If the walls of Hogwarts could speak.
Hours before the war...
Hello.
You may simply call me Hogwarts. I am the keeper of witches, wizards, (and apparently a basilisk, at one point in my life).
I have decided to confer to you my last memory. Tom Riddle and his array of hoodlums have come to wreck my walls. I haven't much time..
Room of Requirement:
Long before Harry Potter knew of me, there was another boy much like himself. The dark haired boy roamed My halls at night with a blatant disregard for rules. It was amusing.
But come daytime, he walked with a sneer on his face. He never spoke to anyone at all. Students clearly stayed away from the boy. Every day he would climb 2 floors and make 3 precise turns. It was not until he reached a certain empty room, that this boy would unravel. His stone face would give way to an exhausted grimace: black eyes rebelliously holding back tears.
He would use the room to hide. Many days it appeared that his school robes were severely burned. Other days he escaped to this room, to eat lunch. But most days he sat on the floor, repairing torn school work. The boy liked sitting with his back to the wall, eyes closed. It seemed easier to heal from injuries when one was not subject to public humiliation. For so young an age, he seemed exhausted from existing.
Poor boy. I thought I would grant him a service. This Room he so often visited began to transform into whatever he wished. At first, it became a simple bedroom: a place to sleep unharmed. As years went on, this special Room transformed into a cellar of potions. It expanded to accommodate for the many books and magical ingredients he feverishly acquired. The boy was brilliant. Too brilliant. One day, he no longer required the room. He disappeared without a trace.
Many, many years later he returned. He was a man now, with billowy black robes that hid a dark mark. Dark magic would never go un-detected by me. Something darker than the magic seemed to emanate from the lad; pain.
Yes, he returned to me the night that baby Harry received his scar.
Although he was a grown wizard, I still recognized him. With a much faster stride, he nearly flew up 2 staircases and made 3 sharp turns with the precision of a- powerful wizard. Upon entry, the Room waited to transform. It had been many years. Perhaps a bed or an office? Nothing happened. He asked for nothing. He simply cried. His body had broken down onto the floor.
After a long moment I decided it was time to echo the words I'd heard. They were words I wanted to tell him- before he left Me all those years ago. And so the echo came:
"I love him- and if you can't at least be civil, then I swear on Merlin I will no longer see you."
"Is he that important to you Lily?"
"Yes. I would do for Severus, whatever is required, to keep his friendship. I know he would do the same-"
This room. I felt it. He wanted this room to be sealed off. He was burying some part of himself: leaving something behind. And so the entrance obliged and and the Room disappeared.
In the years to come, what would be required of Severus was something beyond the capabilities of the room. I watched over him as A Professor who watched over the students.
I witnessed the return of Tom Riddle. I listened to the discussions and more importantly, the decisions.
One day, Severus walked past my walls- barely audible.
"I...have nothing to require, of myself. I simply ask that you help the boy."
He looked straight ahead as he walked on, trusting that I knew what this meant. Moments later, a horrendous witch in pink robes started decorating me with cats!
This was the beginning of the end.
I was horrified when my Great Hall was turned into a battle ground. It was the last day I saw Severus, his last day as acting Headmaster. During a duel with Minerva, he had Apparated away from my Great Hall and straight into The Room of Requirement (as Harry had named me).
Severus lost his composure the moment he apparated to the Room. He landed with his knees on the floor. His face had been like when I first saw him- a lost child with nowhere to go.
"I beg of you. Please. Help them. All of them. I can no longer-" he gasped, his body had slumped down in agony. He hadn't allowed himself a moment to cry. But I saw it: the snake on his arm was moving. He was being summoned by Tom Riddle, that horrendous little git.
Snape looked to Me one final time. He breathed, "Hogwarts."
And in my own way: I will say goodbye. Headmaster Snape, Half Blood Prince, and sole Master of The Room of Requirement.
Why should these be my final words? I should only think it obvious that I, Hogwarts, am very fond of the Boy who loved.
Sincerely
HSWW
P.S.
Third Floor Corridor is not nearly as dangerous as as it seems. Don't believe everything Albus says. Just like my staircases, things are never as they appear.