Chapter Forty-Two: Damage Control with Nott

From murdering muggles to almost dying, Cordelia really had gone through quite a chaotic week, but somehow the deathly events and their repercussions were pushed to the back of her mind as she pondered senseless solutions.

Wands were all she could think of as the brunette leaned against a gold pillar.

It was peculiar, but at that moment, wands were the root of all her problems. Wands that determined how pure one was, wands that almost killed her or made her kill, wands that sneered or whispered each time she faced them. Wands, and what life would be like without them.

For if everyone, or no one, had wands, all of her problems would be solved. There would be no prejudiced parents and purebloods with their unprecedented expectations. Crazy tournaments and seamless murder wouldn't be part of her life, her friends wouldn't always compete with her, and most importantly, the blood system would be demolished.

No prejudice, no hatred; just people.

People, and the likes of Tom Riddle and Grindlewald.

Cordelia let out a small sigh as she sunk to the ground and drowned in self-pity. After a night of dreamless slumber and contemplative staring, the restless witch rose with the sun with thoughts of exploring the palace with the sun as her only companion.

The thought of golden rays lighting the corridors before her as Cordelia silently contemplated her predicament seemed heavenly at the time, but Cordelia's anxious thoughts stirred soon after, and with the owls and caretakers roaming the palace, she was unsure where to hide.

The library was locked and the girls' dormitory was out of the question.

Visiting the Slytherin boys would run the risk of meeting Tom, and after their previous encounter, Cordelia was unsure how to behave around him.

What was one supposed to do with an enemy, of sorts, who knew her darkest secret?

If it was anyone else Cordelia would have used her usual tactics and avoided the situation until they let it go, but Tom Riddle was vexatiously persistent when he put his mind to something, and Cordelia was nearly always on his mind.

Avoiding him would result in taunts, but conversations would form assumptions.

"Why can't you just go away?"

The groan was accompanied by a bang as Cordelia hit her head against the wall, sinking further into the ground and a cycle of confusion.

"I knew you were angry but do you really hate me that much?"

Theodore Nott's voice had never sounded better as he walked towards the discouraged puddle of black robes.

It had been a while since Cordelia relied on her friends for solutions, and it had been lonely, to say the least. Cordelia had gotten so used to relying on herself that it felt weird to finally open up to someone, but once she started the polymath couldn't stop even if she wanted to.

"It's not you, it's Riddle."

"It's always Riddle."

His words made her sigh as Cordelia curled up on the floor, leaning against the curly-haired healer as she closed her eyes and spoke freely.

"He knows about my father and now I don't know what to do. How am I supposed to face him, Theo?"

Cordelia sucked in a deep breath and buried her face deeper into her friend's cloak as she felt her lip quiver. As much as she attempted to ignore the waterworks, Theodore could sense her tears by the way her voice trembled as she continued.

"And everyone thinks we're courting, even my mother thought so, but I don't want to be with Riddle! I-" she paused yet again and gulped down a series of tears, "-I don't want to be married off to a tyrant like him."

"Sure, he's got the brains and looks, but he's a psychopath and all he does is take! He hates me as much as I hate him, but somehow thinks he can use that hatred to have me join him. The audacity!"

Her sadness made way for anger and hatred, making Cordelia forget her current circumstance and only focus on what she had to say about Hogwarts' golden boy.

"He's everything we hated when we were kids, Theo, then why are we giving in?"

It had been a while since Cordelia confronted one of the knights about their relationship with Tom. She felt slightly stupid for bringing up a topic that could possibly make Theodore avoid the situation and run away, but the way he sighed and leaned further into the wall made Cordelia think otherwise.

"Some of us weren't meant to be more than knights, Lia. But you? You were always destined to be the queen."

Cordelia was used to his personality being as peppy as his curls, but as they shuffled around and Theodore turned towards her, an uncanny solemnity descended upon them.

"I'm used to seeing Riddle use people for his personal benefit, but you were the witch he couldn't break. You've been through a lot at Beaxbaton, but the Cordelia Black wouldn't crumble because of an unveiled secret or two."

"You've forgotten how strong you are, Lia. I might have submitted to his wishes, but I was always just a pawn, a pawn who just lost his queen."

The Cordelia he knew would have lashed out and hexed Theodore, but the fact that she stayed silent spoke volumes.

As the sun rose higher than the snowy mountains and stirred the slumbering wizards, the two snakes silently contemplated their future.

They sure were a sight for sore eyes; two young purebloods lounging on the floor without any masks or malevolent intentions. She could already picture the rumours and gossip if a witch walked through the corridor, but after all she had been through, Cordelia didn't care about what lies others would spew about her.

Impromptu drama and feuds had diminished Cordelia's will to fight, but Theodore's declaration drove her to do better.

It was high time Tom Riddle was put in his place and shown how wrong he was to presume a moment of weakness or two would extinguish her fire.

Their academic disputes had developed into a loathsome rivalry at Hogwarts, but regardless of the situation Cordelia and Tom had always respected one another. Tom Riddle had always belittled her but had never been daft enough to underestimate Cordelia.

However, Beauxbaton changed that.

Cordelia had changed as well, and in a moment of weakness had forgotten who she was. She held her tongue and let him lead, disregarded her pride and catered to his for their truce on the Hogwarts Express, but Riddle had confused a complacent viper for a garden snake, and it was time the Dark Lord was knocked off of his high pedestal and brought back to reality.

Tom Riddle might have been Hogwarts' golden boy, but Cordelia Lucretia Black was the Slytherin queen. For her, chaos and danger were new adventures and death and despair were mere stepping stones to victory.

She had a Tournament to win and a Dark Lord to dethrone, and the Black-McMillan heir would be damned if she ruined her chance at victory over insignificant inconveniences.