Ernie MacMillian asked, "Has the chamber ever been open before?"
Harry was starting to believe that maybe he was mistaken about Lockhart's predilections. The map had shown him having one on one time with several of the older students- both boys and girls - but as far as Harry was concerned if they were of age, they were old enough to face the consequences of being stupid with a git like Lockhart. He always watched him like a hawk during class. Lockhart for the last two weeks had seemingly settled for just calling on his favorites in his class. His favorites being Millicent Bullstrode, Megan Jones and Draco Malfoy.
Part of Harry pitied Draco Malfoy. A good-looking son of a highly connected and wealthy man, Draco had come to Hogwarts with certain expectations. That he too would have influence and would do well were definitely among them, that his father also had that expectation was also clear. Draco really was a product of his upbringing: he'd never learned to work and had been spoiled since birth. It didn't help his family was prejudiced too. Unfortunately for Draco his ability to actually perform was below his father's expectations. It didn't help that he was up against a measuring stick that included Harry and Hermione Granger. Harry knew his capabilities in terms of sheer power put him in the top two percent school wide if not the top. Hermione, though lacking magical power, was there as well just from sheer brain power. Looking at the other years, Harry was certain Draco would have fared better had his class been a normal Hogwarts class year. Instead it had Harry and Hermione Granger who skewed it hard to the high end of the spectrum. Last year had forced Draco to see that his father couldn't give him everything, but Draco was still young and naïve enough to think if he kissed up to the right people he would get what he felt he deserved without having to work for it.
The Slytherin gossip grapevine had it that Draco had had a very rough summer due to his father's disappointment, and Draco's failure to make a starting position on the quidditch team hadn't helped. Harry noticed that Lockhart had been giving the boy lots of ego strokes and it concerned him. Lockhart wasn't the type to praise or give credit to others unless something was in it for him.
Harry had tried a week ago to warn his housemates again.
Draco had brushed him off saying, "Get lost, Potter. You're just jealous that someone famous ignores you. Not everyone thinks you're perfect."
Millicent had a different reaction, she looked at him with her protrudent brown eyes, then said, "I'll be careful."
November proceeded into December, and Harry made his plans for the holiday. Lady Longbottom was having another Christmas Eve Ball and house party although the house party was only three days instead of a week this time. The Davies were hosting a solstice dinner. Harry was again staying in Potter Place between parties. Harry was also invited to a New Year's Eve Ball by the Greengrass' and a NewYear's Day tea the MacMillians.
The study group was busy both with their classes and the question list they had generated. They had found out via Michael's grandmother that the chamber was rumored to have been opened about fifty years ago, a student had died, another student had come forward and said a third year had brought a creature into the castle.
Hermione had sweet talked Madame Pince into letting her look at the school chronicles: a magically self updating journal that noted what happened on a weekly basis that the people who wrote Hogwarts: A History used. She found out that the students involved: Tom M. Riddle, a Slytherin,who had gotten an award for special services to the school, Myrtle Millcote, a Ravenclaw, who died in a girl's toilet of all places, and Rubeus Hagrid, a third year Gryffindor, who was blamed for the mess and expelled. The girls had volunteered to talk to Myrtle who they believed was a ghost, while Neville, Ernie, and Michael volunteered to talk to Hagrid, and Blaise, Harry and Kevin decided to research Tom Riddle.
The group was seventy percent certain that the talent involved was parseltongue, and were searching through beastiaries to generate a list of creatures. High on the potential list were lamias, nagas, and basilisks. In their morning workouts Neville and Harry endlessly debated the wisdom of telling the others Harry could talk to snakes both pro and con. All of them agreed to keep an eye out for any students acting out of character.
Then came the announcement that there was going to be a dueling club. Like most the students Harry was excited at the idea of seeing magic used combatively and he about died laughing when Snape handed Lockhart his arse with a disarming spell.
Lockhart got up, claiming it had been intentional that he let Snape win. He had suggested they pair off and practice a disarming hex. The room had taken mere minutes to dissolve into chaos. Then Lockhart had pulled Stanley Hopkins up for a demonstration. Stanley was a fourth year Gryffindor and a best friend to the MacClaggens. Snape suggested that Giles Mulciber would be a better opponent than Lucretia Tipton.
....
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