I honestly missed writing Tom's POV. :]

My skirt caught one of the edges of the bench as I squeezed in hurriedly at the corner of the Slytherin table. Fawley glanced my way, one end of his lips twitching in an uncertain smile at the lateness of my arrival but refrained from saying anything until the notices of the day were done with.

As soon as Dippet was settled in his seat again, both he and Lila turned to me, one puzzled and the other concerned.

"Show me," Lila said immediately.

I obediently turned my head, displaying the singed ear that had been carefully treated by Madam Blishen. The burn hadn't faded, the curse as potent as the one the Carrows had hit me with.

"I'll have to report this, Miss Revel." Blishen warned as she dabbed potions on the stinging wound.

"I know," I sighed wearily, glancing at her. "Did any of the girls come in at all?"

"No, but then by your account, you did not curse them violently, only restrained them. They should be alright until Professor Dippet gets to them."

"Right."

"Why did you wait until this morning? You should have come as soon as you reached Hogwarts to be treated!" She continued to scold.

I thought back to too intense obsidian eyes and a smirk that had no business bringing flurries to one's stomach. "I was distracted."

She huffed. "In any case, this is slow work. You'll have a scar unless you go to St. Mungo's. I'll try to have a Healer come here to take care of it."

"Thank you, Madam Blishen…has anyone come to ask about me?" I asked hesitantly, vehemently against the idea that I was thinking of a certain somebody. I wasn't…I couldn't be…

"No, but I won't be keeping you here in any case. You're free to go to breakfast. Try to stick to your friends. You are a prefect, aren't you? Stick to your partner, Mr. Riddle."

She drew back the curtain around the bed as I shuddered at the implications of her words. Still, I hopped off the bed, thanking the Matron again and leaving.

"It's not that bad." Lila commented, patting my hand to have me turn my head again.

"Yeah, it's…it doesn't look bad at all." Fawley joined in, his eyes a touch wide.

I gave them both a small smile. "Thanks for trying to make me feel better guys, but I don't need to be coddled over a small curse."

Fawley leaned in then. "You dueled three people, Ro! How are you not shaken right now?"

Lila and I both looked at him curiously.

"What, girls can't duel, is that it?" She asked.

Fawley hesitated before speaking. "That's…not it. Of course, women can duel, we have them in the ministry and stuff, but Hogwarts has a no-dueling rule."

Lila and I stared at him for a bit before returning to our breakfast.

It was silly to feel hurt over his idea. It was obvious that in the forties, even in the Wizarding World which was much more evenly inclined than the Muggles, there was an annoying tendency to treat women as fragile and delicate. Fawley and Alphard had seemed more scandalized than worried when I'd talked about the encounter, almost as if it was exceptional that one girl could hold her own against three. They'd relaxed a bit when they'd heard about the mysterious savior but it had still stung. I'd thought back to the ease of the training sessions of the DA and winced to myself.

Nothing like that existed in this time. My dueling skills would naturally be a bit of notice…especially considering I was supposed to be home-schooled.

I was sure that Blishen must have reported the incident to Dippet and Slughorn by now. I'd already written a letter to Dumbledore about it, carefully leaving his brother out of the mess.

I went back to playing with the scrambled eggs, mind drifting uncertainly to the sexism that was prevalent in the time. It seemed that the only person who didn't seem to be too surprised or even affronted by the event was…

I looked along the length of the Slytherin table, finding the tall, raven head easily. Riddle elegantly worked his cutlery, slicing something before those fingers paused. His eyes flickered, finding mine easily, almost as if he felt the stare.

I didn't remove my gaze.

"You say that we cannot be allies. I want to show you that is not the case."

His eyebrow flickered up.

"Ro?"

My head jerked away from Riddle, turning around to see Hagrid approaching carefully.

He clutched his hat in his large hands, head bowed slightly to avoid looking at the rest of the group. "Can we talk?"

"Sure." I said naturally, looking around to see the hall slowly emptying as people began to file away for classes.

"Leave your bag, I'll take it to class. You can catch up with us." Lila said, throwing a practiced smile at the Gryffindor boy.

"Thanks." I slid away from the table, following Hagrid away to the doors. "What's the matter?"

"It's…it's Aragog. He's…He's been talking." Hagrid said.

I blinked. While it was common knowledge that Acromantulas could talk, it was unnerving to know that the one so very close had already begun to speak. It almost bordered on a scary exhilaration, as if your scary baby had learnt to take its first steps. I wondered if Hagrid wanted me to go try talking to the spider.

"That's great!" I said, trying to sound as enthused as I could.

Hagrid only stared. "He says he doesn't want to stay here. He is afraid."

"Oh," I paused. "What is he afraid of?"

"He won't say. He just wants to go away." Hagrid dropped his head before letting out what sounded horrifyingly like a big sniffle.

"Hagrid!" I placed both hands on his. "Don't cry, it's okay that he wants to leave. It's good, right? He's getting too big for us to hide safely anyway and he will have more room outside. And he will be able to defend himself outside."

"What if he can't?" Hagrid hiccuped loudly. People glanced our way.

I shushed him, pulling at him so I could lead him away from prying eyes.

Roselle Revel walked out of the Great Hall, possibly not feeling the heavy gaze a certain dark headed someone had trained on her. Tom went back to his meal, slicing his breads and meats into neat pieces but leaving them uneaten. There was a roiling in his head that he didn't much like.

He found himself inexplicably wondering about what had drawn Revel away from her breakfast and to go off with the half-giant. His lips twitched, remembering when he discovered that Rubeus Hagrid was related to the Giants. It had been a…pleasant revelation, almost careless observation of the bumbling boy giving him information that no other could.

Such a nice thing to know, should he ever need to play a card…

But then, Hagrid was not insidious enough to ever be put to work - certainly not the kinds of things he would want.

However, he thought back to the way Revel had put her hands on his to calm him, to console, to comfort…and he tilted his head in understanding. There was perhaps a way Hagrid could come handy after all.

He mentally cursed himself once, to find himself thinking about what would make Roselle Revel happy enough, content enough to be by his side was folly. She was far too unpredictable, too unstable, too close to Dumbledore for his tastes. She would be uncontrollable, an annoyance to him and he would have to kill her off if she began to get in his way.

Wasn't she already though, after a fashion? She occupied his thoughts more than she should, his plans for his future and the chamber included now plans that would entice her into joining his Knights. He wondered idly if he should revert back to the original plans of removing her from his life completely, just to be rid of the distraction.

He found himself stabbing at his food at the notion; the very idea of Olive and her little group attacking Revel setting his teeth on edge. He had no idea why; although he could convince himself that if anyone was to lay a hand on Revel, it would be himself.

He glanced up again, ignoring the chatter of his…'friends', looking over at the double doors again. He had a good idea that it was the Acromantula that was the issue. He had to admit that it was impressive that Revel and Hagrid had managed to hide the thing for so long. He had discovered their little secret quite easily, turning her pathetic attempts at following him onto her. It amused him, her vehemence of him that she displayed in front of Dumbledore, but while she remained nervous and tense around him, she also performed a confusing dance of straying too close to him - despite declaring that they could never be allies.

Tom finally took a bite of his food, casting an unspoken warming charm over the plate. The key to Revel had to be her little friends…and he would have to start with Hagrid. Already, their little venture was too risky to remain within the castle walls and they were bound to be discovered soon enough.

The echo of Olive's name from her lips resonated in his mind. Well then, if he couldn't play one card, he would have to find another.

If something went awry with the Chamber, there would have to be some lamb he could sacrifice.

He took another bite.

The Forbidden Forest loomed over the two of us, dark, glimmering in moonlit dew and eerie fog misting at the grassy overgrowth.

"This is going to work." I muttered, more to keep up my own confidence than Hagrids'.

"It should, sneaking in and out is easy if yeh know what yeh're doing." Hagrid returned, reaching down to take my hand in his, a small but mighty squeeze letting me know I wasn't alone.

After Hagrid's little breakdown at breakfast, there was really nothing else to do but to heed Aragog. I'd heard him myself - standing far back from his wooden box nest - as he made rough, scuttling noises, thrashing to get away. The vaguely human voice that came next made hair rise on the nape of my neck - its demanded to be let out and away a much needed respite.

We'd planned to scout the Forbidden Forest, to find something that would be comfortable for a growing Acromantula but also safe enough that no one could trace it back to us. I didn't think the news that we'd harbored a man eating spider in the castle and then snuck it into the forest would sit well with anyone.

"We need something springy, to be made into a nest." Hagrid reminded me, pulling out his wand, large and uneven like a branch. "Springy, for a nest," I repeated, nodding and pulling my own wand out, before we made the stupidest decision we could.

We split up.

Hagrid claimed we could cover more ground, because we had to find our way back before first light. No matter our ages, it still seemed that Hagrid knew much more about the forest than I ever could, so I agreed.

With the tip of our wands aglow, we parted, going in different directions. The forest floor ran with grassy growths, hard somewhere and soft like moss elsewhere. Strange lights flickered in the distant horizons and fireflies whizzed past my wand light. Insect buzzed up in the tall trees, and barks gleamed with greenish blue climbers. In the night, it was almost a dark paradise.

It was…eerily beautiful. It was pretty in a way that warned you with its pleasant looks. It alerted you that behind the glorious facade lurked dangers and mysteries one didn't need to broach.

The Forbidden Forest was almost like…

I shook my head quickly to dispel the comparison. There really was no earthly reason as to why I should be thinking about him of all people when out on such an important mission. He was up in the castle doing Merlin knows what and I was here in the Forest, also doing Merlin knows what.

A twig snapped under my careless feet, the sharp sound bringing me back to my surroundings. The trees had long since lost the glow that they once had. No insects buzzed overhead. Even the fireflies had left me by now.

Fog pooled around the edges of my robes, rising in dancing curls that clung to my arms.

And I had no clue where I was.

I looked around wildly, looking for any sign of life that wasn't me. I took hurried steps, trying to trace my steps back the way I'd come, realizing I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere off the path in my lost thoughts. The terrain was familiar, although I had to admit I couldn't have ever come this way in the Forest. The fog still swept along with me, chilling my ankles and wrists when I stopped abruptly.

I knew why this part of the forest seemed so familiar. I had walked this path once before. I had walked to the castle this way, a little too dead to matter…and came out alive at the end of the tunnel.

I took off running.

Brambles and branches slashes against me, stripping away exposed skin while the chill of the fog settled into my bones. My wandlight wavered, throwing strange shadows on the ground in front of me.

There was no end to this part…I was back in the land of the dead again…any minute White Dumbledore would step out from behind a tree and tell me I failed…that he would look for someone else and I would never get to see my family again…

A foot caught under a fallen branch, the momentum swinging me straight out to land flat on my face.

My hands crumbled leaves, some dry, powdering under my grasping fingers. The others were wet, dewy soft and left coolness across my too hot skin.

I squeezed my eyes shut, screwing them up tightly, trying hard to go back to the bliss of unconsciousness.

I had no idea if I did indeed pass out. It didn't seem like it when I opened my eyes. Stars glimmered straight in front of me, my hair damp. I'd been turned on my back, brought into a clearing. Turning onto my side, I felt for my wand. It lay by my side, the tip now extinguished. Rustling made me quickly grab it up, before oddly familiar sounds began to draw near me.

Hooves…

There were six of them.

Tall, regal and silent, they drew away from the trees and merged into one group, some distance from me and watched me carefully, suspiciously.

On my part, I gaped.

"Well?" One of them asked another. "What to do now? We brought it to safety the way you wanted to."

"I still believe this was a mistake. We should not have touched her where we found her. The stars were clear."

"Peace, Nike, Zeranthus…we must not war amongst ourselves - especially not in such times. Besides it has only been some months, we cannot be sure of what we have divined." The centaur who spoke had a lovely deep, dark sheen, matching the bark of the oldest trees. He also seemed the oldest among the group.

"It is not for us to be sure of what we have divined. We must be led by fate completely. Finding the girl was fate."

"Perhaps fate intended for us to leave her there."

"She is a child!"

"In two years she will be of age, she is no child."

"Peace!" Barked the older centaur, looking at the last centaur. "What say you, Firenze?"

And from their midst, a pale centaur took a few steps forward, stunning aquamarine eyes staring calmly over at me.

I gulped, face to face with a much younger version of my past divination teacher.

Firenze gazed at me for many moments, taking in my form on the ground, muddied and scratched up.

"She is injured and afraid. I find no reason as to why she would wish harm on us, in turn, we must not wish her harm." He said finally.

That seemed enough for the old centaur. "She must leave now."

"I shall see her to the castle grounds." Firenze bowed his head respectively to his brethren, clopping his way over to me. "Can you stand, young one?"

I hesitated, taking a quick once over on my body. Finding no intense pain debilitating my abilities, I slowly got to my feet, pocketing my wand to show that I was unarmed.

Firenze only flicked his tail. "Come now, this is not the place for a mortal girl to roam about at night."

I bowed at the centaurs too, awkwardly but they seemed pleased by the gesture. The older nodded farewell before taking off deeper into the woods, followed by the rest. I watched the last tail disappear before following Firenze.

The two of us walked a path that I never knew existed, weaving between bushes and through trees until the terrain became less bumpy, flattening out.

It was too soon, I thought, looking around curiously. "Your herd…" I began slowly. "Your friends," I amended, "they're very close to the castle grounds…I don't remember them being this close." I stopped before I could say 'in my time.'

I realized with a jolt that the Ministry in my time had gotten so corrupt that they'd slowly started to encroach on the Forbidden Forest, driving the natives further back.

"Do you remember differently?" Firenze prompted.

"Um, no sir, I am…I'm new to Hogwarts. Only here because the war killed my parents,"

Firenze said nothing but I had the distinct sensation that some tension gathered in his torso.

"Is that so?" He murmured, slowing considerably. "What is your name, new comer?"

"Roselle,"

"I see." He stopped completely, turning to me. "What do you know of a Centaur's ability to divine?"

I hesitated. Part of me inclined to rattle off all the instructions he'd divulged during his span at Hogwarts, while part of me knew that would've been very stupid. So I stood there stupidly.

"No? Allow me to tell you something. We not only See into the fates for the future of the world at large. We also See quite a bit for ourselves when at leisure. What do you think that implies, young one?"

I shrugged. In my silence, he bent from the waist, looking at me carefully.

"Time is not as linear as mere mortals would believe. It is ever changing, ever affected and fluid. The Past, Present and Future are all happening in one single moment. Do you understand that?"

"I guess so."

Firenze straightened, looking down at me. "Meddling with Time is not a deed done lightly. Beware trusting the ones who say they shall do so for you."

I glanced up sharply at that but Firenze had already started trotting off, slow enough for me to catch up.

"What do you mean by that?" I demanded.

"Take right now for example." Firenze said, ignoring the question. "In this moment, someone is writing their past, present and future."

"Firenze please," I stopped, forgetting that I wasn't supposed to know him. "What did you mean?"

He stopped as well, clopping back over to me. "Do you know what is happening in Hogwarts right now, young one?"

Impatience ruffled my feathers, my foot grinding ground. I was about to snap that I didn't care about what was happening in Hogwarts but Firenze's blue eyes glinted with something that made me reconsider.

What was happening in Hogwarts right now?

Who was writing about their past, present and future?

The answer hit me so hard I took one whole step back.

"You can't mean -?"

When had he managed to figure out the way into the Chamber? I'd been following him so closely!

But then…I hadn't been doing that, had I? I was so concerned about Hagrid and Aragog I had stopped trying to follow Riddle.

"It has already begun."

What did you think?

Much love!