29. Her Skeleton Will Lie in the Chamber Forever
Hope sat at breakfast the next morning with Ron and Harry, the boys having come to the same conclusion she had.
"All those times we were in that bathroom, and she was just three toilets away," Ron muttered bitterly. "And we could've asked her, and now..."
Hope stabbed at her toast, appetite nonexistent. It had been hard enough tracking down spiders. Now, sneaking into a girls' bathroom—the girls' bathroom, right next to the scene of the first attack—felt nearly impossible.
But before they could come up with a plan, something happened in their first lesson, Transfiguration, that pushed the Chamber of Secrets from their minds for the first time in weeks.
Ten minutes into class, Professor McGonagall straightened her glasses and announced, "Your exams will begin on the first of June, one week from today."
"Exams?" Seamus Finnigan howled. "We're still getting exams?"
Hope groaned, sinking lower in her chair.
A loud bang made her jump. Neville's wand had slipped, vanishing one of the legs on his desk. Professor McGonagall restored it with a flick of her own wand, then turned to Seamus with a sharp look.
"The whole point of keeping the school open is for you to receive your education," she said sternly. "The exams will therefore take place as usual, and I trust you are all revising hard."
Revising hard? Hope hadn't even started revising. It hadn't even occurred to her that exams would still be happening with the castle in this state.
The room filled with mutinous murmuring, which only deepened McGonagall's scowl.
"Professor Dumbledore's instructions were to keep the school running as normally as possible," she continued. "And that, I need hardly point out, means finding out how much you have learned this year."
Hope stared blankly at her desk, her brain a complete fog. Across from her, Harry was frowning at the pair of white rabbits he was meant to be turning into slippers, clearly struggling to recall anything useful. Ron, on the other hand, looked like he'd just been sentenced to live in the Forbidden Forest.
"Can you imagine me taking exams with this?" he muttered, holding up his wand, which had just started whistling loudly.
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Three days before their first exam, Professor McGonagall made another announcement at breakfast.
"I have good news," she said, and the Great Hall erupted.
"Dumbledore's coming back!" several people yelled joyfully.
"You've caught the Heir of Slytherin!" squealed a girl at the Ravenclaw table.
"Quidditch matches are back on!" Wood roared excitedly.
When the noise finally died down, Professor McGonagall continued, her expression stern but hopeful.
"Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes are ready for cutting at last. Tonight, we will be able to revive those who have been Petrified. I need hardly remind you all that one of them may well be able to tell us who, or what, attacked them. I am hopeful that this dreadful year will end with our catching the culprit."
A wave of relief washed over Hope. Hermione and all the others would be up soon. And finally they would get some answers.
The hall erupted into cheers once more. Hope glanced over at the Slytherin table and, unsurprisingly, Malfoy didn't join in. Ron, on the other hand, was grinning wider than he had in days.
"It won't matter that we never asked Myrtle, then!" he said, "Hermione'll probably have all the answers when they wake her up! Mind you, she'll go mad when she finds out we've got exams in three days' time. She hasn't revised. It might be kinder to leave her where she is till they're over."
"Please, it's Hermione," Hope interjected, a faint smile playing on her lips. "She'll be more upset if she misses the exams altogether. Honestly, I think she only revises for fun."
Just then, Ginny Weasley approached, sinking into the seat beside Ron. Her hands twisted nervously in her lap, her face pale and drawn.
"What's up?" Ron asked, digging into his porridge without looking up.
Ginny said nothing. Her wide eyes darted around the Gryffindor table as if she expected someone to be watching. Hope's smile faded.
"Ginny, is something wrong?" she asked, concern prickling at her. The younger girl's anxious expression was unsettling, and Hope couldn't shake the gnawing sense that something wasn't right.
"I've got to tell you something," Ginny mumbled, her gaze stubbornly avoiding Harry's.
"What is it?" Harry prompted gently.
Ginny's mouth opened, but no words came out. Her trembling hands clenched tighter. Ron's brow furrowed.
"What?" he repeated, more impatiently now.
Harry leaned in, lowering his voice so only Ginny, Ron, and Hope could hear. "Is it something about the Chamber of Secrets? Have you seen something? Someone acting oddly?"
Ginny took a shaky breath, and for a moment, it seemed like she might finally speak. But just then, Percy appeared, his face lined with exhaustion.
"If you've finished eating, I'll take that seat, Ginny. I'm starving; I've only just come off patrol duty."
Ginny jumped as though her chair had jolted her. Without another word, she shot Percy a terrified look and fled. Hope's stomach twisted as she watched her disappear through the doors.
"Percy!" Ron scowled. "She was just about to tell us something important!"
Percy, mid-gulp of tea, choked and sputtered. "What sort of thing?" he asked, coughing.
"I just asked her if she'd seen anything odd, and she started to say—" Harry began.
"Oh... that... that's nothing to do with the Chamber of Secrets," Percy said quickly.
"How do you know?" Ron challenged, his brows shooting up.
Percy hesitated, his composure visibly slipping. "Well, er, if you must know, Ginny, er, walked in on me the other day when I was... well, never mind... the point is, she spotted me doing something, and I... um... I asked her not to mention it to anybody. I must say, I did think she'd keep her word. It's nothing, really, I'd just rather..."
He trailed off, clearly uncomfortable. Hope's frown deepened. Whatever had scared Ginny, it wasn't just some embarrassing run-in with Percy. There was something more—something that terrified her.
"Are you sure?" she pressed, unease gnawing at her. "She looked... terrified."
"Very sure," Percy interrupted firmly, avoiding her gaze.
Percy's usual air of self-importance had crumbled. Hope had never seen him so uneasy.
"What were you doing, Percy?" Ron asked, wiith a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Go on, tell us, we won't laugh."
Percy didn't return the grin. "Pass me those rolls, Harry. I'm starving."
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That afternoon, while Ron and Harry trailed behind to sneak off and talk to Myrtle, Hope followed the rest of the Gryffindors, her mind already turning to the looming exams. She needed to revise. She could practically hear Hermione's voice in her head, sharp and exasperated.
"Hope, how could you get this close to exams without preparing?"
The thought brought a small smile to her face. Truthfully, she was looking forward to that familiar scolding—Hermione waking up, fussing over notes and schedules. That would mean everything was back to normal.
As they neared the Gryffindor Tower, something caught Hope's eye. Ginny was slipping away from the group, her shoulders hunched and her movements quick, as though hoping no one would notice. The anxious knot that had been sitting in Hope's chest all day tightened. Ginny had looked terrified earlier. Whatever Percy had been covering up, Hope couldn't believe it explained the look on her face.
Without thinking, she slowed her pace, letting the others pull ahead before she quietly veered off to follow.
They narrowly missed a few passing teachers and prefects, but no matter how many times Hope whispered her name, Ginny didn't respond. She never even turned around. The further they went, the more Hope's worry grew. Finally, she caught up, grabbing Ginny's arm.
"Ginny, what are you doing?" Hope's voice was laced with concern.
But Ginny didn't answer. When Hope met her eyes, a chill ran down her spine. They were glossed over, vacant. Completely passive. It was so unlike any Weasley—they were an expressive bunch by nature. This emptiness... it wasn't Ginny.
"Ginny?" Hope shook her gently, trying to snap her out of whatever trance she was in. "Ginny!"
Still nothing. Panic gnawed at her, so she shook her a little harder.
Finally, Ginny blinked, her eyes clearing with sudden confusion. But then, as her awareness returned, her face twisted in horror.
"Ginny, are you alright? You can't just wander off like that! The monster is still out there! And what is going on with you? You looked like you were in some kind of trance—"
Hope's rambling came to an abrupt stop as Ginny's face crumpled, tears spilling down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry," Ginny sobbed, her voice trembling.
Hope's heart twisted. "Sorry for what?"
"I didn't mean to," Ginny sobbed, her voice barely above a whisper. "He made me. I-I didn't want to..."
"Who made you?" Hope pressed gently, though panic was beginning to rise. "Ginny, what are you talking about?"
Ginny squeezed her eyes shut, tears streaking down her cheeks. Her voice was broken and strangled.
It didn't make sense. Riddle had gone to Hogwarts years ago. How could he have done anything now? How had he made Ginny do it? And what exactly had he made her do?
Her thoughts spun wildly. None of it explained the petrified students or the monster lurking in the castle. Was it a creature? Was it Ginny... in that vacant, catatonic state?
Hope forced herself to breathe, to stay focused.
"Okay, it's alright. We'll find a teacher. Professor McGonagall will know what to do," she said, her hands still steadying Ginny as she anxiously scanned the corridor.
Her eyes darted down the empty corridor, searching desperately for a teacher. For weeks, she couldn't so much as sneeze without one hovering nearby. Now, when she needed one most, there was no one in sight.
She never saw the change come over Ginny's face.
Her eyes glazed once more, the fear wiped away, replaced with an unsettling blankness.
And then...
CRACK!
Ginny, no longer in control, slammed Hope's head into the stone wall with terrifying force.
Hope crumpled to the ground, her body motionless. Crimson spread across the corridor floor, a dark pool beneath her head.
The girl who had been Ginny knelt beside her, her face cold and void of emotion. She dipped her fingers into the blood, dragging them purposefully across the wall.
When she stepped back, the chilling message was complete.
"Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever."
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After seeing Hermione unable to get to Myrtle's bathroom, Ron and Harry had made a beeline to the staff room. Harry had found a piece of paper, a torn page from an old library book, clenched tightly in Hermione's petrified grip. A paper on basilisk's. She had done it — Hermione had figured out what the monster was. She just hadn't gotten the chance to tell anyone before she was petrified herself.
The pieces fit. The monster was a basilisk, and it all seemed to click into place. The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets had to be somewhere in Myrtle's bathroom.
They ran downstairs, their footsteps echoing in the empty corridor. Not wanting to be caught lurking about, they slipped straight into the deserted staff room. It was a large, paneled chamber filled with dark wooden chairs. Neither of them could sit still. Harry paced, his mind racing, while Ron fidgeted nervously.
But the bell never came.
Instead, Professor McGonagall's voice, magically magnified, echoed through the castle.
"All students to return to their house dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please."
Harry spun to Ron, dread twisting his stomach.
"Not another attack? Not now?" Harry said.
Ron's face had gone pale. "What'll we do? Go back to the dormitory?"
"No," Harry said, glancing around. There was an ugly old wardrobe to his left, crammed with the teachers' cloaks. "In here. Let's hear what it's all about. Then we can tell them what we've found."
Without another word, they ducked inside the wardrobe, pulling the heavy cloaks around them. The musty smell of fabric and dust enveloped them as they peered through a small crack. Moments later, the sound of hurried footsteps filled the air, and the staff-room door banged open. Teachers filed in, their faces drawn and anxious. Some whispered to each other, their concern palpable. Others simply stood, grim-faced and silent. Then Professor McGonagall arrived, her expression somber.
"It has happened," she said, the weight of her words silencing the room. "A student has been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself."
A squeal of shock escaped Professor Flitwick. Professor Sprout's hands flew to her mouth, her eyes wide. Snape, gripping the back of a chair, spoke through clenched teeth.
"How can you be sure?"
"The heir of Slytherin left another message," McGonagall said, her face pale. "Right underneath the first one. 'Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever.'"
Professor Flitwick's tears fell freely now, his sobs muffled as he wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
"It was written in blood," McGonagall added, her voice trembling. "The blood of a student... who was collapsed underneath the message."
"Who?" Flitwick's voice cracked, his face streaked with tears.
"Oh, poor Hope Lupin," McGonagall answered, wringing her hands. The image of Hope's crumpled figure flashed in her mind.
Ron and Harry stilled, their breaths catching in their throats. Harry's heart pounded uncomfortably, a cold knot of dread twisting in his stomach. Ron's face had gone pale, the freckles standing out starkly against his skin. The shock hit them both hard, and fear quickly followed. Hope had been hurt. She wasn't petrified like Hermione—there was blood. She could be—
Harry's thoughts raced, conjuring the worst possibilities. Ron's hands gripped the fabric of his robes tightly, his knuckles going white. He shook his head slightly, as though trying to deny the crushing reality of the news.
"Is she alright?" Professor Sprout asked, her voice trembling with concern.
McGonagall nodded. "Madam Pomfrey is tending to her in the hospital wing."
Relief flickered for a brief moment in Harry's chest, but it did little to calm the fear still twisting inside him. Hope was alive, but what had happened? How badly was she hurt? The image of her lying in a pool of her own blood flashed through his mind, making him feel sick.
Ron swallowed hard, his voice barely above a whisper. "She'll be okay, right? She has to be."
"But who was taken into the Chamber?" Madam Hooch's voice broke the silence as she sank, weak-kneed, into a chair. "Which student?"
"Ginny Weasley," McGonagall said softly.
Harry felt Ron slide to the floor beside him, his face pale as a ghost. His mouth opened as though to speak, but no sound came.
"We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow," McGonagall said. "This is the end of Hogwarts. Dumbledore always said ..."
The door banged open again. Harry's heart leapt, hoping for Dumbledore. But no. It was Lockhart, beaming, completely oblivious to the gravity of the moment.
"So sorry! Dozed off! What have I missed?"
No one returned his grin. In fact, the teachers were glaring at him with something remarkably close to hatred. Snape stepped forward, his expression malicious.
"Just the man," he said coldly. "The very man. A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last."
Lockhart's face drained of color.
"That's right, Gilderoy," Professor Sprout added, her voice sharp. "You were just saying last night that you've always known where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is."
"I—well, I—" Lockhart stammered, sweat forming on his brow.
"Yes," Flitwick piped up, his usual cheerful demeanor gone. "Didn't you tell me you knew exactly what was inside it?"
"D-did I? I don't recall ..."
Snape's eyes gleamed dangerously. "I remember you saying you regretted not handling the monster yourself before Hagrid was arrested. Didn't you say it had all been bungled and that you should've been given a free rein?"
Lockhart's panicked gaze darted around the room, searching desperately for support. But none came.
"We'll leave it to you, then, Gilderoy," McGonagall said icily. "Tonight will be an excellent time to act. We'll ensure you're undisturbed. A free rein at last."
Lockhart's trembling hands twisted at his cloak. "V-very well," he croaked. "I'll be in my office... getting... ready."
He fled, leaving the room in tense silence.
"Right," McGonagall said, her nostrils flaring. "That's got him out of our way. The Heads of Houses will inform their students. The Hogwarts Express will depart first thing tomorrow. Everyone else, ensure no students are left wandering outside their dormitories."
One by one, the teachers rose and left, their expressions grim. Hidden in the shadows, Ron and Harry exchanged a worried glance, the weight of everything crashing down around them.