Smile Like You Mean It

[lastofseven]

Characters: Ginny and Tom Riddle
Content: Start of Deathly Hollows. Ginny finds herself back in time with the use of a Time Turner she found.
Warnings: None / It's Tom Riddle.

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[flight_ofdeath]

Tom Riddle's year at Hogwarts had been going smoothly. He had been allowed to stay at Hogwarts over the summer, something that had him in good spirits through the time of the year he usually dreaded and gave him the unmistakeable urge to kill a small animal, or torture an orphan or two. Of course, now that the school year had started and all the students had returned to the castle, Tom no longer had the place to himself, but that was just as well. After all, he was Head Boy this year. Any restrictions he may face will be easily handled and dealt with, or simply ignored. Not to mention, for the majority of his interactions he was the one doing the restricting, a perk that came with his position of power within the school

[lastofseven]

Ginny told herself to take a deep breath. In a few minutes, Dumbledore would fix this and she would go back to being abandoned in her school in her time. Now was not the time to be afraid, not with a plan. A foolproof plan.

Until she came face to face with him. Ginny wasn't even out of the room when she saw him. She blinked. She must be dreaming. But no, this was real. And she would never forget his face. Not ever. It was a face that would creep into her dreams at the dead of night.

Ginny held the Time Turner loosely in her hands. Her robes were even different than his. "Sorry, but what year is this?" She asked, much more calmly then she could have ever imagined.

[flight_ofdeath]

This girl's mind spoke of nightmares; her mind knew his face. She was afraid of him. While not an unusual occurrence, it was certainly odd to see it from a stranger, and not someone he had not purposefully terrorized. Tom raised an eyebrow, before his gaze found the golden necklace in her grip. Time Turners had time limits, and yet this girl was asking for the year. As unusual as the situation was, his Legilimency told him she wasn't lying. This girl knew him from somewhere in the future.

"1944. May I ask what year you're from?"

[lastofseven]

Ginny swallowed hard. She put her hands in her robe pockets. The stubborn Ginger would not let him see her tremble. She set her face. He was still in front of her like nothing was wrong.

And she remembered what it was like to trust him, to tell him all her secrets. All about the Boy-Who-Lived. And that's when it changed. He was no Savior, but a destroyer.

She ignored his question. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction, for everything that he's taken away from her and her family. "I need to see Dumbledore. He'll fix this." Ginny said defiantly. There was nothing he can do to her there.

How easy would it be to just hex him and be done with it? Here he was in front of her and the wood of her wand pressed against. Oh, it was tempting. But not possible.

[flight_ofdeath]

Her efforts to hide her trembling were for nought. Tom could see her mind, and her efforts to hide only made her stubborn fear that much more apparent. It raised Tom's curiosity. Clearly he must have done something to her herself, for while rumours are often useful and can make people fear, the level he sees here is not the sort a few ugly rounds of gossip could bring about. She had trusted him, and he had betrayed her trust. The thing that makes him wonder is that she obviously lived to remember such a thing. Tom was skilled with memory charms if he wanted her to live... But no, if he wanted her to be of further use, why would he destroy something he'd spent that much time and effort to build? He had clearly meant to kill her, this future self of his, and she had escaped. That was the only explanation, and of course it explains why she was so fearful now

[lastofseven]

True courage is when faced with one's greatest fear, they do not hide. And if anything staring at Tom Riddle, face to face, and not backing down could be the definition of courage. It wasn't that Ginny wasn't afraid, she just chose to not let that fear rule her. If anything it was making her more obstinate. She knew what he was capable of, more than anyone in that present time

I confess my extreme appreciation for your patience.

[flight_ofdeath]

He offers her a small smile, friendly and tolerant of her hostile attitude (and perhaps somewhat knowing, as if he knew things were going to go his way in the end -- and who could blame him? They often do

No worries~

[lastofseven]

The silence was actually inviting. She had a few moments to collect herself. The situation was bad. More so than she could deal with, more than she wanted to, but she had to put her faith in Dumbledore. Ginny couldn't let herself get too run down. No, she wouldn't put down her guard, but him derailing her life again, she wouldn't let that happen.

Ginny's soft brown eyes weren't so soft every time he turned around. She was there, yes, but because she couldn't just go anywhere else. Her jaw was clenched, and she looked in his eyes each time. She wouldn't back down despite the pit in her stomach.

But he finally broke the silence. It reminded her that he was also in his head. That was never a good thing. But she wondered if she should continue to ignore his questions. It might be better to not anger him. Plus she'd rather not have him stew in his own thoughts.

Then again there was a whole other side that wanted to snark back. And it was winning out. "Ginny." The redhead answered. "Ginny Weasley. No need to ask who you are, Tom."

Tom