{I} t had been a few weeks since the argument I had with Lily. The first few days she was quiet and avoided us like we had the plague. The following days were incredibly annoying, she kept tagging behind Draco and I, and I started to grow paranoid of people standing behind me.
Now, she was spreading rumors that Draco was into her, as if they were living some tragic house-rivals-love-story.
The Draco fan club was outraged by the news, and came to me to solve the issue.
"Lexi! Lily isn't the right one for Draco!"
"Lexi, do something!"
"Lexiiiiiiiiiiiii!"
I, of course, told them to go jump off the astronomy tower in the kindest way possible. To be honest, the rumors were irking me as well, since now I was seen to the Gryffindors as the girl who was keeping Lily and Draco apart. The rest of the school didn't really care, since it was not really any of their business anyway.
Draco and I were walking across the courtyard from practice when Draco committed an unforgivable act.
"Lil-" Draco stuttered, his eyes widening immediately.
"Draco." I crossed my arms, "Were you about to call me Lily?"
He looked down, embarrassed. "It's only cause I've been hearing it non stop. Lily this, Lily that. Can't they just shut up?"
"Hm." I said and walked off without him.
"Lexiiiii," he drawled, following me from a step behind. "Lexiiiiii."
"Go talk to Lily." It was childish, I knew. But, I was so, so sick of hearing Lily's name mentioned that when I heard it from my best friend... I was done.
It was then that we bumped into Harry, who looked relieved to see me. "Lexi! Thank Merlin, we need to talk."
"Potter." Draco frowned, clearly not happy with Harry taking me away. I noticed absentmindedly that Draco said 'Potter' differently when talking to either me or Harry.
With Harry, he sort of spit it out, and always had a dreadful expression on. With me, it was almost like he was a puppy, and the word just automatically sprang out of his mouth when he saw me. The thought made me smile.
"What are you smiling about?" Draco asked, poking my side.
"This new cutie I saw the other day," was my automatic answer.
"Who?" Harry and Draco asked simultaneously, making me laugh.
"Nobody, jeez." I waved bye to Draco as I followed Harry into the hallways.
Draco harrumphed, and looked sulkier than ever.
---
"What?" I screeched, "You made Polyjuice potions because you were suspecting Draco?"
Harry's eyes were filled with guilt, but not regret. "I mean, he is a candidate for the Slytherin Heir."
"You forget Harry." I said coldly, "So am I."
"Well, we did learn something, though." he said looking away in apology.
"Which was?" I harrumphed, crossing my arms and giving Harry the dirtiest look I could muster.
"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened once before."
"What?"
"And we followed the spiders because of what you said about Hagrid, and it turns out they weren't behind the attacks either. That's when we found this diary—" Harry held up a black leather clad book, "And it belonged to someone named Tom Riddle. He said that Hagrid was the one who was behind the murder fifty years ago!"
We were walking briskly through the hall later joined by Weasley, until an announcement was made to return to our common rooms.
We all shared the same knowing look, otherwise known as the 'Ah shit, here we go again' and quickened our pace, hiding behind a corner to eavesdrop on the teachers.
I snickered as Mcgonagall and Snape mocked Lockhart, nudging Harry who slapped my hand away as he was listening intently. The teachers were in the way of what the "heir" wrote next, and I was practically jumping to see what lay on the wall.
"Who was the girl who was taken?" Madame Pomfrey asked, her usual soft features overturned with worry.
"Ginny Weasly."
We froze, and I saw Ron's face turn to one of shock, then despair. It was like someone emptied all emotions from his body, and then pumped him full with fear.
"Ginny..." He repeated with wide eyes, filled with only disbelief. In that moment, I could only feel sympathy for the poor boy. If Harry was taken... I had no idea what I would do.
The professors moved with heavy steps down the hall, and cleared the view to the wall.
What lay on it I would never forget for the rest of my life. My stomach churned, imagining the cold, unmoving body of the bright first year surrounded by unfamiliarity.
"Come on," I whispered, pulling Ron to his feet, and waking him from his trance. I could make out droplets of sweat emerging from the neckline of his robe, and his hands were fidgeting in clock like ticks. We chased after Lockhart in some attempt for help.
"Professor! We have some information for you!" Harry exclaimed, until he noticed that Lockhart looked like a deer in headlights, caught packing. "Are you going somewhere?"
"Um, well yes--"
"You sorry excuse for a human being!" I scoffed. "You're running away with your tail between your legs!"
"Miss Potter!" Lockhart exclaimed, looking insulted. As if looking insulted was going to change the fact that he was abandoning everyone when they needed him.
"What about my sister?" Ron interrupted, "You're the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher! You can't go now!"
I slipped out for a second, and ran to the owlery, finding Draco's owl, Ulysses. "Here, boy!" I called, opening the cage, "Get Draco for me, will you?" It rubbed its head affectionately against my cheek and flew off.
The boys were already in the bathroom, and they were blocking Lockhart from leaving, which almost made me laugh.
"Harry?" Myrtle crooned sweetly, "If you die down there, you're welcome to share my toilet."
Harry looked surprised, replying ever so politely. Sometimes, I wonder who he got it from. Probably our mother.
"Let's go boys!" I said jumping in between them.
I jumped onto my feet as soon as they could reach the floor, pointing my wand at Lockhart immediately.
"How nice of you to join us again, Miss Potter." Lockhart commented dryly.
My expression was just daring him to try something, and he gulped in response. My foot bumped into a translucent layer of something, and I slightly shivered. Every step in this place felt uncomfortably familiar, like a strong sense of déjà vu.
"It looks like a snake," Lockhart said flatly, most likely out of fear.
I rolled my eyes, "No, it's obviously from a lion."
"Bloody hell." Ron said, as always. I was getting strangely fond of that phrase.
"Here," I said, dusting off my robe, "I'll scout ahead first. You guys... make sure that moron doesn't hurt himself or something."
Without waiting for a response, I skipped forward. Ahead of me lay a door, decorated with snakes. I was really in my element here, I laughed to myself.
Salazar must have been really scared when he was putting this in place. Around that time, muggles were murdering wizards and witches, leading witch hunts and all that jazz. I understood his point of view, why he hated muggles, and how that hatred fueled him into doing something like this. But times have changed.
Pareseltongue came to me almost naturally now, and the door opened slowly, the damp, cold air from flowing from inside. What lay inside felt eerily terrifying, yet somehow welcoming? I lowered my wand, and my feet carried me forwards as if they knew where to go.
I jumped as what sounded like a thunderstorm of noise came from behind. "What the hell?" I muttered, holding my wand in front of me as a cloud of dust invaded my lungs.
Harry rushed forwards with a grim look on his face.
"Ron?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
"We got separated."
He entered the chamber, his steps echoing through the room. Breaking into a run, Harry sprinted to where Ginny's body lay, unmoving.
"Ginny! Wake up!" Harry pleaded, as a figure emerged form the shadows.
"She won't." A cold, yet elegant voice spoke up, belonging to what seemed to be a Slytherin— a very good looking Slytherin. He picked up Harry's wand, examining it carefully, "A basilisk won't come unless its called."
"Tom Riddle?" I asked, remembering what Harry told me of the journal.
"We've got to save her, Tom." Harry said desperately, trying to reason with him.
"I can't do that, Harry."
There was something really off about this guy. "Harry." I said carefully, "Get Ginny out of here. Now."
"I can't let you do that." Tom frowned, his brow furrowing, " You see, as little Ginny here grows weaker, I grow stronger."
"It was her." I marveled as it dawned on me, "She opened the Chamber of Secrets."
"Aren't you a smart one?" Tom raised an eyebrow mockingly.
"Yes, yes I am, actually."
Harry looked annoyed at our casual banter when his best friend's sister was dying in his arms.
Tom's expression twisted darker until I grew chills from looking at him. "How is it," he seethed, "That babies, with no extraordinary magic abilities, escaped the greatest dark wizard of all time with nothing more than a scar?" He threateningly stepped closer, making Harry and I take a step back. We learned from personal experience that we usually preferred our personal space.
"What does it matter to you how we escaped?" Harry asked, looking unnerved and clutching Ginny closer.
Tom spelled out his name, Tom Marvelo Riddle in blazing letters, and with a swish of a wand, they reordered themselves to read, I am Lord Voldemort.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me."