Hyacinth POV
The Room of Requirement had given me a quiet study nook tonight filled with soft armchairs, shelves stacked with every runic reference I could imagine, and a fire that never needed tending. Neville was in the greenhouses, and Hermione was buried in the library, so for once I had the place to myself.
The mirror on the table pulsed faintly, light flickering across the runes carved into its back. My heart skipped a beat because Dad never called me this late unless it was bad.
I snatched it up, before settling back into my chair as his face blurred into focus. He looked grim, too grim, and just like that my stomach dropped.
"Princess," Dad said, his voice steadier than his eyes. "We need to talk. Now."
My grip tightened on the mirror, as my nerves pulled tight with worry. "Alright... what's wrong?"
Dad exhaled, and I caught movement behind him it was Uncle Moony, Newt, and even Aunt Cissy hovering in the background. That sight alone made my stomach twist.
"There's a Horcrux at Hogwarts," he said bluntly. "Lucius had it... It's a diary, but in his infinite stupidity he slipped it into a cauldron in Flourish and Blotts. The Weasley girl has it now."
My chest went cold. "Ginny? Oh Merlin..." I swallowed hard, shaking my head. "That... might explain some things. She's been kinda off lately. Pale, quiet, and her hands shake sometimes. And..." I hesitated, biting my lip. "Dad, I've been hearing a voice in the walls. Neither Hermione or Neville can hear it. Only I can and a few days ago, Hagrid's roosters turned up dead outside his hut."
Uncle Newt appeared in the mirror's edge, his face tightening. "Roosters... Hyacinth, that's a Basilisk. The crowing of a rooster is deadly to it. If the voice is in the walls, it's probably using the pipes to move around."
I blinked, my throat dry as I asked. "So not the diary?"
"Could be both," Dad muttered, anger simmering in his voice. "But the diary's definitely tied to Ginny, and you need to get it away from her."
Behind him, Narcissa's hand cracked against Lucius's head. "Idiot," she snapped. "You put my son in a school with that thing?" Lucius didn't argue which I suppose was the smartest thing for him to do. He did look really sick as he stood there though.
Dad pulled my attention back to him when he said. "Princess, listen carefully. The diary has to be destroyed. I'll contact the goblins and have it cleansed, but you've got to get it first. Can you do it?"
I nodded slowly. "I'll try. Maybe I can get the twins to help me. They're good at nicking things without being caught. Ginny won't even notice it's gone if I set it up right."
"That's my girl." His voice softened for a moment before he straightened. "Be careful, Cinthy. I don't want you to take unnecessary risks with this."
"I will Dad, I promise to be careful." I said with full sincerity. Before we said our goodnights, though my hands were still trembling when the mirror went dim. I sat staring at the fire, as my mind was racing with plans. Tomorrow was Halloween, the castle would be buzzing with feasts and distractions. If there was ever a time to get the diary from Ginny quietly, it would be then. I nodded and promised myself I'd get the diary out of her hands before it caused more damage.
Halloween
The castle was alive with noise as the evenings feast got closer, but Hermione convinced me and Neville to follow her down to Nearly Headless Nick's death day party instead of the feast. It was cramped, crowded with ghosts, and smelled of rotting food. The party itself was alright but by the time we left, my stomach was growling. I had two things on my mind food and getting the diary from the twins, who had sent word they had nicked the diary from Ginny.
The corridor outside the dungeons where that party was held was quiet, too quiet. Then the sound hit... scraping, and wet, like something dragged itself across stone. Whatever it was made my skin prickle.
We turned the corner and froze.
Mrs. Norris was hanging stiff and twisted from a torch bracket, her eyes wide and glassy.
Red words glistened across the wall beside her; Enemies of the heir, beware.
We stood there for all of 2 seconds before the hurried steps of our classmates made their way up the stairs. Next thing I knew students filled the corridor and began to scream as they took in the sight of Mrs. Norris and the bloody text as it dripped menacingly down the wall.
Then Filch came barreling through, his face was twisted in rage, with spit flying as he shrieked. "You! You killed her!"
His hands clamped around my throat before I could react, slamming me back into the wall. My air cut off in an instant, my vision swimming as I clawed at his wrists.
Hermione's scream tore through the crowd. "Let her go!" She lunged, only to be shoved hard to the floor.
The corridor erupted into chaos, but all I knew was the crushing weight on my throat, and the black spots crowding my eyes.
"FILCH!" Dumbledore's voice cracked like a whip. "Release her!"
Snape moved faster than I'd ever seen him, shoving through students just as Filch's grip broke. My knees buckled, but Snape's arms caught me before my head hit the stone. His hand rubbed steady circles across my back as I gasped for air.
"Easy," he muttered, surprisingly gentle. "Breathe, girl."
For the first time, I didn't see cruelty in his eyes, just sharp concern. Maybe he wasn't as bad as I thought he was. Maybe if Mum spoke to him again...
But then Dumbledore was there, looming over me. "Come, child. We must speak in my office..."
My throat burned raw, but I rasped out, "I want my dad and a doctor."
"Poppy will..." He tried to say but I cut him off.
"No." My voice cracked, but I forced it out. "I want my doctor and my dad."
The air in the hall shifted as Professor McGonagall arrived, with her lips pressed thin. "She's right, Albus. The paperwork was filed at the start of term. No one is to speak to Miss Potter-Black without Lord Black present. She is heiress to two noble houses. We will do this properly." Her gaze hardened at him then she continued. "You left him to rot in Azkaban for eleven years. I will not push him aside on this matter."
The crowd was still buzzing around us as the other professors were herding them back with sharp words. Professor McGonagall broke her stare down with Dumbles and bent to help Hermione up from the floor. Her face was blotchy from crying, but she lifted her chin in defiance at Dumbledore for the first time since I met her.
"I already sent a quick message to her Dad through her mirror." Hermione whispered, voice shaking.
McGonagall's mouth twitched in approval, cutting through her tight control. "Good girl. I'll make sure the floo in the Headmasters office is opened."
Snape still had a steadying arm at my back as we moved, and every swallow made my throat burn. I wanted food, answers, and a doctor, but most of all, I wanted my Dad.
"Come," Dumbledore said too gently, gesturing us toward the stairs. "we'll head straight to my office."
The stone gargoyle swung aside, and I was guided into the circular office that smelled of lemon drops and dust. I barely had time to take in the trinkets cluttering the shelves before Professor McGonagall snapped her wand toward the fireplace. Green flames roared to life, and she sent her call through with brisk precision.
The fire erupted seconds later, spitting sparks, and then Dad stormed through. His hair was wild, his eyes looked fierce, and the instant he saw me on my feet with Snape's hand still bracing me, his fury snapped fully into place.
He dropped to his knees at my side, brushing my hair back with shaking hands.
"Cinthy... Merlin, are you alright?" His gaze found the bruises already darkening around my throat, and his face went white before a deadly calm expression snapped into place. He was like an unmovable stone statue with fury in his brows. He looked up at Dumbledore, voice sharp enough to cut through steel when he said. "Who did this? Why did you let this happen to my daughter?"
The office went silent and for one glorious moment Albus Dumbledore had no words.