the thunder sounded from outside. Juni considered lying. To see if the book would call her out or if it wouldn't know the difference.
'At school.' She ended up opting for the truth, as honestly it seemed suspicious enough on its own. Even in the 90's Hogwarts didn't usually take transfer students, least of all 7th year transfer students.
'Interesting.' Sighing, Juni looked at the rows of books around her, listening to the rain. Good to know he was elusive and obnoxious before he met her, too. It wasn't just a 'her' thing. Tapping the underside of the table with her finger quietly, she tried to decide what actions to take next.
From what she had skimmed from the book on enchanted books, this type of magic, to charm or hex or whatever he did to this diary, should be well beyond the level of magic possessed by a 16 year old - even a top student. Of course she could ask someone. Likely Professor Dumbledore, as he was the Dark Arts professor and therefore an expert in enchanted objects. Part of her wanted to solve the mystery herself, though. Dumbledore had more than enough on his hands with her own mystery, she didn't need to bother him with this on top of it. Especially if it was just a harmless diary.
Though of course, the whole thing begged an even bigger question: why? Why would he make a diary with his 16 year-old self inside it? Was he secretly lonely (despite being surrounded by 'friends' during most free periods) and wanted someone to talk to? Was the only person he could talk to himself? Or was he just that self-absorbed?
Looking back at the open page, she found it blank again. Pursing her lips slightly, she shrugged a shoulder to herself and decided there was no real harm in simply asking.
'Why did you put yourself in a diary, Tom?'
The page remained unchanged as she watched expectantly. Time seemed to pass impossibly slow as she stared at the page. After several minutes, she huffed and dropped the quill on the table next to the book. Another flash of lightning lit up the dark sky outside of the window. The rain was hitting the glass harder than before, filling the library with its music. She sat, watching the rain as she considered what to do with the book. She couldn't just give it back. She'd have to somehow slip it into his things when he wasn't looking. Or… Maybe she could just give it back? It isn't like he knew she was snooping. He was the one who left it on her things, after all. It wasn't like she took the damned thing on purpose. Thunder rumbled as she looked back at the stupid thing, sitting up straight again as she noticed more written on the page.
'At first? Simply to see if I could. It became a fun sort of challenge in an otherwise dull semester of classwork.' Juni's mind raced again with what felt like hundreds of different possibilities, yet one part kept making her pause. 'At first'.
'At first? What do you mean by that?' The response was nearly immediate this time as the letters began to appear before she even finished her question mark.
'It then became an easy outlet. Someone to talk to, someone I could easily trust. Simply because it was myself I was talking to.'
'Liar.' Juni wrote, taking a chance. It was the most obvious answer, the easiest solution that no one would question, right? She had just been thinking the same thing moments earlier. But she couldn't shake this itch in her brain that Tom's truth wasn't that simple.
The book seemed to think about its reply, the page taking its time erasing itself. It remained blank for a moment before the letters slowly appeared again.
'You're clever, Juniper.' Juni's stomach flipped on itself. Either Tom from a year ago was nicer or it was just because he hadn't actually met her yet, but the Tom she knew would never compliment her. Her expression settling into a scowl, she propped her cheek on her fist as she stared at the words on the page wondering how she could even reply.
After a few moments the compliment disappeared and Juni glanced at her watch. Jumping up from her chair, she scrambled to gather her things and shove them back in her bag. How was it already 7:48? Shoving the diary in her bag, she glanced at the library book on the table. Hesitating only a second, she grabbed the book and hid it under her robes as she all but ran from the library, an uncaring 'good morning' from the librarian as she passed her again.
Skidding to a halt at the doors to her potions classroom, Juniper checked her watch again. 7:59. She had just made it. Quickly entering the room, she ignored the curious glances of several students as she shut the door and quietly made her way to her seat in the back. Slughorn had already begun talking about the special project they were assigned for the day.
"Now, for the first half of class, you'll be given time to work on the short paper assigned for the day on the side effects of this draught. I want detailed information on how to recognize its effects and how to counteract them! What antidote is needed if this draught is suspected? This of course won't be due until Friday when we return, but I expect a large majority of it to be done before starting on our concoctions!"
Juniper glanced at the back of Tom's head suspiciously before even thinking about opening her bag that still sat in her lap from when she first sat down. Carefully digging inside, she pulled out a roll of parchment, her quill and ink pot and her potions textbook. Sneaking another look at Tom, her eyes drifted down to the diary sitting in her bag. She'd have to find some way to disguise it until she figured out how he made it. Until then, she should try to focus.
Shutting her bag, she set it on the floor, leaning against her leg. She felt a strong urge to keep it near her, in case someone for whatever reason went snooping and found it or took it from her.
The first half of class seemed to drag on endlessly as either Juni's hand cramped from writing, or her eyelids tried to droop shut on her mid-sentence. At last, Slughorn stood and got the class' attention to start actually working on the potion.
"Right, then, everyone! One hour should be more than enough time for the Draught of Living Death! Now this is a very advanced potion, so just know that I don't expect anyone to brew it perfectly," he chuckled to himself. "In fact, I've yet to have a single student do so! But still, it's a very good learning experience." Slughorn gave a wave of his hand and slowly the class began to make their way to their cauldrons on the back side of the classroom.
Taking her seat, Juni squared her textbook with the table, stealing a peek over to the bag she left on the floor. Eyeing it almost uneasily, she very nearly jumped when Tom sat at the table across from her, blocking her view of the bag. Tom simply gave her a weird look at her startle and opened his book again to the proper page.
Juniper stared at Tom, studying his reaction for several long seconds before looking at her book again. Her eyes dazed as she stared blankly at the book, trying to decipher from the one look he just gave her whether she had been talking to him through his diary or not. She knew that it sounded insane, and perhaps the dark circles under her eyes should have been an indication that she shouldn't focus on the topic too much and instead focus on her potion.
Stifling a yawn behind her hand, Juni read the text, using her finger to trail the words and help her focus.
'1. Cut up the Sopophorus bean.
2. Pour in 250 of Standard potioning water and add 5 oz. of African Sea Salt to the beaker. Set the beaker aside after all the water has been added. Be very careful not to shake or move the beaker now.'
Okay, easy enough. She thought to herself. Pulling out the bean and her knife, she began to cut it, stopping about halfway through as it slipped. Gripping the bean with her whole hand, she stabbed it first, only for it to slip again, her knife tip sticking into the table. Eyes wide, she quickly grabbed her bean as she inspected her hand. Remarkably free from stab-wounds, she considered the bean.
Wait, did it even say what to do with the bean? Do I put it in the water…? Glancing up at the three other students at the table, she tried to figure it out without continuing to read the text. From what she could tell, she was to cut it… And then leave it be. Why are we cutting it now, then? To let it aerate?
Shaking her head slightly, she regarded her bean curiously. Cutting the thing clearly wasn't working. Maybe if she tried to crush the thing… Picking up her knife again, only a little more carefully than she had moments earlier, she spun it around in her hand, admiring the blade. She then held the bean steady with one hand, gently lowering the flat side of the blade over it and pressing down with her free hand, being careful not to let the sharp side of the blade touch her. Almost immediately, the bean gave way and crushed under the weight.
Satisfied with her work, she set the knife aside and began to level out her potioning water, double and triple checking the amounts. Stopping suddenly, she questioned where she was even supposed to pour her water, as the directions mentioned a beaker, and it certainly wasn't going to fit in there.
Furrowing her brows, she looked at her measured water and then back at the book, holding her empty beaker in her hand.
'3. Leave the water and salt to rest for five minutes.'
Rest where? Juni sighed and rubbed at her eyes with her free hand. They were already beginning to sting from the overuse and lack of sleep. Opening her eyes again, she tried again to read the instructions from the start.
"The water goes into the beaker with the salt," a low voice murmured from across the table. Juni's eyes snapped up to meet Tom's for a brief second before he looked back at what he was doing - he already looked like he was 6 steps ahead of her. Opening her mouth slightly to thank him, she thought otherwise and closed it again, eyeing her measuring cup. Picking it up, she poured the water into the beaker and added her salt, setting it down carefully to the side. Giving a quick glance at Tom, she shook her head slightly and kept reading the instructions.
'4. Slowly pour all the water into the cauldron.' Okay, after five minutes, easy enough. She wasn't timing it, so she was just winging the time and hoping for the best. Surely if she read far enough in the instructions, it'll have been five minutes.
'5. With your left hand use the graduated cylinder to obtain 40 . of essence of wormwood.
6. With your right hand hold the cauldron at a slight angle and pour ten drops (20 . of essence of wormwood.
7. Now with your left hand hold the cauldron at a slightly different angle and pour another ten drops of wormwood.' Juniper's eyes stared at the page as she sat wondering how she was supposed to accomplish this. Glancing around at the other students, she watched as one boy across the room was trying one of these very steps and accidentally spilled the entire thing on the table, causing several students to jump up, yell or scream in surprise.
"Everyone has to be careful!" Slughorn warned as he made his way over to where the commotion was happening. Juni turned her attention back to her own cauldron, swallowing a small lump forming in her throat.
As carefully as she could, Juni poured her beaker into the cauldron and measured out her wormwood. Holding the cauldron as directed, she poured what she hoped was half into the cauldron. Switching hands - which she felt was rather silly - she poured the rest of the wormwood in the cauldron. Her cauldron slowly began to bubble up as she went to read the next steps.
'8. Chop three Valerian roots into small squared pieces. After cutting place it in a beaker with water. Leave it to settle for five minutes. Your potion should now be resembling a smooth blackcurrant-coloured liquid.
9. Carefully pour the Sopophorous bean's juice into the cauldron.' Ah, there was the bean- wait, did it just say the juice? Reading and rereading the instructions thus far, Juni desperately searched the page to figure out whether it meant the entire bean or somehow just the juices that had come from cutting the bean - which she wasn't convinced there was really any of, let alone enough to put in her cauldron.
Deciding to quickly move on to her Valerian root, she began cutting them into what looked close enough to squares as she could and tossed them in a beaker. As she went to double check her book, she heard a small huff coming from Tom's direction. Her eyes drifted up to see him staring at her Valerian, looking annoyed as he looked up at her. He was already stirring his potion somehow.
"You're supposed to let your root settle in water for five minutes," he told her quietly as he all but rolled his eyes, looking elsewhere as he stirred. Pausing to watch him for a moment, she looked back at her text and reread the step - he was right. Adding water to the beaker, Juni gave him a cool glare.
"I can make my own potion," she told him, looking back at her book, her eyebrows raised. "And you can mind your business. This isn't our project, after all." She could feel his eyes on her but did her best to ignore them. Picking up her Sopophorus bean, she glanced at the insides. Pursing her lips slightly, she held the squished bean over the bubbling water in her cauldron and squeezed it, letting the juice from inside fall into the liquid, careful not to drop any pieces. Fingers quickly becoming sore, she set the bean back down, deciding that whatever juice fell into the cauldron would be good enough. Slughorn himself said that he wasn't expecting any perfect potions, and she sure as hell wouldn't be giving him one.
'10. Add seven drops of the reduced liquid from the beaker; make sure there are no traces or fragments of Valerian root.
11. Stir the potion ten times clockwise; your potion should now be turning a light shade of lilac.' Glaring at the page for making her do so much work, she dug out her dropper from her potions supplies kit. Sucking some liquid out of her beaker, she carefully dropped seven drops of the liquid into her cauldron. Her eyes couldn't help but drift curiously over to Tom and what he was doing. Within seconds, his eyes met hers causing her to look immediately back at her book, her hand finding her stirring rod and dipping it into the liquid.
Sitting forward in her chair slightly to look into the cauldron, she stirred clockwise ten times, counting slowly in her head. Watching the bubbling liquid curiously, she couldn't help but let out a soft 'oooooh' as her potion did, in fact, appear a light shade of purple. Quickly looking back at her book, she read the next steps as she finished her stirring.
'12. With your right hand stir the potion counterclockwise until the potion turns as clear as water; every stir should take approximately two and a half seconds.' Sighing almost dramatically, Juni began stirring again, more slowly than before, watching the liquid as it seemed to turn into water. The second the lilac color had vanished completely, Juni dropped her stirring stick and continued to read as though she were determined to speed run the potion.
'13. Slowly put in seven square pieces of Valerian root.
14. Stir the potion ten times counterclockwise.
15. Add 150 of Powdered root of Asphodel.
16. Hold the cauldron with your right hand; with your left hand gently stir the potion ten times counterclockwise and eight times clockwise.
17. Leave the potion to settle for two and a half minutes.'
Letting out a long breath, Juni carefully picked out seven mostly-square pieces of root and dropped them one by one into the mixture, stirring ten times afterwards. She kept forgetting which way was clockwise and which way was counterclockwise, so she figured that a little of each would be just as well. It isn't like the potion could tell, anyways, it was just a potion.
After stirring, she measured out her Asphodel and tossed it in almost carelessly as began stirring again. She glanced at her book halfway through stirring and squinted as she struggled to find the step she was on and completely losing track of how many stirs she did and which direction they were in. Deciding she had done enough, she stopped stirring and realized she was on the last step.
'Add one small piece of Valerian root.' Pressing her lips together, she glanced around the room as she watched other students working on various steps in the potion's process. After what felt like both ten seconds and ten minutes, she popped one last piece of Valerian root into her potion and watched it bubble and disappear.
Watching it for a few moments, Juniper sat back in her seat, looking around the room for Professor Slughorn. Maybe if she was finished early, he'd let her leave early and she could sneak in a nap before her next class. Stifling a yawn, she looked up at Slughorn as he made his rounds over to her table.
"Juniper, is everything alright?" He asked, curious as to why she wasn't working still.
"Oh, um, I'm all finished," she informed him, now almost sheepishly, as though she knew she shouldn't be done already. It had only been just over 30 minutes, after all. The potion should've taken closer to an hour if done properly.
"Oh, ho! Are you now?" Slughorn raised his eyebrows suspiciously as he put his hand over his chest to keep his tie down as he glanced over her cauldron. Stopping short, his brow furrowed slightly as he inspected her potion. Taking a side-eyed glance at Juni, he gingerly picked up one of the spare ingredients from in front of Juni and held it over the potion for a moment before dropping it in.
As soon as the piece hit the liquid, it seemed to sizzle and disintegrate away, drawing a remark of surprise from Slughorn as he clapped Juniper on the back.
"Merlin's beard, Juniper!" he exclaimed, loud enough for the entire class to hear. "Everyone, gather round! Miss White has managed to brew a near-perfect draught in nearly half the time! Such a feat is remarkable! Never in my entire career-" he kept talking, trailing off on one of his tangents as the rest of the class clambered around to try and get a glimpse of Juni's potion. Juni herself was more or less in shock. This was some sort of joke, right? There was literally no way that her mess of a potion was even close to accurate… Yet here stood her professor, boasting about it and hyping her potion up. "-really, Juniper, I think you should consider making a career in potionwork! You clearly have a natural born knack and talent for it!"
"Err," Juni shifted uncomfortably in her seat, not wanting any of the attention he was giving her. "Thanks, I'll um. I'll think about it." Eyes drifting from face to face, she noticed that Tom was once again staring at her. Holding his gaze for a few seconds, Juniper was the first to break it again, looking back up at Slughorn, a light pink tinge staining her cheeks as she gave Slughorn a half smile.
"I think that'll be all for today, everyone!" Slughorn chuckled as he clapped Juni on the back again, causing her to flinch. There were some cheers around the room as Juni caught Tom's eye again. Why was he still watching her? He cocked an eyebrow ever so slightly at her and she stood up abruptly.
"Thank you, sir," Juni gave Slughorn a quick smile as she turned on her heel and made her way quickly back to her desk, shoving all of her things back in her bag, double checking that the diary was still in its place.
"It's quite remarkable," Tom's voice sounded from directly behind her, nearly sending her straight out of her skin as she spun around to face him, holding her back tightly against her chest. She hadn't had the chance to cinch it shut just yet, so she couldn't risk him peering inside.
"Wh-What is?" Juni attempted to seem indifferent, raising her eyebrows slightly at him. He watched her for a moment, his face void of any expression as he did so.
"It's quite remarkable," he repeated, a tinge of annoyance to his voice. "That you were somehow able to make such a difficult potion without any real skill or effort to pay attention to it." A muscle in Juni's jaw twitched as she clenched it, glaring up at him now. Turning abruptly from him, her voice was cold.
"You ought to stop talking to me, Riddle," she instructed, giving him a side eyed look. "People might start to think we're friends." Juniper heard him scoff lightly as she walked away from him and straight out of the classroom, still holding her bag tightly to her chest.
Making her way through the halls, she let out a long breath as she found her way to the common room again. Ignoring anyone and everyone in the room, she made a beeline for her dorm, flopping onto the bed with a soft thud and promptly falling asleep.