December Twenty-eighth, 1943

The Christmas Ball was tonight. Jaelyn did not let Arabella forget the fact, and the pair were heading into Hogsmeade that day to find dresses for the occasion. Argus Filch stood at the large and heavy doors, holding a scroll that tumbled onto the floor in pools of parchment. Jaelyn fidgeted nervously. "Merlin, why does this always take so long!" She exclaimed, "he so knows our names by now!"

Edmund leaned his chin on Arabella's head and rolled his eyes. "Have you met the man? He thrives on pain." 

Jaelyn scoffed but became silent, choosing to instead glare holes into the back of Filch's head. 

Nearly five minutes passed and then the three students were free and wandering down the white, snowy path to Hogsmeade. Edmund's fingers were wound tightly around Arabella's and she leaned into his warmth as she shivered. 

Soon, Jaelyn let out an excited squeal and leaped away from Arabella and Edmund. She shot over to a window where overhead, a sign swung in the cold breeze. Madam Thrippen's Gowns. 

"Bella! This one's perfect!"

Curious, Arabella guided Edmund over to the shop and her eyes widened in wonder. The dress was beautiful. 

Jaelyn was nodding her head furiously. "You have to get it. It would look so beautiful on you." 

Edmund smiled down at Arabella and shrugged his shoulders. "You'd look amazing in anything, but this dress is very nice." 

Arabella went into the store with a bag of money and came back out with a bag with a dress. 

The evening came around quickly, with the ball the only thing anyone could talk about. Arabella and Jaelyn were getting ready in their common room with a few other Slytherin girls. 

A hush descended on the room when Arabella pulled out her dress and laid it on the bed. 

"Merlin's Beard," Gretchen said, her hands sprung to cover her mouth in shock. "That is the most gorgeous dress I have ever laid my eyes on." 

The other girls crowded Arabella, bombarding her with questions. 

"Where did you get it?"

"How much did it cost?"

"Can I buy it off you after the ball?"

"Twelve galleons!" 

Arabella laughed and waved everyone away. Jaelyn eyed the dress enviously. "Put it on then," she said, "before someone else does." 

Quickly, Arabella gripped the sweater she was wearing and pulled it over her head. She shimmied out of her long pants and then slipped the dress on. It fell cleanly over her body and the weight of it pulled it down. The bodice was ribbed and almost sheer. White flowers crowned the neckline and waistline of the bodice and snaked down the dress like vines. The shimmering silver fabric seemed to glow like one thousand stars. The skirt of the dress was cinched at the waist but exploded outwards, heavy silver fabric falling to the ground. 

"Wow," Arabella said, her chest lifting slightly with her breaths. 

Jaelyn nodded and reached out as if to touch the dress but pulled her hand back. "Wow, indeed." 

Arabella wondered if he would love her dress- if he would think she looked as beautiful as she felt. 

She knew her parents would love it. Arabella's heart sunk as she thought of the dead and tears welled in her eyes. 

Jaelyn hugged Arabella gently, careful of the dress. "They would be so proud." 

Arabella smiled softly and fixed her makeup. "Let's go have some fun," she said and she and Jaelyn joined the crowds of beautiful girls and handsome men, clambering to get out of the common room. 

Edmund was waiting for her at the entrance to the Great Hall. "Wow," he said and held out a corsage of pink flowers. Arabella took the corsage with a shy smile and placed it on her wrist. 

Edmund led Arabella into the hall and straight to the dance floor, where people were already dancing. 

Although the beat of the song was upbeat, Arabella placed her hands around his shoulders and they swayed slowly. "You look amazing," Edmund said. 

"You don't look too bad, yourself," Arabella replied and indeed he did not. Edmund was wearing dark blue wizard dress robes with a white dress shirt underneath. His dark hair was pushed back neatly, a spell keeping the hair in place. 

"How are you?" Edmund said softly. 

Arabella's heart ached and she glanced down. "Let's not talk about that tonight." 

Edmund nodded and continued dancing in silence. After a moment, a strange sensation flew down Arabella's spine and she had the strangest feeling of being watched- something she did not appreciate. Enough people had stared at her in the past few days for Arabella to learn the feeling of other's eyes on you. It was uncomfortable and Arabella glanced up from Edmund's shoulder to see if she could spot the culprit. 

He wasn't hard to find. 

Tom was standing in the corner of the Great Hall, a steaming drink in hand with his eyes focused entirely on Arabella. His gaze seemed to break through her cracks and a strange emotion filled her stomach, warm and gentle. 

"Excuse me," Arabella said, pulling away from Edmund who hadn't noticed Tom at all. "I need to use the bathroom." 

Edmund nodded and let her go, walking over to his group of Ravenclaw friends. When Arabella turned back around, Tom was gone. She made her way to the great doors of the hall and the foyer that lay behind them- her bladder the last thing on her mind. 

When she rounded the corner, Tom was leaning against the wall, his drink had vanished. One leg was propped up against the stone and his arms were folded. "You look ravishing, dear Arabella," Tom said and pushed himself off the wall. 

Arabella blushed and cursed herself for coming out here- yet, at least she knew that he liked her dress. Arabella thought he might compliment her again when he stepped closer but instead he asked how she was faring. 

Arabella immediately swallowed, except she didn't wish to stop the conversation like she did with other students who asked, she found herself leaning into Tom's words, wanting to talk to him. 

"You confuse me, Riddle." 

Tom laughed. "Yes, we have already confirmed this fact that we confuse each other, Caerwyn." 

"I don't know why I came to talk to you," Arabella admitted, "I know I should probably hate you." 

Tom stepped even closer and cocked his head slightly. "Why's that?" 

"Because," Arabella said, her breath catching in her throat, "you... I... I just should! Everyone knows you're  strange, plus I just have a strange feeling like I've seen something... but I just can't remember what it is." 

Something dangerous flashed in Tom's eyes but it was gone as quickly as it came. "I'm sure it's paranoia. Besides." Tom stepped around Arabella, forcing her to turn her back to the wall and back up against the stone. "Rumours can be deceiving." 

His face was close to her now, so close that no one would recognize either of them if they walked out of the hall at that moment. 

"Join me," Tom said simply and caressed her face. "I usually would not offer this to anyone else, but as I have admitted to you before, there is something elusive and attractive about you and I want to figure it out. And, we have a connection that I simply do not have with other witches or wizards. Remember the Owlery?" 

Arabella blushed furiously, heat creeping from her neck. "That was a-" 

Tom smirked. "A mistake? Is this also a mistake?" Tom Riddle leaned towards Arabella Caerwyn even further and pressed his lips against her own. Heat flared in Arabella's stomach and she abandoned all reason. Passionately, she kissed Tom back. When Riddle pulled away he was smiling, a glint in his eye. 

"Dirty Mudbloods killed your family. Are you going to let that stand?" 

Arabella felt lightheaded. She shook her head in a daze. "No." 

Tom gripped Arabella's waist and pulled her close to his body. A strange tugging sensation seemed to pull her closer to him that she thought possible. "If you want to stop them from dirtying this world any further then you have to help me cleanse it. I ask again-" Tom's vibrant green eyes were staring sharply into Arabella's.  "Will you join me?" 

The memory of Dippet giving Arabella the news of her family's death filled her mind. She could hear her mother's screams, see her father's blood pooling on the white snow. The sharp crack of the muggle's gun, the squeal of the tires of the muggle vehicle. Disgusting, impure muggles that she had been taught to hate for so long, the people she tried to desperately to understand and sympathize with. 

They were nothing but dirt under a Wizard's foot, the bugs found under a Monarch's reign. 

Arabella looked Tom down with a new, cold resilience clear in her eyes. 

"Yes."