First Encounter

Luna looked around and found herself standing at the top of the marble staircase leading into the Entrance Hall. Next to her was a tall wizard with long, sweeping auburn hair and a similarly coloured sweeping beard that was tucked into a belt tied around his waist. The man looked oddly familiar to her, but she couldn't pinpoint an exact name on him. She stepped round in front of him to get a closer look.

"Professor Dumbledore?" Luna's jaw dropped when her eyes met the same twinkling blue eyes behind half-moon spectacles. Aside from the hair colour change and the lack of wrinkles, this man was the exact replica of her Headmaster.

"What are you doing, wandering around so late, Tom?" The Headmaster spoke out.

Luna's eyebrow knitted into confusion. Late? Wasn't it only seven thirty in the morning? She was just at breakfast in the Great Hall before being called up to the Headmaster's chamber. She looked to the window in the stone wall and saw that night had indeed already fallen. What was going on? She looked around and found to whom he was talking to. A tall, black haired boy around the age of sixteen stopped in his tracks. His dark green eyes caught hers then flew to Dumbledore's.

"I had to see the Headmaster, sir," the boy said.

Luna couldn't help but find herself more confused. Wasn't Dumbledore the Headmaster? Before she could clarify, Dumbledore spoke again.

"Well, hurry off to bed. Best not to roam the corridors these days. Not since…" He sighed heavily before striding off.

Luna hesitated, looking between the boy and the Headmaster. The boy's brooding eyes were fixed on her. She felt the hairs on her arms rise just being under his stare. Not wanting to stay around him any longer, she took a few swift steps after her headmaster and called out, "Professor!"

But to her dismay, the wizard paid no heed. "Professor Dumbledore!" she called again. Once more, he did not answer.

"Professor!" This time, the boy spoke.

Dumbledore stopped and turned around. "Yes, Tom?"

The boy looked pointedly at Luna, indicating her presence to the wizard but the professor seemed to look right through Luna. The boy noticed this at once. "Goodnight, sir."

Dumbledore smiled, though with great difficulty, and bade him goodnight. Once he was out of sight, the boy whipped out his wand and aimed it at Luna threateningly. She gasped, not anticipating the boy's reaction.

The boy named Tom advanced forward, holding Luna's chin up with his wand. "Who are you?"

It was a simple question yet said with such power and demand. She was usually impervious to the taunts and teases she faced at Hogwarts from her fellow pupils. She felt that they were simply words and meant no harm other than to crack a joke. This did not apply here. His words were meant to harm. They were meant to control her and make her feel how much more powerful he was compared to her and how easily he could dominate her. She could do nothing but answer, "Luna." Her wide, misty eyes did not blink. They were frozen in fear. "Luna Lovegood. I'm a fourth year Ravenclaw," she stammered at a barely audible volume.

Tom's eyes narrowed, not completely convinced by her answer but saw that her robes matched her reply. "Why can't the Professor see you?" His voice was still thick with suspicion.

Luna blinked finally. He couldn't see her? "I don't know," she said dumbly. Her hand reached up to finger her necklace nervously. She made no move to reach for her wand.

Tom's suspicion only grew at her answer. He moved his wand to lower her hand and stepped closer to look at the object she touched.

Luna's heart began to pound thunderously as he neared. His pale face was arranged serious. Cheeks were sunken, yet his entirety was quite handsome. Who was this boy? Luna urged herself to speak. "And who are you?" she asked shakily, no where near in confidence as he had asked her.

The boy's eyes snapped up from the caps to look at hers. "Tom Riddle. Sixth year Slytherin." He straightened his robes so that his prefect badge caught the light from the torches.

Luna glanced down at the badge. She felt a little more at ease knowing the school trusted him enough to name him prefect. "He couldn't see me?" She began to regret ever opening the black cabinet. Something caught by the dim torch lights gleamed on Riddle's left hand and she noticed it was a rather large ring. The ring was gold and a black, octagonal stone was set in the middle of it. Something was engraved in the center of the black stone but she couldn't make out what it was in the dim light.

"I just asked you that didn't I?" Riddle dropped the hand holding his wand but did not put it away. He stood there staring at Luna's Butterbeer caps necklace. His gaze was unfocused and had drifted to her plum earrings. He appeared to be thinking. His eyes darkened, turning into a deep, forest green, as his mind searched for the answer. Finally, he pulled his eyes up to meet her in a cold glare. "You weren't there a moment ago. Where did you come from?" he asked sternly.

Luna thought for a moment. She was unsure if she answered honestly she would come off loony. She was also unsure if what she thought had just happened happened at all or was just in her head. She came up with what she thought was the most suiting answer. "The Headmaster's office." It was the last clear memory of what she was certain had happened.

Riddle didn't look convinced. "I was just there and I didn't see you. Don't lie to me!" He seethed, his nostrils flared in anger.

Luna immediately cowered back from the invisible force of fury she felt radiating off of him. She had shrunk down into herself as if it was any way to protect her from him. "I'm not lying," she whimpered.

"Look at me!" He commanded.

She hesitated. She tried to resist, afraid of what might his stare make her do. Perhaps make her spill forth what illusions she had seen and felt just minutes ago. Unfortunately, his words were almost physical. She could feel his energy pulling on the back of her neck to make her look up. She gave in and cautiously met her eyes with Riddle's.

He stared into them, gauging if she had been lying. After what seemed to be centuries to Luna, he finally broke the staring contest. He seemed to believe her for he said nothing but, "Follow me." He turned unceremoniously and went up the stairs on the right.

Luna didn't move, doubtful of what had just happened.

"Did you not hear me?" Tom had stopped and was now looking down at her condescendingly.

"Where are we going?" Luna really didn't want to admit it. She thought if she did admit it to herself, it would just make it that much more horrifyingly true. Yet the fear Tom Riddle generated around him was unstoppable.

Was this the same school she has been to for four years now? How come she felt the corridors were darker and danker than she remembered? It was as if the warmth from the torches could not reach her. The layout of the school was still the same but she could not help but feel lost.

And this Tom Riddle. She did not feel the heat from the fire of the torches but she felt the heat of his body when he had neared her. All her senses seemed heightened to him but dulled to the environment. There was something about this Riddle that made Luna no doubt fear him but at the same time lured towards him. Perhaps it was because she could only feel the warmth off of him and nothing else. No matter how much warmth she felt off of him, she had to stay cautious. This was no longer the Hogwarts she knew.

"Follow and you shall see." He gave no room to argue. He turned and continued the way he had started, not turning around again to make sure she was following, as if he knew she would. He was right.

The halls were empty. Aside from the occasional prefect patrolling the halls, it was just the two of them. That made Luna very nervous. She didn't dare take her eyes off his back, afraid that he would suddenly decide against his previous judgement and turn on her with his wand.

She stared at the flow of his robes, mesmerized by the fluidity of it as if it were floating on the air around him. As concentrated as she was, she almost did not feel her head bump against something smooth and hard. Looking up, she found herself staring into the pair of deep, forest greens. She backed up quickly. "Sorry," she mumbled, blushing softly.

Tom Riddle's eyes grew from severe to wary. Blushing wasn't a reaction he had expected from her towards him. It was usually a run for the other direction when it came to other students. His natural aura generally deflected people from having any interest in him, though Dumbledore seemed to be a rather large exception.

He waited for her to recover then looked purposefully at the door, if you could call it a door. It was more of an expanse of aged wood with nothing but a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle.

Luna looked confused. Why had he brought her to the Ravenclaw Tower? "Why are we here?" she asked, curiously.

A small smirk began to play on the boy's pale lips. It was finally something Luna saw on him other than a grim expression. "You said you were a Ravenclaw." His gaze was penetrating. "Now prove it."