An Exquisite Pain

Escape From Hogwarts

Ten minutes later, the four of them were standing in front of the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy on the seventh floor. They had managed to get down to the kitchens to grab some food and come back upstairs unnoticed, but there was a good chance that someone would come around the corner any minute.

"It was right here," Dylan was saying, patting the brick wall. "A door just kind of…opened and Riddle walked in."

"Well, if he doesn't want anyone to follow him, then we're stuck," Danielle muttered. She paced up and down in front of the wall, thinking hard. "Did he use some sort of spell?"

Dylan shook his head.

I need to find Tom Riddle. I need to know where he's going, Danielle thought, frustrated. There had to be a way—

"Look!" Alyssa suddenly cried. Sure enough, the brick was fading away to reveal an ornately carved door.

Everyone stared at Danielle. "I didn't do anything," she stammered. "I just thought about what I needed and it opened…"

"That's wicked!" said Alphard. "I wonder who else knows about this."

"You go first, Clara," Dylan told her. "If Riddle's in there you're the one he's least likely to curse."

"What an honor," Danielle replied sarcastically, but she walked over to the door and pushed it open as the other three backed away.

She'd been expecting a dungeon-like and gloomy chamber, but was instead surprised to see a smaller, cozier room. A bed stood in one corner, with bookshelves covering every available inch of wall space.

"He's not here," Dylan said from behind her. "You can lower your wands, guys."

Danielle stepped further into the room. It was actually rather charming, with a fireplace blazing in a grate she hadn't previously noticed. A table sat in front of the fire, covered with what appeared to be maps.

"Albania?" Alphard asked, coming up behind her. "Why would he be looking at pictures of Albania?"

"No idea," Danielle murmured. She examined the papers more closely. There was a twenty-page essay detailing the complete history of Albania, with matching maps and diagrams. Tom appeared to have drawn arrows and circles around several parts of the map.

"He must have been looking for something," Alphard said.

"The diadem," Danielle said with a jolt of realization. That had to be it. Tom had somehow found out that Ravenclaw's diadem was in Albania and he was going to find it. If what Dumbledore had told her was true, it would be able to heal his curse.

"Care to explain?" Alyssa asked. "Why is he looking for the diadem?"

Danielle sighed. "See, if I told you, he would probably kill me."

"Come off it, Clara. We all know something's not right with Riddle," Dylan said. "It won't matter what you tell us."

She was torn. The others wouldn't trust her if she didn't tell them, and Tom would be furious if she did. Who should she be loyal to now?

"You see," Danielle began after a long pause, "Tom is...ill. Ravenclaw's diadem is rumored to have extraordinary healing powers and I think he thinks that if he can find it, he'll be all right again." It wasn't the entire truth, but it wasn't exactly a lie, either.

Thankfully, this seemed to satisfy the others. "How did he find out it was in Albania, though?" Alphard asked.

Danielle shrugged. "Maybe he read it in one of these books here. It doesn't matter, anyway. We just need to find him, and fast."