Chapter 24 - Polyjuice Potion Adventures
The next day was fairly relaxing. Herbology was cancelled so our lessons finished at dinner time. Hermione, Ron and I tried to cheer up Harry who was still brooding over yesterday. I suppose it couldn't be helped with the amount of looks and people talking behind his back he'd been given. A lot of people had been steering clear of him. Hagrid thought it was nonsense. The only voice of reason Harry seemed to listen to after we visited him. I had decided I would approach him to see if he would like to be an animagus. It was a very relaxing and a stress relief for me to just change and run in the forest, the Centaurs didn't seem to mind if I ran on their land anyway. I would ask him after this Chamber of Secrets business was resolved. After dinner we went back to the common room. Ron managed to get Harry to have a game of Wizard Chess but his heart just wasn't in it. He lost. Obviously Harry's distractedness was not just getting on my nerves.
"For heaven's sake, Harry," Hermione said suddenly and exasperatedly. Ron's moaning from Harry not playing the games must have been grating on her nerves as she sat on a nearby arm chair reading her muggle book. "Go and find Justin if it's so important to you." Harry looked at the three of us individually before grinning and taking off. I got up and sat where Harry was setting before Ron grinned and set up the game again. We played for about 20 minutes, I was winning of course, before Seamus Finnigan comes running him.
"Justin Finch-Fletchley's been petrified!" He cried in his Irish twang.
"Oh no." Hermione muttered looking between me and Ron as we simultaneously stood up.
"And Harry's been caught in the act!" Seamus continued looking at us three.
"Oh crap." Ron sighed before the three of us set off running after Seamus who was running back. Sure enough Seamus was right. We got there as Seamus was being magically lifted onto a stretcher by Professor Flitwick while Professor McGonagall tried to shoo everyone along and Professor Sinatra did something with Nearly Headless Nick who had also been petrified. He glided through the air from a magical pull following Flitwick with Justin.
"Off with you three now." Professor McGonagall said sternly to us.
"But Professor..." I whined.
"Now." She replied before turning to Harry. "This way, Potter."
"Professor," said Harry at once, "I swear I didn't -"
"This is out of my hands, Potter," said Professor McGonagall curtly. "Go back to your dorm."
"He was with us just a few minutes ago..." Ron said desperately while McGonagall pulled Harry away without a second look at us. They marched in silence around the corner to, I can only assume, Dumbledore's office. "What do we do now?" He asked looking at me and Hermione. I hadn't a clue so I turned to look at Hermione too.
"Professor Dumbledore knows Harry didn't do it. He said himself that it would be impossible for Harry to do it when Mrs Norris was petrified. It takes a lot of Dark Magic to do whatever is happening. Plus Harry was in the hospital wing when Colin Creevey was petrified. I'm going to the library to find out what could be petrifying everyone." With that Hermione finished her speech before disappearing around the opposite corner to which Harry went.
"I think we should go tell Hagrid." I stated. Ron nodded in agreement then we walked to Hagrid's hut in silence. We banged on the door at the same time, setting Fang off howling before Hagrid got to the door.
"'Ello!" He says. "Wha' yeh back so soon fer?"
"Harry." I sighed.
"Wha' 'bout Harry?" He asked concerned.
"Justin Finch-Fletchley's been Petrified." Ron explained.
"Ah, Poor lad." Hagrid said sadly.
"Harry found him and after yesterday everyone has assumed the worst. I think McGonagall took him to Dumbledore's office." I explained further. Hagrid blanched before rushing out of his hut towards Hogwarts. "That went well."
"Yeah. I feel like we've helped. C'mon, let's finish that game of wizard chess." Ron replied happily.
"Race ya!" I cried as I set off running.
"No fair!" He yelled back as he set off after me.
-.-
Over the next few days there was a rush of people heading the head of houses to beg to go home. Dumbledore extended the time in which people could ask because of the attacks. Loads of people had decided to go home, including mine and Ron's family.
"At this rate, we'll be the only ones left," Ron told us one afternoon. "Us, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. What a jolly holiday it's going to be." Crabbe and Goyle, who always did whatever Malfoy did, had signed up to stay over the holidays, too as had Bulstrode and Parkinson. Harry told us what Dumbledore had said, I think he was relieved that he didn't think Harry had attacked anyone but he kept wondering whether he should have told Dumbledore about the voices he's been hearing. I wasn't sure whether or not it would have been a good idea however, Hermione had added it to her research in the library list. Fred and George where about the only people, apart from me, Ron and Hermione, that didn't believe Harry was a crazy dark wizard that was attacking muggle borns, they thought it was rather funny actually. They had taken to escorting Harry around Hogwarts while shouting for everyone to get out of the heir of Slytherin's way. Hermione and Percy Weasley especially didn't find it funny at all and oddly Ginny didn't either, she had been acting quite odd recently although I hadn't got round to talking to her yet. Harry didn't mind the twins, I assume he had been enjoying that they thought him being the heir of Slytherin was as ludicrous to them as it was to him. Every time this had happened around Draco Malfoy he seemed very angered by it. Harry had been describing him as sour and of course Ron had an opinion.
"It's because he's bursting to say it's really him," said Ron knowingly. "You know how he hates anyone beating him at anything, and you're getting all the credit for his dirty work."
"Or maybe it's because everyone is saying a Gryffindor golden boy is the heir of Slytherin." I replied, "How would we feel if it turned out Malfoy was the heir of Gryffindor?" I would secretly love that because that would mean I was the heir of Gryffindor too and then I would make sure everyone knew me and Malfoy were related. Although that was incredibly unlikely. Harry and Ron snorted at how farfetched it was.
"We'll know soon," said Hermione in a satisfied tone. "The Polyjuice Potion's nearly ready. We'll be getting the truth out of him very soon." As the weeks went by the term finally ended making the halls of Hogwarts deserted. Fred, George and Ginny decided in the end to stay at Hogwarts as Molly and Arthur decided to go visit their oldest in Egypt. Cedric stayed too. I played down how cheerful that made me. I'm not sure how much time I would actually be spending with him as I was planning to prance around as Pansy Parkinson. I had got her hair after I started a fight with her and pulled a few bits before running off. I had expected a detention however it hadn't happened so I was watching out for a revenge attack. 'Mione had got a hair off Bulstrode's collar however the boys hadn't managed to do there's yet. Hermione had bewitched two muffins with a sleeping potion so they only had to get them to Crabbe and Goyle on the day. We would do the same to Parkinson and Bulstrode when the time came. I was woken up quietly by Hermione on Christmas Morning before being dragged into the boys dorms with our presents. We had to be quiet because Ginny was sleeping in our dorm because she didn't want to sleep in her dorm on her own. Who would blame her? Harry and Ron where the only ones in their dorm too.
"Wake up!" Hermione cried while she dumped presents onto their beds while I opened the curtains to let the sun in.
"Hermione, Ash - you're not supposed to be in here -" Ron whined, shielding his eyes against the light.
"Merry Christmas!" I cried grinning before jumping on Harry's bed when he sat up while 'Mione sat on Ron's. We all started opening our presents before we had to get on with the days preparations. I had got Hermione a locket with an 'H' on it, Ron a Chudley Cannon's shirt and Harry a bewitched Lion teddy that had a ruby red jumper on him. I had got Cedric a similar teddy but a Badger with a yellow jumper, Allie a similar locket to 'Mione's with an 'A' on it, Abe, Adair and Dad some Bertie's Botts, Mum a charm bracelet similar to the one Uncle Moony had given me and I had sent Uncle Moony a framed picture of me and Harry. I'd also got mum to bake me a cake to give to Hagrid and another for Molly and Arthur that I had sent before they left for Egypt. I'd received fudge in return as had Harry, Ron and Hermione from Hagrid and sweaters this year from Molly as well as a Chocolate cake for me. Hermione had got me a muggle book called The Host by some American called Stephanie Meyers. She said I'd like it. Ron had got me a Hollyhead Harpies's shirt, we'd decided to swap shirts this year and Harry got me a mug with me, Ron, Hermione and Harry on it in a picture, he said it was for my nightly hot chocolates. Mum and Dad had sent a two-tier Christmas cakes to share with the other three while Ali sent me a nice purple dress, Abe sent me a pack of sugar quills and some chocolate wands and nothing from Adair. Not forgetting a giant wolf teddy bear from Uncle Moony as a joke and a little box that transfigured into a bouquet of Calla Lilly's and a silver ring from anonymous. I hoped it was Cedric. Hermione gasped when the Lilies appeared then squealed.
"Someone's got an admirer!" She squealed happily while I turned red.
"Shut up." I whined while Ron and Harry grinned at my blushing face.
"Who are they from?" Ron asked.
"Anonymous." I replied while Hermione squealed again. "Come on, it's nearly noon, time for Christmas lunch and then the plan." With that everyone went serious. We left the boys to get dressed, both having to wear their Weasley jumpers while me and Hermione decided to put on our dresses, Hermione had a received a white dress from her parents too. We walked to the Great Hall together, I had my mum's Christmas cake with me, and it looked as beautiful as it did last year. The remaining students settled around one table with the teachers and when everyone had gathered, the table erupted with Christmas food. We ate loads and pulled crackers and wore paper hats as you only could at Christmas, I was practically bloated so I gave half the cake to the teachers including Dumbledore who looked like he enjoyed it. Harry and Ron left as we heard them talking about going back to the Slytherin dorm so they took that as there chance to give them the sleeping buns. About 5 minutes later me and Hermione decided to go to the toilet together, waiting outside for us was Parkinson and Bulstrode.
"Over-dress much?" Bulstrode sneered.
"At least we can wear nice dresses and not look like a beached whale." I replied making Hermione snigger. They glared. "Do you often follow girls to bathrooms? Is there something we should know?" I pushed them over the edge and they brought out their wands so me and 'Mione did the same.
"Don't start something you can't finish." Parkinson said in her disgustingly high pitched voice.
"Densaugeo." Hermione said with her wand pointed at Bulstrode. "I can assure you we'll finish this then leave you locked up in the bathroom you like following us to." Hermione grinned at me.
"Stupefy!" We both cried knocking both girls out. "Funis. Convelo." A rope left each of our wands before wrapping around the girls. We then levitated them into a stall each, locking the doors behind us before returning to find the boys struggling to squish them into a broom cupboard, they just managed to close the door as we got there.
"That's the boys in there and the girls in the toilets, we'll have to wipe their memories or something later." Hermione said, mainly to herself.
"To Myrtle's bathroom." I grinned at them before we walked to the bathroom, a cup of vile looking liquid was waiting for each of us in a tray of cold water, and apparently it had to be cold.
"Now, add the hair to the potion and bottoms up." Hermione grinned at us, starting to relax. I added the black hair to the green liquid and downed it in one. It tasted as nice as it looked. I dropped the glass in shock, my stomach felt like there was a million evil butterflies, flying around trying to get out.
"Oh, god." I moaned before running to a bathroom stall. I felt myself shorten and get skinny and my hair changed to black then my nose turned into what can only be described as a ski slope. I took a few deep breaths before leaving the stall and looking in the mirror. "Oh my God! I'm hideous!"
"You still sound like you." Harry said as he appeared behind me. Well, Goyle did.
"You're wearing your glasses." I said as high pitched as I could. Harry chuckled before taking them off as Crabbe aka Ron came out of a stall. We bewitched our ties into Slytherin colours and changed the badge on our jackets. Thank god our uniform was magiced to stretch or in my case, shrink.
"Come on Hermione." Harry said when we'd finished, "We only have an hour, remember."
"You go on ahead, I can't come." Hermione squeaked back. I nodded for them to go.
"Don't forget, deep voices. Go towards the dungeons." I told them before they left. "What's wrong Hermione?" She opened her toilet stall and walked out and my face dropped in shock.
"It was a cat hair." She wailed. Hermione had grey fur and cat ears and a little pink nose. "Polyjuice potion isn't meant for animal hairs, I don't know what's going to happen." I picked up Harry's invisibility cloak that he'd left and passed it to her.
"Go to the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey will be able to fix you, we'll come see you when we're done." I replied. She nodded and put the cloak on before we both left the bathroom and I ran to catch up with the boys who had been cornered by Cedric Diggory not far from the girl's bathroom. Apparently they'd been seen leaving the girl's toilet. Time to put my acting face on. "Mind your own business, Diggory." I said in my Pansy voice while glaring at Cedric. "Come along boys, Draco will be wondering where we are." I walked passed Cedric around the corner and stopped to wait for the boys.
"Thanks, Ash." Harry/Goyle grinned at me. We walked towards the dungeons again when Malfoy appeared in the flesh.
"There you are," he drawled, looking at them. "Have you two been pigging out in the Great Hall all this time? I've been looking for you; I want to show you something really funny. You can come too Pansy." I nodded at him before we followed him into the dungeons. Malfoy paused by a stretch of bare, damp stone wall. "What's the new password again?" he said to Harry.
"Er..." said Harry.
"Oh, yeah -pure-blood!" said Malfoy, not listening, and a stone door concealed in the wall slid open. Malfoy marched through it, then me, Harry and Ron followed him. "Wait here," said Malfoy to us, motioning towards some empty chairs set back from the fire. "I'll go and get it my father's just sent it to me -" He disappeared up some stairs while we went to sit in the arm chairs then came back minutes later before thrusting a newspaper clipping under Ron's nose. "That'll give you a laugh," he said. I saw Ron's eyes widen in shock before forcing a laugh then passed it to Harry. He read the clipping quickly before also forcing a laugh and passing it to me. It was a cut out article from the Daily Prophet, and it said:
INQUIRY AT THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC
Arthur Weasley, Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office, was today fined fifty Galleons for bewitching a Muggle car. Mr. Lucius Malfoy, a governor of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where the enchanted car crashed earlier this year, called today for Mr. Weasley's resignation.
"Weasley has brought the Ministry into disrepute," Mr. Malfoy told our reporter. "He is clearly unfit to draw up our laws and his ridiculous Muggle Protection Act should be scrapped immediately." Mr. Weasley was unavailable for comment, although his wife told reporters to clear off or she'd set the family ghoul on them.
"Well?" said Malfoy impatiently as I handed the clipping back to him. "Don't you think it's funny?"
"Hilarious." I sneered before sniggering while feeling really guilty. When Malfoy looked away I gave a pained look to Harry and Ron who nodded and looked saddened too.
"Arthur Weasley loves Muggles so much he should snap his wand in half and go and join them," said Malfoy scornfully. "You'd never know the Weasley's were pure-bloods, the way they behave." Ron/Crabbe's face contorted with fury.
"What's up with you, Crabbe?" snapped Malfoy.
"Stomach-ache," Ron grunted.
"Well, go up to the hospital wing and give all those Mudbloods a kick from me," said Malfoy, snickering. "You know, I'm surprised the Daily Prophet hasn't reported all these attacks yet," he went on thoughtfully. "I suppose Dumbledore's trying to hush it all up. He'll be sacked if it doesn't stop soon. Father's always said old Dumbledore's the worst thing that's ever happened to this place. He loves Muggle-borns. A decent headmaster would never've let slime like that Creevey in." Malfoy started taking pictures with an imaginary camera and did a cruel but accurate impression of Colin: "`Potter, can I have your picture, Potter? Can I have your autograph? Can I lick your shoes, please, Potter?"' It did actually make me chuckle the he dropped his hands and looked at Harry and Ron. "What's the matter with you two?" The forced another laugh, thank god Crabbe and Goyle are often slow. "Saint Potter, the Mudbloods' friend," said Malfoy slowly. "He's another one with no proper wizard feeling, or he wouldn't go around with that jumped up Granger Mudblood. And people think he's Slytherin's heir!" We waited with bated breath: Malfoy was surely seconds away from telling them it was him, I didn't think he was, oh no, but then... "I wish I knew who it is," said Malfoy petulantly. "I could help them."
"It would be awfully impressive if it was you, Draco." I said trying to push him for more information.
"Well I'm not!" Malfoy snapped.
"You must have some idea who's behind it all..." Harry asked.
"You know I haven't, Goyle, how many times do I have to tell you?" snapped Malfoy again. "And Father won't tell me anything about the last time the Chamber was opened either. Of course, it was fifty years ago, so it was before his time, but he knows all about it, and he says that it was all kept quiet and it'll look suspicious if I know too much about it. But I know one thing - last time the Chamber of Secrets was opened, a Mudblood died. So I bet it's a matter of time before one of them is killed this time ... I hope its Granger," he said with relish. I glared at him while he wasn't looking at me and I noticed Ron was clenching Crabbe's gigantic fists before Harry shot him a warning look and said, "D'you know if the person who opened the Chamber last time was caught?"
"Oh, yeah ... whoever it was, was expelled," said Malfoy. "They're probably still in Azkaban."
"Azkaban?" Harry asked, puzzled.
"Azkaban - the wizard prison, Goyle," said Malfoy, looking at him in disbelief "Honestly, if you were any slower, you'd be going backward." He shifted restlessly in his chair and said, "Father says to keep my head down and let the Heir of Slytherin get on with it. He says the school needs ridding of all the Mudblood filth, but not to get mixed up in it. Of course, he's got a lot on his plate at the moment. You know the Ministry of Magic raided our manor last week?" I rolled my eyes before pretending to look concerned at the same time that Harry and Ron did too. "Yeah. . ." said Malfoy, "Luckily, they didn't find much. Father's got some very valuable Dark Arts stuff. But luckily, we've got our own secret chamber under the drawing-room floor."
"Ho!" said Ron suddenly. Malfoy looked at him. So did Harry. They both suddenly jumped to their feet while I looked at them in confusion. That's when I noticed Ron's hair turning Ginger the same for Harry's hair turning black. "Medicine for my stomach," Ron grunted before the boys shot up and towards the door. I changed my hair back to black using my animagus before standing up.
"I'm off to find, Millie. Nice talking to you Draco." I called back as I followed the boys calmly out of the room while they were rushing. As soon as the Slytherin Common room door was closed we shot off running to Myrtle's bathroom. I sat down as I caught my breath back.
"Well, it wasn't a complete waste of time," Ron panted, closing the bathroom door behind us. "I know we still haven't found out who's doing the attacks, but I'm going to write to Dad tomorrow and tell him to check under the Malfoys' drawing room."
"Yeah." I agreed. "And at least we know it's not Malfoy, I suppose it narrows it down, just a little."
"And we know the Chamber was opened 50 years ago and the person who did it was caught, we can find out from the records somewhere." Harry continued before looking around. "Hey, where's Hermione?"
"Millie has a cat. Hermione took a cat hair and Polyjuice potion isn't for animal hair. We'll have to go see her and tell her everything, she's in the Hospital Wing. Come on." I replied grinning before we changed our robes back to our proud Gryffindor colours and set off to the Hospital Wing.