Chapter Thirteen: (Apparently, No, He Won’t)
“Ooh, you keep a diary, Harry?” Sirius asked, bouncing slightly. Destiny, who apparently didn’t like bouncing on a bed as much as him, smacked him in the back of his head. “Oww….”
“You’ll see,” Harry snickered, and began reading.
Others- Huh?
Destiny- Well, it might be different from my school…but nurses are total nutcases.
Draco- ::raises an eyebrow:: And you’re not?
Destiny- Of course I am! But I’m a nut in a good way!
Sirius- ::nods in agreement::
Remus- Is that even possible?
Sirius- Of course it is, Rem! You’re a nut too! Remember, you like me, right?
Remus- Don’t remind me.
Sirius- ::pouts::
James- Well, it would certainly narrow done the possible culprits.
Harry- And probably make everyone think it’s definitely me.
James- Ah, right. Forgot about that little problem.
Lily- I thought we’d decided that they were gold and silver?
Sirius- But green and red’s so much more fun!
James- Presents for everyone!
Destiny- ::looks confused::
Harry- Don’t ask. Please, save us all the trouble and don’t ask.
James/Sirius- ::pout::
Sirius- But people with fuzzy faces are cute!
Harry and
Ron went to visit her every evening.
Remus- Aww, how sweet!
When the new term started, they brought her
each day's homework.
Lily- And considerate! ::hugs Harry for no apparent reason::
Harry- ::looks confused as hell::
"If
I’d sprouted whiskers, I’d take a break from work,"
Sirius/James/Harry/Destiny- Most definitely.
Lily- ::scowls::
Remus/Draco- ::roll their eyes::
said Ron, tipping a stack of books onto
Hermione's bedside table one evening.
"Don't
be silly, Ron, I've got to keep up,"
Lily- That’s the idea!
said Hermione briskly. Her spirits were greatly
improved by the fact that all the hair had gone from her face and her eyes were
turning slowly back to brown.
Sirius- Is the tail gone yet?
Others- ::snicker::
"I don't suppose you've got any new
leads?" she added in a whisper, so that Madam Pomfrey couldn't hear her.
"Nothing,"
said Harry gloomily.
"I
was so sure it was Malfoy," said Ron, for about the hundredth time.
Draco-
Because, after all, who else could it have possibly been?
"What's
that?" asked Harry, pointing to something gold sticking out from under
Hermione's pillow.
"Just a get well card," said Hermione hastily, trying to poke it out of sight, but Ron was too quick for her. He pulled it out, flicked it open, and read aloud:
"To
Miss Granger, wishing you a speedy recovery, from your concerned teacher,
Professor Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of
the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most-
Charming-Smile Award."
All-
::various noises of disgust::
Ron looked
up at Hermione, disgusted.
"You
sleep with this under your pillow?"
All-
::snicker…or giggle, accordingly::
But Hermione was spared answering by Madam Pomfrey sweeping over with her evening dose of medicine.
"Is
Lockhart the smarmiest bloke you've ever met, or what?"
Boys- We agree!
Lily- ::rolls her eyes:: But he’s a good-looking
smarmy bloke!
Boys- ::stare at Lily in disgusted
disbelief::
Lily- ::smiles innocently at them::
Destiny- ::giggles hysterically::
Ron said to Harry as they left the infirmary
and started up the stairs toward Gryffindor Tower. Snape had given them so much
homework, Harry thought he was likely to be in the sixth year before he
finished it.
Lily- Did you finish it?
Harry- Er…not quite.
Lily- HARRY!
Harry- Well, it was simply too much
for me to possibly do!
Sirius/James/Destiny- Hear hear!
Lily- ::glares at
Sirius/James/Destiny/Harry::
Draco- ::snickers::
Ron was just saying he wished he had asked
Hermione how many rat tails you were supposed to add to a Hair-Raising Potion when
an angry outburst from the floor above reached their ears.
Sirius- DAMN IT, WHO’S GONE AND KILLED MY BIRD THIS TIME!?
Harry- Oops, sorry Professor.
"That's
Filch," Harry muttered as they hurried up the stairs and paused, out of
sight, listening hard.
"You
don't think someone else's been attacked?" said Ron tensely.
They stood
still, their heads inclined toward Flich's voice, which sounded quite
hysterical.
“—even more
work for me! Mopping all night, like I haven't got enough to do! No, this is
the final straw, I'm going to Dumbledore—"
Lily- Myrtle.
His footsteps receded along the out-of-sight corridor and they heard a distant door slam.
They poked
their heads around the corner. Filch had clearly been manning his usual lookout
post: They were once again on the spot where Mrs. Norris had been attacked.
They saw at a glance what Filch had been shouting about. A great flood of water
stretched over half the corridor, and it looked as though it was still seeping
from under the door of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Now that Filch had stopped
shouting, they could hear Myrtle's wails echoing off the bathroom walls.
"Now
what's up with her?" said Ron.
Lily- Whatever it is, it’s bound to be one of the dumbest things to start bawling about ever.
"Let's go and see," said Harry, and holding their robes over their ankles they stepped through the great wash of water to the door bearing its OUT OF ORDER sign, ignored it as always,
Destiny- ::raises her
eyebrows:: And how often do they do this? And for what reason?
Sirius- ::looks
thoughtful::
Lily- Ugh, not again!
and entered.
Moaning
Myrtle was crying, if possible, louder and harder than ever before.
Remus- It’s not possible to cry louder and harder than the loudest and
hardest a person can cry.
Sirius- Well, it is now apparently.
She seemed to be hiding down her usual
toilet. It was dark in the bathroom because the candles had been extinguished
in the great rush of water that had left both walls and floor soaking wet.
James- That’s a lot of water.
Destiny/Sirius- No shit.
"What's
up, Myrtle?" said Harry.
"Who's
that?" glugged Myrtle miserably. "Come to throw something else at
me?"
Harry
waded across to her stall and said, "Why would I throw something at
you?"
Draco-
Because she is possibly the most annoying phantom to ever have had the
pleasure of existing?
Harry- I
don’t think she’s very pleased with the existing part.
Draco- Shut
up.
"Don't
ask me," Myrtle shouted, emerging with a wave of yet more water, which
splashed onto the already sopping floor. "Here I am, minding my own
business, and someone thinks it's funny to throw a book at me….”
Marauders- Actually….
Lily- Shut
up, the lot of you.
Marauders-
::pout::
"But
it can't hurt you if someone throws something at you," said Harry,
reasonably. "I mean, it'd just go right through you, wouldn't it?"
Lily- (dryly) Reasonable does not work on Myrtle.
Harry- (even more dryly) I’d noticed.
He had
said the wrong thing. Myrtle puffed herself up and shrieked, "Let's all
throw books at Myrtle, because she can't feel it! Ten points if you can
get it through her stomach! Fifty points if it goes through her head! Well, ha,
ha, ha! What a lovely game, I don't think!"
Lily- Me
neither. That’s awfully cruel.
Sirius/James-
So?
Lily-
::glares at Sirius/James::
"Who threw it at you, anyway?" asked Harry.
"I
don't know…. I was just sitting in the U-bend, thinking about death, and it
fell right through the top of my head," said Myrtle, glaring at them.
"It's over there, it got washed out….”
Harry and
Ron looked under the sink where Myrtle was pointing. A small, thin book lay
there.
Sirius- Well, at least it wasn’t a big, fat book.
Remus- Not that it would have
particularly mattered, since she didn’t feel it.
It had a shabby black
Sirius- ::pouts:: Didn’t it shine?
cover and was as wet
Sirius- Oh, yeah, guess it did! Wet stuff has a habit of being shiny!
as everything else in the bathroom. Harry
stepped forward to pick it up, but Ron suddenly flung out an arm to hold him
back.
"What?"
said Harry.
"Are
you crazy?" said Ron. "It could be dangerous."
"Dangerous?"
said Harry, laughing. "Come off it, how could it be dangerous?"
Sirius- All
books are dangerous.
James-
Imagine if you got so interested in one that you’d totally seclude yourselves
from anyone just so you could finish it!
Sirius- The
friends you’d loose! Such a shame it would be!
Remus- Aren’t
you the one that never stops reading those Muggle fantasies?
Sirius-
…That’s totally besides the point.
Destiny-
Woah! You mean, he really can read!?
Sirius-
::sticks his tongue out at Destiny::
Destiny-
::sticks her nose in the air:: I am far above such childish nonsense as
that!
Sirius- Yeah.
Right.
Destiny-
::pouts:: … ::sticks her tongue out at Sirius::
"You'd
be surprised," said Ron, who was looking apprehensively at the book.
"Some of the books the Ministry's confiscated—Dad's told me—there was one
that burned your eyes out.
James- Well, isn’t that pleasant?
And everyone who read Sonnets of a
Sorcerer spoke in limericks for the rest of their lives.
Sirius- Ooh, sounds like fun!
And some old witch in Bath had a book that
you could never stop reading! You just had to wander around with your
nose in it, trying to do everything one-handed.
Remus- ::blinks:: I tend to do that on a regular basis for no apparent
reason.
And—"
"All
right, I've got the point," said Harry.
James- Certainly took you long enough.
Sirius-
Potter Stupidity Genes, remember!
James-
::smacks Sirius::
The little
book lay on the floor, nondescript and soggy.
"Well,
we won't find out unless we look at it," he said, and he ducked around Ron
and picked it up off the floor.
Remus- Insert spooky music here.
Harry saw
at once that it was a diary, and the faded year on the cover told him it was
fifty years old.
Draco- Ooh, I didn’t know you could count!
Harry- Don’t make me mess up your
hair again, Draco.
Draco- Meep!
He opened it eagerly. On the first page he
could just make out the name "T M. Riddle" in smudged ink.
"Hang
on," said Ron, who had approached cautiously and was looking over Harry's
shoulder. "I know that name…. T. M. Riddle got an award for special
services to the school fifty years ago."
All but Destiny/Harry- Ron (well, Weasley for Draco) knows something!?
Destiny- ::blinks and looks confused::
"How
on earth d'you know that?" said Harry in amazement.
Remus- Funny that you had practically the same thought as us.
Harry- Oh,
shut up, Rem.
"Because
Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times in detention,"
Sirius- It’s the slug one, isn’t it?
said Ron resentfully. "That was the one
I burped slugs all over.
Sirius- ::grins:: Knew I was right!
If you'd wiped slime off a name for an hour,
you'd remember it, too."
Harry
peeled the wet pages apart. They were completely blank. There wasn't the
faintest trace of writing on any of them, not even Auntie Mabel's birthday,
or dentist, half-past three.
"He never wrote in it," said Harry, disappointed.
"I
wonder why someone wanted to flush it away?" said Ron curiously.
Sirius- Because it was boring?
James- And
pointless?
Remus- With
no means of blackmail inside?
Peter-
Really, what’s the fun of reading someone’s diary if there’s no deep, dark
secrets to tease him about?
Draco-
Actually, you’ve got a point.
Destiny- A
really good one.
Harry- Oh,
please!
Harry turned
to the back cover of the book and saw the printed name of a variety store on
Vauxhall Road, London.
"He
must've been Muggle-born,"
Peter- Or Half-blood!
said Harry thoughtfully. "To have bought
a diary from Vauxhall Road….”
"Well,
it's not much use to you," said Ron. He dropped his voice. "Fifty
points if you can get it through Myrtle's nose."
Harry,
however, pocketed it.
Marauders/Destiny/Draco- What for!?
Harry-
::scowls:: You’ll find out.
Hermione
left the hospital wing, de-whiskered, tail-less,
Sirius- Aww….
and fur-free, at the beginning of February.
On her first evening back in Gryffindor Tower, Harry showed her T. M. Riddle's
diary and told her the story of how they had found it.
Lily- Because Myrtle’s always such a fascinating subject.
"Oooh,
it might have hidden powers," said Hermione enthusiastically, taking the
diary and looking at it closely.
"If
it has, it's hiding them very well," said Ron. "Maybe it's shy.
Destiny- Actually, books tend to prefer being rather extroverted.
Harry- Especially the ones in the
Restricted Section.
I don't know why you don't chuck it,
Harry."
"I
wish I knew why someone did try to chuck it," said Harry. "I
wouldn't mind knowing how Riddle got an award for special services to Hogwarts
either."
Sirius- Could’ve
been money.
James- With a
last name like Riddle? Please!
"Could've
been anything," said Ron. "Maybe he got thirty O.WL.s or saved a
teacher from the giant squid. Maybe he murdered Myrtle; that would've done
everyone a favor….”
All- I’ll say.
But Harry could
tell from the arrested look on Hermione's face that she was thinking what he
was thinking.
"What?"
said Ron, looking from one to the other.
"Well,
the Chamber of Secrets was opened fifty years ago, wasn't it?" he said.
"That's what Malfoy said."
Draco- ::scowls rather murderously::
"Yeah.
. ." said Ron slowly.
"And this
diary is fifty years old," said Hermione, tapping it excitedly.
“So?
"Oh,
Ron, wake up,"
All but Lily- ::snicker::
snapped Hermione. "We know the person who
opened the Chamber last time was expelled fifty years ago. We know T. M.
Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago.
Well, what if Riddle got his special award for catching the Heir of
Slytherin?
Draco- Actually, he did.
Harry- And you said that, why?
Draco- ::smirks:: Because I thought
it would annoy you.
His diary would probably tell us
everything—where the Chamber is, and how to open it, and what sort of creature
lives in it—the person who's behind the attacks this time wouldn't want that
lying around, would they?"
Sirius- But there’s nothing in it!
"That's
a brilliant theory, Hermione," said Ron, "with just one tiny
little flaw. There's nothing written in his diary."
But Hermione was pulling her wand out of her bag.
"It
might be invisible ink!" she whispered.
She tapped
the diary three times and said, "Aparecium!"
Nothing happened. Undaunted, Hermione shoved her hand back into her bag and pulled out what appeared to be a bright red eraser.
Destiny- So she’s
going to erase nothing?
James- It’s
probably a Revealer.
Sirius- Those
things are useful, I’ll have you know.
"It's
a Revealer,
James- See?
I got it in Diagon Alley," she said.
She rubbed
hard on January first. Nothing happened.
"I'm
telling you, there's nothing to find in there," said Ron. "Riddle
just got a diary for Christmas and couldn't be bothered filling it in."
Harry
couldn't explain, even to himself, why he didn't just throw Riddle's diary
away. The fact was that even though he knew the diary was blank, he kept
absentmindedly picking it up and turning the pages, as though it were a story
he wanted to finish.
Draco- You’re absolutely mental, Harry.
Harry- And it took you how
long to figure this one out?
And while Harry was sure he had never heard the
name T. M. Riddle before, it still seemed to mean something to him, almost as
though Riddle was a friend he'd had when he was very small, and had
half-forgotten. But this was absurd. He'd never had friends before Hogwarts,
Dudley had made sure of that.
James- And the fact that he’s at least fifty years older than you
doesn’t make you think he wouldn’t have been your friend?
Harry- Oh, shut up.
Nevertheless,
Harry was determined to find out more about Riddle, so next day at break, he
headed for the trophy room to examine Riddle's special award, accompanied by an
interested Hermione and a thoroughly unconvinced Ron, who told them he'd seen
enough of the trophy room to last him a lifetime.
Marauders- So have I!
Lily- ::rolls
her eyes::
Riddle's
burnished gold shield was tucked away in a corner cabinet.
Sirius- Heeeeey! I think I remember that one!
James- Good for you. I’ve never seen
it.
Remus/Peter- Me neither.
Sirius- I know. It’s really very
pretty, though. I want one!
Others- ::roll eyes::
It didn't carry details of why it had been
given to him ("Good thing, too, or it'd be even bigger and I’d still be
polishing it," said Ron).
Sirius- Heh. So would I.
However, they did find Riddle's name on an
old Medal for Magical Merit, and on a list of old Head Boys.
Peter- Oooh, a smart guy!
James- You’ve got a thing for smart
people, haven’t you?
Peter- ::shrugs:: Guess so.
"He
sounds like Percy," said Ron, wrinkling his nose in disgust.
"Prefect, Head Boy…probably top of every class—"
"You
say that like it's a bad thing," said Hermione in a slightly hurt voice.
Marauders/Destiny- It is.
Draco/Lily-
::scowls::
Harry-
What’re you scowling for, Draco? You’re not top of every class.
Draco-
::pouts:: Don’t remind me.
Harry-
::snickers:: You’re pouting again, you know.
Draco- I
DON’T POUT!
The sun
had now begun to shine weakly on Hogwarts again. Inside the castle, the mood
had grown more hopeful. There had been no more attacks since those on Justin and
Nearly Headless Nick, and Madam Pomfrey was pleased to report that the
Mandrakes were becoming moody and secretive, meaning that they were fast
leaving childhood.
Destiny- Oh boy. We’ve got teenagers on our hands!
Sirius- You
say that like it’s a bad thing!
Destiny- It
is! I mean, look at the lot of us!
All-
::shudder::
"The
moment their acne clears up,
Sirius- Plants can get acne?
Lily- Please tell me you actually
paid attention when we did mandrakes in our second year.
Sirius- …I’m not good with plants.
Lily- Obviously not.
they'll be ready for repotting again,"
Harry heard her telling Filch kindly
Draco- Why would anyone tell Filch anything kindly?
Harry- Because some people are
actually kind people.
Draco- …
one afternoon. "And after that, it won't
be long until we're cutting them up and stewing them.
Remus- ::makes a face:: You know, that brings to mind cutting up a
bunch of adults and stewing them….
James- Shame they’re old, Filch
would enjoy it if they were still teens.
You'll have Mrs. Norris back in no
time."
All but Destiny/Lily- Damn!
Lily- ::rolls her eyes::
Destiny- ::looks confused::
Perhaps
the Heir of Slytherin had lost his or her nerve, thought Harry.
Harry- Don’t I wish.
It must be getting riskier and riskier to
open the Chamber of Secrets, with the school so alert and suspicious. Perhaps
the monster, whatever it was, was even now settling itself down to hibernate
for another fifty years….
Sirius- ::looks disgusted:: How can anything sleep for fifty
years? I mean, that’s just so…so…boring!
James- Says the guy that sleeps till
lunch on the weekends.
Sirius- That’s just a few extra
hours, not years!
Destiny- How can you compare fifty
years to five hours, anyway?
Sirius- See? Des agrees with me!
Remus- I’ll bet she sleeps just as
late as you do.
Destiny- Damn straight, I do. What’s
the point in being awake? I need my beauty sleep!
Sirius- No kidding.
Destiny- Oh, shut up, Sirius. It’s
not my fault I’m so damn thin!
Sirius- Yes it is! You barely ever
eat anything!
Destiny- Well, my stomach isn’t as
big as yours, is it? I don’t need the extra crap to stuff it up with.
Sirius- …You mean, you think I’m
fat?
Destiny- ::grins:: Compared to me,
you’re humongous.
Sirius- ::snorts:: Compared to you, Remus
is humongous, and he’s the thinnest guy I know!
Remus- ::pouts:: Not my fault! And I’m
not really all that thin, you know!
Sirius- Exactly!
James- Okay, okay. How did we go
from sleeping to thin-ness anyway? Can we maybe just get back to the book
before we start talking about…oh, I don’t know. Cows?
Destiny- …I don’t like cows.
James- Harry, read! Please!
Ernie
Macmillan
Marauders- Boo! Down with Macmillan!
Others- ::roll their eyes::
of Hufflepuff didn't take this cheerful view.
He was still convinced that Harry was the guilty one, that he had "given
himself away" at the Dueling Club.
Harry- If I had even known that I was a Parselmouth, I probably wouldn’t
have done it! Ron would’ve already known and warned me not to tell anyone.
Stupid Dueling Club.
Draco- ::grumbles::
Remus- ::snickers::
Draco- ::smacks Remus:: Stop
listening to me!
Remus- ::pouts:: But it’s so much
fun!
Draco- ::glares at Remus::
Peeves wasn't helping matters; he kept
popping up in the crowded corridors singing "Oh, Potter, you rotter…"
now with a dance routine to match.
James- He must’ve made it longer to have added a dance routine. I
wonder how the rest of it goes?
Remus- ::looks about ready to sing
again::
James- Ack! Smother him!
Sirius- ::grins::
James- Not that way! With a pillow!
Sirius/Remus- ::pout::
Gilderoy
Lockhart
All but Destiny- ::groan::
Destiny- ::looks confused:: Who’s
he?
Harry- Defense Against the Dark Arts
teacher. Unfortunately.
James- He’s an egotistical moron…thinks
he’s so great.
Sirius- I know, really. I mean, I’m so
much better than him!
Remus- I’ll say.
Sirius- ::grins::
seemed to think he himself had made the
attacks stop.
James- How?
Sirius- Maybe the Heir was afraid
Lockhart’d corner him and demand to give him a bunch of autographs.
Harry- I wouldn’t put it past the
idiot.
Harry overheard him telling Professor
McGonagall so while the Gryffindors were lining up for Transfiguration.
"I
don't think there'll be any more trouble, Minerva," he said, tapping his
nose knowingly and winking. "I think the Chamber has been locked for good
this time. The culprit must have known it was only a matter of time before I
caught him. Rather sensible to stop now, before I came down hard on him.
"You know,
what the school needs now is a morale-booster. Wash away the memories of last
term! I won't say any more just now, but I think I know just the thing…."
Peter- I’m already dreading this one.
Harry/Draco-
So am I.
He tapped
his nose again and strode off.
Lockhart's
idea of a morale-booster became clear at breakfast time on February fourteenth.
Remus- ::starts humming an ominous tune::
James- …I’d tell him to shut up, but
I somehow feel that that may be fitting.
Harry hadn't had much sleep because of a
late-running Quidditch practice the night before,
James- Which means it was worth not being asleep.
Harry- I wish I’d never woken up.
and he hurried down to the Great Hall,
slightly late. He thought, for a moment, that he'd walked through the wrong
doors.
Sirius- Gee, I didn’t know the Great Hall liked to move!
Harry- It didn’t.
Sirius- Aw.
The walls
were all covered with large, lurid pink flowers.
All- Eww….
Worse still, heart-shaped confetti was
falling from the pale blue ceiling.
Destiny- Oh, isn’t that so…ugly?
Harry/Draco- It’s disgusting.
Harry went over to the Gryffindor table,
where Ron was sitting looking sickened,
Draco- Not that you can blame him.
and Hermione seemed to have been overcome
with giggles.
Lily- I bet I would’ve been giggling too.
"What's
going on?" Harry asked them, sitting down and wiping confetti off his
bacon.
Sirius- Pleasant. How nice that it tries to ruin your food too.
Remus- ::scowls::
And we all know confetti doesn’t taste good.
James- Wasn’t
he aiming for Peter that one time?
Peter-
::grins:: Good thing he missed. Remus got him back good.
Remus- Well,
he deserved it.
Destiny- What’d
you do?
Remus- That’s
my little secret.
Ron
pointed to the teachers' table, apparently too disgusted to speak. Lockhart,
wearing lurid pink robes
James- ::raises an eyebrow:: Straight men don’t wear pink. No offense,
Siri, Remy.
Sirius/Remus- None taken.
Sirius- Most gay
men don’t even wear pink!
Remus- And
you certainly wouldn’t catch me dead wearing it!
to match the decorations, was waving for
silence. The teachers on either side of him were looking stony-faced. From
where he sat, Harry could see a muscle going in Professor McGonagall's cheek.
Lily- She never was one for the color pink, if I remember correctly.
Sirius- ::pouts:: It wasn’t my
fault, you know. I was aiming for Corner (A/N: Potions. Dumb name. -_-),
but she just walked in my way! It was a complete accident!
Remus- ::pats Sirius’ head:: It’s
all right. We know.
Sirius- Woof, woof.
Snape looked as though someone had just fed
him a large beaker of Skele-Gro.
Sirius- But what bones did he use?
Remus- It was a figure of speech.
Sirius- I know. But I had to say
something stupid, didn’t I?
Remus- …
"Happy
Valentine's Day!" Lockhart shouted. "And may I thank the forty-six
people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of
arranging this little surprise for you all—and it doesn't end here!"
All- Oh no….
Lockhart
clapped his hands and through the doors to the entrance hall marched a dozen surly-looking
dwarfs.
All- ::look confused::
Not just any dwarfs, however. Lockhart had
them all wearing golden wings and carrying harps.
James- Golden wings?
Sirius- Harps?
"My
friendly, card-carrying cupids!"
Remus- Cupids?
beamed Lockhart. "They will be roving
around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn't stop
here!
James- Oh, I’m sure it does.
I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter
into the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to
whip up a Love Potion!
All- ::snicker::
Sirius- He’d need one to get anyone
to fall for him!
Destiny- Oh man, I wanna meet this
guy.
James- What for?
Destiny- I don’t know. Just because.
And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick
knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly
old dog!"
All- Ew….
Professor
Flitwick buried his face in his hands.
Lily- Poor Flitwick.
Snape was looking as though the first person
to ask him for a Love Potion would be force-fed poison.
Sirius- I wouldn’t put it past him.
"Please,
Hermione, tell me you weren't one of the forty-six,”
Sirius- ::snickers:: I’ll bet she was the first one.
Remus- I’m really starting to feel
sorry for that poor girl.
James- I can’t even begin to imagine
what she’ll do when she finally finds out what a fraud he is!
said Ron as they left the Great Hall for
their first lesson. Hermione suddenly became very interested in searching her
bag for her schedule and didn't answer.
All- ::snicker::
All day
long, the dwarfs kept barging into their classes to deliver valentines,
Peter- Oooh, Lockhart’s so going to get it from McGonagall.
to the annoyance of the teachers, and late
that afternoon as the Gryffindors were walking upstairs for Charms, one of the
dwarfs caught up with Harry.
Draco- ::starts laughing hysterically::
Harry- ::glares at Draco:: Shut. Up.
Draco- ::keeps laughing::
Harry- ::scowls, but ignores him and
reads::
"Oy,
you! 'Arty Potter!" shouted a particularly grim-looking dwarf, elbowing
people out of the way to get to Harry.
Marauders- ::grin:: I can’t wait to hear this one!
Harry-
::scowls::
Draco-
::still laughing::
Hot all
over at the thought of being given a valentine in front of a line of first
years,
All but Harry/Draco- Aww….
Draco- ::has dissolved into
giggles::
Harry- ::is looking at Draco like he
has two heads::
which happened to include Ginny Weasley,
James- Aw, I sense I romance blooming.
Sirius- ::pouts:: But I want Harry
to be gay like me!
Harry- ::stares wordlessly at
Sirius::
Draco- ::snorts and starts laughing
hysterically again::
Harry tried to escape. The dwarf, however,
cut his way through the crowd by kicking people's shins, and reached him before
he'd gone two paces.
Destiny- Wow, he’s fast!
"I've
got a musical message to deliver to 'Arry Potter in person," he said,
twanging his harp in a threatening sort of way.
Sirius- Muahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!
Peter-
::shudders:: I hate it when you do that!
Sirius-
::smirks::
"Not
here," Harry hissed, trying to escape.
"Stay
still!" grunted the dwarf, grabbing hold of Harry's bag and pulling
him back.
"Let
me go!" Harry snarled, tugging.
With a
loud ripping noise, his bag split in two.
Marauders/Destiny- ::snicker::
Harry- ::scowls::
His books, wand, parchment, and quill spilled
onto the floor and his ink bottle smashed over everything.
Sirius- Maybe it’s pink ink?
Harry- Maybe it’s not?
Harry
scrambled around, trying to pick it all up before the dwarf started singing,
causing something of a holdup in the corridor.
"What's
going on here?" came the cold, drawling voice of Draco Malfoy.
Harry- ::scowls again and glares at the now-giggling Draco::
Harry started stuffing everything feverishly
into his ripped bag, desperate to get away before Malfoy could hear his musical
valentine.
Draco- ::suddenly stops giggling:: Aww, Harry, I didn’t know you cared
what I thought so much!
Harry- ::glares furiously::
Draco- Meep! ::tries to move away
from Harry, only to discover that the bed has finally ran out of room:: …
Harry- … o.O
"What's
all this commotion?" said another familiar voice as Percy
Weasley
arrived.
Losing his
head, Harry tried to make a run for it, but the dwarf seized him around the
knees and brought him crashing to the floor.
All but Harry- ::wince:: Ow.
"Right,"
he said, sitting on Harry's ankles. "Here is your singing valentine:
Draco- ::suddenly starts giggling again::
His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,
His hair is as dark as a blackboard.
I wish he was mine, he's really divine,
The hero who conquered the Dark Lord
Draco- ::is now laughing hysterically again::
All but Harry- ::are laughing::
Harry- ::glares around at everyone
for a second before crossing his arms and pouting childishly::
(A few minutes later)
Harry- (still pouting) …Are you done
yet?
All but Draco- Yeah.
Draco- I think so.
Harry- ::glares at Draco::
Harry would
have given all the gold in Gringotts to evaporate on the spot. Trying valiantly
to laugh along with everyone else, he got up, his feet numb from the weight of
the dwarf, as Percy Weasley did his best to disperse the crowd, some of whom
were crying with mirth.
James- Not that you can blame them, really.
Harry- ::glares at James::
"Off
you go, off you go, the bell rang five minutes ago, off to class, now," he
said, shooing some of the younger students away. "And you,
Malfoy—"
Harry,
glancing over, saw Malfoy stoop and snatch up something. Leering, he showed it
to Crabbe and Goyle, and Harry realized that he'd got Riddle's diary.
Sirius- I bet you thought it was Harry’s, didn’t you?
Draco- …
"Give
that back," said Harry quietly.
"Wonder
what Potter's written in this?"
Sirius- ::snickers::
Draco- Shut up. I didn’t know it was
fifty years old!
said Malfoy, who obviously hadn't noticed the
year on the cover and thought he had Harry's own diary.
Sirius- Do you have a diary?
Harry- No. Why would I want to
remind myself of everything that’s happened in my life?
Sirius- …Good question.
A hush fell over the onlookers. Ginny was
staring from the diary to Harry, looking terrified.
James- (as Ginny) Oh no, isn’t that my diary? How did Harry get
it? Oh, I don’t want everyone to know what I’ve written in it!
Harry- …Shut up.
"Hand
it over, Malfoy," said Percy sternly.
"When
I've had a look," said Malfoy, waving the diary tauntingly at Harry.
Percy
said, "As a school prefect—"
Remus- (finishing Percy’s sentence) I feel it is necessary that I pretend
to have a stick up my arse at all times.
Others- ::snicker::
but Harry had lost his temper. He pulled out
his wand and shouted, Expelliarmus!" and just as Snape had disarmed
Lockhart, so Malfoy found the diary shooting out of his hand into the air.
Sirius- Woo, go Harry!
Harry- ::grins:: Thanks.
James- Harry: 1, Draco: 0
Remus- Ah, if only you’d thought to
count for the entire time we’d been reading.
James- I’d probably have lost count
how many times Harry’s upped Draco.
Draco- ::pouts::
Others- ::snicker::
Draco- Shut. UP!
Ron, grinning broadly, caught it.
"Harry!"
said Percy loudly. "No magic in the corridors. I'll have to report this,
you know!"
Harry- Big whoop.
But Harry
didn't care, he was one-up on Malfoy, and that was worth five points from
Gryffindor any day.
Draco- ::pouts more::
Malfoy was looking furious, and as Ginny
passed him to enter her classroom, he yelled spitefully after her, "I
don't think Potter liked your valentine much!"
All but Draco/Harry- ::glare at Draco::
Draco- Meep!
Ginny
covered her face with her hands and ran into class. Snarling, Ron pulled out
his wand, too, but Harry pulled him away. Ron didn't need to spend the whole of
Charms belching slugs.
All- ::snicker::
It wasn't
until they had reached Professor Flitwick's class that Harry noticed something
rather odd about Riddle's diary.
James- Don’t you think you’d have noticed it before?
Harry- …
All his other books were drenched in scarlet ink. The diary, however, was as clean as it had been before the ink bottle had smashed all over it. He tried to point this out to Ron, but Ron was having trouble with his wand again; large purple bubbles were blossoming out of the end, and he wasn’t much interested in anything else.
* * *
Harry went to
bed before anyone else in his dormitory that night.
James- What for?
This was partly because he didn't think he
could stand Fred and George singing, "His eyes are as green as a fresh
pickled toad" one more time,
Peter- I don’t blame you, really.
and partly because he wanted to examine
Riddle's diary again, and knew that Ron thought he was wasting his time.
Sirius- You are.
James- Big time.
Remus- Not anymore, he isn’t.
Harry sat
on his four-poster and flicked through the blank pages, not one of which had a
trace of scarlet ink on it. Then he pulled a new bottle
Sirius- And when’d he get this one?
Lily- He probably already had it
before.
out of his bedside cabinet, dipped his quill
into it, and dropped a blot onto the first page of the diary.
The ink
shone brightly on the paper for a second and then, as though it was being
sucked into the page, vanished.
All but Harry/Lily- Cooool!
Excited, Harry loaded up his quill a second
time and wrote, "My name is Harry Potter."
Sirius- No shit?
Destiny- And here I was thinking it
was Porry Hatter!
All but Sirius/Destiny- ::stare at
Destiny like she’s nuts::
Destiny- ::grins::
The words shone momentarily on the page and they, too, sank without trace. Then, at last, something happened.
Sirius- The ink
reappeared. It’s Disappearing-Reappearing Ink!
Remus-
Disappearing-Reappearing Ink?
Sirius- Well, it
would be pretty cool.
Oozing
back out of the page, in his very own ink, came words Harry had never written.
"Hello,
Harry Potter. My name is Tom Riddle. How did you come by my diary?"
James- Someone tried to flush it down a toilet.
Sirius- So why
anyone would want to pick it up is beyond me.
These words, too, faded away, but not before Harry had started to scribble back.
"Someone
tried to flush it down a toilet."
Remus- ::grins:: That’s exactly what James said!
James- Yay!
He waited
eagerly for Riddle's reply.
"Lucky
that I recorded my memories in some more lasting way than ink.
Remus- I want one of these.
Sirius- I think
you have to put a spell on a regular diary.
Remus-
::looks thoughtful:: You’re right. I’m definitely finding it when we get back
to school.
James- As if
you don’t spend enough time with your books already.
Remus- Oh,
shut up.
But I always
knew that there would be those who would not want this diary read."
"What do you mean?" Harry scrawled, blotting the page in his excitement.
Sirius- With what,
exactly?
Lily- … ::smacks
Sirius::
Sirius- Ow! Damn
it! I didn’t mean it like that!
“I mean
that this diary holds memories of terrible things. Things that were covered up.
Things that happened at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
"That's
where I am now," Harry wrote quickly. "I'm at Hogwarts, and horrible
stuff's been happening. Do you know anything about the Chamber of
Secrets?"
His heart
was hammering. Riddle's reply came quickly, his writing becoming untidier, as
though he was hurrying to tell all he knew.
"Of
course I know about the Chamber of Secrets. In my day, they told us it was a
legend, that it did not exist.
Sirius- Scholars are idiots.
Remus-
::scowls::
Sirius- Only not
you, Rem.
But this was a lie. In my fifth year, the
Chamber was opened and the monster attacked several students, finally killing
one. I caught the person who’d opened the Chamber and he was expelled.
Sirius- I
like this kid.
Harry- For
now, at least.
But the Headmaster, Professor Dippet, ashamed
that such a thing had happened at Hogwarts, forbade me to tell the truth. A
story was given out that the girl had died in a freak accident. They gave me a
nice, shiny, engraved trophy for my trouble
Peter- What, no money? What fun’s that?
Remus- Yeah!
James- ::shrugs:: Who cares?
and warned me to keep my mouth shut. But I
knew it could happen again. The monster lived on, and the one who had the power
to release it was not imprisoned. "
Harry nearly upset his ink bottle in his hurry to write back.
"It's
happening again now. There have been three attacks and no one seems to know
who's behind them. Who was it last time?"
"I
can show you, if you like, "came Riddle's reply. "You don't have to take
my word for it. I can take you inside my memory of the night when I caught him."
Remus- Whatever this spell is, it’s really cool.
Harry hesitated, his quill suspended over the diary. What did Riddle mean? How could he be taken inside somebody else's memory? He glanced nervously at the door to the dormitory, which was growing dark.
James- Doors grow?
Remus- …
Sirius- I have a
better question. Why did the door grow dark? Wouldn’t it have been the
slits around the door that was growing dark?
Remus- Yes.
Sirius- ::grins::
When he looked back at the diary, he saw fresh words forming.
"Let
me show you."
Harry
paused for a fraction of a second and then wrote two letters.
“OK.”
The pages
of the diary began to blow as though caught in a high wind, stopping halfway
through the month of June. Mouth hanging open, Harry saw that the little square
for June thirteenth seemed to have turned into a miniscule television screen.
His hands trembling slightly, he raised the book to press his eye against the little
window, and before he knew what was happening, he was tilting forward; the
window was widening, he felt his body leave his bed, and he was pitched
headfirst through the opening in the page, into a whirl of color and shadow.
He felt
his feet hit solid ground, and stood, shaking, as the blurred shapes around him
came suddenly into focus.
He knew
immediately where he was. This circular room with the sleeping portraits was
Dumbledore's office—but it wasn't Dumbledore who was sitting behind the desk.
James/Sirius/Peter- ::gasp:: Intruder!
Remus- No, Dumbledore’s not
Headmaster yet. Riddle said it was Dippet, remember?
James/Sirius/Peter- Oh yeah….
A wizened, frail-looking wizard, bald except
for a few wisps of white hair, was reading a letter by candlelight. Harry had
never seen this man before.
"I'm
sorry," he said shakily. "I didn't mean to butt in—"
But the
wizard didn't look up. He continued to read, frowning slightly. Harry drew
nearer to his desk and stammered, "Er—I'll just go, shall I?"
Sirius- Um, Harry…I don’t think he can hear you….
Harry- I
know.
Still the
wizard ignored him. He didn't seem even to have heard him. Thinking that the
wizard might be deaf, Harry raised his voice.
"Sorry
I disturbed you. I'll go now," he half-shouted.
The wizard
folded up the letter with a sigh, stood up, walked past Harry without glancing
at him, and went to draw the curtains at his window.
The sky
outside the window was ruby-red; it seemed to be sunset. The wizard went back
to the desk, sat down, and twiddled his thumbs,
Sirius/Destiny- That’s fun!
Remus- You would think so.
watching the door.
Harry
looked around the office. No Fawkes the phoenix
James- Fawkes obviously belongs to Dumbledore.
—no whirring
silver contraptions. This was Hogwarts as Riddle had known it, meaning that
this unknown wizard was Headmaster, not Dumbledore, and he, Harry, was little
more than a phantom, completely invisible to the people of fifty years ago.
There was
a knock on the office door.
"Enter,"
said the old wizard in a feeble voice.
Peter- How can you be Headmaster if you’re so old you don’t even have the strength to talk properly?
Sirius-
Really. All Headmasters should be like Dumbledore.
James- Wouldn’t
that be nice?
A boy of about
sixteen entered, taking off his pointed hat. A silver prefect's badge was
glinting on his chest. He was much taller than Harry, but he, too, had
jet-black hair.
James- That’s
absolutely fascinating.
"Ah,
Riddle," said the Headmaster.
"You
wanted to see me, Professor Dippet?" said Riddle. He looked nervous.
"Sit
down," said Dippet. "I've just been reading the letter you sent me.”
"Oh,"
said Riddle. He sat down, gripping his hands together very tightly.
Sirius- What about his hat?
James- Maybe
he dropped it?
Destiny-
Maybe he just set it down on his lap?
"My
dear boy," said Dippet kindly, "I cannot possibly let you stay at
school over the summer. Surely you want to go home for the holidays?"
"No,"
said Riddle at once. "I’d much rather stay at Hogwarts than go back to
that—to that—"
"You
live in a Muggle orphanage during the holidays, I believe?" said Dippet
curiously.
"Yes,
sir," said Riddle, reddening slightly.
"You
are Muggle-born?"
"Half-blood,
sir," said Riddle. "Muggle father, witch mother."
"And
are both your parents—?"
"My
mother died just after I was born, sir. They told me at the orphanage she lived
just long enough to name me—Tom after my father, Marvolo after my
grandfather."
Dippet
clucked his tongue sympathetically.
"The
thing is, Tom," he sighed, "Special arrangements might have been made
for you, but in the current circumstances…."
"You
mean all these attacks, sir?" said Riddle, and Harry's heart leapt, and he
moved closer, scared of missing anything.
"Precisely,"
said the headmaster. "My dear boy, you must see how foolish it would be of
me to allow you to remain at the castle when term ends. Particularly in light
of the recent tragedy…the death of that poor little girl…. You will be safer by
far at your orphanage. As a matter of fact, the Ministry of Magic is even now
talking about closing the school.
All- NO!
We are no nearer locating the—er—source of
all this unpleasantness…."
Riddle's
eyes had widened.
"Sir—if
the person was caught—if it all stopped—"
"What
do you mean?" said Dippet with a squeak in his voice, sitting up in his
chair. "Riddle, do you mean you know something about these attacks?"
"No,
sir," said Riddle quickly.
But Harry
was sure it was the same sort of "no" that he himself had given
Dumbledore.
Sirius- Maybe he’s causing them?
James- No,
then he’d have gotten himself expelled.
Sirius- Oh. Right.
Dippet
sank back, looking faintly disappointed.
“You may
go, Tom….”
Riddle
slid off his chair and slouched out of the room. Harry followed him.
Down the
moving spiral staircase they went, emerging next to the gargoyle in the
darkening corridor. Riddle stopped, and so did Harry, watching him. Harry could
tell that Riddle was doing some serious thinking. He was biting his lip, his
forehead furrowed.
Then, as
though he had suddenly reached a decision, he hurried off, Harry gliding
Sirius- You weren’t walking? Just sort of floating above the floor?
Harry- …No. I was walking.
Sirius- ::looks disappointed:: Oh.
noiselessly behind him. They didn't see
another person until they reached the entrance hall, when a tall wizard with
long, sweeping auburn hair and a beard called to Riddle from the marble
staircase.
“What are
you doing, wandering around this late, Tom?"
Harry
gaped at the wizard. He was none other than a fifty-year-younger Dumbledore.
All but Harry/Draco- Neat!
"I
had to see the headmaster, sir," said Riddle.
"Well,
hurry off to bed," said Dumbledore, giving Riddle exactly the kind of penetrating
stare Harry knew so well. "Best not to roam the corridors these days. Not
since…"
Sirius- The Chamber of Secrets was opened?
He sighed
heavily, bade Riddle good night, and strode off. Riddle watched him walk out of
sight and then, moving quickly, headed straight down the stone steps to the
dungeons, with Harry in hot pursuit.
But to
Harry's disappointment, Riddle led him not into a hidden passageway or a secret
tunnel but to the very dungeon in which Harry had Potions with Snape.
Sirius- Oh, yay. Like you need any reminders of that git.
The torches hadn't been lit, and when Riddle
pushed the door almost closed, Harry could only just see him, standing
stock-still by the door, watching the passage outside.
It felt to
Harry that they were there for at least an hour.
James- Gee, that sounds like fun.
Sirius- How can anyone sit that
still for so long?
All he could see was the figure of Riddle at
the door, staring through the crack, waiting like a statue. And just when Harry
had stopped feeling expectant and tense and started wishing he could return to
the present, he heard something move beyond the door.
Marauders/Destiny- YAY!
Someone
was creeping along the passage. He heard whoever it was pass the dungeon where
he and Riddle were hidden. Riddle, quiet as a shadow, edged through the door
and followed, Harry tiptoeing behind him, forgetting that he couldn't be heard.
All but Harry- ::snicker::
For
perhaps five minutes they followed the footsteps, until Riddle stopped
suddenly, his head inclined in the direction of new noises. Harry heard a door
creak open, and then someone speaking in a hoarse whisper.
"C'mon…gotta get yeh outta here…. C'mon
now…in the box…"
There was
something familiar about that voice….
Riddle
suddenly jumped around the corner. Harry stepped out behind him. He could see
the dark outline of a huge boy who was crouching in front of an open door, a
very large box next to it.
"Evening,
Rubeus," said Riddle sharply.
The boy
slammed the door shut and stood up.
"What
yer doin' down here, Tom?"
Riddle
stepped closer.
"It's
all over," he said. "I'm going to have to turn you in, Rubeus.
They're talking about closing Hogwarts if the attacks don't stop."
"What
d'yeh—"
"I
don't think you meant to kill anyone. But monsters don't make good pets. I
suppose you just let it out for exercise and—"
"It
never killed no one!" said the large boy, backing against the closed door.
From behind him, Harry could hear a funny rustling and clicking.
"Come
on, Rubeus," said Riddle, moving yet closer. "The dead girl's parents
will be here tomorrow. The least Hogwarts can do is make sure that the thing
that killed their daughter is slaughtered….”
"It
wasn't him!" roared the boy, his voice echoing in the dark passage.
"He wouldn'! He never!"
"Stand
aside," said Riddle, drawing out his wand.
His spell
lit the corridor with a sudden flaming light. The door behind the large boy
flew open with such force it knocked him into the wall opposite. And out of it
came something that made Harry let out a long, piercing scream unheard by
anyone—
A vast,
low-slung, hairy body and a tangle of black legs; a gleam of many eyes and a
pair of razor-sharp pincers—Riddle raised his wand again, but he was too late.
The thing bowled him over as it scuttled away, tearing up the corridor and out
of sight. Riddle scrambled to his feet, looking after it; he raised his wand,
but the huge boy leapt on him, seized his wand, and threw him back down,
yelling, "NOOOOOOO!"
The scene
whirled, the darkness became complete; Harry felt himself falling and, with a
crash, he landed spread-eagled on his four-poster in the Gryffindor dormitory,
Riddle's diary lying open on his stomach.
Before he
had had time to regain his breath, the dormitory door opened and Ron came in.
Peter- Good timing.
"There
you are," he said.
Harry sat
up. He was sweating and shaking.
"What's
up?" said Ron, looking at him with concern.
"It
was Hagrid, Ron. Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago."
Sirius- Hagrid?
No! He wouldn’t!
Remus- I don’t
know, Siri. If he had heard about some monster locked away somewhere….
Sirius- But
still, he must’ve known it’d be dangerous….
James-
Sirius, this was the guy that bought and illegal dragon egg, and tried to raise
it himself.
Sirius-
::bites his lip:: I know, but….
Lily- Maybe
it wasn’t really him.
Marauders/Destiny-
Huh?
Lily- He said
that…whatever the creature he had was hadn’t killed anyone. Hagrid isn’t a good
liar, you know that.
Peter- But if
he didn’t know it’d killed someone.
Harry-
::clears his throat:: Hey, guys, the book?
Sirius- Oh,
right! Maybe everything’ll be cleared up eventually. Hurry and—
(There’s a
knock at the door and then it begins to open.)
Harry-
::shoves the book in Draco’s hands and dives under the bed::
James’ Mom-
Do you people plan on sleeping any time soon?
James/Sirius-
Awww, Mum!
James-
::smacks Sirius::
Sirius- Ow!
::rubs his head and pouts::
James’ Mom-
Go to bed. Lily, show Destiny to your room, please?
Lily- Sure
thing, Mrs. Potter.
James’ Mom-
Thank you. ::leaves::
Harry-
::crawls out from under the bed, rubbing his head:: Ow. I’ve got to stop
hitting my head!
Others-
::snicker::
Lily- Good
night, everyone! Come on, Destiny. ::starts walking out of the room::
Destiny-
Okies! Sweet dreams! ::bounces off after Lily::
James- So, uh…we
sleep where….
Sirius- I’m
with Remy! ::grabs Remus in a hug::
James-
::rolls his eyes:: I figured that.
Peter- I…uh,
James, can I stay with you?
Sirius- What’s
wrong, Pete, scared of the dark?
Peter- No,
scared of the Malfoy.
Draco-
::pouts::
Harry- You’re
pouting.
Draco-
::glares at Harry::
James- Uh.
You two don’t mind sharing a room, do you…?
Harry- Uh…I
guess not….
Draco-
::glares at James::
Remus-
::snickers::
Draco- Shut
up, Remus!
Remus-
::grins and then waves as he walks out::
Sirius-
::grins and follows Remus::
Peter- G’night!
::bounces into Sirius’ bed::
James- Don’t
kill each other in that room, you hear me?
Harry- We’ll
try not to.
Draco- …
James- Uh…do
you think you should take the Cloak again, Harry?
Harry-
::shrugs:: Guess so.
James-
::pulls the Cloak out and hands it to Harry::
Draco-
::stares at the Cloak, mouth open::
Harry/James-
::snicker::
Harry- ::puts
the Cloak on and grabs Draco’s arm:: C’mon, Draco, let’s go. ::starts walking
out::
Draco- ::stumbles along behind Harry:: (whining) I want an Invisibility Cloak!
James- ::snickers and then gets in his bed::
Okies, time for some notes. That is, of course, assuming I remember what I was going to ramble about….
Oh, right! OotP. (BTW, thanks for bringing that up,
Shei.) Okay, there will be a few facts from the book, but, as I had
finished most of this before it ever came out, you can’t expect all that many.
For example, I’ve done a little thing in changing James’ eye color, which you
may have noticed in the last chapter when Sirius was introducing everyone to
Destiny. I said James’ eyes were blue, rather than hazel as it says in the
book. (I’m surprised I remember that, too. I usually need to read a book twice
before I really remember anything small.) You may have also noticed a little
thing earlier when James said something about Sirius’ family not being like
most Pureblood families in context to not associating with Muggles. I’m
beginning to get an idea to explain some of this, actually. The one thing I’ll
say right now is that this world in which we’ve met all the Marauders is an
Alternate Universe. That gives me a good excuse for things that aren’t canon,
right? On the other hand, in Harry and Draco’s Universe, some things will be
different…James’ eyes were hazel, Sirius had a different family, you know, that
kind of stuff. I’m thinking of everything, don’t worry. It’ll be explained
eventually. I hope. I’ll need to read everything about Siri’s family again
first…. Oi, I’m going to be forced into thinking now, aren’t I? ::pouts::
Um…was going to say something else. …Right! Be prepared
for some side stories soon. ::grins:: One between Harry and Draco (Draco POV),
and the other (or two others, depending on how much I feel like writing) between Remus and Sirius (Remus POV). Am also
considering a story about exactly what the Malfoys did to Sirius. ::grins::
Should be interesting.
One final note…that doesn’t have anything to do with
MSB…. I would like to state right now that I do not enjoy getting poked
with sharp objects. And I’ve got to get some stupid shots on the eleventh. I
don’t like needles, damn it! ::sniffles:: Oh well, I’ll live. ^_____^
