The ache in Ariel's jaw woke her up sometime in the night, radiating down her neck.

She pushed herself up on her elbows. She'd somehow managed to fall asleep face down into the pillow and now her entire face hurt. Ariel took a moment to reorient herself and realize that she was in the infirmary, again. She was starting to hate this place.

As Ariel sat up and rubbed the grit from her eyes a sharp pain shot up her neck. She rubbed her jaw, wincing at the sting. Snape had put some kind of salve on it that made it feel numb, but it must've worn off. He'd done it himself after bringing her here, and Madam Pomfrey had given her some more just before she'd fallen asleep. Snape had left, along with the other Heads of House, to go and secure their Common Rooms after that.

She ought to have been asleep still, she supposed, the moon high in the sky, just outside the windows. Snape had given her a particularly strong batch of Dreamless Sleep that had put her out like a light, but now that she was awake, the last thing she wanted to do was pretend like everything was fine. She wouldn't find any reprieve in her dreams after what had happened.

Ariel swung her legs out of the bed, wincing at the pain in once again. She stood up and walked towards the window, feeling the cool night air on her face. It felt good.

She shivered, remembering the Heir's icy hand on her face. She remembered the panic gripping her in the same way, cruel and unyielding, how neither would let her go —

Ariel then noticed that someone was standing in the doorway, very still, like they hadn't meant to be seen. Before nearly dying of fright, she realized it was Professor Dumbledore, dressed in robes the color of coral that gleamed like a sunset, trimmed with intricate designs of what looked to be flowers woven into the sleeves. His face glowed in a warm smile and his eyes twinkled merrily as if he were about to offer her candy instead of his presence during the middle of the night in a freezing castle.

"Professor?" she croaked, clearing her throat.

"I'm quite glad to see you up and about." he smiled genially. Ariel couldn't help but feel a pang of anger — he'd thought she was the Heir.

"Where's Professor Snape?" Ariel asked instead, crossing her arms tightly across her chest.

"Scouring the castle for any sign of Tom."

Ariel couldn't have heard him right because she could've sworn that he'd just said Tom. Her jaw twitched involuntarily, and her hand flew up to it, trying rub away the sting again.

"Are you in pain?" Dumbledore asked, the spot between his eyebrows creasing.

"No, sir, I'm alright." she tried to flex it, but it just made it worse. "When will he be back?"

"I would suppose sooner rather than later, but I find that when Severus is like this, it's usually for the best to let it run its course."

Ariel pictured him breaking the potions cart after she'd been poisoned. He'd been frigid after finding her, his arm like an iron bar around her shoulders until he'd deposited her in the infirmary and spelled the Dreamless Sleep into her stomach. She could really only begin to imagine what he'd done, after the Heir had been in her room.

"You might end up with a few broken paintings, at least." Ariel offered shyly, her lips quirking upwards.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled at her. "He was particularly dreadful when he first started teaching. I believe he beheaded a statue that predated Herpo the Foul."

He raised one hand and pointed his wand at the center of the room. From thin air two large, squashy armchairs appeared. They were covered in crimson velvet with gold tassels, and so deep that their arms completely disappeared when resting on them. Dumbledore motioned to them, and he swept to one while Ariel took the other. A goblet of steaming hot chocolate appeared in her lap on a little silver tray.

"I would like you to tell me everything, from start to finish." Dumbledore said after a few moments. "Severus was able to give me a very broad debriefing, but he included some of his own opinions, sprinkled with his very strong grasp on profanity."

Ariel almost snorted into the goblet, nearly sending some of the steaming drink up her nose, but she wiped her mouth with her sleeve and told Dumbledore everything that had happened. He listened intently, not offering any sort of indication of what he was thinking. His expression was both thoughtful and deeply pensive, as if he was digesting every syllable that came out of her mouth.

"This Charm," Dumbledore said, leaning forward once she had finished. "Would you mind showing me, my dear? Severus, regrettably, has not mentioned it to me."

She gave a jerky nod and pointed her wand at her heart. "Lumos."

A breathless little gasp escaped her as the light erupted from her wand, and she let herself bask in its glow, feeling a deep sense of comfort wash over her. She wondered if there was a way to make the Charm permanent somehow. Snape would probably call her a numpty if she asked him that.

"He wouldn't tell me the Charm," Ariel said, setting her wand in her lap. "but he said it'll stop something like — like Voldemort — what he did last year, from happening again."

"I see," Dumbledore's blue eyes were shining brightly, just like the moon. "I very rarely doubt your father, my dear, but I must say that creating something like this is quite a feat."

She cocked her head up at him. "Do you know the Charm?"

"I do," his mustache twitched. "But I shall leave that for Severus to reveal to you if he so chooses. You won't be disappointed; I can promise you that."

Ariel wondered why Dumbledore was talking about Snape like there was some punch line she was missing but decided to leave it alone for now. She didn't need anyone else telling her that adults were weird, Snape being the weirdest of them all.

Another thought bubbled up inside her, one she'd been harboring all term.

"Sir," she started, very hesitantly. "Is that why you thought I was the Heir? Because of what happened last year?"

Something that almost looked like regret flickered over his face, like when Dudley was scanning the channels on the telly. It was quickly replaced with that serene, gentle expression he always wore.

"I know you are not the Heir, my dear girl." he leaned forward and offered a hand to her. She took it gingerly. "The events of last year were an amalgamation only Voldemort himself could have created. It was… shall we say, a perfect storm."

Ariel had absolutely no idea what amalgamation was, but she understood what Dumbledore was trying to say well enough.

"Then who was in my room?" she asked. "It was definitely a boy — I didn't recognize the voice but he…" she trailed off, feeling silly.

Dumbledore leaned forward. "Tell me, my girl. No detail is too small."

That was the last piece he needed

Tell me what it said tell me

A silly child like you is no match for him

Let me in

Ariel squirmed in her chair, tracing the delicate carvings in the goblet lightly with her finger.

"He reminded me of Voldemort." she said finally. "The way he spoke, the way he held me down, like I was some tiny figurine in the palm of his hand waiting to be smashed. He liked the power he held over me. That was very clear."

Dumbledore was silent for a very, very long time. His blue eyes swirled like a storm. They flickered from misty to overcast to clear in seconds, like lightning playing across the roiling underbelly of an angry thunderhead. If Ariel had blinked, she was quite sure she would have missed it.

"Tom Marvolo Riddle." he said. "Is the Heir of Slytherin."

Ariel blinked at him for several moments. "Am I supposed to know who that is?"

Dumbledore lifted his wand, the motion almost seeming heavy, much like his expression. His eyes, however, looked like they were made of water filled with light, whereas his wand was more mechanical and cutting. It took Ariel a moment to realize that the wisps of orange were matching his strokes, spelling out letters.

Tom Marvolo Riddle, it read when he was finished.

Ariel was starting to feel incredibly stupid.

And then Dumbledore did one last motion, the letters scattering as they came back together, twisting and turning between themselves like they were impatient customers in a long line until Ariel could see what it was starting to form, could see the beginning of a name she knew very well.

I am Lord Voldemort

Ariel stared, stunned. She felt like she'd been left without a way off a crumbling cliff, watching the rocks beneath her feet slowly drop into the ocean as the waves crashed higher and higher, lapping at her, waiting to drag her down to its depths.

"So you see," Dumbledore finally said. "This is a battle you have faced before. Tom opened the Chamber many years ago when he was a student here himself. Unfortunately, periodically attacking students meant that Hogwarts would be closed, and so Tom framed a fellow classmate in his stead."

She contemplated this for a while, trying to let it all sink in.

His name had been Tom. He'd had a normal, plain, boring name like everyone else. That was all her brain could contemplate right now.

Ariel swallowed, her words sticking to her throat, dry and hot. "How?"

"I believe him to be influencing one of the students."

Her head was spinning, she couldn't make sense of this, but she also could, because the Heir being Voldemort made complete sense. It was about the only thing that had made sense this whole term, between the cryptic messages on walls and Malfoy and his fat mouth and the victims —

"So how do we stop him?" Ariel heard herself saying. "He won't stop —"

He'll hurt Hermione, he'll hurt Hermione to hurt me

"No, he won't." Dumbledore sighed. "After attacking you, it seems he wasted no time. I'm afraid Ginevra Weasley has been taken to the Chamber."

Ariel's heart stopped. Even the dust dancing in the moonlight seemed to stand still. She sat without blinking, without thinking, without feeling, without being, without existing, without being inside herself at all.

"What?" she strangle out. Ginny —

Is that you — Ginny?

I'm really not that hungry

Why didn't you hurt him this time

He thinks you're incredibly entertaining

You just don't see it, do you?

Ariel felt like she was going to be sick. She had no proof other than a few weird interactions… she'd never actually seen Ginny do anything, but the more Ariel pondered it, the more she realized that it was possible. Ginny had been in the room when they'd started talking about the Polyjuice — Ariel still had the book, a book of which had stuff that could kill you, poison you —

Ariel didn't realize how badly she was shaking until she tried to stand up.

"Professor," she said. "I think the Heir — Tom — I think he's been hurting her, somehow."

Dumbledore was silent, his face grave. "I would agree." he said finally, his voice like a dying wind. "There is no other reason for Tom to have taken her to the Chamber other than to use her for his own nefarious purposes."

Ariel stared at him, her heart pounding in her chest. "What can we do?" she whispered.

He shook his head sadly. "Unless we can find the Chamber, there is nothing we can do."

"Someone has to know something —"

"Perhaps," Dumbledore said, rising from his chair, hands clasped together in front of him. "Perhaps we know it ourselves without realizing it."

Ariel could do little more than gape at him, trying to shove what he'd just said through the Adult to Normal Person translator that she normally only reserved for Snape.

"Unfortunately, my dear, I must leave you now. The Ministry has called for my removal after the last few events."

"What? They can't do that!" Ariel protested, feeling a surge of fury. He couldn't leave now, not with Tom — Voldemort — here and Ginny missing. They didn't stand a chance with Dumbledore gone. "You can't leave, we need your help! Ginny needs you —"

He smiled, almost sadly. "The Ministry believes that Mrs Weasley may need something more than my help." he paused for a moment, his eyes twinkling in the moonlight. "Even in my absence, help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who deserve it."

Ariel watched helplessly as Dumbledore left the room. She was left alone with her thoughts, feeling the weight of the situation pressing down on her. Ginny was missing, and with Dumbledore gone, they were running out of options. She needed to do something, anything —

Ginny had done something, Ariel realized, feeling the thought creep over her like a shadow. Tom had been —

Where did she put it that stupid girl

She had tried to warn her. That little black diary, the one Ariel had found on her bed. Ariel had put it under her pillow before falling asleep, that's why Tom — Voldemort — whatever — hadn't found it.

The key to finding the Chamber was in that book, Ariel knew it. There had been a name in it, and she would've bet the entire Potter vault that Tom's name was in it.

I have written you down now, you will live forever —

Ariel lightly pressed her fingertips to her cheek.

This time, she did not wince.

The girl was awake when Severus returned to the infirmary.

She sat sitting upright, staring off into the distance, seemingly deep in thought. She wiped at her face, cheeks shining in the pale, cold sunlight when she caught sight of him.

When Severus had left her last night she'd been crying too, leaving Minerva to wrap a shawl tightly around her shoulders while Poppy rubbed an inferior Healing salve on her jaw. As if any of that was going to fucking help. The girl had been assaulted by a deranged madman after waking from a dead sleep. It was a wonder she wasn't catatonic.

Severus tilted the girl's chin up to look at him. The bruising had mostly faded, small patches of yellow by her nose, covering half of her freckles. He thought of the Dark Lord's body the color her bruise had been, purple and black and red. He thought of his organs turning that color when Severus plucked them out with a hot brand.

"Have they found Ginny?" Miss Evans asked quietly.

Something inside his brain felt like an atom bomb detonating. Dumbledore had been here. He'd been with the girl, and now he was gone, leaving Severus to make sure no more harm befell her. The shard of the atom bomb in his brain shook, sending shrapnel at his Shields, which shuddered under the assault.

Her bones will lie in the Chamber forever – the lunatic had been polite enough to leave a fucking note on the girl's bed.

Severus didn't know how to tell her that the chances of finding She-Weasley were close to none. "Not yet, no. The Aurors arrived some time ago, looking for the Chamber. They'll be here indefinitely."

The girl didn't seem satisfied with this answer. "Where's everyone else?"

"There will likely be a restriction instated soon." he seated himself at the end of her cot, rubbing his face tiredly. He was running on half a carton of cigarettes at this point, after scouring the castle for any sign of the Dark Lord. There had been nothing in Gryffindor Tower — no blood, but there had been clear signs of a struggle. "Professor McGonagall will be here to collect you shortly. You'll be staying somewhere separately, in an undisclosed part of the castle."

Miss Evans shifted uncomfortably. "For how long?"

"Until the school has been deemed safe."

She bit her lip. "What about you?"

His eyes narrowed. "What about me?"

"Where will you go?"

"I'll be continuing the search, you silly girl. Where else would I be going?"

"No, I mean," she broke off, making a noise of frustration under her breath. "will you be safe?"

Severus stared her down his nose. This sort of frivolity — this childish nonsense — would have caused him to go into a blind rage a year ago. Now, it certainly irked him, but it stoked a fire that he hadn't realized had been burning. When Severus had touched the mark on her cheek but noticed the prideful gleam in her eye that she hadn't even noticed herself, it had hit him. The Dark Lord had tried to kill her, to take her, and she had done what she'd needed to do.

It had made him realize that she was capable of defending herself — that he could give her an arsenal, if she asked for it, but that was a dangerous roll of the dice. He himself had come to Hogwarts at eleven years old, knowing more Curses than most Seventh Years, and look what he had become.

"I have faced far worse, Miss Evans." Severus replied instead, keeping his voice emotionless. "The Heir and the basilisk are not after me, or did you forget last night already?"

The girl wrung her hands in the sheets, like she was trying to draw water from them. "You mean Tom Riddle."

Severus tried to control the urge to break something. Poppy had been extremely cross with him after Miss Evans' last visit, and he was becoming dangerously close to becoming the first professor to be Warded away from coming and going from the infirmary as he pleased.

"Spoke to the Headmaster a great deal, did you?" Severus snarled. "What else did he tell you?"

"We both think he's been controlling Ginny."

Severus faltered only for a moment, her words completely taking him off guard. "And how did you come to that conclusion?"

Miss Evans shook her head. "She's been acting strangely all term… like she's been ill, just not herself. She would say things that didn't make sense or disappear for a while. She's been avoiding Hermione and I and said she couldn't tell us what was wrong. Ron and his brothers never seemed too worried, but I should've known. Why else would he have taken her? She's not a Muggleborn, and no one else has been bloody kidnapped, only Petrified –"

She broke off, tears streaming down her face. Severus couldn't stand it — couldn't figure out what he hated more, the act of weeping or the fact that his daughter was clearly distraught, and he didn't know what the fuck to do about it. He Summoned a box of tissues and tossed it into her lap, but she threw it on the floor, along with her pillow, and one of her shoes like she wanted the floor to suffer.

"I should've fought back." the girl said, her voice throbbing. "I shouldn't have let him leave."

He exhaled through his nose. The girl worried about the entirely wrong sort of thing, sometimes. "What else could you have done?"

"I could've Stunned him, Disarmed him —" she choked off with an angry cry. "He took Ginny and it's all my fault."

"No, it is not." Severus took her by the shoulders and gave her a shake. "You did exactly what you needed to do. Next time, my only suggestion would be to draw blood. It would have made locating him infinitely easier."

"I wish I'd taken off a finger." she sniffled.

"You did what you had to. If something had happened to you," Severus' hand moved to hers, gripped her knuckle, turning his own white under the strain. "They wouldn't need to search for the Chamber. I would have destroyed it, along with the rest of the damn school."

Miss Evans went still, her black eyes the only thing that moved as they met his own. He could feel her heartache, her pain, her anger, radiating off of her like the heat from a fire. Her hand, still held in place by his own, wrapped around his thumb.

Severus sat there, motionless, too weighed down with his own thoughts. The silence was heavy as a boulder between them, and yet it felt strangely… peaceful.

Severus had not known peace since he had been a child.

And then the peace was broken when the girl's face shifted. Her eyes flickered like a dying lightbulb; her body tensed like a spring ready to be released.

He knew that look — it told him she was compiling a list. It said, basilisk, you're next.

Professor McGonagall came and got Ariel from the infirmary around breakfast time, the walk to the Great Hall spent in tense silence. It was unnerving, to walk through the halls of Hogwarts without passing any other students. Even the portraits had gone completely silent, watching Ariel warily with thin lips that whispered only to one another.

Ariel already knew the answer, but she couldn't help but ask again as they neared the Great Hall. The usual din that carried several corridors away was gone, like someone had put up a Silencing Spell. "Professor, has there been anything —"

"Nothing, Miss Evans," Professor McGonagall replied tersely. Her voice bounced off the empty hallway, still and silent.

Ariel grimaced. "When did you realize she'd gone missing?"

"We did a headcount shortly after Professor Snape found you. There was a note left on your bed."

Ariel's body went cold. Snape hadn't mentioned that. "What did it say?"

Professor McGonagall didn't answer, and Ariel was almost relieved she hadn't told her. She had a feeling that she didn't want to know.

She paused just outside the Great Hall. "You will mention none of this to the other students," she said, but for once her voice was not stern and warning, but rather, soft, and subdued. "We are trying not to induce panic."

Ariel gave a jerky nod, longing gazing through the sliver of light through the cracks. All she wanted to do was see her friends.

Professor McGonagall's hand curled around her shoulder blade, and for a moment it looked like she was going to say something. Instead, she shook her head and walked away briskly, leaving Ariel to push the doors open by herself.

The entire hall went quiet, aside from the soft sound of Ariel's shoes scraping against the floor. She felt the weight of the entire student body's eyes on her, making her feel more alone than ever. It was as if time had frozen, and Ariel was the only one moving.

"It's her — it's the Heir!" someone shouted, but they were quickly shushed.

Ariel could see Hermione, who had stood up and was running towards her. She forgot how to make her legs work for a second so when Hermione finally rushed to her, she nearly knocked Ariel off of her feet.

"You're okay!" Hermione was saying, over and over again. Ariel felt a wave of relief washing over her as she embraced her back. The quiet had melted away and a low buzz had replaced the judgmental silence, leaving behind a few glares, but everyone had gone back to eating.

"What happened?" Hermione asked."They had everyone sleep in the Common Room last night, everyone thought you'd been Petrified —"

"Where's Ron?" Ariel asked, craning her head to search the table. She didn't see any sign of him.

"They were with Professor McGonagall, his parents are here." Hermione's voice was thick. "Percy was beside himself, I've never seen him so upset before…"

Her heart twisted sharply. They must be so scared, Ginny more than any of them.

"Listen, we don't have much time." Ariel pulled her to the table, away from everyone else. "I need you to do something for me, something important."

"Anything."

Ariel quickly filled Hermione in on everything that had happened, from her attack last night to everything Dumbledore had told her. Hermione listened carefully, her eyebrows furrowed together.

"They don't know where to find him, that's what we're missing." Ariel said in a low voice. "I think Ginny wrote it in the diary. There's something in it the Heir doesn't want us to find. That's why he took Ginny."

Hermione frowned but nodded. "Do you still have it?"

"It's under my pillow, back in our dorm."

She bit her lip nervously. "There were house elves there this morning, taking your things. Professor McGonagall had mentioned you were going to be staying somewhere else, that's why I thought you'd been —" she broke off, wiping at her eyes before continuing. "I don't know if it's still there."

Ariel gave a shaky exhale. "I need you to go and check."

"We're not allowed to go anywhere alone —"

"I'll create a distraction."

"I'm not leaving you alone either!"

"Hermione, I can't. If Snape finds me wandering around, he's going to break my wand in half or something. You'll come straight back, but we need that diary."

Her mouth set in grim determination. She nodded once, and Ariel reached over to squeeze her hand.

"What're you going to do?" Hermione whispered.

Ariel's eyes flitted over to the Slytherin's table. Malfoy looked far too happy. She thought about doing something about it. "Stay here," she said.

She glanced at the High Table — no Snape. Perfect.

"Seamus," Ariel seated herself between him and Dean. "Do you know what Malfoy just said about Ginny?"

Hermione slipped out of the Great Hall like a ghost.

She crept quickly and quietly through the castle, trying to stay close to the shadows and walls. Hermione counted her steps as she went, trying to rid her mind of the fear about what she was doing, about what had been done to her friends. All of them – Ariel, Ron, and Ginny. She would never be able to rid her mind of the look on Ron's face when Professor McGonagall had come to collect him as Fred and George went white while Percy continued to search the Tower for Ginny — no she's here, she's got to be somewhere, Ginny! Ginny —

It wasn't until she got close to the Grand Staircase that she finally saw someone else.

Snape was stalking down like death on the warpath. Hermione deftly threw herself behind the closest wall and waited, only peeking out when she couldn't hear Snape's footfalls anymore. She quickly jerked her head back when she saw that he hadn't left, he'd only stopped, staring down at what seemed to be a watch.

Hermione knew what he was doing — he was checking on Ariel. She did the same thing with her coin when she thought no one else was looking.

Snape scowled fiercely down at it for a long time. As Hermione watched in silence, she saw his expression soften ever so slightly, a small crease appearing between his eyebrows.

Please head the other way, she thought frantically, please turn around, don't come this way —

By some miracle Snape did just that, heading in the direction of the Great Hall. Hermione let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding in, continuing on. She took the steps two at a time until she reached the Portrait door, gasping out the password as she charged through.

The Common Room was deserted as Hermione tore through the room and up the stairs to her dormitory. She would check everywhere, just to be certain, but there wouldn't have been a reason for the house elves to touch Ariel's bedding — it had to still be there.

When Hermione threw the door open, she nearly fell over.

Hermione's heart filled with such strong relief that she felt like it was going to explode. "Oh my god, Ginny — Ginny!"

She was sitting in the center of the room with her back to the door, cross legged. The fire bounced off her hair, making it look as dark as bronze.

The diary sat in her lap, wide open.

Something was wrong.

The feeling pooled in Hermione's stomach like quicksand.

"Ginny?" Hermione called again, unable to keep the tremor out of her voice.

"What is it?" she snapped harshly. "I'm busy!"

"Ginny…" Hermione said in a carefully dictated voice. "Where did you get that?"

"It's mine," she replied in a funny sort of voice. "my name's in it and everything — didn't Ariel tell you?"

Hermione swallowed and took a bold step forward. "She mentioned that you'd left it on her bed for her. Do you remember?"

There was a pause. "How could I forget?"

"Ginny…"

"Why do you keep saying my name?" her voice was high, as if it would surely crack in two. "It's me, isn't it?"

"O-of course!" Hermione cursed herself for stuttering, "But I —"

"Why do you sound like that?" Ginny asked, finally turning around. "Is something the matter?"

Hermione suddenly knew why Ariel had looked like she'd watched someone die when she'd told her about Ginny. The tension in the air was palpable, something sinister stirring underneath that told Hermione if she made a wrong move, this would end badly.

It didn't seem fated to end well, either, but she was a Gryffindor for a reason.

"I'm just tired, I guess." Hermione lied, steadying her voice, puffing out her chest. "And worried about you. Ariel and I have been talking —"

"Oh, Hermione." Ginny, or Not-Ginny practically sang. "Hermione…"

She kept saying her name, like she was deciding how it tasted.

She swallowed audibly. "What is it?"

"You're too nosy for your own good." Not-Ginny finally turned, a lopsided grin on her face that made it look like she was baring her teeth. "Do you know that?"

Her heart beat fast and furiously, ice shooting through her veins.

Enemies of the heir,

"So I've been told," said Hermione evenly.

beware

"You should really mind your own business." Not-Ginny said in a falsely sweet voice. She stood up and began to walk towards Hermione, who stood her ground.

Not-Ginny was clutching the black diary tightly to her chest the way a mother held an infant.

"And what kind of friend would I be," Hermione said back evenly. "if I did that?"

Ginny, or at least, her body, stopped uncomfortably close to her. Her eyes, though the light was dim, were rust-red, darker than her carrot-colored hair. They looked like blood in water. Up close, Ginny's face almost looked like it was melting off, but when Hermione looked closer, she realized that Ginny was crying.

"Mudbloods," Not-Ginny said softly. "don't deserve friends. They don't deserve much at all."

She pushed past Hermione then, her hair whipping her face. It felt like sharp straw, so much so that Hermione was sure it would leave scratches. She raised a hand to her face, where Ginny's hair had grazed her cheek.

And that's when Ginny's Stunner hit her in the back.

Something was wrong.

Hermione should've been back by now.

Ariel watched with little enthusiasm as Dean decked Goyle right between the eyes, but the professors were all filtering to the middle of the room and breaking up the fighting and dueling. The tense atmosphere — between Slytherin and Gryffindor most of all — seemed to have finally exploded, like a powder keg ignited in a pool of gasoline. They'd been going at it for some time, the tenacity spreading.

Snape had finally arrived — she'd informed him of the brawl with the coin to give Hermione a chance just in case he'd been patrolling. Ariel almost felt guilty, but he'd forgive her (maybe). He'd given her a "that's my girl" for biting a dark lord — this was the same thing, in a way.

Snape's eyes locked onto her, watching from a distance, rolling his eyes when he saw that she was pretending to eat a bowl of oatmeal. Ariel lost him in the crowd almost instantly, which meant that he couldn't see her, either.

Ariel tore out of the hall once she was certain no one's eyes were on her. She ran so fast and hard that she was afraid her lungs were going to burst out of her chest, checking over her shoulder, expecting to see Snape barreling after her any second, or the basilisk or Tom himself, his red eyes burning —

"Another one?" the Fat Lady said as Ariel hurdled over the threshold. "That's three now, you ought to be with everyone else…"

She dashed up to the dorm, throwing the door open, yelling her name. "Hermione — Hermione, we've got to go —"

Ariel froze. What had the Fat Lady said — that's three now —

There was someone else in the room. Someone who wasn't supposed to be here, someone they were trying to save —

Ginny's wand was pressed into Hermione's throat.

"Hello again, Evans." she said in Ginny's voice with Ginny's mouth, but it wasn't Ginny. "Are you ready to see the Chamber now?"

Ariel felt her hands go numb. Her heartbeat sounded faint and faraway, like it had been banished from her body. She felt like screaming and never stopping.

She sucked in a lungful of air through her teeth. "Tom."

When Ginny smiled, all of hell broke loose.