History

XX. THE RESTRICTED SECTION

chapter twenty; the chamber of secrets

1992

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It was the gloomiest, most depressing bathroom Zoe had ever set foot in. 

Under a large, cracked, and spotted mirror were a row of chipped sinks. The floor was damp and reflected the dull light given off by the stubs of a few candles, burning low in their holders; the wooden doors to the stalls were flaking and scratched and one of them was dangling off its hinges. Zoe put her fingers to her lips and set off toward the end stall. 

When she reached it she said, "Hello, Myrtle, how are you?" 

 Harry and Ron went to look. 

Moaning Myrtle was floating above the tank of the toilet, picking a spot on her chin. 

"This is a girls' bathroom," she said, eyeing Ron and Harry suspiciously. "They're not girls." 

"No," Hermione agreed. "We just wanted to show them how er, nice it is in here." She waved vaguely at the dirty old mirror and the damp floor. 

"Ask her if she saw anything," Harry mouthed at Zoe. 

"What are you whispering?" said Myrtle, staring at him. 

"Nothing," said Harry quickly. "We wanted to ask. . . ." 

"I wish people would stop talking behind my back!" said Myrtle, in a voice choked with tears. "I do have feelings, you know, even if I am dead. . . ." 

"Myrtle, no one wants to upset you," said Zoe. "Harry only. . . ." 

"No one wants to upset me! That's a good one!" howled Myrtle. "My life was nothing but misery at this place and now people come along ruining my death!"

"We wanted to ask you if you've seen anything funny lately," said Zoe quickly. "Because a cat was attacked right outside your front door on Halloween." 

"Did you see anyone near here that night?" said Harry. 

"I wasn't paying attention," said Myrtle dramatically. "Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to kill myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I'm, that I'm. . . ." 

"Already dead," said Ron helpfully. Myrtle gave a tragic sob, rose up in the air, turned over, and dived headfirst into the toilet, splashing water all over them and vanishing from sight, although from the direction of her muffled sobs, she had come to rest somewhere in the U-bend. 

Harry and Ron stood with their mouths open, but Zoe shrugged wearily and said, "Honestly, that was almost cheerful for Myrtle. Come on, let's go." 

Harry had barely closed the door on Myrtle's gurgling sobs when a loud voice made all four of them jump. 

"RON!" 

Percy Weasley had stopped dead at the head of the stairs, prefect badge agleam, an expression of complete shock on his face. 

"That's a girls' bathroom!" he gasped. "What were you. . . .?" 

"Just having a look around," Ron shrugged. "Clues, you know. . . ." 

Percy swelled in a strong manner. 

"Get. . . . away. . . . from. . . . there. . . ." Perry said, striding toward them and starting to bustle them along, flapping his arms. "Don't you care what this looks like? Coming back here while everyone's at dinner. . . ." 

"Why shouldn't we be here?" said Ron hotly, stopping short and glaring at Percy. "Listen, we never laid a finger on that cat!" 

"That's what I told Ginny," said Percy fiercely, "but she still seems to think you're going to be expelled, I've never seen her so upset, crying her eyes out, you might think of her, all the first years are thoroughly overexcited by this business. . . ."