[004] charming boys win first

                                The weekend had finally arrived which meant that Violet's party was ready to start.

                                Camille was eagerly awaiting Tom's arrival, already having an idea of how it'd go. He'd instantly be enamored by the sight of her and they'd talk the entire night, Camille successful in winning both the bet and Tom's seemingly elusive heart. The party would be a perfect opportunity for the two of them to talk to each other and get to know one another a lot better.

                                And plus, the fact that the Hufflepuff Head Boy and Head Girl were set to patrol tonight (a fact she learned from Victoire), meant that Tom didn't have any Head Boy duties to stop him.

                              With Victoire asleep in her bed, Camille dressed up in one of her finest dresses and said the right spell to make sure her hair was perfect. She didn't put on too much makeup, wanting to look beautiful but not too much like a harlot either. And then, she snuck out of the dorm she shared with her sister to join the party commencing downstairs. They were making sure to keep it down, not wanting to alert Victoire or anyone else who had chosen to skip out on the party.

                            But everyone was also wanting to have a good time.

                             Heads turned when Camille entered the party, every boy there ogling the beautiful blonde as she went to go and grab a drink for herself. Some of those boys, of course, happened to have girlfriends who were very annoyed at the blatant disrespect. But Camille didn't notice, choosing to grab her drink instead.

                             Eleanor was playing a game of Wizard's Chess against her brother, Elijah, and his friends. And it was obvious by the sour looks on their faces that she was winning. Violet was dancing with Arthur, much to the annoyance of one Otto Mulciber who didn't look pleased that the girl he was supposed to be marrying was dancing with someone else. Ophelia was shamelessly sitting on the lap of another boy, flirting with him without much care or shame. But then again, Ophelia did whatever she wanted with whosoever she desired.

                          Camille waved over at Orion and Walburga, the newest couple as of late. Although they were second cousins, they were set to marry after school was over. Walburga seemed to love him as did Orion with her, despite the fact that they were blood. But such customs were seen as normal and even enforced to keep the bloodline pure. It was something Camille could never fathom doing. At least with Cygnus and Druella, it was a little different. They looked close as well, although Druella didn't seem to care too much for her own husband-to-be. They barely knew each other, their parents arranging their entire relationship.

                         Camille felt bad for the both of them.

                          But while she looked around the party, she couldn't see any sign of Tom. It was still early and there was a chance that he was going to show up. Camille was determined to remain hopeful no matter what. So when she felt a tap on her shoulder, Camille smiled and turned around - hoping that it was Tom. Instead, it was a boy she recognized right away.

                           Louis Augustine was on the Slytherin quidditch team and a very exceptional player. He had brought the house many victories, making him a bit of a celebrity around school. "Camille?"

                           "Louis. Oh, you startled me a little," Camille responded with a soft chuckle. "How have you been? Are your parents doing well?"

                           "They're doing fine," Louis responds, his smile faltering slightly. His mother had recently fallen ill and while her chances of recovering didn't look too good, it seemed as though his family was remainin hopeful regardless. "And I'm doing fine as well. You look absolutely beautiful, by the way."

                           "Thank you," Camille smiles.

                           "But then again, you always do," Louis remarked.

                            More soft giggles leave Camille's lips at Louis' compliments. She had to admit that he was quite charming with his sandy blonde hair, blue eyes, and boyish charm which helped him to be so popular. "As flattered as I am, I wonder if you only came over here to shower me with compliments all night."

                            "No, I was actually wondering if I could ask you out," Louis admitted.

                            "Me?" Camille inquired.

                            "Yes... Unless there's another version of you wandering around here sometimes. On second thought, I forgot there is," Louis snorted.

                             The sound of laughter draws Camille's attention and she turns over to see Tom standing there. Her heart skips a beat, only to shatter when she realizes that he was talking with Violet. The two of them seemed to be quite close in conversation, Violet giggling at something he says. She turns to look at Camille, sending her a grin which makes Camille's heart sink to the pit of her stomach.

                              "Camille?" Louis called her name, causing Camille to look back at him.

                              "Oh, um... Well, I'm sure Victoire wouldn't be too accepting of your offer. She doesn't care for Quidditch," Camille replied, her mind utterly distracted by thoughts of Tom and Violet now.

                             Louis shrugs. "There's not a lot of things she actually cares for."

                            "That's not true," Camille argues in defense of her sister, "She does enjoy reading. She's intelligent, far smarter than I could ever be."

                            "I suppose you're right. I always do feel stupid whenever she's around," Louis replied.

                            Camille chuckles. "You're not alone. I don't understand half of the things she says sometimes."

                             "So, um, about that date?" Louis questioned, steering the conversation back to the most important subject.

                            "Oh, uh, that's very kind of you, Louis. But as flattered as I am, I don't think I could accept your offer," Camille shook her head.

                            She was upset by seeing Violet and Tom so close, her hopes of winning the bet slowly growing smaller and smaller. Still, Camille's heart shattered when she saw the dejected look on Louis's face. Camille hated having to let people down and disappoint them. Victoire often complained that Camille was too much of a people pleaser. But Camille knew that she wouldn't be able to have Tom all to herself if she were to start going out with Louis.

                           "I'm so sorry," Camille then apologized.

                           "You don't need to apologize. It's fine," Louis assured her with a shake of his head.

                           "I'm sure there'll be another girl who'd be dying to go out with you, Louis," Camille reasoned.

                            "There you are, Louis!" Daisy Montgomery exclaimed, causing Camille and Louis to glance up at the brunette.

                             Daisy had gained a reputation for being a whore around campus. Rumors about her promiscuity ran wild and lots of people even said that she got paid to sleep with boys. Camille didn't know if that last part was true, but she did know that Daisy did little to put an end to the rumors. It almost seemed like she was... proud of them.

                             "I was looking for you. I was hoping that we could talk, unless you're busy with Camille," Daisy replied, looking over at Camille briefly before back at Louis.

                             "No, actually, I was just finishing up," Louis answered. "It was nice talking to you, Camille."

                             "You as well," Camille smiled at him.

                              Daisy smiled before she grabbed Louis's hand, leading him away. Camille sighs before she looks over at Tom and Violet again, seeing them still engrossed in conversation. She storms off, finishing the rest of her drink before grabbing another, deciding to walk around the party and remain as far away from Violet as possible. She suddenly wished that she had talked to Tom a lot sooner, feeling foolish for waiting for him to make the first move.

                               Maybe she could've avoided such a crushing loss.

                              Just as Camille planned on walking towards Eleanor to hang out with her friend, a familiar figure stepped in front of her and Camille quickly paused - nearly spilling her drink in the process.

                             "Theodore? What are you doing here? How did you get in here?" Camille questioned, shocked and confused.

                            "I bribed a first year for the password. You didn't think you could throw a party without inviting me, did you? I love parties. You and I had plenty of fun at parties, remember?" Theodore responded.

                           "Yes, in the past. But now, I should hope that you find someone else to have fun at those parties with you," Camille replied, beginning to walk away. But Theodore stepped in front of her, blocking her path.

                            "You know I won't be able to have fun with anyone except for you. There's no one else for me, Milly," Theodore responded.

                            "Theodore," Camille sighed. She really wasn't in the mood for this and she wondered just how much worse this party could get.

                            "I know that you're doing this because everyone else told you to. You felt pressured since we come from different worlds and therefore could never work. But we don't have to listen to them, Milly. We can prove them all wrong," Theodore continued, ranting like a mad man at that point.

                           As much as Camille didn't want to hurt Theodore's feelings, she was also starting to get annoyed. Camille tried to break the news to him gently, but he obviously wasn't getting the hint. Camille didn't know how to make it more obvious to Theodore that their relationship was over.

                         "Theodore, I suggest you leave. You aren't wanted here, and I don't want a fight to break out between you and one of my friends. We can talk about this later," Camille warned as she tried walking away from him again.

                        Theodore grabbed Camille's arm, pulling her back towards him. "I'd prefer we talk about it now."

                       "Let go of my arm," Camille gasped.

                       "Milly -," Theodore began to say.

                        "I think she told you to let go of her."

                        Both Camille and Theodore turned around, seeing Tom standing right next to them. Camille smiled, happy that Tom had shown up to her rescue. Theodore, of course, was upset at the interruption. But he let go of Camille's arm anyway, glaring at Tom instead. He was far from happy at the interruption.

                       "Unless you want to be scrubbing the entirety of Headmaster Dippet's office every day for a month, I suggest you leave this party. You're clearly not welcome here," Tom added. It was more than just a threat.

                      They both knew that Tom was more than capable of punishing Theodore if he saw fit. And everyone would take Tom's side rather than Theodore's, regardless of Theodore's innocence or guilt.

                      Theodore looked over at Camille for help, but she was silent, now sticking by Tom's side. Theodore huffed before storming out of the common room. This was now the second time that Theodore had been aggressive towards Camille. It was frightening, seeing as how he hadn't exhibited this kind of behavior back when they were dating. Perhaps the fact that he had lost Camille was enough to push him to his breaking point.

                       "Thank you for helping me. You're my knight in shining armor," Camille replied with a small, grateful smile, "I don't know what that was about. He's never acted like that before."

                       "You don't need to thank me. Boys like him are nothing but trouble. If he ever bothers you again, do not hesitate to let me know," Tom replied, resting a hand on her shoulder. The skin he touched felt as though it had burst into flames the moment she felt his fingers reside there.

                       Camille nodded, a dreamy look in her eyes as she glanced up at the boy only a couple inches taller than her. "I saw you earlier, with Violet. I'm surprised you showed up."

                        "I knew you were going to be here so I decided to stop by for a little while. Even though this is completely against the rules -," Tom began to say.

                       "Thank you, for showing up. I was hoping you would be here," Camille cut him off.

                        Tom lightly chuckled. "That's funny, since I was hoping you would be here. I wanted to see you again."

                        "You did?" Camille could've fallen to her knees right then and there.

                       "Ever since we first talked, I wanted to see you again. But I didn't have the time. I was so busy but I knew I just had to see you. So I kept asking Abraxas about you. Little things but enough to make sure I didn't seem like an idiot when I saw you again," Tom confessed.

                         "Abraxas didn't tell me a thing," Camille looked over at Abraxas still playing chess against Eleanor. She'd definitely get on him later.

                        "I specifically made sure he didn't. I didn't want him to spoil the surprise," Tom explained.

                        "You have a surprise for me? You really are the sweetest boy in all of Hogwarts," Camille chuckled.

                         "Sweet enough for you to go on a date with?" Tom inquired. There was the surprise.

                          Camille gasped. "A date? You're asking me rather than Violet?"

                          "Why would I ask Violet out on a date?" Tom scoffed.

                          "No reason," Camille quickly answers with a chuckle.

                          "Slughorn's already starting off the year with another one of his parties. It's happening next week. They're terribly boring but with you by my side, I know that it'll be ten times better," Tom explained.

                          It was no surprise that Tom was a part of the Slug Club, held by Professor Slughorn himself. The potions professor was notorious for his favoritism towards either rich or just highly intelligent students. The parents of the rich students made sure to buy him gifts due to his special treatment towards their children, so that was a bonus. Slughorn knew exactly who to befriend, able to elevate his status just a little. Camille found it to be a little pathetic, but she would never be cruel enough to say that to his face. Plus, Victoire was also a member, so she had no choice but to keep her opinions about the man to herself.

                         "Of course! Yes, I'll go with you," Camille quickly answered, smiling from ear to ear from excitement.

                        "Good. Now I'm suddenly eager to go to his dreadful party after all," Tom smiled with her.

                       "I feel so special," Camille confessed. She was the only girl Tom had ever publicly asked out. The only girl he ever thought about taking to one of Slughorn's parties. For Camille, this was a high honor.

                         "Well, you are very special. And I know I'd be pretty foolish to let you slip away from my grasp this time," Tom responded.

                         "This time?" Camille repeated. "Did that mean you wanted to ask me out before?"

                        "I always noticed you, Camille. How could I not? You're absolutely breathtaking but I admired from afar since there never seemed to be a right moment. You were never alone. But now that you are, I figured now was a good time to seize my opportunity and get to know you much better," Tom explained. He was telling Camille everything that she wanted to hear, and she happily devoured his compliments and words of praise.

                            "I look forward to that too," Camille nodded before glancing down at her drink, eyes widening slightly. "Oh, where are my manners? Did you want a drink or anything? We can sit down on the couch over there and talk some more. I'll kick Ophelia and her latest boyfriend off if there's not enough space.

                          "As lovely as that sounds, I'm afraid I should get going. I came here for you and now that I asked you what I needed to, it's best I go to bed. School starts back tomorrow," Tom denied.

                          "And yet you couldn't sleep without seeing me first," Camille replied.

                          "Precisely," Tom nodded.

                         Camille smiled as she felt her heart do backflips in her rib cage. Camille knew she had felt something between them. He liked her just as much as she liked him. "Well, as sad as I am to see you leave, I guess I have no choice but to let you go."

                          "I'll see you very soon, Camille," Tom grabbed a hold of her free hand, kissing the back of it gently. She felt a shiver go down her spine and a soft, dreamy giggle fell past her lips when he let go of her hand.

                         "You as well, Tom," Camille responded.

                         The girl watched as Tom made his way towards the boys' dormitory so he could retire for the night. Even though the night had started off disappointingly, it was shaping up to be the best night of Camille's life. After an entire week of nearly losing her mind, Camille had finally gotten the answers that she had been waiting for. How could Victoire possibly think there was something wrong with Tom? Tom was so soft spoken, so gentle yet protective and caring. He was smart and it helped immensely that he was more handsome than the other boys Camille had dated in the past. Tom Riddle was the perfect lover for her in every way.

                          Camille then looks over at Violet who had been watching the scene a distance away with a frown on her face. The blonde walks towards her friend, smiling from ear to ear now, as she stood next to her to deliver the final crushing blow.

                           "Tom's asked me to be his date to Slughorn's upcoming party," Camille remarked. "I guess this means I win after all. But... at least you have Arthur to keep you company."

                            And with that, Camille saunters away - feeling victorious against a seething Violet.

( 👱‍♀️💘🍒 ) 

word count: 3025
notes: so camille won the bet, but at what cost? let me know what you all thought and the next chapter shall be up soon!