17 Chapter Sixteen: Ruin

Cordelia was going to ignore it, she really was.

She had gotten through her day just as every other and retreated to the head's dorms after lunch with Orion beside the Black lake. If she was being honest, the day had been quite uneventful, one that helped her forget about all things Tom Riddle.

However, the Dark Lord obviously wasn't content with being forgotten.

Perhaps that was why she had found what she had.

When Cordelia returned to her room she had as good as forgotten about Abarax's warning in her haste to be rid of the homework assigned that day.

She had spent the evening lounging on her bed surrounded by books and parchment papers as she worked her way through the DADA assignment, only pausing once in a while to fetch a snack or cup of water. The evening was one that brought back a sense of normalcy to her life, one that allowed her to focus on the pressing matters of the future rather than petty school fights.

All thoughts of family and friends left her mind as Cordelia focused on her academics, even going as far as to review her other NEWTs notes.

It was only when she heard the familiar thud of footsteps over her head that indicated the Ravenclaws were retiring to their chambers for the night that Cordelia finally turned away from the sheets of parchment before her, realising that it was time for bed.

A tired yawn escaped her form as the brunette flipped onto her back and cast a charm to assemble the materials around her into a neat pile on her study table, right beside a slumbering Nix who stirred by the soft thud of the books landing beside her.

"Come on Nix, time for bed."

Cordelia could have sworn the black cat rolled her eyes at the words as she jumped up, did a spin, and returned to sleeping on the desk. It was only then that the brunette finally left her bed to collect her sleeping partner.

If only the cat hadn't been so fussy, perhaps Tom's secret would have remained as such for another day.

But she hadn't, and in doing so had allowed Cordelia to stumble upon an object that definitely didn't belong in her room. One that had Cordelia frozen in indignation as she glared at the thing buried at the far back of her tabletop, one that could barely be seen by someone who wasn't looking for it.

Snakeskin.

Nagini had been in her room. Usually, Cordelia wouldn't have minded the sudden discovery considering her familiar's friendship with the serpent. However, considering her journal had apparently vanished and was nowhere to be found for the past three days, Cordelia was almost certain the serpent hadn't just made an appearance for a play date with Nix.

"He didn't!"

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

Cordelia had never quite understood that muggle saying, finding it quite bizarre that a wounded woman could be compared to be the worst fires of hell. But as she grew older, the blue-eyed witch couldn't help but compare it to that of her mother's every time her parents fought.

It was only when she began dating Aldrich Avery that Cordelia truly understood the saying, having been subjected to it by a fellow Slytherin who had her eyes on Aldrich since they were children. But even then, Cordelia had never personally experienced what the saying entailed.

Up until then.

For it wasn't Tom Riddle's sneakiness that irked her, but his audacity to think that he could say a couple of kind words while attaching himself to her hip and suddenly Cordelia would be blind enough to not see anything he had planned. Whether it be manipulative games or petty thievery.

"Riddle!"

A sudden thud was heard through the head's dorms, followed by a slam of a door as Cordelia stormed out of her room with the snakeskin clutched in one palm and her wand held in the other.

It was only when she stormed down the stairs that Cordelia realised the noise was Tracy Travers hitting the floor from her previous perch on the couch beside Tom.

The sight itself was enough to add fuel to her fire. How was it that Tom was allowed to do as he pleased and play with witches' minds and hearts left and right while Cordelia couldn't even have a normal friendship because of him?

Blue clashed with green as Cordelia stared down Tracy, who had taken to muttering swears and complaining about the bruise she was sure to have. The sound of her whiny voice made her fists clench as Cordelia stepped towards the brunette witch, sending her a glare so deep it could be considered as more of a threat that the wand pointed at the other witch.

"Leave."

The word was whispered in a threatening tone that left little room for argument, one that had Tracy shuffling away from Cordelia with her hands held in the air. For a moment, it looked like Tracy was going to say something, maybe address Tom was watching the situation unfold from his seat on the couch.

Cordelia didn't even have to turn to the side to know his face had morphed into a confused frown, one that feigned innocence and convinced Tracy that the head girl had simply blown a fuse of two and was letting it out on him.

However, as she watched the other witch stand and rush out the door, Cordelia couldn't help but realise that she didn't care what Tracy thought. In fact, at that moment she didn't care what anyone thought at all, especially not Tom. Her privacy had been invaded and her mind had been undermined, and Cordelia would be damned if she let him get away with it yet again.

"You-"

The brunette whirled on the spot as she spat the word, turning towards Tom and subjecting him an expression so morbid one could have presumed he had killed her cat.

"-who do you think you bloody are?"

She tossed the snakeskin his way, not allowing him a moment to feign innocence and try to calm her down. The genuine surprise painted across his face as Tom reached for the skin was enough to motivate her to continue as Cordelia felt a rush of pride at having solid evidence against him that couldn't be dismissed.

"Why can't you just stop ruining my life?"

The question seemed to snap Tom out of his reverie of confusion, allowing his true persona of cruelty to show its face yet again with glares and mocking actions far too familiar. It was only when he sat up straight in his seat and leaned forward to place his elbows on his knees that Cordelia finally began to feel the burden of being subjected to Tom Riddle's undivided malevolent attention.

If Cordelia's glare was fire, Tom's was ice. One that smothered her flames in icy mist until they died down to a fire that no longer provided her with the adrenaline that had edged her on.

It was only then that Tom finally spoke, with a voice low enough to worsen the tension in the room.

"You don't know what ruin means-"

He left his seat as he spoke, taking a quick step forward to stand close enough for the tip of Cordelia's wand to dig into his abdomen, an action that clearly instigated her to make a move, if, of course, she dared bear the consequences.

"-But I will show you."

All signs of the previous Tom Riddle, one who was kind and seemingly understanding, had vanished as the brunette wizard stared her down, not bothering to say anything else as he waited for a reaction.

Cordelia wanted to curse him. She wanted to show him just how much she could ruin him and how she wasn't scared to meet his threats with one of her own. But as a list of dark curses rushed through her brain, Cordelia couldn't help but think back on every moment the duo had shared over the years, and the amount of knowledge Tom had no doubt accumulated through it all.

Knowledge that could be used as a blade so sharp it could cut her down with a single hit. If, of course, he chose to use it.

Cordelia would have liked to pretend that he wouldn't. That he would have enough humanity inside him to not exploit her moments of weakness and use them against her. But as she heard him scoff dismissively and walk away from her contemplative form, the brunette witch couldn't help but force herself to face the truth.

Tom Riddle wasn't like others. He didn't have a heart or soul to provide him with a sense of guilt or humanity that could influence and eradicate any cruel decisions he made. He couldn't be stopped by reasoning that commonly influenced others, and wouldn't hesitate to carry out an action once he had thought it through.

And if it was ruin he wanted, it was ruin he would get.