The Potters and the Chamber of Secrets (COMPLETED)

13. The Heir of Slytherin

*Hannah's P.O.V*

Harry and I stood at the end of a long chamber, the dim green light making my knees shake. On either side of the room, there were statues of snakes, all identical and at the end was a statue of some monstrous face. I pulled my wand out and held it firmly in my hand, and we waked forwards. Our footsteps seemed so loud in the almost silent room.

 "Harry," I whispered, holding out an arm to stop him. "Is that Ginny?" I pointed to the end of the chamber, at the bottom of the head statue. We ran towards her, and her eyes were closed.

"Ginny, come on Ginny!" Harry yelled, shaking her. "Please don't be dead Ginny! Wake up!"

 "Wake up Ginny!" I called.

"She won't wake up." I looked up suddenly and saw a boy. He was pretty tall, had black hair that was  extremely neat and he looked about, around the age of 16. He looked so familiar, I noticed, as he leaned against one of the pillars, watching us with mild interest.

 "Tom?" Harry asked quietly. "Tom Riddle?" He nodded, and gazed at us intently - almost hungrily. I noticed that the outline of him looked slightly blurred, like he was a ghost or something. "Um, what d'you mean she won't wake-?"

"She's not dead is she?" I said, my eyes widening in alarm. It seemed my imagination, but a smirk flitted onto his face but when I blinked, his face was still expressionless. He strode over to us.

"No she's not," he said calmly, glancing at Ginny's body on the damp floor. "She is alive, but only just." His voice was all monotone, and it irritated me.

 "Er Tom?" I asked tentatively. He looked at me. "Are you a ghost?"

"Not a ghost, more of a memory," he answered. "Preserved in the diary-" he stooped down to pick up the diary that, until now, I hadn't noticed that Ginny had it in her arms. "-for fifty, long years." I turned back to Ginny and I uttered a small scream; she was so pale, all the colour in her facr was gone. Harry put his hand on hers but withdrew it almost immediately.

 "She's freezing," he said. "Tom can you help us, please. There's a Basilisk and-"

"It won't come until it's called," Tom said lazily, interrupting Harry.

 "What?" I asked.

"Won't. Come. Until it's called," he repeated in an icy tone.

 "Oh er, okay," I said, then I felt in my pockets for my wand. It wasn't there. It wasn't on the floor either. "I can't find my wand."

"Me neither," Harry said in alarm. "Oh right - thanks Tom." I realised Riddle had it, and he was twirling both of the wands between his fingers carelessly but when Harry stretched his wand out to take it back he didn't get it. "Tom can I have the wands please?"

 "Oh you won't be needing it."

"Yes we will!" I said angrily. Time was running out. "We're in the Chamber of Secrets - there's a Basilisk and Ginny's dying! We need to save her - just give us our wands back."

 "I've been waiting a very, very long time to meet you two," Riddle said in a sinister voice. A smirk appeared on his face, and this time it didn't disappear. "To talk to you."

 "There's no time for talking!" Harry spat, also losing patience. "We have to get out of here, then we'll talk later-"

"We are going to talk now." I didn't like the situation that was going on. It all seemed very strange, almost as if this was all planned.

 "We need to save Ginny," I said urgently.

"Why on earth would I want to do that?" Riddle laughed evilly. "As time passes on little Ginny grows weaker and I grow stronger." I gave him a questioning look. "You see, Ginny's been writing in the diary for months, telling me all about her life. Telling me all her secrets. It was very tedious having to listen to the troubles of a boring eleven year old but I had to be patient, kind and sympathetic. She loved me. I can be very persuasive when I need to... whilst telling me her secrets, Ginny poured her soul out into me and I grew powerful - much, much more powerful than her. So I started pouring a bit of my soul into her."