Christmas morning was bitter-sweet without Hermione. Draco woke up unseemly early and just sat in front of the fireplace, looking up towards the girl's dormitory, hoping to see her come bouncing down the stairs to open presents. Christmas was Hermione's favorite holiday. She talked nonstop about how much she loved drinking hot chocolate in front of a decorated fir tree surrounded by the people she loved the most. That was how her family spent Christmas every year. It was completely different from the Yule Ball that he and his parents would attend, usually hosted by some old pureblood that Draco did not know the name of, nor cared to know.
Draco's parents sent him a card and some sweets, informing him that all his other presents were waiting for him at the manor the next time he was home. What was most surprising was that Mrs. Weasley had knitted him a navy-blue sweater with the letter D on the front for his name. It felt nice to match Ron's burnt orange and Harry's ruby red sweaters. Almost like he was part of the family. Hermione's gifts were left untouched.
The Gryffindor boys spent the last couple of days in chaotic preparation for tonight's operation. Daphne had managed to show Harry where the laundry rooms were and stole some of Crabbe and Goyle's clothes. All that was left to do was wait until the feast concluded. Later that night, Draco gave the potion one last stir when Harry and Ron ran into the bathroom.
"They're completely knocked out!" Ron panted.
"And we got the hairs," Harry added, holding up his piece of Goyle.
Draco handed them some collection tubes, "Put those in there and go change into their clothes."
"Ew! Are we going to have to drink that?" Ron asked, disgusted by the lumpy grey liquid that was the final product of the potion.
Draco nodded in response. They decided that with Hermione out of commission, Draco would need to remain behind with the cauldron and clean up the evidence of their meddling while Harry and Ron completed the reconnaissance mission.
When the boys returned, Draco ladled out the potion before handing it to them, "Right, you two remember the plan?"
"Follow Daphne to the common room," Ron repeated.
"Then listen to Nott," Harry added.
"Good. Now, add the hairs, and then cheers, mates," Draco instructed.
Harry and Ron clinked their glasses before plugging their noses and chugging the contents. Ron dropped his glass, clutching his mouth before running to a stall, "I think I'm gonna be sick!"
"Harry, what's happening? Is the potion working?" Draco asked as he tried to help Harry, the boy barely supporting himself against a bathroom sink. Draco stepped back in shock when he saw his friend's skin start to bubble and transform before his eyes. Gone was the skinny, dark-haired boy with glasses and a lightning bolt scar on his forehead. In his place was the broad, pimple face and unintelligent Slytherin with long gorilla arms and short bristly hair that hung low over his eyes.
Harry chuckled, his voice completely different, "It worked! It actually worked!"
"Bloody hell!" Ron exclaimed, coming out of the stall. His voice also changed along with his appearance. Ron Weasley was now just as thick and round as Crabbe, complete with his pudding bowl-style haircut.
"Right, you guys need to go. Daphne should be waiting near the entrance to the dungeons. Remember, you only have an hour before you start to change," Draco reminded the boys.
Harry and Ron took a little longer than expected to get down to the entrance hall, for they had to adjust to their new bodies. When they finally made it to the meeting point, Daphne was tapping her foot impatiently with her arms crossed, "It's about time! I had to hide in a broom closet from your brother, Weasley."
"Percy? He's doing patrols in the dungeons?" Ron questioned.
"Yes. I think he's trying to catch the heir in action. But it doesn't matter. Let's go before he reports all three of us."
Daphne hurried the boys through a series of long, narrow corridors before coming to stand in front of a blank, stone wall. She touched the fifth stone up from the floor and spoke the password, "Pureblood."
Retracting her hand, the boys watched in awe as the bricks magically moved aside to form a doorway directly into the Slytherin common room.
"Charming password," Ron muttered sarcastically to Daphne.
She gave him a pointed look before crossing the threshold, "I didn't pick it."
The Slytherin common room was not what Harry and Ron expected. Instead of the underground, villainous liar they had imagined, it was actually sort of… cool. The room had rough stone walls and large glass windows that provided a view of the depts of the Black Lake. Green lanterns hung low from the ceiling on rusty chains and cast a mysterious glow around the room, even with the fire burning bright from the ornate fireplace. Harry tried not to fixate on the stalactites, afraid that they would fall on his head at any moment as they walked past elegant couches and chairs. Like the Gryffindor common room, the Slytherin version was also decorated for the festivities and had a large evergreen tree in one corner. Next to it was a table with Theo Nott, Blaise Zabini, and Zacharias Smith.
"Oy! Greengrass! About time! What took you so long?" Theo called out to them from across the room.
"Vin and Greg here forgot the password to the common room. They got caught by a Prefect, and I had to save them," she coolly answered.
"Ah, pigging out in the Great Hall again, were you?" Zacharias mocked Harry-Goyle and Ron-Crabbe. Daphne gently kicked Harry in the leg, cueing them to laugh at Smith's joke stupidly.
"Who cares? Sit down so we can deal you in," Nott ordered, pointing at the empty chairs. Zabini was shuffling the deck, explaining the rules of the game to the newcomers. As he was passing out the cards, he turned to Daphne.
"Before you got here, we were just talking about the Weasleys."
"Oh? What about?" She asked, taking a seat next to Theo. Harry sat next to her, and Ron took the spot in between Harry and Zacharias.
"According to the Daily Prophet, Weasley Sr. was only fined for the muggle car that the boy-wonder and his faithful sidekick hijacked," Theo snickered, "Honestly, I don't get how the Weasleys can tolerate Draco when Mr. Malfoy instigated the hearing."
"What an embarrassment! You would never know they were pureblood by the way they behave," Zacharias added snidely.
Ron- or rather Crabbe's- face contorted in fury as he cracked his knuckles.
"What's the matter with you?" Zacharias asked.
Harry elbowed Ron, "Eh… stomachache."
The table dismissed the out-of-character moment as the round started. After a few rounds, Blaise brought up another topic of interest.
"Speaking of the Prophet, I'm surprised that they haven't reported any of the attacks."
"Dumbledore's trying to hush it all up. If word got out, he'd be sacked, that's for sure!" Zacharias cruelly chucked.
"My father says that Dumbledore is the worst thing that ever happened to this place!" Theo said, puffing his chest a little bit like he was competing with Zacharias.
"You're wrong!" Harry suddenly cried out. Everyone stilled at the table before slowly turning to look at the Harry-Goyle. Daphne's mouth was in a thin line as she tried to keep herself restrained from hitting Harry for his massive slip up. Seriously? What happened to the original plan of being quiet and listening?
After a few moments of awkward silence, Theo started laughing, "What? You think there is someone worse than Dumbledore?"
Blaise started laughing along with Theo when he said, "Please do enlighten us."
Harry-Goyle gulped, "Harry Potter."
The laughter stopped as the Slytherin boys looked between one another, astonished by the comment. Daphne and Ron were holding their breathes as they waited for someone to reply.
"Why, Goyle. I believe that is the most intelligent thing you have ever said," Zacharias smirked.
"Good one, Vin. You're right," Theo commented before he leered across the table, "Saint Harry Potter. With his band of blood traitors and mudbloods."
"Speaking of blood traitors, can you believe that people actually believe Malfoy is the Heir of Slytherin?" Zacharias posed the question to the group.
"I heard that the other day in Herbology," Daphne said disinterestedly.
Theo scoffed, "Draco? The heir? That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard."
This was it! Theo was going to reveal who the heir was! Harry and Ron were on the edge of their seats in anticipation when Daphne poked Theo playfully, "Oh, come on, Nott. You must have some idea who the heir could be then?"
"I don't, Daph. And my father won't tell me anything!" Theo whined.
"Really?" Daphne leaned a little closer to Theo, "But he knows something? Surely, he wants you to help the heir."
"The exact opposite actually," Theo said bitterly, "In his last letter, he told me the Chamber was opened in his fifth year, which was about fifty years ago… and that a mudblood died. So, I bet it's a matter of time before another is killed. Personally, I was upset to learn Granger wasn't."
"The swot would have been the perfect target," Zacharias agreed and started acting out an impression of Hermione in class. Harry and Ron were biting their lips, thanking Merlin and Morgana that Draco wasn't here. It took all their self-restraint not to defend their friend.
"Surely the person who opened it was expelled?" Daphne casually inquired.
"Oh yeah, for sure. Probably still in Azkaban," Theo concluded, "The only advice my father gave me was to keep my head down and to allow the heir to do Salazar's bidding. None of us need to be mixed up in this mess. We just need to be patient until whatever the heir has planned is brought to fruition."
While the table was nodding in agreement, Ron started to groan, feeling the effects of the Polyjuice potion wearing off.
"Vin! I think you need to go and see Madam Pomfrey right away for your… stomachache. Goyle should go with you to make sure you don't get caught by a prefect again," Daphne covered for the boys.
"Ha! So, the bottomless pit does have its limits," Zacharias meanly joked.
"Go get sick on some mudbloods while you're at it," Theo called out to them as Harry and Ron dashed out of the Slytherin common room and back to the girl's bathroom.
"Blimey! I knew Nott, Sr. was old, but I didn't realize he was that old," Draco exclaimed. He had spent the hour waiting for Harry and Ron to return by cleaning and bottling the rest of the Polyjuice potion for possible use in the future.
"Yeah… at least it wasn't a total bust. Even though Theo didn't have the information we were looking for, we now have a timeframe," Harry said with a hopeful look.
"I was so sure it was going to be Nott!" Ron huffed.
"Told ya," Draco said under his breath.
The boys spent the remainder of the break and well into February digging through every family genealogy text that the Hogwarts library had to offer, which was a lot. They spent hours scrolling through birth records and marriages and cross-referenced them to student records and House of Slytherin members. The task proved very strenuous, especially since they had to start back at the very first recording of the Gaunt line. Ron grew bored and ultimately was not very helpful, causing Draco to suggest the redhead try searching in the creature books to figure out what was attacking the muggleborn students. They were sitting down to dinner one day, quietly discussing their lack of progress when Draco moaned.
"That can't be it! According to the record, the Gaunt family line died with Merope Gaunt."
"She didn't have a child? A brother or sister? Half or step-sibling?" Harry asked.
"Not that I can tell," Draco groaned in frustration, "Though it is interesting that your line is distantly related through the Peverell's. It possibly explains why you have your… er… special ability."
Harry nodded. While researching the Gaunt's, he had discovered the Potter family tree, giving Harry an insight into personal history lost to the young Gryffindor. With Draco's help, he was able to copy some of the records and even get a picture of his mother and father while they were schoolmates. The blond even offered to devote more time with Harry and his genealogy study once they saved the school from the looming threat and possible closure. Harry turned to Ron, setting the thought aside for now, "Did you figure out what the monster could be?"
"No luck on the creature front either, mates," Ron added to the sour mood.
"How about we call it a night and head back?" Harry suggested before pointing at Draco, "We need to get rest for practice tomorrow morning."
"I know, I know. I'm glad Quidditch hasn't been canceled yet," Draco stated. Since classes resumed after the new year, three more attacks had happened in the short span of four weeks. Nearly-headless Nick and Justin Finch-Fletchley, a Hufflepuff in their year, were both found petrified in a corridor on the third floor. Penelope Clearwater, a Ravenclaw in Percy's year, was discovered near the library like Hermione. When word got out about Penelope, students started to steer clear of the library or would only visit in large groups in hopes that would prevent them from being targeted.
While walking back to the Gryffindor tower, they saw that water had overflown from the girl's lavatory in the second-floor corridor, partially submerging the area.
"What happened?" Ron exclaimed.
"Mrytle probably flooded the bathroom," Harry hypothesized, "Come on. Let's go see why."
Reluctantly, Draco and Ron followed Harry into the restroom. As they waded through the water, they found all the sinks had been clogged and turned to the highest pressure. The boys continued to slosh further inside and found Myrtle crying towards the ceiling.
"Come to throw something else at me?" she wailed.
"Why would I throw something at you?" Harry asked, confused.
"Don't ask me! Here I am, minding my own business, and somebody thinks it's funny to throw a book at me," the ghost sniffled.
"But it can't hurt if someone throws something at you. I mean, it'll just go right through you," Ron corrected her, ignoring Harry and Draco's non-verbal warnings.
Myrtle furiously glided over to float in front of Ron, "SURE! Let's all throw books at Myrtle because she can't feel it! Ten points if you get it through her stomach!" Myrtle punched her fist through Ron's abdomen, "Fifty points if it goes through her HEAD!"
Ron whimpered when Myrtle put her fist through his skull. Draco was trying to hide his smirk when Harry asked gently, "But who threw it at you, anyway?"
"I don't know. I didn't see them. One minute I was thinking about death. And the next, it fell right through the top of my head!" she sobbed as she glided through the wall.
Harry picked up the strange book. It was a black leather diary that was slightly water-stained but was blank inside. The only indication that it belonged to someone was the engraving on the back.
Tom Marvolo Riddle
"Does the name mean anything to either of you?" Harry asked.
"I don't remember coming across a Tom Riddle in any of the bloodlines, but we can check again tomorrow after quidditch practice," Draco reminded Harry.
"Hang on… I know a T. M. Riddle that got an award for special services to the school," Ron chimed in, "I remember because Filch made me polish his trophy a hundred times!"
"Really? A hundred times?" Draco raised an eyebrow at Ron.
"Well… it felt like it," The redhead grunted.
With the mystery still at large, the boys decided to head back to the dormitory before anyone caught them snooping around. When they got back to the common room, Harry was still flipping through the journal when Ron yawned, "I'm going to bed, Harry. Are you still looking at that book?"
"Yeah, I'll see you guys in the morning," he responded, still fixated on the diary.
Draco nodded, following Ron up the stairs to the dormitory. He was barely listening to Ron's quiet rant about Harry and the diary when his head finally hit the pillow, succumbing to sleep.
"It was Hagrid! Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets 50 years ago," Harry whispered to Ron and Draco the next day in the courtyard. Harry stayed up most of the night trying to figure out how the diary worked. He activated the enchanted book by writing in its pages, allowing the object to show him what Riddle recorded when the event happened. Evidently, Hagrid had been responsible for the Chamber's opening and harbored the monster that terrorized the school on June 13, 1943, consequently taking the life of a muggleborn girl. Draco wasn't surprised to learn that Hagrid hid wild animals during his time as a student, given that just last school year, the half-giant tried to raise a baby dragon in his hut. Seriously, had the groundskeeper always carry an affinity for dangerous magical creatures? Draco, however, was not entirely convinced that Hagrid was responsible for everything.
"I'm finding that hard to believe, Harry," Draco admitted.
"We don't even know this Tom Riddle. He sounds like Percy to me. A dirty, rotten snitch," Ron agreed with Draco.
"The monster had killed someone, Ron! What would any of us have done?" Harry questioned the boys.
"Look… besides the fact that Hagrid is our friend, if he really was the heir and responsible for that girl's death, why would Dumbledore hire him as the caretaker? Why is the Chamber just now being reopened when Hagrid has worked for Hogwarts for years!"
Harry contemplated what Draco was saying for a moment before he spoke, "Alright, then let's go and ask him."
"Oh, that will be a cheerful visit," Ron said sarcastically, "Probably go something like this, 'Hello, Hagrid. Tell us, have you been setting anything mad and hairy loose in the castle lately?'"
"Mad and hairy?! Yeh wouldn't be talkin' about me, would yeah?" Hagrid asked, suddenly appearing out of nowhere.
"No," they all quickly answered at the same time.
There was an awkward silence before Harry pointed to the can in Hagrid's hand, "What's that you got there?"
"Oh, it's um… flesh eaten' slug repellant for the mandrakes. Now, accordin' ter Professor Sprout, they've still got a bit of growin' up ter do. But once their acene's cleared up, we'll be able ter chop them up and stew em' and then we'll get those people down at the hospital unpetrified," he paused to let the good news settle in before giving them a stern look, "In the meantime, though, yeh three… have best be lookin' after yerselves. All right?"
They were watching Hagrid walk away when Neville came running up to them, panting from being out of breath, "Harry, I don't know who did it, but you'd better come quick!"
The boys quickly followed Longbottom to the dormitory to find Harry's bed, trunk, and belongings tossed about as if someone had gone through them. The culprit had ripped the bedding clean off the mattress and tore apart his pillows, allowing feathers to fly free around the room. His overturned trunk left books and their ripped pages scattered across the floor. The assailant even pulled out all his dresser drawers and smashed the mirror on his vanity. Hedwig was chirping in distress at Harry as the dark-haired wizard looked through his personal belongings.
"It had to be a Gryffindor, mate. No one else knows the password," Ron concluded.
"Unless it wasn't a student," Draco added, the thought making him uncomfortable and sending shivers down his spine.
"Whoever it was, they must have been looking for something," Ron theorized.
"And they found it," Harry gritted, "Tom Riddle's diary. It's gone."
With the loss of the diary and a reluctance to visit Hagrid, Draco, Ron, and Harry were out of leads. The bloodline research led them well past the Easter holiday without any success. Dumbledore called off all future Quidditch matches when Maxine O'Flaherty, one of the Hufflepuff Beaters, turned up petrified, making her the fifth attack for the year. The curfew changed from eight o'clock to six every night, and all students required an escort to the bathroom or lessons. The day after Dumbledore implemented the new policies, Harry huddled Ron and Draco and insisted they visit Hagrid.
Later that night, the three snuck out under the invisibility cloak and knocked on Hagrid's front door. The moment the door flung open, Hagrid raised a crossbow and aimed it directly in their face.
Harry flung the cloak off them, "What's that for?"
Hagrid sighed in relief, lowering the weapon, "Nothin'. I've bin expectin'… doesn' matter. Come in."
Draco, Ron, and Harry cautiously walked inside, nervous about confronting the half-giant. Draco immediately noticed that Hagrid had an anxious expression that replaced the half giant's usual jovial demeanor. Their friend was trying to distract himself, pouring tea and serving his fruit biscuits. Neither of the boys knew where to begin with the interrogation until Ron mouthed to Harry just to ask him. Clearing his throat, Harry spoke up.
"Hagrid, we need to ask you something. Do you know who opened the Chamber of Secrets?"
Hagrid stopped what he was doing, shocked by the question. After fumbling with the tea kettle for a moment, he shakily replied, "What yeh need ter understand about that is…."
The loud pounding at the door cut off his explanation. Hagrid pointed to the corner and ordered the boys to put the cloak on. As he had done with them, Hagrid raised his crossbow and opened the door to see who came calling.
"Professor Dumbledore, sir," Hagrid greeted in surprise.
"Good evening, Hagrid. I wonder if we could…."
"Please, come in," Hagrid let Dumbledore and the other wizard pass over the threshold. He was a short man with slightly rumpled greying hair. However, the black and purple coloring of his robe gave the unknown man a sense of dignity and a look of importance.
"That's dad's boss," Ron breathed to Harry.
Draco nodded, recognizing the man from a few dinner parties and social gatherings he had to attend with his family, "It's Cornelius Fudge. The Minister of Magic."
"Bad business, Hagrid, nasty business, I'm afraid. I had to come. Five attacks total, four of which on muggleborn students... Things have gone on far enough. The Ministry's got to act," Fudge said sternly.
"But I never! You know I never, professor," Hagrid pleaded.
"I want it understood, Cornelius, that Hagrid has my full confidence," Dumbledore asserted, frowning at Fudge.
"Albus…" Fudge clucked his tongue, "Hagrid's record is against him. I've got to take him."
"Take me? Take me where? Not Azkaban prison!" Hagrid cried out.
"I'm afraid we have no choice, Hagrid," Fudge replied, unapologetic.
Just then, Hagrid's door opened to reveal Lucius Malfoy stepping into the hut, "Already here, Fudge? Good."
Draco's jaw dropped when he saw his father move about the hut. The man had his hair pulled back in a simple but elegant style and was dressed sinisterly in all-black robes. His face was cold and detached as he tapped his cane on the wood, clutching a scroll of parchment in his other hand.
"What are yeh doin' here? Get outta my house!" Hagrid yelled.
"Believe me… I take absolutely no pleasure being inside your… you call this a house?" Lucius sneered at the surroundings before fixing his sights on Dumbledore, "I simply called up the school and was told the Headmaster was here."
"And what exactly is it that you want with me?" Dumbledore asked coolly.
"The other governors and I have decided it's time for you to step aside," Lucius replied, handing Dumbledore the scroll, "This is an order of suspension."
As Lucius presented the scroll, Fudge tried to stop the handoff, "Lucius, a suspension? No, no… the last thing we need is for Dumbledore to be…"
"Appointment or suspension of the Headmaster is within the sole authority of the Board of Governors," Lucius resolutely reminded Fudge before turning back to Dumbledore, "You'll find all 12 signatures on it. I'm afraid we feel you have… simply lost your touch. Well, what with all these attacks, there'll be no muggleborns left at Hogwarts. I can only imagine what a terrible loss that would be to the school."
Hagrid wasn't buying Lucius's insincere tone when he barked, "Yeh can't take away, Professor Dumbledore! If yeh do that, the muggleborns won't stand a chance! Yeh, mark my words! There'll be killins' next!"
"You think so?" Lucius drawled.
"Calm yourself, Hagrid. If the governors desire my removal, I will, of course, step aside," Dumbledore replied calmly, "However, you will find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."
Harry, Ron, and Draco raised their eyebrows when they noticed Dumbledore directed the last sentence in their general direction under the cloak.
Lucius looked around confused before speaking, "An admirable sentiment. Shall we?"
Dumbledore followed Lucius out of the hut. Fudge motioned for Hagrid to follow the men.
"Right," Hagrid said, "If anybody were lookin' for some stuff, all they need ter do would be ter follow the spiders. Yep. That would lead them right. Oh! Someone will need ter feed Fang while I'm gone."
The boys didn't throw the cloak off until well after the adults left the hut. Draco inhaled deeply, trying to steady his breaths and calm himself when Ron exclaimed, "How do you live with him?"
"You don't. You survive," Draco intoned seriously.
The statement only added to the heaviness of the atmosphere. Though he cared and was loyal to his friends, Ron was also a bit insecure and envious of Draco. In the redhead's eyes, the wizard had everything Ron ever wanted. Money, recognition, and prestige. Ron knew from his father that Mr. Malfoy was a cold and unkind character who was a Death Eater and lied to avoid prosecution. When he first met Draco, he assumed that the sins of the father would carry over. But then, Draco proved every judgment Ron had about him wrong. The boy instantly was nice and friendly with a muggleborn witch and didn't taunt anyone for their status. He stood up for Ron when Theo and Blaise tried to shame him for his family, and then, of course, the bloke had to go and get sorted into Gryffindor with him!
Even though he was sometimes arrogant and had quite a temper, Draco was kind and funny. He was brilliant and always helped Ron with his homework when Hermione got frustrated and refused. Draco matched Ron's wit, and the two shared a similar sense of humor. They had more in common than Ron initially thought, and of course, if it weren't for Draco, Ron would have been left in the transfigured chess chamber last year.
It never made sense to Ron why Draco attached to Hermione, Harry, and himself. He knew Draco was rich and didn't want for anything, so why did he desire a life that was anything but what he had? Seeing how Draco's father belittled his family and then today practically taunted Dumbledore like a schoolyard bully, it was finally making sense. Draco lived in an abusive household where he couldn't be himself when all he wanted was genuine, honest relationships. Ron felt sympathy for his friend and tried to cheer him up the best way he knew how.
"Well, mate. I'm glad you're our friend and not our enemy. Can you imagine a world where you're like… Harry's arch-nemesis and always trying to foil the plot?"
Draco chucked, the joke bringing a smile to his face, "Thanks, Ron. To be fair, I think I would play an amazing villain."
"Look," Harry cut in, pointing at the row of spiders crawling in a line out the window just like in Myrtle's bathroom. Grabbing a lantern, Harry waved at the boys to follow him.
Draco whistled to Fang. The hound immediately jumped up from his spot in Hagrid's armchair and padded behind the boys to the edge of the forbidden forest. Harry had his nose to the ground, focused on the path the spiders were taking.
"Harry! What are you doing?" Draco called out to stop him.
"You heard what Hagrid said. We need to follow the spiders," Harry replied.
"But they're heading into the dark forest!" Ron croaked, his lower lip trembling in fear.
Harry just shrugged his shoulders and stepped past the tree line.
Sighing, Draco clapped Ron on the shoulder, "Come on, Weasley. Muster that Gryffindor courage. We don't want Harry to get too far by himself."
As they were trotting to catch up to Harry, Draco chuckled under his breath when he heard Ron mutter, "Spiders. Why Spiders? Why couldn't it be 'follow the butterflies?'"
Author's Note: I can't believe I have to say this, but if you don't like the story, don't leave a guest review with weird/rude shit! It's not appreciated and will be deleted. Thanks!