CHAPTER SEVEN

November settled over the Scotland fields, bringing its storms and rain with it. The sky sparked alive as lightning struck across it, followed by the imperious sound of thunder. The wind hit the windows of the castle, making them shake at its force.

An unfamiliar feeling overtook Varya as she heard the whistling of the wind, although not indescribable, and she pulled her knees closer to her chest. From one of the windows of the Eastern Tower, she watched as the sun slowly drained on the horizon. Her breath was somewhat shaky due to climbing countless stairs, and she took a minute to calm her beating heart.

Over the past month, her stature had grown smaller, cheeks standing out and eyes having a reddish tint. Her tiredness took over most of her day, and no matter what she did, she could not bring herself to fully focus.

As the clock approached midnight, she wondered if her Astronomy class would go longer than expected. Varya hoped that her teacher would take notice of her weakened state and send her to the infirmary, which she had meticulously avoided.

She blamed it on her overly-stressed nature, as she had been polishing herself raw to be ahead in most of her classes. The girl was astonished at her lack of resilience, as she did not find the Hogwarts curriculum to be challenging, yet she crumbled like the scrum on a cigar's end, turning into fine dust and letting the zephyr make whatever it needed of her. Every movement was staggered, clumsy, and her lungs constricted as if veins had rooted inside, suffocating her alveoli.

"You look quite out of sorts," said Ren Rosier as he approached her, a textbook in hand. Varya let out a small whimper as a response, not bothering to look up at him. Once the bell struck midnight, they both headed to their class.

A spell had been cast over their heads, protecting them from the weather's wrath. Nevertheless, the sky was barely visible, stormy clouds covering most of it. Their teacher, a robust woman with less dexterity than a Sasquatch, looked unpleased at this.

"I suppose we will go over the constellations today," she said, "We were supposed to study Jupiter's mood. Ah, and I told Armando that moving the fifth year class to midnight was no good!"

Varya took this as an opportunity to sit down and slack against one of the Tower's walls, her head falling to her knees. She had hoped that the class would be canceled, but her teacher refused to do so.

"Rough week, then?" asked Ren as he sat down beside her, pulling out one of his charts. "Bloody weather, the professor should just let us leave early."

"You reckon I could ask her to dismiss me early?" Varya cringed at her voice sounding so hoarse, as if she had been drained of her life supply.

"Good luck with that, so many students have taken a dislike towards Astronomy that she does not believe them when they try to get out of class." he laughed, scribbling the answers with his pen rapidly.

"That is the Aquarius constellation," Varya pointed weakly.

Ren turned to her, "Of course," he mumbled and cut his answer with a verticle line. "I have heard that you are quite the scholar, teachers have taken a liking to you. Have you perhaps gotten an invite to the Slug Club?"

Varya frowned, unfamiliar with the name, earning a laugh from the curly-haired boy. His dimples poked out, and the girl was shocked at seeing one of Riddle's man so expressive.

"Yes, I suppose it is quite hard for a girl to get in. As a matter of fact, I believe there are only two that Slughorn has invited, whereas the number of boys is quadrupled." he said, some arrogance in his voice.

"Whatever do you mean by that? Do you truly think that a woman is no match for a man intellectually?" her heavy accent twisted the words, making them come out even harsher. As far as she was aware, she was second in most of her classes, the only person who was able to beat her was Tom.

Joyfully, Renold answered, "I am not the one sending out the invites, dear, and if I were, believe me, that I would put you above most foolish Gryffindors at that table." His compliment fell short, however, as Varya's ego was still hurt by the notion of not being invited. She did not want to think much of this, but she could not help herself.

"And who exactly is part of this club?" she asked venomously, wondering what the criteria were.

"Well, I, of course, am part of it. Then, there is Malfoy and Nott, who you have graciously met. Ivy Trouche is one of the girls, although she fills the room much as a man would," he sneered, and Varya frowned at his words. Was he not the gentle one of the group? And if so, then what opinions did the others carry of Ivy? They all seemed to be in a silent war with her and Varya could not figure out why."I believe you have not met Avery as of right now, he is quite the character, you see. He broods in his room for most meals, does not like socializing."

Varya thought back to the fifth follower of Tom Riddle, who was surely the most evasive, as he almost never paraded himself around the room like the rest of them. No, Avery was a quiet presence, and that made him most dangerous.

"Lestrange is part of it for some unknown reason, I do not doubt his dueling skills, but his trickster behavior is frowned upon by most teachers," he continued, not expecting a reply from the girl. "Ah, but Slughorn is not like most, he values intellect over pretense politeness. Perhaps that is what makes him such a great Head professor for our house, besides his lack of self-awareness that keeps us out of trouble. He favors Slytherins, only a few other students from Ravenclaw and Gryffindor are invited. No Hufflepuffs, of course, they don't have the right mindset."

Thinking deeply, Varya could not help but agree. She had noticed the teacher's favoritism, and how he treasured bright minds. Of course, his most favored student was...

"Tom Riddle is, as you would expect, a member. One of the first to be recruited. What is an academic meeting without the star, right?" Ren turns to her, smirking at her downcasted face. "Not a fan of Riddle? You are one of the few then, everyone seems to eat out of his hand, including Slughorn."

"And what do you make of him, then? I have seen you by his side consistently and yet, whenever the rest of you laugh, he is silent," probed Varya, trying to understand the group's dynamics better. Rosier turned away from her, a sour look on his face.

"Riddle is an admirable man," he concluded, avoiding her eyes. That only made her turn to see him better.

"But he is not your friend," she said, her words a statement rather than a question. 

Ren pursed his lips, a deep breath leaving his body as he seemed to carefully pick out his words. Of course, Varya thought, all of them are so careful as to how they mention their involvement with Tom. What are they hiding?

"Nevertheless, I believe you will receive an invitation soon enough. There has not yet been a meeting, perhaps he will send out your letter once the date is set," he changed the subject to Varya's annoyance. Then, his eyes fell on the clock that stood on his wrist. "Would you look at that, chattered the class away, did I not? It was a pleasure to meet you, Petrov. Until later..."

He got up swiftly, then made his exit before Varya could ask anything else. Varya reluctantly made her way back to her chambers, embracing the comfort that was sleep.

***

The Great Hall smelled of herbs and pumpkin as the Petrov girl entered, its intensity hitting her sensory receptors like a slap. It made her dizzy, and she wondered if she would be able to eat something consistent today. She made her way down the rows of tables, heaving towards a redheaded girl that stood alone, savoring her meal.

"Good morning, Ella," Varya greeted her as she sat down across from her. 

Elladora nodded in her direction then smiled, "Feeling better, I see?" she asked her honey eyes analyzing every inch of Varya's face. "Good, I feared you were coming down with a serious illness."

Ivy Trouche threw her bag on the table, making a bit of soup spill down Elladora's sweater, which earned her a nasty glare. Ivy rolled her eyes, then proceeded to cast a quick spell to clean the girl's clothes.

"Watch it," Elladora barked at her roommate, already annoyed by her presence.

"Please, it did not even leave a stain," then, the blonde girl leaned over one of the pots, smelling its contents. "Beef stew yet again? I was hoping for chicken."

"There might be a shortage, they have not served any in weeks," Varya admitted as she analyzed the table. Both of them helped themselves at the feast, ignoring the redheaded girl as she continued to glare at Ivy.

Varya looked at Ivy, chewing her food while deep in thought. She remembered the girl's offer from a few weeks ago and wondered if she had been losing sleep over it as Varya had. Getting back at Tom Riddle? It seemed to be a dead man's wish. Varya then shook her head, better not think of it so early in the day.

Elladora handed her a cup of tea, which she gratefully accepted then drank quickly. She had been basking in the godly pleasure that was British tea, so much different from the one that she would drink as a child. Suddenly, she remembered something.

"Ivy, I heard that you are part of the Slug Club?" Varya asked, taking her roommate by surprise.

"Yes," she said, blinking in confusion. "Why do you ask?"

"How does one get invited? Ren told me that it was based on academics, however, I have yet to receive an invite," Varya questioned, thinking back to the conversation she had had with the boy.

"That is odd," Ivy admitted, suddenly deep in thought. "Unless someone specifically told Slughorn not to invite you."

The girls shared a look, fully aware of who would have such grasp over their professor. Varya frowned, extremely confused as to why Tom would not want her to attend. Yes, they were competitors in most classes and they did not get along well, but there had to be another reason. Riddle was not one to sabotage his opponents, he enjoyed seeing them squished by his power.

Varya looked at Elladora, who was silently chewing on her food, not partaking in the conversation. The redheaded girl pretended not to listen, but her ears were red, signaling that she was invested in their conversation. Peculiar.

"I will ask him after Potions," she concluded, not wanting to talk too much. Varya was still unsure on where her roommate's loyalties stood. She had not seen her around the boys, but Elladora was extremely familiar with them, Varya could tell.

Ivy nodded, understanding the finality of the conversation, then took a napkin to back some sweets. She excused herself, saying that she was late for a meeting with Alphard. Elladora then looked up and gave Varya a smile that did not quite reach her eyes.