10. The Morning After
Mora felt her eyelids squint open, reluctantly readjusting to the new found light of the morning. The other girl's were startling from their sleep as well, being awakened by a loud, obnoxious pounding on their doorframe.
"Girls! Girls!" she could hear Eric shout from the other side of the door. "Come quick! Someone's dead! Someone's dead!" The tone of his voice was neither rejoiceful nor remorseful. Just, urgent. The girls, now shooting from their beds, stampeded out of the room, anxious the see the news-breaking site. Mora was left alone, somewhat shell shocked in her bed. She felt her entire body prick with a strange, sick feeling.
Did he just say someone's dead?
Terrified, Mora sprung out of bed, bounding down into the common room. She was clad only in her pajamas, instantly feeling a burst of cold air blast her skin. The common room was practically empty, everyone already has gone deep within the castle to see what all the fuss was about. Yet, one person remained in the room.
"Tom," she said, out of breath. Still draped in the same cloths he had worn the day before, Tom's eyes were laced with deep purple bags. His hair sunk messily over his eyes, which also look worn. Mora ran to meet him, nearly tripping in her sudden haste. "Tom, what's going on…what happened? Who...?"
"Mora, just calm down," Tom cooed, stopping Mora's nervous flee of questions.
"Tom…." Mora started again, this time keeping herself together, "Is someone really….dead?" Tom nodded gravely, not sure how to lace his words together to come up with a suitable response.
"And that's where they're all going…..to see?"
"Yes, but I'm not sure you really want to go…." Tom warned. But his words were too late. Mora had already dashed from the common room. Franticly, Tom followed her, making sure she didn't get too far ahead of him. Mora chased after the throngs of students, leading her all the way up to the second floor. As she pushed her way through the mob of people, Mora finally came upon what everyone had been speculating about.
There, sprawled out across the floor tiles of the corridor, was a girl. Still dressed in her Ravenclaw robes, the girl help a mangled expression on her face, her glassy eyes still wide open Her thick, framed glasses lay shattered on the floor beside her. Mora felt a hollow lump form in her throat as she gazed upon the lifeless girl.
A huddle of professors stood beside the girl, Dumbledore kneeling on the ground. "Armando," he began, informally addressing the headmaster, "She's still alive." Murmurs began to flock through the crowd, each stunned, terrified, and in a strange awe all at the same time. A shocked expression grew over Tom's face in particular, not believing what he was hearing.
"She has been petrified," Dumbledore concluded.
"Petrified?" Dippet asked, shocked that something so vile had happened in his school. "Who could have done such a thing?"
"Not a who, headmaster," Dumbledore said, rising to his feet. "But a what."
Tom, who had finally reached Mora, tugged gently on her arm. "C'mon," he whispered into her ear, "You don't want to see this. Let's go back." Taking one last mournful look at the girl, Mora hesitantly let Tom guide her away, departing from the tightly packed mob. Noticing that Mora's entire body was shaking, Tom put his arm around her. Leading her down an empty corridor, the two froze in their places. Mora let out a blood shattering scream, her eyes falling upon the wall directly opposite of them.
The heir of Slytherin has returned to finish his noble works,
Their blood will forever stain the wall of Hogwarts
One by one
The words lay out across the stonewall, their haunting message not being the thing that most startled Mora. They were written in blood. Each letter still dripped down the wall inching to the floor, not even dry yet from when they had been imprinted there. Tom pulled Mora against him, letting her madly shake in his embrace.
"Mora, no one is going to hurt you. I'm here. I'm here," he whispered into her, trying to give her some comfort in this all too distressing morning.
Seconds later, Professor Dippet, along with a few others, raced behind Tom and Mora, awing at the message that now lay before their very eyes. Dippet strode up to the wall, passing the still shuddering Mora. He grazed his hand over the first word, the bloody ink seeping onto his worn skin.
"All students to their houses immediately," he ordered gravely. But no one was able to move. Instead, they stood motionless, gawking at the professor. "NOW!" he bellowed with that same frightening and intimating professional tone, sending the students scrambling back down the corridor, dispersing in different directions. Slowly, Tom led Mora away from the dreadful site, still holding her tightly. He knew his actions would not be taken lightly, but he never expected them to damage Mora this much. Had he just made a grave mistake?