A/N: Again, thanks for being patient, loves! :3 I hope you all are enjoying the story so far, even though it's terribly cliché! Then again, everything I write is! Please review! Kisses! :D
Disclaimer: I own nothing besides my OC (Skylar Wolf) - all else belongs to the amazing J.K. Rowling and respective owners
Word Count: 2,336
"Do you think it's true?" Ron spoke to his friends as they made their way down the crowded corridor, "D'you think there really is a Chamber of Secrets?"
"Yes," Hermione answered solemnly, "Couldn't you tell: McGonagall's worried. All the teachers are."
"And they should be," Skylar added, "All they know about what's inside the chamber is that it's very dangerous."
"But if there really is a Chamber of Secrets, and it's really been opened, that means…" Harry trailed off.
"The Heir of Slytherin has returned to Hogwarts." Hermione finished.
"The question is, who is it?" Skylar wondered.
"Hmmm…" Ron started with a mocking tone, "Who do we know who thinks Muggle-borns are scum?"
"You mean-" Hermione eyed the blonde in front of them.
"Of course!" Ron exclaimed, "You heard him: 'You'll be next, Mudbloods!' "
"I heard him. But Malfoy? Heir of Slytherin?"
"Maybe Ron's right, Hermione," Harry admitted, "I mean, look at his family. The whole lot of them have been in Slytherin for centuries."
"Maybe so," Skylar responded, "But if he was the Heir, everyone would know by know. He'd be bragging to everyone. I mean, he's not exactly humble."
"Either way, Crabbe and Goyle must know," Ron said, "We could trick them into telling us…"
"No." Hermione stopped him, "Even they aren't that thick. But there might be another way," She paused, "Mind you, it would be difficult. Not to mention we'd be breaking about fifty school rules. And it would be dangerous. Very dangerous." Ron had a wicked smile on his face that reminded Skylar of the twins.
"Where do we start?"
Hermione pulled out a large, leather book, the cover covered in dust. The four friends huddled around the book titled; Moste Potente Potions. The brunette flipped through the yellowed pages until she reached a particularly strange image that appeared to be one person morphing into another.
"Here it is: 'The Polyjuice Potion.' " Hermione began to read as Skylar gasped aloud.
"I've read about that!" She realized, "That potion allows the drinker to transform temporarily into the person they've taken DNA from." Ron and Harry looked grossed out until she added, "It could be something small, like a fingernail or a hair."
"You mean to say," Ron looked at the girls, "Harry and I drink some of this stuff and we turn into Crabbe and Goyle."
"Yes." Hermione nodded firmly.
"Wicked! Malfoy'll tell us anything!"
"Exactly. But it's tricky. I've never seen a more complicated potion. Lacewing flies, leeches, fluxweed. And, of course, a bit of whoever we want to change into." Hermione finished.
"Plus, it takes a month to brew." Skylar added.
"A month?" Harry gaped at her, "But if Malfoy is the heir of Slytherin… he could attack half the Muggle-borns in the school by then."
"You didn't have to tell me that." Hermione said with a serious tone.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione cheered from the crowd of red and gold, the opposing team showing off their house colors of silver and green. The game is somewhat of a disappointment: since the Slytherins all got new brooms, they flew much faster than the others, although the Gryffindor Quidditch players weren't bad even if they were a bit slower.
"Gallopin' Gorgons!" Hagrid gasped from beside the trio, "Slytherin's flyin' like they dragon fire in their brooms…" Ron fumed, glaring at Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape, sitting side by side in the Faculty Box. Skylar flew up overhead, circling the pitch and keeping an eye out for the golden ball. This game was definitely pushing her. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, her gold and red Quidditch robes flying around her just like her hair.
"Alright there, Wolf?" Draco smirked at the redhead, "You look like you use some company."
"Sod off, Malfoy." She hissed, searching the sky.
"Skylar! Watch out!" George screamed, just in time for Skylar to dodge the streaking Bludger by a hair. George flew over to hit the Bludger back into the air with a crack resounding from his bat. As soon as the Bludger flew into the air, it came back down, still chasing Skylar. She zoomed off on her Nimbus Two Thousand, desperately trying to outfly the persistent Bludger.
"What the hell is going on?" She yelled.
"Blimey, Skylar's got 'erself a Rogue Bludger!" Hagrid exclaimed.
"What's a Rogue Bludger?" Harry inquired.
"It's bin' tampered with!" Hagrid replied simply. Sure enough, the leather ball chased Skylar through a series of loops, zig zags, and rolls. No matter what maneuvers she used, she couldn't shake the Bludger off her trail. It was targeting her. Ron instinctively drew his wand, pointing it at the Bludger.
"You're joking, right?" Hermione eyed the broken wand warily, "Besides, even with a proper wand, it's too risky. You could accidentally hit Skylar." Draco flew alongside Skylar, watching the redhead with amusement.
"What's wrong sweetheart? Is the pressure too much?" He teased. Skylar's eyes hardened as she spotted the Snitch whizzing beside Draco's left ear. She charged towards him, chasing the Snitch with determination. Malfoy, momentarily thrown off by Skylar's intimidating action, chased her as they plummeted, their brooms nearly vertical. They both pulled up, their brooms parallel to the ground, weaving through the beams beneath the stands. The Bludger continued to follow the redhead, smashing small beams in its way. Malfoy reached out to kick the Gryffindor's broom, causing her to momentarily slam into the stands with her right shoulder. She growled at the blonde and sped up after the Snitch. Malfoy laughed as she tried to catch up to him, but as he turned back around, he noticed the beam in front of him. Before he could pull up, he smacked into the wooden pillar, falling onto the pitch with his broom. Skylar managed to chase the Snitch pack onto the Quidditch pitch, reaching out for the golden ball. Her fingertips had barely grazed its wings when the dreaded Bludger smashed into her right arm.
Skylar cried out in pain, but determined to beat the Slytherins, steadied herself and continued to chase the Snitch. She managed to grab the Snitch with her good hand before spiraling down, falling onto the grass in the middle of the pitch, landing on her injured arm with a sickening crunch. She winced, attempting to roll over and sit up. Her blue eyes widened in fear as she noticed the Bludger coming down towards her. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the impact… but nothing happened. Skylar opened her eyes to see the Bludger suspended in the air. She searched the crowds, finding Hermione with her wand out. The brunette winked at her, while Ron and Harry looked down at her with worry. A swarm of people surrounded the fallen Seeker, their faces a blur through the pain.
"Not to worry, my dear," She heard a familiar voice, "I'll fix that arm of yours straight away." She could barely make out golden hair and a white smile and she cringed, but not from the pain.
"Please, no...not...you…" She pleaded between wincing.
"Poor girl doesn't know what she's saying." He laughed before facing the redhead, "Now, don't worry. This won't hurt a bit…" He twirled his wand and the pain in Skylar's arm grew ten times worse. She let out a shriek, piercing the silence, as her arm burned as if someone had set it on fire. She heard the muffled voices of her three best friends before she lost consciousness, and everything went black.
Skylar slowly blinked her eyes open to see sunlight streaming in through large windows with white curtains. The bed she was on wasn't stiff, but it wasn't quite soft. She realized she was in the Hospital Wing. Hermione, Harry, and Ron sat beside her on the edge of the bed, Hermione holding her good hand. Skylar squeezed the brunette's hand and smiled weakly up at them.
"Oh! Madam Pomfrey, she's awake!" The nurse examined the redhead before scolding her.
"You gave us quite the scare, young lady!" She wagged a finger, "You shouldn't have pushed yourself!"
"But-" Skylar started, ready to defend herself.
"Oh, he should have brought you straight to me! What was he thinking? He's no medi-witch!" Madam Pomfrey complained.
"Wait, what happened?" Skylar looked up at the familiar faces.
"Don't you remember?" Ron asked her.
"I remember my arm hurting before I passed out…"
"Oh dear." Madam Pomfrey sighed. "That Professor Lockhart, he attempted to use a spell to heal your broken bones, but he must have gotten it mixed up."
"How- how did that happen?"
"He must have been trying to use Episkey, but that's only used for minor injuries," Madam Pomfrey explained, "But I think he used Erecto, causing your broken bone to grow, breaking through the skin." Skylar winced at the gory image in her head. She looked over to see her arm bandaged up in cloth. "Luckily, you're a tough one, otherwise we'd have to send you to St. Mungo's!" Madam Pomfrey chuckled.
"So, will I be able to go soon?" Skylar looked up at the nurse nervously.
"Oh, in a few days or so," She responded, sighing when she noticed the redhead's disappointment, "It takes about a day to heal, if you can stand to be in here that long." Skylar nodded vigorously, red strands of hair escaping from her messy ponytail.
"Thank you! Thank you!" She attempted to hug the woman, wincing as she lifted her injured arm.
"Alright, that's enough!" Madam Pomfrey scolded her, "Lie down, get some rest! That bone won't heal with you moving all about like that!" Skylar smiled guiltily before laying back down. It was later in the night when she awoke, and she could hear two voices beside her. One was definitely Harry's, while the other was more high-pitched and squeaky. She was still half asleep, so she only managed to pick out snippets of their heated conversation.
"It was you! You stopped the barrier from letting ron and me through!" Harry hissed. Well, that explained their tardiness and dramatic entrance.
"At least you would be away from you. Harry Potter must go home! Dobby thought his Bludger would be enough to make Harry Potter see-" That must have been "Dobby". As far as Skylar knew, only house elves spoke like that, especially with referring to themselves in the third person. Well, another mystery solved. The elf had enchanted the Bludger to chase her- but wait. Why her?
"Why did you make the Bludger go after Skylar?" Harry hissed, voicing Skylar's thoughts.
"You see, Dobby might have gotten a bit mixed up. He thought Harry Potter was the Seeker, not the girl."
"We're both Seekers!"
"Oh, yes, Dobby understands now. But you see, when Dobby realized Harry Potter was not the girl, he thought he should still try his plan. You see, Dobby thought maybe Harry Potter would leave if his friend was injured."
"You'd better clear off before my friend wakes up, Dobby, or I might strangle you!" A tiny smile graced Skylar's lips as she listened to Harry getting angry over her injury. The rest of their conversation was a blur, and neither one had noticed Skylar had been awake. Before she completely drifted off to sleep, she heard something that caught her attention.
"Terrible things are about to happen at Hogwarts! Harry Potter must not stay here now that history is to repeat itself!"
It was morning when Skylar heard another familiar voice. This time, it was none other than the headmaster himself, Professor Dumbledore.
"There's been another attack." Skylar's eyes shot open as Madam Pomfrey let out a strangled gasp, turning to see the first year, Colin Creevey, frozen on a hospital bed.
"Perhaps he managed to get a picture of his attacker…" Professor McGonagall suggested from beside the silver-bearded wizard. Dumbledore attempted to open the camera, but a jet of smoke was released instead of any photos. "What does this mean, Albus?" Skylar chewed on her bottom lip nervously: she had never seen Professor McGonagall this worried and this unsure before. This was very serious.
"It means our students are in great danger, Minerva." Dumbledore replied somberly, "Mr. Creevey was fortunate. If not for this…" He held up the broken camera in his wrinkled hands, "He would surely be dead."
"What should I tell the staff, Albus?"
"Tell them the truth. Tell them Hogwarts is no longer safe. Tell them it's as we feared. The Chamber of Secrets is indeed open again."
Skylar had rushed to get dressed in her school robes, dragging her friends into the girl's bathroom to tell them the horrible new developments, along with attempting to speed up the process of the Polyjuice Potion brewing.
"Again? You mean, the Chamber of Secrets has been opened before?" Hermione looked at the redhead in shock. The only one of the four who didn't look shocked was Ron.
"Of course!" He cried, "Don't you see? Lucius Malfoy must've opened it when he was at school here, and now he's told Draco how to do it."
"It wasn't Lucius who opened the Chamber of Secrets." Skylar murmured to the ground.
"What was that?" Harry nudged her.
"I said, it wasn't Lucius who opened the Chamber. And Malfoy isn't the heir. If you don't believe me, just ask Moaning Myrtle."
"Who?" Ron asked.
"Me," A ghost of a young Ravenclaw with her brown hair in pigtails and circular spectacles floated out in front of the young Gryffindors, "I'm Moaning Myrtle. I wouldn't expect you to know me. Who would ever talk about fat, ugly, miserable, moping, moaning Myrtle?" She sobbed before diving head first into a toilet.
"She was a student back in 1943 when the Chamber was first opened. If anyone knows about it, she would." Skylar whispered.
"How do you know all that?" Ron gaped at her.
"I do my research." Skylar responded simply before taking her things and walking to her first class, leaving her friends behind amidst the smoke from the bubbling cauldron.