Hey y'all! How's everyone doing? Welcome to the third to last chapter! The one that's setting up for our showdown in the Chamber of Secrets! Are you guys excited? I know I am now that the end is in sight with this installment. I honestly can't wait to get to Prisoner of Azkaban cause boy oh boy do I have plans *insert mad scientist cackling.* Anyways, I won't keep y'all to long so go ahead and jump right into the chapter. I hope you enjoy it!
Like always, I enjoy any comments, except for those that are just full of negativity and not constructive at all. Just give me something to work with instead of just "It's bad." I also appreciate any positive constructive criticism since I'm always looking to improve my writing and storytelling capabilities.
Thanks for reading this story! Virtual hugs and cuddles to y'all.
Disclaimer: I still do not own anything except any OC's that may come up, any world building that has not yet been officially stated by the books or movies, and any plot points/structures that have not been used in the books or movies.
Warning: No beta, we die like Stingbulbs.
Chapter 13: The Mystery Unfolds on Crumpled Paper
XXXXXX
The very next day Harry pulled Hermione, Ron, and Draco aside to relay what he'd learned from the diary. He told them about the way the diary responded, even giving a short demonstration. Tom was willing to share the vision with the others, almost overly eager in fact. But Harry wrote it off as enthusiasm from being able to share something he'd been forced to hide for a very long time.
This absolutely fascinated Hermione who was equally eager to accept the offer but seemed to put Ron on edge and had Draco frowning at it with a curious expression. They declined being shown the vision and convinced Hermione to simply take Harry's word for it.
Harry then proceeded to tell them of how Tom found Hagrid red handed with some sort of multi legged creature that Hagrid swore was harmless. Tom took his word for it but it was still his duty as a prefect to report Hagrid considering the chamber's danger to the school. He told them of how a young Hagrid pleaded for Tom not to but Tom said he had no choice since a student had already been killed. How the Headmaster believed Hagrid but the Ministry put pressure to have them close the case now or be shut down forever. How Tom wanted to continue to investigate but was unable to upon the Headmaster's orders. He also told of how despite the guilt Tom felt, he was secretly relieved when the attacks stopped after Hagrid was expelled since it meant the school wouldn't be shut down and he wouldn't be sent back to the horrible muggle orphanage he grew up in.
Hermione agreed with Tom's assessment that Hagrid was most likely innocent. "He may have the unfortunate propensity towards dangerous creatures but surely even he wouldn't want to nurture a creature dangerous enough to attack and kill students unprovoked."
"I'm not so sure, Hermione. Don't forget he wanted to raise a dragon in his wooden hut. His definition of dangerous is completely broken," Ron said, playing devil's advocate.
"But he might have an idea as to what sort of creature the monster is right?" Draco said, bringing up a good point, "Even if he wasn't the culprit, he must have some theories. Let's go ask him."
Harry looked at him incredulously. "Are you mad? We can't just ask him."
Ron nodded in agreement. "How'd you think that visit'll go? Hello Hagrid. Tell us, have you any idea what sort of monster got you expelled all those years ago? And we're not talking about the one you claimed wouldn't kill someone."
Draco scowled. "I don't mean asking him literally. We could frame the conversation as one of mere speculation and theory."
However, in the end, they decided not to go to Hagrid unless there was another attack. Draco reluctantly agreed but offered an alternative.
"If we can't ask Hagrid then I'll ask my mother and father for information. They might know something given their…previous associations and all."
Ron scowled at the idea. "Can't believe I'm saying this but I'll be glad your parents were former death eaters if they cough up something useful."
"I agree," Hermione said, "It's a good idea to take advantage of all available avenues even if they may be morally ambiguous."
Draco then parted ways from the Gryffindors, speeding back to his dorm to no doubt begin sending letters to his parents as soon as possible. The trio then made their way to the library where they came across Seth intently studying a book about dangerous spells but upon closer inspection, his gaze was slightly unfocused.
As they approached, Seth looked up and greeted them with a wave, gaze still slightly unfocused. "Yo! You guys here to study for exams too?"
Ron groaned as he sat down at the table. "Don't remind me. Can't believe we've still got exams even with all the chamber business going on."
"Is that why you're studying that particular book, Seth?" Hermione asked, eying the book curiously, "I don't recall Professor Flitwick or Lockhart mentioning anything about dangerous spells."
"They didn't," Seth responded without faltering, "This is just for my own self study plus it doubles as research for future classes since we're supposed to be picking our third year classes soon."
Harry sighed at the reminder. "Why are there so many classes to choose from?"
"If it helps, you can always just choose the same classes as me," Ron offered sympathetically.
"Thanks Ron," Harry said glumly.
Seth noted how the bespectacled boy seemed unusually glum this time. "What's up with you Harry? You're looking particularly depressing today." He leaned in and spoke in a hushed tone with a strange gleam in his eyes, "Does it have something to do with the chamber?"
Ron took that as his cue to loudly blurt out, "Hagrid was accused of opening the chamber in the past!" Then slapped his hands over his mouth quickly followed by Harry and Hermione's hands as well.
"Ron!" Hermione hissed dangerously at him in warning as she looked around to see if anyone heard.
They only relaxed and lowered their hands when it was clear they were alone in their little corner and no one had heard anything.
Seth stared at them in wide-eyed surprise. "Well dang. How much did I miss?"
"A lot," Hermione empathetically said.
Harry then proceeded to explain everything they'd managed to uncover so far, including the diary they'd found in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom and the vision Tom had shown him. By the end of his explanation, Seth had a strange expression on his face that they all misconstrued as a mixture of disbelief and bewilderment.
"Do you have the diary with you right now? I want to see it," Seth asked, trying not to sound too eager.
Harry shook his head. "No, but I can show it to you later. It's hidden in my things at the dorm."
Seth nodded, looking somewhat disappointed. "Alright. Looking forward to it." Then he turned to Hermione and asked, "So what extra classes are you planning to choose Hermione?"
Hermione looked at him as if he were stupid for asking. "All of them of course."
Seth laughed at Ron and Harry's horrified expressions.
"Have you gone mad?" Ron asked, completely flabbergasted, "There's no way you can take that many classes in one go."
Hermione jutted her chin out and glared in challenge. "Watch me."
As Harry and Ron attempted to sway Hermione away from making such an insane decision, none of them realized Seth was watching them with an eerie smile and the strange gleam still in his eyes.
XXXXXX
Harry returned to the dorms that night after another grueling but satisfying post dinner Quidditch practice. He was running on the high of adrenaline that Quidditch never failed to give him and was eager to drop off his broomstick so he could take a nice hot shower before going to bed.
Unfortunately, his high soon crashed to the ground when he almost literally ran into Neville who'd rushed out of their shared dorm room like a bat out of hell.
"I don't know what happened Harry! It was like this when I got here just now!" Neville nervously stammered.
A feeling of dread had Harry's stomach turning as he cautiously entered the dorm room and gasped in shock at the sight that greeted him.
His part of the dorm had been completely ransacked. Blankets were removed from the bed, the mattress was askew on the frame, drawers were opened and its contents thrown about, his trunk was unlocked with its contents lying around in disarray. It was like a tornado had struck his side and his side only as the rest of the dorm was still in the same shape the other boys had left it that morning.
Seamus and Dean soon came in to see what all the ruckus was about and were shocked by what they saw as well. Dean even quietly swore under his breath.
"What in Merlin's soggy pants happened here?" Seamus cried out.
Seamus' shout seemed to summon Ron and Seth as they walked in to see what was the cause of all the commotion only to also gape at the mess in shock.
"Harry, what happened?" Ron asked.
Harry could only shrug helplessly. "I don't know. Neville said it was like this when he got back before I did."
The boys quickly volunteered to help Harry clean up and put everything back in its rightful place.
"Why would someone do this?" Dean wondered aloud as he tucked the sheets back on to the bed.
"Maybe it's someone who still believes all that rot about Harry being the heir of Slytherin?" Seamus suggested as he put miscellaneous supplies back in the cabinet.
While the others were speculating, Seth quietly whispered to Harry and Ron, "Hey, is it just me or does this mess look like someone was searching for something?"
Ron nervously looked at Harry and quietly suggested, "You should check and see if anything's gone missing."
Harry did so, carefully making sure all his things were put back with the help of the others. Once the last of his books went into his trunk, he then realized what was missing. Tom's diary was gone.
He quickly thanked Seamus, Dean, and Neville for their help. Then dragged Seth and Ron downstairs where Hermione was sitting alone in a corner by the fireplace. She looked up and saw the grimness in Harry's expression.
"Did something happen?" She asked in concern.
"The diary's gone," Harry responded quietly.
This shocked Hermione and Ron.
"What? Are you sure?" Hermione whispered urgently.
"Of course I'm sure," Harry whispered back defensively, "Someone's just ransacked my stuff and it was all to steal the diary."
Hermione blanched. "You know what this means right?" She asked with a serious expression, "Only a Gryffindor or a professor can come in here and considering none of the professors can come in without being spotted or seem suspicious…"
"A Gryffindor took the diary," Ron grimly concluded.
XXXXXX
The next morning, Harry and Ron rushed out of the common room to the Great Hall, eager to forget what transpired the night before with breakfast and the Quidditch game that was scheduled for the afternoon. Seth went to follow them but was pulled aside by Hermione to talk by the fireplace.
"What's up, Hermione?" Seth asked.
She was quiet for a moment, staring at him as if she was trying to discern something from his expressions and demeanor. "Seth," she eventually said, carefully probing, "Don't you think the timing of this is a little suspicious? The day we finally tell you about the diary is also the day it goes missing?"
He frowned. "I don't know what to tell you, Hermione. Yeah, I think the timing is suspicious as hell but considering you guys told me about the diary in the library, especially with the way Ron blurted things out, I wouldn't be surprised if there was someone hiding nearby who overheard us and we just didn't notice them."
She scrutinized him for another moment before sighing. "You're right. But the implications of it all, why would a Gryffindor steal the diary?"
He shrugged. "Maybe they wanted the fame and glory of finally catching the heir and killing the monster? I don't know. Kids are stupid, teenagers even more so."
She giggled in amusement. "You're certainly not wrong."
"If anything is suspicious, it'd be the fact that no one knows what the monster is after all this time," he pointed out, "I mean come on, it can't be easy for a deadly killer monster to get around a school like this without being caught by someone right? Then there's all that flooding in the bathroom and that weird thing with the spiders…"
At that moment, something seemed to click in Hermione's mind. "Seth! That's it!"
Seth startled at her sudden outburst. "What's it?"
"I think I know what the monster is!" She excitedly exclaimed, "I need to go to the library right away. Don't wait for me at breakfast. I'll see you all at the game."
On that note, she rushed out of the common room, not realizing Seth was watching her retreating back with a twisted grin on his face.
XXXXXX
Seth was walking through the halls on his way to the library. There were only a few students roaming about as the rest were all at the pitch watching the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. However, he wasn't paying much attention to them nor his surroundings.
He clutched the strap of his bag tightly like a lifeline, mind racing as he tried to figure out what could've happened in the time since Hermione had her epiphany. The time that he couldn't remember which was why he was on his way to the library, hoping nothing had happened to her and he was just suffering some side effects from re-exposure to the diary.
A pang of guilt went through him. He hadn't wanted to create such a scene but he needed to get the diary away from Harry before something terrible happened. He ignored the small part within that hissed at him for lying. That the true reason he wanted the diary back was because-
He quickly shook his head to rid himself of those thoughts.
"Mister Sorenson, there you are," a stern voice called out.
Seth jumped at the sudden call. He turned around and watched in confusion as Professor McGonagall approached with Ron and Harry, who was still in his Quidditch robes, in tow.
"Something up, professor?" He asked, his stomach slowly filling with dread.
"Yes, please come with me," McGonagall urged with a grim expression.
He did so without question and the group made their way to the hospital wing.
"This will be a bit of a shock," McGonagall gently said as they entered, "But there has been another attack. Another double attack."
With that, she led them over to where Madam Pomfrey was attending to a fifth year girl with long curly hair. In the bed next to her was Hermione.
Harry and Ron were shocked speechless while Seth looked horrified, the blood draining from his face faster than a stab wound to the jugular.
"They were found at the library," McGonagall said, "I don't suppose any of you can explain this? It was on the floor next to them." She held up a compact makeup mirror.
The boys shook their heads, still staring at Hermione.
McGonagall sighed and gently herded them away from Hermione's bedside. But even as they walked away, the boys couldn't help but look back at Hermione, lying there, still and glassy eyed. While the sight was distressful for Harry and Ron, Seth couldn't help but feel as if her blank eyes were glaring accusingly at him. He clutched at his chest while guilt threatened to drown him.
XXXXXX
The Gryffindor common room was full of commotion after McGonagall announced the double attack and the new rules that were to be implemented for students' protection. Some were talking about how none of the Slytherins had been attacked yet so they should all be chucked out while others argued that the Slytherins could be next for all they knew considering the wide range of victims from a freaking cat to a prefect.
Either way, everyone was concerned about the resurgence of attacks, especially when McGonagall announced that the school would be closed if no culprit was found.
Harry, Ron, and Seth secluded themselves in a corner for their own talk.
"What're we going to do now?" Ron asked.
"We have to talk to Hagrid," Harry said, "I don't believe it's him this time or the last but he might know something about the monster and we have to start somewhere."
"But McGonagall said we've got to stay in the tower unless we're in class," Ron said, pointing out the immediate flaw to Harry's plan.
Harry grimaced. "Then I think it's time I get my dad's old cloak out again."
"I won't be able to join you guys," Seth suddenly said.
"Why not?" Ron asked curiously.
"Hermione was in the library right? Well before she went, she got some sort of epiphany so she may have found something and I can go find out what it was," Seth explained.
"But how are you going to get there without my cloak?" Harry asked in confusion.
Seth smirked in a manner almost too sharp for him. "Don't worry. I have my ways."
XXXXXX
Harry and Ron hurried to Hagrid's under the cover of the cloak and the darkness of the night. Once they arrived at the hut, they saw a small figure come barreling out the back and rush into the pumpkin patch.
The two boys were confused for a moment until they heard footsteps behind them. They turned to see Dumbledore and a stranger with rumpled gray hair and an anxious expression wearing a strange mix of a pinstriped suit, a scarlet tie, a long black cloak, and pointed purple boots with a lime green bowler tucked under his arm.
"That's dad's boss! Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic," Ron quietly hissed, "We've got to get out of the way!"
He tugged Harry to move and they went over to hide in the pumpkin patch. They watched as Dumbledore and Fudge knocked on Hagrid's door and Hagrid reluctantly let them inside.
The boys shared a concerned look and crept around to peek into Hagrid's hut only to see someone already doing so. They realized it was the figure that ran out and they moved closer to see who it was only to be shocked once they got a clear look.
"Malfoy?!" Harry whisper shouted in shock as he whipped the cloak off.
Draco startled and whipped around to see Harry and Ron appear out of thin air. "Potter! Weasley! What are you doing here?"
"What are you doing here?" Ron turned it back on him.
Draco scowled. "Well if you must know, I've been coming here the past few days to butter Hagrid up enough to ask about the Chamber of Secrets incident that saw him expelled."
"But didn't we promise not to ask him unless we absolutely had to?" Harry reminded him with a frown.
Draco snorted. "I had my fingers crossed behind my back, obviously."
"Well did you get anything out of him?" Ron demanded.
Before Draco could answer, they all heard Hagrid shout in protest, "Not Azkaban!"
The boys returned their attention to the inside of the hut, only just now realizing why the Minister of Magic was there - to detain Hagrid.
"I assure you, Hagrid, we won't be sending you to Azkaban if you are truly innocent," Fudge tried to calmly state as he fidgeted nervously with his bowler hat, "But you must cooperate or else we will have no choice! If you do, then you will simply be detained at the Ministry."
Hagrid looked as if he wanted to do anything but and began to say as much, "But-"
A knock on the door interrupted whatever protests Hagrid may have. Dumbledore went to open the door revealing Lucius Malfoy standing there in all his prim and proper black cloak attire glory. He also wore a triumphant smirk on his face.
Draco let out a soft gasp in surprise.
"Ah, Lucius," Dumbledore said as if he'd been expecting him to show up eventually, "To what do we owe the pleasure?"
"Good evening Dumbledore," Lucius greeted, sounding entirely too pleased, "I am here to inform you that by order of the Board of Governors, you are hereby suspended from your position as Headmaster of Hogwarts due to your inability to stop the terrible attacks on the student populace."
Harry and Ron both gasped in shock.
"Yeh can't take Dumbledore!" Hagrid yelled vehemently in protest, "Take him away an the muggleborns won stand a chance! There'll be killin next!"
"Calm yourself, Hagrid," Dumbledore said sharply. Then he returned his attention to Lucius. "If the governors want my removal, Lucius, I shall of course step aside."
"Now hold on a moment," Fudge stuttered.
"No," Hagrid growled dangerously.
"However," Dumbledore said, slowly and clearly, "You will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me. You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."
For a moment, Dumbledore's eyes flicked over to where the boys were eavesdropping at the nearby window. They quickly ducked down before they were seen by anyone else.
"Truly laudable," Lucius lazily remarked, "We shall all miss your highly individual way of running things, Dumbledore, and only hope that your successor will manage to prevent any, ah, killin."
Lucius then walked to the door and opened it, waving graciously to Dumbledore to go ahead first and he did so nonchalantly. Fudge fiddled with his bowler as he waited for Hagrid to go ahead but Hagrid stood there for a moment.
Hagrid took a deep breath and carefully said, "If anyone wanted ter find out some stuff, all they'd have ter do is look ter the spiders. That's all I'm sayin."
Fudge looked at him, absolutely bewildered.
"Alright, I'm going," Hagrid said. He walked to the door but before he stepped past the threshold, he stopped and added, "And someone'll need ter feed Fang while I'm away."
Then he stepped out, not willing to try Fudge's patience further, and the boys watched the depressing entourage leave the premises.
Harry looked to Ron in fear. "We're in trouble now. They might as well close the school tonight without Dumbledore here."
"Yeah," Ron grimly agreed, "And it's all Malfoy's fault."
"Speaking of Malfoy," Harry turned to where Draco was but startled when he found that the Slytherin was no longer there.
The two boys shared wary looks before deciding to return to the castle for the night.
XXXXXX
Harry and Ron were packing up their things as Professor Sprout announced the end of the lesson for the day. All the students were on edge due to the morning announcement that the Board of Governors had removed Professor Dumbledore as Headmaster.
"What do you think we should do now Harry?" Ron whispered.
"I don't know," Harry mumbled back.
Ron frowned. "Do you think Seth managed to figure something out?"
Harry looked over to the other side of the greenhouse where Seth was scrutinizing something inside this bag. He looked rather pale and slightly sickly, just as he had before winter break. "It doesn't look like it."
"Should we ask?"
Harry shook his head. "No way. He looks just as bad as he did before winter break."
Ron glanced over to get a good look himself. "Hermione getting attacked must've hit him really hard."
"Yeah…" Harry said before leaning in closer so there wasn't a chance for anyone to overhear. "What do you think we should do about Malfoy?"
Ron gave him a strange look. "What about Malfoy?"
Harry gave him a pointed look. "You don't think he's betrayed us or anything? His father got Hagrid arrested and Dumbledore removed!"
Ron grimaced. "I'm going to try and believe he's not as rotten as his dad, even if he is still a twat."
Harry nodded and was about to follow the rest of the students when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see what it was and saw a line of spiders fleeing out the open window of the greenhouse. He walked over on the pretense of searching for his gloves and watched how the spiders seemed to be making their way to the forbidden forest. It was then he was reminded of Hagrid's advice about the spiders.
Harry hurried back to Ron who was trailing behind the other students as they left the greenhouse. "Ron! Ron!" He hissed urgently.
"What?" Ron asked in confusion.
"Look," Harry said, pointing to the trail of spiders leading out of the greenhouse.
Ron paled at the sight, looking as if he was a hair away from passing out. "What about them?" He asked with concentrated effort.
"It looks like they're running to the Forbidden Forest. Remember what Hagrid said about the spiders? We should follow them!"
Ron looked at him incredulously. "You want us to go follow some spiders into the Forbidden Forest? Are you mad?"
"It's the only lead we've got."
"But-"
"For Hermione."
Ron groaned. "Alright, fine."
"What are you two whispering about now?" Draco asked right next to them.
Harry and Ron jumped, startled by Draco's abrupt appearance. They only now realized that they'd been joined by the second year Slytherins on their way to the Great Hall for study period.
"Malfoy!" Ron cried out.
Draco rolled his eyes. "Yes, that is my name. Again, what are you two whispering about now?"
"Why should we tell you?" Harry hotly asked, "You betrayed us. Your father got Dumbledore removed!"
"I did nothing of the sort," Draco hissed angrily, "I was surprised by my father's appearance too, you know. That's why I left. So I could send a letter home to mother and demand an explanation."
"And? What did she say?" Ron asked insistently.
Draco scowled. "That I'm not old enough to understand why my father does what he does. That he's only looking out for me and other rot like that."
"Did she say anything else? You were going to ask her about the chamber right?" Ron continued.
Draco nodded. "I did. That's why I'm back here with you two."
"Well? Did she tell you anything useful?" Harry impatiently asked.
"She told me that the student who was killed was a muggleborn girl and it happened in one of the bathrooms. She also said that I must avoid it at all costs as she believed the monster was a highly ancient and evil one," Draco explained.
"And that's all? Nothing else?" Harry asked, disappointed.
Draco nodded and Ron and Harry sighed dejectedly.
"Now tell me what you two were whispering about," Draco demanded.
Harry and Ron shared looks. Ron nodded encouragingly and Harry reluctantly shared his observation in the greenhouse.
"I think if we find out where the spiders are running to, that might help us figure this whole thing out," Harry concluded, "Hagrid did say we should look to the spiders."
Draco hummed, crossing his arms in thought. "That may be true but I don't think he meant he wanted us to follow them."
"What do you mean?" Ron asked, sounding a mite too eager at the possibility of not having to follow some spiders into the Forbidden Forest.
"While the spiders are certainly behaving strangely, maybe what Hagrid wanted us to note was that strange behavior and use it as a clue," Draco suggested, "For example, what could make those spiders behave in such a strange way?"
Harry and Ron nodded along to show they were following his train of thought.
"Also, I forgot to mention it but I did manage to speak to Hagrid about the monster," Draco added, "It took some time and a lot of coaxing but he told me everything before the Minister arrived."
"And? What did he say?" Harry eagerly asked.
"The so called monster was an acromantula Hagrid got as an egg then hatched and raised himself," Draco answered, "He was caught by Tom Riddle while trying to release the acromantula into the forest before it could be found and accused of being the monster from the Chamber of Secrets."
Ron turned an impressive shade of white while Harry only tilted his head in confusion. "What's an acromantula and why wouldn't it be the monster?"
"It's a giant spider, Harry," Ron weakly said, "A really, really, really giant spider."
Draco nodded. "Exactly. And do you honestly think no one would notice a giant spider roaming the halls, attacking students, and then killing a girl in the bathrooms? There's also the fact that spiders weave webs and since there were no reports of any giant spider webs anywhere…"
Harry nodded slowly. "I guess that makes sense. Tom also said he didn't really think Hagrid was the culprit either."
"Exactly. So there's no need to follow spiders anywhere, especially not to the Forbidden Forest," Draco said with a scoff.
Ron sighed in relief. "Oh thank Merlin. I don't know what I'd do if we ran into any acromantulas. Not that I wouldn't have gone after the spiders though. I would've done it for Hermione."
"Should we go tell Seth all of this?" Harry asked.
Draco shook his head. "No, at least not yet. Sorenson's acting…strange again."
"Well of course he is. Hermione got attacked," Ron said as if it were obvious.
"No. I think it's something more than that," Draco said with a frown, "Anyways, speaking of Granger, where was she petrified? McGonagall never said and I know better than to trust student gossip even if it is fun to listen to it."
"In the library, why?" Harry said.
"She must've discovered something," Draco pointed out, "Why else would she go to the library when Gryffindor's got a Quiddich match? We should check in with her later."
"But she's petrified," Ron said in confusion.
Draco leveled a pointed look at him. "Just trust me on this, alright?"
Harry and Ron reluctantly agree.
XXXXXX
The unexpected trio's trip to the hospital wing was unfortunately delayed for a few days as the professors greatly increased security and patrols with a heavily regulated schedule so the only times the boys could even meet up was during class and mealtimes.
However, one morning during breakfast, McGonagall announced that the mandrakes had finally matured so those who'd been petrified will be cured and may finally name their attacker.
Everyone cheered at the news. Well, at least mostly everyone.
Harry looked over to the Slytherin table and wasn't surprised to find some of them not cheering but was pleasantly surprised by the majority that were. He also saw that Draco seemed relieved by the news as well.
The Great Hall was soon filled with excited buzz as everyone eagerly looked forward to the end of the Chamber of Secrets' terror.
Just then, Seth came over and sat down next to Ron. He looked rather tense and was paler than he'd ever been before. Harry noticed how his hand kept twisting around a charm bracelet on his wrist.
"Morning Seth," Ron cheerfully greeted as he helped himself to some more porridge, "Did you hear the good news? Hermione's going to be un-petrified!"
However, Seth didn't say anything. His expression was conflicted as if he were having trouble trying to say whatever it was he wanted to say.
Harry looked at him in concern. "Something wrong?"
Finally, Seth managed to spit out, "I've got something I really need to tell you guys."
Harry and Ron exchanged concerned looks.
"What is it?" Ron asked.
"Is it about the chamber?" Harry quietly added.
Seth drew in a sharp breath and managed to force a curt nod. Ron and Harry exchanged concerned looks again.
"What'd you find out? Does it have something to do with whatever Hermione found out or about the spiders?" Ron asked.
Seth gave him a strange look at that.
"We'll tell you later," Harry interjected, "What'd you find out Seth?"
But before Seth could respond, an extremely tired Percy suddenly appeared.
"If you've finished eating, I'll take that seat, Seth, thanks," Percy said before sitting down with an exhausted plop, "I'm starving. I've only just come off patrol duty."
Seth startled as if he'd been electrocuted and stood up from his seat with stilted movements. "I'll tell you two later. Come find me when you're done with breakfast." Then he booked it out of the Great Hall much to Harry and Ron's bewilderment.
"Percy! He was just about to tell us something important!" Ron angrily admonished his brother.
Percy blinked, still somewhat out of it from sleep deprivation. "Oh, well, you heard what he said. He'll tell you later so it mustn't have been that important."
Harry highly doubted that. After breakfast, he and Ron tried to search for Seth but it was as if the other had vanished completely. He didn't even show up for morning lessons. During the switch between first and second years for transfiguration, Ginny and Luna asked if they'd seen him since breakfast but Harry and Ron could only shake their heads, drawing alarmed looks from the girls that made something deep within Harry's gut scream at him to do something, anything.
As the Gryffindors left Defense Against the Dark Arts, Harry finally made his move.
"Ron, we have to go find Seth," Harry whispered insistently.
Ron nodded in agreement. "But where would we even start? And that's assuming we'll be able to get away."
"Why not try the hospital wing?" Draco said from behind them.
Harry and Ron jumped at the sudden intrusion.
"Will you stop doing that?" Ron demanded with a scowl.
Draco gave a self-satisfied smirk. "No."
"What do you mean the hospital wing?" Harry asked, trying to steer the conversation back.
"You're looking for Sorenson right?" The two Gryffindors nodded. "Well he looked rather sickly when he left the hall this morning so it's possible he went to the hospital wing."
Harry mentally slapped himself on the head for the oversight. "That makes sense. And we need to visit Hermione too."
"But how?" Ron asked in reminder of the obstacle before them, "Lockhart may be thick but he can't be thick enough to let us go when security's still tight."
Harry pondered over it for a moment before coming to a conclusion with a grimace. "I think I've got an idea. Leave it to me."
He then proceeded to trick Lockhart with flattery and platitudes which convinced the narcissistic professor to leave his security duties behind to eagerly prepare for his next class, leaving the Gryffindors and Slytherins to walk to their next class without him.
Harry, Ron, and Draco then slipped away from the group to make their way to the hospital wing. Unfortunately, they ran into McGonagall along the way so they tried to convince her that they were so worried about Hermione that they just had to see her. They also threw into the fact that they hadn't seen Seth all day either but he looked rather sickly so they assumed he might be in the hospital wing too.
To their astonishment, McGonagall allowed them to go to the hospital wing with her permission. The trio soon arrived at the hospital wing where Madam Pomfrey reluctantly let them in.
"I see no point in talking to a petrified person, it's not as if she'll hear you," Madam Pomfrey said with a sigh. The boys quietly agreed with her. "But I suppose I'm not cruel enough to prevent friends from seeing friends though it is a surprise to see you here with them, Mr. Malfoy. Then again, the times are slowly changing. Hopefully for the better."
Madam Pomfrey led them to Hermione's bedside where the boys took in her frozen figure and blank eyes staring at the ceiling.
"I'll step away and give you some privacy," Madam Pomfrey said.
Before she could walk away, Harry hesitantly asked, "Um, Madam Pomfrey, has Seth been by since this morning?"
Madam Pomfrey raised an eyebrow in question. "Mister Sorenson? Not at all. Is he coming down with something again?"
"We're not sure," Harry responded, "He didn't look well this morning but he might be resting at the dorms so perhaps he's gotten better since? "
Madam Pomfrey pursed her lips together into a thin line. "Perhaps. I'll be sure to follow up with Professor McGonagall about this." Then she walked off leaving the trio alone.
Ron looked to Harry in concern. "You don't think something's happened to him, do you?"
Harry frowned. "I hope not." Then he turned his attention to Draco. "So why did you want us to come here again?"
But Draco didn't answer, his attention solely focused on examining Hermione as closely as possible with particular attention on her right hand.
"Oi Malfoy!" Ron lightly thumped the Slytherin's shoulder to get his attention, "Are you going to explain why we needed to come here or not?"
"There's something in her hand," Draco finally responded, leaning in closer for a better look.
This surprised Harry and Ron and they also leaned in to take a closer look at her right hand and sure enough, there seemed to be a piece of paper crumbled inside her fist.
The boys worked to carefully force the paper out of her hand without tearing it up. It seemed that the page was torn from a very old library book and they eagerly smoothed it out to read it.
On the page was a detailed description of a basilisk, an XXXXX Danger Class monster known as the 'King of Serpents' with deadly venomous fangs and a murderous stare that granted instant death if direct eye contact was made. Spiders fled in its presence and the call of a rooster was fatal enough to kill it. At the bottom of the page, Hermione wrote a single word that she circled and underlined - Pipes!
Draco sighed and shook his head. "It seems my suspicions were correct. The monster is a basilisk, a giant snake with a stare deadly enough to kill."
At that moment, it was as if a light bulb suddenly went off in Harry's brain. "That's it! That must've been why I was hearing that voice all over the place and nobody else could. Because I can understand parseltongue!"
"Hold on, you heard its voice?" Draco asked, startled by the admission.
Harry nodded. "It's how I found Mrs. Norris."
"But it says here that the basilisk kills anyone who looks at it," Ron said, pointing at the specific description, "How come everyone was only petrified?"
"Because no one looked at it straight in the eye!" Harry said in a moment of brilliant deduction, "Colin saw it through his camera. Justin must've seen it through Nearly Headless Nick and Nick got the full blast of it but he's already dead. Hermione and the Ravenclaw Prefect saw it through the mirror that was found with them."
"Granger must've figured out the monster before we did and warned the first person near her," Draco speculated, "The Prefect must've taken out her mirror to check around the corners."
Ron's jaw dropped. "And Mrs. Norris?"
"The flooding water from Moaning Myrtle's bathroom," Harry said, "I bet she only saw the reflection."
"There's also the fact that Hagrid's roosters were all killed," Draco added, "The heir must've not wanted one anywhere near the castle once the chamber was opened. And the spiders' strange behavior, they're fleeing from it. It all fits!" He pointed at Hermione's scribble. "And it must've been getting around in the plumbing else everyone would've seen it by now."
"That's why I was hearing voices in the walls," Harry whispered in realization.
Draco nodded. "That must mean the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets could be anywhere with large enough pipes like the kitchens or the dungeons or-"
"The bathrooms," Ron said with his own light bulb realization, "The girl who died in the bathrooms…what if she never left?"
Harry looked at him in shock. "You don't mean Moaning Myrtle's bathroom?"
"It has to be right? There's no other place it could be," Ron said.
"Not anywhere more likely at least," Draco agreed, "Her bathroom's desolate and isolated enough that no one would ever go there voluntarily or without a good reason."
"So what do we do now?" Ron asked.
"We have to tell the professors," Harry said, urgently pushing them out of the hospital wing.
XXXXXX
Seth stumbled his way to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. His limbs moved unnaturally as if he were being controlled by strings in the hands of an unknown puppeteer. Except in this case, it was very clear who that puppeteer was.
He collapsed to his knees once the bathroom door closed behind him. For once, Myrtle wasn't wailing uncontrollably in her stall, most likely hiding in the pipes somewhere.
Seth grabbed at his head and cried out in pain as a vicious force slammed itself repeatedly against his fraying mental defense accompanied by vicious whispers and sweet mutterings.
"Let go, Seth. Just let go. Aren't you tired of fighting?"
"Never," Seth hissed defiantly, "I'm not going to let you take over. I'll destroy you!"
He reached for the diary in his pocket and pulled out his wand with a trembling hand.
Tom chuckled darkly. "Oh my dear Shadow Charmer, I'm afraid you're too late."
With one final slam, the dark force that was Tom smashed Seth's mental defenses to pieces. Seth collapsed completely onto the floor as he felt an evil presence fill his body like thick molasses, threatening to drown him out completely.
His vision was beginning to darken and he felt tired, so, so tired.
Before he passed out, he mustered enough energy to grasp Kendra's bracelet in his hand.
"Kendra…please…help-"
And then he knew no more.
And scene! Hope you like that little cliffhanger and teaser for what's to come in the next chapter. But yeah, there was a lot going on in this chapter in order to pave the way to the confrontation in the Chamber of Secrets. I ended up changing a lot here like the events at Hagrid's hut and its aftermath which have now gone differently because Draco got involved so he's there to be the logical one between Harry and Ron since Hermione is petrified and Seth's busy. Also changed Hagrid's detainment to just being held at the Ministry cause what the hell would've been solved by throwing him into Azkaban besides tormenting an innocent man? Fudge may be stupid but I'd like to think he's enough of a politician to know a potential lawsuit in the making and thus would detain Hagrid until his innocence is proven rather than locking him up, throwing away the key, then scrambling to search for said key once it's realized he locked up an innocent man.
Anyways, hope you guys are looking forward to the next chapter because Kendra will finally make her glorious appearance and there will be some revelations made in order to tie up some loose plot threads that I've always had a problem with in canon regarding the chamber of secrets. Until then!
