Chapter 27: Vow

At the end of the day, Harry decided to stop fretting about the upcoming meeting and just go with it. She had not yet decided the extent to tell Tom, but nevertheless she was going to tell him something. She went up the astronomy tower with a nervous anticipation. Partly because it was past curfew, mostly because of the upcoming meeting.

The door creaked softly as she swung it open. The inside of the room was dark with the top platform dimly lit by the gentle light from the moon. As she made her way up to the top, a rush of cool night air rushed pass her. The platform was empty, and she gave a breath of relief, her breathe making white puffs in the air. She walked to the edge of the tower and sat down, looking down at the forest surrounding the school.

"Enjoying the view?" A voice whispered behind her.

Startled, she turned around, losing her balance in the process. The speaker quickly reached out a hand to steady her and she found herself staring into familiar blue eyes. A stretch of silence lingered in the air, and he let go when he realized that she was stable.

"You are here." He stated. Harry remained silent, unsure how to reply.

"You showed a great display back then." He continued, referring to the time Harry used magic before Christmas. "I was surprised to see you here though." He gave her a piercing look.

"Why?" she asked.

"You … are afraid aren't you? Of magic." He replied.

Harry was shocked by his statement.

She gave a mirthful laugh. "What could you possibly be talking about? Why would I even be here if I was afraid?" Despite her light tone, her eyes were guarded.

"That is the question indeed. Why are you here?" Tom whispered, leaning in and staring straight into her eyes. Harry quickly averted her gaze from him and looked out towards the forest.

"I don't have to tell you anything." She retorted.

"But you wouldn't be here if you didn't plan to talk." Tom countered. "I just want to get some things straight that's all. As a fellow orphan, and as someone who saw you use magic but still kept it a secret. It has been … rather perplexing."

"I don't have any memories." She mumbled.

"What?"

"I said, I don't have any memories!" Harry shouted. "The only thing I remember before the orphanage was this lady that took care of me. Before that, everything is blurry or blank, so I don't remember anything before I was seven, only my name. The lady was nice, she took care of me, taught me how to read, how to live, and she could also use magic – even though she hid her abilities. I saw her once at night using it." She paused, debating whether she should go further. "I never knew that I had magic. But one day, it just came, and I caused an electric outage in the entire neighborhood. When she discovered I was the one who caused it, she looked at me with fear." Harry's voice trembled.

"Then these weird men in black came, and they were in an argument. They were speaking in a different language, but I'm sure I heard the word 'magic' somewhere in there." Harry shivered and curled herself into a ball.

"It's all my fault." She began repeating to herself. At this point, she had already distanced herself from the conversation and was reliving her past memories. Mildly concerned, though he would never admit it, Tom gave her a gentle shake.

"Hey!"

There was no response, and Harry kept repeating the phrase over and over again.

"Hey! Get yourself together!" He yelled, this time shaking her harder. It seemed to do the trick, and Harry blinked rapidly, eyes coming into focus.

"Huh?"

"You were repeating yourself." Tom stated.

"Ah, yes." Her face was pale, and her breath short. She did not expand on her statement.

"What happened?" He prodded.

"She was killed." Harry replied in a flat tone.

"After the argument, the men left but came back later that night. She told me to hide in the closet, and not to come out no matter what. I left the door slightly open, and saw them kill her. I was sent to the orphanage after she was reported missing and the authorities found her body." A single stream of tear ran down her face and Harry sniffled.

"It's all my fault she died. She was probably hiding her magic, but my mistake blew it all up."

Her explanation made a lot of sense to Tom. The murder itself was interesting, but not quite important to him at the moment. However, it did explain many strange things surrounding this strange girl, and it gave him an opportunity.

"Do you seek power?" He asked.

She chuckled humorlessly. "I'm a Ravenclaw, not a Slytherin, I just want knowledge on magic and catch the murder, that's why I came here." She replied, referring to the murder case.

"Let me rephrase that," Tom replied smoothly. "Do you want revenge?"

Harry's eyes hardened.

"Yes."

The word was venomous, scathing, and determined. Tom smirked.

"I have a proposition." He announced.

"What is it?" Harry asked warily.

"A sort of hidden alliance, if you will. I am in need of a sparring partner for Defense Against the Dark Arts, and someone to assist me with some research I have to do. Slytherins are out of the question, they are bloody backstabbers, but Ravenclaws … you want knowledge on magic don't you? Wouldn't it be the perfect opportunity?" He asked rhetorically. "In return, I will also use any potential connections I have to assist you in finding your murder. The only stipulation of course, is keeping all this between us." He indicated at the space between them. "When we are around others, we will act as fellow students, unacquainted with each other. However, we will meet at night on Fridays and Saturdays to exchange information."

"What research?" Harry asked.

"Oh, well you know, if you read over the books, you would also realize that Hogwarts's curriculum is not nearly as expansive as it should be. Consider it some … extra knowledge. Does that sound agreeable?"

Harry furrowed her eyebrows as she considered what he had said.

"How do I know you keep promises?"

Tom smiled mysteriously. "I always keep my promises." He replied.

"Fine. I want an unbreakable vow." She stated firmly.

Tom's eyebrow rose in surprise. The cost was almost too high … but he couldn't think of any disadvantages in making it, after all, there were so many loopholes.

"Deal."

The two shook hands, and magic shimmered under the moonlight as the two enacted their agreement.

A/N: Apologies for the delayed update. This week was exam week so I didn't write anything as I was studying. Furthermore, I really had to think of how I wanted to write this since it builds up in the plot. But, you all got an extra long chapter in exchange, so I'd like to consider it even. Enjoy! R&R.