Beatrix stared at the letter in her hands with a sniff. She couldn't believe that Tom's new friend had the audacity to invite her to a salon again. The first time she had thought it was just Miss Dumbledore's attempt to get to know all the students quickly, but now she had the feeling that the impertinent girl wanted to make the salon a regular thing. What did she think she was doing, coming here as an American and trying to start a social event that no one needed or wanted, especially not from her?

She angrily put the letter down on the small side table. As much as she disliked it, she knew she had to accept the invitation. Since Dumbledore was Tom's girlfriend, you could no longer risk being excluded from her circle. If you turned Tom against you, you lost the respect of everyone else.

She glanced over at Rufus, the only other student still sitting in the seventh-year study room that Wednesday evening. He had obviously received an invitation too, but she couldn't tell from his expression what he thought. As the son of the House of Lestrange, he was a valuable ally; after all, his family had considerably more influence in the wizarding world than her own. He had also never seemed particularly thrilled that Dumbledore was suddenly getting so much attention from Tom. If he accompanied her to the salon, she would at least have someone like-minded to talk to. But how was she going to get him to ask her to?

"My dear Beatrix," he said abruptly, looking directly at her, "if you stare any more obviously, I'll have to revoke your membership of the House of Snakes."

She blushed. Rufus was right, her upbringing taught her never to stare so openly. Embarrassed, she looked to the side. "I was so deep in my thoughts that I didn't even notice how my gaze wandered to you. Forgive me."

He just grinned broadly at her. "Oh, you don't have to apologise for staring at me. I always enjoy the gaze of a beautiful lady."

Shocked, Beatrix put a hand over her mouth as her cheeks darkened even more. "Rufus! You should be ashamed of yourself."

To her horror, he grinned even more, rose from his armchair and sat down next to her on the small sofa. "Am I really no longer allowed to compliment the most beautiful girl in the castle? Do the rules of propriety really forbid one from sharing one's sincere feelings?"

Against her will, Beatrix felt flattered. She knew that no decent man would utter such words so openly; she should rebuke him for his impertinent behaviour. Just as she knew Rufus was a manipulative bastard she should be wary of. Still, she couldn't help but take a liking to his words.

"You seem to have forgotten your upbringing," was all the protest she could manage.

Rufus laughed softly. "And you don't seem like you're really bothered by it. Come on, Beatrix. It's just the two of us. Who are you trying to impress?"

She swallowed. Rufus was nowhere near as attractive as Tom, but the way he smiled at her, the way he gave her his full attention, more than made up for the difference. What did she want with Tom anyway? He had no family behind him. Sure, he was highly intelligent and powerful, the other students from important families showed him respect, but would he really be the valuable husband she was hoping for? A man from the House of Lestrange would be a much safer option.

Hesitantly, Beatrix allowed the smile that came involuntarily to her lips to appear. "You're right. It's just between us."

She noticed Rufus move a little closer to her, but she decided not to comment on it. If he preferred to be more open and direct, then she would adapt to that. With restraint, she turned the honest smile on her lips into the one her mother had taught her since childhood, the smile that was supposed to be particularly inviting to young men without being obscene.

"Are you going to Miss Dumbledore's salon?" Rufus inquired, still looking directly at her.

She deliberately let her eyes wander to the invitation lying on the side table, pausing there as if she had to think about his question before she straightened up a little, both hands folded in her lap, and replied earnestly, "Of course. This salon is on its way to becoming the most important social event here at Hogwarts. Anyone who's anyone goes."

Grinning, Rufus leant back. "So, you've got it sussed too?"

She gave him a look of mock offence: "Please, Rufus. You have to be very unworldly not to understand the game Miss Dumbledore is playing here. But as long as she has Tom's support, it will be hard to resist."

Rufus nodded silently. Beatrix clearly sensed that he wanted to say more, but he obviously didn't trust her enough to reveal his thoughts. She thought hard about how she could show him that he didn't need to keep secrets from her. Could she dare to speak her own thoughts? With a Lestrange, you never knew where you stood. If he was just trying to lure her into a trap to expose her later, she couldn't risk saying too much.

"She's really lucky that she got Tom's favour," she finally added.

This actually got her the reaction she was hoping for. Rufus snorted and made a dismissive gesture with his hand. "Tom hasn't been the same since she got here."

Conspiratorially, she leant forward towards him and lowered her voice. "Do you think she slipped him a love potion?"

Laughing loudly, Rufus threw his head back. "Oh, Beatrix, do you really think an American woman needs to resort to such means? Come on, use your pretty little head, what would she give him that no other decent English lady can give him?"

Beatrix involuntarily put a hand over her mouth again. She had said similar things herself, but never really believed that there was anything to it. But the conviction with which Rufus spoke gave her pause. Even for an American, such behaviour was vulgar. "You cannot be serious."

Rufus raised an eyebrow in a sarcastic gesture. "You haven't seen the things I've seen. Believe me, Beatrix, Miss Dumbledore knows how to bind Tom to her with her powers of seduction."

"I know Tom announced her as his girlfriend, but I wasn't aware that he had any serious intention of marrying her."

Rufus laughed again. "Oh, I'm sure that's not his intention. And certainly not hers either. Open your eyes. Tom may be a very decent, charming boy on the outside, but he could hardly care less about the rules of wizarding society."

Beatrix was becoming more and more certain that it would be better for her not to choose Tom as a marriage candidate. The undertone that resonated with Rufus as he spoke about what was actually a good friend gave her goose bumps. Had she underestimated Tom all these years?

"What do you think, Beatrix Parkinson," Rufus added abruptly, his voice suddenly deep and full of promise, "do you want to go to this salon as my companion?"

A shiver went down her spine. Rufus held out his hand invitingly, but she hesitated to take it. Something about the way he presented himself to her in that conversation, the way he was looking at her now, didn't sit well with her. Why did she feel like she was selling her soul to the devil if she accepted?

She gave herself a mental jolt. This was Rufus Lestrange, a boy she had known since her earliest childhood. He belonged to one of the most important wizarding families, what did she think he was going to do? There was no reason for her to be afraid of him.

She forced the welcoming smile back onto her lips and took his hand. "With the greatest pleasure."

Smiling, he brought her hand to his lips, but instead of simply kissing her hand, he placed several small kisses on the palm of her hand without taking his eyes off her. Heat crept into her cheeks again. She knew it wasn't right what he was doing here, she didn't understand why, but she instinctively felt that he crossed a line. The look he was giving her as he lavished tender kisses made her feel dirty.

He finally let go of her hand. "I'm very pleased. I'm sure we'll have a lot of fun together."

oOoOoOo

Shivering, Hermione pulled her cloak tighter around her. She climbed up the Astronomy Tower earlier than usual so that she could be alone in the cold night air before her lesson. One question had been circling in her head for days: did she like Tom Riddle?

"Hermione?"

Surprised, she turned round. "Abraxas? What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

The blond boy approached her with hesitant steps. "I wanted to think for myself for a while."

She nodded. "I understand that."

They stood side by side in silence, looking out over the darkening lands of Hogwarts. She resisted the urge to reach for his hand or lean against him. She felt reminded of Harry, with whom she had often just sat somewhere in silence, both lost in their thoughts, simply content with each other's presence.

"Hermione," Abraxas whispered after they spent a few minutes in silence, "I have a question that has been weighing on my mind for days, but I don't know how to ask it."

She closed her eyes briefly, then turned to him. "Abraxas, whatever it is, you know you can be frank with me."

Of course, she realised that wasn't true. On the contrary, she would rather he didn't entrust her with any secrets that she would have to pass on to Tom if it came down to it. But she knew that wasn't what her friend wanted to hear right now.

"Tom knew, didn't he?" he asked quietly. "When I ... when I was with you. He even gave me permission to go to you. He knew you wouldn't be fully dressed, didn't he?"

She looked at her friend, sadness spreading through her whole body. Abraxas had realised and seen through it after all. She just nodded.

An agonised laugh rang out. "I really am an idiot. Rufus was right. I just didn't expect ... why would Tom do that?"

Abraxas ran both hands through his long blond hair again and again. Hermione saw how much he was tormented by the realisation that Tom knew what had happened between them. She grabbed both his hands and squeezed them reassuringly. "It was a test, Abraxas. Tom knows how close we are. You're his best friend. He needed to know if he could trust his best friend."

"And I failed."

Hermione clenched her jaw hard. The opposite was true. He had done exactly what Tom had expected and had walked into the trap that had been set for him. It wasn't Abraxas who had betrayed his friend, he had been betrayed. Tom had never trusted Abraxas and had therefore preferred to let him walk into a trap in order to chain him to himself through feelings of guilt.

And she herself had to play along with the game. The Malfoy family had been one of the first to join Voldemort and was one of the most loyal. She could not and must not prevent this.

She decided to tell one facet of the truth. "You passed. Tom now sees you as even more of a loyal friend than before."

Frustration and despair were reflected in Abraxas' features. "Because you probably lied to him. By Merlin, Hermione, I betrayed my best friend. I never thought I was capable of it. I brought dishonour to our house. We Slytherins are famous for our loyalty. We can be true friends. Look at me..."

Tenderly, she placed a hand on his cheek. "You are a true friend to me. And Tom never has to know what happened between us."

Determined, Abraxas grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand away. "It will never happen again, I promise you, Hermione. I will be that loyal friend to Tom that he sees in me. I don't understand what's between you, and I don't think I want to understand. As long as you don't tell me that Tom is a danger to you, I'll be a loyal, sincere friend to him."

She nodded with a sad smile. That was exactly what Tom wanted. She looked into the face of this Malfoy, who was so very different from his grandson. Sure, he was proud and arrogant in his own way, but he was also sensitive, thoughtful, and tender. She wondered more and more how Lucius could have become such a hateful man.