1992 - Second Year

It had been weeks since Hermione had spoken to Draco. She had decided that the best way not to think about him was to pretend like he didn't exist at all, which was proving to be quite difficult. She shared most of her lessons with him and he was now on the Slytherin Quidditch Team. Which meant even when she went to watch Harry play his most recent game he was there, flying around on Harry's tail. He was even hospitalised after the same Quidditch match, meaning he was also there when Hermione went to visit Harry, however, she prevailed and continued to pretend like he didn't exist.

After their History of Magic class where Professor Binns had told everyone about the legend of the Chamber of Secrets, Harry, Ron, and Hermione went straight to the books. They needed to find out more information on what the monster was that was potentially making its way around the school. After Harry's arm had healed properly from the unfortunate incident during the Quidditch match against the Slytherins, the group of three searched high and low for answers. The three Gryffindors sat in the library, where they were most days, going over old content when Ron decided he had finally had enough.

"Guys, I'm getting a strong sense of déjà vu right now. This feels like the hunt for information on the Philosophers Stone all over again," Ron complained. Harry put down the book he was flicking through and sighed, nodding in agreement with Ron while Hermione stayed focus on the page she was currently reading.

"There must be some other way we can find out information. We don't have much to go off other than the story Professor Binns told us, which when you think about it, wasn't a great deal. We don't know what the monster is, where the chamber is, if it even exists or who this Heir of Slytherin might be," Harry said as he closed the book he had been pretending to read for the past half an hour or so.

"I bet I know who would know something," Ron told Harry. They'd accepted that Hermione wasn't listening to their conversation and moved away from the table to sit by the window,

"Who?"

"Malfoy."

'Brilliant, I can't even escape him when I'm with Harry and Ron,' Hermione thought as she closed her book and looked at her friends. Ron and Harry exchanged worried looks like they had just been told off by Hermione's slamming of the book.

"It was just a suggestion, 'Mione, I know he makes your blood boil," Ron said as he moved back to sit on the table with Hermione.

"You're not wrong," Hermione told him.

"He makes my blood boil too," Harry said.

"No that's not what I meant, although that is true. I meant he probably would know something, but he's not exactly going to tell us is he?" Hermione said to them both. She kept her eyes down at the table as she spoke, there was a time when she would be able to ask him. There was a time when she could simply send him a note to meet her in their little room and she could comfortably discuss these issues with him, but that time had passed.

"If only there was a way we could trick him into telling us something," Ron said before he sighed and rested his head on his arms on the table in front of him. It suddenly dawned on Hermione that what Ron was suggesting wasn't actually too out of the question, there was perhaps a way they could trick Draco into telling them something.

"Ron you're a genius!" Hermione exclaimed as she stood up and walked away from the table. Ron looked over at Harry, confusion splashed across their faces before they both stood up and followed Hermione.

"The Polyjuice Potion, of course," Hermione mumbled to herself as she read through the pages, searching for what she needed.

"The Poly-what?" Harry asked.

"The Polyjuice Potion. With the correct ingredients, it allows the drinker to transform into anyone they chose."

"Wicked," Ron said.

"It's tricky though, not to mention we'll be breaking about 50 school rules," Hermione added, Ron's grin was short-lived.

"How long does it take to brew?" Harry asked, ignoring the comment about the school rules.

Hermione screwed her face in disappointment, "About a month."

"A month!? Hermione, half the muggleborns in the school could be attacked by then!"

"I know... But its the only option we've got," Hermione shrugged, moving back to the table. She reached into her bag and removed some parchment and a quill and began to write. Once she had finished scribbling down she passed both Harry and Ron scraps of parchment.

"Both of you focus on getting these ingredients, I'll do the rest. We'll start brewing the potion tomorrow in the girl's toilets on the first floor. I'll see you both later." She finished, packed up her belongings and left.

"She's one of a kind that one," Ron said, shaking his head as he watched her leave. Harry simply nodded and looked down at his list, where was he supposed to find leeches?

~X~

Hermione sat in the middle of the girl's toilets adding ingredients into a cauldron, occasionally stirring when necessary. Harry sat close by reading through the same books they had been looking at for weeks, whilst Ron stood leaning against a toilet cubical and examined their location.

"Enlighten me, why are we brewing this potion in broad daylight, in the middle of the girl's toilets? Don't you think we will get caught?" Ron asked, his question making Hermione chuckle.

"No, no one ever comes in here," she laughed, confusing Ron further.

"Why?"

"Moaning Myrtle," Hermione answered.

"Who?"

"Moaning Myrtle."

"Who's moaning Myrtle?" Ron asked once more.

"I'm Moaning Myrtle!" A nasally voice answered, startling him and forcing him to turn around to confront the owner. His face paled as he saw the ghost of what was clearly a former student of Hogwarts hovering not three feet away from him. Thankfully for Ron, she glided away from him and moved towards the sinks before she turned around to face the group once more.

"I wouldn't expect you to know me. Who would ever talk about ugly, miserable, moping, Moaning Myrtle?" The ghost let out a high pitched cry before she flew down into a cubical, crashing into the toilet with a splash. Ron turned back to Harry and Hermione, shocked at what he had just witnessed.

"That's why," Hermione said and smiled at Ron who had finally closed his mouth and straightened himself up.

"So Harry, you said this House Elf-"

"Dobby. His name is Dobby, Ron," Hermione interrupted.

"Sorry, you say this Dobby is the reason you didn't receive any of our letters over the holidays?" Ron asked.

Harry nodded, "And he's also the reason we missed the train coming to school."

"But why is he doing all of this, I don't understand. What is he trying to protect you from?" Ron asked. The question was mostly rhetorical, he knew Harry didn't have the answer.

"I'm not sure, but this time he mentioned that someone was trying to open the Chamber of Secrets again," Harry added.

"Again? You mean someone has opened it before?" Hermione asked this time.

"Of course! Don't you see, Lucius Malfoy must've opened it when he was at school here, and now he's taught Malfoy how to do it," Ron scrunched up his face as he put the pieces together in his head.

"Maybe, but we will have to wait for the Polyjuice potion to know for sure," Hermione replied. She knew Ron had his heart set on Draco having some involvement in this plot against muggleborns. She still had hope that he had nothing to do with this, she would need concrete evidence against him. She frowned into the cauldron and continued to stir and add ingredients.

~X~

Another week had passed since the three Gryffindor's started to brew their potion. Hermione had checked on it every day to make sure it was progressing exactly how the book described, each time pleased with herself at the result.

Hermione followed closely behind Harry and Ron as they made their way back to the common room after their DADA lesson. Harry and Draco had a duel that resulted in a snake being fired from Draco's wand and Snape having to dispose of it. Yet another eventful lesson with Professor Lockheart. Harry was still trying to understand the reaction he got from his classmates at the end of the lesson, nothing was making sense to him. Hermione could tell he wasn't aware of what he had just done.

"It doesn't make sense Ron, why was Justin so angry? All I did was ask the snake not to attack him," Harry said as he walked through the portrait leading into the Gryffindor common room.

"Oh, that's what you said," Ron replies.

"What d'you mean? You were right there, you heard me," Harry stopped and turned to Ron with a confused expression written across his face.

Hermione had finally caught up with them and stood by panting as she tried to regain her breath. Although there wasn't much of a height difference between the three of them, she still struggled to keep up with their strides.

"I heard you speaking parseltongue, snake language," Ron told a very dumbfounded Harry who shook his head as he listened to Ron.

"I spoke a different language? But I didn't realise..." Harry started, getting more and more confused by the situation, "How can I speak another language without knowing I can?" He looked at Hermione, hoping one of the many books she read would help in the situation.

"I don't know Harry, but it sounded like you were egging the snake on or something," she told him, her words didn't comfort him as she continued, "Harry listen to me - there is a reason the Slytherin house is a serpent, Salazar Slytherin was a Parselmouth too,"

"Exactly! And now the whole school is going to think that you're his great great great grandson or something!" Ron added.

"But I'm not! I can't be..." Harry protested.

"He lived a thousand years ago, for all we know you could be," Hermione told him.

Harry looked down at his feet as he tried to take in what his friends had just said, still unable to accept that he was speaking another language without realising. He moved towards the table in the common room and sat down. Hermione looked towards Ron as he shrugged at her, at a complete loss on what to say.

"Hey, Harry, why don't we go to the study hall and go over that Charms homework you and Ron have been struggling on?" Hermione suggested.

"'Mione, can't you see Harry is having a nervous breakdown right now? He doesn't want to go and study," Ron whined, Hermione nudged her elbow into his ribs making him crease over slightly before looking back at Harry,

"No that might be what I need, studying will take my mind off things. Let's go," Harry said without a second glance at his friends before he stepped out of the common room.

After an hour of being in the library and enduring the stares he was receiving from the many students in the study hall, Harry decided he had finally had enough and slammed his book closed, making Hermione jump.

"I'll meet you guys back at the common room," he told her, Ron nodded at him and watched him leave the hall in a huff, with multiple sets of eyes following Harry's movements.

"D'you think he'll be ok?" Ron whispered to Hermione.

She simply shrugged her shoulders and went back to her studying. Truth be told, Hermione didn't think he would be ok. Everything seemed too coincidental for it not to be true, she remembered how he had to argue with the sorting hat to be put into Gryffindor, how he had heard the voices the night Mrs. Norris was petrified, the more recent events only added to the suspicion. Hermione closed her book slowly and said bye to Ron before she too left the study hall. She was determined to check on the potion once more, they desperately needed answers.

~X~

"Hey look, everyone, it's the heir of Slytherin!" Fred shouted as he walked across the courtyard with his brother.

"Be careful, he's a seriously evil wizard!" George added.

"Shut up guys, nows not the time!" Ron piped up. The twins looked at one another and then back at Ron, both standing straight and staring at their younger brother with worried expressions on their faces.

"Yes, Ron."

"Right away."

"Whatever you say," George said, with Fred nodding alongside.

"Why are you guys being weirder than usual?" Hermione asked.

"We wouldn't want Ron to hurt us," George said.

"What George means to say is, we wouldn't want him to set the Heir of Slytherin on us."

"Yeah, imagine being frozen in the same position for the rest of your life," George finished talking by freezing on the spot in an awkward position and Fred mirrored him.

As usual, Ron grew tired of his brother's jokes and picked up some snow off the ground, curling it in his hands and launching the ball he made towards Fred. He imagined he would stay still like the statue he was pretending to be but instead, he dodged it quickly. The snowball continued to fly through the air until it finally landed, hitting Draco square in the face.

Wiping his face and immediately standing up, Draco glared at Ron, Crabbe, and Goyle stood up at either side of him.

"Uh-oh," Fred said as he turned to Ron.

"Now look what you've done," George added.

Before Ron had the chance to say anything, he was hit in the face with a snowball, thrown by Blaise who was preparing his next. Ron looked towards Harry who gave him the nod to confirm a snowball fight was about to break out in the courtyard.

Hermione wasn't sure of who threw the next snowball before she cowered away, trying to take cover from the hundreds of snowballs being launched around. She wasn't aware of the figure shielding her, to begin with until she realised she hadn't been hit for a while. She turned to see who's body was positioned in front of her, protecting her from any further attacks.

"Don't worry, 'Mione! I've got your back!" Fred shouted above the laughter and playful screams of children throwing snow. Soon enough, every house had joined in until eventually the few Slytherin that remained in the courtyard fled to safety as it dawned on them that they were seriously outnumbered.

"Thank you, Fred," Hermione said as she watched him brush off the remaining snow from his hair.

"No worries," he smiled at her and joined George as they walked back through the castle. Hermione made her way over to Harry and Ron, still laughing from the snowball fight.

"That was a nice bit of distraction!" Ron chuckled, wiping snow off his body. Harry nodded before his face fell once more, it had been a nice distraction, but now he had to return to reality.

"Come on Harry, Fred and George were only joking around before," Ron said as he realised he had reminded his friend why he needed a distraction in the first place.

"They're the only ones," Harry sighed.

"Okay, so half the school thinks you're nipping off to the Chamber of Secrets every night, who cares?"

"Maybe they're right," Harry said before he turned and walked away from his friends.

"Harry... Harry!" Hermione shouted after him as she and Ron hurried to catch up with him. She sighed heavily as he ignored her and continued walking, "Oh come on!" she snapped.

"I didn't know I could speak parseltongue! What else don't I know about myself? Look, all I'm saying is, maybe you can do something, something terrible... And not know you did it," he said as he looked back at his friends, genuine worry written across his face.

"You don't believe that Harry, I know you don't," Hermione replied, "and, if it makes you feel any better, Malfoy is staying for the holidays too."

"Why would that make anyone feel better?" Ron asked confused.

"Because in a few days the Polyjuice potion will be ready. In a few days, we may truly know who the heir of Slytherin is," Hermione told them both.

Ron looked back at Harry who seemed to relax slightly by this. Both of the boys had momentarily forgotten that Hermione was brewing the potion, but this was the news they needed to lift their spirits. After Justin Finch-Fletchley had been the third victim to be petrified, shortly after his incident with Harry in DADA, the whole school was forced to believe that Harry was the Heir of Slytherin and he was attacking Muggleborns throughout the school. They needed answers, and they needed them soon.

~X~

Harry and Ron sat in the great hall for supper, Ron was stuffing his face with food whilst Harry read over the Gryffindor Quidditch Team tactics Oliver had supplied him with. Neither one had realised when Hermione had joined them, placing herself directly opposite and clearing her throat to get their attention.

"Everything's set," she started, "we just need a bit of who you're are changing into."

"Crabbe and Goyle," Harry spoke.

"We also need to make sure that the real Crabbe and Goyle can't burst in on us while we're interrogating Malfoy."

"How?" Ron asked with a mouthful of food.

"I've got it all worked out," Hermione said as she reached into her satchel and pulled out two small cupcakes, "I filled these with a simple Sleeping Draught, simple but powerful."

She placed the cupcakes in front of Harry and Ron before continuing, "Now, once they're asleep you'll need to hide them in the broomstick cupboard, then pull out a few of their hairs, and put on their uniforms."

"Who's hair are you ripping out then?!" Ron asked her,

"I've already got mine, Milicent Bulstrode, Slytherin. I got this off her robes," Hermione answered as she held up a small vial with hair inside. "I'm going to go and check on the Polyjuice Potion, make sure that Crabbe and Goyle find these," she pointed towards the cupcakes once more before she left.

~X~

Draco wandered aimlessly through the castle, trying to avoid returning to the common room. Blaise has taken up badgering him on the ins and outs of the meetings he had attended with his father over the summer and Draco was beginning to lose his patience with him.

Without realising where he was going, his mind had subconsciously taken him to his family's room where he stood frozen looking up at the dragon statue. He hadn't been to this room since his fight with Hermione. He hadn't performed the spell to remove her access because, although he didn't want to see her, he didn't want to take away this room from her. He knew her well enough to know how important this room had been to her, she once described it as her favourite place in the castle, which given her love for the library, it was clear the room meant something to her.

Draco inhaled and pushed past the veils behind the dragon, entering the room for the first time in weeks. It felt cold and empty. He flicked his wand towards the fire and it immediately roared and brought light to the room. As far as Draco could tell, this room had been vacant for weeks. The pit in his stomach grew as he realised Hermione had also been absent from this room since their fight. She had avoided it just like he had, that was when he recognised he really was alone in there.

He looked towards the window seat and his heart skipped as he remembered the last time he sat there with Hermione. They had been curled up beneath the blankets as they read together, enjoying the company in peacefulness until Hermione broke the silence as usual.

"Draco?" Hermione asked as she put aside her book.

"Hmm?" He responded without looking up at her, she often asked questions when she was reading a book. Some were short and simple, whilst others started a discussion about hypothetical situations where the world was a different place. Draco had gotten to the point where he didn't see the need to look up from his book until he knew for sure his full attention was required.

"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?" Like this question for instance. Draco looked at Hermione as he part closed his book, keeping his finger between the pages to prevent losing his spot.

"That's a bit of a deep question Hermione, we are only 12," he commented puzzlingly.

"I'm 13 I'll have you know," She crossed her arms and continued, "I don't mean exactly where do you see yourself, we are both too young to know exactly where we will be. What I meant was, what do you want to be when you grow up?" She rephrased the question and sat upright, waiting for his reply.

"Again, I'm not sure. Father will no doubt want me to join the family business. We have cousins in Germany and he's in the process of getting them on-boarded with plans to expand the company. Therefore, my presence after school could be required in another country," Draco told her and she nodded politely.

"That's very interesting," Hermione started, "but I asked what do you want?"

Draco put down his book and shifted in his seat, tucking the quilt in around him as he looked out of the window, pondering on the answer to Hermione's question. Nobody had ever really asked him what he wanted, everything had just been expected of him. His life had been mapped out for him by his father and he'd never really considered a different route.

"I'd like to be an Auror," Draco answered. He surprised himself with this answer, he hadn't realised himself until he said the words out loud how much he had wanted it. Hermione smiled at his honesty and crossed her legs in excitement and she pressed on for more details.

"Do they work for the Ministry? Are they like the police?" She asked.

"Yes and no. They are part of the Ministry, but they're not the police. An Auror is a member of highly trained specialist officers within the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, it takes great power and strength to be an Auror. It also takes a lot of bravery which is something I lack."

"Yeah you were a bit of a scaredy-cat in the Forbidden Forest that night we had detention," Hermione joked.

"Hey! There's a difference between bravery and stupidity, any normal person would run away from screaming, especially something screaming in the Forbidden Forest! But not Gryffindor's, oh no, they run towards the screaming," Draco scoffed and shook his head.

"So if this is what you want to do, why do I get the feeling you aren't going to pursue it as an option when you graduate?" Hermione asked, ignoring his comment about Gryffindor's.

"Because it's not an option for me."

"Why not?"

"Hermione you must've heard stories about my father, surely? The friends he has, the people he holds close to him, the overall company he keeps? They're all Dark Wizards, they're all people Aurors are trained to hunt and lock up in Azkaban. It's not something I could consider being in the position that I'm in. My father is already having me attend meetings and he will have me at even more throughout the holidays, no doubt."

Draco ranted at her, Hermione's face falling as he went on, "I just have to accept what comes my way, maybe if I'd been born in a different world, lived a different life. Maybe then I'd be able to become an Auror but not in this lifetime," he sighed and looked down at his hands.

Hermione wasn't sure what to say to him, nothing she could say would comfort him. She didn't understand the way his family worked, how the pureblood traditions factored into every decision he made, but she knew nothing she said would change any of it so she just had to accept it. Instead, she moved closer to him and curled up to his side, resting her head on his lap. This was something that felt so natural to both of them now that neither one of them flinched at their proximity when she did it. Hermione reached over and grabbed the book he had been reading and passed it to him, gesturing for him to read it out loud.

"But we aren't reading this book together," Draco said.

"I don't care. I'm tired and the sound of your voice puts me to sleep," she replied as she pulled the quilt up higher, tucking herself in.

"Thanks, my voice is boring then?" Draco asked as he chuckled.

"You know that's not what I meant, now shut up and read," she said, and so he did.

*

Draco blinked, breaking his trance he had found himself in as he'd stared at the window seat. It all seemed like so long ago now. He would give anything to go back to the way things were, to have his friend back but then so much had happened since then to change it all. He didn't see a way of them ever going back.

He moved towards the fire and sat on the sofa, unable to bring himself to sit by the window. Draco watched the flames dance around, the warmth of the fire radiating through his body, making his eyes heavy until eventually, he fell asleep.

~X~

Draco woke slightly disorientated whilst his eyes adjusted to the room, it had been so long since he had woken up in his family's room that it no longer felt familiar to him. He sat up, straightening his back as his neck creaked, it felt stiff from sleeping in such an uncomfortable position.

As he stood he glanced around once more and waved his wand to put out the flames before leaving the room. He could feel his mood had plummeted after being in the empty room. He walked through the castle, making his way to the Slytherin common room as he'd put it off for long enough. As he approached the corner the sound of Percy Weasley's voice filled his ears and he froze as he listened closely.

"-You, on the other hand, have no business roaming the corridors at this time of night," Percy said, "What're your names again?"

Draco heard the familiar mumbling of his friends, he rolled his eyes and continued on his route, turning the corner.

"Crabbe, Goyle, where have you two been? Pigging out in the hall all this time?" Draco asked as he made his way towards the group, staring at Goyle in confusion, "Why are you wearing glasses?"

Harry fidgeted uncomfortably as he removed his glasses, mentally kicking himself for not having removed them sooner, "Uh - reading," he stuttered, the only excuse he could come up with.

"Reading? I didn't know you could read.." Draco responded, shrugging it off he turned to Percy and scowled, "And what're you doing down here Weasley?"

"Mind you're attitude Malfoy," Percy said slowly. Draco smirked and pushed passed him, Harry and Ron following close behind as they all made their way to the common room.

"Bit of luck Malfoy found us, I had no clue where we were going," Ron whispered to Harry who shushed him and gestured his head towards Draco who was only a short distance ahead of them. They watched as he muttered the password and followed him into the Slytherin common room.

Both Gryffindors felt uneasy as they realised they were entering enemy territory.

Author Note:

Disclaimer - I do not own the world of Harry Potter, I wish I did, but I don't.

MASSIVE shout out to KoraKunkel for being the best beta!

Hey guys! Hope you're all still enjoying the story so far, sorry about this chapter being shorter than the rest, I've been revising for my exam coming up! I just wanted to say an extra thanks to my Beta for getting this chapter ready for me to post on my birthday, so I hope you've enjoyed it and I'll get cracking on with the next one!