Forever Yours, Tom Riddle (Completed)

Year Five

I couldn't help but laugh as William commentated the sorting, making the hat say all different kinds of things like, "Well this ones got no brain, send them to Durmstrang!" or "This one needs a bath!" When the sorting was over we were giggling about it the whole way to the common room. We said long and rather private goodbyes in the corner of the common room before heading up to bed. My cheeks a fiery red.

Weeks passed by and I was too afraid to speak to Tom so I went on with my life with William and Quidditch and classes. But I couldn't get Tom out of my head and it was hard seeing him in all my classes and not speaking to him. Every so often I'd see him watching me with remorse and sadness in his eyes but when our eyes met we'd both looked down. I missed him so much I think it was killing me. And I liked William but it just wasn't the same, I couldn't be completely myself around him like I could Tom. Tom and I were one in the same.

Every time I was left alone my thoughts drifted to Tom, like now. Before our first Quidditch game against Gryffendor. Most of their team was seventh years and they hadn't lost a game yet, they also hadn't played a game where the other team walked away fully in-tact. Nobody was seriously injured, nothing that couldn't be fixed quickly anyways. Just a few broken noses and fingers. I shook that thought from my head as I mounted my broom but then Tom slithered his way back into my brain and I had to literally shake my head to focus. "You okay Harley?" William asked from beside me wearing his uniform too, he was a good keeper but not as good as last years. "Yeah I'm good." I lied through my teeth and pushed off the platform. I'd talked to William about Tom once but he just said Tom was bad for me and nothing good could come out of us being friends. I hadn't spoken to him for a week, until he'd apologized of course.

"I want a nice, clean match!" I heard yelled as the two team flew onto the pitch. Then the whistle blew and I saw the Quaffle immediately. I flew at top speed toward it and snatched it, dodging a Gryffendor chaser at the same time. The keeper on the Gryffendor team was a slow flyer and had just reached the hoops, I threw the ball in lightning quick and the crowd cheered as the announcer, Septimus Weasley a fifth year Gryffendor, shouted, "Ten points to Slytherin!" With little enthusiasm. I did a fist pump before going after the Quaffle again.

The score was Slytherin 120 to Gryffendor 30, I was on fire today. Of course the other chasers got some points most of them were from me. I glared at the Gryffendor chasers as they whispered quickly. They broke apart and I kept flying for the Quaffle. Suddenly one of there chasers bumped me in the side then another squished me between them. We had the whole open field but I looked for the third chaser, he was the bad move in this tactic. This tactic was illegal though! Squish another chaser between two and then the third comes straight at them and knocks them off their broom. It's called the Parkin's Pincer but there's no way the professors would let that happen, right?

But then I saw the third chaser scoring on our hoops across the field and wondered what they were doing. Shouldn't he be flying straight at me by now? Then I saw their beater ten feet away with a bludger and bat in hand and my heart sunk. This might be worse and was perfectly legal... The bludger came rushing toward me at full speed and hit me right in the face despite my attempts to push free and duck. I tumbled off the back of my broom and I reached for the handle only to find everything had gone black.

The first thing I noticed is the scratchy sheets I hated. I moaned when the pain in my head and face became clear and felt someone's warm hand in mine. I focused on their breathing instead of the pain and slowly I started to wake up. I forced my eyelids to open and heard a sigh of relief. "Welcome back, Harley." It was Tom. Tom was here and everything was alright. I reached out for his face with my free hand just to be sure he was real. His skin was so soft but it seemed wet under his eyes and I wondered if he'd been crying. Tom had never cried before.

"Tom?" His hand pulled my hand to his lips and he kissed the back of my hand. "It's me." I wanted to see him but it was so dark, I flicked my fingers and the tip of my fingers lit up. Then I could see, could see his face stained with salt water, could see out the tiniest crack in the window and knew it was late at night. "You can do wandless magic?" I nodded but it hurt so I just answered. "For more than a year." Tom half smiled and rolled his eyes. "Tom please don't be mad at me anymore. I'm sorry for what I did. I just want my best friend back." I started to cry and Tom's eyes watered too.

Tom climbed onto the bed and let me cry while he whispered how sorry he was for not being honest and how he wanted us to be best friends again and how much he missed me and hated that he couldn't talk to me. I was happier than I can remember since Tom and me stopped being friends. "You get some sleep. I'll come back in the morning with Avery I guess." Tom got up and started quietly towards the door. I couldn't see him through the darkness but I knew he was there. "Tom? Did we win the Quidditch match?" Tom laughed slightly but I could only see him as a shadow. "Yeah, Harley. We won." Then I heard the door close and I was alone. I saw a clock, nearly four in the morning. How on earth did Tom get in? And how long had he been here for before I woke up?

I slept until I heard Williams voice and light peaking in the window. I kept my eyes closed and listened to him speak to the nurse. "Why can't you do anything about her face?" He sounded annoyed and not like himself. Quite angry really. "Quiet, Avery. You'll wake the other patients. I will not risk hurting her to get rid of a few scars. I don't know if there's brain damage and I was told not to send her to St. Mungo's so it's my call and I draw the line at fixing her black eye." William muttered something vicious under his breath and now I heard Toms voice, "Avery shut it." He hissed, it was a command. William stomped over to my bedside but when I opened my eyes Tom was still by the nurse. So far from my reach. Keeping his distance from Avery with a horribly angry face. The nurse went into her office and now it was just the three of us. "Could you get me some water, William?" He nodded, glared at Tom and left the room.

"What's wrong?" I asked Tom and he moved closer. Now in the daylight I could see the dark circles under his eyes. His clothes and hair were in perfect order though, just as I remembered him. Although Tom had a prefect badge sticking out of his pocket. I didn't mention it though... "Avery's getting on my nerves. He won't stop bothering the nurse about fixing you. He'll just have to deal. You can be released today if you like. If you're feeling up to it we can go into Hogsmead. Its Saturday." I nodded and started climbing out of the bed. I was still in my Quidditch uniform. "I suppose I should change first." Tom smiled a crooked grin with a small laugh before leading me to the common room. "That may be a good idea, the blood look doesn't suit you." Sure enough blood stained the front of my top. I'm sure William would be upset with me later for leaving but he'd have to deal with it or I would ditch him for good.

In my room I found Luceretia and Cedrella asleep in their beds. It was too early on a Saturday for them to be awake. I opened my closet and chose out a simple outfit, trying to be quiet for their sake. Then I saw the box. I picked it up and started to walk out my door when I saw myself in a mirror. I had a thin scar and a shadow under my left eye from where the bludger hit. I put the box under my arm and walked slowly down the stairs, tracing the scar with my fingers. Tom must be able to read minds or something because when I got to the abandoned common room Tom surprised me by kissing my temple where the scar started and whispering, "You're still beautiful. In fact I think it makes you look tough." I smiled and handed him the box. "What's this?"

"Your birthday present." He pulled it open and I swear I heard him gasp. A smile spread across his face and he looked up at me mischievously. "I know what we should do today..." He held a medium sized version of the drawing over his inner arm. "A tattoo?" I couldn't help but smile. It would be cool, if it was our thing and we did it together. Plus my mother would hate it and after everything she's put me through I think she deserves a little payback. We smiled at each other a little and I knew by the way he smiled we would outlast anything. Anything at all.