Author's Note: All Harry Potter based characters belong to J. K. Rowling. But I own all the original characters.

Note: Thank you to Sailor Hecate and Chocheryl for your reviews.

Chapter Six

Elizabeth and Mary's Garden

"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary," a harmonious voice sang. "How does your garden grow?"

Harry opened his eyes, that song was in his head and he didn't know why. He reached out for his glasses and placed them on, only to nearly jump out of his skin when he saw a little girl standing at the side of his bed.

Her hair of coffee brown was hanging down to her chest and her violet coloured dress was all neat and tidy.

"Hello," she said.

"Who are you?" Harry asked, unsure how to act.

"Have you seen my mother?" the girl asked.

"I don't know," Harry replied. "Who is your mother?"

The little girl suddenly let out an ear piercing scream and Harry quickly turned to see nothing but dark hair over a face, but the piercing eyes were looking at him with nothing but sheer murder within.

Harry yelled out and tried to get away, but her hand grabbed his wrist, she was very, very strong. Harry yelled and screamed as loudly as he could. Mary went to place her hand upon Harry's head, Harry continued to shout.

Suddenly a loud smash came; something hard and heavy came and tossed Mary away. Harry sat up and jumped out of his bed and saw the heavy book that had smacked Mary aside. He saw Neville and Ron, awake and with their wands out, not that wands would really do anything, being that Mary is all ready dead.

All three boys stared at Mary, who stood up and looked at each one of them. Her eyes went straight to Harry and she went to step towards him, but she stopped suddenly. The little girl stepped in front of Harry.

"Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary, leave his soul tonight!" she spoke in a clear voice. "Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary, leave his soul tonight!"

Mary began to fade and shiver as though she were a television screen. She disappeared and the little girl turned and looked at Harry. She went to fade away.

"No, wait!" Harry cried out.

But the little girl faded into nothing as if she never were.

The door burst open and McGonagall, Hermione and the rest of the Weasleys all piled on into the room.

"What happened? Who screamed?" McGonagall demanded.

"Mary, she was in our room!" Neville responded. "She was after Harry!"

"But a little girl, she stopped her," said Harry, he was in wonder as to who the little girl was.

"What little girl?" Hermione asked.

"A little girl, she was at my bedside, singing a nursery rhyme. I woke, saw her and she asked me if I had seen her mother. When I asked who her mother was, she screamed and that's when I saw Mary. I think she was going to try and crush my skull in, being that was where she was aiming, until someone threw a book at her," Harry explained.

"That was Neville, who threw the book," said Ron.

"Anyway, Mary was going to go towards me again and that's when the little girl appeared and said the words Snape said to say," said Harry.

"Where is this little girl?" George asked.

"She disappeared," said Harry.

"I think we best move to the Great Hall," said McGonagall. "I'll get Dumbledore, you stick together."

No objections from anyone.

Once everyone was in the Great Hall, Harry was questioned by Dumbledore and McGonagall.

"What did this girl look like?" Dumbledore asked.

"She had coffee brown hair, blue eyes," said Harry, going from memory. "She had a violet coloured dress on, silver necklace and bracelet, white shoes and socks. She was singing a nursery rhyme, Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary."

"How does your garden grow," said McGonagall all of a sudden. She looked at Harry. "Did you see anything on the bracelet?"

Harry thought back to his brief interaction with the little girl.

"I saw a date on it, fifth of November," said Harry.

"And the necklace?" McGonagall asked her voice seemed to be a little hopeful.

"It was heart shaped with a pink gemstone in it," said Harry.

McGonagall nodded. She looked as though she was keeping herself from crying.

"Excuse me," she said.

McGonagall walked away and Harry couldn't help but be rather concerned.

"I take it I had just described Elizabeth," he said.

Dumbledore sighed sadly; "Indeed you have," he replied. "McGonagall doesn't talk about what happened to her daughter very often, if not at all. But I knew that she and Elizabeth were very close. Especially since McGonagall had to raise her by herself since her husband died when Elizabeth was three years old."

"It must have been tough," said Harry, feeling deeply sorry for his Head of House. "But I can't help but wonder why Elizabeth would appear just before Mary shows up."

Dumbledore made a slight 'hmm' sound and turned over to Snape, who was watching the students.

"Severus," the Headmaster called.

Snape heard him and walked over to him and Harry.

"Headmaster," he said.

"Have you seen a little girl, just before you saw Mary?"

Snape thought back to that night.

"I don't remember seeing anyone, except for Mary," he carefully replied. "But I do remember, I don't know how, hearing that damned rhyme about Mary's garden growing."

"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary?" Harry offered.

"That would be the one," said Severus. "I've always hated that song!" he muttered under his breath.

"Why would Elizabeth be singing that particular song?" Harry asked.

"It was Elizabeth's favourite, Professor McGonagall told me so herself," said Dumbledore.

"Isn't it strange that Elizabeth would be singing that very rhyme, just before Mary shows up?" Harry asked.

"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary …" Dumbledore muttered out loud, seeming to be in deep thought. "How does your garden grow?"

"Silverbells and Cockle-shells and pretty maids all in a row," a voice completed.

Harry, Dumbledore and Snape all looked and saw, standing before them, the little girl in her violet dress and white shoes and socks and silver jewellery. Her coffee brown hair was so neat and her eyes of blue were matched to that of McGonagall.

"Elizabeth," said Dumbledore.

"Have you seen my mother, Dumbledore?" Elizabeth asked.

"Elizabeth?" the voice of a surprised McGonagall spoke.

"Mama," said Elizabeth, looking straight at McGonagall.

Harry looked from McGonagall to Elizabeth and back to McGonagall.

'Okay, this is weird!' his mind couldn't help but say.

"How is that possible?" Ron asked, who had been watching and listening to this from the sidelines. Hermione was with him.

"You don't have much time before she comes," said Elizabeth. "But you must find Mary's garden."

"Mary's Garden?" said Ron, with a small frown.

"What are you talking about?" Snape asked.

"Find Mary's Garden," said Elizabeth. "Destroy it!"

With that Elizabeth's eyes widened and she pointed straight passed the group. Everyone turned and there she was, with her dark hair curtaining her face, only showing her murderously pale eyes and dead white skin. Mary stood at the doorway to the Great Hall.

She began to step forwards. Everyone in the Great Hall was practically bolted to their spots in fear. Mary walked to a Ravenclaw boy and her hand lashed out, grabbed the top of his hair and with a quick dose of accurate strength, twisted his head right around so he was facing the other way.

McGonagall felt a small hand slip into hers. McGonagall looked down and saw Elizabeth.

"This way, mama," she said. "This way to Mary's Garden."

McGonagall didn't want to let go of the cold hand of her ghostly daughter. Harry, Ron and Hermione all saw this and went to follow Elizabeth with McGonagall.

They followed the little girl far, far into the dungeons to the Slytherin entrance way to the common room.

"But it's the Slytherin's common room," said Hermione.

"You have to go in and find Mary's Garden!" Elizabeth spoke earnestly. "You have to destroy it!"

"But how?" asked Harry. "We don't have the password!"

"Brimstone," said the one voice they weren't expecting.

They turned to see Snape. The entrance opened up for them.

"Mary is chasing Longbottom, Malfoy and a few of the other students," said Snape.

Everyone hurried into the Slytherin common room.

"How do you know that it's in here?" McGonagall asked.

"Because Mary had a secret garden here in the school, it was always in the one place she will go whenever there was no chance of going out after curfew," Elizabeth said.

"Best to scatter," said Harry, "Look for this garden."

They looked and they looked.

"Are you positive it's in here?" McGonagall asked Elizabeth.

Suddenly.

"I found it! I found it!"

McGonagall and Elizabeth hurried and found Ron standing in front of the fireplace. In his hand was a handmade parchment book. The title 'Mary's Garden.'