Little Riddle | James Potter

Eight

Her legs seemed to have a mind of their own as they carried her towards the dungeons. Curiosity had turned into confusion now, and it was not a feeling Alexis particularly enjoyed. She had enjoyed the kiss and his presence altogether, but now that she finally got what she had asked for, the new-coming sensations left her dumbfounded and panicking. It was not wise to play with fire, but it was beyond absurd to genuinely enjoy the feeling. And that's what she did, she enjoyed the burn.

She walked into the common room in a rush, planning on going straight to bed and calling it a night. However, her plan was interrupted when she saw a group of her fellow housemates standing in a circle in the corner of the unusually empty room. A Death Eater meeting. She shrugged it off and continued walking, not wanting to partake on any of that nonsense, but then she heard Malfoy's voice, loud and clear.

"Yes, My Lord."

There was a Death Eater meeting, and their leader had joined them. She instinctively halted on her step, her mind buzzing as she tried to assess the situation she was most definitely not prepared for. Hesitantly, she took small steps towards them and pushed past some of the cloaked figures, not really caring about interrupting their little get together. And sure enough, there stood Tom in all his grandeur. Looking at her with a somewhat cynical smirk, almost as if he'd been waiting for her. His gaze was hard and cold, making all his followers lower their gaze, not daring to look him in the eye.

Tom Riddle had somehow managed to become even more intimidating. His posture, his mannerisms, and his cold expression had been perfected over the years. Not that they needed to be improved in the first place, but Tom always found room for improvement, radical improvement. He walked past some of his followers, making them fidget or tremble slightly. Sure, Tom's presence was unnerving, but Alexis wouldn't be surprised if Tom had already cursed someone in the short amount of time he'd been there. Thus making the menacing Death Eaters fearful of their Lord.

"Follow me." He whispered in her ear and began to lead the way without waiting for a reply. She wasted no time following his trail, trying her best to be cautious around the young man.

As much as she hated to admit it, this wasn't Tom. He had always been a dangerous individual, but his admiration for the Dark Arts had turned into an obsession for power and immortality. She was also well aware of his interest in Horcruxes, but still oblivious to how many he had created already. This man barely had a soul.

The Room of Requirement Tom took her to was dark and eerie, very unlike the one she frequented with the Marauders. The biggest source of lighting came from the fireplace, the flames giving their skin a red undertone. Most of the room blended with the shadows, turning everything into silhouettes. The only thing Alexis' eyes could tell apart was the black leather sofa and, of course, the fireplace itself.

"Did you miss me?" His question was sudden, an odd way to break the silence, and certainly not the greeting she was expecting when reuniting after three years. He stood in front of the fireplace imposingly, his back turned to her.

"Terribly." She answered nonchalantly as she took a seat on the black leather sofa, her eyes glued to his back.

"How's everything at Wool's?" His voice was so monotone, Alexis didn't even need to have a look at his face to see how uninterested he was on the matter.

"Exactly the same." She stared at the back of his head, knowing he could feel it. "My only hope now is that Ms Cole dies of alcohol poisoning."

He chuckled at her comment, a low and humourless laugh. Tom had always had a great impact on her, their energies always seemed to connect and collide, an understandable bond given everything the siblings had gone through, yet it still shocked her to see just how much her demeanour changed whenever he was around. He was like a dementor, making her feel cold and hollow, making the anger and hatred inside her prevail against all else.

"Malfoy told me you're a duelling tutor now." He glowered at her from over his shoulder, his condescending statement followed by a sneer.

"These are dark times." She didn't take her eyes away from him as she responded, her voice low and assertive. "You know I've never been one to stand down from a fight, Tom."

He flinched at her choice of name but didn't comment on it. "I've missed you too," he declared, finally turning to face her.

Very few people understood Tom, his body language and mannerisms were an enigma to even the smartest of intellectuals. His deceitful ways and false charm could fool millions, but not her. And, because of that, she could tell his words were sincere. Tom was a master of lies, but those rare portrayals of genuine emotion were hard for him to mask. Thankfully, the only person who ever witnessed said emotions happened to be his sister, and although she was no Death Eater, he considered her an outstanding secret keeper.

She hesitantly stood up, staring at whatever was left of her brother with sadness reflected in her eyes. And she hugged him, an act that many would deem her insane for. Tom was tense at first but he reluctantly gave in and reciprocated the gesture. Those three years had been hard for them both. They sat down facing each other, the initial tension long gone as the siblings became comfortable in each other's presence.

"I've also heard you've been spending an awful amount of time with some silly little boy?" He took great pleasure in seeing her dumbfounded expression. "Why do you even bother, sister? You know as well as I do that we're above that muggle nonsense that is love."

She replied with a smirk of her own. "I think it is safe to say you and I both have very different opinions on that muggle nonsense. Besides, last time I checked, you weren't particularly the jealous and overprotective type of brother."

"I don't like him." His expression turned cold again, a mood swing that would've alarmed many. "And I don't like how persistent you are with trying to get rid of this gift of ours. Feelings are a weakness, Lex."

"And I'm okay with that."

"But I'm not okay with my sister being so foolish! He'll be the end of you. He'll only break you, Lex." His features contorted with anger, an emotion that had also been reflected in the harshness of his tone.

"I guess I'll take the risk." Her facial expression remained stoic, not wanting Tom to know just how much his sudden aggressiveness startled her. His nostrils flared as he tried to regain his composure. It infuriated him that she was never willing to see eye to eye with him. She was careless and erratic, making him feel fearful about her safety. "So, do I even want to know what you're up to?" She broke the tense silence that had taken over them.

"No. But you might find out soon." He stated, purposely avoiding making eye contact. "You know I don't want you involved in any of this. It's dangerous."

Tom took the matter very seriously. It was beyond dangerous for people to know that Lord Voldemort had a weakness. Something they could use against him as revenge for all the sorrow he had caused.

"When am I going to see you again?" Her hands fidgeted in her lap as she anxiously waited for a reply.

"I don't know, I have to take care of a couple of issues before that. But we'll meet again, I promise. Who knows? Maybe we'll have a duel. See what the hype about little Riddle is all about." He laughed a genuine and pleasant laugh that Alexis hadn't heard in years.

She chuckled, immediately shaking her head at the suggestion. "I think I'll pass on that. I don't want to die young, thank you very much."

He stood up and motioned for her to do the same. His eyes inspected her slowly, almost as if he wanted to burn her features in his memory. "Take care, okay?"

She smiled sadly, understanding it was time for yet another indefinite farewell. "You too."

And just like that, he left. Once again, as he had done plenty of times before. That had not been nearly enough time to make up for the three years they'd spent apart, their conversations seemed meaningless now as she pondered about all the things she should've told him instead of discussing her love life. Asking him to stop torturing and killing innocent people for a living was definitely top of the list.

James Potter had no self-control. Not back when he was a child and definitely not now as a teenager. He respected good old Dumbledore and Minnie McGonagall, but the lack of supervision at Hogwarts had only increased his desire to act in the spur of the moment without caring about any consequences. Was he aware that he was getting in trouble? Yes. Did he ever try to stop and be reasonable? No. And now, due to the very same lack of self-control, his mind had been chanting Alexis' name repeatedly and it had no intention of stopping.

James Potter did not beat around the bush. He had always been direct and straightforward, another great quality of his that always managed to get him in trouble. Especially with a certain redheaded lady. But now all James knew was that Alexis had taken up the entirety of his mind and he wasn't questioning it nor complaining.

James Potter fancied Alexis Riddle. He was completely unaware of when his infatuation had even begun, he only knew that Lily Evans had suddenly ceased to be on his mind and the thought of her no longer excited him like it once did. Yes, he was most definitely getting ahead of himself, but he couldn't help it. He was happy. The entire ordeal with Lily had turned him into a pessimist who always expected the worst, so this was most definitely a welcomed change. He was almost sure he had been skipping on his way back to the common room. His giddy expression had confused the Marauders, who didn't manage to persuade him into telling them anything that night.

But his happiness was simple, Alexis Riddle liked him back. He had honestly expected to get slapped after his request, something Lily would have definitely done. But not Alexis Riddle. Alexis kissed him, and she kissed him like she meant it. He had forgotten what the bliss of having feelings for someone and having them reciprocate said feelings felt like, and after all, he was just a teenage boy who longed for affection.

The Marauders were late, as per usual, making the potions classroom feel much more peaceful without their presence. Oddly, this seemed to unnerve Alexis more. Today's lesson was about Amortentia, of all potions, but before they got into potion making Slughorn was going to allow some students to smell the one he had brewed himself, just so the class could have a general idea of what they were working with.

Amortentia made Alexis uncomfortable for a couple of reasons. The first one being Merope's habit of playing potioneer. Sure, Alexis had never really learned exactly what love potion her mother had been administering on her father, but that substance could very well be the same one that cursed her. The second reason was Tom and their little chat the previous night, especially the part where he deemed his sister weak for trying to give her heart a metaphorical purpose. And the third one being her own personal anxieties and fears. What if she didn't smell anything at all, which was sadly the most realistic possibility? What if it smelled like something unknown, flooding her mind with doubts and preoccupations she didn't need? Or worse, what if it smelled like James?

"Ms Riddle," Slughorn spoke up, breaking her from her trance. "You're an excellent student. Why don't you step forward and--"

His words were already causing disarray in Alexis' stomach but thankfully a distraction arrived as if on cue. Everyone jumped startled when the door opened abruptly, revealing the four Gryffindor boys who looked even more dishevelled than usual. "Those bloody stairs," Sirius leaned over with his hands on his knees as he struggled to catch his breath. "They're a menace. A menace, I tell you!"

"Well, now that you have all so kindly interrupted my class," Slughorn commented with a clearly irritated voice, "I'll let you gentlemen be the first ones to do this. Ah, Mr Potter, you first! Come here!"

Alexis wasn't particularly surprised about James being Slughorn's first choice. Everyone knew Slughorn adored Evans and was a huge fan of the James Potter + Lily Evans pairing. He'd even forced them to be partners during their fifth year, which ended pretty badly as one would assume.

James stepped forward confidently despite having absolutely no idea what he was supposed to do. There was no introduction written on the chalkboard and none of his classmates were of much help. He stood behind the cauldron, glancing from it to Slughorn, then back to it. He didn't recognize the potion and had no clue about what he was supposed to do with it. A couple of the girls were giggling and Lily's face was a deep pink colour, which was not any help.

"Go ahead boy, give it a sniff," Slughorn instructed. James still didn't know what the potion was, but he figured he'd be okay if he followed Slughorn's commands. He leaned forward, trying to distinguish the smells that had abruptly hit his nostrils. "What do you smell, then?" The Professor pressed, leaning forward with an inquiring grin.

"Grass? And butterbeer I think. And.. strawberries?" Everyone turned to look at Lily, a notorious strawberry lover and scent user. "Wait," he frowned. "Oi, Riddle! Why did you put your perfume in this?"