November Snow

f o u r

"What is the Chamber of Secrets?" Juliette asked me when we were having lunch.

"You don't know?" I asked. Pardon me, she was a Slytherin.

"Well no, you see I'm not exactly a pure-blood and my father doesn't like questions..." She said quietly.

"Okay, okay, I don't want family stories." I raised my hands up in defeat.

Then, Harry, Ron and Hermione came into the Dining Hall and sat with us at the very end of the Slytherin's table. At lunch, students from different houses sitting together wasn't much of a big deal. We only had to sit with our own house at dinner.

"What are you talking about?" Ron asked.

"Juliette asked me about the Chamber of Secrets." I told them.

"I asked Professor McGonagal in Transfiguration." Hermione said "It's just a legend, I suppose. You should tell her, Nov."

But I must admit, a legend was better than nothing. I was glad I wasn't the one being kept in the dark, that was the perks of having a Slytherin family and a Slytherin professor as a Godfather.

"So, we all know how Hogwarts started." I began "It was founded by the four greatest wizards of the time: Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff and Salazar Slytherin. Running the school, they all worked in harmony, but they had different thoughts on educating young wizards. Salazar Slytherin wished to have more selective students in Hogwarts. He thought that only the ones from all-magic families were capable and had the opportunity to learn magic, or now we call them pure-bloods. But unable to change the mind of the others, he left Hogwarts.

"Before, he built a hidden chamber in the castle, known as the Chamber of Secrets. And when he left he sealed it so that no one could find it, until that time when the true heir returned to the school. The heir only can open the chamber and unleash the terror within it -a monster, as I have heard about- and will get rid of all those who are, in Salazar Slytherin's view, unworthy of learning magic, or now we call Muggle-borns and probably those who are not pure-bloods."

"Professor McGonagal said that the school had searched so many time for it, but they could never find it." Hermione said.

"Only the true heir of Slytherin can find it." I told them.

All around us, other students were talking about the Chamber of Secrets, but they were all tried to deny the fact that it had opened, despite seeing the worried faces of the teachers. I, on the other hand, was sure it had opened and whatever was inside had been roaming around Hogwarts for more than a day now.

"But if there really is a Chamber of Secrets, and it's really been opened, that means..." Harry said.

"The Heir of Slytherin has returned to Hogwarts. But the question is, who is it?" Hermione asked.

"Let's think." Ron said, somewhat being sarcastic "Who do we know who thinks Muggle-borns are scum?"

"If you're talking about him..." Hermione took a glance over Malfoy and his cronies laughing at the other end of the Slytherin table.

"Of course! You heard him!" Ron exclaimed "'You'll be next, Mudbloods'!"

"I heard him." Hermione admitted "But Malfoy? The Heir of Slytherin?"

"Maybe Ron's right, Hermione." Harry said "I mean, look at his family. The whole lot of them have been in Slytherin for centuries."

"If you're thinking that's the explanation, Harry, I think you need a better one to accuse Malfoy." I stopped them "Even though I hate him, I don't think he can be the Heir of Slytherin. He isn't that smart. And if it concerns the bloodline, then I have more reasons to be the Heir. My family is a more ancient Slytherin family."

"True." Ron said "Maybe you are the Heir of Slytherin."

"Shut it, Ron." Hermione swatted his head "If she was the Heir, she wouldn't talk like that."

"Crabbe and Goyle must know." Ron suggested "Maybe we could trick them into telling..."

"No. Even they aren't that thick." Hermione said "But there might be another way. Mind you, it would be difficult. Not to mention we'd be breaking about fifty school rules. And it would be dangerous, very dangerous."

"When do we start?" Harry asked.

"Okay, whatever mad ideas you guys have, I'm not joining." I stood up with Juliette "We first-years don't fancy getting in much trouble."

"Where are you going?" Hermione asked.

"Potions." Juliette said "We shouldn't be late for Snape's subject."

"And also, Harry." I said, having a feeling that I wouldn't have a chance to tell him that later "Good luck with the match tomorrow. Slytherin team sometimes plays dirty."

"Thanks." He smiled.

That night, I left the common room and went for a stroll in the corridor. I knew it was dangerous, but sometimes my rebellious side took over my brain and the next thing I knew, I was outside. The moonlight shone through the windows, shining my way around. Then, I stopped in front of Myrtle's bathroom, hearing her moaning and crying. No wonder no girls wanted to be there.

I pushed the door and went inside. It was pretty much the same as all other girl's bathrooms in the castle, only with a moaning ghost flying around. Moaning Myrtle saw me, and flew towards me, sobbing.

"Are you here to tease me again?" She asked with her high pitched voice.

"No, I don't want to tease anyone, Myrtle." I said softly, hoping I wouldn't offend her "I just couldn't sleep."

"Oh, you want to talk?" She floated.

"How did you die, Myrtle?" I asked.

"I was crying in there." She pointed to where she flew out before "Then I heard someone coming in. I thought it was a man, so I opened the door to tell him to go away. I looked into those big, yellow eyes and the next thing I know, I died."

"Was it fifty years ago?" I asked, and she nodded "Thank you, Myrtle."

She disappeared in one of the toilets, leaving me alone in the bathroom. I went to the sink and washed my cold hands, thinking of getting back to the common room before I got caught and got points taken from Slytherin. Then I heard something moving in the walls.

"Kill..." The voice I hadn't heard since yesterday came back "Let me kill you..."

I froze at the spot, gears clicking in my brain. Myrtle died when she saw it, looking into its eyes, but Mrs.Norris only got petrified. Why? Then I remembered the pool of water oozing all over the floor when it happened to Mrs.Norris, and I suddenly knew what was going on.

I heard shuffling behind my back, and even though my brain screamed not to do it, my body instinctively turned around and my eyes gazed up just to meet a pair of yellow eyes staring down at me. The next thing I knew, everything went black.