Chapter Eighteen: Right Back Where We Started.

Everything seemed abnormally quiet as the water outside the common room's window glistened orange, the familiar view showcasing an underwater sunrise to the Slytherin common room's occupants. Sadly only a few had been lucky enough to view such a sight, and fewer were awake (or sober in some cases) enough to recall the incident. In fact not many even knew about sunrises tinting the black lake's water in such a way, most being too ignorant to stay up and see for themselves.

Yet that didn't explain the sudden turn in the common room's atmosphere. It was abnormal for the snake's den to be engulfed in such silence, young or old snakes were usually wandering outside their rooms regardless of the time, however, this didn't seem to be the case. Unlike the rowdy Gryffindors, humble Hufflepuffs, or wise Ravenclaws the Slytherins didn't have any limitations or sleep schedules. While the other houses would usually clock out around ten when their head of house would check on them, the snakes were allowed the freedom of late-night occasions.

Which is why normally the common room would always be occupied by several snakes, whether they were slumbering or not. But today seemed to be different, for Cordelia Lucretia Black McMillan was the only one lurking in the chamber while the sun rose high in the sky.

"Nix, come here Nix."

The lazy black Persian cat meowed at the sound of her owner's voice, a fluffy black tail rising high in the air as the two-year-old cat prowled across the common room and launched herself on the black leather sofas.

When Cordelia had bought Nix in her fourth year the little black kitten had been prohibited from entering the common room due to her tendency to scratch the leather sofas. However, the teenager had learned quite a few mending spells over the years and thus Nix was allowed to roam freely. The brunette teenager had even placed a tracking spell on her cat's collar to ensure that the adorable cat would never be too hard to find.

A light yowl echoed around the room as Nix rolled onto her belly, a paw reaching out to rest onto Lia's reading book. The sight made Cordelia chuckle as she reached forward, holding the cat while she contemplated the previous and future days.

Regardless of her relief regarding being chosen for the tournament Cordelia couldn't help turning into a bundle of nerves each time she thought of the Triwizard Tournament. If she was chosen she would not only have to go up against one other Hogwarts student but also compete against two Dumstrang and Beauxbaton students.

"I wonder what they will be like."

"Whom?"

The question startled the Black-McMillan heir as she jolted up from the sofa, her gaze set on the brunette boy lounging against the dormitory stairs' bannister. With his curly hair ruffled, eyebrows raised and arms crossed hazel eyes keenly met Cordelia's cornflower blue. The boy's uniform seemed neat yet rumpled, his Slytherin tie hanging loosely and shirt's top two buttons open as a palm twirled his unicorn core wand, his Prefect badge resting beside the wand.

Theodore Nott had never looked more informal as he descended the stairs, taking a seat across from Cordelia as he lightly pet Nix.

"The Beauxbaton and Dumstrang students."

Her response made Theo nod as he reached forward and pulled Nix onto his lap, unbothered by the black fur clinging to his uniform. Cordelia too moved forward as she placed her discarded book on the table beside their sofa, her pale hands moving away from the table to pin her friend's Prefect badge onto his shirt.

"I presume the Dumstrangs must be like the Gryffindors, brutish and headstrong. The Beauxbatons are known to be polite but also very...well French."

Cordelia laughed at the response, leaning back against the sofa's arm as she responded.

"Don't you think you're stereotyping?"

Theodore shook his head, copying her movements and leaning back as well.

"It might be, but stereotypes help judge people we don't know, and that's what you were asking for."

When he put it that way Cordelia almost felt bad for questioning what the students would be like, but her guilt faded as she glimpsed his smirk and twinkling eyes.

"I didn't ask you to judge them, I asked you to presume what they would be like."

A tinkering laugh replaced his smirk as Theo spread his legs, resting his ankles right beside Cordelia's curled up body as Nix left his lap and curled into a ball between the friends.

"What are you doing up so early either way?"

The question made her frown as Lia scratched behind her cat's ear, aware of how contradicting his question was. After Tom Riddle abruptly fled the scene during the Halloween ball Cordelia had danced the night away with her friends and had a grand time. Then why did her heart clench and mind whir each time she wondered where Tom had run off to?

His sudden absence had made Cordelia more than a little curious, thus she couldn't help but wonder what new plot Tom was conjuring. However, that didn't explain why she barely got any sleep last night, and when the brunette had finally fallen asleep she dreamt of grotesque events. Unfortunately, Theodore couldn't be made aware of any of that as she didn't want to ruin his good mood. That didn't mean she couldn't throw around a few half-truths.

"I had a troubling dream and decided to come down here and think. The water looks particularly enticing and calms me."

The second part happened to actually be the truth. The Black Lake had always helped quell Cordelia's anxiety and nerves. While most were scared of what lied beneath the dark waters, the misunderstood creatures and murky waters had quelled the Black-McMillan heir's loneliness many times.

When she had first arrived at Hogwarts Cordelia hadn't fit in much, her insecurities building due to the adult purebloods' careless claims of her various flaws. In her first year, Lia only had Theo and Druella, the trio running rampant around the common room as they would each attempt to think up ways to impress their families during the holidays. It was awful to think their parents had scarred them to the point where everything a pureblood child did was due to a constant thirst for their parents' approvals.

"Of course it does. Remember the Black Lake incident in our second year?"

Theodore's question drew Lia out of her thoughts as she glanced at him, giggling as the memory surfaced.

A trio of brunette twelve-year-olds giggled as they ran past the greenhouses, their arms clutching assorted sweets they acquired by raiding the kitchen. Several more candies and cakes levitated behind the trio as they turned the corner, polished black shoes attaining various dirt marks as the curly-haired boy led his friends away from Hogwarts' castle.

"Quickly Lia!"

Druella's call made the brunette giggle louder as she fought to catch up with her friends, her energy depleting due to the levitation charms in place. Nonetheless, the tiny bookworm huffed and sped towards the Black and Nott heir, strands of willowy chocolate brown hair flowing in the air as Lia attempted to catch up with them.

After a particularly terrible Charms test, Druella Black had been down in the dumps, her smile fading and mannerism dull as the with wondered what her mother would say if she found out. There weren't many things that would cheer up the Black heir, and few of them were accessible at Hogwarts, however, Cordelia was desperate to cheer up her cousin and best friend, and thus she set about planning the great moment.

It had been almost comical to watch the short brunette tie up her shoulder-length hair into a bun and waltz into the library, a determined frown over her features.

An hour later the girl exited the ginormous chamber with several large tombs clutched in her arms, the books piling up high enough to cover her nose. Cordelia refused to be deterred by the heavy lifting and set about searching for spells and potions to help her. In the end, it had been Theodore who figured out the entrance to the kitchens, and Lia was left with the task of dragging Druella to the fruit bowl painting as they prepared to raid the kitchens.

Their raid was more than successful as the trio finally halted beside the Black Lake, the food tumbling onto a checkered picnic blanket with the brunettes following right after.

"That was amazing!"

Theodore's claim made the cousins giggle as they attempted to catch their breath. Druella jumped up from her seat and shuffled to the other side of the pile of their goodies, lanky arms reaching out to wrap around Theodore and Cordelia.

"No, you guys are amazing! I can't believe you did that for me. Our parents would be..."

She trailed off, the sentence making the rebellious brunette realize the scolding and possible beating she was in for.

"Baffled?"

Theodore glanced at Cordelia as she spoke, the boy following her lead.

"Disappointed?"

"Absolutely unhinged?"

The last one made Theo and Ella flinch, their minds racing to similar situations in the past. Cordelia sighed and continued nonetheless.

"Well, guess what, we shouldn't care! This isn't their life or their school experience, it's ours. I bet you a hundred galleons they've all done worse, so why shouldn't we? After all, they do want us to be like them!"

For a moment two pairs of hazel and gold eyes stared at her wildly, as if the twelve-year-olds couldn't fathom disobeying their parents for a bunch of sweets. The sight was almost pitying, a bunch of children wondering if the thrill of a fun time was worth lectures, slaps and punishments. Yet Druella seemed to understand her cousin's words and firmly nodded, her golden gaze trailing towards the food piled before them as she reached for a cauldron cake.

"Lia's right."

Her agreement made Theodore loosen up and reach for a few sweets as well, his curls hiding the twinkle in his hazel eyes.

All was good for a while as they ate, laughed and gossiped, their voices rising and falling periodically as the number of people around them lessened. Eventually, the trio happened to be the only ones close to the lake, their giddy smiles widening as Theodore suggested going closer to the surface.

"Hey Ella, do you think our family owns this lake?"

Golden eyes widened at Lia's question, Druella's smile widening as she reached out to touch the water's surface.

"Perhaps we do! Why else would anyone name it after our family?"

Theodore certainly knew why, yet he refused to burst his friends' bubble and thus allowed them to splash water at one another and contemplate whether or not they owned the water's inhabitants too.

"I want to meet the Giant Squid! If we own the lake then he'll certainly show up!"

This time Theo openly face-palmed as Cordelia excitedly held out a box of Bertie Bot's Every Flavoured Bean, the blue-eyed girl excitedly calling out to the squid as she shook the box suggestively.

"He won't show up because you don't own the lake!"

Theodore's words made Druella frown as she whirled towards her friend, a frown firmly stuck on her features as she jabbed a finger in his chest.

"We do own it because it's the Black lake, you doofus."

At the time neither Cordelia nor Druella could connect the dots and realize the lake was named after its dark tint, each of the girls too excited to think they were possibly wrong.

No one knew whether it was coincidence or fate, whether the Giant Squid actually liked every flavoured beans or he was simply curious, but to a determined and awfully stubborn twelve-year-old Cordelia the squid's sudden urge to curl a tentacle around her box was due to Lia's ownership over the lake.

As the sky was painted in several shades of pink, orange and blue Cordelia's squeal echoed around the lake, the noise drawing her friends' attention. Theodore gaped and Druella squealed as the inky black tentacle tightened around the sweet box, tugging onto the beans until Lia finally let them go.

For days the trio had gushed about the incident and recited it to everyone they knew, some believing them while others were too entertained to correct the Black girls. In the end, their retelling of the incident was what connected the trio to Phyllis and Rodolphus, the duo then introducing Druella, Theodore and Cordelia to Ignatius and Aurora.

"I can't believe you thought you owned the lake."

Theodore's words made Cordelia roll her eyes as she slightly flushed, refusing to admit she had been wrong.

"I was twelve! And he showed up, didn't he?"

The curly-haired boy rolled his eyes at her words, nudging the witch with his foot as he replied.

"That just proves he likes beans. Plus, it's not like he showed up every time after that."

Theo's words made Lia laugh as she fiddled with Nix's fur, remembering how the Giant Squid had often taken her bait of sweets after the original incident, yet also ignored her many times. In fact Cordelia still occasionally went down to the lake's edge and placed a few sweets on the shore, awaiting the Giant Squid's presence regardless of knowing she didn't own the squid.

"But he still showed up quite a few times. You're just jealous it's not called the 'Nott Lake'"

Theo scoffed at her words, ready to argue back yet pausing as a loud thud and several noisy voices reached their ears. The blabbering seemed awfully familiar as a group of snakes exited the boys' dormitory, their figures pausing on the stairs as they continued talking. Finally Druella, Rodolphus, Ignatius and Aurora turned the corner and paused, their eyes lingering over Theodore and Cordelia's frames.

For a moment everyone paused, then Lia decided to break the awkward silence.

"What were you guys doing?"

"Nothing!"

The reply was uttered too quick, Theodore's eyebrows raising as he raked his hazel eyes over the four figures. Finally, he gasped dramatically and smirked towards Cordelia, the latter catching on as she smirked too.

"You did not! Honestly, Rora I thought Ella would do it but not you!"

Her words made Aurora sneer as the blonde walked downstairs and plopped into an armchair across the duo, the other three Slytherins following her queue.

"Get your mind out of the gutter, we didn't do anything. The girls just decided to stay after the ball."

Theodore cocked his head at Ignatius's words, moving his legs to allow Druella to sit between him and Lia.

"Then why weren't we invited?"

Druella scoffed at his question, cooing at Nix as the cat woke up long enough to crawl onto the golden-eyed witch's lap before dozing off once again.

"You were too busy sucking face with Yaxley and Lia wandered off right before we left the common room and went upstairs."

While Theodore flushed at the words Cordelia simply nodded, recalling how she left the common room to do her rounds.

And search for him.

The thought made her shake her head as the blue-eyed brunette fiddled her fingers and furrowed her eyebrows, realizing they were missing someone.

"Where's Philly?"

This time Rodolphus decided to answer as him and Ignatius settled into the love seat tandem to the fireplace.

"It's seven am on a Sunday morning, she's either in the owlery or snuck off to the forest."

Lia nodded at his words, recalling how Phyllis was the only morning person amongst their group.

Eventually, the group ran out of topics to discuss and decided to head down to breakfast and find Phyllis, agreeing to meet in the common room around three.

Light hums echoed around the library as Cordelia skimmed through the books, her fingers pausing at each tome as she mulled over their contents, wondering which one would be a good read. While most would wander the fiction section in search of a light read, the blue-eyed witch was keen on seeking out new spells to test during the entirety of the Triwizard Tournament.

Unfortunately, a certain male who she definitely didn't want to encounter seemed to have the same plan.

"Cordelia!"

His call made the female in question sigh as she spun around, unwilling to talk to him. As luck would have it at that moment she recalled the several classes Melania Black had made her take, their core aspect always lying in respecting others. Even if you currently hate that person.

"Riddle."

Lia nodded at him as he reached her. Tom leaned against the shelf and kept his hands in his pockets waiting for a moment before he spoke.

"I'm sorry about last night. Something came up."

That seemed to be a very vague apology, but since Cordelia wanted to escape the scene as soon as possible, she went along with it.

The brunette nodded at his apology, saying it was alright and he shouldn't worry about it. Her reply didn't seem to satisfy him as Riddle frowned, realizing she was more on edge than usual. The blue-eyed witch noticed it too and cursed herself for acting off simply because of her dream of her and Riddle.

In the whimsical scenario, the pair were dancing in a dark ballroom as a huge snake slowly coiled around them, its features coated in darkness as Riddle assured Lia the snake wouldn't hurt her. When the snake finally wrapped around them and got close enough to lower its head and meet their gaze her heart had suddenly stopped, yellow eyes and green scales haunting her thoughts. As if on instinct Cordelia lowered her gaze and walked backwards, attempting to form an excuse to escape. Riddle seemed to have other thoughts as he muttered in Parsletongue, the dream ending with him commanding the snake to end her life.

"I- um...I need to go."

It was clear something was wrong with Cordelia, her stuttering and hesitance making Riddle furrow his eyebrows as he reached out a palm, brows furrowing as he questioned if she was okay.

Unfortunately, Cordelia wasn't sure how to respond. What was she supposed to say? She had a weird dream of him commanding a snake that she presumed was a world snake while they danced, and the snake eventually killed her. How was one supposed to vocalize such things?

Instead, she simply brushed past his confused form and approached the librarian's desk, checking out the book and turning towards Riddle one final time.

"Sorry, but my friends are waiting."

Not waiting for a response Cordelia raced out the chamber, her heart racing as she settled on a thought. Something terrible had happened when he left after their dance, and it made Lia more on edge around him than she should have been. One thing was for sure, Tom Riddle had lost all the trust he gained last night.