Percy squints, holding a hand over his eyes. It's a particularly warm March day, and the sun is extremely bright. He zeroes his vision in on the scarlet speck that is Oliver- Oliver is darting around like a hummingbird, trying to find the best angle to watch the action from his position near the posts.

Right now, all but Harry, the Ravenclaw seeker, and Oliver are clumped together and dashing around, trying to maintain possession of the quaffle.

Percy is not all that interested in quidditch, and would ultimately rather be in the Library. Unfortunately he is interested in Oliver- Percy blinks and shakes his head. Interested in supporting his friend Oliver, so he's at the game instead.

The audience gasps as one, and Percy tears his attention away from Oliver and looks towards where Harry is. The game has been going on for an hour and a half: it's one of the longer games that Gryffindor has had ever since getting Harry on the team.

In fact, Harry has seen and gone for the snitch four times at this point. Unfortunately, Ravenclaw's seeker keeps putting herself in the way, implementing some truly brilliant maneuvers that force Harry to either give the snitch up to her, or fight back and let the snitch get away.

Harry seems to have seen the snitch yet again, and instead of going for a typical dive he just drops- a move he hasn't done since his very first game, if Percy remembers correctly. Despite himself, Percy's heart lurches into his throat as he sees the slight boy drop like a stone. The Ravenclaw seeker urges her broom into a steep dive even though she doesn't have a hope of catching up.

Harry's hand flashes out and closes around something. He victoriously pumps his fist in the air a couple times, snitch glinting golden in his hand.

Oliver shoots towards the boy and even from where Percy is sitting, he can see Oliver's unguarded delighted expression. In fact, it's so glaring that Percy wouldn't be surprised to find out that the sentiment was felt as far as Romania.

Madam Hooch signals the end of the game- Gryffindor won by a fair margin. If Percy is doing his math right, Gryffindor now has a real shot at the quidditch cup this year.

Percy stands up from where he'd been sitting and slips out and away from the pitch- he'll congratulate Oliver later, after things have calmed down. For now, he wants to get back to his research.

To avoid the crowds, Percy elects to take a route that brings him under the stands. The contrast between the open, bright, and cheery pitch and the dark, damp, and dirty stands is extremely stark. It's to the point where everything feels a bit other-worldy, but Percy doesn't mind. It's quiet, calm, and most importantly will get him where he needs to go quickly.

Percy is watching the ground to avoid the worst of the litter as he half-walks, half-runs. He'd been in the middle of reading up on a particularly riveting divination theory. Although even if he had been looking where he was going, he still would have run into the other boy on account of him being invisible.

"Oof," Percy grunts as he trips to the ground, landing on something soft and flailing.

A pale hand appears out of thin air, grabbing at his face to try and push him off. Percy acts fast- he grabs the wrist of the hand and pins it to the ground, reaching with his free arm to pull at what he assumes is an invisibility cloak of some kind. Since he's on top of most of it, the cloak isn't pulled all the way off, but it does reveal a face.

For a split-second Percy thinks it's somehow Harry, and he lets his guard down long enough for the boy to get the upper hand. In one swift motion, the boy hooks his leg around Percy's and manages to flip the two over, the rest of the cloak falling away as he does so.

Percy lands heavily and wheezes as the air is knocked out of his chest. The boy uses one hand to pin Percy's shoulder to the ground and the other arm goes over Percy's throat and begins to press down. His face is completely expressionless.

Percy chokes and flails for a second before he manages to get both hands on the boy's forearm and pushes against him, lightening the pressure against his windpipe.

"Who- who are you?" Percy gets out, glaring daggers at the boy.

He has blood red eyes, and Percy's heart skips a beat as he realizes that it might just be possible for Slytherin's monster to be wearing the face of a Hogwarts student- he really looks a lot like Harry if Harry were Percy's age. Percy knows changelings are just myths, but that doesn't stop the thought from crossing his mind.

The boy's face remains blank, but his eyes narrow. He seems to be thinking.

Percy, having grown up in a household with five brothers and one Ginny, is no stranger to wrestling; so he stops pushing up on the boy's arm momentarily. As the boy pitches slightly forward without Percy's added pressure, Percy kicks out and shoves, effectively launching the boy off of him. Percy rolls to the side and springs to his feet, one hand going to his wand and the other absently rubbing at his throat.

The boy had been flung off of him and evidently made no move to catch himself. He lies on the ground for a moment, straight and stiff as a board as he stares up at the underside of the stands, before sitting up smoothly and getting to his feet.

He brushes some of the dirt off of his shirt and raises an eyebrow at Percy. The boy is as dirty as Percy is, but he still manages to give off an air of being in complete control- like a cat.

"Impressive," he says. "Not many can get the jump on me."

Percy stays tense, wand at the ready. He narrows his eyes, but doesn't otherwise respond.

The boy smiles charmingly. "I think we got off on the wrong foot. I apologize for the... extreme reaction, you startled me. Tom Riddle. And you are?"

"Percy," Percy says slowly. "Weasley. Why were you sneaking around? Why do you look like Harry? Who are you?"

"I wasn't sneaking around, I was watching the game-" (Percy doesn't believe that for even one second.) "And as for your other queries-"

Tom pauses, obviously thinking. Then he seems to make a decision, and nods to himself. Then he snaps his fingers and the invisibility cloak flies into his hands.

"If you come with me, I'll explain everything."

Percy tries not to stare at the casual display of wandless and non-verbal magic. "How do I know you won't just kill me? I've never seen you before, you could be anyone."

Tom smiles. It doesn't reach his eyes. "Does that matter?"

Percy stares at the boy, stomach lurching. It doesn't matter. Percy had beaten the boy in a physical fight, but something about how Tom carries himself, twirls his wand, and that spell- Tom undoubtedly has the upper hand here.

Tom swings the cloak over himself and then lifts an arm and beckons for Percy to join him under the cloak. Percy stiffly walks over and positions himself besides the boy. At the very least, Tom hasn't killed Percy yet. Percy will just have to trust that if he was going to be killed, he'd be dead already.

They walk in silence up to the castle, through the halls, and then up to the seventh floor. At this point, Tom looks around to make sure that no one is around, and then pushes Percy out of the invisibility cloak, vanishing under the folds.

Percy raises his wand defensively. He doesn't know where Tom is and he doesn't like it one bit. Percy automatically backs up until his back is against the tapestry hanging on the wall, heart pounding.

He idly notices that it seems to be a depiction of a man trying to teach trolls how to do ballet. Percy has seen weirder tapestries, though, so he doesn't pay it much mind. For now, he's trying to strain his ears to see if he can hear the boy.

Abruptly a door appears, and Percy's eyes widen. The door creaks open and Tom appears from within the room, beckoning for Percy to follow.

Percy hesitates, and Tom rolls his eyes. "I'm not going to hurt you. We're going to wait here for Harry, and then he can help me explain. He'll be delighted I'm meeting my… peers."

Percy walks slowly in, keeping an eye on Tom all the while. "How long is this going to take? I need to meet with my friends soon."

He doesn't really. Although, Oliver will be at some point expecting him and will also probably be devastated if Percy gets unceremoniously murdered in some secret room that may or may not be the Chamber of Secrets.

Tom shrugs. "Like I said, we're waiting for Harry. Sometimes he's able to slip away before curfew. I wouldn't bet on it, though."

"That is hours from now," Percy says disbelievingly.

"Should have thought about that before you ran into me," Tom says.

Percy stares, unsure if the boy is being serious or not. Tom goes to sit down and pulls out a book, flipping it open.

"I'd offer you something to eat, but I don't actually have anything. You are welcome to sit, though," he says, smiling a bit too widely as he gestures at the chairs with the hand not holding the book.

"How about I just leave and come back?" Percy asks, not moving from his position near the door.

Tom puts a finger on his chin, pretending to think. "Hmm. Oh, that's a great idea, why didn't I think of it? Wait, I did." Tom shuts his book and goes to stand up, pacing.

"Unfortunately, I can't trust that you don't run straight to those friends of yours and tell them all about me and I really can't afford that right now."

Then Tom turns to look at Percy, cocking his head. "If you'd really prefer not to wait, I could resort to other measures."

"I'll wait," Percy says, tone flat even though he feels another rush of anxiety. Hoping to change the subject, Percy continues, "although why not just explain without Harry?"

Tom raises an eyebrow. "Would you believe anything I said without Harry here to corroborate my story? I'll tell you right now that my story is one that isn't particularly believable."

Percy purses his lips. That seems like enough of an answer for Tom, who nods and goes to sit down again.

Percy briefly thinks about making a break for it, but shuts that idea down fast. That sounds like a really good way to get a curse to the back. So instead, Percy walks over to the make-shift seating area and sits down.

"That's Harry's chair," Tom says idly. Then a grimace flashes across his face, so quickly that Percy decides he probably imagined it. "So," Tom continues, "you'll have to move when he gets here."

"O…kay?" Percy says. If he didn't know better, he'd say that Tom was Harry's older brother- but that's obviously impossible.

The two sit in silence for a moment, Percy sitting uncomfortably and Tom reading his book.

"You're in sixth-year, right?" Tom says, breaking the silence.

"Yes," Percy says after a moment.

"What electives?"

"All of them," Percy says.

"Mhm," Tom hums. "You're a prefect, too?"

Percy looks down at his prefect pin, pinned neatly on his robes. "Obviously," Percy says.

"What do you think of Hogwarts?"

Percy doesn't want to play this game. "It's fine," he says shortly.

"If you didn't want to converse, you just had to say so," Tom says blandly as he flips another page of his book.

Percy huffs, then looks up at the ceiling of the room. "Well for one, there's been a monster attacking students in the hall," he says, eyes flicking over to Tom in order to gauge his reaction.

"Is that so," Tom says in the same bland voice, not looking up from his book.

"Now who doesn't want to converse?" Percy asks, sitting up straight again. Tom snaps his book closed.

"How about a game of chess?" Tom phrases it like a question, but Percy doesn't think it's a suggestion so much as a demand.

"I hate chess," Percy says anyway. It drives Ron crazy that the one brother who can occasionally beat him won't play the game because it's boring.

Tom is unfazed. "Monopoly?"

"What the hell is a Monopoly?"

Three hours of near-silent playing later and Tom is staring blankly at the board. Percy is trying not to feel smug- he wouldn't put it past Tom to lose on purpose in a subtle attempt to get Percy to underestimate him.

"And you've really never played Monopoly," Tom says finally.

"It's not exactly a difficult game to pick up on," Percy points out as he straightens another pile of the bizarre paper money.

"I think you owe me a game of chess after that," Tom insists.

"One game," Percy allows.

Another (mind-numbingly boring) forty minutes pass in silence and Tom finally achieves victory. It was not a very clean fight on either side.

"You're a Gryffindor?" Tom asks as he waves a hand and the muggle chess board puts itself away, once again showing mind-boggling magical prowess. The likelihood of the other boy being related to Harry somehow is getting higher and higher, physical similarities notwithstanding.

"I'm a Weasley," Percy says as though that answer means anything after Ron's sorting. "And being a Gryffindor does not automatically make someone bad at board games."

Tom hums noncommittally.

To be honest, the hat had been fully prepared to place Percy in Slytherin. Percy had already weighed his options before school, and decided that it wouldn't be worth it to have to work twice as hard to stand out in Slytherin. Percy doesn't need a house to help him along the road to greatness. He needs a house that will stay out of his way on the road to greatness.

The door slams open and Percy jumps, turning in his seat to see who it is. Harry is standing in the doorway, his snake wrapped around his shoulders.

"Tom!" Harry says excitedly, then catches sight of Percy. "And… Percy? What?"

Tom smiles brightly. "Harry! Hello. You were amazing!"

Harry walks over and sits in his chair. (Percy had moved seats to play the board games.) "I was okay," he corrects. "Those Ravenclaws have really updated their strategy from last year."

"I've never seen a move like the one you pulled to catch the snitch- I thought you were a goner for a second there," Tom says seriously. "You nearly gave me a heart-attack."

"Sorry," Harry shrugs, but he's smiling. Then he turns to Percy. "Why are you here? Er, not that I'm mad about it or anything, I just thought," he turns back to Tom. "I thought you were going to stay hidden until Easter?"

Tom sighs. "I was," he agrees. "And then I quite literally ran into Percy. He wanted answers, so I brought him up here to wait for you. I thought we could explain together?"

Percy narrows his eyes- it's not any one specific thing, but Tom is acting differently now that Harry is here.

Harry shrugs. "Not much to explain, but sure." Harry looks over at Percy and launches into an explanation:

"There was this cursed diary that Tom got trapped in for fifty years. It would trick people into writing in it, then possess them and make them open the Chamber of Secrets while it slowly sucks them into the diary, piece of life-force by piece of life-force.

"I ended up finding it and got sucked in for a second. Fortunately, Merlin bit the diary and managed to use the magic of the Philosopher's Stone to pull me out again. She accidentally pulled Tom with me, and here we are!"

Percy blinks. "That- that's. What?"

"Oh, also I already destroyed the diary so don't worry. Tom is going to register as a student over Easter break, so if you could just keep quiet about him until then, that would be awesome!"

Percy sits, thoughts racing. He doesn't know what to think. One thing sticks out, though- "when did this happen?"

"Middle of January," Tom says.

Percy feels abruptly queasy. "Tom," he starts. "Were you conscious? Could you tell who was… who the diary was trying to possess, before Harry?"

Tom winces. "It used my name and my personality, twisting it for its personal vendetta. I was conscious of it, but helpless. I… I hope you can help me explain that to your sister, when the time comes?"

"Ginny? Ginny had the diary?" Harry bursts out.

Tom shoots an apologetic look at the boy, but Percy only distantly registers any of this.

Percy grips tightly at the edge of his chair, struggling to control his breathing. Ginny… of course. That's why she'd been so distraught all year, so withdrawn and distant. Percy and his brothers had all been beyond relieved when, mid-January, she'd seemingly broken abruptly out of her shell and turned back into her usual self.

Percy sinks his head into his hands as the implications sink in. If Tom is to be believed, Ginny's life was genuinely in danger. Worse, she might have been trapped in a diary, conscious and alone, for decades or more.

And what happens when a student called Tom Riddle registers for Hogwarts in a month? She'll be terrified. Percy looks up.

"We have to tell Ginny before you register."

Tom winces again, but Harry nods. "Absolutely," he agrees. "She deserves to know that she's safe now, and that Tom is a good guy."

Percy isn't so sure about that, but he has other priorities right now.

"Wait," Percy says, realizing that not all of his questions have been answered yet. "Why do you look the same as each other?"

Tom shrugs. "I never knew my father, and my mother died giving birth to me so I don't know anything about her either. I grew up in an orphanage. Me and Harry figure that I must have had an older sibling, who went on to have kids of their own and so on, until Lily Evans was born."

Percy nods slowly and then sits back, watching the two and thinking hard.

So far, everything about their story is adding up, and Percy doesn't think it will hurt to go along with them for now- Easter Break isn't exactly months away, after all, and Tom seems to genuinely care about Harry. Plus Tom- well. He's- he seems interesting, and Percy thinks he'll, at the very least, be able to learn things from the other boy, learn more about that Diary and what it might have done to Ginny.

That said, something feels distinctly off about Tom and the way he's been acting- Percy can't put his finger on it, but he can't bring himself to truly let his guard down around the boy. There's one thing Percy knows for sure: he's going to be keeping a close eye on Tom.

And he'll probably tell Oliver about him, too. Just in case.