See You Later, Alligator.
"Buffy! Quick! You've got to see this!" Fiona shouted.
In the warm cocoon of her blankets, Buffy groaned. "Go away, mom, I'm asleep!" she yelled, pulling the feather pillow over her head to block out her roommate's voice.
Why should she get up? It wasn't a weekday and there were no classes. Plus, she was tired. Yesterday had been a long and stressful day and sleep hadn't come easy after Spikey's antics the night before. She'd found the boggart lying on top of her bed in the form of a large snake. Aware of her roommates, Buffy had climbed into bed with the snake and snapped the curtains closed behind her.
Spikey had been very agitated; constantly transforming himself. One minute he was a snake, the next Caradoc, and finally he'd turned into an alligator. He was obviously trying to tell her something, but Buffy had no idea what it was. Eventually, she'd shouted at him to stop, that he was making her head spin.
The boggart had stilled in mid-air, his round eyes bulging with the effort of so many transformations in such a short time, before changing into Spike. The white-blonde vampire had scowled and vanished.
"Buffy!" yelled Uma from the other side of the room. "You've got to get up!"
Buffy pressed the pillow harder over her ears. "It's too early!" she'd whined, wishing she hadn't dismissed the Muffling Charm before going to sleep. She only dismissed it in case there was a fire and no one woke her up.
"There's a horse looking in through the window. What shall we do?!"
Buffy cautiously took the pillow off her head, and sat, staring at the drawn curtains. She must have misheard. Had Uma just said 'horse'?
"It's a kelpie," Fiona said on the other side of the curtains. "A water demon."
Buffy's hand automatically went to the side of the bed, feeling below the mattress for her stake. Armed with stake and wand, she pulled open the heavy drapes and marched over to the window – ready to take on any demon unlucky enough to be around. Outside the window, long strands of weed swayed in the dark waters of the lake, but apart from that the window was empty.
"There's nothing there?" Buffy turned back to her roommates. Fiona and Uma stood in a huddle a few feet away, alternatively eyeing the window and the stake Buffy held.
"It was there." Fiona shot a look at Uma. "Uma saw it first. We weren't imagining it"
The plump girl nodded, shuffling her fluffy slippers on the cold stone floor. "Yeah. When I came back from the loo, it was there," she nodded to the window behind Buffy. "It was watching me with glowing, yellow eyes."
Buffy chewed at her bottom lip. A horse with glowing yellow eyes? Could it be Rory Dannan? He said he'd come looking for her when he had information.
"What's with the sharp stick?" Uma suddenly asked.
"In case it was a Dementor," replied Buffy smoothly. She'd decided ages ago that if anyone saw her with a stake she'd say it was an anti-Dementor weapon. It had absolutely nothing to do with illegal vampire killing. She raised the stake into the air so that her roommates could get a closer look at it. "I call it Mr Pointy. Dementors don't like being rammed by pointed pieces of wood."
Fiona and Uma exchanged looks. "So... do you sleep with it?" asked Fiona, at the same time Uma asked, "Do you keep it under your pillow?"
Buffy nodded. There was no need for her to be coy about it. "I keep it under my mattress. Because, like Penelope, you never know when the Hooded Claw might strike."
Uma screwed up her face. "Hooded Claw? Me nan says, when her rheumatism strikes she uses a potion with Devil's Claw in it."
"A Devil's Snare plant strikes if you get within range," Fiona added, giving Buffy a doubtful look. "It won't sneak down into the dungeons."
"Um, the Hooded Claw was a villain in this cartoon who..." Buffy let out an exasperated huff. That memory was from her other life. "You know what? It's Muggle so you won't know it. Uma, did you see if the kelpie had any bald patches in its mane?" If so, it was probably Rory.
Uma glanced over at the window. She shrugged. "I dunno. It had its head pressed on the glass and was peering around as if it was searching for something. Then it showed me its teeth and kicked the window with its hoof."
"I saw it do that as well!" Fiona exclaimed. "That's when we both ran for your bed."
"LOOK!" Uma pointed. "It's back!"
Buffy swung around. It was definitely a kelpie. The horse had golden eyes that shone with intelligence, and when it saw Buffy it curled back its top lip – showing her an impressive set of sharp incisors.
Uma grabbed Fiona's arm. "It wants to eat us." She tugged on her friend's arm, trying to pull her away from the window.
Determined not to be cowed, Fiona shrugged her off and dug her heels in. "Buffy, don't go to close," she called, her face hard as she glared up at the horse. Raising her wand, she pointed it at the kelpie. "Go away, or else I'll..." She faltered, looking over to Buffy and Uma for help. "Anyone know of a good spell to frighten it off?"
Ignoring her, Buffy stepped closer to the window. "Rory?" she called out, not sure if he'd be able to hear her on the opposite side of the enchanted glass.
The horse nodded, his long dark mane moving in the current.
"What do you want?" Buffy asked. She could hear her roommates whispering behind her –something about not encouraging water demons – but she didn't pay much attention.
The horse floated backwards, disappearing into the murkiness of the lake. Buffy waited, and her roommates whispered. The glass remained empty.
"Buffy, how do you that its name?" Fiona called out. "Are you... are you a secret Magizoologist? Can you talk to animals like Newt Scamander does?"
"Not exactly." Her field of expertise lay in talking to the creeper variety. "Rory isn't a kelpie. I met him when I..." She stopped. Her roommates knew she sneaked out, but how was she going to confess about riding Rory? She'd been an idiot to get on his back in the first place.
Uma screamed.
Buffy almost dropped her stake. "What the huh?!" she asked.
But Uma was already scuttling away. Not heading for the door, but her bed. There, she snatched up her quilted dressing gown and wrapped it around her, nodding over to the window. "There's a man out there. He's watching us."
They turned back to the window and watched as Rory floated upwards in his human form. Coming to rest at the side of the window, he folded his arms across his leather jacket and grinned roguishly at the three of them. He even give Uma a lewd wink, which made her blush furiously.
"Rory isn't a kelpie. He's a fairy," Buffy explained.
Rory looked affronted.
"A phouka." Buffy gave him a dark look. "He just pretends he's a kelpie to scare people."
Fiona took Buffy's arm and pulled her away from the window. Leaning in, she whispered, "Buffy, be careful. He's not like the stupid little fairies we use to decorate. He's dangerous. Phoukas are members of the fae. The real fae."
"Don't trust him," Uma shouted over, not bothering to keep her voice down. She kept fiddling with her dressing gown, tightening the belt and pulling at the neckline, making it higher. "Don't talk to him. He'll make promises and then ravish you."
Rory twisted his face as if considering it, then grinned.
"If he tries it, he'll regret it." The phouka had cocked his head and was watching her with mischievous eyes. "What do you want, Rory?" Buffy asked. Was this about the Babylonian Devil Trap or something else?
The phouka smirked. Opening his mouth, a stream of bubbles poured out, rising rapidly upwards to the lake's surface.
"And yeah, that made a great deal of sense." Buffy wrinkled her nose. "Tell me again, in a language I know."
Rory rested a boot on the windowsill and leaned closer to the glass. He pointed at Buffy and then to himself.
"You want me to meet you?" Buffy asked.
He nodded. With a forefinger, he drew the shape of a sun on the glass in tiny, silver bubbles.
"Sunrise?"
He shook his head.
"He means noon," said Fiona. She'd crept closer, curiosity winning out over caution.
Rory smiled and nodded.
"You want to meet me at noon – today?" Buffy wondered how she'd manage to do that. On a normal Saturday, she wouldn't have a problem, but today was not a normal Saturday.
"Don't go!" Uma yelped. She looked angry and formidable as she stamped past Buffy to glower at the man. "He's fae. They're all bad. He'll take you to a Hollow Hill, feed you with fairy food and make you dance until your feet bleed and your heart gives out."
Rory rolled his eyes and yawned.
"Uma's right. All the old stories say that they can't be trusted," Fiona said, her eyes darting from Buffy to the pook. "He is cute, though."
Rory grinned, bowed, lost his balance, and fell off the window ledge. A moment later, he reappeared, swimming up through the current and clinging to the window once again.
Pointing at Buffy, he drew on the glass again. This time, he sketched a broomstick, then a second broomstick and then a third. Without letting her confirm the meeting, he stepped off the ledge and swam off into the lake, almost instantly disappearing.
"How are you going to meet up with him? The teachers always monitor the doors for people sneaking out on Hogsmeade days," Fiona said. Both she and Uma knew Buffy had been grounded.
"I'll find a way." Buffy already knew of a secret passageway leading to Hogsmeade from Hogwarts. Spikey had shown her how a mirror on the fourth floor swung open to reveal steps behind it and how it led to a large underground passageway. One night she'd followed that passage all the way to the end. It opened out into a cave on the hillside above Hogsmeade.
"And what about Tom?" Uma asked. "If you're chained to him, how will you persuade him to go with you?"
Buffy shrugged. If Rory had found a Babylonian Devil Trap, then she'd have the ability to permanently destroy, or at least trap, Dementors. If she explained to Tom, he'd help her. And if he wouldn't... she could always hit him with a Stunner and drag him with her unconscious.
With a last look out the window, she raised her wand and cast an Obscuring Charm over the glass before going over to her dresser and pulling out one of the drawers. Walburga had told her that students didn't wear their uniforms in Hogsmeade and, if she was snuck out, she'd need to blend in with the other students. Since it was late October and cold in the Scottish Highlands, she chose a long, woollen skirt in a dark green fabric, a black silk blouse and a warm sweater. Inwardly frowning as she noticed she'd chosen the colour green out of habit.
She stared at the skirt critically. Was this too last century? She decided to pass on the skirt and took out instead a pair of soft brown corduroy trousers instead. Near the Lovegood home, she'd seen girls from the Women's Land Army wearing similar as part of their working uniform and had thought they looked cute in their belted pants. Some Witches – like Walburga – would think she'd gone Muggle in these clothes, but Buffy didn't care. At least, she'd be warm – with or without a Warming Charm.
She was just sitting on her bed, tugging on a cute pair of boots in soft leather, when someone tapped on the bedroom door. Uma, still in her dressing gown shuffled over to the door. Lucretia Black was on the other side, peering into their room curiously.
"I like your outfit," said Buffy, regarding the other girl's outfit thoughtfully.
Despite it being early, Lucretia was fully dressed in a bottle-green skirt with a matching jacket over a cream silk blouse. They reminded her of her own clothing choices from her past life; there she'd combined high fashion with slaying – many times to Giles' horror. Now, she looked down at her pants and boots, and wondered if she'd lost her sense of fashion and fun? On the other hand, Lucretia would go to Hogsmeade in a thestral-drawn carriage, while Buffy had a long hike.
"Thank you, Buffy," replied Lucretia mildly. "I'm glad you're awake. I wouldn't have knocked if I hadn't heard your voices."
'Oops,' thought Buffy. Hope she didn't hear anything to cause awkward questions! Uma and Fiona must have been thinking the same thing, they exchanged horrified looks and suddenly found things to do over by their beds.
"Yeah," Buffy smiled brightly, hoping it looked more cheerful than manic. "Up bright and early like the er, worm. I'd say a ray of sunshine woke me, but a) we're under the lake, b) the sun isn't up yet and c) it's always cloudy or raining here. Guess, we're just early risers."
Lucretia's eyebrows rose as she took in Uma and Fiona's nightclothes and their flustered faces. "Oh, if you say so," she shrugged an elegant shoulder. "Buffy, I thought I'd better tell you before someone else does... Caradoc Dearborn has had an accident."
Buffy was on her feet, already panicking. "What happened? Is he okay? He's not dead, is he?"
"Oh no! He isn't seriously hurt." A small frown of exasperation marred Lucretia's lovely face. "Something always happens on Fridays. Not that it concerns you much, but Tom will tell you the same. It's annoying."
"Caradoc? What happened?" prompted Buffy, not really interested in prefect duties.
"I overheard two Gryffindor prefects telling the Headgirl that they'd found Dearborn in a swamp near the Owlery. Apparently, he'd set out just before curfew to send a letter... You'd think he'd have had the sense to do it earlier, but..." she shrugged, as if to say who knew how crazy Gryffindors thought, and then continued. "On his way back, he encountered a giant snake, ran, and fell into a swamp where he was attacked by alligators."
"Alligators?!" Buffy was on her feet and pushing past a startled Lucretia. "Where is he?"
"With Madam Bones in the infirmary... Where are you going?"
"To check on him!" Buffy ran down the corridor, ignoring calls to wait from the girls behind her. Spikey had turned up last night as a snake and then gone through a full pantomime of changes trying to tell her Caradoc had had an accident. She hadn't been able to figure out what he'd been trying to tell her at the time. Now, maybe because of her dumbness, Caradoc had been injured. What had happened to him? A swamp? Alligators? Had he fallen into a trap set for him or had it been a stupid prank that had gone wrong?
She marched through the deserted Common Room. Although they hadn't parted on good terms, she wanted to make sure he was alright. The wall leading to the outside corridor peeled back as she got close to it – no password was needed from this side. Buffy took a single step outside when her wrist and ankle exploded with pain.
"Awww!"
And then it felt as though an invisible force was dragging her back into the Slytherin Common Room.
"Whoa!" She grabbed for the nearest wall to try and stop herself, but her fingers slid over the smooth stones – unable to gain purchase. The invisible force yanked her again, and she lost her balance, crashing onto her side; unable to stop, she was pulled across the room and through the door which led to the boys' dormitories.
Buffy let out a squeak of horror. Girls weren't allowed into the boys' dorms! Not that she had any say in it, she was being dragged along against her will.
"Hey!" yelped a boy's voice. He almost stepped on her as he emerged from a steamy bathroom.
"Alphard!" she yelled, but he didn't hear her as she was yanked further along the corridor, and more and more pyjama-clad boys came out of their rooms.
The invisible tether pulled her around a left-hand bend and then left again through a dormitory door. Buffy saw a row of four-poster beds and felt a stab of horror. She'd never been in here, but knew whose room it was!
She turned her head to the side and was faced with a close-up view of Abraxas Malfoy's bare butt as he dragged up a pair of black boxers. She squealed! Closing her eyes tightly she slid across the floor on her back until her feet hit a bed leg. And then she was yanked upwards onto the bed; her wrist and ankle tingling as Dumbledore's enchanted chains reappeared.
"What are you doing?" Tom's voice hissed from somewhere very close. He sounded angry as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
Buffy kept her eyes shut. Her cheeks grew redder. This was totally embarrassing! She'd been dragged all the way into Tom's room with everyone watching! She was here – lying on his bed! That made her even hotter. What if... what if he was naked? He could be sitting there – naked – right next to her. Buffy cracked open one eye and glimpsed a bare arm and a flash of white. Not completely naked, but how much of him was on display?
"Have you got your trousers on?" she asked. "Because I've seen Abraxas' pasty-white ass and I don't think I can take more shock-age."
"Oi!" called Abraxas from the opposite side of the room. "I'll have you know that the girl's find my arse sexy."
"Sure they do," she countered. "Keep telling yourself that, Abraxas. I'll be quietly sick in this corner."
Tom was silent.
"Um, Tom? Can I open my eyes now?" She wriggled into the bedsheets, feeling embarrassed. What if he thought she'd done this on purpose? He might think she'd done it to get in his bed. Uh, not that the idea hadn't occurred to her, but there'd been smoochies first not... magical dragging.
"I'm not exactly dressed, but I'm... decent," came his stiff reply.
She opened her eyes to find herself lying on an angle across Riddle's bed, her wrist and ankle bound to his by Dumbledore's annoying silver chains. Tom was sitting on the edge of his bed, he wore a pair of neatly pressed pants and a... vest! Did all the boys wear vests in this era or was this just a Tom thing? She couldn't remember Lovell wearing a vest, but then she'd never burst into his room while he was dressing.
Tom's vest pulled across his chest. It looked too tight, as if he'd put weight on since buying it. Not that Tom was fat, he was just filling out, and maturing, and... Oh God, how long has she been staring at his chest! He'd think she was so weird!
Forcing her eyes up, she looked directly into his face. Tom's eyes were a shade of violet today, his usually smooth hair ruffled by sleep, and his lips softer and more... kissable. Don't think about kissing! Think about something else. And talk! He'd think you're a weird chest-staring mute!
"Wow! Did anyone every tell you, with your dark hair, pale skin and red lips, you'd make a great Snow White?"
Tom's nostrils flared.
Buffy inwardly winced. What was wrong with her? You didn't go around telling boys that they looked like a girl in a fairy story! What boy wanted to know that? What was wrong with her? She didn't remember being this gauche around boys before. Or maybe she had been, and she couldn't remember.
And, oh crap. How was she ever going to persuade him to sneak out to Hogsmeade and meet Rory with her when she kept saying stupid stuff?
Embarrassed, she buried her face into his sheets. They smelt of pine needles, mint and something more earthy that was probably all boy and should have had her recoiling, and yet she stayed there – sniffing.
"This happened because you tried to leave the Slytherin Common Room without me." Tom's voice vibrated with anger.
Buffy kept her face down. Dumbledore had warned them what would happen if they tried to break away from one another. He'd said the results would be painful. Now, she knew just how painful – and shameful – it could become.
"I wasn't thinking," she admitted, her nose still in his sheets. That was true. She'd only been thinking of Caradoc and getting to the infirmary, not of Dumbledore's whacky punishment.
"Why does that not surprise me?" He sounded more resigned than angry now. As if he'd known she'd be the one to forget and cause a problem.
He'd probably thinks it would be easier if he was chained to Lucretia. She felt a stab of jealousy. The Black girl was serene and elegant. And she had the polished manners of a Pureblood. What would Tom think if he found out Buffy had a crazy father and she was on the Ministry's wanted list for killing a vampire?
She lifted her head, catching a fleeting, unguarded expression on Tom's face. It wasn't one she'd seen before and somehow it gave her a warm rush inside. What did he think of her? Did he like her more than he pretended?
"Tom," she said softly. "Um, Lucretia told me about Caradoc..."
Tom let out a tiny huff.
"He was attacked last night. I've got to go and see him. I need you to come with."
Tom crossed his arms and affected a bored expression. "How did I know that you were going to ask me that?"
That wasn't a no! Buffy pulled her legs under her, sitting cautiously up. "Um, because you're a good guesser and er, a kind and caring person who likes to enquire about the health of others?"
From his bed, Malfoy let out a sarcastic snort. Buffy didn't look over. She'd seen more than enough of Malfoy for one day.
"You really expect me... to go with you... while you... snuggle with him?" Tom's raised his eyebrows.
Was he jealous? "No snuggling. I just wanna know what happened to him last night." She glanced up at Riddle's face and then back down at the chain binding their wrists. "I can't go anywhere without you. Please, I just want to know he's okay."
Tom turned and locked eyes with her. After a long moment, he sighed and said, "Very well. We'll visit your boyfriend..."
Boyfriend? Buffy ducked her head. "Um, no. He's not. My boyfriend, that is. We... It kinda didn't work out between us..." It had been for the best. The kissing hadn't rocked her, and Caradoc's reaction to Grindelwald's necklace had been bad. None of it boded well for a future relationship, especially if she confessed who her real father was.
"Weren't you planning to go to Hogsmeade together?" It sounded almost like an accusation, although his face kept up the disinterested expression.
"I blew it," she conceded, "Or it could have been Caradoc who blew it. Whoever, whatever. We weren't going to Hogsmeade together before Dumbles grounded us." And then she eyed Tom, her green eyes becoming sharp and speculative.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
Buffy shuffled up the bed so that she was even closer to him and smiled – innocently. Too innocently, as it made Riddle's eyes narrow in suspicion.
"What?" he asked gruffly.
"Um, Tom, do you fancy going on a trip to Hogsmeade with me?" she asked, her eyes wide. "We could take a stroll there. Um, a hike in the hills and even visit the pub later." That surprised him, at least for a moment. Then he came back with,
"We aren't allowed." He was studying her; scrutinizing her every inflection as if expecting they'd betray her innermost secrets.
Buffy's smile changed. Now, it had all the puckishness charm of her father's. Already knowing he was doomed, Tom leaned in. She was so close to him that when she spoke Tom felt her warm breath on his cheek.
"Some rules, Tom, are made to be broken. I've got this great idea. Together, you and I can change the world..."
…..
A/N;
Thanks to all who left a comment on the last chapter.
I hope you enjoyed this one?
So Buffy got more than she planned for and landed on Tom's bed. Do you want to read Tom's pov next?