the devil's redemption [tom r.]

13|| Serpent and Thestral.

Tom didn't mutter a single word. Instead, he put on his cloak silently, purposely shouldering her as he headed to the exit of the Room of Requirement.

"You will suffer, severely." And with his cold, venomous words, Tom Riddle left the room.

Rosalind collapsed to the ground, uncaring of the water that soaked her clothes and the tips of her hair. She sobbed heavily, letting out every single inch of pain, guilt, and sorrowness.

She didn't just cry because of Riddle's harsh words and hatred towards her. She didn't just cry because the Dark Lord wanted her by the end of the school year. She didn't just cry because the nurse that was supposed to take care of her mother would even murder her when ordered. She didn't just cry because she was forced to assist Tom Riddle to become the man she saw in her vision, the inhumane monster. She cried because all of this was unfair, because all of this was more than her ability to survive.

Rosalind got up, not bothering to leave to her common room. Instead -oddly finding it difficult - she set a drying charm on herself and some of her surroundings, also smothering the flames. She curled herself up on the couch.

And she struggled against the warm tears tracing her cheeks,

Against the lump forming in her throat,

Against her quivering lips,

Against her heaving lungs..

And she failed.. She failed the struggle, sinking deeper into the leather's embrace,

In a mixture of tears and damned feelings.

***

Rosalind woke up the next day feeling as miserable and horrible as ever. Although it was a Monday, Rosalind didn't bother go to her classes all day. She remained in the Room of Requirement, hoping that none of Tom Riddle or his 'friends' would consider visiting the room.

She had struggled to contain her feelings, but after only one day since Vandalov left, she finally combusted to a point that she couldn't even face people anymore.

Rosalind conjured a mirror to check the mess that she was, and she looked horrifying.

Her once elegant, golden curls were now a damp untamed jungle. Her forest green eyes were dull and bloodshot. She had dark circles under her eyes that were all puffed up. It was also extremely difficult to do something she was quite used to- smiling.

She knew from the way that she looked that no matter what she told people, she didn't look okay. She was also quite sure that she would burst out crying like a baby if anyone asked her if she was fine.

It was almost nine in the evening, and she still hadn't eaten anything. She didn't know why she refused to leave the Room, maybe because she didn't want to encounter people, maybe she didn't want to see Tom in classes or in the Great Hall. She wished she could just evaporate into non-existence.

She had paced three times and thought about a huge library, that the room transformed into. And that's how she occupied herself that day.

She was seated in one of the armchairs reading her book about thestrals, when the door swung open. Her heart skipped a beat in shock as Tom Riddle strolled into the Room of Requirement. At that moment, Rosalind wished she could just crawl into some hole and hide forever. She knew she looked quite unpresentable and horrible.

"You've been here all day." Tom Riddle furrowed his eyebrows as he shut the door behind him.

"Well spotted, Master of the Obvious," She drawled sarcastically. She didn't seem to be able to look into his icy blue irises, so she chose to avert her gaze to her book.

"Why?" He asked, observing the library that she wished for and smirking to himself.

"Just because." She didn't look at him as he moved one of the wooden chairs and sat right across from her, their knees slightly brushing against eachother.

"Was it because of shame?" He taunted, smirking mischievously at her with a playful gleam in his eyes.

"It was a tie, why would I be ashamed? Oh, maybe because I lowered my standards and duelled you yesterday," She blurted, somehow letting out her anger on the Slytherin handsome boy. She knew very well that he deserved worse than that.

"Oh love, you dare dream to meet my standards, let alone surpass them?" He was twirling his wand in his hands, but all of a sudden, Tom leaned closer. His elbows were now propped on his knees, as he watched her curiously.

She remained silent, on the verge of crying. Tom seemed to forget about the duel and his threats the previous night, but she was still welled up with emotions and sentiments. She didn't want to cry in front of him for the second time.

"You look like a corpse," He regarded, causing her to glare at him hatefully. Rosalind knew that she indeed looked dead. She just didn't want him to tell her so.

"Here. Eat up," He pulled out a buttered toast wrapped in a napkin from his pocket. It was something so little, but she couldn't help the simper that found its way to her lips, for the first time that day.

"Thanks," She muttered as he handed her the toast and she began eating.

"I wanted to get you something more, but it was extremely hard to sneak this out without anyone noticing," He explained, and Rosalind saw at that moment the very tiny shred of humanity in the dark boy. He cared. Somehow.

She nodded her head, chewing on her toast. She tried as hard as she could to ignore Tom as he twirled one of her blonde curls in his finger. He just sat there, quite close to her, with a strand of her hair wrapped around his finger.

"Your friends have been looking for you," He spat out friends like it was some disgusting cuss. Rosalind almost choked on her toast as the realisation hit her. She hadn't shown up to the common room since last night, and she didn't attend any of her classes.

"They informed the Headmaster that you're missing. Of course, all Prefects and Heads of houses were looking for you," Tom informed, her hair still around his finger.

"And you're telling me this now?! Come on, I need to leave before I get expelled," She finished her toast and tried to get up from her seat, but Tom Riddle stopped her immediately.

"Well, you know you could always rely on me," He murmured, finally leaving her hair to be the untamed jungle it was.

"What was your lie this time, Riddle?" She gave him a mean scowl when he smirked at her question.

"Of course, I knew that you're here. But no one knows of this room except the Knights and me. I couldn't possibly give them my valuable discovery. So instead, I chose to tell them that we were studying last night in the Slytherin Common Room -and since I am a Prefect, I do have the advantage of letting you in- you fell asleep in the common room. The next morning you were terribly sick, so I offered you to stay and rest. So basically we have to act like friends from now on."

"Are you sure that they believe you?" She knew that if everybody actually believed Tom, and that she spent the night with him, different types of rumours would be spread.

"Dippet is quite the dunderhead honestly. He believes everything I say," Tom scoffed, taking a look at the book on her lap.

"But Tom, why?" She asked quietly and curiously, using his first name intently. Why would Tom Riddle choose to defend her and lie just for her own sake? He could've left her to suffer like he normally does.

"I still need your assistance, Bonaccord. We couldn't let you get expelled, now could we?" He whured, tilting his head mockingly.

"Oh, I still expect to see you this Saturday," He added, getting up from his seat.

She scoffed, getting up to stand beside him.

"Come on, let me escort you to the Ravenclaw common room." Tom offered, and she accepted gratefully for she was stinking and exhausted.

Tom set a disillusionment charm on her -based on her own request- and he walked her to her common room.