"Samantha, I have to tell you something," Harry said nervously to his sister the morning of February 15th. Harry had caught up with Leslie, Samantha, Max, and Elias as they walked together to breakfast.

"What'd you do?" Leslie replied immediately, and Samantha and Max looked at each other and then at Leslie, their eyebrows raised and grins on their faces.

"I didn't do anything, and I'm talking to Samantha," Harry said.

"What is it, Harry?" Samantha asked.

"Can I talk to you in private?" Harry asked.

"This is about as private as it's going to get, unless you want Elias to go, because I'll most likely tell whatever you tell me to Max and Les," Samantha said.

Harry flashed her an annoyed look. "Elias should go," he said.

"Sorry, 'lias, you heard the boy. Go get Damon and Connor, they probably haven't moved and they'll be late otherwise," Samantha suggested.

"What are you guys talking about?" Elias asked them.

"We don't know," Max replied.

"Will you tell me later?" Elias asked.

"Can't, you heard Harry," Samantha said.

"This isn't' fair, why do you guys get to be involved and I don't?" Elias asked.

Samantha shrugged. "I'm Harry's sister, Leslie is my best friend, and Max is my boyfriend. So unless you'd like to compete for one of those titles, which you won't win if you do try, you're stuck with this," she told him.

"Will you tell me at some time in the future?" Elias asked.

Samantha looked at Harry, who shook his head no. "Probably not," she told him. "Look, just go get Damon and Connor up for breakfast, we'll meet you there."

Elias rolled his eyes and walked back to Gryffindor Tower, annoyed.

"What is it, Harry?" Samantha asked.

"Can we go somewhere more private?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, come on," Samantha said, and they walked to a nearby classroom with no one in it. "Alright, spill."

"I know who opened the Chamber last time," Harry said. "It was Hagrid."

Samantha, Max, and Leslie shared a shocked, slightly guilty look between themselves.

"How do you know?" Samantha asked quickly.

"That diary we found in the bathroom, it was like there was someone inside it, and he showed me his memory of catching Hagrid with the monster of Slytherin fifty years ago, the last time attacks were happening," Harry explained.

"The diary… is a person?" Leslie asked.

"Not exactly… it's more like a person is trapped inside the diary," said Harry.

"That must be crazy advanced magic…" Samantha said.

"I've never even heard of it," Max told them.

"Harry, you're just going to trust a person living in a diary? What all did he say? It was Tom Riddle, wasn't it?" Samantha questioned.

"Yeah, it was Tom Riddle. He just… said he knew who did it, and it had all been covered up," Harry replied.

"No surprise there…" Leslie muttered.

"You don't seem very concerned with the fact that Hagrid was opening the Chamber," Harry said.

Max avoided Harry's eye contact, running a hand through his hair as Leslie squinted and bit on her lip, looking at Harry. Samantha looked as though she was trying to form sentences, but couldn't think of the words.

"What is it?" Harry asked, suspecting something was going on that he didn't know about.

"Well… the thing is… we kind of… already knew," Samantha said slowly.

"What? How? When?" Harry asked.

"I asked my parents over winter break, and they agreed to tell me on the condition I only told Samantha and Leslie and didn't go spreading it around," Max said. "Had to talk them down from telling no one."

"You've known for two months and didn't tell me?" Harry asked, angry.

"Harry, you have to understand, everything is supposed to be a secret. We aren't supposed to know, it was all hushed up," Samantha protested.

"I can see why Lauren didn't talk to you for so long," Harry said, making his way for the door. "You ask us to tell you everything, and you tell us nothing."

"Harry-" Samantha said, running towards her brother and using his shoulder to turn him around.

"Any other secrets you're keeping from me?" Harry asked.

"No, Harry, that's it, I promise," Samantha said. "Wait, no, but we also asked Hagrid, he said he didn't do it!" she added.

"You talked to Hagrid about this?" Harry asked.

"We had to know," Samantha said. She then seemed to falter, the hurt growing on her face. "Please don't stop talking to me," she pleaded softly.

"Just… give me a break for a little while," Harry said.

Samantha was frozen for a second before she seemed to regain herself. "Yeah… yeah," she mumbled, very out of it.

Samantha seemed to stay that way for the rest of the day, in a strange daze. That was, until Transfiguration.

"Alright students, your turn," Professor McGonagall said after demonstrating to them how to turn a teapot into a tortoise.

Not thinking much of the tortoise, Samantha pointed her wand at the teapot and muttered the incantation. It took her a second to realize what she had done, and when she did, she screamed.

"What is it?" Professor McGonagall asked sharply, marching over to Samantha's desk, where a large tarantula sat.

Samantha looked at the spider in shock. "I'm so sorry professor, I didn't mean to, it was an accident," she said, scared to get in trouble.

Professor McGonagall took a deep breath. "It's alright, Miss Potter," she said, sounding slightly annoyed. She raised her wand and turned the tarantula back into the teapot. "Just focus next time."

Samantha nodded, and for the rest of the day, she didn't let her mind wander one bit. She also turned the teapot into a perfect tortoise on her next try, something that greatly annoyed Max, whose tortoise had steam coming out of its mouth and a flowery pattern on its shell.

Elias confronted her as she walked alone to lunch, having just come from her Divination class that took place at the same time as their Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

"Samantha!" he called, jogging over to her.

"Oh, Elias, what's up?" Samantha asked.

"Where are Max and Leslie?" Elias asked, confused as to why Samantha was walking alone because she was nearly always seen with her two closest friends.

"Coming from Defense, if I'm not mistaken," Samantha said.

"Why aren't you with them? And why are you here, Defense is in the other direction?" Elias questioned.

"Oh, I just came from Divination," Samantha replied. "Trelawney is such a fraud, but it's a pretty funny class. Plus, easy to pass."

"So you skipped Defense to go to Divination? You'll get in trouble for that," Elias told her.

"No, I went to Defense," Samantha said.

"But you were just in Divination," said Elias.

"Your point?" asked Samantha.

"Well, you can't be in Defense and Divination, you'd have to miss one of the classes," Elias argued.

"I didn't miss either," Samantha told him.

"But that's impossible, unless you were in two places at once," said Elias.

"Of course I wasn't in two places at once, you can't do that," Samantha said, wanting to sound like even the idea alone was preposterous to her. "Now, if all you wanted to talk about was why I'm not with Leslie and Max, I'd like to be on my way to lunch."

"No, I wanted to ask what you were talking about with Harry earlier," Elias said.

"'Lias, I already said, we can't tell you," Samantha said.

"Why not?"

"It's confidential. Top secret, you know?"

"Can you at least tell me what it's about?"

"No can do, sorry."

"Sam, that's not fair."

"How is it not fair?" Samantha asked.

"You guys get to know and I don't," Elias said, as if it were obvious.

"Life isn't fair," Samantha stated simply.

"Sam, if you were in my position, you'd be bugging everyone until they told you," Elias said.

Samantha sighed, dropping the carefree, slightly clueless version of herself she had originally presented. "Look, Elias, I wish I could tell you, but I've been given strict orders not to, and not just from Harry, from a few well-respected people. Sometime you may be able to find out, but that time is not right now."

Elias looked slightly frustrated, and Samantha gave him a look of pity.

"Elias, I promise you that I will tell you as soon as I'm allowed, alright?" Samantha said. "Now, come on, let's go to lunch before we completely miss it. And, you can ask Max and Les if I missed Defense, and they will tell you no, and my point will be proven."

Elias tried to hide his smile, but failed miserably. "Fine," he said, laughing.

"Good," Samantha replied, also laughing, and the pair walked to lunch together.

That weekend was the Hogsmeade trip. On the walk there, Samantha and Max ditched the rest of their group to be alone, making up for the god-awful Valentine's Day Lockhart had given them.

First, they walked around the town, holding hands as they talked and laughed. After a little while of that, they went to The Three Broomsticks and had Butterbeer, avoiding the frilly Madam Puddifoot's that both would feel out of place in. They then walked into a few shops, getting chocolates in Honeydukes and looking through clothes in Gladrags Wizardwear as they walked towards the Shrieking Shack.

"I wonder what's inside?" Samantha said as they approached the building.

"Who knows?" Max asked. "I'd love to find out, though."

"I wish we could go in," Samantha said, sighing wistfully.

Max paused for a moment. "You have an Invisibility Cloak, don't you?" he asked.

Samantha raised her eyebrows, a smile slowly growing on her lips. "Are you implying what I think you're implying, Mr. Langbert?" she asked, her voice prim and proper.

"I rather think I am, Miss Potter," Max said in the same proper tone of voice.

They laughed together, hugging and leaning onto each other for support.

"Harry's got it right now, he has more space in his trunk and we can all go in there if need be," Samantha explained. "But, I can get it from him and we can come back next visit and go in."

"What if we came back earlier?" Max asked.

"Like sneak out?"

Max nodded.

"I like the way you think," Samanthe replied with a grin. "Alright, I'll get the Cloak from Harry and we can sneak out one day, come explore this place."

"Sounds like a plan," said Max with an identical grin.

By Easter, people were beginning to think Slytherin's heir was done for the year, and the monster maybe even settling down for another fifty years of slumber. Harry, Ron, and Hermione hadn't yet gone to Hagrid, but unbeknownst to Samantha, Max, and Leslie, they had plans to in the event of another attack.

It was also time for the second years to pick their two subjects they wanted to add on to their schedule, something Harry came to Samantha for advice about one day.

"What are the classes like? Which ones should I take?" Harry asked Samantha as she wrote down stuff about her horoscope for the month of April for Divination.

"Huh. The personality stuff is rather accurate," Samantha noted, ignoring Harry's question.

"Sam, I need help. What class do you recommend for me?" Harry demanded.

"I don't know," Samantha replied. "Maybe one part of Divination isn't a fraud," she muttered.

"Aren't you taking all the classes? Just tell me what I should take."

"No," Samantha replied carelessly.

"No? Why not?" Harry asked, taken aback.

"I don't want to influence your decision."

"What?"

"Look at Neville," Samantha said, pointing to him reading over mounds of letters, looking as if he were about to cry. "Poor kid has so many letters, he's about to pass out. I don't want my opinion to influence what you think. Go for what you feel is right, or take whatever Ron takes, or randomly choose, but I want you to choose what's right for you, not what I like," Samantha told him.

Harry groaned, and walked back over to Hermione and Ron.

"What'd you end up taking?" Samantha asked him at dinner.

"Divination and Care of Magical Creatures," Harry answered.

"Nice choices," Samanthe replied, careful not to let him see how he felt towards those subjects, be it good or bad. "What about you guys, Hermione, Ron?"

"Same as Harry," Ron replied.

"I'm taking them all," Hermione said proudly.

Samantha smiled, knowing Hermione would have to use a Time Turner like she did. "It's a lot," Samantha warned her playfully.

"I can do it," Hermione said.

"I know," Samantha replied.

Because Gryffindor had a Quidditch match with Hufflepuff coming up, Oliver Wood was insisting on nightly practices. Samantha felt as if she might pass out if any more work were to come her way.

She spent glorious free periods doing her homework as quickly as possible while still making sure it was legible, and also did homework in History of Magic and during meal times. She tried not to turn back time just to do homework, because she'd be extra tired for practice then, and McGonagall seemed to be keeping a close eye on her. Late nights were spent in the common room writing essays, and although she was able to keep up her performance in all of those fields, for the first time in her life, Samantha felt as if she was going to collapse at any moment.

"Are you sure you're up for the Quidditch game tomorrow, Sam?" Max asked as they walked back to the castle together after practice.

"Yes, I can do it," Samantha replied, however, she was beginning to doubt herself.

"I mean, you've spent practically every waking hour in class, doing homework, or practicing Quidditch. No offense, but you don't look great," Max told her.

"I'm fine," Samantha told him, annoyed.

"Look, if you feel you can go out and play tomorrow, I won't stop you. But there will be other Quidditch games, I'm just saying."

"I know."

"Samantha! We have to talk to you," Harry said as he and Ron rushed down the stairs leading to their dormitory.

Samantha, Max, and Leslie looked up from the essays they were writing, and Hermione looked up from a book on Ancient Runes she had borrowed from Samantha. "What is it this time, Harry?" Samantha asked.

"Someone took Riddle's diary," Harry said in a low voice.

"What?" Leslie and Hermione asked together.

"Who would want it?" Max asked.

"Does someone else know what that diary is hiding?" Samantha asked.

"But- only a Gryffindor could have stolen- nobody else knows our password-" Hermione said.

"Exactly," Harry said, and the six students exchanged dark looks.

Samantha didn't get much sleep that night. She had been trying to complete her homework so she could relax for the weekend after the Quidditch match, and she was worried someone was out to expose Hagrid for a crime he didn't commit.

She walked groggily down to the Great Hall, wrapping her sweater tightly around herself.

"Perfect Quidditch conditions!" Oliver said cheerfully as he piled eggs onto the teams' plates.

Samantha looked at them, and, feeling a sick wave of nausea creep through her body, pushed the plate away.

"Samantha, what are you doing, you need to eat so you can play," Oliver told her, pushing the plate back to her.

Samantha shut her eyes and swallowed, shaking her head. "I'm not hungry," she said softly.

"Samantha, you really don't look well. I'm not sure you should play," Max told her as they walked together to the Quidditch field.

"I'll be fine, Max, stop worrying," Samantha said back. She wasn't sure why she was lying to him, but maybe because she didn't want to admit to herself, or anyone really, that she wasn't fine.

Soon enough, the teams were up in the air. As soon as she left the ground, Samantha felt dizzy, and it grew worse the higher she flew. Just as they were about to start the match, she heard a faint voice call out "This match has been canceled!" before darkness and silence consumed her.