It seemed to Harry that they hardly ever got to see Steven anymore. Since the school year started he'd been busy training to be the new Hufflepuff seeker, and much of his free time was spent with his aunt Amethyst and Hagrid.

Hermione still saw him of course; he still needed as much academic help as ever. But still, other than glimpses of him at meal times they hardly saw him.

Amethyst they saw more often; Harry often saw glimpses of a purple owl or a purple cat hiding in the rafters of various classes. Amethyst apparently took great joy in pranking the ghosts, especially Peeves, who despised her.

Most of the other residents of the castle took pleasure in seeing her get the best of Peeves. Harry had once even seen Snape's lip quirk into the beginning of a smirk.

Fortunately she'd scaled back on pranking Snape after Steven had had a talk with her about Potions class safety. The classes were dangerous enough without any added random variables.

She'd taken to calling Hermione "Lil Pearl."

Hermione had chosen to take that as a compliment, although Harry suspected that the gem didn't entirely mean it as one.

So Harry was a little excited to see Steven at the Bloody baron's Deathday party. At least it would be some small compensation for missing out on the Halloween feast.

As they stepped into the room Harry stopped involuntarily. There were hundreds of ghosts, most of whom he'd never seen before. Some were playing dreadful music on saws and others were dancing.

Their breaths were like a mist before them; it was cold here, cold like the grave.

Steven was somehow dancing with a female ghost, oblivious to the fact that his face barely reached her chest or that their hands were unable to touch. Unlike the other ghosts in the room, most of whom were in various stages of adulthood, this ghost looked young enough to be a student at Hogwarts.

A closer look revealed that she was wearing what looked like an outdated Hogwarts school uniform.

"Is that Myrtle Steven is dancing with?" Hermione asked from behind him. She stared at the couple dancing. "I've never seen her when she wasn't crying or complaining about something. She looks...almost happy."

"Myrtle?" Ron asked.

"She haunts the third floor bathroom. It's why it's always out of order...she keeps flooding the place when she has tantrums." Hermione frowned, biting her lip. "I never knew she could dance."

"Steven's been teaching her," a voice from behind them said. "Getting her ready for the big day."

Harry turned. A purple woman grinned at them.

"Amethyst," Hermione said, a little stiffly. "How are you enjoying the party?"

"It's a hoot," she said. "Lots more fun than regular birthdays. I've already been banned from the refreshment table."

A quick glanced showed that the table was covered with rotting food.

"You ate that?" Ron asked, gagging.

"I ate a five year old burrito once," Amethyst said. "This stuff barely rates."

The ghosts were flying through the food, almost as though they were trying to taste it.

"Nibbles?" Peeves asked from behind them. Harry turned and saw that the poltergeist was holding out a bowl of fungus covered nuts.

"Don't mind if I do," Amethyst said from behind him. She brushed between Harry and Hermione and before Peeves had time to react she somehow ate the entire thing, including the bowl and Peeves arm up to the elbow in a single gulp.

Peeves shrieked and flew away from her. She transformed into a dog with a helicopter blade coming out of its back and chased him around the room.

"I can't imagine what she thinks she's going to do if she catches him," Hermione said. "It's not like she can touch him."

Steven's voice came from Harry's right as he and Myrtle stepped off the dance floor. "Amethyst's body is made out of light and ghosts bodies are made out of something similar. She can actually partially affect them."

"It's the strangest thing having her touch you," Myrtle said. She looked like she was out of breath, which was strange considering that she didn't even need to breath. Maybe it was the excitement of dancing.

"She helped teach Myrtle to dance, since I can't actually touch her," Steven said.

"You both looked great out there," Harry said.

Myrtle beamed at him, and although objectively she was a plain girl with thick glasses, for just a moment she almost looked pretty.

Nearly headless Nick tried to make a speech, but the other fully headless ghosts were playing head hocky. Amethyst jumped in, although her head was attached to her body by a thin cord.

"I'm hungry," Ron said with another glance at the table full of rotten food. "And cold."

"Let's get out of here," Hermione said with a dismissive glance at Amethyst. She sniffed.

"It's been a lot of fun," Steven said to Myrtle. "We should dance again sometime."

"You're leaving already?" Myrtle's face scrunched up into a frown. "Ready to leave the minute your friends that are actually alive show up."

"Hey," Steven said gently. He reached up as though to pat her on the face. "We're friends. It's just that I still get cold and hungry."

She sniffed. "The party's not going to be any fun now that you're gone."

"You can dance now," Steven said. "I'll bet there's some ghosts that would love to dance with you."

"Nobody wants to dance with poor Myrtle," Myrtle began, only to stop as she felt a tap on her shoulder.

An elderly looking ghost wearing plate armor bowed to her and asked her something. She smiled for a second time and again she looked almost radiant.

They slipped away as she started dancing.

"I hate it when she gets like that," Steven said. "She was crying in the bathroom when she died and it's like she's been stuck that way ever since."

"Most ghosts are trapped in the emotional state they were at death," Hermione said . "Look at Professor Binns. It's amazing that you've actually gotten her this far."

"It's taken a lot of work, but it'll be worth it if she can be happy, even for a little while." Steven said.

Harry stopped in the middle of the hallway. "Did you hear that?"

"What?"

His stomach clenched as he heard it again. "It's that voice again."

Steven stared at him. "What voice?"

Harry held up his hand. "Quiet!"

A moment later he was running up the stairs, the others chasing after him.

"It's going to kill someone," he said.

They charged across the whole second floor and even Steven was looking winded. As they turned around a final corridor, Harry heard Hermione gasp from behind him.

The writing was literally on the wall, in foot high letters shining in the torchlight.

"What's the chamber of Secrets?" Steven asked. "And who is the heir?'

For once even Hermione didn't know.

Ron froze, looking upward.

The body of a cat was hanging from a torch sconce. It was Mrs Norris.

"We don't want to be caught here," Ron said urgently. "Not at all."

Steven frowned. "We need to get her down. Maybe there's something I can do to help."

If they'd wanted to hide it was too late, as a moment later a crowd of students entered the hallway on both sides. People froze as they realized what they were seeing.

Draco Malfoy cackled. "Enemies of the heir beware! Mudbloods are next!"

"What happened to my cat? Mrs. Norris!"

Argus Filch pushed his way between the students.

"We need to get her down," Steven said to him urgently. "I have healing spit; we may be able to save her."

"Wingardium Leviosa," Hermione had her wand out and a moment later the body of the cat came floating down.

The crowd grew silent as Steven licked his hand and then crouched by the body of the cat, petting her gently.

"Come on," he muttered, and the crowd around him grew silent.

The body remained motionless.

"What's going on here?" Professor Dumbledore's voice came from the back of the crowd. The crowd parted and a moment later he was standing over Steven and the cat.

"She won't wake up," Steven said.

There were tears in his eyes, and it occurred to Harry that many of his classmates would have been embarrassed to be seen crying over a cat, but it didn't seem to bother Steven at all. Even Draco didn't say anything, although the headmaster's presence might have been why.

Or maybe even Draco was smart enough not to antagonize someone able to tear a door off it's hinges.

"My office is closest," Lockhart murmured, and the headmaster nodded.

Hermione gestured with her wand, and the cat levitated before her. The crowd parted before them, and it reminded Harry a little of a funeral procession, the students staring in silence as their little group passed in front of them.

They reached the office of professor Lockhart.

Professor Lockhart said something; it didn't register with Harry, who was too busy staring at Steven, who looked almost as devastated as Filch.

Dumbledore leaned close to the cat, staring so intently that his nose almost touched it's fur.

"Why is her fur wet?"

"I tried to use my healing spit on her," Steven said. "It didn't work. I guess it can't heal the dead."

"She's not dead," Dumbledore said.

Both Steven and Filch looked up at him with dawning hope.

"She's been petrified," Dumbledore said.