A/N: Not mine. Like. At all.

Chapter 18: Mr. Mistoffelees

It is, by far, the longest seconds of my life.
After making eye-contact with Bellatrix I turn around instantly, almost like a reflex. And without taking time to either breath or think, I proceed to run up the stairs and lock myself in my room. It is in there, that I'm finally able to turn my mobile off, having had it buzzing throughout the entire scenario. Now, the only remaining sound is my uneven breathing. Choked and panicked little breaths, forcing their way out of my mouth.
Irrational as it may seem, I am dumbly worried that someone has followed me, naked and ready to call me out on my unintended voyeurism. What if Tom heard Seamus calling or me running up the creaking stairs? The possibility of it is quite great. I wasn't exactly gracile. So what if he saw my back as I turned around, ready to bolt? I shudder at the thought. It is bad enough that Bellatrix has seen me and knows that I've seen her. All of her and all of Tom.
I shudder again.

The screen of my mobile brightens and begins to vibrate as Seamus calls me again. Forcing away the image of what I have just witnessed, I answer:
"Hello?"
"Hermione! Is that you!?" Seamus shouts, effectively waking me up from my nightmare, making me laugh a little. Realising that I might be overheard, I instantly stop. Listening for something, footsteps, an angry Bellatrix – I don't know what.
"Did you just learn how to use a phone? You don't need to shout Seamus," I whisper.
"It is you!" he shouts in return.
"Of course it is, you dialed my number you numbnut! Did you get home alright?"
"What? ..Oh you have noooo idea what I just saw.." he sludders away as I listen. Forcing myself to concentrate on the plot holes of his story.
I don't even notice the footsteps outside my door.

It is early morning when I fall asleep. If I had known that it would be my last time sleeping peacefully, I would have slept in.

Nature is calling. And with sand in my eyes, I head for the bathroom. When I get out of there, I am still sleepy, but not sleepy enough to miss the shadow looming in the corridor.
As my eyes strain themselves to focus on the figure, Bellatrix speaks:
"Goodmorning there. Did you enjoy the performance last night?"
I feel like she just poured ice cold water over me.
"Hmm.." I say and blush.. because I'm stupid that way.
Bellatrix closes in, clad in one of Tom's shirts. It fits her all too well, not drowning her form the way it would mine, but reaching just slightly above the hem of her knickers.
"I didn't mean to," I then find the strength to say. Recalling the fact that I am the victim here.
Bellatrix gives off one of her little smiles. They always comes off as insincere, borderline cruel.
"So you would say."
I blink at her for a while, but realising that I am fed up with it, I walk forward. Just as I am about to pass the dark beauty, her voice stops me.
"Well.. Did you then?"
Bellatrix face is a few centimeters from mine as I turn to my side to face her.
"Did I what?"
She raises her eyebrows.
"Enjoy it."
I didn't expect that so I swallow awkwardly and look down at the floor.
"If you're seriously asking if I enjoyed seeing you and Tom together, you're out of your mind."
She giggles. A high-pitched annoying sound that makes me schrunch my nose.
"I bet you did. I bet you touched yourself before you went to sleep, thinking of it. Wishing you were me."
I meet her gaze. Bella's eyes are out of this world, penetrating, inhuman, glimmering.. just..
She smiles.
..cruel.
"Did you forget to take your medication?" I snarl, not believing her nerve. At the same time, a part of me worries. Did she know something? "Tom is my brother, in case you didn't know. And you're just his deranged girlfriend. I don't want you anywhere near me, so just leave me alone."
Breaking eye contact, I head for my door again.
"Jealous huh?"
It's like everything I said just flew over her head.
I don't even bother to answer. When I'm inside my room I hear her voice. Just outside my door. Whispering. Taunting.
"You'll never steal him from me you sad, pathetic girl. That thing you saw last night was nothing. He does things to me – for me - that you wouldn't dare dream of. You couldn't handle it. You won't. He's mine and mine alone, so you better stay away if you know what's best for you."
Upon which she walks away.
Her deranged monologue makes me smile, it's so absurd.
Great, I think, now have two lunatics to deal with.
At least Bella and I should get along, now that we've reached an unofficial agreement. She gets Tom and Tom stays the hell away from me. Simply perfect.

Not wanting to remain in the house any longer than necessary, I eat a quick breakfast and decide to go to the town library, seeing as it basically is my second home and a place that I can feel safe in.
The library is quite beautiful really, a glass dome constitutes the ceiling, giving the room a natural light. The silence is absolute as I sit down at my usual spot. A corner table with a dark green table lamp in the style of Art Nouveau. I seriously don't know why not more people spend their time here. The silence is always welcoming and somewhat sad at the same time. The divine works of Voltaire, Wilde and Joyce rests here, yet no one comes to awaken them. Apart from me of course. I sigh and pick a random book from my stack, letting myself become absorbed by the intrigue and forgetting everything else when..
"Do you remember when we used to come here as kids?"
The voice stops me dead in my tracks.
"I read to you."
I don't turn around, but I answer.
"Yes you did."
"And I stroked your hair."
I say nothing.
"Like this," Tom says and I feel his finger in my hair, combing through the vanilla curls. The movement is soothing and gentle, a complete opposite from the actions of the Tom from last night.

"He holds all the patent monopolies
For performing surprising illusions
And creating eccentric confusions.
At prestidigitation
And at legerdemain
He'll defy examination
And deceive you again."

His voice is warm and beautiful, I close my eyes, a smile nearly gracing my lips.
"T S Eliot." I say. "Mr Mistoffelees no?"
Tom chuckles softly.
"You know.. I never really did like cats. Not the book, nor the musical.. nor the animal."
"Of course not. But I did so I forced you to read it anyway," I tease.
"Mm.. yes, let's say you forced me."
He then looses his grip on my hair and pulls out the stool next to me.
"Aren't you going to yell at me?" he proceeds to ask, sounding sad. If he plays a part, he does it well.
"I don't have the strength to." I answer honestly, examining the lines of the table. I refuse to look at him, seeing as that would make me remember last night, in all its horrific details.
Two sighs echo in the glass dome.
Then Tom takes a book from my pile as I pretend to read. Really, I am reminiscing about the brother I lost. The Tom I knew that used to read me to sleep, put band aid on my blisters and call me stupid when I cried. My brother Tom that I love and miss dearly.
It doesn't take long before I am crying. The tears are silent, so at first I wasn't sure that Tom had heard or seen them, but then I felt a cold finger upon my cheek, roughly smudging the tears away.
"Stupid," he mutters, barely audible.
The word makes my soul quake.
"I want to go back to the way things were, Tom. I want you to be my brother again. Just my brother."
His finger has left my face and I am too scared to look at him, even from the corner of my eye.
Just as I think he has decided to say nothing, he speaks and I hold my breath.
"But you see, it never was that way for me. You never were just my sister."
I choose to say nothing.
And then we just sit there, reading side by side.

It's peaceful.

A/N: I know, I know.. boring obligations in life got in the way :S Like who needs an education anyway? I'm quite pretty. I might just get a boob job and settle for a rich dude. Then I'll be able to write for you all the time. (Please hit me if I do indeed go down that line).

Now, how are you? :D