As I'm uploading this chapter on 7/31, Happy Birthday Harry James Potter!
This chapter was certainly way less stressful to write than the previous (which I have since proofread and edited further, catching my mistakes later on). I've gotten out of my writer's block for this particular fic, thankfully.
As always, I only claim my OC. Let's get into it.
Hermione was in the hospital wing for several weeks. The rumor mill ran for the entirety of her disappearance when the rest of the school arrived back from their Christmas holidays. Everyone assumed she was attacked, each story more gruesome than the next. So many of their peers filed past the hospital wing to steal a look that Madam Pomfrey had to place curtains around Hermione's bed. While none of that was pleasant, the four Gryffindors managed to find a silver lining - they had managed to pull off sneaking into the Slytherin common room without drawing suspicion. Pansy swore vengeance on "Peeves" for his multiple pranks on her following Christmas dinner; evidently, the Weasley twins and Lee had done an excellent job imitating the castle's notorious Poltergeist. Beyond that, no fingers were pointed at any of the living inhabitants.
Susanna, Harry, and Ron went to visit Hermione every evening. When the new term started, they brought her each day's homework. Only Susanna was entrusted with the note taking, something neither Harry nor Ron protested as they knew - while she'd appreciate the effort - they'd not be to Hermione's standards.
"If I'd sprouted whiskers, I'd take a break from work." Ron grumbled one evening, tipping a stack of books onto Hermione's bedside table.
"Don't be silly, Ron, I've got to keep up." Hermione responded briskly, smiling warmly at Susanna as she showed her the detailed notes from Charms class. Her spirits had improved greatly over the past week, as all the hair had gone from her face and her eyes were slowly changing back to their usual brown. "I don't suppose you've got any new leads?" She whispered, none of them wanting the ever busy Madam Pomfrey to overhear.
"Nothing." Harry huffed.
"I was so sure it was Malfoy." Ron muttered for what could've been the hundredth time.
Susanna snorted. "I told -"
"Yes, we know." Ron whined.
The red-haired girl hummed. "Just wanted to remind you." Ron stuck his tongue out at her, and she responded with the two-fingered salute.
"Behave." Hermione warned them, despite her attention being on Susanna's carefully written notes.
"What's that?" Harry asked, and Susanna followed his gaze to something gold poking out from under Hermione's pillow.
The girl's face became so red that Susanna worried she'd suddenly caught fire. "Just a get well card." Hermione said, trying to hide it. Ron was too quick for her, though, and he grabbed what ended up being a small scroll. Opening it with a flourish, he cleared his throat.
"'To Miss Granger, wishing you a speedy recovery, from you concerned teacher, Professor Gilderoy Lockart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five- time winner of Witch Weekly's Most-Charming-Smile Award.'"
Hermione and Harry were left wondering if Susanna and Ron were twins separated at birth, they're disgusted expressions identical. "You sleep with that under your pillow?" Ron asked, nose wrinkled.
Susanna shook her head. "Dignity, Hermione, have some bloody dignity."
Hermione was spared from answering when Madam Pomfrey swept over with her evening dose of medicine. With a firmer grip than Ron realized the bushy-haired girl possessed, she snatched the golden scroll and shoved it back under her pillow, pouting.
"Is Lockhart the smarmiest bloke you've ever met, or what?" Ron asked as they headed to the Gryffindor Tower.
"At least he isn't Snape." Harry pointed out. "He's given us so much homework, we'll be in our sixth year before we finish it." He then turned to his cousin, a pleading expression on his face.
Susanna snorted. "Like I'd stop helping you, now. Either of you." She reassured Ron, who smiled back at her with relief.
"Good, because I've got no clue how many rat tails I need to add to the Hair-Raising Potion."
Before Susanna could answer, an angry outburst from the floor above them reached their ears. "That's Filch." Harry told them, and the three Gryffindors ran up the stairs to listen in, out of sight.
"You don't think someone else's been attacked?" Ron asked, and Susanna shivered.
Filch grew more hysterical. "- even more work for me! Mopping all night, like I haven't got enough to do! No, this is the final straw, I'm going to Dumbledore -" His footsteps faded the further he stormed down the corridor, away from the hidden students. A door slammed, and they took that as their cue to poke their heads around the corner. Filch had been manning his usual lookout post - they were once again at the spot where Mrs. Norris was attacked. It was hard to miss the reason for the caretaker's agitation.
A great flood of water pooled over half the corridor, still gushing out from under the door of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. With Filch gone - and his shouting with him - Myrtle could be heard wailing inside her usual haunting place.
"Now what's wrong with her?" Ron griped, shaking his head.
Susanna shrugged. "Only one way to find out. Come on." She ushered them towards the bathroom, wincing when the cold water seeped through her shoes and socks. "Disgusting." All three of them ignored the OUT OF ORDER sign, walking inside and flinching when Myrtle's cries shot up an octave. The bathroom was darker than normal, the candles having been extinguished by the water. Still, they were able to find her in her usual toilet.
"What's up, Myrtle?" Harry asked.
"Who's that?" The ghost asked miserably. "Come to throw something else at me?"
They frowned at each other, more than a little confused. "Why would we throw something at you?" Harry asked.
"Don't ask me!" Myrtle roared, emerging from another wave of water, the trio shuffling backwards to avoid being soaked anymore than they already were. "Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it's funny to throw a book at me."
"But it can't hurt you if someone throws a book at you." Harry attempted to reason with the ghost.
Ron nodded beside Susanna. "Harry's right. Wouldn't it just go through you?" Unlike Susanna's cousin, the redheaded boy lacked Harry's gentle tone. His lack of tact caused Myrtle to puff herself up.
"Sure! Let's all throw books at Myrtle, because she can't feel it!" The wailing spirit shrieked. Susanna winced, subtly covering her ears. "Ten points if you can get it through her stomach! Fifty points if it goes through her head! Well, ha, ha, ha! What a lovely game, I don't think!"
"Myrtle, he's sorry. You know boys, they never fail to say the wrong things." Susanna was quick to step forward. The last thing they needed was to draw attention to themselves. "I'm sorry someone threw a book at you, that was cruel. Do you know who did it?"
Moaning Myrtle sniffed, slightly calmer. "I don't know… I was just sitting in the U-bend, thinking about death, and it fell right through the top of my head." She cried softly. "It's over there, it got washed out." She pointed to one of the sinks. A thin book lay underneath it, soaking wet. Harry - being closer - began moving towards it, but Ron tugged him back by the hood of his cloak.
"Are you crazy? Don't you touch it either, Susanna." It was only because Ron used her first name that Susanna heeded his warning. "It could be dangerous." The boy warned his friends.
"How?" His fellow redhead asked.
"Dangerous?" Harry laughed while Susanna narrowed her eyes in confusion. "Come off it, how could it be dangerous?"
"You'd be surprised." Ron stared apprehensively at the book. "Some of the books the Ministry's confiscated - Dad's told me - there was once that burned your eyes out. And everyone who read Sonnets of a Sorcerer spoke in limericks for the rest of their lives." Susanna winced. "And some old witch in Bath had a book that you could never stop reading! You just had to wander around with your nose in it, trying to do everything one handed. And -"
"Alright, we've got the point." Harry interrupted, then sighed. "But we won't find out unless we look." Exchanging a nervous expression with his cousin, he ducked around Ron and picked the book off the floor. "It's a diary." He held it up to the other two Gryffindors. "Look at the cover, it's fifty years old." The Boy Who Lived pointed to the faded date on the black cover. Susanna and Ron waded closer, moving behind him so they could read from over Harry's shoulder.
"'T.M. Riddle'? Who's that?" Susanna asked as she read the smudged ink on the first page. Harry shrugged, but Ron began snapping.
"Wait, hang on, I know that name… T.M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago!"
The cousins stared at him in amazement. "How on earth d'you know that?" Harry asked.
Ron scowled. "Because Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times during detention. That was the one I burped slugs all over. If you'd wiped slime off a name for an hour, you'd remember it too."
"Fair enough." Susanna patted his back.
Harry continued flicking through the book, which was easier said than done as it required him carefully peeling the wet pages apart. To their collective surprise, it was completely blank. There wasn't the faintest trace of any writing. "He never wrote in it." Harry grumbled, disappointed.
"I wonder why someone wanted to flush it away?" Ron asked rhetorically.
"Look, Suze." Harry turned to the back cover, pointing to the printed store name. "Vauxhall Road, London. He must've been Muggle-born." Susanna hummed.
"At the very least, he was a half-blood." She surmised.
Ron scoffed. "Well, it's not much use. Fifty points if you can get it through Myrtle's nose." He whispered to the cousins. While Susanna quietly berated him, Harry pocketed the diary.
It wasn't until the beginning of February that Hermione was released from the hospital wing. There wasn't a whisker, tail, or piece of fur in sight. On her first evening in the Gryffindor Tower, Harry eagerly passed her Riddle's diary.
"Oooh, it might have hidden powers. Did you look into that, Anna?" Hermione asked the red-haired girl, who shook her head.
"Haven't had the time, between helping these two with their work, doing my own, and taking your notes. Which I was happy to do, so don't feel guilty about it." Susanna was quick to stop Hermione's remorse, then refocused on her star chart, just as miserable as any other she's completed. She was truly awful at astronomy.
"If there are any powers, it's hiding them very well." Ron pointed out. "Maybe it's shy. I don't know why you didn't chuck it, Harry."
"I wish I knew why someone did try to chuck it." Harry replied. "I wouldn't mind knowing how Riddle got an award for special services to Hogwarts, either."
"Could've been anything." Ron reminded them. "Maybe he got thirty O.W.L.s or saved a teacher from the giant squid. Maybe he murdered Myrtle; that would've done everyone a favor…"
Susanna sat up straight, then quickly turned towards her cousin and their friends. By the looks on Hermione's and Harry's faces, they'd all come to the same conclusion.
Fifty years. Fifty years.
"What? I was just joking about Myrtle." Ron threw his hands up in surrender, but Susanna shook her head.
"No, not that. Remember what Draco said?"
Ron scoffed. "He says a lot of things, none of them bear repeating."
"On Christmas." Harry reminded the red-haired boy. "The Chamber of Secrets was opened -"
"Fifty years ago!" Susanna interrupted her cousin. "Sorry, I got excited."
He waved her off while Hermione tapped on the diary. "And this is fifty years old."
"So?" Ron asked, no closer to understanding than before.
"Oh, Ron, wake up." Hermione snapped. Susanna raised her eyebrows in warning, and the other girl huffed. "Sorry. Just… pay attention, alright?" Ron scowled in response, but thankfully neither one engaged in any distracting bickering. "We know the person who opened the Chamber last time was expelled fifty years ago. We know. T.M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago. Well, what if Riddle got his special award for catching the Heir of Slytherin? His diary would probably tell us everything. Where the Chamber is, how to open it, what sort of creature lives in it - the person who's behind the attacks this time wouldn't want that lying around, would they?"
"That's a brilliant theory, Hermione," Ron complimented her, though he looked incredulous, "with just one tiny little flaw. There's nothing written in this diary."
"It could be invisible ink." Susanna suggested, looking at Harry. "Like what my mum and dad gave Dudley a few birthdays ago. We were saying Riddle could've been at least half Muggle."
Hermione quickly took her wand out of her bag and tapped it against the diary three times. "Aparecium!" Nothing happened, but Hermione was not one to shy away from a challenge. Instead, she pulled what looked like a bright red eraser out of her bag. "It's a Revealer. I got it in Diagon Alley." She informed the others, then rubbed it hard on the first blank page. Nothing happened.
"I'm telling you, there's nothing to find in there. Riddle probably got the diary as a gift and couldn't be bothered filling it in." Ron argued, and while Susanna snorted, she didn't quite agree. After all, why would anyone want to flush away an empty diary? The Muggle-born had come to realize that in the wizarding world, everything isn't always as it seems.
As it turned out, she and Harry were on the same page. Rather than tossing the empty diary in the nearest bin, he kept it. With Hermione back, Susanna was more than happy to relinquish researching whatever was petrifying Hogwarts' inhabitants. She focused her energy on curing her cousin's rapidly growing obsession - the redhead often caught him absentmindedly flipping through the empty pages. Most alarmingly, Harry confessed to her that he was certain he'd heard T.M. Riddle's name before Ron's discovery. "It feels like we were friends. You know, when I was little."
"Harry," Susanna insisted, tone full of guilt, "you didn't have friends, because of Dudley and me. That's impossible."
"I know!" Harry groaned. "But that's how I feel."
"Alright. We'll figure this out." She patted his shoulder consolingly, eyeing the diary with rapidly growing mistrust. She dedicated her free time to practicing the Revelio charm, a more complex revealing spell. Aparecium, after all, was a much simpler spell. After three days of writing with invisible ink, Susanna finally managed to successfully perform the charm. Yet Revelio did not work, frustrating the redhead so greatly that Harry had to drag her onto the Quidditch pitch so she could fly off her stress. She resolved to help her cousin research more about Riddle. Joined by an interested Hermione and an unconvinced Ron, Harry and Susanna headed for the trophy room the day after her failed attempt.
Examining Riddle's award proved unfruitful; the burnish gold shield carried no details of why it'd been given to him. "Good thing, too, or it'd be even bigger and I'd still be polishing it." Ron quipped, earning a scoff and eye roll from Hermione.
"Look, he's on this one, too." Susanna announced from her spot at the opposite trophy cabinet. Harry reached her first.
"Medal for Magical Merit… he was a Head Boy, too." Harry nodded over to an old list of Head Boys.
Ron wrinkled his nose in disgust. "He sounds like Percy. Prefect, Head Boy… probably top of every class -"
"You say that like it's a bad thing." Hermione interrupted him in a slightly hurt voice. Susanna glowered at her fellow redhead, who was quick to correct himself.
"Well, I didn't mean it like that. Percy's stuffy, and you're not. Usually. I mean, Percy never would've risked expulsion the way you have." Ron reminded her, cheeks flushed. "Whatever." He spun on his heel and scurried off, shouting about forgetting his bag - the same one whose strap was on his shoulder. He left behind an equally flushed Hermione and the amused cousins.
A week into February, the sun began to shine weakly on Hogwarts once more, lifting the mood inside the castle. There hadn't been another attack since Justin's and Sir Nicholas's. Madam Pomfrey and Professor Sprout were able to report that the Mandrakes had become moody and secretive, which meant they were growing up. "The moment their acne clears up, they'll be ready for repotting again." Susanna and Harry heard Madam Pomfrey telling Filch one afternoon, a warm smile on the Healer's face. "And after that, it won't be long until we're cutting them up and stewing them. You'll have Mrs. Norris back in no time."
Harry suggested to his cousin and their friends that the Heir of Slytherin might have lost his or her nerves. It was getting riskier to open the Chamber of secrets, what with the school so alert. "Maybe the monster - whatever it is - decided to go back into hibernation." He further proposed.
Hermione hummed in response. "Well, I'll have to research whether or not there were any attacks before the ones fifty years ago, to check for a pattern." She glanced at Susanna, who shrugged.
"It's worth a shot."
Ron groaned. "Please don't tell me we're going to be spending more time in the library. I got my fill last year!"
Ernie Macmillan didn't take Harry's optimistic view. He only proved himself to be even more of a git by doubling down on the Boy Who Lived being the perpetrator, insisting he "gave himself away" at the Dueling Club. There were multiple instances where Harry, Ron, and Hermione had to restrain Susanna, much to the deceptively strong girl's displeasure.
Most annoyingly, Lockhart seemed to believe he was the reason the attacks stopped. "I don't think there'll be any more trouble, Minerva." He loudly proclaimed to Professor McGongall while the Gryffindors were lining up for Transfiguration. Susanna pretended to gag, sending Harry and Ron into quiet hysterics while Hermione tried to shush them. "I think the Chamber has been locked for good this time. The culprit must have known it was only a matter of time before I caught him. Rather sensible to stop now, before I came down hard on him!" Lockhart gasped. "You know, what the school needs now is a morale-booster. Wash away the memories of last term! I won't say any more just now, but I think I know just the thing." He tapped his nose before striding off and Susanna shivered, fearing for them all.
Judging by the state of the Great Hall on February fourteenth, she was right to be apprehensive. The walls were covered with large, lurid pink flowers. Annoying heart-shaped confetti fell from the pale blue ceiling, getting tangled in her red curls. By the time she and Harry reached the Gryffindor table, she'd given up on trying to remove them. Ron looked as sickened as the cousins, but Hermione was overcome with giggles.
"What's going on?" Harry asked, wiping confetti off his bacon, Susanna too stunned to speak, silently wishing her eyesight was as poor as her cousin's.
Ron pointed to the teachers' table, disgusted. Lockhart was dressed in the same shade of pink as the flowers decorating the walls. He was the only professor who was smiling; Professor McGongall was clenching her jaw in irritation while Professor Snape looked as though he'd been forced to drink a large beakerful of Skele-Gro. The others were stony-faced.
"Happy Valentine's Day!" Lockhart shouted after successfully waving the Great Hall into silence. "And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards!" Susanna briefly glanced at Hermione, who blushed. "Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all -"
"Really wish he hadn't." Susanna muttered to Ron, who nodded in agreement while glowering at his confetti-covered plate.
"And it doesn't end here!" The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor announced, the cousins and Ron groaning. Lockhart clapped his hands and in marched a dozen surly-looking dwarfs, all of whom were wearing golden wings and carrying harps. "My friendly, card-carrying cupids! They will be roving the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn't stop here! I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion!" Professor Snape glowered at the students, daring them to do so. "And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly old Dog!" Their Charms professor buried his head in his hands.
As soon as they left - fled - the Great Hall, Ron was on Hermione. "Please tell me you weren't one of the forty-six!" He pleaded with her, the bushy-haired girl suddenly becoming too interested in searching her bag for her schedule to respond.
All day long, the dwarfs barged into classrooms to deliver valentines, much to the annoyance of the professors. While many of the students delighted in the attention, more appeared embarrassed by their being singled-out. Susanna was loath to admit that some morality was boosted at the collective irritation towards Lockhart and his Valentine's Day madness. No one was more embarrassed than Harry, however, to receive one - nor was there an angrier witness than his cousin.
As the Gryffindors walked upstairs for Charms, a dwarf caught up with Susanna's cousin. "Oy, you! 'Arry Potter!" The grim-looking dwarf shouted, nearly knocking the red-haired girl into the line of passing first years. Ron was able to catch her, both of them wincing while Hermione gasped in shock as Lockhart's messenger grabbed Harry's bag and tugged him back. "I've got a musical message to deliver to 'Arry Potter in person." He announced gruffly, readying his harp.
"Not here. Let me go!" Harry yelled. Susanna struggled to make her way through the crowd, followed closely by Ron and Hermione, but by the time they reached her cousin and the dwarf, the latter had torn open Harry's bag. His books, wand, parchment, and quill spilled onto the floor. His ink bottle smashed over all of his books, staining them with red ink.
While Harry hurriedly gathered his belongings, Susanna blocked the dwarf from her cousin, dancing around madly to cut him off from her cousin. Still, there was nothing to be done about the holdup the interaction had created in the corridor.
"What's going on here?" Draco drawled from further down the crowded hall. As much as Susanna wanted to respond, she kept her focus on blocking the dwarf.
"What's all this commotion?" Another familiar voice asked, and Percy appeared, shoving his way closer. The dwarf was finally able to evade the momentarily distraction Susanna, pouncing onto her cousin as Harry tried to make a run for it. The Boy Who Lived was seized around his knees and knocked onto the floor.
"Right," the dwarf said, sitting on Harry's ankles. "Here is your singing valentine:
His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,
His hair is as dark as a blackboard.
I wish he was mine, he's really divine,
The hero who conquered the Dark Lord."
Much to her chagrin, Susanna couldn't help but laugh - not necessarily at the song (though it was admittedly quite humorous), but at the situation. She'd seen many strange things since she began attending Hogwarts, and yet nothing would have prepared her for a singing dwarf a quarter of her size pinning her cousin to the ground. Others were laughing, too, though more than likely at the song.
Once the dwarf finished, Harry was able to stand up, attempting to join in the laughter. Susanna shot her cousin an apologetic grin as she and their two best friends walked over to check on him. He waved off her remorse, frowning instead at the state of his bag and robes.
"Off you go, off you go, the bell rang five minutes ago, off to class. Now!" Percy ordered, doing his best to shoo away the younger students. "And you, Malfoy -" The four Gryffindors turned towards the Slytherin in question, the blonde ringleader snatching something up off the ground. Leering, he showed it to his two cronies. Susanna gasped, realizing he'd grabbed Riddle's diary.
"Give that back." Harry demanded before Susanna could say anything.
"Wonder what Potter's written in this?" Draco laughed, having missed the year and initials on the front cover. A sudden hush fell over the onlookers.
"Nothing, because it's mine." Susanna quickly interjected, fighting her way over to the Slytherin. "Give it here!"
Draco smirked and held it high in the air, Crabbe and Goyle snickering behind him. "Come on then, reserve Catcher, get it back yourself!" Susanna faltered as she was reminded for the first time in a year about Nancy from primary school, and the time the redhead stole - and read out loud - the poor girl's diary. "Too scared, Dursley?"
Susanna snarled, snapped back to the present. She jumped up, but the Slytherin twisted at the right moment.
"Enough, both of you!" Percy hollered. "Stop this madness at once! Hand it over to Susanna, Malfoy!"
"When I've had a look." Draco waved it tauntingly.
"As school prefect - Susanna Dursley, we do not hit people!" The prefect bellowed as Susanna punched Draco in the gut, not hard enough to do damage, but enough that the boy doubled-over slightly, groaning.
Harry took advantage of the Slytherin's state. "Expelliarmus!" His voice echoed through the corridor. The diary went shooting out of Draco's hand and into the air, Ron catching it.
"Harry!" Percy scolded the younger Gryffindor. "No magic in the corridors. I'll have to report this, you know!"
While Harry, Ron, and Hermione attempted to cool Percy down, Susanna's attention was diverted by a furious Draco, who stepped closer to her. "Your cousin won't always be around to save you, Dursley. If I find your diary again, nothing will keep me from reading it."
"Try it. I'll just hit you harder." Susanna warned him. "With my fists, or with a spell."
"You're not as tough as you think you are, Mu-"
"Careful." Susanna cut Draco off. "Harry already one-upped you. Don't make me do the same. Something tells me you'd really hate being bested by a filthy Mudblood." She whispered harshly, the Slytherin's eyes widening at her choice of words before he scoffed back, stepping around her.
"I don't think Potter liked your valentine much!" He yelled spitefully at Ginny as she passed him to enter her classroom.
Ginny covered her face, attempting to run into her class. While Ron snarled at the Slytherin bully, Susanna grabbed his little sister and pulled her into an alcove around the corner, away from any eavesdroppers. "Shh. Shh." She murmured as the younger redhead. "I'm sorry. He only said that because of me." Ginny sobbed into her shoulder, Susanna frowning as she rubbed her back and felt the first year's spine. "Ginny, have you been eating?" The girl only continued to cry. "Right, you're in no state to go to class. Let's go back to the common room."
"I-I do-don't want you mi-missing yours!" She wailed. "I'm so-so stu-stupid!"
"Ginny, you're a girl with a crush." Susanna murmured. "I've no idea why you've chosen to have one on my cousin, but that's because he's my cousin." Her words got a small laugh out of the still-sobbing Ginny. "If you'd like, I can lie to him, tell him I sent him the singing valentine as a prank. We'll say you got upset because you're tired, and weren't expecting Draco to try and taunt you about something you didn't do." She offered.
"No-no one would… would believe that." Ginny sniffled.
"They'll believe me." Susanna responded earnestly. "Now, we're going to go back to Gryffindor Tower and relax until lunch. When lessons are over, we'll talk to our professors about the class we missed. Alright?"
"Okay." The girl murmured, and Susanna wiped away her tears. "You're a really good friend, Annie."
Susanna smiled at the nickname. "You can thank Harry for that." She wrapped her arm around the smaller girl's shoulders, steering her towards their common room.
Susanna sat at one of the tables, furiously scribbling as she completed her charms assignment. While Professor Flitwick accepted her apology, he still assigned her to write an essay that was double the length of her classmates' on the uses and limitations of Finite. It was late enough into the evening that the rest of the common room was empty, save for Hades. Her cat had taken over the couch, pawing and rolling around on it.
Sudden footsteps made Susanna pause, and she glanced over to see her cousin, Riddle's diary in his hand. "What's wrong?" She whispered as to not rouse their fellow Gryffindors. "I thought you went to bed hours ago?"
More like fled, Susanna reminded herself, her cousin having grown irritated by Fred and George singing, "His eyes are as green as fresh pickled toad!" Thankfully, everyone had bought her lie, but it did nothing to stop Harry from being teased about his cousin's "prank".
"Couldn't sleep." He whispered back, joining her at the table as he flicked through the blank pages. "I don't understand how the ink didn't stain it." Harry murmured. "Everything else was ruined."
"That can't possibly be a good sign." Susanna argued, deciding to take a break from her paper. She shuffled her chair over so she could sit beside her cousin. Harry sighed, then eyed her abandoned quill and bottle of ink. Susanna frowned as he reached over to grab them. "What are you doing?"
"Is it just the cover that's protected from ink, or do you think the pages are as well? I mean, why didn't Riddle even keep the diary if he couldn't write in it?" Harry asked.
Susanna gaped at him. "Right. Have I ever told you that you're a genius?"
"No. Why?"
"Try it out." Susanna gestured to the open diary, then leaned in. The cousins watched as a blot of ink dropped onto the first page. It shone brightly, then vanished, as though the paper sucked it into the page. They both gasped and grinned at each other, before Harry loaded up Susanna's quill a second time and wrote, "My name is Harry Potter." He quickly shoved the quill at his cousin, who added her own name to the page. The words shone momentarily, then sank in and disappeared without a trace.
Then, finally, something happened. Oozing back out of the page, in Susanna's ink, came words neither cousin had written. "Hello, Harry Potter and Susanna Dursley. My name is Tom Riddle. How did you come by my diary?"
Susanna frowned while her cousin excitedly scribbled a response, even as Tom Riddle's words faded. "Harry, maybe -"
"Shush! Someone tried to flush it down a toilet." Harry spoke as he wrote, Susanna exhaling through her nose before her own curiosity got the better of her.
"Lucky that I recorded my memories in some more lasting way than ink. But I always knew that there would be those who would not want this diary read."
Susanna snatched her quill back. "What do you mean?" She scrawled in response, teeth gritted.
"I mean that this diary holds memories of terrible things. Things that were covered up. Things that happened at Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
There was a mad scramble for the quill, until eventually Harry won. "That's where we are now." Harry wrote quickly while Susanna pouted at the loss. "We're at Hogwarts, and horrible stuff's been happening. Do you know anything about the Chamber of Secrets?"
Riddle's reply came quickly, if not untidier, as though he was in a rush to tell them all he knew. "Of course I know about the Chamber of Secrets. In my day, they told us it was a legend, that it did not exist. But this was a lie. In my fifth year, the Chamber was opened and the monster attacked several students, finally killing one. I caught the person who'd opened the Chamber and he was expelled. But the headmaster, Professor Dippet, ashamed that such a thing had happened at Hogwarts, forbade me to tell the truth. A story was given out that the girl had died in a freak accident. They gave me a nice, shiny, engraved trophy for my trouble and warned me to keep my mouth shut. But I knew it could happen again. The monster lived on, and the one who had the power to release it was not imprisoned."
Harry nearly knocked over the bottle of ink in his excitement, Susanna managing to catch it in time. "It's happening again now. There have been three attacks and no one seems to know who's behind them. Who was it last time?"
"I can show you, if you like," Riddle replied, and Susanna frowned. "You don't have to take my word for it. I can take you inside my memory of the night when I caught him."
Harry, too, seemed bothered by his response. He looked at his cousin. "What do you suppose he means? Have you ever heard of anyone doing something like that?"
"No." Susanna shook her head. "Why does he have to show us? Why not say it?"
"Maybe that's what we have to find out." Harry suggested. "This is only a diary, what's the harm?"
"Seriously? You're asking that after all we've been through?" Susanna asked.
Harry sighed, then nudged his cousins, both reading the fresh words that had appeared on the page. "Let me show you."
Susanna sighed, then nodded. "If you're going to do something incredibly stupid, I'm doing it with you."
"Love you, too, Suze." Harry shot back with a wry grin, then wrote "OK."
The inner binding of the diary began to glow, the light spreading onto the pages and shining brighter than the sun. Susanna closed her eyes to shield them, and grabbed Harry's forearm as she felt herself being tugged into the book, like a dog on a leash. It wasn't until Harry gasped that she opened them, blinking rapidly.
It didn't take longer than a breath for Susanna to recognize the room in which she and Harry were standing, though not the man sitting behind the desk. They were in Professor Dumbledore's office, and yet a stranger sat in his place. He was far more wizened and frail-looking than the headmaster, and bald save for a few wisps of white hair.
"We're sorry," Harry began for them, walking forward, "We didn't mean to butt in -"
The wizard didn't look up from the letter he was reading, only frowning down at the parchment in his hands.
"Are we dismissed, then?" Susanna asked, clearing her throat when the old man still didn't respond.
Harry glanced at his cousin, and they both shrugged. "Sorry we disturbed you. We'll be going now." He spoke again, this time louder.
The old man simply folded the letter and sighed, walking past the cousins to draw the curtains at his window. The sky was ruby-red; it seemed to be sunset. Odd, Susanna thought, it had been pitch-black only moments earlier.
"Where's Fawkes?" Harry whispered, and Susanna frowned when she realized the phoenix was missing.
"Oh." She gasped. "Harry, this isn't Dumbledore's office. Not yet, at least."
Harry paused, his own green orbs growing wide behind his glasses. "This is Riddle's memory. This is Hogwarts -"
"Fifty years ago." Susanna nodded.
Someone knocked on the door, and the cousins turned. "Enter." The old wizard said, voice weak with exhaustion.
A boy no older than sixteen entered, removing his pointed hat - Susanna was momentarily grateful that Hogwarts had done away with that part of the uniform, save for the end of the year feast. The boy was far taller than the cousins, though he and Harry both had jet-black hair. He wore a Slytherin tie and badge.
"Ah, Riddle." The old wizard greeted the man as he returned to his desk.
"You wanted to see me, Professor Dippet?" Riddle asked, looking nervous.
"Sit down." Professor Dippet gestured to the chair on the other side of his desk. "I've been reading the letter you sent me."
"Oh." Riddle sat down and clasped his hands tightly together.
"My dear boy, I cannot possibly let you stay at school over the summer. Surely you want to go home for the holidays?" The headmaster asked kindly.
"No." Riddle shook his head. "I'd much rather stay at Hogwarts than go back to that… to that -"
"You live in a Muggle orphanage during the holidays, I believe." Susanna froze at Professor Dippet's words, her eyes drifting back to Riddle as his face began to redden.
"Yes, sir." The boy muttered.
"You are Muggle-born?"
"Half-blood, sir. Muggle father, witch mother."
"And are both your parents -"
"My mother died just after I was born, sir." Riddle interrupted the old wizard. "They told me at the orphanage she lived just long enough to name me. Tom after my father, Marvolo after my grandfather."
Professor Dippet hummed sympathetically. Susanna was left wondering if there were those in Slytherin with similar stories to Riddle, back in her and Harry's time. "The thing is, Tom," the headmaster sighed, "special arrangements might have been made for you, but in the current circumstances…"
"You mean all these attacks, sir?" At Riddle's question Harry and Susanna instantly moved closer, not wanting to miss anything.
"Precisely." Professor Dippet said. "My dear boy, you must see how foolish it would be of me to allow you to remain at the castle when term ends. Particularly in light of the recent tragedy… the death of that poor girl. You will be safer by far at your orphanage. As a matter of fact, the Ministry of Magic is even now talking about closing the school. We are no nearer locating the - er - source of all this unpleasantness."
Riddle's eyes widened. "Sir, if the person was caught - if it all stopped…"
"What do you mean?" Professor Dippet sat up in his chair. "Riddle, do you mean you know something about these attacks?"
"No, sir." Riddle was quick to respond - too quick. Susanna had heard Harry say "no" the same way several times before, and they always meant "yes".
Professor Dippet appeared to believe Riddle, though, as he sighed in disappointment. "You may go, Tom."
Harry and Susanna hurried after the older boy as he slouched out of the room. They went down the moving spiral staircase and entered the darkened corridor. They stopped when Riddle did, watching the Slytherin as he bit his lip. His forehead furrowed as he thought deeply before spinning on his heel and hurrying off, striding past the cousins. They were quick to follow him, practically sprinting to keep up with Riddle until he reached the entrance hall. It was there that a familiar voice called out to the Slytherin, stopping all three in their tracks.
"What are you doing wandering around this late, Tom?" Professor Dumbledore asked, looking younger - as he should have, seeing as they were fifty years in the past. But that didn't surprise Susanna. What did shock her was his familiarity with Riddle, who Professor Dippet clearly didn't know. In some ways, it reminded her of how the headmaster would speak to her cousin.
"I had to see the headmaster, sir." Riddle answered.
Professor Dumbledore hummed, eyes narrowed as he assessed the boy in front of him. "Well, hurry off to bed. Best not to roam the corridors these days. Not since…" He sighed heavily, then nodded at Riddle. "Goodnight." He strode off, disappearing into the darkened halls.
As soon as he was gone, Riddle headed straight for the steps leading to the dungeons, Harry and Susanna in hot pursuit. To their disappointment, he didn't lead them into a secret tunnel or a hidden passageway, but to the very dungeon in which the cousins' Potions lessons were held. The room was dark, the torches left unlit, and Riddle pushed the door almost closed. The cousins could barely make him out as he watched the passageway through the crack, stock-still as a statue.
Time dragged on, as if Susanna was stuck in one of Professor Binns's classes. In her boredom she left Harry's side to walk around the dark classroom, counting her own footsteps.
"Suze!" Harry called, and Susanna turned towards the door, Harry gesturing wildly as Riddle slowly opened the door. "Someone just walked past!"
The redhead jogged after her cousin, Riddle leading them through the maze that was the Hogwarts dungeons. He stopped suddenly after five minutes, his head turning in the direction of new noises. A door creaked open, and Susanna could barely hear someone else speaking in a hoarse whisper.
"C'mon… gotta get yeh outta here… c'mon now, in the box…"
Riddle jumped around the corner, Harry and Susanna stepping out behind him. All Susanna could see was the outline of a large boy. He was crouched in front of an open door, a box the size of the redhead's bed next to it.
"'Evening, Rubeus." Riddle said sharply.
Susanna and Harry gasped, the former latching onto her cousin in shock. Hagrid slammed the door shut, standing up to face Riddle. "What yer doin' down here, Tom?"
"It's all over." The Slytherin declared, stepping closer to the much larger boy. "I'm going to have to turn you in, Rubeus. They're talking about closing Hogwarts if the attacks don't stop."
"What d'yeh -"
"I don't think you meant to kill anyone, but monsters don't make good pets." Riddle pushed on. Susanna only watched in horror, her free hand covering her mouth. "I suppose you just let it out for exercise and -"
"It never killed no one!" Hagrid shouted back, blocking Riddle from the door. Something behind it rustled and clicked.
Riddle only moved closer, undeterred. "Come on, Rubeus. The dead girl's parents will be here tomorrow. The least Hogwarts can do is make sure the thing that killed their daughter is slaughtered -"
"It wasn't him!" Hagrid roared, his voice echoing. Susanna jumped, shaking her head at Harry when he looked at her, their terrified surprise mutual. "He wouldn'! He never!"
"Stand aside!" Riddle barked, drawing out his wand and saying a spell Susanna was unfamiliar with. It lit the hall, and the door Hagrid was desperately trying to block flew open so forcefully it knocked the large boy into the opposite wall. Out came something that made Harry scream so loudly Susanna feared she'd go deaf. The redhead released her own horrified yelp, tugging her cousin away from the beast that had emerged from the previously closed room.
A spider the size of one of her mother's rose bushes stood in front of them, clicking its razor-sharp pincers. It was low-slung, its black hair bristled in obvious fury. Eight big eyes gleamed back at Riddle, only seeing the Slytherin - Susanna took comfort in that. She'd never been scared of spiders before, but perhaps Ron had the right idea fearing them.
Riddle raised his wand again, but he wasn't quick enough to stop the spider from bowling him over as it scuttled away, disappearing down the corridor. The Slytherin scrambled to his feet and held out his wand, but Hagrid was the one to throw him back down this time, seizing the smaller wizard's wand.
As he yelled at Riddle, the world around Susanna whirled, and she clinged even tighter to her cousin. Once more, she felt as though she was on a leash, being tugged away from the two grappling boys. Moments later she and Harry were spat out of the book, panting heavily as they glanced around their common room. Riddle's diary was on the table, its pages blank.
Once they caught their breath, the cousins looked at each other. "Harry…" Susanna started, then shook her head. "No, it's not… it isn't possible. Riddle was wrong, he would never -"
"It was Hagrid, Suze." Harry cut her off, eyes stuck forlornly on the diary. "Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago."
Susanna joined him in staring at the blank pages, wishing they'd never written to Riddle in the first place.
Notes: Susanna is definitely wrestling with what she knows about Hagrid vs what she saw in the diary. Hopefully I didn't write her too skeptical of Riddle's memory, it's not my intention to immediately have her distrust Voldemort, as that's no fun. I would say she's sympathetic towards Riddle at this point, given what he told Professor Dippet (she and Harry share his dislike of leaving Hogwarts during the summer, for obvious reasons), and leans towards the idea that maybe Hagrid was innocent, and Riddle made a mistake. I think one of the most difficult things she's grappling with is Hagrid being Slytherin's Heir.
Also, let's give it up to Susanna for calling herself a "filthy Mudblood" and shocking Draco into silence.