Majo Kon-ki The Marriage of Tanya the Witch
(The marriage chronicles of a witch)
Arc 2 - Chamber of Secrets – part 4
September, AD1992, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
These last few days proved a challenge for Tanya's patience as Luna kept showing up anywhere she got. The only moment she had peace was during classes and in her dormitory- No. Risk that. Being a smart Ravenclaw, she could guess Gryffindor's passwords and it was becoming an ordinary occurrence for Tanya to find the girl sleeping next to her.
"I swear! If I awake just one more morning with the sound of Hermione's voice saying 'good morning Tanya AND Luna' I will… will…!"
She tried to scare Luna away by 'slipping' how she killed gnomes and pixies. Her reaction? 'Whoa! They should have been very nasty for you to go that far.'
"Ugh! This is what Ron, Hermione and even Longbottom should have said since they have known me longer!"
The greatest problem was that Luna was too eccentric for her own good, this 'Crumple-Horned Snorkack' story turned her into a target for bullying, with even her own house involved.
"In other words: I am not her best friend, I am her ONLY friend!"
A part of Tanya didn't blame her tormentors. She herself wished to never have heard that delusion in the first place and yet, this was basically all the girl ever talked about.
"Would it be too suspicious if she had an 'accident'?" Such thoughts were becoming more appealing by the day! Maybe not a fatal accident, just something that would take her away long enough until Tanya's business in Hogwarts was finished.
"This is a liberty I miss from when I was in the army." It goes without saying that she would never kill her subordinates just because they annoyed her. Now, re-assigning them to an idle post until the enemy makes some target practice, was always a valid option.
Dreams apart, given this relatively peaceful environment, the only solution available would be to 'help' Luna find some friends. Nonetheless, the bullying could complicate things. Children who are constantly teased tend to become reserved and withdraw as a self defense mechanism, turning them into unsocial and friendless adults. The worst part is that they get attached to the few friends they have…
"Then the first order of business is to stop the bullying."
Tanya considered talking with the Ravenclaws, but realized this was futile, it would be the same as telling a teacher or a parent, it could even make things worse.
"Hum? Ah! Peace time is over!" The girl saw the Gryffindor and the Slytherin teams showing up at the same time.
This morning, after waking once again in Tanya's bed, Luna proclaimed her wish for the two to spend the entire weekend TOGETHER!
This prompted Tanya to hide in the only place no one would ever think of looking for her: the quidditch pitch. For a few minutes, she could enjoy a moment of quietude, just relax without having to worry if Harry Potter was about to be killed or Luna Lovegood babbling silly stories.
Now, it is over! Both teams started a noisy uproar, insulting each other with their claim that they had the right to use the pitch. Even Hermione, Ron and Colin Creevey joined the fray. They still hadn't seen her, but it was only a matter of time before Tanya would be forced to intercede.
"Can't they just practice together? Maybe turn it into a friendly game? These kids need to learn a few things about sports ethics." Tanya sighed.
"Hum? Isn't that Draco Malfoy? Weird,I didn't know he played. Or is he there just to bully Harry- Wait! 'Bully'?" Tanya flashed a big grin.
"I was starting to think you wouldn't come." Tanya Degurechaff said to the newcomers.
"Pff! You wish!" The oldest boy present snickered.
"If everyone's here, let's get this over with!" Harry Potter said, sounding bored.
"…" And the last person, Draco Malfoy, couldn't utter a single sound so TERRIFIED he was.
Besides his wish to run to his mummy, the question constantly in his mind was how things ended this way…
His day started well, with much delight Draco bragged to Potter that he was the new Slytherin seeker and owner of the best racing broom money could buy.
The reaction was as expected, not only Potter, but all the losers of his team were mad with envy! Even Potter's sorry excuse of friends had meager looks!
Now, that is how a son of Malfoy should live! Surrounded by admiration and respect by those below him-
"… no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in!" Of course, the rabble with inferior blood had to blemish his perfect day! It was long due, but Draco was finally going to put the Granger girl in her own deserving place.
"No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood- Ah?" Draco gasped as he found himself face to face with Tanya Degurechaff!
Did he just insult the creepy girl that even his father reckoned as dangerous?!
"I-I-I mean…" He knew he had to ask for forgiveness, but no one else in his team knew how absurdly strong she was, he would lose face.
"I-I didn't mean it to you, I was taking with Granger-"
Immediately, all Gryffindors present started to throw insults at the Malfoy heir. Degurechaff silenced them with a single gesture, meaning she didn't wish for others to get involved.
"You know that I am also a muggle-born, right?"
"W-well, yeah…"
"So, by your standards, I am also a 'mudblood'." She smirked.
"Yikes!" Draco was already panicking and his eyes were moistening. She now had the perfect excuse to squash him! To hell with keeping face, he will beg for forgiveness!
"I challenge you to a wizard's duel." Before he could grovel, she said this, pointing a finger at him.
Draco almost peed himself! How was he going to get out of this mess?
"P-p-p-please! Forgive me-"
"Get out of the way, Malfoy. I wasn't talking with you."
"Eh?"
Draco realized her finger wasn't pointing at him.
"Huh? Me?" Marcus Flint blurted, puzzled.
"As the captain you must be held accountable for your team's actions."
Except for Draco, the Slytherin team howled with laughter.
"Pff! Me fighting a tiny runt like you?! I ain't stupid, everyone knows Snape sucks up to you!"
"He doesn't need to know, or are you that desperate to find excuses to not fight a 'runt'?"
Flint blinked, apparently not expecting such an attitude.
"Perhaps, all you can do is bark but when it comes down to action, you are more of a 'little girl' than myself?"
"Piss off girl!"
"Or are you so dumb you can't even understand that I am picking a fight with you? It must be the troll side of your family-"
"You little MUDBLOOD! Pick the time and place! When I am done, no one will even remember your pretty face!"
And that is how this came to be. It was almost midnight on the same day. The location was the third-floor corridor, an area that was almost always empty, probably because the headmaster forgot to tell that this year, this floor wasn't forbidden.
Degurechaff insisted for Draco to be Flint's second and of course, she brought Potter.
As they prepared, Draco had to give Flint a last warning, like he did during all day.
"Flint, give up! Just say you took pity-"
"Shut up you wimp! I shan't play nice, this mudblood is gonna learn to not mess with her better!"
"Well, I tried."
"Okay, what rules-"
"Hey! I was thinking. Shouldn't the winner get something from the loser?" Flint suddenly brought this up.
"You mean a prize? What would you want?" Degurechaff raised an eyebrow at his question.
Malfoy stared in disbelief as Marcus Flint gave the young girl a very naughty look.
"Oh crap! He will not suggest 'that', will he?"
"If I win, we are gonna have some fun! Until I am fully satisfied!"
Draco paled after hearing Marcus Flint sign his own death sentence. Shivering, he looked at Degurechaff's direction. A shadow was over her face, but he could tell she was pissed!
"Some fun? What do you want to do? Play quidditch?" The ignorant Potter asked.
Draco immediately ran to him, actually glad he had an excuse to put some distance between Flint and himself.
"Shut it Potter! Don't make things worse!"
"Huh?"
"Harry, please hold those for me." Degurechaff handed both her wands to Harry for safekeeping.
"What is she doing?"
"Ho-ho? Are you so eager for us-"
"If I use them, I might accidentally kill you and I need you alive. You are going to be my message to all thugs, tormentors and bullies of this school… or that was the original plan."
"As if you-" Flint didn't finish his sentence as he was thrown away in an instant to the other side of the corridor. It was the same attack Draco and his two friends received a year ago.
At the time, he was left stunned. The older boy, instead, was outraged, clearly not realizing yet how screwed he was.
"HEY! WE HAD NOT STARTED- Huh?"
"D-Degurechaff disappeared?!" Draco rubbed his eyes, the girl was so fast it almost seemed like she had apparated!
She reappeared in front of the fallen Flint, who tried to curse her, but she just slapped his wand away. Even disarmed, he attempted to regain his footing and attack her, but the girl just punched him in the face.
By the sound it emitted, Draco reckoned she broke his nose.
"GAHHHHH! You little fuck-" Degurechaff hit him again and again and again… Both Draco and Harry flinching with each sound of her punching.
Finally, the girl pulled him by the collar of his blouse and raised her fist to once again-
"S-stop! You win! You win!" Tanya had her back to Draco, but he could imagine the wrath in her eyes by the look of pure horror in Flint's beaten up face.
"Told you this was gonna happen!"
"Of course I win. And if I am not mistaken, we agreed the winner would get something from the loser."
"I-I will give anything you want!"
"What I want is to get rid of your 'impure' thoughts, especially since they seem to be about me… but I can't rip out thoughts, or can I?"
"I-It was a joke! I would never touch an unattractive little brat like you!"
Draco highly doubted that. Despite Flint having zero interest in such an undeveloped girl, he would still wish to humiliate her. And Degurechaff knew that.
"Now, what should I do to you?"
Flint was so scared that his overgrown teeth were clacking.
"Hum? Ah! I have a great idea! We are really gonna have some fun together after all. Only not quite the way you wished…"
Draco had a new question constantly in his mind. Which was louder? Flint's screams or Degurechaff's laughter?
"This class wasn't supposed to be so boring!" Harry Potter thought.
After the embarrassment with the pixies, Lockhart decided to have a less dangerous approach. He now only asked his students to read his books and tell at the end of class which part made him look more 'dazzling'.
Knowing the self-absorbed sod, this wasn't that unexpected, what really caught Harry out of guard was Tanya asking to read with him since she didn't have a single one of Lockhart's books.
"What about the books he gave to you?"
"Sold them all the very same day. They were worth some good cash and also opened space in my bag for more didactic material. Like 'this' book." The girl immediately put in front of him a book about fighting trolls.
"Aren't we supposed to read 'Travels with Trolls'?"
"Do you want to read a silly made-up old wives' tale or learn something for a change?"
"Learn…?"
"Then believe someone who actually killed a troll, this book is way better."
"Oh, well…" Harry was already bored with those rubbish books anyway.
And thus, it became a routine in all of his DADA lessons to read a book together with Tanya, it eventually became his favorite subject. Lockhart even tried to protest a few times, but they couldn't care less.
However, so much he was focused on enjoying his time with Tanya- correction, so much he was focused on studying, that he failed to notice in time how much attention they were drawing.
And after the incident with Justin Finch-Fletchley, it became impossible to ignore all the stares and whispers. Not to mention the constant giggling of a certain bush haired friend of theirs!
"Just because I don't want Tanya to go out with other boys, it doesn't mean that I am her boyfriend!" Of course, try to explain that to the rest of the school.
The weirdest part was that Tanya didn't seem to realize what was happening until Harry finally gathered enough courage to tell her.
"Oh? Is that so? Don't let it bother you, it's fine as long as we both know how we feel." Was her answer. And by the warm smile she gave him, Harry wondered for the umpteenth time if Hermione wasn't really right.
"Well,the bright side is that no one will hit on her anymore." This would prove untrue after Marcus Flint tried to flirt with her. At the time, he didn't understand what he meant by 'fun', but from what he could get from Ron's explanation, the older boy wished to snog her!
"At least in his case, she was pretty clear she had no interest!"
Actually, with the way she demonstrated her 'lack of interest', it was a wonder how she didn't get expelled! It was said that Snape had the shock of his life when he saw that the boy was completely… toothless! Fortunately, madam Ponfrey was able to regrow his teeth back (this time a bit smaller) with the use of a variation of Skele-Gro despite spending an agonizing night.
Shortly after, he announced his retirement from the Slytherin team, alleging his wish for a 'less exciting' life and needing to focus on his studies before he ended repeating a year.
And those were not the only changes. The next DADA lesson, Harry was pleasantly surprised that no one was teasing him anymore. But that turned into chagrin as he noticed that instead, he was receiving nervous stares.
It was only after Wood and his team enthusiastically thanked HIM for getting rid of Flint that he understood. Harry's reputation placed him as the culprit of the incident! After all, who would you believe attacked Flint? A small and adorable looking young girl, or the boy-who-lived, slayer of trolls and defeater of you-know-who? The incident with Justin also helped people come to this conclusion: Harry took Tanya's place and defeated Flint, then tortured him for offending his 'girlfriend'!
And now, Slytherin lost its captain, a strong and experienced player. While Harry's classmates were too afraid to make fun of his 'relationship' with Tanya!
"Aff!By the amount of people covering their mouths in my presence, I reckon only Fred and George are actually just joking."
For a time, Harry was curious about what Tanya did with Flint's overgrown teeth, but later, rumors reached him that all the most infamous thugs of the school had been 'presented' with one as a clear message about who could be next.
Harry wondered why she'd go to such lengths when he discovered that Luna's dorm mates also received a tooth each. It becomes very evident why she did all of this. First it was to protect Hermione's honor, and second, to save Luna from bullying.
"And I was thinking Tanya didn't like Luna. She seemed genuinely annoyed with her!Could she be too shy to express her feelings?" And if she was hiding this, what else could she be hiding from him?
Nonetheless, Harry was proud of Tanya, just as she did with him, the girl found a person that desperately needed a friend and stood up for her. Shyness may get in the way of showing her true emotions, but with actions she demonstrated the will to protect her precious friends.
Eventually, Luna's dorm mates began to open up to her. And Harry caught sight of them talking friendly on many occasions.
However, Luna, in all her joy for having new friends, seemed to forget about her old one. Harry even saw Tanya covering her mouth to hold back a sob after watching from afar the five Ravenclaws talking and laughing.
Hermione mentioned that they became so close that sometimes they would even sleep together and now she must be feeling abandoned!
If this summer taught Harry anything, it is the pain of finding oneself alone again after making friends. And that was what convinced him to tell the truth only to Luna.
The Ravenclaw girl was so touched that she burst into tears and promised Harry to ALWAYS remain Tanya's loyal friend.
The next morning, the boy smiled fondly seeing both girls emerging from the girl's dorm together. The irritated look on Tanya's face could no longer deceive him from the sheer joy she was certainly feeling!
"Am I ever going to the Hallowe'en feast?!" This was the second year Tanya didn't get to enjoy a single sweet of the school banquet. And why? Because Harry Potter had to take her to a stupid ghost party!
"Well, at least Luna didn't hear where I was going." Thinking about the Lovegood girl brought back to mind her newest failure.
The initial idea of that duel was to take down the meanest thug of Hogwarts and let Harry take the responsibility, hinting he was cleaning the school of all bullies.
After all, if the 'heroic' Harry Potter (as her own 'marketing campaign' turned him into) is watching over the weak, anyone will think twice before messing with Luna.
And despite Flint infuriating her so much that she was forced to pluck out his teeth, the plan was flawless! Since 'Harry' threatened all bullies of the school, Luna wouldn't learn that it was all for her sake and neither feel any exaggerated sense of obligation towards Tanya.
The little girl had to cover her own mouth tightly to not let out a victory cry when she saw Luna and the first year Ravenclaws chatting merrily! Yes! It was her greatest victory after coming to this school! Until the next morning when she found Luna once again sleeping next to her…
"Thank you, Tanya! Oh! To think you would go that far for me!"
"She found out?! How?" She left Flint and Malfoy so afraid that they'd rather risk expulsion than blurt. And Harry wasn't so blind to not see how bothersome Luna was! But somehow, she found out what Tanya did and became even more attached to her!
"Uh-huh. Another damn failure!"
"I still don't get it. Why would anyone want to celebrate the day they died?" Ron Weasley brought her back from her musings.
"I agree, I remember both my own 'deathdays' and they were awful!" And the thought of having anything in common with ghosts only made it more disgusting.
"Now that I think back, there were no ghosts in that world. Could this be related to its scarce flow of natural mana? Or maybe the ghosts there were more careful to not be seen?"
Sometimes, she still speculates how that world turned out after she left. Did her last message reach anyone? And if it did, what happened? Tanya occasionally allowed herself to dream that her countrymen burned the entire of the Russy federation to the ground and communism is now a story people tell to scare children. Of course, there was the chance that the Empire followed its German counterpart and became fascist.
"Ah, well, who cares? It's not like I am going back there anyway."
And speaking of fascism, Tanya wondered where Voldemort was now. Could he be among these ghosts? This was turning into a motive for constant concern since the year began, Voldemort appearing out of nowhere to kill Harry.
"Another matter to solve, a way to kill or at least damage a ghost." This thought was what ultimately convinced her to attend this party, maybe with so many around, she would find a clue.
Tanya had already researched those so called spirits and non-beings. There was even an entire chapter dedicated to them in her essay. But no matter how much she looked into it, she never found a single report of a ghost ever dying. The closest she found about a possible death was that from time to time they disappear without leaving any trace.
"In movies, a ghost passes on when they settle their unfinished business. They reach 'nirvana'and go to… God?" A disturbing thought came to her mind.
Perhaps ghosts leveled up after they accumulated the right amount of knowledge and became so powerful that they start having delusions of grandeur!
"I once joked to Ron that Being X wasa poltergeist. Could I have guessedthe truth?!"
"Look food!" Tanya musings were once again interrupted by Ron.
She looked in the same direction of the boy's gaze and indeed there was food, only it was rotten.
"Why they need that?" Tanya asked as she saw ghosts walking through the putrid meal.
"Can you taste it if you walk through it?" She heard Harry ask one of the ghosts.
"Eh?"
"I expect they've let it rot to give a stronger flavor." Hermione suggested.
"…!" Inside Tanya's head, her gears started to turn towards a new idea.
"If ghosts can taste… this means there are ways for outside forces to influence them!"
Being so deep in these thoughts, she didn't even see Harry and his friends interacting with Peeves and Myrtle.
"Now… the food is rotten… like it's dead…" Tanya felt like she was almost getting there.
"AH! A 'dead' spell, magic in the same 'category' as their own mana! It is worth a shot- Huh?" Only now Tanya realized that Harry, Ron and Hermione left at some moment.
"Now, where is that troublemaker?" It was a rhetoric question, Tanya easily 'sensed' the boy and two other signatures running to-
"!" Tanya shivered, the hairs at the back of her neck standing.
"W-what- WHAT IS THAT?!" She saw Harry's mana sign running towards a strange signature! It wasn't human and on top of all, it emitted an intense and deadly hostility!
"FUCK! HE DID IT AGAIN!" Tanya flew as fast as she could in the hope of reaching the boy in time. Once AGAIN, Harry Potter was quite literally running towards-
"Huh?! It's gone?" Even with the source of danger gone, Tanya kept her pace, not wishing to leave Harry's well being to chance. When she finally found the three kids, she ran straight to the boy.
"Harry! You okay? I look away for a moment and-"
She was completely ignored as they stared at a wall. On it, a message in bloody letters.
'THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.'
It was the night after the mysterious painting was drawn in that corridor wall. Hogwarts' residents were tense, worrying about who could've done something so cruel and evil to use dark magic against an innocent cat. The teachers tried to reassure there was no danger but they were wrong, a deadly predator was hunting tonight.
The predator looked everywhere for prey, between the numerous inhabitants of the castle and yet, no one matched the criteria. No, it couldn't be anyone, they had to be of a 'particular trait'. There were many of them but as if they could guess there was a hunter- no, a personal monster lurking around, they were hiding.
Right now, 'the monster' was searching the lower levels, just yesterday it was full of them in that stupid party but now- Prey! It finally came into view! It was floating just in the middle of a deserted hall! What a perfect opportunity!
Very slowly and silently the hunter approached, very carefully… and when the 'victim' was finally in range, she revealed herself.
"Hello."
"Hummmmm? Wandering so late, my ickle tiny little lass? Up to no good?" Peeves the poltergeist asked, unaware of the grave danger he was facing.
"To tell the truth, I am looking for ghosts but you don't look too different from them."
"Ohhhh! Tiny Missy, you hurt my feelings! I am nothing like those boring, weeping, lamenting whitey sheets!"
He then made a pose as if to introduce himself.
"I am 'a' Peeves the poltergeist, the funny, most fun, funniest trickster this school, the world and the moon ever saw!"
"Trickster? You mean, like Loki and Hermes from the mythologies? I am curious, could their story be based on poltergeists posing as gods? What about you? Have you ever introduced yourself as 'god' to people?"
"Hohohoh! What a wondrous idea! I am up for new stuff- Wait! Oh no, I think I did this prank last year! Or was it last century? Maybe both?! Okay, you caught me! I am a naughty playful GOD of the playful naughty!" He finished laughing hard.
"I see. Thank you for making it so easy for me."
"Me? I never make easy to any-" These became Peeves' last words as he was blown to bits by a powerful blast. While each piece slowly faded into nothing and his vision blackened, the last image he saw was of a young little girl with a scary smirk in her face.
That night, after their interrogation in Lockhart's room, Harry told Tanya he heard a voice saying it was going to kill. He thought she would doubt him like Ron and Hermione. However, she confirmed also feeling a deadly presence in that corridor.
Harry felt a mix of relief and apprehension. He may not be a nutter, but this meant that there was definitely a killer out there.
As the days passed, Harry saw little of his two female friends, Hermione had been reading more than ever. And Tanya, she only mentioned doing some 'experiments'. Even Luna was clueless about where she was or what she was doing.
One afternoon, something unusual happened.
"P-please! I am sorry, don't hurt me!" Justin Finch-Fletchley said to Harry as they faced each other in the hallway.
The Hufflepuff had been afraid of him after their little episode. But now, he reacted like Harry was about to murder him!
Then, Hermione revealed she had been searching about this chamber of secrets without any luck. Fortunately, Tanya lent a book explaining about the legend of Slytherin's heir.
"Is that what is up with Justin? He thinks I am Slytherin's heir?!" This thought unsettled Harry. And it was why he was making his own investigation at the corridor with the painting, taking advantage that no one was close by.
"But how did Tanya even find space in her bags to bring this book?" Hermione pondered, holding Tanya's copy of 'Hogwarts: A History'.
"Already told you, she sold all of Lockhart's books!" This kind of frustrated Harry. He technically was the one who paid for them by posing for pictures with the lazy sod!
"At least one girl is not drooling over that tosser!" Ron said, indirectly berating Hermione.
Although, instead of getting angry, the girl giggled. Harry could guess what she was about to talk about.
"Oh! Tanya is more sly than I ever gave her credit for!"
"What are you talking about? She only wanted some easy money."
"Yes! And now she has to share Harry's…"
"Why are you looking at me like that? Is it so weird that we share a book she doesn't have?"
"Don't you see? She did this to have an excuse to sit very close to you during class!"
"Yeah, I know! She wants to teach me properly about defense-"
"You are such a child! Can't you see it is just an excuse to be with you?"
Harry couldn't answer back. This actually made much sense.
"Are we going to investigate or talk about Harry and Tanya's love story?" Ron complained.
"L-love story?! How many times I have to- Ahhhh! Know what? I give up trying to tell you two the truth!"
"Please, we saw how furious you were with Finch-Fletchley."
"I just don't wanna share her with another!"
"It's funny how I don't see you act like that when she is with me or Luna."
"And you also go all bonkers when she is talking with me."
"Do I? S-sorry about that."
"No, it's okay, you can go bonkers, just don't take out my teeth." Ron covered his mouth to illustrate his point.
Harry grimaced remembering Flint's episode.
"I should have told them the truth!" As a matter of fact, he intended to do so, but somehow, they already heard the story and reached their own conclusions.
"I will repeat again Harry, make your claim before someone else comes along…"
"Tanya did say that Justin was handsome! Does this mean she was going to say yes?!" Justin wasn't good enough for her! And neither was Flint, however…
"M-maybe, before a nice boy asks her, I-I should-"
"… but never mind. She will wait for you."
"What?"
"Didn't you say she could give up on me for a better 'husband material'?"
"No, it's never going to happen. Her selling professor Lockhart's books was, in some way, a form of metaphor."
"Huh?"
"Tanya sold the books to show that even someone as wonderful as professor Lockhart could never take your place in her heart! And like Ron so crudely remarked, she won't even give him a second look."
"Is that so?" Harry took Lockhart as nothing besides a clumsy oaf. Could it be just him and Ron who thought like that? Maybe he was actually the 'brave chap' everyone else thought of him and Tanya still placed Harry in a higher place!
"I was utterly wrong. She didn't fall for professor Lockhart, meaning it's true love!"
Harry blushed deep red, again he couldn't find any argument to rebuke it.
"Answer this: When you were jealous of Justin, was she annoyed or happy?"
"She was happy."
"See? That proves-"
"Wahhh!"
Ron's yell broke their talk. The redhead got scared with a bunch of spiders seemingly fleeing the castle together. They didn't know yet if this was a clue, but it was a strange behavior indeed.
Next, they went into the 'haunted' bathroom to ask Moaning Myrtle about the water on the floor that night.
"GO AWAY!" They heard the ghost scream the instant they got in.
"Myrtle! It's me, Hermione. Don't you remember me?"
"S-sorry, I thought it was that monster!"
The three kids blinked at the same time.
"You saw the monster?!" Hermione asked, astonished.
"F-for days… s-she comes… t-to hurt me…" The ghost said between sobs.
"She upsets you?" With this question, the ghost girl had a sudden shift of humor.
"No! She hurts me! She even killed one of us already!" She said very irritated.
Hearing this Hermione sighed.
"Myrtle, you are a ghost, by definition it's impossible to kill or hurt you."
"Oh, really? THEN HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THIS?!" Moaning Myrtle raised her skirt to show that her legs from the knees down were missing.
"W-WHAT?! B-but how is that possible?!" Hermione looked very perplexed by this sight.
"She said that back in her home, ghosts don't have legs."
"Err… Myrtle. You said it was a 'she'. So it's a female monster?" Harry couldn't tell what, but something was bothering him.
"She is- Oh, no! She is coming! I can hear her coming!" Myrtle yelled and went through one of the stalls.
The three turned their attention to the door and heard footsteps slowly approaching the bathroom from the corridor. They paled, realizing their only exit was blocked.
"WHAT DO WE DO NOW?" Harry felt his heart accelerating.
He saw Ron pointing to the stalls, clearly meaning they should hide.
Hermione just shook her head and pulled out her wand. She knew their only hope of survival would be to fight and pray that someone hears the commotion.
The three children positioned themselves in front of the door, ready to hex anything that passed through it.
The footsteps stopped, the knob slowly turned.
"Any moment now…"
The door opened and someone entered.
"Eh?"
"Ah!"
"T-Tanya?!"
Tanya Degurechaff entered the bathroom, a surprised look seeing not only Hermione, but Harry and Ron too.
"Huh? What are you doing here? This is a girl's bathroom!"
Relief washed through them.
"We thought you were the monster." Harry explained they were looking for any clue about what happened that night.
"Hold on! You three are looking for trouble AGAIN?!" Tanya scowled.
"W-well-"
"Listen! Leave this to the teachers, remember what McGonagal told us. We are children and they are the ones supposed to protect us!"
"But some people are already thinking I am Slytherin's heir!"
"And sneaking around the scene of the crime is going to help you how?"
"If we find the monster, it may prove my innocence. Myrtle said she saw it. Right, Myrtle?"
"Ohhhh! Please help me!" For some reason Myrtle was still upset.
"Moaning Myrtle is in there? I see. Hurry! Come out so we can proceed with today's experiment."
Myrtle came out of the stall looking at Harry and his friends with a look that pleaded for help.
"Huh? Why is she so afraid?"
"Let me see your legs." Tanya demanded.
Again Myrtle showed her cut off legs.
"Hum… It already grew back to the knees… Okay. Today we will try one of your arms."
Very hesitantly, Myrtle raised her left arm.
Harry, Hermione and Ron were confused by what was taking place.
"Tanya what are you-"
"Shush! I am busy now!"
She took her white wand and cast against Myrtle arm what seemed like a cutting spell. As it was expected, the shot just went through her arm and hit the ceiling.
Tanya immediately took a small notebook and wrote down on it, next, she did the same spell over and over again, with the same result.
At this point, Hermione got tired of just watching.
"Tanya, you know it's impossible to hit a ghost, right?"
"Says who?" Tanya traded her white wand for her red.
"It's common sense-" Tanya fired another cutting spell and they all thought it would again pass her by. It was an astonishing surprise when her hand fell and vanished like smoke.
"ARGHHHH! MY HAND! YOU CUT MY HAND OFF!"
The three kids were agape.
"It seems that Myrtle's 'monster' was really Tanya after all!" Harry thought, not really that surprised.
"How?! That should be physically impossible!" Hermione sounded like she saw a ghost.
"Did I just hear a witch talk about physics?"
Tanya told how she had this idea during Nick's death party. If ghosts could taste food, if they felt enjoyment, does this mean they also could feel discomfort? Pain?
"I mentioned this in my essay. I believe ghosts are not actually people who died, just the imprint of mana left during a wizard or witch's death. Their will to live is so strong they accidentally cast a last spell to create an ethereal copy of themselves, this is why there are no muggle ghosts."
"That would make them 'amortal'. They shouldn't be able to die since they were never alive in the first place." Hermione offered this counter-argument.
"They are basically living spells, and a spell can be canceled."
Hermione looked like she was still skeptical.
"Hermione, think! With so many amortal beings, some capable of even reproducing, the world would be full of them by now."
Tanya kept saying things that Harry couldn't fully comprehend. But from what he could get, she theorized that all living beings have a 'mana core' between their soul and physical body. This ethereal organ acts as the essence of life, and also as the source of individual magic. Also, upon the death of the wizard or witch, it creates a ghost under certain conditions.
This offers an explanation about another mystery of the magical world: why someone hit by the killing curse never leaves a ghost? Because it destroys this core. That is also why Tanya was left so drained when it hit her shield, this curse aims at mana itself.
Both Harry and Ron shared a nonplussed expression.
"Amazing!" However, the older girl was finally convinced of what she was seeing and also pretty happy to learn something new.
"I am still in the experimenting stages. So far, I can cause damage only with this blood thirst 'devil of the Rhine' wand."
"That explains your earlier attempts. You are trying to learn the right 'frequency' by trial and error!"
Tanya nodded her head.
"Unless I blow them to smithereens, they can recover missing parts in a few days at most. Myrtle had no legs yesterday, and today it has regrown to her knees. Tomorrow, she will have her feet back."
"Do you think she would 'die' if you cut off her head?"
"Perhaps, but don't forget about Sir Nicholas and the other decapitated ghosts."
"Well, this is all very interesting but what is the point? A-are you planning to clean the castle of ghosts?!" Ron actually asked exactly what was in Harry's mind. They knew how much Tanya despised ghosts.
"As a matter of fact, I am doing this for Harry."
"Me?! But I have nothing against ghosts! I actually like them!"
Tanya groaned.
"Harry! Have you forgotten about Voldemort's current state?"
"That's right! He is halfway a ghost now! If Tanya can kill a ghost, she can kill Voldemort! All this time she was looking for a way to defeat him! In order to protect me…"
Harry felt again his heart warm up with this little girl. Once more, Tanya was doing the impossible for him.
"Myrtle said you already killed one of her own. Can't this give you trouble? This 'experiments' could be seem as torture, you know!"
"I already looked into it. There are absolutely no rules or laws protecting ghosts. Probably because no one ever thought they could be harmed."
"Isn't it a little cruel with Myrtle?" Hermione asked, feeling sorry for the ghost.
"Huh? What are you talking about? I am not forcing her to do this."
"Tanya, she is very scared and even asked for help!"
"Because that is our agreement. I have a ghost available for my experiments and she has a good excuse to whine."
"Eh?"
The three checked out the ghost.
"Ohhhh! Sob, sob… Poor moaning Myrtle, she can't rest in peace, someone is still trying to kill her… and those insensitive kids won't do anything to help… SOB, SOB!"
"That is so like her…" Hermione grumbled.
Ron snorted.
"Yup! She is a drama queen alright- Wait! Who was the ghost you killed?"
"They are not considered living beings, so I technically didn't kill anybody."
Ron suddenly facepalmed himself.
"Ron?"
"Fred and George were commenting. No one saw Peeves in a while."
Tanya flinched, as if being caught doing something bad.
"T-to be fair, I didn't want to destroy him. It was my first attempt and I never thought it could work so well! Not that I regret it anyway."
Ron took a heavy breath.
"He could be a jerk at times, but he didn't deserve to end this way! And neither did the pixies! Or dad's car! Or Olliwander's shop! Or the gnomes!"
Ron seemed like he was keeping all of this inside for a long time, and yet, Tanya wasn't amused.
"Funny how you didn't mention the whomping tree that almost crushed you."
"Now that I think back, you did almost all of this for me!" Harry couldn't avoid beaming at her. He felt like he was the most fortunate person in the world for having-
Ron and Hermione were now glaring hard at HIM.
"H-hey! It's not like I asked her to do all of this stuff!"
"We will break fifty rules! And after I promised Tanya I would behave."
Harry returned to Gryffindor common room with a heavy heart remembering his earlier talk with Hermione. To find proof Malfoy was behind the chamber of secrets, they would use polyjuice potion to disguise themselves as Slytherins.
Besides the fact it would be very hard to make the potion, Harry would be hiding things from Tanya again.
Like last time, Ron and Hermione agreed that she would try to stop them, fearing this could cause trouble to Snape.
"I really don't want to lie to her. Maybe it's better if we don't see each other for a while. It would be hard to-" Just as Harry entered the common room, he saw Tanya sleeping on a sofa using Luna's lap as a pillow.
"Hi Harry!" Luna said cheerfully, but careful to not awaken the little girl.
"Hello Luna." No Gryffindor thought it strange anymore to find the first year Ravenclaw inside their house.
"I am still curious about how she always finds out the password."
"The poor thing was already asleep when I got here. Maybe because she'd been reading this a lot." Luna pointed to a notebook in the arm of the couch.
He felt a mix of tenderness and guilty realizing it were her notes about the experiments with ghosts.
"She is always doing so much for me. And here I am, about to do things behind her back!"
Slowly, he got down to his knees and kissed her forehead. Exactly like when he first told he loved her. Maybe it would be better to tell her the truth. Only, what if she wanted to stop them? This monster was supposed to kill muggle-borns! He had to find the truth fast, otherwise she could be in danger again.
"This time, I will protect you." He finally made up his mind.
"Oh! So bold! The rumors were true!" Harry heard Luna say while giggling.
"Huh?!"
"Tanya would be happy to snog you any time. You don't need to do it when she is sleeping!"
"What?!" It seemed like this girl mistook the place he kissed Tanya.
"But don't worry, we'll keep secret…"
"I didn't- Wait. Did you say 'we'?"
"… right Ginny?"
"!" Harry turned around to find Ginny Weasley gaping at him with eyes wide open.
"W-wait! Ginny! Let me explain-"
But the girl had already run away.
"Blimey! What now?"
"Harry! You are not cheating on Tanya with Ginny, are you?!" Luna asked humorlessly.
AN: This chapter is dedicated to the lovingly memory of Peeves the poltergeist. May Being X receive him in his house as he rest in pieces.
I am not very happy with this chapter. As always, if you guys find any eye-catching mistake, please let me know.
It came to my mind only when I was writing Nick's deathday party that Tanya also had not one but two deathdays.
I know that in the Harry Potter original story, ghosts, poltergeists and dementors can't die. But then I couldn't stop thinking how absurd this concept is. Even if ghosts and poltergeists are rare, at some moment the world would be full of them. And then there is dementors, it is mentioned that they are able to reproduce!
And just to make sure, Being X is not a former ghost or poltergeist. This is just Tanya wishful thinking that he is not god.
Abut Tanya saying to Myrtle that ghosts don't have legs in Japan, that is how the legend goes in there. In stories, people even look at the legs to see if they are seeing a ghost.
Next chapter: Luna witnesses firsthand the mating call of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack…? Wait… Did I write this right? And the start of 'princess' Tanya legend… maybe.
Reviews:
Lubber: Thank you very much for pointing my typo. Please keep helping me in the future.
Sandmanwake: I also think the whomping willow would make good wand wood. Who knows…? Maybe I will use this idea in the future…
Ocansino: Your first two questions were answered in this chapter. Now about Tanya and Draco, sorry, not going to happen. I originally thought of making Draco became a love rival for Harry, but disregarded it almost immediately. Draco is just too coward for that and he knows that Tanya would be the dominant in their relationship.
Wedgegeck: You can bet she won't. Who knows, maybe she will just one day awaken already married to Harry!
Enkidu Uruk: I think you are mistaken, Luna saw the Wrackspurts. I think you are refering to Thestrals. Originally, in the beginning of this year, Tanya was supposed to see the thestrals, but I gave up the idea because Tanya was too busy saving Harry and Ron from the whomping willow. She just had no moment where she leisurely board a carriage pulled by them. So far, I don't know if I will ever use them in this story.
RedOuroboros; Thank you.
EricFreak: I also can't wait to write the moment she finally realizes just how much she 'seduced' Harry.
DeathAdder47117: Thank you, your pokemon reference was not lost to me. I really wish that I could add more Snape, he is still my favorite character in Harry Potter. Hope you liked Peeves explosion in this chapter. Can people guess who or what is next?
guest: Don't worry, I add a new chapter every two weeks, except when I am putting together a new arc, I take some time to research.