Chapter 6: Another Eventful Halloween
I don't own Digimon or Harry Potter
October soon arrived and the weather took a turn for the worse, it rained almost every day, the grounds outside the castle turned into a muddy quagmire, students got sick left and right, if it weren't for Madam Pomfrey and her Pepper-Up Potions, half the school would be bedridden with colds. The only one who didn't seem to be put off by the weather was Oliver Wood who had the Gryffindor Quidditch team training every hour that they had available to them.
"Ugh…sometimes, I really hate Oliver and his incessant need to train every single free moment we've got…" Daisuke groaned, the poor girl drenched head to toe alongside Harry as they walked up to the castle from the Quidditch pitch one stormy afternoon just a few days before Halloween.
"Tell me about it. At least we know how to handle someone riding a Nimbus 2001 thanks to you." Harry told her. She smiled and nodded before both came across Nearly Headless Nick who was looking out a window muttering to himself.
"Don't meet their requirements…half an inch…if only they had cut half an inch further…"
"Hello Nick." Harry greeted the ghost of Gryffindor Tower. The ghost spun around and looked at the two with a weak smile.
"Ah, hello there. You look troubled, young Potter, Lady Ainsworth." The ghost said, tucking a transparent, ghostly letter into his clothing.
"So do you." Daisuke replied, though she did wonder why several people or creatures around Hogwarts dubbed her Lady Ainsworth.
"Ah, nothing of great importance." The ghost sighed.
"You didn't get accepted into the Headless Hunt again, didn't you?" Harry asked.
"No. I don't meet requirements. But you would think wouldn't you that being struck in the neck forty-five times by a blunt axe would qualify you?" Nearly Headless Nick questioned causing both to jump at his outburst.
"Oh yes, certainly." Daisuke agreed, she and Harry nodded quickly.
"None wish it were quick and painless more so than I." Nick continued, pulling out the letter and reading through it with a furious expression. "Half an inch! Half an inch of skin and sinew keeping my head attached to my body, most people would think that's bloody well good and beheaded. But oh no, it's not good enough for Sir properly beheaded Podmore!" the ghost ranted and huffed before stuffing the letter back into his clothing.
He took several breaths before looking at them. "So, what is bothering you? Anything I can do to help?"
"Not really, not unless you know where to get six or seven Nimbus 2001 broomsticks for our match against Slytherin." Harry replied. Before the conversation could continue any further, Daisuke felt something brushing up against her ankle and purring, looking down she saw it was Mrs Norris the pet of Argus Filch the caretaker of Hogwarts.
"Hello there." She greeted with a smile before petting the cat on the head.
"I can't believe that thing likes you." Harry muttered.
"I chalk it up to her smelling Salem on me, he did tell me she follows him around whenever he's roaming about the castle." Daisuke replied and Mrs Norris meowed softly.
"You'd best get moving you two, Filch has been in a sour mood all morning. Some third years splattered frog brains over the ceiling of one of the dungeons and he's been cleaning it all morning." Nearly Headless Nick warned the two students just as Mr Filch arrived bursting out from behind a tapestry on the wall.
"Filth!" he shrieked, his eyes bulging as he stared at the puddles of mud around Daisuke and Harry. "That's it, I've had enough. You two, come with me now!" he growled before storming off and the two sighed but followed him leaving behind another trail of muddy footprints.
Neither of them had seen the inside of Filch's office before, it was dark and gloomy, befitting of the man. A single oil lamp hung loosely from the ceiling and numerous wooden filing cabinets lined the walls, everyone knew Filch liked to keep records on the students he punished. Fred and George Weasley had an entire drawer to themselves.
Daisuke gulped as she looked at the shackles and manacles hanging from the wall beside her, she knew Filch pleaded several times with Dumbledore to hang students by their ankles but thankfully the Headmaster never allowed it.
"Dragon dung, dragon bogeys, frog brains, rat intestines. I've had enough of it!" Filch grumbled under his breath, ripping some parchment out of his desk. He took out a quill and dipped it in a pot of ink. "Names, Harry Potter, Daisuke Ainsworth. Crime…"
"It was only a bit of mud." Daisuke protested.
"It may be only a bit of mud to you, but it's an extra hour of work for me girl!" Filch hissed before he went back to scribbling on the parchment. "Crime…befouling the castle…"
As he continued writing, a sudden explosion from the floor above them shook the entire room. "What the heck?" Daisuke gasped.
"Peeves?" Harry wondered.
"Peeves!" Filch roared, seemingly agreeing with him. "I'll have you this time. I'll have you!" he shouted, rushing out of the office with Mrs Norris following him.
"Thank goodness for Peeves." Harry sighed in relief, sinking into the chair in front of Filch's desk. Daisuke nodded in agreement as both decided to wait for Filch to return thinking it was better than sneaking off and only getting in more trouble.
As they waited, Harry spotted a purple envelope on the desk and picked it up curiously. "Quick-Spell, what's that?" he asked Daisuke.
"Not sure. But put it down." Daisuke hissed, slapping his hand making him drop the envelope. "It's not for us to poke around in Mr Filch's belongings." She told him. Harry shook his hand though he did have to agree with Daisuke about that. Both waited for Filch to return and he did just a few moments later looking furious.
"Blasted Peeves…ruddy poltergeist. Should call a damn exorcist or something." He grumbled to himself, he glanced at Harry and Daisuke and sneered. "What're you two still doing here? Go on, get out of here, don't let me catch you making a mess again!" Daisuke and Harry were halfway out the door while Filch was still talking, both rushing out relieved to not be given a punishment.
Once the door slammed shut, Filch sank into his chair and sighed deeply, rubbing his forehead before he saw the envelope that had been on his desk was now on the floor. He gasped, reaching down and picking it up. "Did they…r…read it?" he wondered in a panic before he growled and shoved the envelope into a drawer.
Meanwhile, Daisuke and Harry had run up a few flights of stairs to get as far away from Filch as possible when Nearly Headless Nick floated out of a classroom. "There you two are, did it work, are you alright?" He asked them. Through the open door behind him, they saw an old wardrobe laying on the ground as if it had been dropped from the ceiling.
"Was that you?" Daisuke whispered, looking at the ghost in surprise.
"Technically, I asked Peeves to cause a bit of a disturbance to lure Filch away." The ghost explained with a smile.
"Oh, thank you." Harry replied with a smile as the three walked off to Gryffindor Tower, Nearly Headless Nick once again read over his letter with a sad sigh.
"Are you going to be alright Nick?" Daisuke asked.
"Oh, don't worry about me." He replied. "I've grown used to it by now, I just wish things were different."
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Harry asked, causing the ghost to stop in his tracks just as Daisuke walked right through him and shrieked from the feeling of walking through a ghost.
"Well, um actually…" Nick trailed off, wringing his hands together nervously. "Wo…would it be asking too much…oh no I shouldn't…"
"What is it?" Harry asked.
"Would you two like to attend my Deathday Party? It's on Halloween, it marks the 500th year since my death." Nearly Headless Nick said.
"You have a party for the day you died?" Daisuke asked.
"Oh yes of course. Most ghosts do, it's sort of a tradition. After all, not everyone who dies gets to celebrate their death." The ghost answered with a smile though he and Daisuke both noticed Harry flinch. "Ah…"
"Oh, that's right…your parents died on Halloween, didn't they?" Daisuke asked softly and her friend nodded sadly, causing Daisuke to pull him into a hug.
"My apologies Harry, I didn't mean to offend…" Nearly Headless Nick apologised.
"It's fine." Harry said softly, though both knew he wasn't fine.
"Thank you for the invitation, Nick, but I think Harry and I will decline." Daisuke said softly. "Perhaps we could do something later in the year, maybe find a way to help you do something outside of trying to join the Headless Hunt." She offered.
The Ghost of Gryffindor Tower nodded at that, with a small bow he turned and floated away from the duo who continued up the stairs. Soon, both had changed out of their wet and muddy Quidditch Robes and were sitting beside Ron and Hermione in a corner of the Common Room, Demi-Veemon and Salem in Daisuke's lap.
"You alright mate?" Ron asked Harry softly, seeing his friend was still a bit glum after both finished telling him and Hermione about their chat with Nearly Headless Nick.
"Fine…" he muttered, avoiding the eyes of his friends while the rest of the Common Room had their attention focused on a Salamander Fred had 'rescued' from a Care of Magical Creatures that had been fed a Filibuster Firework.
"I swear to Merlin, you two are going to be the death of your brother and I!" Jun shouted angrily when the firework inside the Salamander went off and sent the creature whizzing around the room, sparks of orange flame shooting from its mouth.
"Duck!" Percy shouted, pulling Jun down as the Salamander whizzed over their heads before it landed in the fireplace, the entire Common Room bursting into cheers and applause except for Harry.
Soon, it was finally Halloween, everyone was looking forward to the great feast being held in the Great Hall. The pumpkins Hagrid had been growing were now carved up into giant Jack O'lanterns and had been dragged into the castle by him earlier that day.
"Ready to go to the feast?" Daisuke asked Harry, sitting beside the boy in front of the fireplace as everyone else in Gryffindor Tower began leaving to head down to enjoy the feast.
"Not really." He muttered. "I don't feel like going." Daisuke nodded and pulled her friend into a hug as Demi-Veemon, who was wearing a cape and tiny fake fangs jumped into his lap while Salem curled up beside the boy.
"We don't need to go if you don't want to." The cat told the boy. "Nobody will judge you for not attending."
"He's right." They looked over to see Ron and Hermione walking over to them. "I'm not really hungry anyway." Ron continued, sitting in an armchair beside them.
"You guys don't need to miss the feast just because of me…" Harry mumbled.
"The feast is only fun when it's spent hanging out with friends." Hermione told him, pulling something from her robes. "Here." She handed Harry a small candy bag.
The boy blinked and opened the bag and his eyes lit up and he pulled out a blood pop and ripped the wrapper off before he began to suck on the treat happily. He had missed these sweets ever since he had to spend the summer with the Dursleys, they were just so good!
Daisuke giggled as did the others who sat in silence, the only noise coming from the fireplace. "But what do we do when we get hungry?" Demi-Veemon asked, tilting his head.
"Jun told me a way to get food without going to the Great Hall, she and Percy used to do it all the time when they were our age." Daisuke answered.
"You mean going to the kitchens?" Ron asked and the girl nodded. "Wicked!"
"The kitchens?" Harry and Hermione asked.
"Well, how else do you think the food gets cooked for everyone?" Daisuke asked them.
"Magic." Both replied.
Daisuke and Ron shared a laugh at their simple answer. "Nope. Come on, prepare to be amazed." Daisuke said and the group left the Common Room and Daisuke, and Ron led the way down to the kitchens.
"Fred and George go here all the time; they've done this a bunch of times." Ron told Hermione and Harry as they walked into the Entrance Hall, Daisuke led them through a door and down a flight of stairs into a broad stone basement corridor.
"Amazing…" Hermione whispered on seeing the corridor was brightly lit and decorated with food-themed paintings. Harry who had plopped another blood pop into his mouth nodded in agreement before Daisuke walked over to a painting that was of a bowl of fruit.
"Now if I remember right…" she muttered before she began tickling the pear in the painting, to the surprise of Harry the pear began giggling before it turned into a large green door handle. "Perfecto." She said.
"Don't let Yolei hear you say that." Demi-Veemon said, sitting on Ron's shoulder while Salem was by Daisuke's feet as the girl turned the door handle and the painting swung open like a door.
"Hermione, Harry, I present to you the Hogwarts Kitchens." Her friends stared amazed at the large room that was full of dozens if not a hundred or so House Elves rushing about preparing food or washing dishes.
One of the House Elves noticed them and rushed over. "What are you students doing down here, the feast is being held in the Great Hall." It said in a soft, squeaky voice.
Daisuke smiled kindly at the elf. "Well, we were hoping you would be able to spare some food for us. You see, my friend, Harry here isn't feeling well and didn't feel up to attending the feast tonight." She explained.
The Elf looked at them for a moment before nodding. "Of course. I won't be a moment." They told the group before rushing off into the kitchen and soon returning with a few plates of food. "Here you are, don't worry about returning the plates. I'll find them later."
"Thank you very much. What's your name?" Daisuke asked the Elf kindly who blushed lightly.
"Oh, it's Reginald, miss."
Daisuke giggled and nodded. "Thank you very much Reginald. Happy Halloween." She told the elf before she closed the door to the kitchens and she and her friends left with their food.
"Why did you ask what his name was?" Ron asked her.
"I was being polite, and besides they do so much for all of us here, it pays to show them kindness in return." She answered, taking a bite of the slice of pumpkin pie on her plate.
"Wise words." Salem hummed with a nod and the others nodded as well. Harry took a bite of some of his food before he stopped when he heard something.
"So...hungry…must…feed…" a soft, hissing voice came from the wall. He gasped, drawing confused glances from his friends.
"Harry, what is it?" Hermione asked but he ignored her as he pressed his ear against the wall, straining to hear the odd voice again.
"Rip…tear…kill…kill…KILL!"
"Can't you guys hear that?" he asked, looking at them in alarm. "There's something in the walls. It's talking about killing and feeding." He listened again and heard the voice growing fainter as it travelled upwards, fear gripped his head. "Come on!" he dropped his plate of food and ran off out of the corridor and up the stairs.
"Harry, wait up!" Daisuke shouted, grabbing Salem and Demi-Veemon in her arms before chasing after her friend followed close behind by Ron and Hermione.
Harry ran past the Great Hall, up the staircase to the first floor, he paused for a moment, listening again for the voice. "Blood…I smell blood…" it hissed again.
"It's going to kill somebody!" he blurted out to his friends as they reached him.
"Who? And what's going to kill somebody?" Ron asked, out of breath but Harry just ran off again and they followed him to the next floor, Harry turned a corner once he reached the second floor and skid to a stop, the others slamming into his back as they caught up to him.
"Look at that." He whispered, along the ground crawled a long line of spiders, all of them hurrying up the wall and out through an open window.
"Strange…spiders never behave this oddly." Salem mused.
"I hate spiders." Ron muttered, staying as far away as he could from them.
"It's alright Ron, they won't hurt you." Daisuke reassured her friend with a smile. Ron took a deep breath and nodded as they followed the spiders along the corridor before noticing the floor was covered in a thin layer of water.
"Looks like the bathroom on this floor has been flooded." Hermione said with a small frown of disgust.
"And there's something else." Demi-Veemon said, pointing his stubby arm at the wall. "Look." He whispered and they all did.
There between two torches on the wall was a message written in blood. "The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir beware."
"What do you think it means?" Ron asked Daisuke, who was pale as a sheet, her eyes wide and fixed on what was hanging from one of the torches.
"M…Mrs Norris…" She whispered, her hand shakily pointing at Mr Filch's cat. The creature was hanging by her tail, her entire body stiff and her eyes wide and unblinking. "I…it came true…a…again." She whimpered.
"What came true?" Hermione asked softly but before Daisuke could say another word, they heard footsteps and from both sides of the corridor came the rest of the student body who had finished the feast in the Great Hall.
"Talk about perfect timing." Salem muttered, glaring around as the students all stopped once they caught sight of the group standing beside the writing on the wall and Mrs Norris.
Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle pushed their way to the front of the crowd and Malfoy smirked upon seeing the writing on the wall. "Enemies of the Heir beware." He said before sneering at Hermione and everyone else. "You'll be next Mudbloods."
"Malfoy, I warned you!" Daisuke growled angrily at the blonde who cowered behind Crabbe and Goyle, though from the looks on their faces neither of them wanted to get between an angry Daisuke and Malfoy.
"What's this? Move, move!" the voice of Mr Filch rang through the corridor as the man pushed through the students. He took one look at Mrs Norris and his eyes widened and he let out a weak whimper. "Mrs Norris…" he stared at his cat before slowly turning his attention to Harry and the others and he growled. "You've…murdered my cat…"
"No…" Harry whispered, stepping back as Filch stormed over to him.
"I'll kill ya. I'll kill ya!" he shouted, grabbing Harry's shoulder, a look of fury on the man's face.
"Argus!" a voice cried out. It was Professor Dumbledore along with Professor Snape, Professor McGonagall, Professor Sprout, Madam Pomfrey and Professor Lockhart. Dumbledore took in the scene before him, the Professors around him looking at the writing on the wall or Mrs Norris with varying amounts of surprise or shock. "Everyone, return to your dormitories immediately." He ordered. "Except," he called out as Daisuke and her friends were about to leave. "You four." He said, pointing to them.
"You've got to be kidding me." Daisuke muttered with a frown as she pulled Harry free of Mr Filch's grip, her eyes flashing gold for a moment causing the caretaker to step back.
Once everyone else had left, Dumbledore turned to Mrs Norris and narrowed his eyes before taking out his wand and gently prodding her with it. "She's not dead, Argus. She has only been petrified." He assured the man with a gentle smile.
"Ah, as I suspected. Shame I wasn't here, I know of the exact spell that could have saved her." Lockhart announced.
"Bullshit." Daisuke muttered under her breath to her friends. "He wouldn't know a unicorn even if it stabbed him in the arse with its horn."
"Miss Ainsworth, language." Professor Snape said smoothly, though his lips quirked into a faint grin.
Filch however wasn't grinning. "He did something to her." He said, pointing to Harry. "It's his fault!"
"Harry had nothing to do with what happened to your cat you fool!" Salem spoke up causing everyone to look down at the cat. "Whatever caused the petrification of Mrs Norris was not something a second-year student could ever manage to do. So, put aside your hatred of students for five minutes and let those with a brain speak!"
"But he saw my letter when he was in my office, he knows I'm a Squib!"
"I don't even know what that is. I didn't even read what was in the envelope!" Harry shouted. "I didn't do this, I never touched Mrs Norris." He turned to Dumbledore, hoping he would understand.
"If I may, Headmaster." Professor Snape spoke up. "While I doubt Potter and his friends had a hand in this…it does seem suspicious that they were not at dinner."
"Because he wasn't feeling like going to the feast." Daisuke spoke up. "Because of what today is. You all know it right? It's the day his parents were murdered by Voldemort!"
Everyone in the corridor was taken aback by her outburst, Snape looked ill and as if he had been physically struck as Daisuke glared at him. "You may hate Harry for whatever stupid reason, but don't you ever question why he doesn't attend a feast or celebration that is on the same day his entire family was taken away from him!"
"Miss Ainsworth." Dumbledore spoke up softly, Daisuke looking at the man whose eyes shone with understanding and compassion, she sighed and nodded and took a calming breath.
"My cat has been petrified…" Filch spoke up after a while. "I…I want to see someone hang for this!" he demanded in righteous anger.
"We will be able to cure her Argus." Dumbledore assured him gently as Madam Pomfrey gently took Mrs Norris off the torch. "As I understand it, Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes are growing nicely. Once they have matured, we will be able to brew a potion to restore Mrs Norris to the way she was." He promised.
"Come along Argus, let's get you something to calm your nerves." Professor Sprout said gently, leading the man away with Madam Pomfrey following them.
"May we go now Professor?" Daisuke asked Dumbledore.
"You may, unless you have anything else you wish to say." He answered. Harry took a step forward, maybe he could tell them about hearing the voice and following it to find Mrs Norris? But as he thought about it, it didn't seem like the right time to do so. They might think he was going mad or that he was somehow responsible for it after all.
"No sir." He mumbled softly.
"Very well. Professor McGonagall, please escort them to Gryffindor Tower." Dumbledore said and the Head of Gryffindor House nodded.
"Follow me." She told them gently, leading them down the corridor away from the horrid scene.
As they climbed up the staircases, Harry glanced at his friends. "Should I have told them about hearing the voice?" he whispered, making sure Professor McGonagall couldn't hear them.
"Are you mental?" Ron whispered. "No way."
"But why? I could have proved I had nothing to do with it." Harry said.
"Perhaps but hearing voices especially in the wizarding world isn't a good sign." Hermione told him gently.
"She's right. Best keep this between us for now until we learn more about this." Salem said softly.
Harry sighed but nodded in understanding. "Okay." He plopped another blood pop into his mouth as they reached the Fat Lady's portrait and entered Gryffindor Tower.
"Get some sleep, you've all had an eventful evening." Professor McGonagall told them with a gentle smile.
"Goodnight, Professor." Daisuke said as the woman left, shutting the portrait behind her and the group all headed up to bed.
The end of the chapter
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