Chapter 3

Skyler looked at the notice board and saw a sheet with the heading, "Duelling Club". She tilted her head in interest and noticed the time, 8, and day, Friday. It was starting in five minutes. She hurried down to find it.

She had been avoiding Tom Riddle for the past few days but when she walked into the Great Hall there he was, standing looking around with a challenging expression.

"Would anyone like to duel Mr Tom Riddle, here?" said the professor. There was a silence. "Anyone?"

Everyone looked scared, uncomfortable.

Skyler put her hand up. "I will."

Everyone turned round to face her, gasping in shock. Someone daring to duel Tom when he was such a powerful wizard? It was unheard of.

"Excellent!" The professor cried.
The crowd parted, whispering to each other, to allow Skyler to walk up onto the platform.

"I want a nice, clean duel you two. No unforgivables!" Professor Merrythought said quietly and he seemed to be looking specifically at Tom. Skyler pulled out her wand and squared her shoulders.

"Like that's going to happen." She said threateningly.

Tom chuckled, shifting on his feet like a tiger preparing to pounce.

"Wands up!"

Skyler and Tom raised their wands.

"Duel!"

"Incarcerous!" Skyler cried and ropes appeared and bounded Tom.

"Diffindo." Tom said instantly, completely calm, and the ropes were cut and fell at his feet.

Skyler glared, her temper rising.

"Expulso!" A small explosion went off in front of Tom and he jumped backwards.

"Impervius!" He shouted over the sound of the explosion and walked towards Skyler. She was pushed backwards by the force of the spell. Now she could see why everyone else had been so reluctant to duel Tom, he was powerful enough. But, so was she.

"Confringo!" She said and Tom was throw backwards, his spell disarmed.

"Geminio." Skyler hissed. She flickered into two copies of herself. The copies surrounded Tom.
The crowd around them was watching, amazed at Skyler's skill. They started to chant her name. Skyler looked around her, grinning.
Tom looked furious, livid.

He raised his wand but before he'd opened his mouth, Skyler shouted, "Locomotor Mortis!"
Tom's legs snapped together.

"Expelliarmus!"

His wand flew across the platform.

"Wingardium Leviosa!"
Tom rose up and was thrown across the platform and fell off the edge.

The crowd erupted into applause and cheering.
Professor Merrythought hurried onto the platform. "I think we have a winner!" He said and gestured to Skyler who flickered back to one person. "Skyler Nightshade!"

So that was what it stood for.

Skyler jumped off the platform and was greeted by the crowd, clapping her on the back and hugging her. As Skyler left the Great Hall with her new fans, she glanced back and saw Tom stand up and smooth his hair.
He was defeated. By a girl. A girl he would now made it his top priority to get revenge on.

Back in the Slytherin common room, Skyler was being chanted. Someone had got alcohol from somewhere and she was having the time of her life.
Some time later, when Skyler's new friends had all gone off to bed, Skyler staggered, very tipsy, into a chair. She sat, drinking from a bottle of something which was definitely not pumpkin juice; she couldn't remember exactly.

Tom Riddle walked over and sat in the chair beside her.

She looked at him blearily and smiled widely.
"Hey!" She said, delighted to see him for some reason.

"Hello." Tom said shortly.

Tom had watched her drink shots and many other drinks, been kissed by two boys who had then been pushed away as quickly as they had been grabbed. She was immensely happy, but he could sense a sadness behind the grin.
Skyler took another drink from her bottle then looked disappointed to find it was empty. She put it on the floor and turned to Tom.
"So," she slurred. "I beat you."

Tom felt a stab of annoyance.
"Yes, you did." He said through gritted teeth.

"Sorry about that. My dad taught me how to do stuff but he's probably dead now. Same as mother."

Tom's eyes widened. Her parents were dead too?

Skyler went rambling on, "I didn't think that I would but sometimes you just do these things, y'know? You do these things and expect them to fail but they don't. And you're just like oh! Okay then! That reminds me of a time when I was-"

Tom hushed her. He leaned over in his seat to her. She leaned over to, grinning in a lopsided sort of way, blinking slowly.
"Skyler. Just shut up, okay?" Tom said. And he kissed her.
Skyler's brain went into haywire, she didn't push him away. She responded.
Tom tasted the unpleasant drinks she'd been drinking but persisted, feeling Skyler draw herself closer to him. He lost himself for a moment, his instincts taking over. Skyler started to press herself against him.
The noise of the green fire made him snap back to his senses and he pushed Skyler away quickly. She began to giggle hysterically. Tom was disgusted.

"Shut up!" He said, exasperated.

"Kiss me again and maybe I will!" Skyler slurred.

"No way!" Tom felt sick. He stood up and walked quickly upstairs to his room. He heard Skyler's giggles echoing inside his confused brain.
He put on his pyjamas and lay down on his bed.
He stared up at the dark ceiling, the evening repeating itself in his head. He looked at the clock. Half past 1. Skyler was so drunk she probably wouldn't remember anything.

But he would.

Why did he have to kiss her? She was just a stupid drunk bitch who had humiliated him in front of basically the whole school.
At least no one had seen them. Tom vowed that he would rather kiss a horned toad than kiss Skyler Nightshade ever again.