From Her Reflection {tom riddle}

part i - new beginnings

the corridor was silent except for the sound of someone's shoes quickly shuffling across the marble floor. the footsteps were soft and hushed, as a girl in long black robes made her way to the large oak doors that stood at the end of the hall.

she was late, per usual. this habit had been one of the reasons why she was removed from ilvermorny, along with several others of course.

upon reaching the entrance, she paused to collect herself one final moment before she would enter a new world. she knew that there were hundreds of students sitting behind these doors that were anticipating her arrival. the american transfer, they called her. banished from her previous school...

regardless of the rumors, she confidently swung the doors open and met the hundreds of eyes that darted her way. students of all ages had been seated at long wooden tables watching the sorting ceremony until they were so rudely interrupted by this girl. she was wearing unusually skimpy clothing, and although the dress code was not particularly enforced, it was rather revealing for the 40s.

she strutted down the middle aisle until reaching the headmaster who grinned from his throne. he proudly stood up and stretched his arms out, as if preparing for an embrace.

"ah, yes! our highly anticipated transfer student: miss y/n-"

"-Gryffindor. yes, headmaster dippet, thank you for that wonderful introduction," she smirked when she heard gasps erupting from the crowd behind her. her attention then turned to another transfer boy that had been waiting for his house placement in the center chair. he cowered beneath her looming presence and quickly removed himself from the seat. just as y/n was about to sit down, dippet interrupted.

"I don't think that will be necessary. surely we already know you will be placed into Gryffindor." he beamed at the row of tables on the left where students wrapped in red scarves and neckties beamed right back. but y/n shook her head.

"I insist, headmaster. it is tradition after all." finally, y/n took a seat and laid her forearms on the arms of the chair. an aid scurried over and quickly placed the sorting hat on top of her h/c hair, and just as quickly ran back. the sorting hat hummed to itself before speaking to y/n directly.

"ah yes, a Gryffindor. the heiress of a long line of powerful purebloods."

y/n scanned her eyes across the room. the students stared intently at her, some in awe and some in confusion. as much as she hated public attention, she couldn't help but enjoy the shocked look on people's faces. suddenly, her eyes fell onto a boy from the Slytherin table. unlike those around him, he had a blank stare, as if he were trying to read her. their eyes met, and for a moment an electric feeling of familiarity surged through y/n's body, followed by a tingling sensation. she was so caught off guard that she had almost missed the sorting hat's final decision.

"you are strong and brave like a Gryffindor...yet kind and hardworking like a Hufflepuff... your cleverness and wit makes you a strong candidate for Ravenclaw...yet you're sly, cunning, and above all, a leader..."

the entire room seemed to hold its breath as the hat announced her placement-

"Slytherin!"

then, the room let out a shocking gasp. no one knew what to say- they were in, well, shock. y/n smiled sweetly at the audience and quickly made her way to the Slytherin table, hoping to escape the public eye. of course, everyone's gaze had followed her.

after a bit, the Slytherin table erupted into cheers. they had, after all, managed to get the heir of Gryffindor to become a member of their house. it was an incredible feat.

"w-wow." the headmaster stammered. "this is quite the surprise. the first of all Gryffindors to become anything other..than..that-" he seemed to be out of breath as he tried to collect his thoughts and think of what to say next. at last he cleared his throat and waved his arms into the air, signaling the beginning of the feast. 

y/n had managed to find some space by the end of the table, where a group of girls her age had eagerly shuffled over to her and bombarded her with questions.

"so how does a Gryffindor get placed in Slytherin? did you bribe the hat or something?" a redheaded girl asked. "and if so, why Slytherin of all houses? rebellious type, are we now?"

before y/n could even answer, a brunette cut her off- "well she was placed here for a reason. the hat is never wrong."

"is it always right, though?" another student with afro-textured hair pondered. the three girls went on about the results of the ceremony and continued to question the validity of the hat and its history.

overwhelmed by everything, y/n moved to the opposite end of the section, where it was rather empty. she sat herself down and grabbed a biscuit, but of course, the other Slytherins followed her like ducklings.

unsure about what to do, she told them she had to go to the restroom before taking off into the castle. since she was still unfamiliar with her new surroundings, she decided to explore the castle a bit more.

the moving staircases lured her as she made her way up to nearly the top of the building. once on the seventh floor, she reached a secluded corridor with strange paintings that lined the stone walls. there was one, in particular, that was so peculiar to her- it was a painting of goblins in tutus supposedly learning ballet. strange. she thought.

then she examined the floor. it was a bit different than the rest of the castle. this one was shinier and newer as if people had barely come here. but beneath the painting were two black spots that look slightly worn in. y/n walked over to one of them and stood on the spot and stared at it for a bit before walking over to the second dot. she continued this sequence twice more until she heard the sound of stone shifting across from her.

to her amazement, the wall on the opposite side of the hall had opened up to reveal a small pointy door. her curiosity called out to her; clearly, this entrance appeared for a reason. once she stepped in she was met by a rush of warm air. to her left was a crackling fire pit, surrounded by red velvet armchairs. opposite those chairs was a desk with empty parchment paper and a spare quill and ink.

this is a perfect spot to study- i bet students rarely come up here.

the room resembled her parent's work office back at home - actually it was nearly identical. the only difference was a mirror that was placed directly across from the entrance. y/n's eyes were fixated on the piece as she crept closer. her reflection wasn't crisp clear as it usually was- it was fuzzy and slightly transparent like a ghost. the mirror looked like a regular mirror- it had a regular wooden frame with no fancy embellishments- yet it definitely didn't function like one.

suddenly, music. y/n whipped her head towards the desk to find an old record player that magically began to spin a song. it was an orchestral melody, but not something that would be played at a ball. it sounded mellow and slumber, yet seductive and dark. something about the soft hum of the cellos evoked a strange emotion in y/n- it wasn't fear or confusion, but rather anticipation and longingness.

she was conflicted about whether to approach the mirror or music. ultimately, she continued on her journey towards her blurry visage. she thought that perhaps getting closer would clear her image, but alas, she stood corrected.

as the distance between her and the glass shrunk, her reflection continued to grow foggy. all of a sudden, a dim figure accompanied her visage. she gasped and turned around, expecting to find someone behind her- but there was no one.