THE WITCHING HOUR ➸ h. potter

26 - dueling

Waking up early the next day, I sped-walked over to the girls bathroom where Ron, Hermione and I had planned to meet up after getting ready. The potion was coming along well, at least, according to Hermione, who was very much the only one out of us who seemed to know what she was doing.

We had been sitting around the cauldron for a while when sudden footsteps outside the bathroom door made all three of us freeze.

"It's me," The unmistakable voice of Harry Potter said, he slipped into the stall a few seconds later, after Hermione had unlocked it, closing the door behind him.

"Harry!" Hermione said. "You gave us such a fright—how's your arm?"

"Fine," said Harry, looking disturbed for some reason.

"We'd've come to meet you, but we decided to get started on the Polyjuice Potion," Ron explained as Harry locked the stall again. "We've decided this is the safest place to hide it."

Harry was about to say something but Hermione interrupted him. "We already know—we heard Professor McGonagall telling Professor Flitwick this morning. That's why we decided we'd better get going—"

We had indeed heard about one of the students getting sent to the hospital wing the night before. I had to admit the situation was making me quite uneasy now.

"The sooner we get a confession out of Malfoy, the better," snarled Ron. "D'you know what I think? He was in such a foul temper after the Quidditch match, he took it out on Colin."

"There's something else," said Harry. "Dobby came to visit me in the middle of the night."

Harry told us everything Dobby had told him—or from what it sounded, hadn't told him. I sat with my knees curled to my chest, still half asleep, trying to stop shivering from the cold in the old bathroom. It sounded as if he had been the one that had sent Harry to the hospital wing in the first place by sending the cursed ball after him at the match. Apparently whatever was happening, what with this so called Chamber filled with Secrets, had happened before.

"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened before?" Hermione said.

"This settles it," said Ron. "Lucius Malfoy must've opened the Chamber when he was at school here and now he's told dear old Draco how to do it. It's obvious. Wish Dobby'd told you what kind of monster's in there, though. I want to know how come nobody's noticed it sneaking around the school."

"Maybe it can make itself invisible," said Hermione, prodding leeches to the bottom of the cauldron. "Or maybe it can disguise itself—pretend to be a suit of armor or something—I've read about Chameleon Ghouls—"

"You read too much, Hermione," said Ron, pouring dead lacewings on top of the leeches.

I huffed at that. "No, Ron, no one can read enough."

The boy rolled his eyes but knew well enough to ignore me. "So Dobby stopped us from getting on the train and broke your arm." He shook his head. "You know what, Harry? If he doesn't stop trying to save your life he's going to kill you."

The news that Colin Creevey had been attacked and was now lying as though dead in the hospital wing had spread through the entire school by Monday morning. The air was suddenly thick with rumor and suspicion. The first years were now moving around the castle in tight knit groups, as though scared we would be attacked if we ventured forth alone.

As much as I tried acting like it didn't bother me, there were nights I woke in a sweat, bright eyes having been staring at me in nightmares. Sometimes it was whispers that got me lying awake in the middle of the night. But most of all, I dreaded the day Professor Dumbledore made it a point to announce it would be 'wise' to write to our parents about what was going on.

I knew my mum was already scared after everything that had happened last year, and now this was only going to add more for her have to worry about.

Ginny, who normally sat next to Colin Creevey in Charms, was distraught, but Hermione and I felt that Fred and George were going the wrong way about cheering her up. They were taking turns covering themselves with fur or boils and jumping out at her from behind statues. They only stopped when Percy, apoplectic with rage, told them he was going to write to Mrs. Weasley and tell her Ginny was having nightmares.

Meanwhile, hidden from the teachers, a roaring trade in talismans, amulets, and other protective devices was sweeping the school. Neville Longbottom bought a large, evil smelling green onion, a pointed purple crystal, and a rotting newt tail before the other Gryffindor boys pointed out that he was in no danger; he was a pureblood, and therefore unlikely to be attacked. That was another thing I was actively trying not to think about. And it had worked well enough till now.