She thought her life was over – but fate gave her another chance, in a world of magic. Now, running around Hogwarts with James Potter and his friends, she's about to make choices that will change the future in ways she never thought possible…

Marauder's Phase

CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE

Sharing The Same Scarf

Everyone stared at the Ravenclaw girl, the very one who had asked me if I was planning to attack anymore students, and she was lying on the stone floor with a mirror in her hand, pale-faced, wide-eyed and Petrified.

My only consolations?

No one had looked directly at the Basalisk yet.

That, and Dumbledore would be returning tomorrow. Only then could we all breath easy, because Dumbledore seemed to give the school a sense of security.

But…there was a Basalisk within the school, and someone within it – not me – was setting it on muggle-borns.

The Gryffindors found themselves back in the common room by the fire after the third attack, and I was curled up on a chair by myself, my knees drawn up tightly to my chin. I was half rocking back and forth, stunned by this latest tragedy.

"The heads of house are trying to convince everyone to go home for the Christmas holidays," Molly said, unexpectedly. "They're saying that the school needs to be searched again…"

"They'll never find it," I muttered into my knees, so that no one else could hear. "Not unless it's a teacher setting the monster loose…"

"I heard that when the Chamber was opened before," A seventh year boy said. "That a girl died…"

"Yeah, Moaning Myrtle." I said, louder this time, and everyone stared at me. "I mean…yeah, it was Myrtle." I sighed.

Lily guessed what I was thinking. "Emma, no one here thinks it was you…"

Serilda coughed.

Lily glared at her. "Well, nobody important. We know it wasn't you, Em."

"Because it wasn't me." I said, looking round at them all. "I'm a muggle-born myself," 'I think…' "Why would I go around attacking them all?" This was my chance, my big chance to tell everyone what I knew. I mean, when you thought about it, it was so obvious!

"Because you're insane, that's why." Serilda said, glaring at me.

Everyone in the common room, especially my friends, glared back at her. And Louis said: "Back of Roans – Emma says she didn't do it!"

"Oh, and you're so sure?" Serilda asked scathingly.

"Yes." Louis said firmly. "So back off." He repeated, and the two of them glared at each other some more, not noticing when I got up and slipped quietly out of the common room.

***

I didn't realise I'd left the castle without my scarf on until my neck began to freeze, and I realised. "Oh damn it!" I cursed. It wasn't quite snowing yet, but it was only a matter of time before it did. Probably even as I stood there, shivering and wondering what to do. I sighed, just as I felt a scarf slip around my neck. "Siri?"

He grinned. "You expected someone else, babe?" He asked, pulling me closer to him as we were sharing the same scarf. I noticed that his body was somewhat warmer than usual as we stood there, arms around each other, just staring at the castle.

This was going to be the perfect time to tell Sirius everything but, for some reason, I didn't feel like ruining this special moment.

I began humming Platinum, and Sirius pulled me even closer to him, if that was possible, and began playing with my hair, as we stood there like this. My head was screaming at me to tell Sirius about the Chamber of Secrets, but my heart overruled it, claiming this to be too perfect a moment, which it was.

A perfect moment, sharing the same scarf.

Too bad I didn't savour it more.