Bold*- parstletongue
Italics - thoughts
"Normal"- speech and narrative
Chapter 33: Potter Has The Diary?!?!
14/2/1993
~~~~~~~~~
It was valentines day and there was yet to be more attacks. Granger was in the hospital wing for whatever reason but she was not petrified. Cassandra was getting suspicious. The Weasley girl seemed less jumpy and it was getting worrying - was the diary not working anymore? She seriously doubted it but it was the only thing Cass could think for a reason.
"Happy Valentines Cass!" Said Daphne and Pansy as she entered the common room.
"You too! Also Happy Valentines boys!" She said giving them each a peck on the cheek. Blaise was last and after she kissed his he picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder. The others laughed as they followed the two out of the dungeon to the Great Hall.
Before anyone could spot them Blaise put her down and slung an arm round her shoulder grinning.
The group entered the great hall and their smiles turned instantly to a grimace. The walls were all covered with large, lurid pink flowers and heart-shaped confetti was falling from the pale blue ceiling.
They walked over to the Slytherin table where the rest of the house had stone faced expressions, looking like they were going to throw up.
"Look" said Flora Carrow as they sat with her and her sister, Hestia. "Up at the teachers table! I can't believe him."
Lockhart, wearing lurid pink robes to match the decorations, was waving for silence. Cassandra nearly burst out laughing at the sight of her Uncles face. Mcgonagall's was a right sight as well.
"Happy Valentine's Day!" Gilderoy shouted. "And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards!" Looking around Cass could tell not a single Slytherin was part of that number. "Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all - and it doesn't end here!"
He clapped his hands and through the doors to the entrance hall marched a dozen surly-looking dwarfs. Not just any dwarfs, however. Lockhart had them all wearing golden wings and carrying harps.
"My friendly, card-carrying cupids!" beamed Lockhart. "They will be roving around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn't stop here! I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter into the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly old dog!"
Professor Flitwick buried his face in his hands. Draco leant over and whispered in Cass's ear, "anyone who asks Sev for a Love Potion will be force-fed poison."
She giggled.
Half way through breakfast a 'cupid' approached her. "Cassandra Riddle, got told to give you this singing valentine."
She looked at the creature curiously and it started singing.
"Hair as dark as a raven,
Mind as clever as a fox,
Being in her presence is a haven,
Her and her luscious locks.
Eyes as shining as the sun,
Smile as bright as the moon,
With her you have won,
By the way this is for the brooms" it then blew her a kiss.
The whole table was staring at her as were a few people around the hall. They didn't dare laugh. Cass turned to the creature, "thank you, you may go now!"
It bowed it's head and left. Soon enough everyone stopped starting and she caught two people's eyes. She grinned and the Weasley twins winked in return. She hadn't managed to talk to them since before Christmas so she knew this was the only way to thank her.
You see, she had bought both Fred and George Nimbus 2001's. She had been upset when everyone made fun of their brooms (especially when they could not help their families choice at being a disgrace) and knew they were too - so she did something about it.
Soon the Slytherins finished their meal and they left the Great Hall for their first lesson.
All day long, the dwarfs kept barging into their classes to deliver valentines, to the annoyance of the teachers, and late that afternoon when they were walking downstairs from their previous Charms lesson, they saw a dwarf attack Potter.
"Oy, you! Arry Potter!" It shouted, elbowing people out of the way to get to Harry.
Cass laughed as the boy turned red and tried to walk quickly to get away from it. The dwarf, however, cut his way through the crowd by kicking people's shins, and reached him before he'd gone two paces.
"I've got a musical message to deliver to Arry Potter in person," he said, twanging his harp.
"Not here," She heard the Gryffindor hiss.
"Stay still!" grunted the dwarf, grabbing hold of Potter's bag and pulling him back.
"Let me go!" The boy snarled, tugging.
With a loud ripping noise, his bag split in two. His books, wand, parchment, and quill spilled onto the floor and his ink bottle smashed over everything.
Beside her Draco was shaking with laughter and she could hear the others laughing too. She grabbed onto the person too her right, who just so happened to be Theo, and leaned against him to stop herself falling to the ground - she was laughing so much she thought her legs may give way. Theo wrapped his arms round her to keep her steady, also laughing.
They watched Harry scramble around, trying to pick it all up, causing something of a holdup in the corridor.
Draco then motioned for them to come with him, smirking. They made their way closer to the scene, Cass still wrapped in Theo's arms.
"What's going on here?" Her cousin stated in a cold, drawling voice. Potter started stuffing everything more feverishly into his ripped bag.
"Why doesn't he just repair it?" Whispered Pansy as the Prefect Weasley arrived. Cass and Daphne shared a grin and answered at the same time, "he's an idiot!"
"What's all this commotion?" Percy Weasley asked.
Potter seemed to try and make another run for it, but the dwarf seized him around the knees and brought him crashing to the floor.
"Right," he said, sitting on Harry's ankles.
"Here is your singing valentine:
His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,
His hair is as dark as a blackboard,
I wish he was mine,
he's really divine,
The hero who conquered the Dark Lord."
Everyone in the crowd burst out laughing, but none more than Cassandra and her friends as the saw Potter look like he'd rather be swallowed by the floor than be there right now.
"Off you go, off you go, the bell rang five minutes ago, off to class, now," Pratty Prefect said, shooing some of the younger students away. "And you, Malfoy-"
Draco had walked forward and picked something up. He glanced back at Cass wide eyed, she looked at him curiously and he turned back to Potter.
"Give that back," said Harry quietly.
"Wonder what Potter's written in this?" He said raising the thing in his hand for everyone to see. It was then that Cassandra realised what her cousin was holding. It was her fathers diary.
A hush fell over the onlookers. Cass's head snapped to girl Weasley who was staring from the diary to Potter, looking terrified. Cassandra's eyes flashed red. Blaise noticed this and then realised they weren't changing back. The Italian watched as black smoke started to whirl around his friend.
He quickly pulled Cass out of Theo's arms and yanked her down the corridor away from everyone before they could notice.
As Blaise pulled her along thoughts filled her head. This was not supposed to happen! How did she get rid of it...? Does Potter know about the chamber...?
A thought the struck her - the diary said it was property of T.M.Riddle. Does that mean Potter knows it's linked to me?!!
She was getting dizzy and her vision were going blurry. The last thing she heard was a distant Percy yelling at Potter for using magic in the halls.
And then, she fainted.
———
BONUS SCENE ~~~ {What happened when Harry found the diary} ~~~ 25/1/1993
The corridor outside Moaning Myrtles bathroom was flooded again which only meant one thing - she was upset. Harry and Ron looked at each other and then entered the bathroom.
"What's up, Myrtle?" said Harry.
"Come to throw something else at me?"
"Why would I throw something at you?"
"Don't ask me! Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it's funny to throw a book at me..."
"But it can't hurt you if someone throws something at you," said Ron, who was next him. "I mean, it'd just go right through you, wouldn't it?"
He had said the wrong thing. Myrtle flew right up to his face shrieking, "SURE! LETS ALL THROW BOOKS AT MYRTLE BECAUSE SHE CANT FEEL IT! TEN POINTS IF YOU GET IT THROUGH HER STOMACH, FIFTY POINTS IF IT GOES THROUGH HER HEAD!"
"Who threw it at you, anyway?" asked Harry trying to distract her away from a cowering Ron.
"I don't know, I didn't see them... I was just sitting in the U-bend, thinking about death, and it fell right through the top of my head," said Myrtle, wailing starting to cry again.
Harry looked at the book that was laying on the floor. It was thin and had a shabby black cover, soaked like everything else.
He picked it up off the floor.
Harry saw at once that it was a diary, and the faded year on the cover told him it was fifty years old. He opened it eagerly. On the first page he could just make out the name 'T.M.Riddle' in smudged ink.
His eyes widened. "Riddle? Does that mean he's related to that Cassandra bitch of Slytherin? This book is fifty years old and her fathers dead so maybe he had her when he was pretty old? But what's it doing is here? I know for a fact Riddle would not just throw away her fathers diary when she obviously has never met him. It's also clear she would not step foot in this bathroom - I've heard her complain about it before"
"Hang on," said Ron, who had approached cautiously and was looking over Harry's shoulder. "I know that name... T.M.Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago!"
"How on earth d'you know that?" said Harry in amazement.
"Because Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times in detention," said Ron resentfully. "That was the one I burped slugs all over. If you'd wiped slime off a name for an hour, you'd remember it, too."
"Wait a minute!" Stated Harry. "The chamber was last opened fifty years ago so he must have caught who was doing it!"
"Or he was the one doing it..." Ron mumbled.
"Ron..."
"You heard what Riddle said!! She's Slytherins descendant on her dads side! He's the heir of Slytherin!! We know this one is getting framed but we don't know anything about that one! How likely is it that they're both going to be framed?"
"But Malfoy said that the person got expelled! The attacks had to have stopped after that or the school would have been shut down!"
Ron looked thoughtful. "You've got a point mate. Maybe there was a secret brother or Uncle that Riddle didn't know about? And he's the one who opened it - it did say enemies of the heir, not heiress."
Harry nodded and flipped the book open.
"It's blank.."
