Totally Awesome | George Weasley

We Return To Halloween | Chapter 15 | Book 2 Ch 9

     Unlike the last year's Halloween feast, things were going wonderfully. The food was excellent, the pranks were mildly over the top from all partakers, and, most importantly, no trusted professor let a troll into the castle - although, after the stories she'd heard from some second years, Arwen wouldn't put it past their new Professor Lockhart.

     Things were going wonderfully... until they left the great hall. Then everything went immediately downhill as students left the feast full of both food and joy before those at the front of the hoard stopped suddenly, with those further back questioning the sudden pause.

     " Enemies of the Heir, beware," Draco Malfoy arrogantly read off of something out of Arwen's eyesight." You'll be next, Mudbloods!"

     " What is he talking about?" Naomi asked, looking ready to punch him.

     " I don't know... I'll find out," Arwen said.

     The Metamorphagus shifted her body slightly to grow her legs a few inches longer until she could see over the heads of the students in front of them. Her friends waited in silence as they watched her eyes widen, staring in shock at whatever it was that they couldn't see before she lowered herself back to her usual height.

     " Well," Lee said, sounding like he was dying to know." What is it?"

     Arwen hesitated, trying to find the right words to explain what she'd seen." I think... It's Mrs. Norris."

     " What do you mean you 'think' it's Mrs. Norris?" Fred asked.

     " Well, if it is her, she's not moving."

     " She's dead?" George asked hopefully.

     " Maybe, but she's not limp she's just... frozen in place... and hanging from a torch? And there was writing on the wall next to her. I can only assume it's what Malfoy was reading."

     " You're kidding-" he muttered, before getting shoved to the side as Filch tried to push his way to the front of the crowd.

     " What's going on here? What's going on- My cat!" He spotted Mrs. Norris." My cat! What's happened to Mrs. Norris?... You!"

     " Who's he talking to?" Lee asked, attempting to lean around the crowd.

     " Harry Potter," a first-year in front of them said, a mixture of in-awe about going to school with a celebrity and horror and what was going on.

     Hestia let out a deep sigh." I thought we were going to have a more peaceful year."

     " You've murdered my cat! You've killed her! I'll kill you! I'll-"

     " Argus!"

     The crowd of children immediately parted to let through Professor Dumbledore, followed by most of the other professors.

     " Come with me, Argus. You too, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger."

     " My office is nearest, Headmaster - just upstairs - please, feel free-"

     " Thank you, Gilderoy."

     All the other students watched in awe as Mrs. Norris was removed from the torch-holder and brought with the professors and second-year students as they headed to Professor Lockhart's office.

     Eventually, the crowd began to dissolve as students began heading back to their dormitories for the night, all muttering about what they'd just seen.

_________________________________________________________

     " The chamber of secrets has been opened... what do you think that means?" Arwen asked once she was lying in bed that night, no one quite ready to turn off the lights after what they'd all witnessed.

     She directed the question specifically at Hestia and Aubri, one of their other dormmates who was notorious for keeping all kinds of knowledge stored in her brain.

     " There's nothing I've heard," Hestia muttered hesitantly.

       " It is called the chamber of secrets," Aubri pointed out." I can't imagine with a name like that it's something that was known about, even when it was created, so I doubt it would have been written about in anywhere outside of journals, and that's if we were pushing our luck."

     " And those journals probably wouldn't be found at Hogwarts to begin with."

     " I wasn't planning on researching it," Arwen assured them." But I probably would feel better if someone would come out and tell me it was a poorly done prank."

     " If it was a prank, wouldn't you of all people know about it?" Kiah, the last person in their dorm, asked." The Weasleys have pretty much out-competed every other student who might try to pull something like that. I mean, come on! It's school pranks, they're not running a business."

     " Yeah, but they seemed genuinely surprised - and, more importantly, hopeful that whatever had happened to Mrs. Norris had killed her, that didn't seem to be faked," Naomi said." They can be good actors at times but not like this..."

     They went silent for a few minutes, trying to comprehend everything that was going on.

     " I think I might want to leave the lights on," Aubri eventually said, fiddling her fingers together." At least for tonight."

     Naomi flopped onto her back." Me to. I'm not going anywhere until the sun's up and I can see all of my surroundings."

     The others nodded in agreement before going into various states of rest with both Arwen and Kiah staying up, a silent agreement between the two that they would keep an eye out for danger that night. They could go without sleep for at least a little while.

A/N: Back with another chapter, this one got briefly postponed by the fact that I was stuck going to Jury Duty for the first time last week and that took away all my energy to write. 

That's about it for this chapter. But, as per usual,

I hope you have an absolutely wonderful rest of your day/Month/Until I update next!

- Alex