Thanks to my beta james-fanatic!!

Chapter 4

"Welcome. Welcome to another years at Hogwarts. I would like to thank you all for coming back this year. For those who do not know, I am your headmistress, Professor McGonagall, as well as your Transfiguration teacher."

I had stopped listening by now, and was now looking around, remembering all the familiar faces that had not returned. At least my two best friends had come back. Colin being one of them, and my other friend, Morgan Weary. She was a Gryffindor in my year.

We had become friends half way through last year; she had caused her hair to bleach when she was trying to do a drying charm. I had thought that it was absolutely hilarious and laughed for about five minutes before I decided to help her change her hair back to normal.

She was now sitting across the table from me, her eyelids drooping over her amber eyes.

We were both startled by the sound of clapping filling the Great Hall. Professor McGonagall had finished her speech and was now introducing a blonde woman with kind eyes who I had not noticed before now.

"I would also like to introduce Alexandra Mara Troyan. She will be taking over as Head of Gryffindor and Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.

Professor Troyan was wearing the usual teacher robes and held herself with an old, forgotten elegance. She had short, rough golden brown hair and fair skin. Our new Head of House was slightly taller than McGonagall and smiled as she looked around the room.

I watched her as she looked around, and noticed that her eyes lingered on the Slytherin table. When she turned back to look at McGonagall, I noticed that she had a small tattoo below her right ear, though I could not make out what it was. When she turned again, Professor Troyan's eyes where not on the Gryffindor table, but specifically on me.

As she looked at me, it felt like she was looking into the depths of my soul, rediscovering all of my secrets I have tried so desperately to keep private. As I looked into her moss colored eyes, I re-lived all my worst nightmares, re-living a time where power had taken control and I didn't seem to mind.

I was back in the Chamber, standing a few feet away from him. He was walking slowing towards me. Power was radiating off of him, casting an orange glow around the two of us. I could feel it touching me, causing me to feel invincible. I missed this feeling, and by the look on his face I could tell he knew this. I could practically smell him as he leaned down, about to whisper in my ear.

"Ah, how I've missed you, my-"

"Ginny, you can eat now. McGonagall finished her speech," Morgan's voice seemed to pull me out of my trance. I blinked a few times, trying to refocus my vision.

"Yeah. Thanks, I completely spaced," I replied. I stole a glance at Professor Troyan and saw the she was completely occupied in a conversation with Professor Sprout.

Morgan searched my face, looking me up and down. I looked at her and blinked once, as if to nod. Morgan got the message straight away. This is one of the reasons I believe we are such good friends; we don't need to speak. As cliché as it sounds, we don't need words to understand each other.

As I blinked, she stood up from the table and announced she was not feeling well. Being the amazing friend that I am, I offered to walk her to the hospital wing. No one even looked up as we went to leave. Well, that's not exactly true. Harry gave me a quick kiss on the cheek, but his eyes remained on his food the entire time.

"Okay, Gin, spit it out. What happened? You are deathly pale," Morgan said flopping on her bed, pajamas in hand.

"I don't know, it's just... I don't know. When McGonagall was giving her speech, I was looking at Professor Troyan, and when she turned to look at me... something weird happened. I was back in The Chamber," I ended in a whisper.

"What to you mean, 'you were back in the chamber'? How is that possible?"

Morgan and I knew everything about each other. She was the only girl out of my roommates who didn't freak out knowing about my first year. My other friends had already told me that they didn't care, that they knew I wasn't in control and it wasn't my fault. But I still saw the looks they gave each other behind my back. I noticed that they were more guarded around me.

"I have no idea, but the creepiest thing, the thing that is chilling me to my bones, is that I don't think it was a memory."

"To repeat my self once again, what do you mean?"

"I think Tom was there in my head. He told me he missed me. Oh god, he told me he missed me," I sobbed. Even now, I could still feel his breath on my neck.

"Oh Gin, don't worry about it. It couldn't have been real, right?" Morgan asked, looking slightly hopeful.

"I don't know. He looked and sounded exactly the same, but was saying something completely new."

"I think we should tell your brother," Morgan said, getting up from the bed and walking to the door.

"NO!" I wailed, flinging myself across the bed to grab her arm. "You can't tell Ron, because of course he will tell Hermione and Harry. Yeah, that's exactly what I need. To be known again as the girl who was possessed my evil diary, opened the Chamber of Secrets, and sent a monster out to kill Mudbloods." I clapped my hand over my mouth as soon as I realized what I had said.

"Did I just hear you say Mudblood?" Morgan asked, looking at me with wide eyes.

I collapsed backwards onto the bed, rubbing my eyes. Morgan sat down beside me, reached into her bag and producing two handfuls of chocolate frogs.

"What's happing to me?" I whispered as I bit off the head of a chocolate frog.

"Are you sure you don't want to tell Ron, or even Harry? I'm sure he would understand."

"No, I don't think I could bear to look at them if I told them. You have to promise me you won't say a word."

"Don't worry about it. My lips are sealed. Now come on, you really look like you need some sleep," Morgan said as she walked over to the bathroom.

"I do. Really, wait to you see yourself," I replied, following her.

I was running. Running faster than I thought possible. I could see him in the distance now; I was dodging falling bodies, not noticing whether they were friend or foe. The only thing I cared about now was making it to him in time.

I was closer now, barley ten feet away. I could make out the thin line of blood dribbling down from under his eye; I could see his chest heaving up and down. I was going to make it; there were only a few more feet between us.

But then, my foot caught on what I can only assume was a fallen body and I tripped, my arm shooting out in front of me, trying to break my fall. This motion attracted his attention and he turned to look in my direction.

"Ginny! Run!" he said taking a step towards me.

"Behind you!" I yelled, feebly lifting up my arm to point behind him. Even as he turned, I knew it was too late. Tom uttered the words that stick in your mind like a vile taste in your mouth.

The curse hit him square in the chest, and he was knocked off his feet. He landed right next to me, his wide unblinking eyes inches from my own. I could feel the bile rising in my throat, tears burning my eyes.

I felt someone pulling me up by the shoulders, detaching my hand from his slowly paling one. I was too numb to even notice what was happening until I felt his freezing breath on my neck, too numb to notice something was wrong.

"Ah, so wrong and yet so right. I told you I missed you. You really should have believed me. You know I don't lie. You knew I would never share you, and yet you had to get him involved. Pity, he needn't have died," Tom said, kicking his cold body.

"You will be mine, and no one will stand in my way," Tom whispered menacingly, kissing the hollow space behind my ear. He roughly grabbed my shoulders and turned me to look him in his eyes.

"I will come for you, my Dark Queen. I once told you never to forget that. Pity you didn't remember".

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Waverly ;)