It wasn't quite what Misha had imagined.
In Misha's mind, the shadow and Tom would be a pitiful sight, sweating and tearing up as they desperately practiced magic or brewed potions.
At least, that was what she thought.
After all, Professor Snape was a terrifying, wicked old man. With how aggressive he was, he definitely wouldn't have given Tom and the shadow a moment's peace.
But look at them now!
The shadow and Tom were completely glued to each other.
Lovey-dovey. Misha felt like that was the right phrase. She hadn't studied much, but she had seen the word in books before.
Right now, Tom was flipping through a Potions textbook, patiently guiding the shadow step-by-step: when to drop in the bezoar, when to add the scurvy-grass, how many times to stir clockwise, how high to keep the flame...
And what was that obnoxious shadow doing during all of this?
She was hand-feeding Tom!
She brought the spoon right to Tom's mouth, intimately asking if he had enough or wanted more.
Not only were there sandwiches, but there was also a fresh glass of iced lemon tea right beside them.
She wasn't listening to a single word of Tom's lesson. She was just soaking up the alone time with him.
Despicable! She really is despicable!
Misha ground her teeth.
She was starting to seriously hate the shadow—okay, Misha already hated the shadow before, but now she hated her even more!
"I! SA! BELLE!" Misha bit her lip fiercely. "Tell me exactly what you're doing! Why are you pressed up so close to Tom?! And another thing: if Tom is hungry, he can feed himself! He doesn't need you doing it for him!"
Hearing Misha's voice, the shadow instantly shifted half an inch backward, hiding behind Tom's shoulder. "Tom, look at her. She's yelling at me."
"I'm not like her. I'm very gentle. I never get angry, and I'd certainly never get angry at you, Tom."
The shadow's "innocent victim" act was practically overflowing.
Naturally, Tom saw right through it.
If two little kids could figure it out, how could a seasoned veteran like Tom not know?
Tom didn't call her out on it, though. He just coughed softly. "It's a relief to see you two getting along so well. I suppose it's time for me to take a break anyway."
The shadow: "?"
Her smile instantly froze.
Getting along well?
Where exactly did you get the idea that she and I get along well?!
"You, get over here!" Misha grabbed the shadow and dragged her to the side. Then, remembering her actual mission for sneaking into the secret chamber, she quickly pushed the food toward Tom. "Tom, I was worried you wouldn't have enough to eat, so I brought you some food from the Great Hall."
Without waiting for Tom's response, Misha yanked the shadow further away.
"What are you doing?!" Misha hissed through gritted teeth, her glare so fierce she looked ready to eat the shadow alive.
"What am I doing?" The shadow shrugged casually. "Don't you know perfectly well? Why make me say it? You're the one who should understand me best."
"You might want to be Tom's 'little sister' for the rest of your life, but I certainly don't."
"Who said I wanted to be Tom's sister for the rest of my life?!" Misha's ears instantly flushed bright red.
"Oh, really? Isn't that right?" The shadow's tone turned incredibly obnoxious. She reached up with both hands, pushing her hair back to expose her smooth forehead just like Misha did, and mimicked Misha's voice with a sickly sweet pitch. "I'm Tom's little sister! I just want to watch Tom grow up and then open a flower shop next to the orphanage..."
"Screw you!" Misha swung a hand to slap her.
But the shadow wasn't a pushover. She easily blocked Misha's hand and continued her sarcastic mimicking. "I really want to change my last name to Riddle, so everyone knows little Misha is Tom's sister! It's only natural for a big brother to protect his little sister, right? And the sister will protect her brother, too!"
"Don't cross the line!" Misha panicked, genuinely panicked. "You know I'm not like that."
"But you're scared, aren't you?" Isabelle dropped the act, a smirk forming on her lips. "You're scared. But I'm not. I absolutely refuse to watch Tom walk down the aisle with some other girl in the future. The one marrying Tom should be me. It can only be me!"
For the first time, the shadow spoke her true, unfiltered thoughts.
She was marking her territory!
Why should she hand Tom over to Hermione?
How long had Tom and Hermione even known each other? She had been with Tom since the very, very beginning.
Plus, back then, Tom used to tell her bedtime stories to help her sleep—sure, technically Tom was telling the stories to Misha, not the shadow.
But that didn't matter!
The shadow reasoned that since she was there listening too, Tom was telling the stories to her just as much.
Who cared about Hermione? They weren't close. She was just an outsider.
"Stop talking! What if Tom hears you?!" Misha frantically clapped a hand over the shadow's mouth. "Miss Hermione is a good person. I don't want—"
"So what you're saying is, you're perfectly willing to watch Hermione and Tom get married?" The shadow slapped Misha's hand away, glaring right back at her.
"No, that's not what I mean. I just... I just think..."
The shadow raised an eyebrow. "You want to marry Tom with Hermione?"
"It's... not impossible..." Misha's voice was so quiet she could barely hear it herself.
She knew the idea was probably completely unrealistic, but it truly was what she was thinking.
Misha thought Tom was wonderful. He was strong, handsome, incredibly caring, and treated her so well.
But that didn't mean Hermione was bad.
On the contrary, Hermione was a good person, too.
Hermione was pretty and cool. Everything she did made her seem like a grown-up, and those clear brown eyes looked completely fearless.
Hermione was also a gentle lady.
Misha honestly felt that if they could both marry Tom together, that wouldn't be a bad outcome at all.
"You are completely out of your mind! What kind of storybooks have you been reading?! Which fairy tale told you a guy can marry multiple girls at once?!" The shadow exploded in fury, grabbing Misha's hair. "Throw those ridiculous ideas right out of your head! Let me tell you right now: a guy can only marry one girl! Got it?!"
"If the person Tom marries in the future isn't you, and isn't me, then it's absolutely going to be Hermione!"
Fortunately, Tom was currently busy stuffing his face.
It was a very good thing Tom hadn't heard their conversation.
Otherwise, he absolutely would have corrected both of them.
Who says I have to get married in the future?
If you get married, you only have a wife. But if you don't get married...
Your baby is your baby, your sweetheart is your sweetheart, and your little sister is your little sister!
Plus, my future doesn't just consist of Hermione.
Besides Hermione, there's Senior Cho Chang, Senior Busty, Senior Busty #2, Senior Busty #3...
A little while later, Tom noticed the shadow letting go of Misha.
They really are good friends, Tom thought to himself.
Just a minute ago they looked ready to tear each other apart, and now they were right back to normal.
What an enviable friendship. Every time Hermione and I fight, I actually have to coax her out of it.
"What were you guys talking about? Looked like a pretty heated discussion."
"Not telling you." Misha pouted, plopping down right next to Tom and taking a massive bite out of a sandwich.
Misha left small, clear teeth marks on the bread. She had bitten down hard, leaving a distinct imprint mixed with a bit of saliva, but even that didn't fully vent her frustration.
"Misha, did Professor Sprout arrange a place for you to stay?"
Misha nodded. "I'm staying with the professor. Professor Sprout is a good person. I really like her. She taught me so much today."
Tom nodded in agreement.
Naturally.
What student wouldn't like Professor Sprout?
She was always so kind and treated every student wonderfully, regardless of whether their grades were good or bad.
Even if you fell asleep during her Herbology class, Professor Sprout would just gently pat your shoulder, ask if you hadn't slept well the night before, and offer you a hammock in her greenhouse to rest.
Professor Sprout was the best.
"Isabelle, have you figured out where you're staying? Did Professor Snape say anything about it?"
"Not yet." The shadow's expression instantly turned miserable. "But it's fine. At night, I can just go back into Misha's shadow. I'm already used to it."
"No, no," Tom wagged his finger. "Since you've made it into Hogwarts, you should properly experience Hogwarts life. You can come stay with me tonight. I'll ask Professor Snape for permission to go back to my dorm."
"Everyone else in my dorm went home for the holidays, and I already had them clear their beds. You can hide in my shadow, and I'll sneak you into the boys' dormitory."
The shadow's heart leaped with joy.
Misha's heart plummeted.
They both spoke at the exact same time:
"That's wonderful!"
"Absolutely not!"
It was glaringly obvious who agreed and who refused.
Misha was, of course, the one refusing.
Isabelle's intentions were painfully obvious!
If she let the shadow stay with Tom, heaven only knew what those two would get up to.
As Tom's little sister—well, temporary sister—it was her absolute duty to protect Tom's personal safety. She could not let that bastard shadow get her way!
"You're coming to sleep with me. I'll ask Professor Sprout to find you a bed," Misha demanded.
The shadow scoffed, instantly rejecting Misha. "I'm not doing that. Tom is right. I should have a human life. I want to stay in the dorms with Tom."
Tch, if I have the chance to sleep next to Tom, why on earth would I sleep next to you?
I'm not an idiot, and I'm definitely not a coward.
Tonight... I'm sneaking right into Tom's room and crawling right under his covers!
Don't you love sleeping while hugging a stuffed bear? Go spend the rest of your life with your stuffed bear!
Misha wanted to argue back, but the sound of footsteps echoing down the stairwell startled her.
Professor Sprout hadn't completely managed to stop the oversized bat!
The oversized bat was coming down!
What do we do?! Misha looked at Tom in a panic.
Tom didn't even bother drawing his wand. With a single, silent cast, he reapplied the Disillusionment Charm on Misha.
Saying nothing, Misha shrank back into the darkest corner of the room.
A moment later, Professor Snape emerged from the shadows, his eyes sweeping across the chamber.
Strange. Where is Misha?
He knew for a fact Misha had sneaked in, but why couldn't he see her?
Furthermore, he felt an unmistakable gaze fixed squarely on him.
Snape looked toward the dark corner. No one.
And the distinct scent Misha carried earlier had completely vanished from the air.
Is this Tom's doing?
Has that brat's Disillusionment Charm really gotten this powerful?
Snape was genuinely surprised inwardly, but he didn't say a word to expose them.
Standing by the stairwell for a moment, his sharp ears picked up the faint sound of very light footsteps slipping past him and out the door.
"Tom. Isabelle. I trust you are both quite full by now."
"Professor Snape, would you like some?"
Unusually, Snape didn't refuse Tom's offer.
However, unlike Tom, who was sitting cross-legged on the floor, Snape remained standing and simply picked up two sandwiches.
"I do not recall packing sandwiches for you," Snape stated coldly.
The shadow's heart leaped into her throat.
Tom, however, wasn't nearly as nervous.
Casting the Disillusionment Charm on Misha was just for show. Did you honestly think someone like Professor Snape couldn't detect her?
He was just playing along.
There were simply some things better left unsaid, otherwise Professor Snape would lose face.
"Professor, I don't think it would be very convenient for the three of us to stay in your quarters. As you know, Isabelle is a girl."
"What are you getting at?"
"I'd like to take Isabelle back to the Ravenclaw dormitories with me. I can look after her there."
Snape scoffed coldly. "She is nothing more than a magical construct. She is likely not 'human' in the way you understand the word."
"In my eyes, she's a girl," Tom said, gently patting the shadow's head. "Professor Snape, girls are wonderful things. I want Isabelle to be happy. Regardless of how this all ends, as long as Isabelle is by my side for even a single day, I have a responsibility to give her the life of a normal girl."
"If she likes pretty dresses, I'll buy them for her. If she likes delicious pastries, I'll pay for them. Professor, I'm not short on money. Galleons are just material possessions. No amount of Galleons can ever buy a child a happy childhood."
Snape remained silent for a long moment. He gritted his teeth and replied coldly, "Do whatever you please. I just hope that if you encounter the Dark Lord tonight, you don't start screaming and crying. Because even if you scream, I will not come running to your dorm. I will simply light an incense stick for you next year."
"Professor Snape, if possible, I'd appreciate it if you burned some extra paper money for me, too. That way I can live comfortably in the underworld."
Snape shot Tom a scathing glare. "I sincerely hope you never speak like that again. I have absolutely no desire to see any Hogwarts student die."
With that, Snape cast a final, icy glance over the two of them and swept out of the room.
"You have full use of this chamber until curfew."
"Isabelle. Tom clearly has a great deal of faith in you. I suggest you prove you are worth it."
"In all the years since Hogwarts was founded, no student has ever enrolled under circumstances like yours. You may not realize it, but many people—hundreds... no, thousands of people—are watching you!"
"Not just the young wizards at Hogwarts. The Ministry of Magic, wizards from other schools... nearly everyone has their eyes on you!"
The shadow suddenly felt an invisible, crushing weight settle onto her shoulders.
She looked back at Tom, opening her mouth, but couldn't find the words to speak.
"Relax. Just take it easy, my friend. No matter what happens, I'll be right here with you."