Hearing Voices

The five Gryffindors were led by Professor McGonagall up to the seventh floor. It quickly became apparent to Hermione that they were going to Professor Dumbledore's office. This did not sit well with her, since no matter how much time passed, going to the Headmaster's office still unnerved the girl.

Sure, she'd faced a mountain troll and lived to tell about it, but that was a few adrenaline-filled minutes of panic and fear. A meeting with Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall was filled with several minutes of tension and horror, which, to Hermione, made it far worse than the troll. Not to mention, if her parents became involved, then it could potentially turn into an entire month, summer, or, God (or Merlin, or whatever) forbid, an entire lifetime of misery.

As always, there were four chairs waiting for them next to the gargoyle that guarded the entrance to the Headmaster's office. Four of them took a seat, except for Sally-Anne, who was instructed to follow Professor McGonagall.

One by one, they were called by Professor McGonagall to enter the Headmaster's Office. First Sally-Anne, then Hermione, then Ron, and finally Harry.

<Rose, talking to the Headmaster in the tone you did earlier might have been a mistake,> her brother told her. <Especially now.>

<It makes you look suspicious,> Shadow added.

<It does, doesn't it?> Rose replied sardonically.

<Rose, I know you're annoyed that they won't listen to you,> Sk'lar pathed.

<Welcome to my world,> Shadow muttered.

<I know, right?> replied Rose.

<Please take this seriously,> Sk'lar urged her. <If you don't, you could be taken away from there, which means you lose.>

Rose paused. She hadn't considered that.

<You're saying if I get kicked out, I may never get back home?>

<It's possible, so please try to help the situation as best you can.>

<Okay, Sk'lar,> Rose replied, noting the urgency in her brother's voice. <I won't let you down!>

<You never do,> Sk'lar replied, his smile apparent in his "voice".

<How long did it take to get from the first floor to Dumbledore's office?> asked Shadow.

<At least 30 rounds,> replied Rose. <Why?>

<Because Dumbledore will probably want more than just McGonagall in there with him,> replied Shadow. <At least the only other member of the staff who can stop Ref.>

Rose grinned, a gesture that was ignored by her friends.

<Professor Dumbledore,> Sk'lar corrected. <Regardless of who he is, he still worked hard to get that title, and from what Rose has told us, he's earned it. The least we can do is show him respect by using it.>

<I guess it does mean more to you than it does to me,> Shadow replied.

Harry came down the spiral stairs while Sk'lar and Shadow continued their conversation, then turned to Rose. "You're up."

Rose hopped out of her chair and skipped up the stairs, oblivious to the amount of trouble in which she now found herself.

When Rose reached the top of the stairs, she found exactly the people she was expecting to find: Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape. Professor Dumbledore sat at his desk, Professor Snape was preparing to take a flanking position, and thus off to the side, and Professor McGonagall was at Professor Dumbledore's right hand.

"Have a seat, Rose," Professor Dumbledore said.

Rose took a seat in the only other chair in the room as Reflectesalon filled her in on what was going on.

"Do you understand why you're here?" asked Professor Dumbledore.

"You wouldn't believe me this morning about the Monster of Slytherin being on the move, since the Chamber of Secrets wasn't open. Now there is evidence that the Chamber has been opened, and I was found at the scene. Therefore, the only logical conclusion is that I faked the Chamber of Secrets opening, or actually opened it myself, thus providing support for my theory. You lot don't know my capabilities, so you find it plausible that I paralyzed Mrs. Norris and wrote the message on the wall. Or, the simple solution, I just found the Chamber of Secrets. The only reason you interrogated my friends is to find out where I was just before we found the writing on the wall."

We told them to keep quiet, Minerva thought. She had been certain that Granger and Perks wouldn't say anything, and that the two of them would keep Weasley quiet. What happened? Did Peta-Lorrum wear them down with her constant nagging?

"They did," Rose said. "They were marvelous about not talking, and you picked a good order to ensure that. Sally-Anne was first because she's good with people and would keep the others from talking once she knew the situation. Same thing with Hermione. Since she's naturally curious, she'd want to know what was happening, but once she knew, she's too frightened of authority figures to say anything. That made her the next choice. Ronald's a bit pushy, but Sally-Anne can keep him contained easily, and deflect any questions he's got, which she did. Harry hardly speaks nowadays, but the other three would eventually get him to talk by badgering him. You also counted on my complete apathy towards the situation, or that I'd be working on a cover story."

Severus had to admit, he was a little impressed by how well the brat had thought this through. With the exception of Granger, most Gryffindors thought after acting, if at all. He had already lumped Peta-Lorrum in with the rest in this regard, but there was evidently more to her than he had seen.

"I see you took the time to talk with Shadow instead," Professor Dumbledore said.

"And Sk'lar," Rose added, smiling. "He's the one that uses big words like 'logical confusion' and 'apa… whatever'."

Never mind, just like the rest.

"Returning to some semblance of sanity," Severus said. "Did you open the Chamber of Secrets?"

"Of course not," Rose replied. "Why would I want to do that?"

"As you said, it would validate you hearing voices," Professor McGonagall said.

"It would probably relieve Harry, too," Rose said.

"What's Potter got to do with this?" asked Professor Snape.

"He's been hearing voices too," Rose replied. "It's scaring him and worrying Sally-Anne, who can't figure out why he hasn't been talking lately."

"Harry is hearing voices?" Albus asked, now more intrigued by the well-being of one of his favorite students. Not to mention, as James and Lily Potter had been good friends of his, Albus felt partly responsible for their son.

"Not sure which one," Rose replied, as she began counting off on her fingers. "I've been hearing the acromantulas going crazy, a voice that keeps muttering something about snacks, and the one that keeps whispering my name. That last one is incredibly distracting."

"'Snacks'?" asked Professor McGonagall.

"That's all I ever catch," Rose replied. "Something about wanting to eat something, but not being allowed to. It moves too much for me to keep up, so that's all I've got."

"Why should we take your word for it?" asked Severus, hoping to stop the girl from distracting them even more than she already had. It was a clever tactic, trying to throw them off their game by deflecting their questions while still partially answering them. It was easy to catch on when someone answered a question with another question, but she wasn't. Instead, she was drowning them in information.

"You shouldn't," replied Rose. "Of course I'm not going to admit to opening the Chamber of Secrets, knowing that it would send me to your doom prison that I looked up after lunch." She frowned. "You lot should be ashamed of yourselves, using joy-sucking demons as prison guards. No wonder people go mad in there!"

"So you're saying we shouldn't trust you?" asked Professor McGonagall.

"No," Rose replied. "But you shouldn't ask people if they broke the rules. I swear, I've mentioned this before."

"So why should we not assume that you opened the Chamber of Secrets?" asked Professor Dumbledore.

"Why would I?"

"We already said," replied Minerva, growing impatient with the second-year. "It would validate your claim–"

"To whom?" asked the crimson-haired girl.

"To us," Albus replied.

"And the flaw with that is…?" asked Rose.

"She doesn't care what we think," Severus said. "This is the girl who actively tries to make us believe that she's gone mad." Noticing the grin on the annoying girl's face, he immediately snapped, "We're not friends, Peta-Lorrum!"

"Whatever you say, Professor Snape," exclaimed Rose. "But that's my point. I don't actually care if you lot believe me or not, it's just more convenient to pick your brains rather than search through hundreds of books. You won't expel me so long as I don't make a scene when hearing the castle talk to me, since anything else can be easily explained by 'She's just plain weird'."

"But why bother protecting you?" Albus asked, intrigued by how thoroughly her brother thought everything through. That was, of course, assuming that these were still her brother's words.

"I've made Professor Snape's Potions lectures more enjoyable for him by making him terrifying, and I work to keep the students safe and teach them how to stand up for themselves, lessons that I've learned from my big brother and sister. If I leave, you've got Malfoy eagerly waiting to terrorize several students, and the Ravenclaws will resume harassing Luna. Sure, every school's got bullies," she frowned and glared at the ceiling, "but I'm making sure that no one suffers horribly because of it."

Each of the three professors looked at the crimson-haired girl. Albus looked at her with intrigue, Minerva with irritation, and Severus with suspicion. Even after a year, none of them were quite sure what to make of this girl.

"So you're saying we should keep you here because you prevent bullying?" asked Minerva.

"Just like my brother!" the second-year exclaimed. "He's the youngest headmaster of Episti Academy." She paused for a moment, then added, "In it's long and noble history."

That was interesting. Rose never bothered to add that, but it sounded to Albus as if her brother insisted she did. Was she still holding her brother's attention? Why? Did he plan to help her weasel out of this, or was he helping her to not implicate herself in a crime she didn't commit? From what he knew of the crimson-haired girl's older brother, he leaned towards honesty, which would lead Albus to believe that he wouldn't help her get away with breaking the rules so severely. Of course, everything he knew about him came from her, so there was no telling what was right and what was wrong.

"So you've mentioned," Albus said. "However, whether you stay in this school isn't the topic of conversation."

"It's not, but it's related," countered Rose. "You think I opened the Chamber of Secrets so that I'd have an excuse to hear voices, but I'm saying that I don't need one. I don't care whether you lot believe me because that doesn't help me stay in this school. What does keep me here is everyone believing that keeping me here is a good idea, and that's what I was attempting to prove just now."

"Alright," Minerva said. "Let's say you didn't open the Chamber of Secrets. Who did?"

"Don't know," Rose replied. "I don't know much about it, other than what I read this afternoon in Hogwarts: A History."

"And what is that?" asked Severus.

"It was allegedly installed by Salazar Slytherin as a secret training ground to combat Muggles. Legend says he kept a monster there that would awaken one day to cleanse Hogwarts of Muggle-born students. It was opened fifty years ago, and during that time, a girl called Myrtle Warren was murdered by the beast. There were no marks left on her, she just died." She glared at Albus. "Also, someone failed to mention that she's currently haunting one of the girls' bathrooms on the first floor!"

"I wanted you to work that out for yourself," Albus replied.

"Even more like Uncle Oz," Rose grumbled.

"So you don't know who wrote that message on the wall?" asked Minerva.

"No idea," replied Rose. "And too many people have been by there for me to ask the stones who it was." She paused for a moment, then added, "Although, I'm sure that you'd say I was trying to frame someone if I did ask them."

That is exactly what I'd think, thought Severus.

"I believe that will be all, Ms. Peta-Lorrum," Albus said kindly. "Thank you for your time and patience."

"Patience?" Rose muttered. "I mean, yes, of course!"

"And do thank your friends for me," Professor Dumbledore said. "All of them."

Rose grinned. "Will do. Night, Professors!"

As the crimson-haired girl descended the stairs, Minerva turned to Albus. "Now what?"

"Now we find out who really opened the Chamber of Secrets."

"Do you know where it is?" asked Severus.

"No, although I've got a feeling that Ms. Peta-Lorrum might be able to tell us."

"So we ask her, post a guard outside the entrance, and finish this before anyone gets hurt," Minerva said.

"Assuming the Heir of Slytherin has to return to the Chamber," Severus said. "Which they may not. The monster may not either. Knowing its location won't do any good in stopping either of them, and posting a guard would waste resources."

"We can't just sit around and wait for another attack!" exclaimed Minerva. "We've got to take action!"

"If we don't, I'm sure the Ministry will," Severus added. "Minerva's right for once. The moment Lucius catches wind of this, he'll start using it to turn the Ministry against you, Albus."

"I don't doubt that," Albus said. "Until we know more, we take every precaution we can. Tell Pomona to start preparing a potion out of mandrake root to tend to those who are attacked. Spread the word that no student is to go anywhere alone, including the prefects. Their rounds are to be preformed in pairs."

Both professors nodded.

"And both of you keep an eye out for any suspicious activity," Albus added. "If we are vigilant, we may have a chance of stopping this before it gets out of hand."

"What happened?" asked Ron as Rose reached the bottom of the stairs. "Did you get expelled?"

"Nope. Everything's fine."

"Everything's not fine," Hermione said. "The Chamber of Secrets is opened. Don't you understand what that means?"

"That Salazar Slytherin had horrible sense in names?" asked Rose.

"It means we're in danger," Hermione said. "Well, Sally-Anne and I, anyway. Slytherin wanted to purge the school of Muggle-born students, one way or another."

"So the Monster of Slytherin will go after Muggle-borns," Rose said. "I know, I read Hogwarts: A History this afternoon."

"Good luck getting a copy now," Ron said. "People are gonna be climbing over one another to get at that book."

"And I left my copy at home," Hermione complained. "I couldn't fit it with all of Lockhart's books."

Sally-Anne took note that Hermione practically spat Lockhart's name, in contrast to the dreamy way in which she said his name at the start of the year, just a few months ago.

Really making a poor impression, she thought, turning her attention back to Harry and why her friend wasn't speaking.

"I definitely know what I'm getting you for Snowy Time," Rose said.

"A bigger trunk?" asked Ron.

"Sort of."

"Not only will it be bigger, I'm sure it'll come to life on command and breath fire or something," Hermione sighed.

Rose grinned. "It will now!"

"You really shouldn't give her ideas like that," Ron said.

"I know, I wasn't thinking," Hermione replied. "I'm exhausted!"

"I think we could all use some rest," Sally-Anne said, her attention still on Harry. He still wasn't speaking a word. What was bothering him so much that he wouldn't say anything? Sally-Anne would have given anything to know what was on his mind.

"Oh no," Hermione groaned. "Something just occurred to me."

"You've fallen in with the wrong crowd for a nice, quiet life?" asked Ron, looking at Rose as he said it.

"That occurred to me a long time ago," Hermione replied, laughing. "But we were seen being escorted away by Professor McGonagall."

"Which means most of Gryffindor is going to be waiting for us to get back," Sally-Anne finished. "Oh no. We're never going to get to bed!"

Ron hadn't been there for last Hallowe'en, as he had been in the Hospital Wing, but he did have some idea of what awaited them. If only there were some way to bypass the students, just like a knight could jump over a line of pawns. Thinking of chess reminded him of the live chess match from last year, which reminded him of something else.

"Rose," Ron said. "You use all that strange apparition magic. Can you get us past our house?"

Rose grinned. She pulled a charm off her bracelet, which turned into a quiver. From the quiver she produced a gnarled, wooden staff.

"Everyone, grab a hold of the staff!" Rose directed.

As soon as the last hand was on the staff, the five of them vanished and reappeared in the boys' room. As they predicted, it was completely empty.

"Ronald, that was brilliant thinking!" exclaimed Hermione.

"It was nothing," he replied sheepishly. "I just… it was nothing."

He nearly started gloating by running through his entire train of thought, but realized that it would probably sound a little silly, so decided against it.

"I certainly wasn't going to think of it," Rose said. "I was honestly considering trying out bad touch tentacles when we got through the portal."

"'Bad touch tentacles'?" asked Sally-Anne.

"Black tentacles," explained Rose. "Conjures a bunch of tentacles on the ground, which grapple anything within range except the caster. Really useful–"

"Harry?!" Sally-Anne gasped as she saw her friend clutching his head. "Are you alright?!"

"I'm fine," he moaned. "Just a headache."

Harry didn't want to tell them what was really bothering him. He didn't want to tell them that he had started hearing that voice again while they were outside Professor Dumbledore's office in the chairs that just appeared in the hallway, or that his scar had started burning shortly afterward.

"Don't worry," Rose said. "Dim door does that sometimes. Nothing about which we need worry!"

Harry collapsed in his bed as the girls vanished, grateful that the day was finally over. He tried hard not to think about what would come tomorrow: The badgering fans, the curious housemates, Malfoy's incessant ridicule. On top of all of that, the voices seemed to be getting worse, and now his scar was hurting again. Would this ever end? What was next?

"Good morning, Rose," Luna said as her crimson-haired friend sat down at the Ravenclaw table the next morning.

"Good morning, Luna," Rose replied.

"Why are people saying you're the Heir of Slytherin?" asked Luna.

"Dunno," replied Rose. "I mean really, if I wanted to kill people, I'd do it. I don't need a monster for it. I've got Crimson Thorn! Sure, he can't move on his own, but…"

Rose's voice trailed off, then her face began to twist into a smile that most of the surrounding Ravenclaws would call "evil" (Except they're Ravenclaws, so they'd use words like "sinister" or "malicious"). It wasn't just the smile that unnerved the surrounding students, but the laugh that accompanied it. It began softly, like a small chuckle, but developed into a full-fledged cackle. Many students began to feel uncomfortable with the mere two meters that separated them and the girl, and promptly shifted away from her.

Hermione, on the other hand, hardly noticed the laughter, despite it being audible throughout the Great Hall. She nearly laughed herself, however, when she saw Ron shiver.

"Hit by inspiration?" asked Luna, apparently unphased by her friend's maniacal outburst.

"I just had the best idea ever," Rose exclaimed as she scribbled furiously in her notebook.

"Are you going to animate Crimson Thorn?" asked Luna.

"Yup!" exclaimed Rose. "I just need to consult with Uncle Oz about the best way to go about doing it! Then he'll be able to move around and attack on his own! So kethé!"

Luna smiled, but didn't say anything.

"Are you alright?" asked Rose as Reflectesalon informed her that something was off with her friend. "You don't seem like yourself today."

"I'm alright," replied Luna. "Just have a lot on my mind, I guess."

"If you're done eating, I know somewhere we can talk!"

"Alright."

Within 50 rounds (or five minutes), the girls were sitting in the Room of Requirement nearby a softly roaring fire. The couches were red and black, with the same rose pillows that had appeared when Rose had first taken Hermione to the Room of Requirement.

"So what's on your mind?" asked Rose.

"A few weeks ago, I found this," Luna said, producing a small, black book from her bag.

What Rose found significant wasn't necessarily the book, but that it was identical to the one possessed by Ginny Weasley.

"I began writing in it, and a few days ago, it began writing back," Luna said.

"Where'd you find it?" asked Rose.

"It was with the rest of my belongings in my trunk one morning," Luna replied. "I thought someone must have put it there."

Rose considered using her gloves to determine the previous owner of the book, but it would take at least 10 minutes to get adequate information from the book. How did it get to Luna? Fred and George took it, but Rose had assumed they'd returned it. Had they left an identical copy with Ginny? Why?

"What did it write back?" asked Rose.

"Well…"

"It's alright," Rose said, noticing Luna's hesitancy to answer. "You can tell me."

"It's my mum. It sounds just like her."

That didn't bode well. Why was the book intelligent, and why was it impersonating Luna's mum?

"She even calls me her Little Moon, just like she used to," Luna said, a smile creeping over her face.

"Did you tell it that before it told you?"

"No."

"Well, it's…" Rose was about to list off every flaw in Luna's conclusion, but stopped when she saw her new friend's face. Luna was happy and hopeful, as if a piece of her had been restored. Rose wasn't sure what was really going on, but she didn't have the heart to tell Luna. "Sounds like your mum to me!"

Whatever it was that was really happening, Rose no longer cared. She thought back to when she had first met Sk'lar, and how he'd given her hope that she'd see her parents again. Whatever this was, it was giving Luna hope, and Rose knew that hope was more important right now than facts.

Rose sat down beside Luna and put her arm around her. Rose wanted to ask about Luna's mum, but figured that it could wait until another time. At that moment, Rose just sat and comforted her friend, because it was exactly what Alice would have done.

The next day, everything progressed as normal. Rose didn't really care about Herbology, but getting to walk with Hermione to Arithmancy was always fun. Most likely due to the Chamber of Secrets, students were no longer allowed to walk the halls alone. Rose was positive that Professor Dumbledore had looked directly at her when he said this, a feeling that was verified by Alex informing Rose quietly that the crimson-haired Artificer was no longer going to get away with being out of Gryffindor Tower after curfew.

The part of the day to which Rose was looking forward was Defence Against the Dark Arts. Last year, it had been the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor that had been behind the bad things that had happened to her friends. This year, Rose was determined to make sure that he didn't even dream of harming them.

Rose just had to wait until the end of class, which was incredibly dull with Lockhart teaching them nothing. Even if she couldn't actually perform the magic, it was still fun learning about the various creatures in this world, and gauging the amount of XP each one was worth.

Still, if he wasn't going to teach them, Rose figured she'd get some reading done instead. And it was the third-year textbook, so it wasn't like she was just reading some random book.

"Ms. Peta-Lorrum, I've told you before, no reading during class," Lockhart said, flashing his perfect teeth as he reached for Rose's book.

"If you touch my book," Rose said without looking up, "I'm not going to put out your hair next time you set it on fire. I'm just gonna watch it burn."

Gilderoy wasn't sure if it was the way she said "burn", but she sounded a little to enthusiastic about it, so he decided that he'd let her keep the book.

After class, Gilderoy was approached by the crimson-haired girl.

"Lockhart, I'm sure someone as experienced as you is unconcerned about the Chamber of Secrets opening."

"Why of course not," he said. "It's all in a day's work for someone like me! It's nothing like the time I–"

"Don't care," she said. "Your predecessor tried to kill my friends and I. Now, I've got no issue with people trying to kill me. It wasn't the first time someone has tried to kill me, nor will it be the last. I've got a knack for sticking my nose firmly in other peoples' business."

"I'm sorry?" Gilderoy asked the annoying second-year, still flashing his perfect, award-winning smile.

"If I find out that you're up to something that's putting my friends in harm's way, I won't hesitate to put an end to it and you."

"I really don't know what you're talking about, Ms. Peta-Lorrum!" Gilderoy exclaimed, making sure to get the girl's name correct. That was important when talking with someone who thought they were better than you. Butter them up until it was time to tear them down.

"Mhm," the girl replied. Without taking her eyes off him, she extended her left arm and flexed her fingers.

From out of her outstretched hand shot a blast of fire. Gilderoy jumped back as he felt the heat of the flames and saw it scorch his wall.

The professor gaped at his student as she lowered her arm.

"I'll say this once, nice and slow so you can keep up," Rose said. "If you harm my friends, I'll make you regret it."

Gilderoy nodded his understanding, his eyes wide with fear.

Who was this girl?! Into what sort of mess had he gotten himself this time? This was supposed to be an easy gig, free publicity and all. Now the Chamber of Secrets had been opened, people kept asking him to find it and kill the monster, and now this… thing that could produce fire without a wand!

This smug little girl that always had an answer to everything! How dare she steal his spotlight?!

After the girl left, Gilderoy began working on a plan to get her back. He couldn't just erase her memory without a good reason. Wait, wasn't she mad or something? Maybe that would work. No, that would be too easy. He needed to humiliate her first, then wipe her memory. Yes, that would be perfect!

Despite Alex's warning, Rose needed to get to the Room of Requirement to begin a new project. So, that night, she was on her way to the room when she heard a familiar voice.

"Rose?"

Rose groaned. She was getting tired of this. Every couple of days, she'd hear someone whispering her name, but she knew no one was around to talk to her. It was getting more difficult to ignore the voices.

"What?!" she shouted back.

"Hello."

Rose paused, astounded that it had finally stopped saying her name.

"What?!" she exclaimed. "What are you?"

"I could ask you the same question, Rose Peta-Lorrum."

Rose smirked. Alice and Shadow had taught her how to spot when a person was avoiding her question. Well, Alice had taught her how to identify it, and Shadow had taught her how to pull it off successfully.

"Not gonna answer me, then?" Rose asked. "We can't have a conversation if you're not going to tell me anything."

"I see you've learned well from Shadow."

Rose paused again, then gave a flat "What?"

"I know quite a lot about you, Rose Peta-Lorrum. I know about your brother and sister; I know about your uncle."

"Shadow was right," muttered Rose. "The walls have got ears."

"I know about your parents."

"Alright," Rose said. "You've got my attention, whatever you are. What do you want?"

"Why must I want–"

"If you know so much about me, you should know that I'm impatient. Get to the point soon, or I start ignoring you."

For a few moments, there was nothing. Then the voice said, "I see you're smarter than you seem."

"I wish I could say the same for you, but right now, you're kinda underwhelming."

Rose literally patted herself on the back for correctly using the word "underwhelming".

"You are intriguing," said the voice. "I desire to learn more about you."

"See?" asked Rose sarcastically. "Was that so hard?"

"There is no need for hostility. I mean you no harm."

"Knowledge can do plenty of harm," Rose replied. "My sister always told me never to reveal more about myself than necessary to someone I've just met. I haven't actually met you."

"So you're not going to help me?"

"No."

"So be it. I have more than one way of learning about you, Rose Peta-Lorrum. You telling me about yourself was the easy way, but you have chosen the hard way. Remember that this was your choice."

"Ominous," Rose said, once again patting herself on the back for the "big" word.

After hearing no response for more than a round, Rose skipped off down the hallway, confident in her ability to fix anything, or anyone, that the Voice could break.