The Era of Aria Snape

40

Chapter Forty

ARIA HAD MET with Harry and Ron. Not even a day had passed since that awful incident and yet there she was, asking for more. The three were outside of the hospital wing, they'd wanted to visit Hermione before discussing anything more.

"Wish you were here, Hermione." The boys sat on either side of her. Aria wondered if anyone, besides Malfoy of course, had sat beside her when she lay unconscious for ages in the hospital wing.

"We need you. Now more than ever."

Aria watched, a sadness creeping over her as Harry stroked his fingers across Hermione's petrified hand. She didn't have friends who would do the same for her, that would sit and check up on her or say they needed her. Perhaps it was only a Gryffindor thing, but it seemed nice.

She shook the sadness away and forced the frown on her face to maintain its position in case she let slip how she felt.

Harry pulled a paper from Hermione's hand, Ron inquired as to what it was and Aria too was curious, but she decided that she was done with this little mystery. If the boys wanted to carry on searching for whatever monster lurked within the castle, then so be it. Draco had been right, this didn't have anything to do with her. She was safe, so why would she care?

"Ron, Aria." Harry breathed as if he had just come across a huge revelation. "This is why Hermione was in the library the day she was attacked. Come on!"

"What?" Aria snapped, hurrying to catch up with them as they ran out of the room. "I don't understand!"

Aria had failed to catch up with the boys, but that was better. She didn't need to involve herself anymore, it was done. On her part, anyway.

Aria lingered in the corridors, wondering where to go. She could head to the grounds and breath in the fresh air, remembering how grateful she was to be alive after what had occurred the previous night. Or she could go to the common room and forget the whole ordeal.

She settled on the latter and ambled around, taking the long route to the common room. It only then dawned upon her that she was probably in profound danger, just milling about by herself with a monster on the loose.

Then again, why would it bother her? She wasn't a muggle. Even so, she quickened her pace a bit.

"All students are to return to their house dormitories at once. All teachers to the second-floor corridor immediately."

Boredom had struck Aria, so she headed to the second-floor corridor. The worst they could do was give her detention, that is, if they caught her. She planned to keep herself very well hidden.

"Merlin!" Aria gasped as Harry and Ron approached from behind her. She sent them a glare, turning back to the teachers that had been discussing a message on the wall, one she couldn't see past their figures.

"A student has been taken by the monster into the Chamber itself. The students must be sent home. I'm afraid this is the end of Hogwarts."

Lockhart ambled in, late and sloppy. The sight made Aria even angrier than she previously was. The thought of Hogwarts closing had affected her greater than she had assumed it would.

"A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Your moment has come at last." Aria's father spoke in response to Lockhart's obliviousness.

"My moment?" He stumbled over his words.

"Weren't you saying just last night that you've known all along where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?"

"That's settled," McGonagall said. "We'll leave you to deal with the monster, Gilderoy. Your skills, after all, are legend."

Aria almost laughed at the expression on his face.

"Very well. I'll just be in my office getting... getting ready." He turned away.

"Who is it that the monster's taken, Minerva?"

McGonagall gulped. "Ginny Weasley."

That changed things, tremendously. Aria wouldn't have cared had it been anyone else, but that sweet girl who she had grown to care for over the holidays while she spent time with George-the thought of her in the Chamber boiled Aria's blood.

"Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever." Ron read the wall once the teachers had dispersed. Aria gulped.

"Don't worry, Ronald." Aria breathed out, trying her best to comfort him. "We'll get her back."

"Lockhart's planning to go down there right now. We have to go with him."

Aria followed the two boys as they ran to the Professor's classroom. Sure, she didn't like him, but she could deal with anyone if it meant saving Ginny.

"Professor, we have some information for you!" Harry said, bursting into the classroom.

Lockhart threw something in a suitcase, glaring accusingly at the three. Aria immediately knew what was going on. He was leaving. That phony. She reached for her wand.

"Are you going somewhere?"

"Well, yes." He stuttered. "Urgent call. Unavoidable. Got to go."

"What about my sister?"

"Well, as to that, most unfortunate. No one regrets more than I."

"You filthy liar. You know nothing about the Chamber!" Aria snapped, wand raised. Harry sent her a look that told her to calm down. Had they not had more important concerns, she would have hexed the second-year right then.

"You're Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. You can't go now." Ron argued, clearly becoming angrier as Lockhart continued to pack.

"I must say, when I took the job, there was nothing in the description-"

"You're running away?" Harry blocked his path.

Aria kept her wand raised, perhaps they would need to use more violent methods to get his help, which did not phase Aria one bit it pleased her.

"After all you did in your books?"

"Books can be misleading."

"You wrote them."

"My dear boy, use your common sense." He threw his bag to the side. "My books wouldn't have sold half as well if people didn't think I'd done all those things."

"You're a fraud," Harry said, realizing. Aria rolled her eyes, she could have told him that ages ago. "You've just been taking credit for what other wizards have done."

"Is there anything you can do?" Ron spat.

"Yes, now that you mention it. I'm rather gifted with Memory Charms. Otherwise, all those wizards would have gone blabbing. I'd never have sold another book. In fact, I'm going to have to do the same to you."

Aria smirked, her time had come. "Expelliarmus!" His wand flew from his hand and into hers. "You're coming with us," Aria ordered, placing her wand at his chin. "Or we're going straight to Dumbledore. I'm sure they'll find a nice cell in Azkaban for someone who allowed a child to be taken into the Chamber."

He opened his mouth to object.

"Who are they going to believe?" She smirked when it appeared as if Lockhart had surrendered. "Good, now lead the way to the Chamber, or else."

"I don't know the way!" He objected, cowering underneath her harsh glare.

"Azkaban-"

"Aria, we know the way," Ron told her.

She didn't even want to consider how two second-years had found it and yet Dumbeldore was incapable of doing so, but she simply nodded and followed them out of the classroom, jabbing Lockhart in the back with her wand for good measure and silently praying that she wouldn't have to endure any more spiders.