Rhea Hel is the golden girl of Hogwarts. Everyone adores her and worships the ground she walks on. She flashes a smile or bats her eyes and everyone falls in line behind her, because she could do no wrong in their eyes.
Tom Riddle was a charismatic...
CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN — improvise, adapt, and overcome
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RHEA PULLED HER CLOAK TIGHT AROUND HER BODY AS SHE AND TOM VENTURED DOWN THE SHORT WALK WAY AFTER THE KNIGHT BUS DROPPED THEM OFF OUTSIDE OF LITTLE HANGLETON. She cast a glance at the boy standing beside her to find his face still ghostly pale from the ride that they took from Wiltshire to the town where his family came from. Tom had never ridden the Knight Bus before, but Rhea had, so she wasn't at all phased by the journey. The lane they traveled on curved to the left and sloped steeply down a hillside, so that they had a sudden view of the valley laid out before them. Rhea could see Little Hangleton clearly, nestled between two steep hills with its church and graveyard clearly visible. Across the valley, set on the opposite hillside, was a handsome manor home surrounded by a wide expanse of green lawn.
"This way," Tom spoke, continuing down the sloping hill. Rhea followed behind him with her luggage in hand as they walked through the night. Her wand was pressed close to her as she and Tom made their way to the village. They arrived at the deserted town square where they were surrounded by shops and pubs. Rhea's eyes landed on an inn that was tucked away into one of the corners — Erebus Inn & Pub. Rhea examined the outline of a crow on the inn's sign.
"That place is owned by witches." Rhea said, staring at the building. Tom turned to her with an expression on his face that told her he wanted to know how she knew. "Erebus is another wizarding family and their symbol is the crow. Their daughter, Delphine, is a Ravenclaw in the year below us."
Rhea stepped towards the inn and Tom followed behind her. She pushed the front door open and was immediately greeted with the sound of people chatting with one another. The whole inn had a stench to it that was a mixture of drink and sweat which made Rhea turn her nose up. The patron's eyes fell to the door as the two unaccompanied sixteen year olds stepped into the inn. Tom glanced warily at the Muggles who leered at them as Rhea led him to the front desk where a sallow-faced woman stood. Her eyes had deep, dark circles around them and her black dress robes were loosely fitted on her small body.
"Welcome to Erebus Inn & Pub," The woman said, her voice weak and small. Her dark hair hung limply around her face and when she lifted her hand to the guestbook, it was frail and dainty. But, Rhea could see the flicker of recognition in the woman's face as she stared at Rhea and, though they had never met before, Rhea could tell that the woman knew she was a Hel. A sense of respect seemed to dawn in the woman's eyes and her expression became more pleasant upon staring at Rhea and Tom. "Would you like to book a room?"
"Yes, please. Two separate rooms." Rhea said, digging into her cloak to pull out her pouch of money.
"Unfortunately, we only have one room available." Rhea and Tom both tensed up at that, but Rhea forced a pleasant smile on her face and said, "That'll do."
