SERPENT HEART° TOM RIDDLE

047. SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
— thus always to tyrants

ABRAXAS MALFOY DID NOT DARE TO CHANCE A PEEK INTO THE COMPARTMENT WHERE TOM AND RHEA SAT. He stared forward, silently sitting with the feeling of irritation he seemed to gain anytime he found himself in the presence of Ramsey Lestrange. Abraxas had known Ramsey longer than he had known anyone at Hogwarts — the Malfoy's and Lestrange's were quite close after all — yet the years did not shake Abraxas' disdain for the boy. He had hoped school would naturally separate them and, for a while, it had. Ramsey busied himself with the likes of Cassius Avery and Orpheus Mulciber, spending most of the first and second year terrorising unsuspecting students. Abraxas could still remember how Astrea cried for weeks on end after the trio hexed her after Charms first year, leaving her with a month's worth of the most unfortunate luck. Tom was quick to intervene, not at all happy to have an upset Astrea on his hands. But, instead of sending Ramsey to the infirmary as Abraxas thought the boy had intended, Ramsey became a permanent member of their group.

"I see his potential," was all Tom said when Abraxas asked him why he offered Lestrange a place in the Knights. Abraxas had yet to see what Tom could see in Ramsey Lestrange except for someone who took too much joy in the suffering of others.

"What do you think they're talking about in there?" Ramsey asked, a mischievous smile playing on his lips as he attempted to glance between Lupe and Abraxas's shoulders to see through the glass where Tom and Rhea were. Abraxas turned to Lupe, taking note of the way Nott seemed to grind his teeth together when Ramsey spoke. Nott had never been a fan of Lestrange either, not that he was particularly a fan of anyone.

"That's not our business." Astrea said from beside Lestrange. Astrea had shortened her hair over the summer months, dressing it in a fashion that reminded him of when they were children, before Rhea Hel had stepped into Tom's life. Tom and Astrea had once been inseparable and, though Astrea had obvious romantic inclinations towards Tom, Abraxas knew their relationship was much deeper than that. For a long time, the only person Tom seemed to care at all about was Astrea. But, something changed once Rhea came into Tom's life. Astrea was the light in Tom's life — the good — but Abraxas could tell that Rhea brought out something much darker and more sinister in Tom than Abraxas had ever seen. "Tom will tell us what we need to know when they're finished."

"I'm surprised you're calm, Ravenswood. If I were you, I'd want to know every detail of what the pair of them could be talking about. It has been months since they've seen each other. The reunion must feel long overdue." Ramsey smirked at Astrea, rubbing salt into a wound the girl refused to admit was there. Her cheeks flamed pink and her gaze dropped to her feet in shame, causing a laugh to slip from Ramsey's mouth that made Abraxas's lip curl.

"Leave her alone, Lestrange." Abraxas warned the boy, glowering at him. Ramsey merely grinned between Astrea and Abraxas, but didn't say much else. If Avery and Mulciber were around, Abraxas knew that would be a different story. Abraxas turned to Astrea, "Did you find anything on the diadem?"

"No." Astrea sighed, worrying about how Tom would take that news if he found out. "There were some rumours about where Helena could've taken the diadem. Some people said she ran off to Poland; others said Greece; one witch told me Albania. No one knows for certain. Tom and I will have to find a way to convince Helena to tell us herself."

"What about your visions?" Lupe asked, tilting his head as an idea occurred to him. Astrea frowned, not understanding what he meant. "Is it possible your dreams could lead you to the location of the diadem? Or give you any information on them?"

"I . . . I'm not sure." Astrea brows pulled tightly together. "I've never tried to find something in them before and I'm not very good at controlling my visions. When I was a child, I was starting to learn how to, but Mum stopped teaching me after what happened . . ."