Stormseeker: Unwanted Destiny

The summer ends, and another year at Hogwarts begins. Being model students has even earned prefect badges for Cassie and me. My first fifth year, and I finally get to see it. I'm almost weeping with joy as the thestral-drawn carriages bring us up to the castle for the Sorting Ceremony and the Opening Feast.

Another batch of firsties coming in. I clap and cheer enthusiastically for every single one of them, no matter which house they wind up in.

"Welcome, all, to another year at Hogwarts," Tom says, smiling out at the crowd.

He seems to spend a lot more time genuinely smiling lately than I remember seeing the past year. He did a good deal of grinning wickedly, but now... one might say he almost seems actually happy. I, for one, am glad to see it.

"I'd like to introduce Professor Slughorn, who has returned to teach Potions once again, now that Professor Snape has retired," Tom goes on. "Professor Slughorn will also be taking up the duties of Slytherin Head of House once again."

There's a good deal of applause at this announcement, although I have to wonder how much of it is for Slughorn as for celebrating Snape's retirement. I know most of the students, especially those outside of Slytherin, didn't really appreciate Snape.

"I must also announce Alastor Moody as Hogwarts High Inquisitor," Tom says, his smile fading as he glances aside to Moody.

Moody stands up and glares about the room with his magical eye. "The Ministry has concerns about things that have been happening at Hogwarts of late. I and my protege here, Nymphadora Tonks, will be watching you. We will uproot the Dark Arts wherever they might have taken hold. Do not allow them to seduce you, and you will be in no danger from the Aurors. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

Tom clears his throat. "Yes, of course. Moody and Tonks will be sitting in on some of your classes. Please welcome them and give them only the best impression of Hogwarts. Now, without further ado, I believe you are all likely weary after the long journey. Prefects, if you would please show your new first years to their dormitories?"

"This way," I say, smiling at the group of slightly confused, bright-eyed eleven year olds.

"You're going to love Ravenclaw Tower," Cassie says.

"Especially if you like books," I add, chuckling.

I meet up with Tom in his office the next morning before breakfast. "What's this business with Moody and Tonks, anyway?"

"The Ministry is suspicious, but they can't really prove anything," Tom says. He snorts softly. "More like, it's the Order of the Phoenix that's suspicious, and somehow managed to convince the Ministry to go along with this."

"Why did you even allow this?" I wonder.

Tom shrugs. "Refusing would look more suspicious. Let them see that Hogwarts hasn't suddenly turned into a center for dark propaganda. There's hardly anything in the classes that would be a cause for concern, I wouldn't think. No secrets in what's being openly told to students!"

"I suppose not," I say. "But do you think that's really why they're here?"

"Keep your eyes open," Tom says. "Moody is good at Disillusionment, and that eye of his will pick up a lot that most would miss. And Miss Tonks is a Metamorphmagus. She could look like anyone, so be on your guard."

"I'll keep that in mind," I say. I have the Marauder's Map and know the Naming Charm, at least.

"If you see anything suspicious from them, or anything unfortunate happens, come and see me immediately," Tom says.

"Yes, sir," I say.

After breakfast, the year is getting started off with our first Battle Magic class of fifth year with Professor Crouch. And Moody is there, casually sitting in a corner and glaring at everything.

When Crouch comes in to the front of the class, the two of them spend a minute having a staring contest, looking like each of them is about to throw the other out the window. If I didn't know better, I'd think Moody knew what Crouch did to him the last time I was in this universe. But I don't think I even told Dumbledore the details of Crouch locking Moody in his own trunk to impersonate him with Polyjuice Potion.

"Go on, Death Eater," Moody says. "Go ahead and start teaching them the Dark Arts right in front of me, why don't you?"

"I was exonerated, you know," Crouch says.

"Yeah, like I believe that you're really innocent," Moody says.

"If you just came here to make accusations, I will have you leave my classroom," Crouch says. "If you want to inspect things as they said you were going to do, then you can do so silently. I have a class to teach."

"Fine," Moody says. "But I have my eye on you."

Crouch snorts softly and turns to the class, pointedly ignoring Moody. "We will be starting off this year by reviewing the Shield Charm and learning about variants thereof."

This is going to be a tense year, I think.

Although Moody and Tonks make token appearances into other classes, they seem most intent upon Professors Crouch, Malfoy, Quirrell, and Grindelwald. My first History of Magic class of the year is a little strained, to say the least.

"Welcome to my classroom, High Inquisitor Moody," Grindelwald says with a forced smile.

"Spare me the pleasantries," Moody says. "I'm here to see what you're really teaching these students. And mark my words, dark wizard, I don't trust you so far as I can hex you, whether or not you claim to have any remorse whatsoever over your actions."

After class, Grindelwald comes up to me as I'm getting up to leave the room. "Mr. Potter, will you see me in my office for a moment?"

"Certainly, sir," I say.

I turn around and almost bump into Moody. "I will not have you be alone with Mr. Potter, dark wizard."

"Moody, I'll be fine--" I begin.

"If you must speak with him in your office, then I will accompany you," Moody says, glaring at Grindelwald.

"If you must," Grindelwald says wearily, clearly not wanting to argue about it. When we arrive in the office, Grindelwald says, "I hear you fought Lord Voldemort during the summer."

"I did," I reply.

"And I see that you are using a different wand now," Grindelwald says, looking down at the Elder Wand in my holster.

"I am," I say, suddenly glad that Moody came with me after all. I wouldn't put it past Grindelwald to refrain from making another grab at the Elder Wand.

"What's your point, Grindelwald?" Moody says.

"Did you win it in a duel, Potter?" Grindelwald says. "Is it attuned to you, or did you merely steal it?"

The Elder Wand is in my left hand in a moment, pointing straight at him. "Don't get any ideas, Grindelwald," I warn. "It's mine. Want to sneak into my dorm and slit my throat in my sleep? Want to hit me with a chair when my back is turned? Go ahead and try! You might even actually succeed. But what does it really matter to you now? Your youth is spent on a foolish mistake. Your time is through. You'd be better off to support me rather than try to do something stupid."

Grindelwald stares at me, speechless.

I put the wand away and turn for the door. "Live or die. It's your choice. I really don't care either way."

Outside of the office, Moody steps in behind me. "Glad to see you don't trust him either."

"Constant vigilance, and all that," I say absently. "I haven't gotten this far by being a complete idiot." I'll be the first to admit that I've done some pretty stupid things, though.

On Halloween, Tom Riddle invites me into his office. I'm all tense, wondering what this is about, and dreading whatever might happen on Halloween.

"Ah, good evening, Lexen," Tom says. "I was wondering if you would be willing to join me for this evening."

"What do you have in mind?" I say uneasily. "What are you planning?"

"There's no need to be so nervous," Tom says. "I'm refering to the day's traditional celebrations. This is the strongest night of the year for dark magic. I'm interested in performing a ritual ceremony with you tonight."

I snort softly. "Last time I participated in something like that, I would up being sacrificed to resurrect the Dark Lord."

"Well, not much danger of that this time," Tom says wryly.

My curiosity gets the better of me, however, and I say, "Very well. I'll do it. But if you're going to kill me, would you tell me beforehand, please?"

Tom smirks. "Why would I kill you?"

"That wasn't an answer," I say. "I'll still do it anyway, I'd just like to be able to prepare and reserve the right to refuse if it goes too many times."

Tom chuckles. "You are a very strange boy. But I suppose that stands to reason, with the strange power you have."

"So, what will it be?" I ask.

"Yes," Tom says. "I intend to kill you."

"Thank you," I say.

"I'll explain the details when we're there," Tom says.

I take a quick nap, and then meet up with Tom after curfew, slipping out under the invisibility cloak. I really shouldn't be getting involved in any sort of dark rituals or the like without knowing exactly what I'm getting into. Especially when Tom directs me down to a deserted room in the dungeons, alone.

"What, exactly, are we doing?" I wonder as I arrive and find him there waiting for me.

"Ever since I found out about your power, I have been looking into some way to take advantage of it myself," Tom says. "And I believe I have found a way."

"How?" I say, raising an eyebrow. "This isn't going to be bad for me, is it? You know there's no way in the Abyss that I'm going to agree if this means you're going to try to kill me permanently, or destroy my personality, or anything."

"Of course not," Tom replies. "If I intended that, I certainly wouldn't be telling you about it, now would I? You are not that altruistic or blindly loyal. No, I do not believe that you will be harmed."

"Alright," I say, nodding. "Tell me what you plan to do, then. What have you discovered?"

"Remember when we met in Knockturn Alley, I was looking for a copy of Secrets of the Darkest Art?" Tom says. "Turns out there was one in the Headmaster's office, of all places. Probably confiscated from the Restricted Section at some point. In addition to detailing the means necessary to create a Horcrux, this book also discusses another Dark Art, that of Soul Bonds."

"Soul Bonds?" I repeat, raising an eyebrow.

"I do hope you haven't heard any of that idiotic fiction about them," Tom says. "I've heard the most ridiculous rumors about Soul Bonds. The dashing hero saves the pretty girl's life, so they're bound by destiny, stronger than marriage, on the spot, and can suddenly feel one another's thoughts and emotions, and so forth." He snorts softly. "Nothing like that."

"I wasn't going to say that," I say, smirking. "What I've heard about them is that they're used by demons to claim the souls of humans in exchange for the use of some of their powers."

"That... is actually pretty accurate," Tom says, surprised. "Where did you hear about them? Even most dark wizards these days don't like dealing with demons."

"Long story," I reply, chuckling.

"Aren't they all," Tom says. "First-hand experience?"

I shake my head. "Nah. Heard about it from my family. Anyway, go on. You intend to try to Soul Bond me?"

"Yes," Tom says. "If done properly, you will have access to my power, and I will have access to yours."

"And we'll be stuck together for eternity?" I say, raising an eyebrow.

"Do you object to that?" Tom says.

"Give me a moment, please," I say.

Tom nods, and I lean against the wall, staring off into space thoughtfully, and find myself staring at Tom instead. I don't know that I like the idea of spending eternity with one person. I'd probably wind up getting sick of them at some point. But, on the other hand, it would be nice not to be alone. Always losing people, being forgotten in the waves of time. And if I should ever get sick of him, there's probably a way to break a Soul Bond, anyway. If there's anything I wouldn't mind spending an extended period of time with, it would very likely be Tom Riddle.

"I'll do it," I say.

"Why?" Tom asks, looking at me curiously.

"What?" I say.

"I want to know why you are willing to agree," Tom says. "How will you benefit from it? We'll certainly be stronger together than we would be capable of individually. But I want to know your reasons."

I let out a heavy breath. "I... kind of like the idea of not being alone forever. To have even one person that I'm not going to lose."

"It may not even work," Tom says. "And if it works, it may not work in such a way that would permit that. I don't know yet. Don't get your hopes up."

"I'm willing to try," I say.

"Very well," Tom says. "The hour of midnight approaches. Let us prepare for the ritual."

He says not to get my hopes up, but I find them getting up nonetheless. I find myself almost desparately wishing and hoping that this will work somehow. Because we can figure out how to do it with one person, surely we will be able to manage a group of people eventually. I find myself dreaming of traveling the multiverse with a group of my closest friends who I can trust with my very life and soul.

"Sit," Tom instructs, gesturing to a spot on the floor as he goes to light several candles.

My heart is pounding. Knowing that he means to kill me after this is over, however, doesn't make it any easier than wondering. Usually when I die, I don't have a lot of time to think about my impending doom. But whatever guilt I might bear for Cassie is balanced out by the presence and wishes of Tom. How can someone who fills me with such dread and fear draw me in like a moth to the flame? Hope and fear, all tied up in one package.

Tom draws runes along the floor, and instructs me to cut my wrists so that my blood will spill out into the grooves. The runes begin to glow an eerie green color as blood flows into them.

"And now, for this..." Tom says behind me, pulling out something and drawing it around my neck. It's the locket Horcrux that Cassie and I found at Grimmauld Place, icy cold around my throat, with a permeating dark feeling in it that causes me to shudder involuntarily.

Tom utterly some arcane words, and it feels like something is slipping into me, snakes worming their way painfully into the core of my being. I'm starting to think that this probably was a really terrible idea, but it's too late to back out now. Sudden panic replaces the hope I had even a moment before.

"Relax," Tom murmurs soothingly. "Don't fight it."

"I'm trying," I whisper. "Sometimes I wonder why I agree to these things myself."

Tom chuckles softly, and after a moment he takes the locket off of me. "There. How do you feel?"

"I don't know," I say. "Woozy. A little ill."

"That's probably the blood loss," Tom says. "Time for you to go. Let me know when you get back."

I give a small nod.

"Now," Tom says, standing straight. "Cut your throat."

I think I must be quite obviously mad. Completely barking mad. I only hesitate for an instant before obeying Tom's instructions, and let my lifeblood spill out.

I wake in the Ravenclaw dorm on Halloween after curfew. Why did I just do that? I rub my head. I remember what we were hoping for, and wonder if it worked.

I pull on the invisibility cloak and slip down into the dungeons again. My heart races as I wonder beyond hope if Tom actually came back with me, or what.

"Did it work?" I ask as I step inside.

"No," Tom replies. Then, to my crestfallen expression, he adds quickly, "Do not fret. I have other ideas. We will try something else."

We make our preparations again, and when the hour of midnight arrives, I'm again sitting in the center of a circle of runes with the locket Horcrux around my neck.

"This is what we did before, though," I protest. "And it didn't work."

"I'm doing something different," Tom says. "I did plan for this."

"Very well," I say.

If I look closely, I think the runes on the floor might be different and more extensive, and when Tom chants the arcane words of the ritual, they might be a little different and longer, as well.

The sensation is much stronger this time. I have trouble breathing. But it's more than just physical. There's a strange pressure on my mind as well. My heart is racing, and I find myself panicking again despite all my efforts to stay calm.

"Be at ease, Lexen Chelseer," Tom says gently.

"What did you do?" I wonder, looking up at him dizzily.

"Just what I said I would do," Tom replies, putting a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "Go back now. Let me know if we succeeded this time."

I give a small nod, and draw the knife across my throat again.

I wake again in the Ravenclaw dormitories. Alright, I don't know if it's a good sign or a bad sign that I have a headache after that. Especially when I didn't before. Probably just lingering mental effects of whatever he did to me, like Dementors tend to do. I get up and head out to meet him in the dungeon again.

"So, did it work this time?" I ask. "That was the second try."

"No," Tom says, and then looks at me intently. "Or perhaps, not completely."

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"You seem to have brought back the bit of soul that was in the locket," Tom says, holding up the former Horcrux. "This is empty now. It's in you instead."

I frown a little. "But it didn't bring back your memories."

"I think I know what went wrong, though," Tom says. "It must go both ways. Simply putting a bit of my soul into you won't suffice. I need to put a bit of your soul into me, and bind the two."

"Um..." I say uneasily. "What is this going to entail?"

"I'll warn you that this will probably be very painful," Tom says.

"I can deal with that," I say.

"It would be much more difficult if you had never killed," Tom says. "But as it is, I can work with this. That's why Soul Bonds normally require a living sacrifice. That, and the magical energy required. Strangely, this knife seems to think that not one, but two sacrifices have passed under it tonight."

"They did," I say. "But I didn't think it would count killing myself in timelines that haven't happened..."

"Normally, I would expect not," Tom says. "But what we're doing seems to be echoing this night strangely through time. Perhaps it came back with the Horcrux somehow. I don't know. But let's use it to our advantage while we can."

We work to prepare another ritual. This one is different yet than the first two. I don't pretend to understand all the nuances. My knowledge of Ancient Runes only lets me pick out a handful of the glyphs Tom is using, the more basic ones.

This time, Tom cuts himself as well, and our blood and magic mingles in the glowing runes. He touches me, and chants arcane words, and agony rips through me. Not like the Cruciatus Curse. Not truly physical pain. This feels like my very soul is being torn apart. I clench my jaw to try to avoid screaming. For all the times I've been held under the torture curse, this should be nothing to me.

And then, something seems to break free. I blink slowly and stare at Tom as if through a haze. Motes of green and blue light hang in the air above the ritual circle like bits of free-floating magic. Tom's body goes tense, and spasms as he collapses to the floor.

"Tom!" I say. "Are you alright?"

"Lexen," Tom strains. "Put your hand on my chest. And repeat these words." He speaks three words in that arcane language I don't recognize, sounding almost demonic. This is magic older than Latin, and not of this world.

I do as he says, and repeat the words as precisely as I can. A surge of energy floods my body. A powerful cyan glow surrounds the two of us for a few moments, and I think I can feel something slip into him.

Uncontrolled lightning bursts through the room. Crackling on every surface. Tearing through the two of us.

I clench my eyes shut, laying on the floor in a fetal position, trembling. A strong hand clenches my arm.

"Lexen," Tom says firmly.

My eyes snap open, and I look into his.

"Are you alright?" Tom asks.

"Are you?" I reply.

Tom chuckles softly. "I will assume by the fact that you're asking that, that the answer is an affirmative."

"Well, that's not necessarily an accurate assumption," I say. "As I'm a stubborn idiot sometimes. But usually I'm a stubborn idiot that's capable of saying so if something is clearly wrong."

"You're a very self-aware stubborn idiot," Tom says, laughing.

He sits up and helps me up. We're a mess, covered in blood, and still sparking with electricity and colored motes. Half of the candles have gone out, and most of them have been broken and scattered about the room.

"We're still going to need to test if it worked," Tom says.

"Right," I say. I think absently of all of the timelines in which I've left Cassie behind. I really shouldn't worry so much about that, though. If this works, it will all be worth it, and I will never need to worry about it again.

Tom finds the knife, and hands it back to me. "Whenever you're ready."

I give a nod, and say, "Here goes nothing." How telling is it that I don't even flinch at cutting my own throat now? I let death take me again.

I wake in the Ravenclaw dorms, still feeling a little tingly. There's no pain anymore, but there's definitely an odd sensation that I can't quite put my finger on. I pull on my invisibility cloak and sneak down into the dungeon again.

"It worked," Tom says, grinning gleefully to me as I step inside.

A broad smile spreads across my face. "It actually worked?"

Tom nods. "I came back with you. I remember. You stubborn idiot." He laughs aloud.

"This is incredible..." I murmur.

"Indeed," Tom agrees. "We're not quite done just yet, though. We need to find out what happens if I die before you do."

"You're going to kill yourself?" I say with a touch of surprise. "Isn't that risky?"

"Dark magic is always risky," Tom says. "But I wouldn't do it if I weren't reasonably certain that it will work. I'm just not sure how it will work. Whether it will pull you back as well, or whether I'm inextricably tied to you. So, if my death doesn't immediately send you back, I want you to wait a few minutes and then follow me back yourself."

I give a nod, a little nervous. "You're far more bold about experimenting with this than I ever was."

"Sometimes it's necessary," Tom says. "Although, if I wind up stuck as a wraith or something, do look up necromantic rituals in Secrets of the Darkest Art and restore me, if you will."

"Alright," I say. "I'll do whatever I can."

Tom gives a nod. He pulls out the faintly glowing ritual knife. "You know, I never expected that I would be doing something like this. The Dark Arts can lead you to strange places at times." He looks up as the hour of midnight strikes, and with a shaking hand, brings the knife across his own throat.

I stare morbidly as Tom falls to the floor, blood rapidly draining out of him, and he goes still. Did it work? Did something go wrong? What happened? What does this mean? I panic for a moment, fearing that I'm going to lose this just as soon as I've gained it.

I can't wait. I grab the knife and let my life out one more time as well.

I wake again in the Ravenclaw Tower. I hurriedly pull on my cloak and make my way down to the dungeons, hardly paying as much attention to subtlety as I probably should. I come into the room again and pull the cloak off.

"That also worked," Tom says, grinning at me. "Were you worried?"

"Of course," I say, breathing out a sigh of relief.

"I didn't really die," Tom says. "It just reverted me into the form of a wraith, like after I failed to kill a certain infant. Probably because I did technically still have a Horcrux. You."

"So, if I die, then you go back with me," I say. "And if you die, you just become disembodied until I drag you back with me or you get a body again in some other way, I suppose."

Tom nods, and smiles. "I think this is cause for celebration." He calls in a house-elf to bring us a small, late-night feast.

"I never thought something like this was even possible," I say, giddily taking a seat on the floor and grabbing some of the food the elf brought us. I'm a bit tired from the repeated deaths, but some food should help, and I won't turn down pie.

"I like to think that anything is possible if you find a way to do it," Tom says. "It's just finding a way can be tricky sometimes."

"And now we know this is possible," I say.

"Some people, after going through what I did in an effort to gain immortality, might have just been jealous of you for having been born with it," Tom says, chuckling. "But that would have been pointless."

"So, do you suppose you would be able to do it for other people, too?" I ask.

"Other people?" Tom says.

"Like Cassie," I say.

The smile fades from Tom's face. "Ah."

"What, you weren't jealous of my power, but you're jealous about that?" I say. "Don't be silly."

"I have no need to be jealous of Cassiopeia Black," Tom says, giving a wicked grin. "I have already won, after all."

"I don't see any reason why it needs to be turned into some sort of contest," I say. "It would be positively wonderful to be able to explore the universe with a group of friends."

"I see," Tom says, relaxing a small amount. "Well, if you want me to do more research and develop a cleaner way to do what we managed to accomplish, you will need to earn it."

"I just gave you immortality," I say. "And it's not like I'd refuse almost anything you'd want of me, anyway."

"True," Tom says. "But still, why should I do this? Give me a reason."

"Because, when I go back to the beginning the next time, you'll either still be trapped in that diary, or floating around as a wraith," I say. "I could just leave you like that."

Tom narrows his eyes in anger for a moment, and I tense, but then he suddenly laughs. "And this is why I would not mind spending eternity with you. You are utterly ruthless when you have a mind to be, and it's really quite delightful. Very well. I will do this for you."

"Thank you, my lord," I say, giving him a wry smile.

We finish up our midnight snack, and Tom says, "Best be getting back to bed now. You still have classes tomorrow, after all. Do you need any potions?"

"I'll be fine," I say. "I shouldn't pass out for three days or anything."

Tom nods. I pull on my invisibility cloak, and we head out of the room. As we head for the stairs, we almost run right into Mad-Eye Moody skulking about.

"Riddle," Moody says. "What are you doing? Are you responsible for this?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about, Moody," Tom says.

Moody's glass eye flashes toward me for a moment, and I realize that he can see me even with this cloak. "There was a massive surge of dark magic in the dungeon at midnight, Riddle. What did you do, summon a demon or something?"

But we didn't actually perform the ritual in this timeline. What's going on?

Tom sighs in annoyance. "I did not summon a demon, Moody. But I will be happy to assist you in your investigation."

Moody peers intently at Tom. "There's a dark artifact on you, I can practically smell it. That knife. Hand it over."

"This?" Tom says, pulling out the ritual dagger.

Moody snatches it up. "So much energy in here! It's like several lives were sacrificed for this power. What did you do, Riddle?"

"I ate half of a pumpkin pie," Riddle says. "May I have my serving knife back now?"

Moody stares at him incredulously. "Do you seriously expect me to believe this?"

Moody stalks on to the room we just came out of, and we follow. He peers around the room, but there's nothing really to see now. He frowns deeply.

"I don't get it," Moody says. "I detected quite a lot of dark magic coming from in here. Here. But there's nothing here. Not a trace. But... echoes, maybe?"

Tom picks the knife out of Moody's hand and puts it away. "There's nothing to see here, Moody. It's late, and I am going to bed. Good night."

He turns and leaves me alone in the room with Moody. I'm not sure that Tom even realized that I'm still there.

"Nice cloak, Potter," Moody says.

I pull the invisibility cloak off of me, and say, "Hello, Moody." I knew he could see me, so I can easily manage not to look the least bit panicked or concerned.

"Keeping an eye on him, were you?" Moody says. "Good plan. Did you see anything? Do you have any idea what happened here?"

"I ate the other half of the pumpkin pie," I say. "And nothing happened."

"What were you doing with Riddle this late on a Halloween night?" Moody says, looking at me suspiciously.

"I told you," I say. "We were eating pie, and chatting. Is there a problem with that?"

"And what was with that knife?" Moody says.

"An anomaly?" I suggest, shrugging.

"Potter, did what happen here tonight have anything to do with your time travel ability?" Moody says. "Something happened, and yet didn't happen."

I wonder just how I might be able to prevent Moody from finding out too much about what happened here tonight. I can't guarantee that there won't still be echoes if I kill myself here. And if I were him, I'd have made note of what I was doing before coming down to investigate, so if he'd probably know if he were Obliviated.

"Be assured that if anything happened, now nothing has happened," I say gravely.

"Did you prevent something from happening?" Moody asks.

I nod. "The best news is nothing happening, is it not?"

"Care to explain just what went on?" Moody says. "What was Riddle trying to do?"

Inspiration strikes me. "To protect Hogwarts, of course. Lord Voldemort had terrible plans for tonight, and I found out about them. I was able to go back and, with the Headmaster's help, we were able to avert potential disaster."

"Why didn't you say so in the first place?" Moody says. "And why was Riddle being so evasive, if that's all you were doing?"

"Because we used dark magic to do it," I say.

Moody scowls at me. "Was that necessary?"

"It's Halloween night," I say. "Light magic is extremely weak tonight. If we were to expect to be able to match the Dark Lord's power, we had to fight fire with fire, so to speak. Just using dark magic doesn't make you evil, you of all people should know that, considering how well acquainted you are with it."

"True enough," Moody says reluctantly.

"Your little inquisition has gotten everyone wary about you, even if they aren't doing anything actually bad," I say. "Does it surprise you if Riddle was unwilling to tell you 'oh, we used dark magic to stop the Dark Lord'?"

"Fine," Moody says. "Go to bed, Potter. But I'm going to keep my eye on Riddle. And on you."

I pull on my cloak and head out of the room. I check the Marauder's Map to make sure that Moody isn't following me, and duck into the Headmaster's office. I'm treated to the sight of Tom Riddle in pajamas and bunny slippers.

I clear my throat, and Tom spins around. "Ah. Lexen. Of course it's you. Nobody else could or would come in here so boldly."

"Sorry to intrude," I say.

"Oh, no," Tom says lightly. "Intrude on my bedroom whenever you like." He grins at me.

"Damn it, will you quit doing that?" I say, smirking. "Anyway, this is important. I had a little chat with Moody after you left. Tonight, we used dark magic in order to prevent Voldemort from attacking Hogwarts, and thanks to my time travel, we were able to stop anything from actually happening. Just need to make sure we get our stories straight."

"Ah," Tom says, nodding. "Good."

"It's really strange that he was able to detect anything happening from another timeline," I say. "That's never happened before."

"But then, you've never really experimented with your power before, have you?" Tom says, and I shake my head. "Who knows what else might be possible with it?"

"Perhaps," I say.

"Now, you'd best run along to bed," Tom says. "Unless, of course, you were thinking of joining me in mine."

"I'm going to my dorm now, Tom," I say, face burning.

"You're blushing," Tom points out.

"Don't care," I reply.

Tom laughs lightly as I leave the room.