𝓘 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓭𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓵𝓮 𝓫𝔂 𝓷𝓪𝓶𝓮, 𝓶𝔂 𝓵𝓸𝓿𝓮. 𝓘 𝓪𝓶 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓸𝓷𝓵𝔂 𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓽𝓻𝓾𝓵𝔂 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓪𝓻𝓮....

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November 6th

"Do you know what day it is tomorrow?" Bella asked her friends when she sat next to them in the green sofa of the common room.

"Saturday?" Eva answered in an ironic tone.

"Tomorrow is Freyja's birthday!"

The kids looked at each other embarrassed. Almost none of them remembered it. "Are you kidding me? Everyone forgot it?" Bella asked disappointed and let out a sigh.

"I do remember it. I bought her a present already" Tom said when he closed his book. He placed in on the coffee table in front of him and crossed his arms.

"I remembered it, too" Adryan bragged. "I will buy her a gift tomorrow morning, when we go to Hogsmeade."

"I want to surprise her today, at midnight, but I have no idea where she is"

"She's in the library" Tom muttered as he re-opened his book. "And I don't think it is a good idea"

"Why not?" Bella asked Tom angrily

"Because Freyja doesn't like surprises"

"Since when you know her better than I do?"

"Trust me, miss Shallow, I know everyone better than you do"

"Really?" Bella mocked Tom, without realizing who she was talking to

"Really. For example, I know that you like Malfoy, you are the least favourite sister, you spent the previous night with a Ravenclaw, 7th year and you killed a cat once."

Everyone was shocked. Bella has opened her mouth, looking at Tom speechless. She didn't know what she thought was worse; the audacity this man had or that he knew all that about her.

"Don't forget who you are talking to, Shallow. You now belong to me. Check your arm. It says exactly the same thing." Tom got up from his armchair and left the room.

Few hours later...

Freyja was sitting alone in the edge of the astronomy tower. The cold wind was hitting her face. Seventeen... She can now perform magic out of school. Legally... She always dreamed of being seventeen. The dream age. She liked her birthday, but she couldn't help but wonder how different she was a year ago. How her life has changed since she turned sixteen. She changed school, she met so many new people... She became friends with Tom...

"Is that what we are now? Friends?"

"I can bring your status down to friendenemy, if you want" Tom sat next to her "For the love of god, Tom, can you please stop reading my mind when I am thinking?"

"I can but you have to consider this..."

"What?"

"I don't want to!" Freyja scoffed and turned to face him. "Happy birthday, Freyja!" They locked eyes for a few moments

"Thanks. You are the first person to wish me."

"What about your mother?"

"Her owl usually arrives in the morning "

"I got you something" Tom passed Freyja a flat, black, velvet box. "You said you like those a lot of times"

Freyja opened the box and she came across multiple small chocolates with caramel filing. A wide smile was created on her beautiful face. "I love these! It is nice knowing that someone is listening to you when you are talking"

"I know"

"When is your birthday?"

"December 31st"

"Interesting. Now I am officially older than you!"

Tom rolled his eyes "Oh, come one!"

"When I was your age, we were respecting our elders!"

"Shut it!" They both started laughing like little kids at Freyja's stupid joke

Suddenly, they moved closer. And closer. Until their shoulders were touching. And they moved closer, until their scents were mixed.

Channel No5, peppermint, caramel and cigarettes.

Their breaths were getting deeper and deeper. He wanted to touch her like he hasn't touched anyone before. She wanted to crush their lips like she was in need of fresh air and he was the only that could save her. But nothing happened. They just moved away from each other. They needed each other, but instead...

"Here you are! I have been looking for you!" Bella's voice interrupted their thoughts. "Happy birthday, darling!" Freyja got up from her sit next to Tom and left with her friend. And he just sat there, wondering what was wrong with him. Wondering why he regretted not kissing her lips. But if only Tom knew that there was nothing wrong with him.

He was just in love. In love with the girl that tried to kill him a few months ago. The woman who he murdered with an unforgivable spell. The witch that messed up his life with the best way possible...

Common room, 2 o'clock am...

"What are you doing here?" Tom just got back from the astronomy tower. Freyja was the only one there and the soft rain from outside was the only sound you could hear. 

"I am reading the book Bella gave me. I really like it!"
"Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"I didn't knew there was curfew to the common room too."

"there is not but it is quite late"

"I want to read, and my roommates are sleeping so I can't open any light"

"Can I stay with you? We are friendenemies, after all"

"Of course!"

"What book is it?"

"Pride and prejudice"

"Haven't read it"

"I would be surprised if you had" Tom sat next to her on the leather sofa. She was curled up with a blanket, near the fireplace. He opened his own book and started reading it.

After a while, Freyja started to yawn. "You should go to sleep"

"I am not tired!" Tom let out a sigh and continued reading his book. Half an hour later, he felt something heavy on his shoulder. He turned and saw Freyja's sleepy head resting on him. "Yeah, you are not tired"

"Shhh"

The next day...

When Freyja sat in her ordinary seat, lots of birthday wishes reached her ears. Everyone was too sweat. Too many smiles. Freyja could easily recognize fake smiles. And she knew that only a few of them were genuine.

"What time do you guys think we should leave?" Darius asked the group, once they were done talking

"Where are we going?" Freyja questioned with a puzzled look on her face.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you. We are going to Hogsmeade. And you are coming with us." Bella said, a little embarrassed that she forgot to mention it.

"When were you planning to inform me?"

"Last night, but I completely forgot. I am sorry!"

"Well, can you at least wait for me to go get my stuff?"

"Of course!"

"Thanks!" Freyja got up and quickly got out of the great hall. Just before she got in the Slytherin common room, a voice stopped her from entering. And that voice belonged to the person she didn't want to see at all today.

"Happy birthday, Freyja" Freyja turned around and looked at Brea.

"Thanks" She motioned to move but the voice of the girl made her stop once again.

"I am sorry that I told the headmaster what you did."

"I am sorry that I made you do it"

"Are we okay now?"

"Take a look at our lives, Brea. We will never be okay"

"Luna is dead. Lora is dead. And now Michael is dead too."

"I know"

"It is sad!"

"I know that too"

"Why we did it?"

"That is something I don't know"

"God... We shouldn't have done it" Freyja didn't respond "Do you regret it?''

"No."

"Bloody hell, Freyja! You didn't even think about it"

"I never regret something I wanted"

"You wanted it?!"

"You didn't?"

Brea's green eyes started to water. "We were kids, Freyja. All I wanted was to have fun! But you and Michael had other plans!" silence "To be honest, I think Luna deserved to die."

"No, she didn't. But she had to"

"Do you think Michael would regret it? If he was alive"

"Well, he was the one who suggested it."

"He is even worse than you!"

"That's what got him killed."

"Do you know who killed him?"

"Yes. And deep down, so do you. But you don't want to admit it to yourself"

"I don't want to accept the fact that I was the reason he got murdered!"

"You have to. Even though you apologized, you remain the reason I cannot go to France, the reason Michael is 6 feet under the ground and the reason Lola is rotting in Azkaban."

"Freyja..." Brea was now crying "Do you ever feel guilty?"

"If people like us felt guilt, they wouldn't succeed their goals"

"I don't want people to feel bad because of me. I don't want people to die because of me. I don't want people to be charged with crimes they didn't commit because of me. And I don't mind if I don't reach my goals"

"But I do. I am willing to get every obstacle out of the way. Even if we sheared so many happy memories with. Even you, if it is necessary."

"You always had a thirst for power. But don't you ever wonder how different your life would be if things didn't happen as we wanted?"

"Honestly, no"

"Why don't you just settle for less? You know how many people have cried because of us!"

"There is only one way to reach the top..."

"And that is playing dirty. I know."

"It is called ambition, darling"

"Oh Freyja. No... You are not ambitious. You are just a psychotic, evil, cold-hearted, bitch!" Freyja was speechless. "I have to go"

"Brea, its been over a year. Get over it."

Once Brea left, Freyja got closer to the door so she can say the passcode and get in, but a strong arm pushed her in the side.

"Hello Freyja."

"Tom..."

"I might have listened to your conversation with the obnoxious Gryffindor girl."

"What do you want?"

"What do you think I want?"

"I don't have time or energy for your games, Tom, so whatever you want to tell me, tell me now."

"Oh, Freyja, you can be really annoying sometimes."

"If you think I am annoying, you clearly never heard yourself talking." Tom grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall, reducing her oxygen little by little.

"Come one, Tom. Choke me. Let me suffocate to death. Add another ghost to haunt you."

"Oh, darling. How naïve you could be. I will not kill you. I need you. You are the perfect weapon. You may think you are superior now, but you will bow to me later. Because, let's not forget, that I rule this school. Even if some don't realize it. I am just a student now. But I will become the king. And if you don't want to fight with me, you will fight against me."

"I will never bow to a king that the jewels of his crown are made from the lives he took."

"Honey. Look at yourself. You are not better"

"It wasn't my idea to open the chamber..."

"Exactly..." Tom pressured Freyja's neck more. She was in huge need of fresh air, but she didn't opened her mouth.

"Let... Me .... Go!" Freyja's eyes started to water. She knew that he could kill her. She knew that she had to fight. But she knew that her stubbornness wouldn't let her open her mouth to fight for air.

"No!" She had enough of him. Freyja spitted on his face. That action made Tom clench his jaw. He was really angry. He started actually chocking her. Freyja opened her mouth but she couldn't get any air to fill her lungs.

"Since your arrival to Hogwarts, I have been trying to enter your mind countless times. I discovered that I can enter it when you are thinking and when you are sleeping. Neither can work now. So I have been practicing, days and days, for that exact moment. Freyja, why were you expelled? What did you do last summer?"

Memories started to flow back on her mind. Only that this time they weren't private. Tom saw the reason she was expelled. He saw what she did last summer. He saw what Freyja and Brea were talking about earlier. He saw what happened to Luna, Lora, Lola and Michael. That's when he realized that the woman he had in front of him was not who he thought she was. Freyja Alexandra O'lone was definitely not who everyone excepted. And that was what shocked Tom the most. He finally learned who she truly was. Is he still in love with her, after seeing her real self?

But only if he knew...

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