A/N oops here's the chapter 2 months later than I said it would be up…
Tom Riddle returned the smile, it should have sent a shiver down her spine, but she felt nothing. "Nice to meet you all. Follow me, please, and I'll show you the way to your new accommodations."
They each nodded in reply, an action that felt strangely mechanical to Hermione.
Summoning her best mask of cordiality, Hermione painted a convincing smile on her face and prayed it looked like a sincere reflection of amicability and not the icy coldness that permeated the inside of her.
Their procession began in silence, led by Tom, as they exited the grandeur of the Great Hall. As they started the winding descent to the dungeons, a shift in Tom's gaze caused Hermione's Occlumency walls to shudder as he looked her in the eye.
"Hogwarts, quite an interesting choice, wouldn't you agree?" he asked, casual as a cat playing with a mouse. "Out of all the magical institutions you could have chosen..." He trailed off.
Meeting his eyes was odd, it was like falling into a cold abyss, but Hermione felt nothing. On the outside Tom Riddle looked like a perfectly respectable young man, but it was looking into his eyes that Hermione could detect… something. She wasn't quite sure what yet, but something hid in those coffee colored depths that definitely indicated he was not exactly what he seemed.
Snapping her eyes away from his and towards the corridor ahead, the cover story they had rehearsed earlier rolled off her tongue smoothly and without a hitch.
"Hogwarts is the pinnacle of magical education," she said, each word measured and deliberate. "Why should we settle for anything less?"
She attempted her best impression of one of Malfoy's signature sneers.
"Interesting indeed," He countered, with a smile that was probably meant to seem sincere "but it's a considerable distance from home. Why not another American school, or Canada, or anywhere else within your home continent?"
"Oh, you must have heard of the werewolf uprisings Dumbledore mentioned, surely," she retorted, her tone edged with just enough tartness to suggest irritation at his probing questions.
"Of course, it's common knowledge, who hasn't?" He snapped back.
Malfoy seized the lull in conversation, noticing Hermione's cold tone. "Our parents decided it best to distance us from the imminent danger. The rapid spread of the uprisings across the eastern US makes it highly probable that neither Canada nor Mexico could prevent it from spilling over Ether. The geographical distance, coupled with the cultural differences, would certainly make it less likely for the problems to reach here."
Hermione's mind whirred with admiration for Malfoy's eloquent deflection. She shot him a grateful glance. If nothing else, his silver tongue was proving useful.
Tom responded with a contemplative nod, seemingly chewing over the information.
Checking on Ron out of the corner of her eye, Hermione found him lingering at the rear, his discomfort painfully apparent. He'd not really looked well since that morning, when he'd finally been forced to reckon with the terrible actions his body had committed. There was a haunted look in his eye, and he constantly looked either on the edge of tears or vomiting, she wasn't sure which.
A quick glare and pointed motion for him to catch up was all she could afford without raising suspicion. Ron swallowed nervously, and quickly picked up the pace to join the rest of the group.
Their trek continued in a silence that Hermione fervently hoped conveyed companionship and not tension.
Soon, a blank stone wall materialized before them, causing their procession to halt. Tom stepped forward.
"Boomslang," he stated the password to the wall.
The stone wall shuddered and receded, revealing a passage that led to the common room. As they stepped inside, Hermione was rendered speechless by the grandeur that unfolded before her. Windows, lined along the far wall, overlooked the inky depths of the Black Lake, casting an ethereal, green glow across the room. The décor mirrored Slytherin's colors, an ensemble of black and green, offset by silver accents adorning the walls and ceilings. A fire danced merrily in the grand fireplace, yet it failed to dispel the room's chilling ambiance. The Slytherin common room was indeed a sight to behold, yet Hermione found herself yearning for the homier warmth of Gryffindor.
Despite that, the room was not totally unwelcoming, there were many students milling around the room. Lounging on comfy looking couches or sitting at study tables. The chatter of happy students reuniting with their friends after a long summer break cut the chill in the air considerably.
Feeling a prickle on the back of her neck, she glanced around to find Tom studying her with a look of cold disinterest. Quickly averting her gaze, she hoped her reaction would be mistaken for shyness rather than apprehension.
"The boys' dormitory lies that way," Tom gestured to the left. "You two will be sharing the space with me, Dolohov, Lestrange, and Avery."
Hearing these names, Hermione's blood should have turned to ice in her veins. But all she felt was slight surprise at his words. It should have been that even during his school days, Tom was surrounded by those who would later become his most feared Death Eaters. But Hermione had been so focused on Tom himself she had not spared the others much thought.
Hermione nodded calmly, as if she'd never heard those names before and they were probably perfectly respectable nice young men.
Hermione refocused as Tom pointed to the right. "The girls' dormitory is over there. You'll be sharing with Miss Parkinson," he gestured towards a brunette girl lounging in an armchair nearby. "And she can introduce you to the rest of your dormmates."
With that, he beckoned an apathetic Malfoy and an ashen Ron to follow him, leaving Hermione to make the acquaintance of the dark-haired Slytherin girl beside her.
The girl sprung to her feet, her face splitting into a welcoming smile. "Melania Parkinson," she extended a hand to Hermione. "Delighted to meet you, Hermione, isn't it?"
Still reeling from the rapid turn of events, Hermione merely nodded. She was taken aback by how unlike Pansy Parkinson her probable ancestor was, with her curly raven hair falling delicately over her shoulders and bright, azure eyes sparkling with warmth.
With an infectious smile and laugh, Melania grasped Hermione's wrist, "Come along, you simply must see the dormitory and meet the other girls!"
Led through a staircase on the right side of the common room, Hermione was brought into a dormitory that was as luxurious as the common room, but with a distinctly homier feel. The room was reminiscent of the Gryffindor dormitory with its large, four-poster beds dressed in house-colored hangings.
Three other girls were sprawled on one of the beds, their giggles punctuating the air as they fawned over some magazines. Upon Hermione and Melania's entry, they looked up expectantly.
"Ladies, meet Hermione Hurwit, our new addition, as introduced during dinner."
A blonde girl, who emanated a particularly snarky attitude, interrupted Melania, "Come on Melania, tell us something we don't know."
Unperturbed, Melania carried on, "Over there," she pointed to the two girls who remained on the bed, "are Calista Black and Elsie Burke. And this," she indicated towards the blonde girl, "is Violetta Bulstrode. But don't let her ruffle your feathers; vexing others a hobby of hers."
Despite Melania's dismissive comments, Violetta simply grinned and sauntered over to Hermione, her hand extended. "We are going to be the best of friends; I can just feel it. I mean, who wouldn't want to be friends with me?"
Uncertain if Violetta was jesting or merely boasting, Hermione laughed awkwardly and turned to greet the other girls.
"Hello," she said, her voice barely above a whisper, hoping they were just as welcoming. Calista offered a curt nod, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips, before resuming her reading.
In stark contrast, Elsie hopped off the bed and enveloped Hermione in a warm hug, whispering, "It's truly a pleasure to meet you, Hermione."
Their introductions were cut short by Melania, her tone suddenly businesslike, "Now that we've got introductions out of the way, let's get down to the interesting stuff."
A mischievous twinkle in her eyes, Violetta squealed, "Let's talk about boys!"
Their collective grins felt oddly inviting, and Hermione forced some emotion past her shields so her warm smile wouldn't seem unnatural.
"Spill the beans about Draco. He's just so...dreamy," Violetta cooed.
Hermione couldn't help but snort at her remark. "If you fancy his arrogance as dreamy, then sure."
"But that face, that body," Violetta sighed dramatically.
"Don't mind her, everyone knows she's Slytherin's most infamous flirt," Calista retorted, her voice flat and unimpressed.
Undeterred, Violetta just grinned wider, "But you all love it."
The conversation took a sharp turn as Melania interjected, "What about Tom? He is quite the looker, wouldn't you agree?"
Violetta nodded with such enthusiasm it seemed her head might fall off. "And he's so kind and helpful too! I am certain he's a shoo in for Head Boy next year."
The mere mention of Tom brought a slight grimace to Hermione's fac. "There's something unsettling about him," she admitted, glancing around, hoping to see similar sentiments mirrored on their faces.
The room fell into an uncomfortable pause until Elsie broke the silence, "I think I might agree with you. There's something frightening hidden beneath that flawless exterior."
"Ha!" exclaimed Violetta, clearly missing the point. "So, you do agree, he's flawless!"
As Elsie blushed crimson, Hermione shook her head, realizing her new roommates were almost completely blinded by Tom's current persona.
A wave of fatigue washed over Hermione, and she yawned. "It's been an exhausting day, ladies. I think I'm going to turn in."
"Perhaps we should do the same," Melania chirped, "given that classes start tomorrow."
Hermione prepared for bed and basked in the relative solitude offered by her curtained four-poster. As she settled into the blankets, she carefully reconstructed her occlumency walls to give herself a more natural tone when speaking to others.
Steadfastly ignoring the voice in the back of her head that was telling her what a catastrophically Bad Idea long term occlumency would be.
All thoughts of her past life were carefully boxed up and stored neatly in the back of her mind. She could recall the experiences, but the emotions associated with the memories were muted.
Memories of the battle, Death Eaters and Voldemort were locked in crates wrapped in thick chains and hidden in the deepest recesses of her mind. She could recall the factual realities, but there were absolutely no emotions associated with it.
The rest of her emotions she allowed to live outside her shields, that way her reactions and affect would come off as more natural.
Satisfied with her probably ill-advised efforts her mind whirred with thoughts of the impending day – classes, Tom, and her friends' experiences among future Death Eaters.
She paused, since when did she consider Draco a friend?
Hermione quickly set the odd thought aside and started to relax in her blankets.
Drifting into a deep slumber, she dreamed of quills scratching on parchment, the rustle of flipping pages, and the challenging thrill of pop quizzes. Despite the underlying uncertainty, she was glad to be back at Hogwarts.
A/N: Yeah… So here's the Chapter, sorry it took forever. My life just got out of control along with a ton of writers block and well as a lost draft. I actually wrote this chapter 3 times, and hated them all. I don't know how I feel about this, it's kinda filler but the next chappie should be good
I also edited chapters 1 and 2 trying to inspire myself. I'm not sure it worked lol
Anyways, leave me a review I love to know what you guys think!
Edited Jun 11 2023