Broken Wings / tom riddle

Chapter 18 - Festivities

Briar awoke the next morning with an awful headache. She walked over to Genevieve's bed and searched for her potion kit. Quickly she tried to brew up a potion to make herself not feel like she drank more than her body weight in alcohol last night. She got dressed and headed down to the great hall for breakfast.

When she arrived, most of the food had already been eaten. She approached the end of the table and sat down opposite Riddle. "Morning Emeralds, sleep well?" He snickered.

She groaned, "Shut up. How are you absolutely fine? You drank more than me I swear."

"Hmm yes but it appears I can handle my alcohol better than you," he said flipping the page of his book. "Do you want me to remind you of all the words that slipped your mouth whilst you were immaturely intoxicated?"

"No. They're still in my own memory, although some things are muffled but I'd prefer to keep it that way," she said. "But I do vaguely remember you carrying me?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I did no such thing. Your drunk and delusional brain must of imagined it," he remarked sharply.

"Sure," Briar said sarcastically as she grabbed the scraps of the table. Just as she was about to start eating, Slughorn approached them.

"Ah Tom and Miss Emeralds, so lovely to see you two getting along! I must admit I thought you hated each other for a small moment," he chucked, "but nonetheless it appears I was wrong, you will be coming to the small Christmas feast Professor Dippet is holding for the students who couldn't return home this year?" he asked.

"Of course Professor Slughorn, I never miss it," Tom replied with a charming smile.

"And what about you miss Emeralds?" Slughorn asked.

"Well, I have nowhere else to be," she replied.

"Wonderful! Oh perhaps you could see Professor Dumbledore about helping with the set up, we are rather behind and it is tomorrow night after all," Slughorn scrunched his face up in a worry and walked away.

Today was Christmas Eve, how could she forget? Briar's Christmas' at the orphanage were never too great. They'd all receive a piece of fruit and new pair or grey socks. It was something to be grateful for, but she'd be lying if she said they were anything like the Christmas' she would have with her family. They would have a lavishing lunch with lots of people, she would play with the other fae children and they would fly in the meadows and collect mushrooms and flowers of all sorts.

"I'll go speak to Dumbledore now, I must also ask him about visiting Avery," Briar said quickly as she shot up from the table. She took one last bite of her toast before she ran out of the great hall.

____

Dumbledore was a great wizard. There was no denying it. He'd been quite popular lately in regards to his connection to Grindelwald. But Briar still felt there was something off about her friendly professor.

"Hello Briar," he greeted her as she entered his office. He was the only teacher that never called her by her last name. "What can I do for you?"

"Professor Slughorn said you needed some help setting up for the feast tomorrow. I'd like to volunteer myself to help!...and Mr Riddle," she spoke his name quieter than usual knowing the distaste Albus had for the boy.

"Hmm, Mr Riddle wants to help me? Now I never thought I'd see that day come," Dumbledore said with a smile.

Briar tried to stay engaged but she couldn't help but become distracted by the news paper that was sitting on his desk, Dumbledore noticed her wandering eyes. "He killed your parents didn't he?" he asked. Briar wasn't shocked by this accusation, she'd told a few people at the school that's how they had died, it wasn't technically a lie.