The Potter Twins and the Chamber of Secrets

Chapter 6: More Questions….

In the dungeons….

Harry and Ron move quickly, when….

Peeves pops out of the wall, yelling, "hey kids, wanna see a dead body!

Harry and Ron yell in shock as the ghost cackles and flies off.

Harry, "now I know why Michael hates him so much…."

As they try to continue, they hear…. Footsteps sound.

Seconds later, Percy appears at the end of the corridor.

Ron, "what are you doing here?"

Percy, "I happen to be a prefect. You, on the other hand, have no business wandering the corridors at night. It's not safe these days."

Harry and Ron nod, afraid to speak. Percy squints again.

Percy, "what're your names again?"

Draco appears, yelling, "Crabbe. Goyle. Where have you been? Pigging out in the Great Hall all this time?

Draco walks towards them and glances witheringly at Percy.

Draco, "and what are you doing down here, Weasley?"

Percy, "mind your attitude, Malfoy. You want to show a little bit more respect to a school Prefect!"

Draco, "come on, boys. Weasley thinks he's going to catch Slytherin's heir single-handed."

Percy steams as Draco sneers and walks off with Harry and Ron.

Harry and Ron trail Draco inside and glance around warily.

Draco, "listen to this…."

Draco grabs The Daily Prophet and reads the front page.

Draco, "'Arthur Weasley, Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, was today fined fifty Galleons for bewitching a Muggle car. 'Weasley has brought the Ministry into disrepute'; said Lucius Malfoy, a governor of Hogwarts. 'He is clearly unfit to draw up our laws and his ridiculous Muggle Protection Act should be scrapped immediately.'"

Grinning, Malfoy glances over the paper at Harry and Ron.

Draco, "Arthur Weasley loves Muggles so much, he should snap his wand in half and go join them. You'd never know the Weasleys were purebloods, the way they behave. Embarrassment to the wizarding world. All of them."

Ron growls. Harry elbows him. Draco looks surprised.

Draco, "what's up with you, Crabbe?"

Ron, "ngh, stomachache."

Draco, "well, go to the hospital wing and give all those Mudbloods a kick in the arse for me! You know, I'm surprised The Daily Prophet hasn't reported all these attacks yet. I suppose Dumbledore's trying to hush it all up. He'll be sacked if it doesn't stop soon. Father always said Dumbledore's the worst thing that's ever happened to this place."

Harry, "you're wrong!"

Draco, "what? Did you say that I was wrong? You think there's someone here who's worse than Dumbledore?"

Ron stiffens, worried.

Harry thinks, then says, "the Potter Twins?"

Draco grins and says, "good one, Goyle. You're absolutely right. Saint Potter's. They're other's with no proper wizard feeling, or they wouldn't go around with that Mudblood Granger. And people actually think Harry's the Heir of Slytherin!?"

Harry and Ron exchange a glance. Harry leans closer to Draco.

Harry, "then you must have some idea who's behind it all?"

Draco, "you know I haven't, Goyle. How many times do I have to tell you? But my father did say this much: It's been fifty years since the Chamber was opened. He wouldn't tell me who opened it…. Only that they were expelled…. But I know this: the last time the Chamber of Secrets was opened, a Mudblood died. So it's only a matter of time before one of them's killed this time. As for me…. I hope it's Granger."

As Malfoy grins, Ron's fist rises…. When Harry stops him.

Draco, "what's the matter with you two? You're acting very…. Odd."

Ron, "uh…."

Harry turns and sees Ron staring wide-eyed: Harry's scar is beginning to surface beneath the skin of Goyle's thick forehead. And Crabbe's hair is…. Turning red. They both jump to their feet, dashing out of the room.

Draco yelled, "hey! Where are you going?"

….

Harry and Ron sprint toward the desecrated wall, their bodies metamorphosing, until, finally, as they get to the door….

…. They are fully themselves once more.

Ron, "that was close!"

That's when they get a confusing sight. They see Crabbe and Goyle running out of the bathroom, screaming in terror.

Harry, "what the…?"

That's when they get a very shocking sight.

Michael walks out of the bathroom, but his head resembles that of a ferret!

Michael looked at Harry and Ron and said, "it wasn't Marcus' hair…. It was Fleet's."

Michael then led them into the bathroom as Harry said, "Hermione, come out. We've got loads to tell you!"

Hermione, "go away!"

As Harry and Ron exchange a puzzled glance, Moaning Myrtle spirals into view, looking disturbingly…. Happy.

Moaning Myrtle, "oh, wait till you see. It's awful!"

Michael, "knock it off, Myrtle."

The stall's lock slides back. The door opens slowly.

Hermione is hidden in the shadows as she says, "do you remember me telling you the Polyjuice Potion was only for human transformations…?"

Even in shadow, they can see: Hermione's face is covered in fur, her eyes yellow, and pointed ears poke through her hair.

Hermione, "it was cat hair I plucked off Millicent Bulstrode's robes! Look at my face!"

Ron smiled and said, "look at your tail."

Michael looked at Ron, thinking, 'what the….'

….

Two weeks later, in the hospital wing.

Staggering under the weight of the library books in their arms, Harry and Ron make their way to Hermione's bed, which is covered in…. Books.

Michael is laying on another bed, trying to nap as Fleet keeps staring at him.

Hermione, "oh, good. Put those anywhere."

They look. There is no anywhere. So they just…. Drop them.

Ron, "Madam Pince asked that we relay a message to you, Hermione: She'd appreciate it if you'd leave a few books for the rest of the school."

Hermione, "I've got to keep up, haven't I?"

Just then, Hermione's tail twitches into view.

Ron, "is that thing ever going away?"

Hermione, "any day now, according to Madam Pomfrey. I'm just thankful I've stopped coughing up fur balls."

Ron, "we all are, believe me."

Hermione, "now. What about the Chamber of Secrets? Any new leads?"

Harry, "nothing."

Hermione, "and has it gotten any better? I mean…. Is anyone speaking to you?"

Harry, "Neville asked to borrow a tubeworm in Potions yesterday. I suppose that's something."

Michael, "it's more than nothing."

Ron takes a get-well card from under Hermione's pillow.

Ron, "'to Miss Granger. Wishing you a speedy recovery, from your concerned teacher Gilderoy Lockhart.' You sleep with this under your pillow?"

Michael, "seriously, does no one else find that the least bit creepy?"

Fleet raises his little paw.

Hermione, "of course not. I don't know how that got there. Now go. I still have six hundred pages to read in Transformation Through the Ages."

Harry and Ron shrug.

….

Harry and Ron mount the stairs.

Ron, "I know Hermione's mental, but can you believe she falls for that smarmy nonsense of Lockhart's?"

They stop and look down. A great flood of water streams from the Girls' Bathroom. From within, Myrtle can be heard moaning.

Harry, "looks like Myrtle's flooded the bathroom."

As Harry splashes off toward the bathroom, Ron steps lightly.

Ron, "yuck."

Huge, wracking moans echo off the dreary tile. All the taps are running, streaming like tiny waterfalls. As Harry and Ron step to the last cubicle, Myrtle spins accusingly.

Moaning Myrtle, "come to throw something else at me?"

Harry, "why would I throw something at you?"

Moaning Myrtle, "don't ask me. Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it's funny to throw a book at me…."

Ron, "but it can't hurt if someone throws something at you. I mean, it'd just go right through you, wouldn't it?"

Moaning Myrtle, "oh sure! Let's all throw books at Myrtle, because she can't feel it! Ten points if you can get it through her stomach. Fifty points if it goes through her head!"

She punches through Ron's stomach and head as she says this.

Harry, "who threw it at you anyway?"

Moaning Myrtle, "I don't know. I didn't see them. I was just sitting in the U-bend, thinking about death and it fell through the top of my head."

Harry sees a small black book on the floor and picks it up.

Ron, "fifty points if you can get it through her nose."

Moaning Myrtle, "I HEARD THAT!"

Harry and Ron dash out.

….

Harry examines the book as he and Ron walk.

Harry, "this is a diary. And it's old…."

Ron, "it's a diary, it's old…. And was most recently in a toilet, Harry."

Harry starts to open it, when Ron grabs his hand.

Ron, "are you mad? That could be cursed. Dad once told me about a book the Ministry confiscated that burned the eyes out of anyone who tried to read it."

Harry, "I'll take my chances…. Ahhh! MY EYES! MY EYES!"

Ron freezes, terrified, when…. Harry grins, ending the ruse. At the end of corridor, Ginny stands, looking from the diary to Harry, utter terror on her face, then dashes off.

Harry, "Ginny! I was only joking! Brilliant. Even your sister thinks I'm the monster now."

Ron, "who doesn't?"

Ron frowns suddenly. On the first page on the diary, embossed letters spell out a name: Tom Marvolo Riddle.

Ron "Tom Marvolo Riddle? Hang on. I know that name…. Of course! The night I had detention…. My job was to polish the silver in the trophy room. I remember because I kept burping slugs all over Tom Riddle's trophy. I must have wiped slime off his name for an hour."

Harry fans the pages. They're empty.

Harry, "that's odd. He never wrote in it."

….

Later that night, in the hospital wing...

We see the diary. A good embossed address on the back reads: Waxflatter's booksellers. 422 Vauxhall Road.

Harry sits with Hermione and Michael in the moonlit room. Hermione studies the diary curiously.

Hermione, "Tom Riddle…. Hm. And Ron said he won an award fifty years ago?"

Harry, "Special Services to the School or something."

Michael, "huh, interesting…."

Hermione, "fifty years ago? You're sure?"

Harry, "yes. Why?"

Hermione, "don't you remember what Malfoy told you? The last time the Chamber of Secrets was opened was…."

Harry, "fifty years ago!"

Michael, "if that's the case, that means…."

Hermione, "Tom Riddle was here, at Hogwarts, when it happened. What if he wrote about what he saw? It's possible he knew where the Chamber was, how to open it, even what sort of creature lives in it. If so, whoever's behind the attacks this time wouldn't want a diary like this lying around, would they?"

Michael, "that's a brilliant theory, Hermione."

Harry, "with just one tiny little flaw. There's nothing written in this diary."

Hermione, "it might be invisible ink", she pulls out her wand, "Aparecium!"

She taps the diary three times. Nothing happens. The pages remain blank. She frowns and passes the book back to Harry.

Hermione, "I don't know, Harry. But I think you should be careful with this. Something tells me Ron might be right. It could be dangerous."

Harry, "you don't think I'm dangerous, do you, Hermione? I mean, you're not scared. Of me."

Hermione, "I'm scared, Harry. But not of you."

Michael, "we're right behind you Harry. We'll figure this whole thing out. We promise."

Harry can't help but smile at his brother.

….

Later that night...

Seamus, Neville, Ron and Dean sleep. Two beds are empty. In the Common Room we find Harry and Michael sitting together, flipping through the blank pages of the diary.

Michael had been cleared to leave the medical wing, and so, he was trying to help his brother figure out what was going on with the diary.

Harry starts to set the diary aside, then notices a bottle of ink sitting on the desk. An idea flickers in his head.

Taking his quill, Harry dips it, and hesitates. As he does, a drop of ink hangs, suspended like a tear, then….

Drip

The ink blazes briefly, then…. Vanishes…. As if it were sucked into the page.

Michael, "woah…. That's something…."

Excited, Harry dips his quill again, and, this time, writes: My name is Harry Potter.

The words blaze, vanish. Slowly, oozing out of the page, comes a response: Hello, Harry Potter. My name is Tom Riddle.

Michael said, "okay…. This just keeps getting more and more peculiar."

The twins' mind race.

Harry mutters the words he writes:

Harry, "do…. You…. Know…. Anything…. About…. The…. Chamber…. Of…. Secrets?"

Yes.

Michael, "good."

Harry, "can…. You…. Tell…. Me?"

No.

Michael, "oh, bloody Hell."

Harry frowns. Then…. Slowly…. New words ooze to the surface.

But I can show you…. Both of you….

Harry and Michael look at one another. He knew Michael and Harry were both there!? They wait, intrigued. Then, suddenly…. The pages flutter wildly, stopping on "June the 13th."

On the page, a tiny square shimmers…. Like a window. Harry lifts the book, puts his eye close and…. Pitches forward, grabbing onto Michael, and making both spill through the widening window, into a whirl of color and shadow, tumbling onto their feet….

….

In a torch-lit corridor. Everything is de-saturated, save for Harry and Michael, who retain their true, rich colors of the present. They glance about, disoriented, then spy a boy.

They are at the end of the corridor, peering around a corner. A flurry of shadows dance on the wall beyond the boy, revealing the presence of others, unseen, in an adjoining room.

As Harry and Michael advance, low voices emanate from the shadows.

As they reach the boy, Harry speaks in a whisper.

Harry, "excuse me. Could you tell me where we are? Hello...?"

Michael, "are you Tom Riddle?"

The boy doesn't respond, eyes staked to the activity in the adjoining room…. Which Harry and Michael see now is the Entrance Hall. A group of elder witches and wizards, Hogwarts Professors, talking amongst themselves, then…. Abruptly go silent. Make way for two young wizards, bearing a stretcher.

"Riddle?"

The boy, Tom Riddle, turns and looks right through Harry and Michael. The twins turn, too. It's Dumbledore…. Fifty years younger.

Tom, "Professor Dumbledore."

Dumbledore, "it's not wise to be wandering around this late, Tom."

Tom, "yes, Professor. I suppose I…. I just had to see for myself, if….", Riddle glances toward the young wizards, watches them carry the stretcher out of the Hall, into the night, "... the rumors were true."

Dumbledore, "I'm afraid they are, Tom.

Tom, "about the school as well? They wouldn't really close Hogwarts, would they, Professor?"

Dumbledore, "Headmaster Dippet may have no choice, I'm afraid."

Tom, "air? If it all stopped. If the person responsible was caught…."

Dumbledore, "is there something you wish to tell me, Tom?"

Tom, "... no, sir. Nothing."

That worried Harry and Michael. That had been what they had said to Dumbledore!

Dumbledore studies Riddle for a moment before he says, "very well then. Hurry along."

Dumbledore strides directly past Harry and Michael, not seeing them.

When he is gone, Riddle moves quickly, toward the dungeon steps.

What was he up to?

Up ahead, a splinter of light leaks through a door.

Riddle puts his eye to the crack. Inside, someone is speaking. And it's a voice that Harry and Michael both seem to recognize.

"C'mon, Aragog. Gotta get yeh outta here…. C'mon now…. In the box….."

As Riddle pushes the door clear, Harry and Michael see a second, smaller room. Crouched by a box, is a huge boy…. A younger Hagrid! A strange clicking comes from the box.

Tom, "evening, Hagrid."

Hagrid slams the door shut.

Tom, "I'm going to have to turn you in, Hagrid. I don't think you meant it to kill anyone-"

Hagrid, "no, yeh can't! Yeh don' understand!"

Tom, "Hagrid. The dead girl's parents will be here tomorrow. The least Hogwarts can do is make sure the thing that killed their daughter is slaughtered."

Hagrid, "it wasn' him! Aragog never'd kill no one! Never!"

Tom, "monsters don't make good pets, Hagrid. Now…. Stand aside…."

Tom draws his wand, blasts the closed door off its hinges, extinguishing the torches within. Harry and Michael gasp.

A low-slung creature with a tangle of black legs, a gleam of many eyes and a pair of razor-sharp pincers, scuttles out of the shadows.

As Tom points his wand at it, Hagrid leaps and yells, "noooooo!"

As they tumble to the floor, the entire room whirls off its axis, spinning, and the boy's find themselves plummeting through color and shadow again, falling flat on their backs to….

….

…. The floor of the Gryffindor Common Room, the ceiling above spinning, slowly, to a stop. The twins rise and dash upstairs.

Harry and Michael rush to Ron, and shake him awake, whispering intensely.

Harry, "Ron!"

Michael, "Ron!"

Ron, "what? What's happened…?"

Harry, "it was Hagrid…."

Michael, "Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago…."

….

Reviews:

Canadude2029: glad you liked the chapter and are excited for more and are interested in my poll.

Bailey Radcliff: Thanks. Glad you're enjoying the story. And glad you voted.

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