CHAPTER THIRTEEN
❛You scared off Ginny!❜
Hogwarts had an eerie feeling to it once Muggle-borns began to get petrified. Hope, Harry, and Ron wandered the corridors later in the night. The floor of the girl's bathroom was flooded with water and cries were heard from Myrtle.
Harry stepped straight into the water, soaking his slippers. "Looks like Myrtle flooded the bathroom."
Hope made a gagging noise. "Gross, toilet water."
As the three Gryffindors walked around to the next stall, the ghost spun around defensively in anger. "Come to throw something at me?"
"Why would I throw something at you?" Harry asked in confusion.
"Do you want me to throw something at you?"
"Hope--"
Myrtle shrugged. "Don't ask me. Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it's funny to throw a book at me!"
"But it can't hurt very much. I mean, it'd just go right through you, wouldn't it?" Ron tried to explain, as if stating the obvious.
The ghost got visibly angry, and slightly hurt. "Oh, sure! Let's all throw books at Myrtle because she can't feel it! Ten points if it goes through her stomach, fifty points if it goes through her head!"
Harry looked intrigued. "Who threw it anyways?"
Hope picked up the soggy, dirty, old book. And looked at Ron. "Fifty points if I can get it through her nose."
The three kids dashed out of the bathroom that the ghost stayed, as she got furious. Once they started to walk, Harry examined the book further.
"It looks like a diary. It's very old."
"Open it." pressured Ron.
Hope looked at the two boys. "Are you idiotic? You found it in a toilet. You don't just open books you find! It could be cursed."
"I'll take my chances." as the boy opened it he began to yell. "Ahh, my eyes! My eyes!"
Ron froze, utterly terrified, but Harry just stopped and smiled. Hope smacked him in the back of the head. But at the end of the corridor, Ginny Weasley stood, terror clear on her face.
"Ginny, I was only joking--"
Before he could finish she sprinted away. "Brilliant, Harry. You scared off Ginny!"
"Whose diary is it anyways?"
"Tom Marvolo Riddle."
Fred and George laid in their dormitory, beds right next to each other. George just stared at the ceiling with his hands on his heart while Fred read a book.
"Georgie, what are you thinking about?" Fred asked, turning over to look at his twin.
"Her."
"Who?"
The older twin looked confused as George talked. "Her. My mind is filled with her. I can't get her out. She's all I think about."
"Once again, who?" questioned Fred, George stayed silent. "Hope, isn't it?"
"How did you know?"
Fred smiled. "I know you, I already knew. You look at her like she's your whole world."
Just then, the door opened to reveal Lee and Hope. Hope walked straight over to George's bed and laid down next to him, her head laid on his chest.
"What's up with you?" asked George looking down at her.
"Your brother is annoying." she mumbled into his chest.
Fred held a hand to his heart. "Hurtful, J. Hurtful."
"Not you, I'm talking about Ronald." Hope said once again.
Lee leaned into Fred. "Aren't they cute?"
"The cutest, Lee."
Henry, a boy from the other side of the room suddenly spoke up. "Uh oh, guys--"
Fred leaped out of bed. "Alfie Lupin, what a pleasure? What is it that you need?"
"I was looking for Hope, but it seems as if I found her." he growled. "I thought I told you Weasley, stay away from my sister."
George looked up. "Lupin, she's tired. Let her lay down."
"No! I will not calm down. She's my sister, Weasley." Alfie yelled at George, but Hope stayed sleeping. "Is she sleeping?"
"Yeah, so would you shut up?"
Lee walked over to Alfie. "How about you just leave, Lupin?"
"That is my sister--"
Fred stood up next to Lee. "Yeah, you don't own her. She's exhausted. Let her sleep."
Henry rolled his eyes. "You're not scary, Lupin."
"Just make sure she gets back to the girls' dormitory by nighttime." Alfie finally said. "Can that happen?"
"She doesn't sleep there anyway. Hope sleeps in Dean's bed more often than not. Or if Percy has night shifts, he lets her sleep in his." George explained.
"Why would Percy do that for her?"
Lee shrugged. "Those girls hate her. She's scared of them. It's all about Hope feeling at least safe. Maybe if you listened to her, you would know."
Hermione and Hope sat in the sunlight of the courtyard, talking for the first time in weeks. It was sunny so Hope was only in a sundress, so she could catch up on some sun.
"Hope, what's your secret?" Hermione asked out of nowhere.
"Draco's my cousin. My dad is in Azkaban. My other father thinks I'm a disgrace and my brother hates me." she admitted.
Hermione looked shocked that she actually opened up. "Oh, Hope, I had no idea--"
Out of nowhere, Ron and Harry came running up to the girls. They stood in front of them for a second, just panting before Harry started to talk.
"It was Hagrid. Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago."
Hope looked at them as if they were crazy. "Hagrid? Really?"
"It can't be Hagrid. It just can't be." Hermione said with confidence.
"We don't even know this Riddle. He sounds like a dirty, rotten, snitch to me." Hope told them.
Harry attempted to stick up for the diary."The monster killed someone, Hope. What would any of us have done?"
"Look, Hagrid's our friend, why don't we just go to him about this?"
Neville came running down, out of nowhere. "Harry, come see."
As the four ran up to Gryffindor Tower, they saw what the second-year boy's dormitory looked like. Clothes were thrown everywhere from Harry's trunk.
"The diary is gone." Hope said quickly. "You left it here?"
As Hope examined it some more, she found a long red hair on the top of Harry's trunk. "Ron, come here."
"What?"
"Just come here, please."
Once Ron was next to her she held up the long hair next to his head. It was a much deeper red. Percy had passed the room and stared in shock.
"Percy, come here please." she called out, following him as he strolled past the mess.
"Yes, Hope?"
Hope showed him the long strand of hair. "What color do you see this as?"
"Red, looks like Ginny's." Percy told her. "Yeah, that hair is Ginny's for sure."
"Thank you, Percy. You're a lot of help." she handed him a sugar quill. "And this is for your knowledge."
Hope Lupin sprinted down the dungeon halls at full speed. As she looked at the wall she ran into a person, falling to the floor roughly.
"Hope?" the voice came from Draco. "Run fast do we?"
Goyle reached down and helped her back up. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Thank you, Greg." she said quickly. "I need a favor."
Crabbe looked at her. "What would the favor be?"
"Find all that you can on Tom Riddle." Hope told the three boys. "Please?"
"Why?" questioned Draco, then he looked down to her exposed knees. "Merlin, are you okay?"
She looked down and chuckled. "I fell down the stairs."
Pansy Parkinson turned the corner and smirked. "Draco, what are you doing around with her again?"
"Nice to see you too, Pansy."
"Shut up fat arse." she snapped back.
Goyle stepped in front of her. "Shut up, Parkinson."
"You're standing up for her? What's wrong with you Goyle? She's a Gryffindor. Are you a traitor?" she yelled. "Cause she is one."
Hope just stared in shock. "I'm going to go. I don't want any trouble with you, Pansy."