Ariadne's Thread ⭒ h. potter

Stupefy

Harry nodded, and the two shared a silent moment. Ron allowed only a few beats before deeming it appropriate to cut in. "Alright... if that's done with," he said impatiently. "Can we go now?"

Harry threw the invisibility cloak over his shoulders and Ariadne and Ron joined him on either side, after which Harry enveloped the three of them.

As they walked the castle grounds, Ron spoke again. "Let's move," he urged. "I really need to use the loo."

Harry's head shot up in realization and he paused, causing both Ariadne and Ron to bump painfully into his back. "The loo..." he said slowly. "Aragog said the girl who died last time was found in the bathroom. What if she never left?"

"You don't think..." Ron trailed off, but Ariadne finished for him.

"Moaning Myrtle?"

----------------

"What's McGonagall thinking, scheduling exams for this week?" Ron asked bitterly, words muffled by a mouth full of bread even as he piled more ham sandwiches on his plate. Ariadne looked on with a hint of vague disgust. She could practically hear Hermione scoffing at him from the Hospital Wing.

Even with exams in three days, Ariadne hadn't given them much thought at all, except for studying with Olive in the library. She wasn't overly concerned about them either. Ariadne was a fine student, but long gone were the days when she reveled in bringing home a report card for her mum to post to the fridge. And it certainly wasn't as though the Malfoys would care. Narcissa would show a passing interest, maybe, but nothing worth working herself up over when there was a monster loose in the castle. She did miss trying, sometimes, but she'd do well enough in Transfiguration and Charms. Defence she'd very likely get an O so long as she put Gilderoy Lockhart in every answer, and Potions she was destined for a Troll no matter how well she did in the class. Winging it would more than suffice.

McGonagall, still seated to the right of Dumbledore's now-empty chair, stood up and moved to the center of the High Table. She waited patiently for a moment before clearing her throat, at which the Hall quieted instantaneously.

"Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes began sneaking into one another's pots last week. They're ready for cutting at last. We will be able be able to revive those who have been Petrified, and with them, our hopes of finding who, or what, attacked them. We may be able to end our year with catching the culprit," she announced to an explosion of cheers.

"Malfoy's not looking happy," Harry pointed out, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

Neither's Ginny, Ariadne thought, though mindful of Ron's presence, she said nothing.

As if on cue, Ginny stood up from the end of the table abruptly, where she'd been eating next to Seamus Finnegan in silence. Back ramrod straight, she began to walk towards them stiffly, a nervous look on her face. When she finally arrived, she inched in next to Ron carefully, nearly collapsing when she was finally seated. She remained silent, in spite of Ron's greeting, and she stared at Ariadne meaningfully.

"What's going on?" Ariadne asked, concerned. Ginny opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

"Spit it out," Ron grunted. Harry watched her carefully, but Ginny could not meet his eyes.

"I – I've got to tell you something," Ginny said, eyes darting from Ron to Ariadne.

Harry leaned forward. "Is it about the Chamber, Ginny? Have you seen someone acting oddly?" Ginny startled when Harry said her name, and Ariadne watched as she shoved a book back into her bag. No.

"Ginny, do you – are you–?" But she could not bring herself to ask. Not what she wanted to ask. Doing so would be crossing a line that she could never return from. But she had to, she realized. For Hermione.