Motivation ⌁ Tom Riddle ✔

6

"Did - how did you..." I was at a loss for words and I took an offended step backwards. How did he manage to steal the diary and how did he manage to unlock it? The only thing I could think of was dark magic...

"How did I open it?" He smirked again, tapping his fingers along the binder of the diary. He put his hands behind his back with the diary and kept it there. "Let's save that for another day. And, let's just say, I require your knowledge."

I took a couple step forwards, my eyes narrowed. "What makes you think I'm going to help you?" I walked further and attempted to make a grab for the diary behind Tom's back, but all he had to do was stand there and hold the diary firm above his head.

"Oh, you're going to help me, unless you're actually much more idiotic than you look," he snarled. I inwardly winced. Tom dropped his hand and paced a few steps back and forth in front of me. I watched him with balled fists. There was no denying he was going to hold this against me and blackmail me. "You help me and your seer secret stays safe. You don't, everyone finds out. And if everyone finds out...well...that just won't satisfy me enough. Please, Abigail, don't make me tell you once more what I'm capable of doing. The snapping-your-bones thing? That's nothing. But, at least I know what you meant by saying that you know more than I think. How dare you look into my past?!"

His tone changed with every word. It went from angry to calm to annoyed to irritated, then repeated. If I had just gotten that diary out of his hands, I could burn it and nobody would believe him.

I crossed my arms and glared. "It's not like I have any control over it! Now, I'd like my diary back!"

"Why?" Tom smirked. "So you can remove any evidence of your gift? Now, now, we can't have any of that, can we?"

I sighed, knowing it was useless and that Tom Riddle was much too stubborn to reconsider anything. From the few weeks I had been here, I already knew Tom got whatever he wanted. And all I could sense was bad bad bad.

"What can I do to help?" I mumbled in defeat.

Tom chuckled. It was the most devious sound I had ever heard. "Why the long face?"

I looked up and raised an eyebrow. He raised one in return.

"Meet me in front of the Slytherin common room tomorrow evening after dinner. I expect to see you there on time otherwise..." he shook the diary in front of my face, "...things could get ugly."

"Come on, girl, smile will you? You've been looking down all day," Billy said from in front of me. Alison was sitting next to me and Christopher was sitting next to her.