SERPENT'S SONG | Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets [2]

𝘅𝘅𝘃𝗶𝗶 | 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁

Summer was around the corner. The Black Lake reflected the brightness of the cloudless sky, huge flowers bloomed in the greenhouses, and the sun warmed the grass. Hagrid's absence was felt by everyone in the school; the grounds felt empty not seeing him walking Fang, not being able to run down and visit for a cup of tea. Gwen would even take a slice of his rock cake just to have him back.

Things inside the castle were no better; Madame Pomfrey had banned everyone from the hospital wing. Gwen, Harry and Ron tried every day to get in to see her, but every time they got the same answer.

'We're taking no chances. There's every chance the attacker could easily sneak in and finish them all off.'

With Dumbledore gone, the school was fearful, more so than before. McGonagall had taken on the headmaster's duties in his absence, and there was barely a face around the school that didn't look anxious and scared. Any laughter sounded shrill and unnatural.

Harry and Ron spent their free time mulling over the words spoken by Dumbledore and Hagrid that night in the hut. Gwen, however, was growing paler by the day, jumping at every sound and flinching at every movement. Harry and Ron asked her if she was OK about fifty times a day, and her answer had become robotic. 'I'm fine.'

She wasn't fine. She was losing control. It was as though her body wasn't her own anymore. She was plagued with constant headaches, she couldn't even change her physical appearance anymore. Her hair wouldn't even represent the sickly grey colour it always did. It was her natural blonde but slightly darker, drained of its health and brightness.

At every given chance, Gwen, Harry and Ron were searching for spiders, the latter slightly reluctantly. As usual, however, there was something wrong.

'Have either of you noticed the significant lack of spiders, recently,' Gwen said one night in the common room, forcing herself to make conversation. She'd been so feeble that even talking was an effort.

Harry nodded. 'How are we supposed to follow them if there aren't any?'

Gwen didn't miss the slightly relieved look on Ron's face.

Amidst all the terror, one person seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the atmosphere.

'Sir, I think you should apply as headmaster,' Draco Malfoy said loudly in one potions lesson. He was looking at Snape with a glint in his eyes.

'Now, now, Professor Dumbledore is only gone temporarily,' Snape said, brushing past Gwen and Theodore Nott. He made no comment on how slow she was in making her potion. 'I daresay he'll be back with us soon enough.' He did not hide his thin-lipped smile.

'Yeah, right,' Malfoy sneered. 'I always thought Father would be the one to get rid of Dumbledore. I expect you'd have his vote, sir, if you wanted to apply-- I'll tell Father you're the best teacher here, sir--'

Snape smirked as he swept round the room, fortunately not noticing Seamus Finnigan pretending to vomit into his cauldron.

Gwen found herself on the receiving end of one of Snape's death glares when Nott startled her with a tap on the shoulder.

He was watching her with an expression she couldn't quite read. He'd finished his potion already while she wasn't even a quarter way into making it. His dark eyes surveyed hers in a way that would've made Gwen blush had she been capable.

'What's going on with you?' he murmured, only loud enough for her to hear.

She looked away. Somewhere in the back of her head, Tom whispered.

'I'm fine,' she breathed. Her potion was bubbling far too much and she had a bad feeling it was going to explode.

Nott, however, was not as complacent as Harry and Ron. 'You're not. You're very much not fine.' He paused, checking Snape was still out of earshot. 'What's going on?'

Gwen kept her eyes focused on the purple liquid in her cauldron. A single tear spilled over her eyelid, barely missing the potion.

'I can't tell you.'

'Why not?'

She'd never heard Theo so concerned. She wanted nothing more in that moment than to throw herself at him and collapse into his arms crying. She wanted to be told that she was not in the wrong, that it wasn't her fault, that none of this was her fault--

But of course, it all was. All of it was her fault.

'I'm a terrible person.' The words came out as barely a whisper, so quiet that she was sure Theo hadn't heard. She felt his eyes burning into the side of her head.

'You're not a terrible person,' he said finally. He kept his voice quiet. 'Why do you think that?'

She was struggling to keep her breathing even. More tears fell. 'Because--' she swallowed thickly. 'Because I know something...'

Theo was still. He opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again.

'What do you know?'

'I know who--'

The bell rang.

Gwen gasped, looked up, realised what she was about to say. She packed up her things as quickly as she could, ignoring Theo's questions. Her heart was racing as she weaved her way between the students to Harry and Ron, the latter of whom was red in the face and ready to fight. Apparently Malfoy had been talking about Hermione again. Gwen could imagine what he had been saying.

She had no more classes with Theo that day, and was thankful for it. She begged he didn't think about what she'd said; she'd said way too much already.

The guilt of Hagrid's and Dumbledore's removals were heavy on her shoulders, and if anything else happened she'd probably collapse from the weight. She wanted it to be over. She wanted to be rid of Tom.

There was only one conclusion she could come to.

Her thoughts were cut from her plan, however, when Lockhart's mouth began speaking too many lies.

'Don't you people realise,' he was saying as though they were all a bit stupid. 'The danger has passed! The culprit has been taken away!'

'Says who?' said Dean Thomas loudly.

'My dear young man, the Minister of Magic wouldn't have taken Hagrid if he hadn't been one hundred percent sure that he was guilty,' said Lockhart condescendingly.

Gwen's anger flared. 'Yes he would,' she said, even louder than Dean. 'Hagrid's innocent.'

Lockhart eyed her, smiling at her as though she were a petulant child. 'My dear girl, I believe I know a touch more on his arrest than you.'

Gwen was ready to have a full on shouting match with the man, but Harry kicked her hard under the desk. She jolted at the movement, then saw what he was looking at. At one of the windows, a small trail of spiders were crawling through a crack in the glass. Harry got Ron's attention too, and the three of them watched. With a heavy heart, Gwen realised what direction they were going in.

At dinner, the three of them spoke in hushed voices.

'They were going to the Forbidden Forest,' Ron said, failing to mask his nervousness.

Gwen and Harry exchanged a look. They'd only been in the forest once before the previous year, but Ron had never.

'We'll do it tonight,' Harry whispered, glancing around to make sure no one could hear. 'After everything Lockhart was saying--' his face twisted in disdain, '-- we need Hagrid and Dumbledore back.'

The other two agreed. Tonight they would follow the spiders.