AN ODE TO TRAGEDY ── Tom Riddle

Three

The fragrance of perfume was thick in the air when she entered the classroom. The seat towards the end of the classroom was empty. She sat down, settling her bag at the empty seat to her left.

   "There hasn't been another incident in two months. It must be gone, whatever it is." 

She could hear the girls in her front whisper amongst themselves. She was quick to realize that they were referring to the chamber of secrets. Sharon Haynes was found in a deserted corridor past midnight, frozen. Her ebony eyes were wide in fear, her face ashen. Her mouth had been slightly agape, leaving the less concerned students to marvel about the roots of such terror.

   "It must be a chimaera." One of them had offered during dinner a while back.

Aylin had recalled those creatures from a forgotten story that came from her grandmother's lips. Said to be a violent creature with a thirst for blood, it had blemished her dreams for quite the time. Now she knew that there were far wretched creatures to fear.

   "Not a chimaera. Someone would have seen that damned thing around!" The Gryffindor had argued.

   "Would you mind if I—" His familiar sound broke her string of musings.

   Tom.

   "Of course not." 

She moved her bag to her lap to give him enough space. He sat down.

The sound of the door opening had seized the attention of most of the students. Professor Merrythought stepped in, silencing the students with a fleeting glance around the classroom. She began the lecture shortly. 

Tom was taking down notes, his features sharp with focus.

She focused her attention back on the lecture. The lecture was centered around dueling. 

   "A Wizard's duel is a form of practice in the wizarding culture where two or more wizards or witches engage themselves in combat under the condition that only magical means may be used. The combatants face each other and bow, as a sign of respect, before they took an accepted combative stance and, at the count of three, they attempt to disarm, stun, injure, defeat, or kill each other in order to force submission, and thus a winner would be decided." Professor Merrythought explained. The tone of her voice made her believe that she had memorized the very words from some book written by a bygone wizard.

She went on to talk about the history of dueling. The antiquity surrounding it seemed to date back to the medieval era as far her records said.

The words lulled Aylin into a daydream. Her mind drifted to the painting that hung on her father's study—a château he had grown fond of during his time in France. Elegant in the matter of brushstrokes, she always found one thing amiss in the landscape. A spot of black to the end of the frame, a blunder the artist might have prayed to go unnoticed. Ever since its founding, her eyes had always found the spot of black.

   "It's a waste of time." 

She tilted her head to her side, taken unaware.

Tom still seemed to be listening to the lecture. She knew he had mastered the art of pretense a long time ago.

   "Sorry?"

   "I don't believe in theories. It's a waste of time. I believe that a practical approach is an ideal way to learn this subject. Books are just for show, any fool can master the theory. What matters is if you are capable enough to perform the spells." He resumed his work of writing down something in his book.

She went back to her book. She regarded his words quietly.

   "What do you think?" He inquired, looking up from his book.

   "That you should focus on the lecture." She answered.

She thought his words held some amount of truth, yet lacked candor.

He sat back, distracted. She could feel his heavy gaze on hers.

   "Probably," Tom's gaze was now resting on their professor.

She somehow felt as though she was being watched, each and every one of her thoughts scrutinized. She had felt this before, innumerous times before. It was as if she were in an empty corridor, an unwelcoming one, with an unseen force noting all her movements and thoughts. 

Aylin closed her eyes, clearing her mind. When she opened them again, the feeling had dissolved.

   "Is everything alright?" He turned towards her. 

   "Yes, I'm fine," She answered, "It was just—I'm fine."

   "You should focus on the lecture," Tom concluded turning away with a look on his face

Her eyes had always found the spot of black, the most twisted mistakes.