Paper & Cranes

Scarlett didn’t know how long she stayed asleep, but when she woke up her parents were already in the room, quietly discussing what had happened earlier. She frowned when she couldn’t spot Tom. 

“Darling, you’re awake!” Her mother said, immediately making her way over to her daughter. 

Her father gave her a sympathetic look. “Lestrange got a life sentence in Azkaban for the use of an unforgivable. His accomplices managed to get off with only a warning,” he informed her, not looking particularly happy at the last fact. 

“At least Lestrange got what he deserved,” Scarlett said a little hoarsely, her throat was sore from all the screaming she had done. “Where’s Tom?” she mumbled, wondering where he was. Earlier, he did tell her he was going to be back but she might have imagined it as she was exhausted then. Perhaps she had imagined him almost lovingly tucking her hair behind her ear and caressing her face as well.

“He’s been brewing the Wiggenweld Potion in the potions room,” Draco told her, looking thoughtful. Tom has been brewing the healing potion for her. Scarlett smiled at Tom’s thoughtfulness.

Scarlett’s dopey smile did not escape the notice of her parents. “I know you told us he was your friend, but are you sure you two aren’t dating? He’s definitely a keeper,” Hermione asked her daughter in a teasing tone, causing her to blush. 

Scarlett’s heart raced at the question. While she did find Tom incredibly attractive, they weren’t dating. She wasn’t opposed to dating him either…? Did that mean she had feelings for him? Strangely enough, Scarlett couldn’t see herself in a relationship with someone who wasn’t Tom. She felt her heart clench at the thought of Tom caring about another girl who wasn’t her. 

“Erm… no. Tom and I aren’t dating.” She finally mumbled after much thought, looking flustered. 

“Tom does care for you, I noticed. He’s always watching and looking out for you, his priority is always you. Don’t even get me started on how his face softens every time he so much as glances at you.” Draco said, making her look at him in surprise. Her father had given her the impression that he didn’t like Tom much. To hear him say that, almost sounded like he approved of Tom. 

The words of what her father had said sunk in and her blush deepened. Had she really overlooked Tom’s behaviour? Scarlett had always noticed the soft expression on Tom's whenever she was in his presence, how he was always protective over her or how he dropped his cold facade whenever he was with her. She’d been so used to it that she hadn’t thought about how Tom acted with other people whenever she wasn’t around. 

Thankfully, Scarlett was saved from having to respond when the door to her room swung open and Tom swept into the room, holding a vial of red liquid in one hand, the Wiggenweld potion. He nodded respectfully to her parents before turning his focus back to her. Scarlett flushed when her parents had looks of amusement on their faces as they looked at her knowingly, before quietly taking their leave, giving the two privacy. 

“How are you feeling?” Tom asked in a gentle voice, uncorking the vial. 

“M’fine,” she mumbled, unable to speak in her normal tone because of her sore throat. She could see him trying not to smile and she briefly wondered if it was because she looked like she had just rolled out of bed (which was technically true). Unbeknownst to Scarlett, Tom thought she looked absolutely adorable. 

Tom lightly gripped her chin, tilting it up as he brought the vial toward her lips. Scarlett’s eyes widened in surprise as she realized he intended to feed her the potion. She grabbed the potion from his hand, avoiding his eyes as she muttered “I can drink it myself.”

He watched her tenderly as she drank the healing potion, noticing how she avoided eye contact. Something she did when flustered. Looking pleased with himself, Tom took the empty vial from her when she finished the potion and set it on the bedside table. 

The effect of the healing potion was immediate, Scarlett already felt energized and her throat wasn’t hurting anymore. She looked at Tom brightly, gratitude shining in her eyes. He smiled, looking like a child on Christmas. “Oh! I have something for you,” Scarlett said excitedly, remembering that she had a Christmas present for him. 

She abruptly got up from her bed, making Tom look over her with concern, cautious of her injuries despite her having taken the healing potion before curiosity settled over his face. Scarlett went to grab a small neatly wrapped parcel from her desk before making her way back to him in a few quick strides. 

“Merry Christmas, Thomas.” Scarlett chirped with a beaming smile at him, handing him the parcel. 

Tom gently took the neatly wrapped present from her, eyes wide in wonder. Noticing his excited look she added, more like a warning. “Don’t look so excited yet, you might not like it.” 

Scarlett shuffled nervously, worried that he might not like whatever she was gifting him, which was absurd because it wasn’t like this was the first time she’d given him a present. She remembered the leather-bound diary she had gifted him when they were younger. She wondered if he had written anything in it or if had he left it unused. The insecurity was gnawing at her. 

All her worries melted away when he smiled softly at her. “I will love anything you give me,” he said in a tone that told her he wasn’t just talking about the gift he was about to unwrap. 

Scarlett returned the smile, watching as he unwrapped his present. She watched him carefully for his reaction, an indecipherable emotion flickered onto his face as his gift was revealed. 

It was a silver ring with a serpent on it. 

“I saw the ring in a shop at Hogsmeade the other day and it reminded me of you,” Scarlett said hesitantly. She wanted the gift to have more meaning to it, but with Tom’s birthday coming up she was already having trouble coming up with ideas on what to get him, let alone two gifts. It was convenient when she saw the serpent ring at Gladrags Wizardwear, it allowed her to focus all her energy on coming up with the perfect gift for his birthday. 

“I’ll treasure it. Thank you,” Tom said, sliding the ring onto his ring finger with a soft smile. “I have a ring for you as well,” he said, looking at her as he slid the other ring, which Scarlett hadn’t noticed him wearing, off his middle finger. It was a gold ring, set with a large black stone. 

“It’s a family heirloom,” he told her when he noticed her looking at the ring curiously. Gripping her hand, he slid the ring onto her ring finger before watching as she smiled. 

“Thank you,” she said, as her fingers went to the ring, playing with it. It felt like a significant moment had happened between them when they exchanged the rings. “Merry Christmas, Thomas,” she said, smiling up at him with bright eyes. 

Tom watched her for a moment, his gaze lingering on her smile before responding. “Merry Christmas, love.” 

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

The manor was quieter and calmer when all the guests had left, her father had kicked everyone out and said his daughter needed to rest in tranquillity. Her father didn’t have to do that, but Scarlett appreciated it all the same. 

“Scar! Are you okay? Do you need anything?” A frantic voice said, fussing over before engulfing her in a hug as she grumbled under her breath. 

“Brax, I’m fine!” she said, squirming out of his grip as her cousin pouted. 

“News travels fast, I got here as soon as I heard,” Abraxas informed her, still looking worried, his eyes travelling over her as though searching for her injuries. “Not sure if it’s a good thing Lestrange got sentenced to Azkaban, I could have killed him for you.” he snarled, looking angry at the fact that his cousin had to suffer the Cruciatus curse.

Scarlett snorted, although amused at his protectiveness, she felt warmth coursing through her at her cousin’s care for her. “You’ll have to get in line,” she quipped, making Abraxas turn his head toward Tom. 

“Oh yeah, Riddle. I forgot you were here as well,” he said, lips quirking up to amusement as Tom glared at him. 

“Malfoy. How… amazing it is to see you again.” Tom said sarcastically, emphasizing ‘amazing’ as his lips curled. 

Scarlett watched the two with a smile. “Now, now, children. Be civil with each other,” she teased, watching as Tom looked chastened as he grumbled under his breath. 

“I’ll leave you to your rest, Scar. Riddle, come with me.” Abraxas said to her before directing the latter part at Tom, who scowled at the blonde’s attempt to order him around. 

“Why should I go with you? I’m perfectly content in Scarlett’s presence, thank you very much.” Tom snarked, before catching Scarlett’s disappointed frown at his incivility towards Abraxas and he sighed. “Very well…” he said, before sending the blonde a half-hearted glare. “Don’t expect me to cater to your every need,” he said, crossing his arms with a huff. He turned to Scarlett, and all traces of annoyance washed away as he looked at her. “I’ll leave you to your rest, but I will see you later,” he said, more like demanded, as he kissed her on the forehead before turning on his heels, leaving a gaping Abraxas at his wake. 

The blonde shook his head in disbelief. “Unbelievable. The switch-up is giving me whiplash,” Abraxas said. 

“Are you going to take all day?” Tom’s annoyed voice called from outside her room, prompting Abraxas to give her a look as if to say ‘ You see how he treats me?’ before hurrying out of her room so as to not keep Tom waiting any longer. 

When their footsteps faded away, Scarlett got out of bed, having no intention of resting. She was bored and would rather snoop around her own room than stay in bed. She went through her bedside table drawers before moving to check out her desk drawers. She searched through her room and to her dismay, found nothing but a few drawings she assumed she had drawn during her early childhood years. 

An idea sparked in her head and she cracked open her door just enough for Crainer to slip through to make sure the hallway was clear as it sounded. When the magical creature flew back with a nod, Scarlett made her way to the room across from hers, to what she thought was an office.

Entering the office, she made her way to the desk filled with messy papers and letters, upon closer inspection she realized that it was an organized sort of mess. Each messy pile had a purpose and Scarlett found herself searching through a particular pile with envelopes thoroughly. The letters were all addressed to Hermione Malfoy, who told Scarlett that this was her mother’s office. 

Her eyes landed on an envelope that was addressed to her mother from someone called R.B.W. Ever so curious, she opened the envelope before stopping herself, a sinking feeling in her stomach. It wasn’t right to snoop around her mother’s office and even so, it wasn’t right to read through her mother’s letters. But her parents were hiding something about her past, it was clear by their reluctance to discuss the subject with her. Scarlett didn’t want to push it at the time and she still didn’t want to force the subject on them, so her only choice was to find clues by searching around the manor. 

Convinced by her reasonings, Scarlett opened the letter, her eyes moving across the page, memorizing the contents. The letter was short, leaving her with more questions than answers. 

Hermione,

Hypothetically, If I told you there was a way to save everyone we’ve lost during the second wizarding war would you want to take part in the quest with me? For old-time’s sake?

      - R.B.W

Scarlett frowned, wondering who R.B.W was. Did her father know about this R.B.W. person? Scarlett doesn’t think it’s her mother’s lover. She could tell her parents were very much in love, but what did the letter mean by ‘for old time’s sake’? From her knowledge, there was never a second wizarding war. Grindelwald was still at large, the first wizarding war wasn’t even over yet. Could the sender be mistaken?  

Suddenly, Crainer zipped into her pocket, signifying someone nearby. The door creaked open as Scarlett slid into her mother’s chair, a piece of parchment and quill in hand, the letter back where she found it on her mother’s desk. Her sleight of hand had saved her once again. She twirled the quill in her head, acting as if she were thinking about what to write. 

A familiar voice made her look up. “Scarlett. You were not in your room, resting like you were supposed to.” 

Her eyes landed on Tom looking at her in disapproval and she brightened, abandoning the act of writing the letter. “Thomas!” 

Tom’s eyes softened at her brightening and he sighed. “You should be resting.” He repeated, frowning as he looked over her in concern. 

“Riddle! Have you-“ another familiar voice said, the owner of the voice swept into the room dramatically, revealing Abraxas, cutting himself off as his eyes landed on her. “Oh, you found her. You know, letting me know next time would be great,” her cousin continued dryly to Tom, who ignored him and kept his attention on Scarlett. 

Abraxas raised his eyebrows at their interaction. “I could use some attention sometimes as well,” he hummed. 

Tom didn’t even spare the blonde a glance. “You won’t get it from me. Seek it somewhere else.”

Abraxas opened his mouth to make another remark when Scarlett intervened. “Okay, children! You’re both pretty, but let’s not make this a spectacle.”

It was the wrong thing to say as Tom’s lips curved into a smirk. “Of course. I look devastatingly handsome as always. Like a fallen angel.” he said, repeating her words from the night of Slughorn’s dinner party and making her face burn. 

Scarlett muttered curses under her breath which only served to make Tom’s smirk widen. “Cursing is very unladylike,” he tsked. 

Abraxas looked between the two, a lost expression on his face. “I’m lost. Not that this isn’t entertaining, but we should get back to why Scarlett wasn’t resting like she was supposed to,” he said with a stern look and attempting to look serious. 

“Yes,” Tom drawled, looking at Scarlett, his amusement dissolving as he took on a serious look. “What were you doing snooping around your mother’s office?”

Scarlett rolled her eyes at their overbearing nature. “I was searching for clues. Happy now, fathers?” 

Tom frowned at being called father. “That explanation will not suffice, I’m afraid,” he retorted, unhappy with her vague explanation. 

Her cousin raised his eyebrows. “What he said,” he said, jabbing his thumb in Tom’s direction. 

Scarlett looked at their stubborn expressions and sighed. “Fine. Have a look at this,” she relented, moving to grab the mysterious letter from the desk and showing it to them. 

With an expression of curiosity, Tom took the letter, reading it with furrowed brows before passing it to Abraxas and looking deep in thought. 

Abraxas looked dumbfounded. “What does it mean ‘hypothetically’? I don’t think the letter’s  hypothetical at all.” 

Tom ignored the blonde’s comments. “The real question is, who’s R.B.W.” he stated, rummaging through the other letters on her mother’s desk. 

Scarlett shook her head. “You’re all focusing on the wrong thing. There was never a second world war. The first wizarding war isn’t even over yet,” 

Tom scanned the letter again. “You’re right,” he said, ignoring Abraxa’s gasp. 

“It could be time manipulation,” the blonde said with wide eyes. 

Tom rolled his eyes. “Don’t be daft, that would not even be possible. Time-Turners can only take you back five hours into the past.” he reminded. 

Abraxas waved Tom’s dismissals off as he continued his theory. “Rules could be broken. What if this R.B.W found another way without using Time-Turners?”

Scarlett rubbed her temples, a headache already forming at the thought of time travel being a possibility. “You have to admit, Brax, your theory’s pretty far-fetched. I can’t even wrap my head around the time travelling concept without getting a headache,”

Her cousin raised his eyebrows in a challenging manner. “How else would you explain the second wizarding war mentioned in the letter?”

“The sender could have made a mistake,” Tom mused. 

Abraxas didn’t look convinced at the notion.

“The past can’t be changed. If someone time-travelled to the past, it means they had already done so, fulfilling their role in history exactly as it happened. Self-consistency principle, remember?” Scarlett argued. 

“Taking account of the self-consistency principle, there are other principles and paradoxes. The predestination paradox for one is when a time traveler goes back in time to try and prevent an event in the past. Which is what this R.B.W is trying to do, but they might have already tried it once and didn’t work so they’re attempting it again,” Abraxas explained. 

“Okay, but the grandfather paradox-”

“I am well aware of the concepts of time travelling, but even this conversation is giving me a massive headache,” Tom cut in, breaking up their argument about time travelling. 

Scarlett looked dismayed at not being able to finish her argument but sighed. “Back to the original topic,” 

“I still think we shouldn’t rule anything out,” Abraxas tsked. 

Ignoring the blonde, Tom moved on. “We should start with uncovering R.B.W’s identity,” he said, before furrowing his brows as he remembered something. “You were investigating your past again,” he stated, turning to Scarlett. “This does not have anything to do with your past. Do we really want to investigate it for the sake of curiosity?” he asked her. 

Abraxas raised a hand as though he were in class as he remarked “Well, I for one, think we should for fun. I love a good mystery,” but it went ignored by Tom. 

Scarlett’s brows furrowed, realizing Tom was right. The letter and R.B.W had nothing to do with her past. She had searched her mother’s office with a purpose, to try and find more information on her godfather. But what she got was more questions and a mystery instead. She shouldn’t involve herself in her mother’s business. But her gut was telling her this was worth investigating. Ignoring the inner voice in her head that was telling her she should be investigating her godfather, she smiled mischievously at Tom. 

“Yes, we do.”