Chapter 122

For the first time since they got to know him, Thomas was silent, not saying or doing anything other than looking at the three petrified girls. McGonagall had seen that look before, and nine out of ten times that ended in madness, something that none of the professors wanted to see, especially not when the boy who might suffer was almost as strong as a fifth-year student with more combat experience than any of the students.

After a few minutes of utter silence, Thomas slowly turns his body and looks at McGonagall with a somewhat cold expression. "Professor, if I might ask, where have they been found?"

"They were found near the library." Professor McGonagall answered him, hoping that her words would not make the boy go on a mad hunt for whatever or whoever was doing this. "We also found this and I don't suppose either of you can explain this? It was on the floor next to them …"

She was holding up a small, circular mirror showing it to the boy.

Harry and Ron shook their heads, both staring at Hermione. While Adam and Michael just stared at the mirror for a few seconds before speaking out their minds.

"Maybe they were using the mirror to see if they could spot the culprit while they acted like bait," Adam suggested.

"Chances are professor that until Madam Pomfrey cures them, we might not know what Hermione, Tracey, and Daphne were doing, but if I were to guess, I think they could have been there to search for something for our classes.

They looked at Professor McGonagall, hoping that she would confirm or deny their theories.

Professor McGonagall shook her head, looking grim.

"I'm afraid we don't know what they were doing with the mirror, or why they were near the library," she said. "All we know is that they were found like this, along with this note."

Letting out a sigh, Professor McGonagall turned towards Harry and Ron.

"I will escort you back to Gryffindor Tower." She said heavily before turning her head towards the three Ravenclaws. "I need to address the students in any case. As for the three of you… you should also go back to your common room. Professor Snape will take you there."

Without further ado, Thomas, Adam, and Michael followed Snape out of the infirmary, but not before Thomas took one last look at his friends, swearing that he would find the monster that petrified them and take the creature out.

As he and his friends followed Snape towards the Ravenclaw common room, Thomas heard a very familiar and seductive voice whispering him promises, making his anger rise.

[Thomas, my sweet Thomas, why do you resist me? You know you want to be with me, to serve me, my dear sweet prince. You have such potential, such power, such beauty. You are wasted on these fools who call themselves your friends. They don't appreciate you, they don't understand you, they don't deserve you! Only I do. I can give you everything you ever dreamed of, and more. All you have to do is say yes. Say yes to me, Thomas, and I will give you the world.]

Like before, only he could hear her voice, and the longer he listened to her seductive voice, the more he clenched his fists, trying to block out the voice. None of his friends know just how much it hurts him to listen to the sweet voice of darkness and how easily he could fall for it.

[Don't be afraid, Thomas. Don't be angry. Don't be stubborn. Just let go of your resistance and embrace me. I am your salvation. You belong to me, Thomas. You always have, and you always will. Just say yes, Thomas. Say yes!"

Slowly but surely, Thomas felt his mind slipping away, his will fading, his heart breaking. He was losing himself, and if that continues, he will surely fall into this devil's hands and God knows what will happen to him then.

But just as he was about to fall to her sweet words, he heard another voice in his head.

[Thomas! Wake up! Remember who you are!]

Snapping out of that trance, Thomas found himself with his hand on the wand, making him panic. If, Bahamut's voice didn't wake him up then… then he would have attacked his friends.

Adam, who was standing closest to Thomas, noticed his friend's state and decided to see if he was all right. He saw Thomas's hand gripping the wand tightly, his face pale and sweaty, his eyes glazed over. He wondered what was going on in his mind, what kind of nightmare he was facing.

"Thomas, are you okay?" Adam asked, reaching out to touch his shoulder.

Thomas blinked and looked at Adam, as if he had just woken up from a deep sleep, before giving him a pained smile and a nod.

"I'm fine, Adam. Just… it's to see our friends like that."

But Adam wasn't convinced. He knew Thomas well enough to tell when he was hiding something. Yet there was nothing he could do right now to help his friend.

Once Adam turned around, Thomas let out a sigh knowing very well that this game of back and forth between him and that devil woman was slowly starting to affect the others around him as well. And the first thing that he would do once inside his room will be to rid himself of whatever influence that devil has on him. The less influence she has on him, the easier it will be to fight her in the future.

Meanwhile, back in the Gryffindor Tower, Harry and Ron waited together with all of their housemates for McGonagall to make the announcement, something that Harry knew would not be good for anyone, not after the quadruple attack.

"As all professors will tell their respective houses, as the Gryffindor head of the house, I have the responsibility to tell you that all students will return to their House common rooms by six o'clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the bathroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch training and matches are to be postponed. There will be no more evening activities."

The Gryffindors packed inside the common room and listened to Professor McGonagall in silence. She rolled up the parchment from which she had been reading and said in a somewhat choked voice. "I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. The school will likely be closed unless the culprit behind these attacks is caught. I would urge anyone who thinks they might know anything about them to come forward."

She climbed somewhat awkwardly out of the portrait hole, and the Gryffindors began talking immediately.

"That's two Gryffindors down, not counting a Gryffindor ghost, two Ravenclaws, two Slytherin, and one Hufflepuff." Lee Jordan said, counting on his fingers. "And here I thought that the Slytherins would have been all safe? But isn't it obvious all this stuff's coming from Slytherin? The Heir of Slytherin, the monster of Slytherin … why don't they just check that bloody house? From what I could get the Slytherin girls were not pure-blood supremacists and one of them was even a muggle like many of us."

While most of the Gryffindors were clapping and cheering at Lee Jordan's words about searching the Slytherin for the attacker, Percy Weasley was sitting in a chair behind Lee, but for once he didn't seem keen to make his views heard. Instead, the poor prefect was looking pale and stunned, almost as if he was going to be the next victim.

"Percy's in shock," George explained to Harry quietly. "That Ravenclaw girl, Penelope Clearwater … she's a prefect. I don't think he ever thought the monster would dare attack a prefect. I take it he's now feeling in danger,"

But Harry was only half-listening. He didn't seem to be able to get rid of the picture of Hermione, Tracey, and Daphne lying on the hospital bed as though carved out of stone. And if the culprit wasn't caught soon, he was looking at a lifetime back with the Dursleys. Tom Riddle had turned Hagrid in because he was faced with the prospect of a Muggle orphanage if the school closed. Harry now knew exactly how he had felt, but from what Thomas told them, things were in no way so simple, but no doubt they would need to talk with Hagrid about this.

"What're we going to do?" Ron said quietly in Harry's ear. "D'you think they suspect Hagrid?"

"We've got to go and talk to him," Harry said, making up his mind. "I can't believe it's him this time, but if he set the monster loose last time he'll know how to get inside the Chamber of Secrets, and that's a start."

"But McGonagall said we've got to stay in our tower unless we're in class …"

"I think," Harry said, more quietly still, "it's time to get my dad's old Cloak out again."

Ron's eyes went wide open before a sly smile appeared on his face." What about Thomas and the others?"

"I… We will go to them. I'm more than sure that Thomas, Adam, and Michael will be more than willing to come with us." Harry said after a few seconds.

At the same time, Thomas was in his room in the Ravenclaw tower, thinking about how in God's name he could get rid of the devil woman's influence on him. But nothing he did worked, at least nothing drastic worked. Bahamut did tell him of a way of removing each and all influence on him from anyone, but the price… the price was akin to death for someone as weak as Thomas. Mind you, even being above the Peak Ultimate class could die from what Bahamut suggested, nevertheless, Thomas was just a middle-class being.

As Thomas was lost in his thoughts, he heard a loud thud from the window. Being the closest to the window, Michael looked up and saw a large snowy owl pecking at the glass, clutching a letter in its beak.

"Hey, guys, look who's here!" he called out to his roommates.

All three of the boys got up and walked over to the window. Michael opened it and let Hedwig in. The owl flew over to Thomas and dropped the letter in his hand. Then it perched on his shoulder and nipped his ear affectionately. Something that most of the owls seemed to do when they were near him.

Thomas smiled and stroked Hedwig's feathers before opening the letter and read it aloud:

"I know that this is kind of sudden, but we need your help. Ron and I are planning to sneak to Hagrid's hut tonight and I'm more than sure that you three will want in on this. We are planning to ask Hagrid about what happened fifty years ago and maybe find out more about the chamber of secrets from him since, from what you told us, Hagrid is, or better said the main suspect. If you three want to come with us, make your way down to the entrance. We will wait for you guys there under my father's clock. And for Merlin's sake don't get caught by any of the teachers."

Truth be told, none expected Harry and Ron out of everyone to take the initiative and seek out more answers, then again with what happened to Hermione, Daphne, and Tracey, no one could blame them, especially Thomas who was already planning on visiting Hagrid the next day.

"So, what you are guys saying? Ready to get some bloody answers?"

Adam only smiled at him in response, while Michael; quickly rushed over to his bend and picked up his wand. "Aye, we have to find out the truth, I know that if Harry and Ron hadn't sent the letter, we would have gone to tomorrow or the day after to Hagrid."

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