On Edge

May 5, 1944

"Books and notes away, class. Please take out your quills and we'll begin the ex-" Professor Thomson was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy?" His voice was annoyed and impatient at the disturbance.

Abraxas stuck his head inside and said, "Excuse me, Sir. Headmaster Dippet requested to see Tom Riddle."

The Professor looked at Tom and sighed. "Run along, then. You'll have to stop by my office this weekend to take your exam."

Tom nodded and went into the hall, where Abraxas was waiting for him. The fifth year attempted to explain: "I was finishing my rounds with Walburga near his office when he stopped me in the hall. He wouldn't say what it was about, but he asked her to fetch Horton from Divination."

Tom said nothing in response. If it had only been he that was summoned, he wouldn't have worried; he met with Dippet at least somewhat often. But now that he knew Rose would be there as well, his mind was suddenly filled with the worst possible scenarios.

Perhaps word had gotten around that she rarely slept in her own bed anymore, even during the week. It had become her habit over the past month to sneak into his dormitory after Avery and Lestrange were asleep. Or, perhaps someone had caught them sneaking into the Room of Requirement when they were supposed to be completing their rounds.

He cursed his inability to keep his hands off her ever since she had fully given herself to him. Then again, he wasn't alone in the blame. She was always there, tempting and corrupting him. Before Rose, he never would have broken the rules so blatantly.

Regardless of blame, Dippet was notoriously strict and wouldn't stand for such behavior; especially from Prefects. His stomach dropped as he realized he would likely be turning in his Prefect badge in less than an hour's time. Their chances at Head Boy and Girl would be shot to hell. Then, of course, there would also be a letter to her parents and their subsequent wrath.

They reached the Grand Staircase and Abraxas paused. "Well, I'll see you at Dueling Club this evening."

Tom nodded, attempting to keep himself composed even though he suddenly felt quite ill. It seemed so odd to think of Dueling Club, or anything else for that matter, now that everything he had worked for in the past few years was about to be dismantled before his very eyes.

He finally reached the Headmaster's office; as Dippet was expecting them, the familiar gargoyle stepped aside without a password. His mind was spinning as he opened the door and saw Dippet sitting at his desk with Rose seated across from him. He felt so intrinsically certain that the scenario he had envisioned was exactly what was about to happen.

"Good morning, Mr. Riddle. Please close the door behind you."

Tom did so and swallowed; his mouth was suddenly very dry. The Headmaster gestured at the seat next to Rose. He sat and she turned to him, giving him a bright smile.

Oh, Rosemary…do you have any idea what is about to happen?

"Thank you both for meeting with me this morning," Dippet began. He sat back in his chair and stroked his long, white beard. "You've both been doing quite well this term. Do you feel prepared for your upcoming exams?"

Tom wished that the small talk would be abandoned so they could just get it over with.

Unfortunately, Rose didn't appear to be on the same page and indulged Dippet's chatter: "They will certainly be challenging, but I'm so happy to have Tom to study with."

Please stop, you're making it worse…

Some of his panic must have shown through because she gave him a puzzled look.

"You two do spend a great deal of time together, so I've come to notice…"

Oh no…No, please, no…

"Normally, we tend to avoid choosing a couple for these positions, but there is no one more qualified at Hogwarts than the two of you."

What?

"We've finally concluded our deliberations and I am pleased to inform you that you will be serving Hogwarts as Head Boy and Head Girl next year."

He had been so sure that they were in some sort of trouble that it took a few seconds to fully comprehend what Dippet was telling them.

Rose giggled excitedly and shook the Headmaster's hand. "Sir, this is such splendid news! Thank you!"

Tom composed himself as the news began to sink in. "Thank you, Headmaster Dippet," he breathed, taking his turn to shake the old man's hand.

"Congratulations to both of you. I've spoken with Miss Duprie and Mr. Bryan and they'll meet with you both later tonight to schedule your training. Seven o'clock in the Arithmancy classroom, I believe."

As soon as they stepped outside his office, Rose threw her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "What a relief!" She pulled away from him and paused, giving him a satisfied smile. "Although, I shouldn't be surprised: it had to be us. You and I are such an unstoppable pair."

Unless your parents are involved…he thought, but he bit his tongue instead of saying it aloud as he didn't want to spoil her good mood. He envied her blithe nature, as though the situation with her parents was the furthest thing from her mind. Perhaps, though, she simply didn't feel the need to worry because he had promised that he would find a solution. There was no way to know for sure; the subject had become taboo since the night at her home in Weybridge.

Meanwhile, it constantly ebbed at him. For the first time in his life, he felt as though he were in over his head and hadn't a clue what to do about it. Sure, he had charmed countless people over the years, but this was different. He had never charmed anyone that blatantly disliked him. In fact, the only other person that he knew disliked him was Dumbledore, and Tom had simply given up attempting to gain his favor long ago. But it wasn't even that they disliked him; he was flying in the face of their beliefs. Beliefs that he also believed in.

It was so utterly conflicting and he couldn't even begin to make a plan of how to proceed. As a result, he had become increasingly paranoid in the past few weeks, feeling like he may lose her at little more than a moment's notice. Even though he was immensely relieved and delighted that they had been chosen as Head Boy and Girl, he couldn't help but feel pessimistic, as if it were all temporary and unstable. He hated it. He didn't want Rose to be a fluctuating part of his life; he wanted her to be constant. She was the first and only person he wanted to share anything with. The thought of giving her up had become unbearable.

"Tom? Are you alright?" Her voice was laced with worry. "I thought you'd be more excited…"

"Of course I'm excited." He attempted to sport an assuring smile as he leaned in to kiss her forehead.

This was yet another unpleasant side effect that had come about as of late. He was constantly forced to choose between lying and discussing the problem directly. Neither option was attractive, but at least this way, she could be happy instead of falling prey to his toxic cynicisms. That didn't change the fact that he hated lying to her, though.

Judging by the students that had suddenly swarmed the halls, their first class of the morning had ended. "I have to go pick up my things from Divination," she told him. Then she donned a smirk: "Congratulations again, Head Boy." Tom smiled at her as she turned away; the news was beginning to sink in and fortunately, he was beginning to feel a bit more at ease after his short-lived panic.

As he had brought his books with him from Ancient Runes, he began down the Grand Staircase to head to Herbology. It was a class that he wished the Ravenclaws shared with the Slytherins so that he could be Rose's partner instead of Cramer. But, then again, she had told him several stories about Warren's lack of talent in the class. If partnering in a class with him made her think Warren was a complete idiot – and rightfully so – Tom supposed he didn't mind it that much.

"Hey, Riddle!" He turned in the direction of the high-pitched voice that he recognized all too well.

"Donohue," he nodded in greeting.

"I just ran into Rose and she told me the news! That's just perfect! Her parents will be thrilled, I'm sure."

He narrowed his eyes at her; he was growing tired of her little off-handed comments. He might not have minded beating her at her own game if he didn't have the situation with Rose's parents to worry about. Thanks to her.

Tom took her by the wrist and pulled her into a nearby classroom, assuming that it was unused by the lack of students trickling in. She looked startled by his rash action and it sparked his temper. Did she honestly think he would just keep letting her get away with her snide remarks?

She folded her arms over her chest and smirked at him. "Now Tom, people will talk…even you should know that." The look she gave him was almost convincingly innocent. "I don't think Rose would be very happy with that."

"Well you'd love that wouldn't you?" he growled.

She shot him an infuriatingly puzzled look.

"Donohue," he lowered his voice to its most menacing tone, "I simply do not have time to play your little games. Thanks to you, I'm a bit preoccupied in dealing with Rosemary's parents. Now, if you say anything about this to her or anyone else for that matter, I assure you, you will not like what follows. Don't start a war with me."

"Wait…what? Meeting her parents didn't go well?" There it was again: that annoying, fake voice of innocence. He had already called her bluff; why didn't she just admit it at this point?

"You know all about that, don't you?"

"Not really...Rose hasn't mentioned anything. Is it because you don't play Quidditch?"

This encounter was beginning to try his patience in ways he never thought possible. He began reaching for his wand, nearly ready to fire a curse or two at her.

"I can't believe she didn't tell me." Faye shook her head. "She really loves you, you know. I can't say that I was thrilled when you first went steady, but I can tell how happy she is when I see the way she looks at you. I am sorry to hear that, though."

He faltered for a moment, allowing her words to sink in. Had he really been this far off? Suddenly, as he pondered everything that had involved Donohue's comments over the past few months, he realized that there was actually no concrete evidence that she had any ill-intentions toward his relationship with Rose. Things could have been explained by coincidence. But, he had to be sure. Such a task would have been much easier if he had been able to master legilimency by now; unfortunately, he had been much too preoccupied with the Hortons to do so. Questioning her would have to suffice.

"Is that why you so conveniently reminded her to introduce us?" he said suspiciously.

Faye furrowed her eyebrows. "I didn't. I only asked if they had met you."

"And your little comment in the hall just now? It certainly seems as though you had some sort of idea that things didn't go well." He narrowed his eyes at her again.

"What, when I said her parents would be happy to hear? They will be happy, Riddle! She was made Head Girl, after all."

He sighed. Apparently he had vastly overestimated her as of late; she was just as vapid as he had originally thought. He hated being wrong, so the realization came as a sickening feeling. It was the second time that day his intuition had failed him because of his mounting paranoia.

"Well, are you going to tell me what you did to make them dislike you?"

"No," he snapped.

"That's fine," Faye shrugged. "I'll just ask Rosie about it later."

His anger exploded once more. This time, he grabbed his wand and pointed it toward her the most threatening fashion he could. "No. You will do no such thing. As I said before, you aren't going to tell anyone about our little talk. Especially not Rose. Do you understand?"

She rolled her eyes slightly. "She's my best friend. Honestly, what are you going to do if I ask her? Jinx or hex me?"

His voice grew icy, but calm and even. "If I need to." Then a small smirk appeared on his face. "There's always your precious Adam…It would be so unfortunate if any harm were to come to him. Who knows what I'll be forced to resort to if you choose to open your mouth. You'll do well to remember the advice I gave you: don't start a war with me."

The fear in her eyes was evidence that he had sufficiently startled her. The ridiculous confidence that she so often wore had fallen. His eyes stared into hers and she glanced away, turning to leave. "I have to get to class," she mumbled.

"We aren't quite finished." He caught her by the wrist and aggressively yanked her back into the room. His grip tightened and he realized he could easily break her wrist in one quick motion. Perhaps he would, if she failed to appease his demands. "Have we reached an understanding?"

When she looked up at him again, he could see the tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "Yes." Her voice trembled.

Her feebleness made him loathe her even more than before.

"Excellent," he said as he released her with satisfaction. She didn't dare turn back to glance at him before darting out.

When Rosemary entered her dormitory after lunch, Emily pointed to a long package at the end of her bed. "The house-elves brought it up here since you skipped breakfast."

"Thanks." When she saw the size of the box, there was no question in her mind as to what it was. As she tore into the brown paper wrapping that covered it and saw the familiar Comet Trading Company logo, her suspicions were confirmed.

"New model?" Not even Emily was surprised.

"The Comet 187," Rose sighed. She didn't know why her father insisted in sending her the newest version of each broom he made. They were essentially all the same to her, not to mention the fact that she had received at least two brooms a year since her first year in school. Who actually needed that many broomsticks? Rose didn't play Quidditch. She didn't even enjoy flying for Merlin's sake. Heights made her unbearably nauseous.

She opened the accompanying note from her father.

Dear Rosemary,

I hope you're enjoying the newest Comet. As you know, it will enter stores next week. Graduation is quickly approaching and the parents will soon flock to Diagon Alley to find the perfect gift. I'm sure they'll stop in our showroom if it catches the eyes of the graduates. Perhaps take some time to fly it around Hogwarts and drum up some envy?

It's unfortunate that I have to bring up such a thing, but your mother has been quite anxious since your last visit home. I hope that you have good news for her when you return home for the summer.

Love always,

Dad

She crumpled up the note in frustration and threw it in the bin near her desk. Bringing "good news" clearly translated to: "find a more suitable match and stop seeing Tom Riddle, if you haven't already."

Their luckless state of affairs had plagued her mind constantly in the past month. However, she certainly didn't want to keep reminding him of it. Nor did she want him to think that she didn't trust him to find a solution. Therefore, she had resorted to avoiding the topic with Tom at all costs and parading a cheerful, fake demeanor. It was exhausting and torturous. She wanted to trust him, but didn't know how. It was something she had been struggling with tremendously, as trusting him with everything else was so easy.

She had noticed small changes in him and could tell that the situation was affecting him just as profoundly. He was much more on-edge and not nearly as playful as before. Even when they had been made Head Boy and Girl that morning, his reaction was a minuscule fraction of the enthusiasm she had expected. It hurt, knowing that he was so troubled. She couldn't help but feel incredibly guilty.

Rose felt a sudden impulse to get outside for some fresh air. Fortunately, as it was Friday, it meant a short day in terms of classes; she was already finished and had a few hours before meeting up with Tom for her ongoing private dueling lessons. She grabbed the broom with the intent to drop it by the Quidditch supply shed. Then at least someone would get some use out of it.

She reached the castle's lawn and started toward the Quidditch pitch. Dozens of girls had donned skimpy bathing suits and were tanning near the edge of the Black Lake while the boys admired them. One of the girls had platinum blonde hair that the sun shone brilliantly off of. When she turned to speak to her nearby friend, Rose saw that it was Olive Hornby.

She remembered, suddenly, that she hadn't asked Tom about the "situation" with Hornby that Rebecca had brought up at the party weeks before. It seemed so inconsequential now that her parents were posing a somewhat immediate threat to their happiness. Besides, it wasn't as though she was actually worried that Tom had done something wrong; she knew that she could trust him, especially in terms of the other girls that were interested in him at Hogwarts (and they were many).

"Horton!" she heard a familiar voice call from the water's edge.

Rose turned her head to see Warren wave and begin jogging over to her.

"I heard the news. You and Tom, Head Girl and Boy…Never would have guessed it." He winked at her. "Congratulations."

"Thank you," she smiled, but felt conflicted as to what to say. She felt obligated to say something polite along the lines of: 'I'm sorry you weren't chosen', but thought it might make things uncomfortable. Not to mention the fact that it wasn't true; she wasn't sorry at all that Tom was chosen instead of him.

Thankfully, he was sufficiently awed by the broom in her hands so they didn't linger on the subject. "Is that the new Comet?!" he asked her excitedly, bending down to inspect it carefully. "The 187…I've been dying to see it."

"It is," Rose smiled, handing it over to him. He took it enthusiastically. "You can be the first to fly it, if you'd like."

"Really?! Horton, that's bloody amazing."

She smirked and mentally rolled her eyes. What was it with these boys and broomsticks?

Warren got on and rose into the air, flying slowly at first to test the broom's various features, such as the patented Horton-Keitch Braking Charm. He gave her a thumbs-up, looking impressed. Then he picked up the pace, racing past her so quickly that it created a breeze.

Finally, he swooped down and stopped next to her. "It's brilliant, Rose."

"My father will be pleased." She smiled at him.

Warren suddenly looked very nervous, as he hovered near her. "There's something I've been meaning to ask…You don't have to answer this if it makes you uncomfortable, but do you think he's still hiring any interns for this summer? I'm very interested in broom engineering and I haven't heard back yet…"

It was so rare to see Warren's confidence falter and it took her by surprise. "I'm sure he just hasn't gotten around to reviewing applications yet," she attempted to reassure him. "They've been busy with the new model and all-"

"Oh, yes, of course," he said quickly. "I'm sorry, I should have thought of that."

"I'll speak with him about it," Rose continued.

"I could never ask you to do that…"

She realized that she felt a little guilty that he hadn't been chosen for Head Boy and had been such a good sport about it. Perhaps this would cheer him up somewhat. "You're surely more qualified than many of the others – it certainly looked like you knew what you were doing up there." She pointed at the sky, where he had just been methodically inspecting the broom.

"I've had a bit of practice," he said modestly.

"Well, I'm certain my father will be very impressed. Besides, he likes you Warren. You've met him several times. He's seen you play several times. Even if I didn't say anything, I doubt you'd have much to worry about."

Warren suddenly looked extremely content upon hearing her words. It made her happy, too, to be able to make someone else happy. It was a moment of reprieve from her own reality, which was currently in shambles.

"Don't you want to take a turn on it?" he asked her.

"I'm not much of a flier, you know that."

"The daughter of one of the best broom manufacturers in the world doesn't like to fly. I just don't understand it." He shook his head and laughed lightly. "Well, you don't have to fly. Hop on, I'll do the flying and you can enjoy the view." Warren tapped the broom in front of him as though it were a perfectly comfortable seat. Rose wasn't fooled; she knew it wasn't comfortable at all.

Plus, she knew that he would race her around in an attempt to show off and she would certainly be sick. "No thank you," she told him.

He laughed heartily. "Come on! Live a bit, Horton."

She felt eyes watching her and she glanced to her left, toward the greenhouses and saw Tom walking from his Herbology class, staring daggers at them both. But why? Was he jealous that she was talking with Warren? The entire possibility seemed incredulous.

"I should go," she said.

Warren followed her gaze, but his voice was as casual and nonchalant as usual, revealing no evidence of unease because of Tom's glare. "Of course."

He began to lower the broom to the ground and stepped off of it before holding it out to her. She shook her head. "Keep it. Like I said, I'm not much of a flier. I'm sure he'll outfit the entire team with them next season anyway."

"You're marvelous."

Rose smiled and waved goodbye as she strode across the lawn to meet Tom. She had hoped that, perhaps, her eyesight had merely betrayed her and she had imagined his cold look. Unfortunately, he seemed rigid and didn't bother to bend his neck to meet her lips like he always did when she stood on her toes to kiss him. "How was Herbology?" she asked.

"Fine."

Well, clearly something was wrong. "You're upset."

"No I'm not," he snapped as he began walking toward the castle.

Rose had to break into a bit of a jog to keep up with his long strides. "Am I really supposed to believe that?"

"Yes."

"Well, I don't…" She stopped. Their morning had been so pleasant, what with finding out about their Head Boy and Girl positions. This was the only time she had seen him since then; perhaps itwas jealousy. "Does this have anything to do with the fact that I was just talking with Warren?"

He spun around to face her. "What are you insinuating?"

"Nothing. It's just…you were fine this morning…"

"So you assume that I'm jealous of Cramer? That mindless fool?"

She felt a momentary impulse to defend him; they were friends after all, and she didn't think he was a 'mindless fool' by any means. But she also knew that voicing this would be a terrible mistake to Tom. "No, I'm not saying that. It's just the way you were looking at us." She touched his arm, attempting to speak in her most soothing voice.

He sighed. "I haven't been feeling like myself lately." Then she saw it again: that worry in his beautiful, dark brown eyes.

"I know." Rose reached up and touched his cheek. Now it was her turn to reassure him and make a promise she was unsure she could keep, though she would desperately try everything in her power to do so: "Everything will work out, Tom. You'll see."

"Uncertainty is the biggest torture in love." – Anonymous

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