Little Riddle | James Potter

• forty two

Tom's handwriting, being as neat and exemplary as it was, was easy to recognize. She hurriedly hid the letter on her robes' pockets and silently made her way to the Room of Requirement. She wished she would've never done that and would've gotten rid of it instead, saving herself from allowing his words to play with her mind.

The letter was of innocent nature. Its content wouldn't really startle or alarm anyone, but as it had been pointed out before, Alexis' sanity was hanging from a thin line. The letter was one her heart longed for but her head dreaded.

        Dear Alexis,
   I know this proposition may come off as sudden and rushed so I won't mind if you take your time replying. The offer stands for a long and undetermined amount of time, I assure you.

   As you probably already know, I've always been discontent with the care and attention you receive in Hogwarts. Or anywhere else, for that matter. As your older brother I feel like it is my responsibility to look after you and no one, nonetheless the fraud that is Dumbledore, is competent enough to care for you the way I do. And given your deteriorating situation, because I know you've barely eaten and have gravely isolated yourself, I need to intervene. I can't allow you to become a self-destroying machine.

   All I ask is for you to spend a weekend with me. That way I'll be able to get some peace of mind and hopefully we'll be able to do something about your situation.

   Please consider this proposition for I believe it would do both of us good. Besides, this may be pretentious of me to think, but I think being my side could help with some of the issues you're dealing with.

Sincerely,
Tom

Visiting Tom. Rekindling her bond with Tom. Making Tom a part of her life again. Getting her brother back. All tempting, all dangerous.

It was a well known fact that Tom embodied evil, and it was a lesser known fact that Alexis had been questioning herself on what she stood for. She knew, if she was to accept, that she would be putting herself in the hands of one of the most manipulative person to ever walk the earth. She knew, deep in her soul, that two hours would be more than enough time for Tom to get rid of the little humanity she had left. She also knew that this visit had a purpose far beyond a sentimental one, and it most likely had to do with Tom using her anguish to get her on his side. And in spite of it all, something deep within Alexis, a small voice screaming in the back of her head, told her to do it. Told her that she didn't owe anyone anything. Except her brother, she owed her brother a lot.

The clock marked seven, meaning she'd been in that same exact position for hours and that she had unknowingly missed the Dueling Club without giving her friends no warning or explanation for her absence. Her legs trembled as she applied the weight of her body in them, and despite being far from levelheaded she began to make her way to the Gryffindor Common Room regardless. She was visibly on edge, jumping startled by the most insignificant sounds and trembling as if the weather marked below zero temperatures. How her mental state deteriorated so much in the spawn of a few hours was a mystery to her, just like why she was so affected by her brother's proposition. Deep inside, she knew she feared that the idea she had always intently dismissed could be true after all. She had always fought to prove she was not like Tom, but now she was beginning to entertain the idea that maybe she was.

She used not wanting her friends to worry as an excuse to make her way out of the lightless room because the truth was that she needed to get out of her head, she needed a distraction. Something that would stop the voice in her head from repeating how she'd get so much power and respect if she fought alongside her brother. How she could easily take Bellatrix's rank and become her brother's most feared Death Eater.