Content Warning: This chapter contains depictions of violence and some descriptions of mild gore. If this is in any way triggering or upsetting, please proceed with caution.


September came and went with little to show for it. While Juniper saw Professor Dumbledore at least every other day, he never seemed to have any developments or further insight on what had happened with her time turner or how to get her home. For the time being, she was still stuck in 1944.

Juniper woke early on Saturday, 21 October, as she had done for the last 6 weeks of being back at the school. Sitting up in her bed, she stretched her arms out over her head and drew back the curtains attached to the bed frame. Rue was still sleeping. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, Juni contemplated waking her friend. The two had become almost close in the last few weeks she had been trapped here, and she realized she was very grateful to have her.

Deciding to let Rue sleep, Juni slid off her bed, letting her bare feet touch the cool stone floor. Gathering the clothes she'd wear for the day and bringing them to the bathroom, Juni stepped into a hot bath, going over what she planned to do for the day. It was still very early, but breakfast would have just begun down in the Great Hall. She figured she would stop for something to eat before visiting Professor Dumbledore this morning. The two had planned to meet up and discuss their short-term and long-term-just-in-case plans for her: if things took a turn for the worse and they couldn't send her back home.

Juniper wasn't sure what she would tell Dumbledore yet, but she had come up with a little bit of a plan on her own.

If she couldn't go home, if she had to stay in the past forever, she would at the very least try to make the future - her own time - a better one. She was very nearly 18 (she would be next month) and she could try and find some sort of job. Maybe she would try and leave half-way through the school year: just disappear over the holiday break. The more she thought about it, though, the more it made sense to stay through the year. If she did that, she would likely have an easier time getting a job - especially one that might help her secure a better future for her family and friends in 1998. She wondered how much she should try and do.

Gellert Grindlewald was still very much a threat in the current year. As far as she could remember, Professor Dumbledore would have his legendary duel with him… Next year? And Grindlewald would lose and be imprisoned for the rest of his life. But there was something more than that… Something Hermione had been talking about. Grindelwald either… He had something or he knew where something was that You-Know-Who wanted.

Dipping her head under the bath water to wash out all the soap, Juni tried to concentrate, trying to remember what it was. She was pretty sure that Voldemort had killed him in jail after taking… Whatever it was.

Or something like that.

Juni spat out water and rubbed it from her eyes as she came back up again. Her head was already starting to ache.

She knew that Rue wanted to take a morning trip down to Hogsmede today, but that they were also going to the Quidditch game around noon. After the game, she had told Riddle that she'd meet him in the library to work on their stupid potions paper. While the potion itself was doing magnificently, the paper on the other hand… Well, Juniper was glad that they had until the end of the term to complete it, as they couldn't seem to agree on anything about it all the way down to who would be physically writing it.

Juniper's head began to ache even more just thinking about that self-important prick as she lifted herself from the bath and dried herself off with a towel. It was safe to say that despite having to work together over the last month, the two were probably even less cooperative with one another than they had started. It was no secret that the two didn't get along, either: nearly everyone in their potions class was aware of it except for Professor Slughorn, who was still under the impression that he had paired two new friends together.

Looking in the mirror after she dressed, Juni combed through her long hair quickly, deciding to go with a simple ponytail today instead of her usual braid. Pursing her lips slightly as she looked at her reflection, she went back into the bedroom. Tossing her dirty night clothes into her trunk, she fished around until she found a long piece of dark green velvet ribbon that Rue had given her. Closing her trunk and grabbing her wand, she hurried back to the bathroom as quietly as she could manage before standing in the mirror again. Setting her wand on the sink in front of her, she tied the ribbon around her ponytail, fashioning it into a large bow. Admiring her handiwork, she smiled slightly as she saw the way the ribbon perfectly matched her green knit jumper.

After a second, she scowled again before grabbing her wand. Without a second glance in the mirror, she turned sharply away and went to find her shoes by her bed. It wasn't enough to simply be sorted into Slytherin, now was it? Now she had to dress like it as well? Holding in a scoff of disgust towards herself, she felt the all-too-familiar sense of longing and homesickness she'd carried through the entirety of her stay in the past.

'I don't belong in Slytherin,' she reminded herself as she pulled her shoes over her tights. 'It's simply where I got stuck for a while. That's probably just because of my stupid family, too, and their stupid blood-purity-bullshit. The sorting hat just hasn't… Evolved yet or something. That's all.'

Hopping off where she sat on her trunk, she gave one last look towards Rue's bed with the curtains still drawn closed. Grabbing her robes off the end of her bed, she shoved her wand in her pocket and made her way out of the room and towards the Great Hall for breakfast.

It was still very early by the time Juniper sat down in the hall, but food was out none-the-less. There were only a few students up at this time (it was 6 in the morning on a Saturday, after all): a few students from Hufflepuff that were on the quidditch team. They probably couldn't sleep anymore due to pre-game jitters. There were a few Ravenclaw students, one or two of them with their noses so buried in books that Juniper wasn't convinced they'd ever even gone to sleep. Only two Griffyndor students were awake, but Juni felt that was pretty typical even in her time in the future. Other than that, there were 4 other Slytherins that were awake - one of them being David Avery, who she had somewhat befriended with Rue. He was in a small close-knit group with Riddle, though, so she didn't really want to get too familiar with him. At the top of the hall sat a professor that Juni didn't recognize talking to the Headmaster quietly over some toast and coffee.

Sitting down at an empty area of the Slytherin table, Juni grabbed a glass of water with some scrambled eggs and a slice of toast that she slathered with blackberry jam.

"I like your bow," Avery told her cheerfully as he sat down at the spot across the table from her, having abandoned his previous spot next to someone else.

"O-Oh, um," Juni looked up at him, almost startled at the intrusion. "Thanks, Ruth gave it to me."

"She still sleeping, then?" He picked up a piece of sausage and popped it in his mouth. "What's got you up so early?" Juni shrugged a shoulder as she ate a small bite of egg, looking down at her plate to avoid looking at him. Almost as though he could sense her unease, Avery changed topics.

"Have you done your prep-work for Astronomy yet?"

"No," Juni furrowed her brows, completely forgetting he was even in her astronomy class let alone that there was prep-work? "Errr…"

"The prep work for Halloween?" Avery laughed softly as he sipped some juice that Juni didn't notice him pour. "Full moon's that Tuesday. We're supposed to have that parchment on all the phases of the moon and what they signify for magical folk by this Friday. Don't tell me you haven't even started?"

"Well then I can't tell you anything," Juni laughed slightly, embarrassed. "Because I haven't. I completely forgot about it.

"Well then you're welcome for reminding you!" David gave her a small smile before he ate another piece of sausage.

"Thanks," she said lamely as she took another bite of egg. The two ate in silence for a few moments before David looked at her again thoughtfully.

"...What?" Juni asked finally, looking at him wearily.

"Slughorn really has no idea, does he?" Juniper sat upright in her seat, giving David a confused look as her fork hovered somewhere between her plate and her mouth.

"No idea about what?" Pausing for a moment to look around them as though to make sure they wouldn't be overheard, David leaned in and spoke softly.

"That you and Riddle hate each other?"

"Oh," Juni couldn't help but laugh. "He almost stubbornly is completely oblivious somehow."

"Really?" David laughed softly too and shook his head. "That man sometimes… You've gotta love him, but my god."

"We do put on a rather good show in class," Juni went on, finishing the bite on her fork finally. "But you know the way people can talk. I'm surprised the news hasn't gotten to him."

"Maybe it has and he just refuses to see the truth," Avery shrugged as he took a long swig of juice.

"Maybe," Juni agreed, considering this for a moment. "But if that's the case, then he's an even better actor than we are."

Before Avery could open his mouth to reply, a small, dark brown owl shrieked as it came soaring into the hall through an entrance in the ceiling. Flying overhead the Slytherin table, it didn't even bother to land as it dropped a note directly in Juni's lap as she had sat back to look at it.

Sitting in surprise for a moment, Juni stared at the letter. She hadn't recognized the owl and it wasn't like she had family or outside friends in 1944 - well, not counting the family that was technically part of her family tree that actually belonged in the era.

"It's nowhere near mail-time, were you expecting something?" David asked as she unwrapped the note and read it silently.

'Meet me at the black lake.

10:30.

Today.'

"What?" Juni looked up at him suddenly as she re-folded the note. 'It must be from Dumbledore,' she realized. 'He must have something really important if he wants to meet up somewhere else... Maybe he doesn't want any potential intruders that we wouldn't see coming overhearing our conversation…' David watched her expectantly as she shoved the note in her pocket. "Oh! Yeah, Just a letter from a friend back in France. She was just telling me her cat got ill."

"Oh, that's awful, I'm sorry to hear that," David furrowed his brows slightly as he looked away from Juni, not wanting to make the situation more awkward by prying about a sick cat.

"Yeah, I hope it'll be alright," she said almost absentmindedly as she checked her watch. Her mind was racing. It was only 6:38, she still had just over 3.5 hours. What could it be that he would not only push their meeting back by an hour but also warrant an entirely new meeting spot?

"Hey, listen," Juni stood abruptly, watching the second hand on her watch tick by. Tearing her eyes away to look at David, she gave a small apologetic smile. "I really should write her back right away. Make sure she's alright and everything. Sorry!"

"No, don't worry about it," David reassured her, but she had already darted down the hall, away from the rest of her breakfast.


Juniper clutched the note in her fist as she pulled her cloak tightly around her. She told Rue that she'd meet back up with her after she was done working with Riddle in the library, she still felt guilty for not going to town with her. Juniper was just worried that she'd wind up stuck in Hogsmeade with Rue for hours and miss the meeting completely. Still, if Professor Dumbledore was sending mysterious owls with even more mysterious notes… He must've figured something out that he wanted to tell her right away. Juniper had spent the last hour or so in the library, trying for what felt like the hundredth time to find something related to time-turners or time-travel in general that might help, once again coming back empty-handed.

Why couldn't they just meet up in Dumbledore's office as they had for the past few weeks?

Letting out a shaky, but excited, almost hopeful breath, Juniper walked across the grounds, leaves crunching softly beneath her feet. Squinting slightly as she looked on towards the black lake, Juni shielded her eyes from the bright morning sun.

Dumbledore wasn't there yet.

Eyebrows furrowing slightly, Juni's pace slowed as she pushed her cloak up over her wrist to look at her watch.

10:30.

She was just barely going to be on time (if not technically a minute late, but she felt it hardly counted). So where was he? She hadn't ever known him to be late, but then again they usually just met in his office, so he didn't really have the chance to be late, did he? Dropping her sleeve again, she wrapped her arms around herself. Juni had a bad feeling growing in the pit of her stomach as she walked closer. Maybe he was just behind the big tree that sat at the water's edge? Maybe he was on a different part of the lake and she just couldn't see him? She had assumed that he would be at the closest point of the lake, maybe she should look around more?

As Juni walked up to the large tree at the edge of the lake, she looked around for him, contemplating whether or not she should call for him. 'Probably not,' she thought to herself, sighing when she didn't see anyone. 'That would probably look really weird or suspicious to anyone walking by. A student meeting up with a teacher at the edge of campus? By herself… On a Saturday. I don't need that sort of attention.'

Pulling out her watch again, she read the time was now 10:33. Glancing around again, Juni was still alone. Perhaps some student had found him in the hall and had to ask him a desperate Defense Against the Dark Arts question? Or another Professor had caught him and needed to discuss exam scores or something. Deciding that she would wait a few more minutes, she leaned against the tree, facing the lake. After a moment, there was a soft crunch of leaves nearby and she swung her head to look at whoever made the noise.

Still, there was no one to be seen. Chewing her lip, Juni once again opted against calling out for the professor. Taking another quick glance around, she let out a soft sigh and leaned on the tree once more.

Fffwwiiip!

All at once, a searing pain shot through Juniper's neck as something wound its way tightly around it, constricting her airway. Gasping for breath, her fingers instinctively went to grasp whatever had hold of her. Gasping again, she coughed in surprise as the white-hot burning feeling spread to her fingertips.

Juniper tried to back up into who or whatever had hold of her to try and get some wiggle-room to breath into but she found none: only the tree she had been against to begin with. Trying again to grasp at the thing around her neck, Juni ignored the burning in her fingers as she fought with it, coughing and gasping all the while as her vision was spotted with black dots.

Suddenly she felt something large hit her square in the back, knocking her forwards onto her hands and knees. Gasping quickly and as deeply as she could, the air was quickly forced out again as whatever was around her neck tightened quickly again, singeing her skin beneath it. Her vision very quickly grew darker as she fought to take a breath in - just one single breath in - but it was no use.

She was going to die.

Juniper would never get the chance to see her friends or family again, never get the chance to prove her loyalty and her worth.

She was going to die.

It was over.

The world spun around her as she dropped onto her side on the hard ground, unable to fight it anymore. Something moved in front of her as her vision failed her and the world went dark.


The first thing that Juniper could feel was the cold.

The kind of cold that chilled through your entire existence until it was all that you could focus on - all that you could feel.

The kind of cold that makes you feel as though you'll never be able to warm up ever again.

The kind of cold that soaked right through you to the very center of your body and-

Wait.

The kind of cold that soaked- Soaked?

Something stirred in Juni, as though bringing her to life again.

She could feel… Feel… What?

Cold. That one she knew.

But also heavy.

Heavy, heavy.

There was a heavy feeling in her ears.

No. More than her ears.

All around her was heavy.

No, that didn't make sense. Something else.

She couldn't open her eyes. They were sewn shut.

No. Not sewn. Heavy.

And cold. So, so cold.

Something moved past her and she felt the air rush by as it did.

W… Was it air?

Juniper suddenly remembered how to open her mouth only to have bubbles shoot out of it. But that… That wasn't right. Was she…?

All at once as if jolted back to life, Juniper flailed her arms and legs wildly, understanding where she was.

She was under the water.

Splashing through to the surface, Juni gasped for air and opened her eyes wide, taking in deep, rapid gulps of air as though she had just remembered how - partly because she had just remembered how. As if her limbs were moving of their own accord, she brought herself to the shore, some 3 meters away and collapsed on the bank, trying to catch her breath.

Laying for what felt like hours, she crawled further up the shore, taking her feet out of the water. On her back, she shivered violently in the cold as she tried to figure out what the hell had just happened and why she was in the water - certainly she didn't take herself into the lake.

No, she was… She was attacked. She was attacked! Though she had no idea by who: she never saw their face. Wincing, it was as though by unlocking the memory of her attack, she could all at once feel the stinging of the deep burns on her neck and fingers. Though maybe the sting had been subdued by the cold water from the lake.

The lake! She was at the Black Lake… waiting for Professor Dumbledore! He had sent her a note this morning and said to meet him at the lake and - her stomach dropped as she realized that it wasn't Professor Dumbledore who had sent that note.

Probably. Technically speaking, he could have. She couldn't actually fully rule him out as again, she had no idea who had attacked her.

It wasn't likely that it was him, though. He had plenty of other opportunities to kill her. Perhaps he had been beaten by the time-turner. Couldn't figure it out. Maybe he thought that getting rid of her would be a better or safer option than letting some dumb kid from 60 years in the future run loose in the past.

Maybe.

If… If it was Professor Dumbledore… Could any of the teachers be trusted? Honestly?

Juniper sat up and shivered again. Looking around, she noticed her cloak, abandoned by the tree she had waited at earlier. Crawling over to it, she winced as her burned fingers brushed against the harsh ground. Pulling her cloak tightly around her, she cried out softly as the fabric brushed her neck, sending sharp surges of pain through her. Trying to ignore the shaking in her hands, she sat.

One thing was for certain through all of this:

Clearly whoever had attacked her had wanted her dead. They likely thought that she was dead. Once they found out she wasn't dead…

Juniper felt as though she were going to be sick as a surge of anxiety coursed through her veins.

She shouldn't be alone. They'd be more likely to try again if she was alone.

Scrambling to her feet, Juniper all but ran to the castle, cloak flapping in the wind behind her.


"You're late," Tom pointed out as Juniper appeared at their usual table in the library. She had fixed her watch earlier, telling Rue that she forgot it on while in the bath earlier in the morning. Juniper let out a small sigh as she realized she probably had just set it to the wrong time. She set her bag on the table and began digging through it, biting down harshly on the inside of her cheek.

When she had returned to the castle, she had gone immediately back to the common room. Changing into a new jumper, she opted for a turtleneck to hide the burn marks very clearly visible with her other, still soaking wet jumper. She had also grabbed a thin pair of gloves and pulled them on despite the excruciating pain that came with them.

It had been a few hours, and she had made it through lunch sticking to Rue and David's side, but her fingers still ached, feeling as though they were at a constant thousand degrees at any point in time. Her throat was also incredibly sore, but she had managed to make herself sound very-nearly-normal and not as though she had just been almost strangled to death. She didn't want to go to the hospital wing, though. What if her attacker had turned the school healer against her? Or worse, what if they were waiting for her there? The thought sent a deep shiver running up her spine.

"How was your day?" Tom asked her passively. Pausing mid page-turn, he looked at her for a brief moment before continuing to flip through the pages. "Not that I actually care, mind you. I'm only being polite." Juniper let out a huff as she sat down heavily. Taking out the books she would need and some papers, she dug around for the quill she knew would be beneath everything else in her bag.

"Well, if you must know due to your forced politeness," Juni let out a small 'ah-ha!' of victory when she found the rogue quill and pulled it out of the bag. "My day was fine until someone tried to kill me." She knew that he likely wouldn't take her seriously. Juniper hadn't dared mention it to Rue or David, but it (for good reason) was the only thing on her mind and she couldn't help herself from telling someone, even if he didn't believe her. Tom let out a small, disapproving tut as he shook his head at his book.

"Clearly they didn't ask me for help." A sudden flare of rage surged through her and she snapped back at him before she could help herself.

"Thomas," Juni glared at him, the sharpness of her tone making her already sore throat ache more. Tom let a small grin show for a moment as he looked up at her before it vanished, quickly replaced with a look more curious than concerned.

"...You weren't serious?" Juniper couldn't exactly place his tone: Somehow it seemed genuinely interested, very nearly worried, and at the same time… There was a weird quality to it that she wasn't sure she wanted to know what it meant.

"I was," she told him simply. She opened her book, trying to appear as though she were unfazed or that nothing had actually happened. While she was incredibly eager to talk about it, she immediately regretted telling him anything. There was a long pause as Tom watched her, clearly wanting her to continue.

Ignoring him, Juni pretended to be distracted by their work. Leafing through the pages regarding the potion they had spent the last month on, she tried to read, her brain unable to remember how to.

"Juniper," Tom's voice was softer this time, quieter. "Your hands are shaking."

"So what if they are?" Juni asked sharply, promptly hiding them under the table. Bringing her hands into fists against her thighs, she refused to look up at him, determined to focus on the book.

"Why are you wearing gloves? We're inside." Again, Juniper ignored him, firmly trying to get him to give it up.

The pair sat in silence again and Tom watched her for a long time before finally turning his attention back to the book in front of him. Occasionally underlying things or circling others, the pair worked as quietly as they ever had. Every so often, he would glance up at her curiously as she all but refused to look further than her book. After a lot of trying to convince her brain to focus, Juniper was finally able to bring her attention from her attack this morning and successfully distract herself.

"How much do you think we should include about the toxicity of it in high doses?" Tom asked, finally breaking the thick silence. Juniper nearly jumped at the noise, causing him to look up at her. Locking eyes for a moment, Juni felt her heart race as she looked back down at her book again. She quickly attributed her spiking heartbeat to the suddenness of the noise and the whole 'almost dying' experience she had this morning.

"Umm," was all that she could stupidly manage. Shaking her head slightly to try and clear her thoughts, they now kept creeping back to this morning. Furrowing her eyebrows at her book, she tried to focus again. "We should definitely highlight what happens, and um… Maybe give that wizard in the 1700's as an example?"

"Do you know who it was?"

"Err," Juni shook her head slightly as she went to a second book she had open next to the first one and scanned the page looking for a name. "Something Snyde? I think? Umm…"

"No, Juniper," Tom's voice was quiet but firm. "Today." Freezing, Juniper slowly looked up at Tom, who was watching her intently. Giving the smallest little shake of her head before the sense of dread hit her square in the chest.

Was it Tom? Her hands began to tremble uncontrollably again as she searched his face, as though that would give her some sort of clue or answer. He did hate her, after all. But did he hate her enough to try and kill her? He seemed harmless enough, but…

Tom stiffened as he felt the shift in her demeanor, as though guessing exactly what conclusion her mind had brought her to. Sitting up straight in his chair, he cleared his throat softly.

"I was in a meeting all morning with the Headmaster and other prefects," Tom informed her, his voice low as he glanced around before looking back at her. "We were let out only at lunch time and you saw me in passing in the great hall when I was with my friends. The only time I've been alone all day was when I was waiting for you here."

After a few moments of consideration, Juniper seemed to almost visibly relax a little as she slouched in her chair, finally taking her eyes off of Tom. She didn't like him. At all. But for some reason, she believed him. Plus, if anything, his morning was verifiable, if she wanted to look more into it. Looking at her gloved hands in her lap, she chewed on her lip gently.

"You're serious, aren't you," Tom prompted after a long silence. Juni nodded slowly. "Is that why you have gloves on? Something happened to your hands?" She nodded again and Tom let out a sigh as he rested his hands over his knees, giving them a squeeze.

"Look, Juniper," Tom looked away finally down a row of books, his voice still quiet. "As head boy, I really have to report-"

"No!" Juni sat upright, leaning forwards slightly with her eyes wide. "No, don't. You can't." Tom froze for a moment, looking at her in surprise.

"If someone's attacked you, I really need to warn the Headmaster."

"You can't," Juni repeated, shaking her head quickly.

"Do you…" Tom regarded her curiously, glancing around them again before leaning in and speaking in an even more hushed tone. "You don't think he's somehow 'in on it', do you? He really wouldn't have any reason…"

"I don't know," Juni cut him off again and furrowed her brow. "I have no idea who could be behind it."

Tom considered this for a long moment, leaning back again in his seat.

"Tell me what happened."

Juniper's stomach flipped on itself as she chewed on her lip. While she desperately wanted to talk about it with someone… Should it really be Tom Riddle? Probably not. Juni's leg began to bounce as she considered briefly the pros and cons and just what exactly she should tell anyone honestly.

"I got a letter this morning, at breakfast," she started uneasily, avoiding looking at him. "I… I thought it was from Professor Dumbledore, because I was supposed to meet up with him this morning-"

"Why?" Tom asked, a look of disgust flashing across his face briefly.

"He was going to help me with a spell we were working on in class. I was having an issue really getting the hang of it," she lied quickly, hoping he wouldn't ask more questions. When he remained silent, she continued.

"Anyways, so the letter told me to meet him- or, um, whoever- at the black lake at 10:30. It was close enough to the time I was supposed to meet with the Professor, I just thought that the meeting place was a little weird."

"Just a little," Tom agreed, crossing his arms. As he leaned back, he brought one ankle up over the opposite knee as he listened.

"But 10:30 came and went and he never showed up. I thought maybe someone had stopped him to ask a question and he was just running a little behind. After a few minutes, I heard a noise and thought it was him, but there was still nothing."

"Did it sound like a person? Or maybe a squirrel or something of that sort?" Tom asked, considering what she had told him so far.

"I think it was too… Big sounding. Too heavy to be a small animal."

"Okay…"

"So then the next thing I knew, um," Juni swallowed hard, ignoring the pain that came with it and looked back down at her hands again. "There was something, um. Around my…" Her voice faltered and she realized that she couldn't force herself to voice what had happened. Instead she looked away and gestured slightly with a finger up to her neck.

"Around your neck?" Tom offered quietly, his tone hard to place. Juni nodded.

"Um, so I tried to get it off and…" her voice fell away again. "...um…Well…" Hesitating for a long moment, Juni took one glove off with her other shaking hand and held her hand palm up over the table. All of her fingers were partly blackened where they had been badly burned, a portion of deep red and partly still-bloody tissue running across them in a line where they had grasped against whatever was around her neck. It made Juni suddenly grateful that both her gloves and her turtleneck were black. Her neck was probably even worse, and likely would keep bleeding when she took off the jumper later.

Tom let out a sharp, but quiet gasp as he stood up abruptly at the sight of her hand. Jumping slightly in her seat, Juni fumbled with her glove and tried to force it back on as quickly as she could, biting down on her lip as she did so to try and ignore the pain of doing so.

"Juniper," Tom shook his head as he watched her, his face unreadable. "We need to report this. Or at the very least take you to the hospital wing and get it checked out."

"Tom, I can't-"

"You have no idea what sort of curse might've been placed with whatever was around your neck," he glanced around quickly before looking at her hard. "Pull down your collar."
"What? Tom-"

"Now," he all but demanded and for some reason, she listened. Very gingerly, she tugged the edge of her collar outwards and down, wincing slightly as she did so. She couldn't see the damage herself, but the muscle twitching in Tom's jaw told her all she needed to know.

"I can't-"

"No," He told her simply, tossing his things into the bag he had propped up on the leg of the table beside his seat. In one sweep, he had all of her things in her back and stood her up. "Non-negotiable. You're going to hospital. Immediately."

"You can't make me," Juni insisted, trying to take a step away from him. Grabbing both of their backs and swinging them quickly over one shoulder, Tom grabbed Juni's arm tightly and steered her away from the table and down the row of books.

"I can," he told her simply. "And I will."