Humble & Wild

After Terra explained what happened to Hermione, Harry and Ron explained to her about Malfoy not being the Hier of Slytherin, but the news that Malfoy’s father informed his son about the chambers had been open 50 years ago and a Muggleborn had lost their life to the Slytherin’s monster, and that the person who did had been caught, seemed to only add more questions then before, and knowing Malfoy is not the culprit they could not find any more leads to who it is. She and the boys would go to the Hospital Wing every evening to visit Hermione who is still recovering from the Polyjuice mix-up, when the term started they brought her homework, one evening they gave Hermione the Potion assignment that was way too much for a second-year class, but Snape was being Snape, they could do nothing about it.

When Madam Pomfrey shooed them away so Hermione can have her remedy potions, they made there way to Gryffindor tower to do their own homework, seeing how Hermione was in the Hospital Wing Terra would help Harry and Ron with their own work, much to Ron delight. On the way they heard Filch complaining about something that made heading off to Dumbledore’s office, when they reach the corner a flood of water reaching up below their ankles.

“Looks like Moaning Myrtle’s flooded the bathroom,” said Harry.

So the three head towards the out of order bathroom, ignoring the sign like many times before, the taps were on full blast that seemed to be the main cause of the flooded corridor, they soon hear Myrtle sobbing up in the stone wall near a circle glass window, the ghost girl spotted the Gryffindor boys and Hufflepuff girl.  

“Come to throw something else at me?” she asked them.

“Why would we throw something at you?” Terra replied.

“Don’t asked me, here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it funny to throw a book at me.”

“But it can’t hurt if someone throws something at you,” Ron said. “I mean, it’ll just go right through you.”

Terra immediately placed her hand over her eyes, quietly groan, knowing that Ron should not have said that to a ghost, especially to a ghost who is sensitive like Myrtle.

“OH SURE!” Myrtle shouted as she flew straight at Ron, clearly enraged. “Let’s all throw books Myrtle because she cant feel it, 10 points if you get it through her stomach!” she punches though Ron’s stomach. “Fifty points if it goes through her HEAD!” and then punches Ron’s head, leaving the boy in a small shock, as if one goes though a ghost one would get a chill over them, like stepping into cold shower.

“But who throw it at you anyway?” Harry asked.

“I don’t know I didn’t see them,” Myrtle replied, turning her attention to him. “I was just thinking in the u-bend, thinking about death, and it feel through the top of my head.”

Myrtle then headed back to her toilet while moaning insignificantly, Terra spotted the book, it was small with a black leather cover completely soaked, Harry and Ron looked over her shoulder as she looked at the cover, on the back in faded gold print letters was a name.

“T. M. Riddle?” Harry read out loud.

“Hang on,” said Ron. “I know that name, T.M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago.”

Harry and Terra stared at him.

“How on earth d’you know that?” said Harry in amazement.

“Because Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times in detention,” said Ron resentfully. “That’s was the one I burped slugs all over, if you’d wiped slime off a name for an hour, you’d remember it, too.”

Terra handed the book to Harry after he pointed out that the book was bought in a muggle shop, looking though the soaked pages and not a single page had been written on.

At the beginning of February, Hermione left the Hospital Wing no more looking like a cat, when they showed her the book, she pointed out that this T.M. Riddle was at Hogwarts when the Chambers opened fifty years and might know the person who got caught and expelled , but with nothing written in it, there is no knowing the name of the person who open it in the first place. However since the last attack, the students and staff where starting to relax a little, when Terra and the Golden Trio overheard Lockhart talking to McGonagall outside the Deputy’s classroom, well I say talking more like self-proclaimed that he stopped the attacks himself and saying something about giving the school a surprise, the Hufflepuff did not like the sound of that, and by the looks on Harry and Ron’s faces so did they.

The surprise that Lockhart mention was revealed on Valentines Day, when Terra  entered the Great Hall that morning she jumped back in shock, the walls where covered in pink flowers and heart shape confetti was falling from the bewitched ceiling. She sat next to Rolf, both trying to eat breakfast but seem to be getting confetti on it instead, she looked over at the Gryffindor table seeing Harry sitting down next to a disgusted Ron and a giggling Hermione. When Lockhart did his speech, Terra did not really listen till the Dwarfs dressed up a cupids came into the Hall, and they did not look pleased at all. It turns out that their job was to go around passing Valentine cards to the students for the day,

On their way to Terra spotted Rolf being approached by the Ravenclaw Luna Lovegood, she skipped toward the Hufflepuff boy then handed him a letter, waving goodbye before skipping away, Terra saw him pocketed the letter inside as she walked to class. The whole day the Dwarfs would walk in interrupt the lesson to pass the message either by passing them a letter or to the receiver horror a singing message. Terra thought I would be a miracle if see could remember half of the lessons from the amount of disruption Lockhart’s Dwarfs, she and many others were at their wits end. Harry lost his when one Dwarf gave him a singing letter after trying to get away ended up with his school bag being ripped in two, and after his message was done, Draco pick up unknowingly Riddles Diary and before he could open it, Harry hexed the book out of the Slytherins hand. And seeing how Malfoy had to do something to mend his wounded pride, he commented on Ginny who was on her way to class, saying that Harry didn’t seem to like her Valentine, leaving the poor redhead in tears, Terra made a mental note to cheer Ginny up when she would head to Gryffindor Tower for catching up on homework. 

The next morning; Harry, Hermione and Ron meet up with Terra in the courtyard after she took care of her creatures, where she is being told of what Harry discovered last night.

“It was Hagrid,” said Harry as the group walked along the grounds “Hagrid open the chamber of secrets 50 years ago.”

“It can’t be Hagrid, it just can’t be,” Hermione disagreed.

Terra agreed, sure Hagrid may be into dangerous creatures, but he would never harm anyone.

“We don’t even know this Tom Riddle,” said Ron. “He sounds like a dirty rotten snitch to me.”

“The monster had killed someone Ron, what would any of us have done?” Harry pointed out.

“Look, Hagrid’s our friend, why don’t we just go and ask him about it?” Hermione suggested.

“That would be a cheerful visit,” Ron commented. “Hello Hagrid, tell us have you been setting anything mad and hairy loose in the castle lately?”

While Ron said that Terra noticed a tall shadow hang over them, she turned around as Hagrid spoke.

“Mad and hairy?” the Gryffindors turned around too. “You wouldn’t be talking about me now would ya?”

“No!” the four of them sync quickly.

Hagrid seemed taken back by how they responded fast.

“W-What’s that you got Hagrid?” Terra asked to break the awkward silence.

“Oh it’s uh, Flesh-Eating Slug Repellent,” he replied holding the canister up. “For the Mandrakes, ya k’now, now acorrdin to Professor Sprout, they’ve still got a bit of growin’ up to do, but once their acne’s cleared up, we’ll be able to chop them up and stew them, and then we’ll get those people at the Hospital un-Petrified.”

“Good” Terra replied with a small smile.

“In the meantime, though, you four had best be lookin’ after yourselves, all righ’?”

The four of them nodded, Hagrid turned and walked away heading inside, Neville ran pass the Grounds Keeper the look of horror on his face as he stopped in front of them.

“Harry! I don’t know who did it, but you’d better come, come on!”

They followed after Neville to Gryffindor Tower and all the way up to the Second-Year boy’s Dormitory, they stopped at the sight, Ron swore loudly, the room was trashed, were Harry’s bed was the mattress was flipped, bed sheets ripped, as well as his pillow the feathers where everywhere, the dresser draws are open and everything in them where on the floor, all the pockets where turned inside out, and all of his books where torn.     

“It had to be a Gryffindor,” said Hermione as Harry searches his books. “Nobody else knows our password, unless it wasn’t a student.”

“Whoever it was, they were looking for something,” Ron said pointing at the turned-out pockets.

“And they found it,” said Harry. “Tom Riddle’s diary is gone.”

After double checking that the dairy has truly been taken, the four of them agreed that they are not to ask Hagrid about his reason of being expelled unless their was another attack, and since Harry has not heard that disembody voice since before Christmas break it looks like they will not have to ask, and by the way things are getting back to normal, the second years had  something else to think about, to select new Subjects for their third year, Terra already knew which main subject she wanted to do.

“Terra you already know how to take care of Magical Creature,” Ron said in the Great Hall during lunchtime.

“So?” Terra replied. “Just because I grew up with Magical Creatures doesn’t mean I've met all of them, Dad and Grandfather would not let me near a Kelpie on my own till I was 10.”

“But you need more then one new subject Terra,” Hermione pointed out. “It could affect our whole future.”

“Okay, lets see what else there is,” Terra sighed as she looked at the list again.

“I just want to give up Potions,” said Harry

“We can’t,” said Ron gloomily. “We keep all our old subjects, or I’d’ve ditched Defence Against the Dark Arts.”

“But that’s very important!” said Hermione shocked.

“Not the way Lockhart teaches it,” said Ron.

The next Quidditch match Gryffindor vs Hufflepuff, so Harry spent most of his time attending training sessions as Wood instructed, on Saturday morning the day of the match, Terra attended breakfast with her brother after they both did their route with their creature, after meeting her Gryffindor friends at their table they headed to collect Harry’s Quidditch things, when they reached the bottom of the marble staircase, harry suddenly shouted aloud making Terra, Hermione and Ron jump back from him in alarm.

“The Voice!” said Harry. “I just heard it again – didn’t you?”

Then it hit Terra, that question that has been picking at her mind for months and months.

“Oh of course,” said Terra as smacked her forehead quiet loudly.

“What?!” the trio asked together.

“Why didn’t I notice it sooner,” Terra said ignoring the three Gryffindor’s question, she grabbed her case and gives it to Hermione. “Look after my case, I've got to go to the library.”

“What why?” Harry asked.

“I've just understood, but I've got to be completely sure about something.”

“I’ll go with you,” Hermione suggested.

“No! No you go with Ron to the match I’ll meet ya lot there.” She replied as she ran up the stairs two at a time.

Terra hurried to the library, her heart beating so loud, when she got to the doors it was locked, she opens it with the unlocking spell, finding it empty, she hurries to the section for magical creatures and found her grandfather’s book, quickly going through the papers and finally finds its. Her heart dropped.

“Oh Merlin’s Beard!” she gasped. “It makes sense now!”

“Hey what are you doing?!”

Terra jumped, turned around to see a Ravenclaw prefect girl with blonde curly hair.

“I had to check on something about the Slytherin’s Monster, we need to get out of the castle right now and tell the Headmaster, I know-”

She stopped mid sentence, quickly pushed the prefect to the bookshelves there backs press against it.

“What?! what are you-”

“Shh!”

That’s when they heard it, something huge sliding across the floor, Slytherin’s Monster is in the library.

“Do you have a mirror on you?” Terra asked the Ravenclaw in a whisper.

“Yes why?”

“Get it out quickly,” she tells her, as she quickly but quietly goes back to the table and tears out the page from the book, then quickly gets a pencil from her robes and write out a word ‘Pipes’ on the paper, folds in neatly in her robe pocket before turning back to the Ravenclaw and taking the small hand mirror from her.

“Stay close and follow me and if you hear movement close your eyes straight away,” Terra whispered.

Lulu poked her head out from the chest pocket, Terra looked down and gently poke the Bowtruckle’s head back in.

“Stay in the pocket don’t poke your head out,” she muttered under her breath.

The two girls sneaked by the many bookshelves, to the end of the of the section, Terra used the mirror checking around corners before proceeding to the exit, just as they made it to the open doors, Terra slowly poked the mirror, the Ravenclaw looked down at the mirror and before they both could blink they saw darkness. 

Meanwhile at the Quidditch Pitch, Hermione and Ron are sat with the rest of the Gryffindor’s while Harry was in the changing room with his Team, ever since he heard the Voice again, he could not help but feel worried. When Wood called the Team to head to the field, and just as Harry was about to mount his broom, Professor McGonagall came running on to the pitch with a purple megaphone, Harry’s heart dropped like a stone.  

“This match has been cancelled,” Professor McGonagall called out through the megaphone, addressing the stadium, the crowd booed. “All students are to make their way back to the House Common Rooms, where their Heads of House will give them further information. As quickly as you can please!”

She lower the megaphone and beckoned Harry over to her.

“Potter I think you’d better come with me,” she said to him.

At that moment, Ron and Hermione separated themselves from the crowd of students and hurried over to them.

“Yes, perhaps you’d better come too, Mr Weasley Miss Granger,” said McGonagall not objecting.

They followed McGonagall back up to the castle passing by the swarm of students as they grumbling about the cancelled match. The Gryffindors where right behind McGonagall as they head up the marble staircase, but they soon realised that they where not heading to the Deputies office or the Headmaster’s.

“There’s been an attack, another double attack,” McGonagall said in a gentle voice. “I’ll warn you; this could be a wee bit of a shock.”

Harry’s inside did a somersault, he shared a look to Ron and Hermione, and their faces match his own. They entered the Hospital Wing, Madam Pomfrey was tending to a Ravenclaw with long curly hair, and on the bed next to her, where Rolf kneeling next to his hand over his eyes as Professor Sprout stand next to him with a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Terra!” Hermione gasped, covering her free hand to her mouth.

Terra lay there completely still and her eyes open and reflective, Hermione let out a soft sob, Ron went pale mouth opened.

“She and Miss Clearwater were found in the library,” McGonagall explained. “Along with this,” she picks up a small mirror from Terra’s bedside cabinet. “Does it mean anything to either of you three?”

“No,” said Harry in a small voice still looking at Terra.

Rolf removed his hand from his face, his eyes red and puffy from his tears, standing up trying to compose himself, Professor Sprout patting his back sympathetic.

“I will escort you back to Gryffindor Tower,” said Professor McGonagall heavily.

As they began to move, Harry turned back when he spotted something move, Rolf did the same, to two looked at each other and watched as something leaf like struggled to get out from the chest pocket under Terra’s robes.

“Lu?!” Harry and Rolf spoke together.

The Bowtruckle panted as it finally got out of the pocket, looking up at the two boys, before looking around, as if it was searching for someone, Lulu looked down and sadly realised who she was standing on. The Bowtruckle let out a high-pitched scream, hurrying towards Terra face, patting her cheek, trying to get her attention, Harry heard Hermione sniffled, he looked over his shoulder, she, Ron, McGonagall, and Sprout watch sadly as the Bowtruckle trying to wake her friend to no avail.

“Oh Lu,” Rolf croaked as he gently picks up the Bowtruckle.

She reaches out to Terra trying to get out of his hand, even cutting his hand with her sharp fingers, he did not even flinch.

“She’ll be ok Lu,” Rolf said to her. “She’ll just be like this for some time.”

The Bowtruckle stopped and started to whimper, Harry felt his heart once again drop, then he did something Rolf did not see coming, he slowly raised his hand toward the Bowtruckle and petted her head gently with his fingers, Lulu looks a blacked haired boy, then looked up at Rolf, then starts pointed at Harry, the Hufflepuff knew what she meant.

“Can you.. look after her Harry,” Rolf asked.

“Uh, yeah I-I don’t mind,” Harry replied taken aback.

Rolf opened his hand loosening the hold on Lu and the Bowtruckle immediately jumped out off Rolf’s hand, ran up Harry’s arm and placed herself on his shoulder like how she would do with Terra.

They soon headed out of the Hospital Wing, Hermione gives Rolf he’s sister’s case and with sad hearts they made their ways to their common rooms with their Head of Houses leading them.