Tom Riddle and the Pure-Blood Prince

Career Advice

In the first week of March, the fifth years of Tom Riddle and Eileen's class were sifting through a barrage of leaf-lets concerning their future careers in the Great Hall.

Eileen was sitting further away from Riddle then usual, pouring over them and looking most ill-tempered. She could not figure out why she was feeling so moody lately. Her appearance had changed. She had color in her cheeks, thicker shinier hair, a better nose and face was even developing as the Elixir continued it's affects, almost stabilized. She was certainly still recognizable though to all who knew her before. The followers and her friends simply thought that she was in love. True, but love could never be normal or smooth when it was with a young man like Tom Riddle.

Tom was scanning his pile of career guides and quickly tossing them back on the table looking like he could not agree with any of the opportunities. Finally, he turned to look on at the others surrounding him, as everyone began to eat the food that had just appeared.

He listened intently narrowing his eyes and sometimes smirking at the girls across from them who did not notice Riddle. They were boasting about their plans. It all seemed so stupid from his perspective. Why would anyone want to spend their life as a healer, or a teacher, or anything? They knew nothing of real power, he thought. And he had the fleeting thought that the Hogwarts curriculum was more suited towards his own tastes and aspirations. In the field of dark magic. Tom suddenly thought as if being idealistic, "maybe there is a resoon to be attracted to teaching. If I became Headmaster...," he thought and continued to contemplate.

Eileen seemed to be thinking along those lines as well. She was not finding the enthusiasm she expected she was going to when she wanted to do something that involved potions, probably working in an apothecary.

Tom's sharp blue eyes were suddenly on her, and Eileen who was always hoping they were, felt joy. She was debating in her head if it would be better if she somehow, secretly lived a life devoted to the dark arts because they were so fascinating to her.

Tom raised an eyebrow and said, "I see we're of the same frame of mind," he was commenting on what he had just seen in Eileen's mind. That she too, was aspiring towards what fruits dark magic could bring.

Mrytle was skulking around, coming up from the third-year section of the Slytherin table. She had a big frown on her face, as she glumly poked her way through the pamphlets now strewn all over the table.

She spoke loudly, but a quivering voice after reading one of them for several seconds, "I so wish that I could be an Auror. It would be fun to go into danger and I'd be in the news. But where would I find time? I could be in muggle relations. Do you-Do you think I could?"

The girls had finally realized Mrytle was talking to them, they just scrunched their noses at her and shrugged. "Did you hear me?!," she sqwaked, suddenly becoming mad.

"What?," said one of them in a foggy tone, as they had already dismissed Mrytle's words.

The other girl said smartly, "Aren't you that...- I mean, a third-year. Stop worrying....you still have a couple of years!"

"Yeah, she could. If she ever gets there," Tom said to himself, as he had been listening as he ate breakfast. He did not mean anything deeper by it, it was supposed to be a private joke.

Mrytle looked around with her wiry spectacles. She was always so paranoid of others talking about her. Spotting Riddle, she glided to him, "Oh...You!" she shrilled. She gulped and started talking. Myrtle always felt braver when there were others around, she felt safe enough to rant at even Tom.

"I know what your thinking!", she suddenly blurted out.

"Fine, Mrytle. Go ahead...and take a stab at it," Riddle responded calmy, leaning back in to get a full look at her, sitting in a relaxed posture. He was quite acclimated with manipulating Mrytle's feelings, and reasoning.

"Your thinking...um," Myrytle said, delving into her convoluted imagination. " thinking that, I'll never amount to anything. That I'm a poor baby, who could never be a magical researcher or-"

"Not even close..." Riddle interrupted arrogantly, still holding an oddly pleased expression with dealing with her. "I'm wondering," he lied sweetly, "why a little muggle-born girl would be worth talking to."

Mrytle gasped in horror. "That is the meanest thing anyone said ever to me." And stamping her foot, she ran away.

In a few minutes, she was back bringing a few other girls from other houses behind her. One of them a respected sixth-year Hufflepuff prefect.

Tom did not see this, as he was getting up to leave, just about finished with breakfast.

"I don't believe it. Poor Mrytle. And I can't imagine Tom Riddle telling her she has no future."

The other girl intervened, "He must of. Look how upset she is...crying. But we didn't see it, we can't do anything, like take points."

"There...Mrytle. It's okay, the third girl in the group said, patting her arm.

Mrytle leaned against the girl, as if she was protecting her. She was acting like a small child.

The sixth-year Hufflepuff prefect said nicely, "Repeat what happened, explaining it in front of him," she said suddenly smiling at Riddle, but stopping herself.

"He-He, said that I'm the worst Slytherin and that he can have any job he wants and I can't have anything. He made me feel-, she hiccuped and then started to sob.

"Come on, Mrytle," the girl prompted.

Tom, meanwhile was just looking with a mixture of his feigning of innocent slight confusion and interest, which someimes morphed into a poker-face, hiding what he was thinking. Eileen was observing the situation and was preparing herself in her mind to defend the man she was so devoted to.

"HORRIBLE!", Mrytle burst out the most dramatically she could muster. "It's awful to be a young third-year and have the best student in the school embarrass so others think I'm-"

"That's enough now Mrytle. I see. Well, what are you to s-," she rounded on her fellow prefect.

"First of all, I'm sorry this girl, whom I hardly know,... took our brief exchange the wrong way. Perhaps I could have been more cognizant that she's sensitive. Then again, I truly apologize for this. It was not my intention," Riddle sounded sympathetic, actually kind, but of course not the reality.

The Hufflepuff looked in Tom's eyes, concentrating as she knew a bit of Legilimency. She could see it truly was not his intention, to bother her that day. But she could not breach the surface of his true falseness though.

"My goodness....Riddle is speaking the truth...just be make sure to treat Mrytle with extra care for now on," she finished sweetly and actually gave him a glowing smile before turning away with her friends in her wake.

A moment later, Riddle was swiftly walking down to his first class of the day glad to be away from the crowds with the drama-queen nearly succeeding in getting him in a little trouble. He had not wanted the scene that just occurred to become a spectacle. Therefore, he had lied about that attention-seeking, pathetic creature, to use Riddle's description of Mrytle in his thoughts. Crimes of passion were not Riddle's preference of motivation to seek out his victims, but targets certainly were. Mrytle happened to be just the person most needed to be disposed of, in Riddle's view. She was not important in the faintest trace, but she was, in order to keep Riddle's best advantage for himself the best muggle-born the school and himself needed to weed out.

Eileen, was feeling much better all of a sudden, looking forward to her career advice that was to be in just two days. It was like she was under an emotional roller-coaster in her life with Tom Riddle or Lord Voldemort taking over so gradually, of which she was oblivious to.

Waving a piece of parchment, she flew down the corridor before History of Magic after Riddle.

Eileen's career advice session was a couple of days later on a Wednesday afternoon. She made her way from Ancient Runes class to Slughorn's office, grasping her notebook nervously in her hands. A couple of boys who were not Riddle's followers that were salient in the crowd stared at her. It was true that Eileen was beginning to get a lot more attention now that she had the elixir that made her exceptionally attractive, but still recognizable.

She knocked on Slughorn's door, but nobody answered. Grasping the doorknob, she walked in on her own accord. Nobody was present. Eileen gingerly sat down on the edge of the chair near the desk. Several seconds later, the little clock rang it's alarm, set for half past two.

Hearing somebody's footsteps from the back of the room that led to the Potion's Master's storage room, the rotund form of Horace Slughorn entered. "Good afternoon, Eileen. I hope a talented prefect like you, has some great ideas in mind regarding your future."

"Er- I guess I do, sir," she said hesitantly. Looking down, feeling a mixture of shame and confusion. She was now so interested in the dark arts. Something she felt was eating at her conscience because if her family knew they would be furious.

Slughorn spent an entire minute, easing himself into his chair and fumbling around. First for a box of crystallized pineapple, and finally a notebook from a file. taking a bite of his gourmet food, he then fished with his sugar-coated fingers through Eileen's records. He slowly nodded his head, as he went through them making crunching noises as he ate.

"I see that your best commodity, is indeed potions. You could go into research with grades like that....or why not follow in your father's footsteps and be a Healer?"

Eileen's mouth-dropped at the thought of her father, whom she loved. She had not thought about him much this term. Her thoughts were all for Tom. "Um-I hadn't thought about being a Healer. But it is a-"

"Great way to increase your fortune. Pardon me, I meant your family's. There is quite a bit of bribes going on at St. Mungo's. Corrupt true, but if I had the opportunity I would....It's your best bet, Eileen."

Eileen bit her lip. There was just such a burning passion inside her to devote her life to dark magic, perhaps even working with Tom Riddle. She knew it may be just a pipe dream in reality, but she couldn't help but fantasize.

"I was thinking along the lines of something new, professor," she said glancing down at her lap, where she was twisting her fingers.

Slughorn's face sagged and he let out a long sigh. "I've heard this so many times. The unconventional path. Few can pull it off, very few. Riddle seems to want to make his way most independently. But to be blunt you don't have the confidence, not like him anyway."

"Oh, yes! How did his career session go, Professor?" Eileen asked with extreme enthusiasm.

Slughorn looked more closely at Eileen, jumping in shock from her sudden outburst of emotion and finally noticed the changes in her appearance, but believed it inappropriate to say to a student that they looked prettier.

"That young man has a lot going for him, Eileen. It took some time to make him at least consider going into research. He'll make out as a fine leader, but not before trying his hand at everything that proves advantageous. He has not made a decision yet, but I'm not worried.," Slughorn finished, smiling.

Eileen had been listening, enraptured, to Slughorn account of the details of Tom Riddle's career advice, which was just that morning. As she started to imagine what Tom would really do, dark thoughts began to surface in her mind. Images of Riddle coercing and manipulating people, just like he did to his followers. The thought of doing this to what her perception was normal people, outside Riddle's gang horrified her. What if when he was known to be Lord Voldemort he hurt her family?

Slughorn was not doing Legilimency in the slightest at the moment. Rather he was taking in Eileen's new appearance once again and trying to work through his mind how a girl could change so dramatically. Innocently, he glanced into her eyes and then her face. She looked like she was pouting, as she lay deep in pensive thought.

"Ms. Prince you look cross....did I offend you my dear?," he asked kindly.

Coming out of her reverie and remembering her aspirations for her future career, her eyes sparkled and her face went back to complacence, "No, not at all. Tom is special, I know exactly what you mean by a leader. He has a wonderful way with people." She involuntarily began to blush crimson.

Slughorn suddenly frowned and his eyebrows went up nearly reaching the top of his receding hair-line. He had just put two and two together, as he certainly was no fool, but sometimes it was harder than most for Horace to see the obvious.

"You're close to Tom, on a personal level, Eileen?"

"...I suppose so, sir," Eileen said gulping. She did not want to talk about this it was supposed to be private. She glanced into the teacher's eyes as she answered his question.

"Have you been brewing yourself a potion to please him?"

Eileen's eyes filled with terror. It was not the truth, but it was close. She shook her head, as her eyes continued to be stricken with fear. Nobody could discover the truth of their relationship.

After a silent moment, Slughorn decided to call an end to the meeting, " Well...this concludes our career consultation. To be frank, I'm a little worried for you, young lady. Don't forget your hopes and dreams. You're a talented student, and a prefect. I wouldn't want to lose you."

"No...er professor. I'm not about to do anything rash. Uh...I mean I'm not making love potions," she mumbled, and a lump formed in her throat.

"I know you wouldn't do that , never knew a Prince who was rash. You all so wisely weigh your options," he complimented.

"Thank-you. I best get going or I'll be late. Good-bye Professor Slughorn " she spat out in an unfriendly voice.

Eileen rose in a hurry and dashed out the room, her bag swinging over her shoulder. The mention of her family made her feel so alone. It was like they were no longer part of her identity.