"All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another." ~ Anatole France
August 10th, 1942
I can’t wait for the school year to begin again. Though Marcellla and Sophie write to me almost every day, it’s not the same without them here.
---
Miriam trudged down the stone steps, making her daily journey to the library. As much as she hated to admit it, the library was starting to become her least favorite place to be. She had practically read every book there, minus those in the Restricted Section. The homework she had been assigned at the end of the school year had long been finished. Tom, on the other hand,seemed to live for the forbidden books.
Though it was peaceful being away from the orphanage, it still, in a way, felt lonely. She only had Tom for company, and even then it wasn’t very often. He, for the most part, stayed holed up in the Slytherin common room. She ate alone most of the time because Tom hardly ever made an appearance. And Dumbledore was busy preparing the lists for the following school year.
The days passed by, and soon the new semester would be upon them. The Riddle teens were ecstatic as the prospect of being Prefects was very tantalizing to them.
One afternoon, Miriam was taking a small siesta under the large oak tree in the massive lawns, when she heard the most ear-splitting squawk. Half-scared to
death, she frantically searched for the source of the noise, but she found no explanation for it. Not feeling very tired anymore after that startling experience, she got up and headed back to the castle. On her way, she came upon Tom hurriedly dashing up the steps to the castle; he was carrying something large in front of him. She tried to see what it was, but Tom had it well hidden under his robes.
Unaware that Miriam was behind him, he turned left upon entering the Great Hall, and that’s when she could partially make out what he was carrying underneath his robes... something feathery....
This was only the beginning to the weird things that soon followed. A weird vibration sounded within the school’s stone walls one evening while Dumbledore was out on school property, the perpetrator spewing its awful message.... “...rip...tear... kill...”
She knew it wasn’t any of the ghosts, as they had gone off on a summer break a few weeks back. The only exception to this was Peeves, who spent most of his day bouncing around the trophy room, which Miriam learned quickly to stay away from.
Dumbledore, on the other hand, was becoming increasingly worried as the days passed by and more roosters started turning up dead. He had set up an anti-fox charm around the roosters’ cage, but Miriam had a sneaking suspicion that it wasn’t foxes that were killing the roosters.
Miriam was glad when September first came around, secretly hoping that the start of the school year would put an end to the weirdness that had engulfed the past week.
September 2nd, 1942
It’s so great having my friends back. We spent the better half of our bedtime catching up on our summers. They were quite surprised to learn that I had been made school Prefect. They had certainly been curious as to why Ben Zhang (the other Gryffindor Prefect) and I were commandeering the new First years after the start-of-term feast.
As of now, it’s roughly 1 am, and I just heard Sophie roll to her side and begin to snore softly....
---
After proudly pinning her new Prefect badge to her robes, the three friends headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast that morning.
“It’s so good to have the school year started!” Miriam exclaimed. Her friends nodded in agreement.
“That trip to Amsterdam was rather boring,” Sophie said as they walked down a flight of stairs. “There was just basically old windmills and stuff to look at, though the history was kind of interesting. Apparently old witches there -”
“Hey! What’s that over there?” Marcella asked, cutting her friend off in mid-sentence.
“Where?”
“Over there!”
Marcella was pointing toward a crowd of students standing around, looking worried, and pointing up at the wall by the girls restroom. Miriam and her friends joined the hustle and looked onto the wall where a message had been written....
Sophie looked at her friends and whispered, “That looks to be -”
“- blood!” Marcella finished, gaping disgustedly at the sight.
“The Chamber of Secrets has been opened,” Miriam mumbled quietly, reading the atrocious message. Right below the writing was a kind of squiggly line. Obviously, it was someone’s bad attempt at drawing, though she instantly knew what it was.... A snake, she thought.
Almost as though she had already known the answer, something clicked in her head.... Snake... heir... ‘ “Make way for the Heir of Slytherin...” '
“What do you think that means?” people whispered throughout the crowd, but
Miriam was the only one who knew what it meant. It meant that, after Tom had first heard about the Chamber in his First year, her brother had finally figured out how to open it.
She had secretly hoped the legend was just that, a legend, and that there were no monsters dwelling within the Chamber, but with it open now.... Miriam drew in her breath and her eyes widened slightly. By that time more students had arrived into view, and before she knew it, more than half of the entire school was crowded into the narrow hallway looking at the message.
Second year Myrtle Vranda looked mightily frightened and began shaking, appearing to be on the brink of suffering a convulsion. “It’s awful!” she wailed. Next to her, Cornelius Fudge began whimpering and biting his nails feverishly. Professor Dumbledore immediately came onto the scene and looked at wall. His face was solemn and grim.
“Will all Prefects lead their houses down to the Great Hall?” he ordered.
Following his order, Miriam found Ben Zhang, and together they rounded up the
other Gryffindors. Sophie and Marcella followed behind as Miriam and Ben lead
their house mates toward the Great Hall. Tom and Libby (ironically, the other
Slytherin Prefect) were doing the same with their own house.
Unfortunately, nobody felt much like eating that day. Everyone was too concerned
with the message that had been written on the wall. Throughout their strange breakfast, Miriam couldn’t help but watch the Slytherin table... and Tom in particular. He didn’t seem worried at all; instead, he appeared a bit cocky.
September 4th, 1942
I’m glad the school year has begun and all, but geez, the teachers are really weighing us down with the homework. And all because this is the year we take our OWLs.
---
Reluctantly, Miriam had to go to the library that afternoon to find some books for her new homework assignments. As she meandered down one aisle looking for a particular book on Herbology, she overheard Tom hurriedly talking to his friends nearby. Listening in, Miriam couldn’t help but wonder why Tom found it obligatory to talk in the library when he surely must have known that someone could easily eavesdrop in.
“I found it!” he whispered excitedly to his friends. Miriam strained her ears to try and pick up the rest of their conversation.
“Really? Where’s it -” she heard Carrey exclaim.
“Shh!” came Murdoch’s voice. “D’you want the whole school to hear?”
The group lowered their voices even more so Miriam could only hear a word or two here and there.
“- entrance... located....”
“Really?”
“Right under the....”
There was silence. Footsteps from the other side were getting closer.... “Run!” she heard Tom quietly exclaim to his friends. She barely caught a glimpse of them as they made a mad sprint past the aisle she was in.
October 2nd, 1942
Interestingly enough, I haven’t heard that weird sound within the walls lately. It seems to have just... stopped. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. The message,
unfortunately, is still on the wall by the girls’ bathroom. Maugi has literally tried
everything to clean it and is now at his wits end. Nobody dares cross him as he has been in a rather foul mood lately....
---
“Have you heard?” Marcella asked as the girls headed down to their History of
Magic class.
“Heard what?” Miriam enquired.
“A ton of roosters have been found killed!”
“What a shame,” Sophie commented. “Somebody obviously doesn’t want them
alive... but why? It’s pretty senseless...”
“Who could be that cruel and do such a horrible thing?” Marcella wondered aloud as Sophie shrugged her shoulders. They were completely stumped, but Miriam had a sneaking suspicion that the murders of the roosters had something to do with the opening of the Chamber.
~*~
“Good morning, class,” droned Professor Binns as the girls entered the classroom.
“Today we will begin learning about the Warlock convention of 986. Also,” he
continued, but was distracted upon seeing a hand raised in the air. “Yes, Miss
Thomas?” he asked, mildly surprised.
“I... I was wondering... perhaps if you could tell us about the... uh... Chamber of Secrets.” Miriam, Sophie, and everyone in class looked at Marcella in shock and amazement.
“Miss Thomas, the Chamber of Secrets is nothing more than a myth, something to scare school-aged witches and wizards.”
“But sir, there must have been some truth to it as it’s just been opened.”
“Whoever says that they opened it is probably just trying to scare everyone. Now if you please, we will resume our lessons on the Warlock convention of 986.”
As Professor Binns turned around, he came upon the anxious and eager faces of
the students. None of them were interested in the Warlock convention; they wanted to hear more about the supposed Chamber of Secrets, and Binns knew this. Sighing, he had no choice but to began the tale from the very beginning....
“As you all may not know, Hogwarts was founded more than nine-hundred
years ago by the four greatest witches and wizards of their era: Helga Hufflepuff,
Rowena Ravenclaw, Godric Gryffindor, and Salazar Slytherin. They lived peacefully together for many years, teaching all types of students about magic. They were all good friends, particularly Gryffindor and Slytherin, but Slytherin expressed his ideals that he wished to be more selective in who they allowed in to teach. This, unfortunately, led to a falling out between Gryffindor and Slytherin. Much bickering abounded throughout the early years at Hogwarts, and Slytherin finally left. There have been many... speculations,” Binns said, emphasizing the word, “that Slytherin built a secret chamber before he left.”
Excited murmurs traveled throughout the classroom.
“But rest assured that the school has been thoroughly searched and no such thing has ever been found.”
“Did legend ever say what was so special about the Chamber?” Miriam asked,
raising her own hand now.
“Legend tells of a monster that inhabits the Chamber; it is said that if this horrible
and monstrous creature were ever released, it would purge the school of all those that Slytherin felt unfit to study magic. In other words, the Muggle-borns.”
Professor Binns looked around the classroom at the distressed faces.
“I must state once more that no such place has ever been found within the school. It’s all just a load of hogwash. Now let’s get back to something that actually has some factual basing.”
Everybody in the class groaned.
October 15th, 1942
Today I decided to bring out my mother’s book again and take a look at it. I sat on
my bed leafing through the pages, imagining that my mum was the last person to
look upon it.
---
As she sat crossed legged on her bed, Miriam came upon the gray page that
allowed her to view anyone she wished.
“Show me Tom Riddle,” she mumbled. The gray page turned white and showed a
blurry figure with black hair. The image came in clearer, and she saw Tom sitting
with his back against a wall, his brow furrowed.
“Okay, this meeting of the Junior Knights will now commence,” Tom announced with a strong aura of authority. “We’re here to discuss Grindelwald’s ideals and...
whatnot,” Tom announced, rolling his eyes and waving his hand carelessly
around.
Miriam slammed the book shut. So, she thought bitterly. He’s become one of them now....
Lying back on the bed, she sighed as she mulled over what she just seen. After an hour had passed, Miriam decided to open her book again and see if Tom was still in his “idiotic club for jerks,” as she called it. As usual, the gray page began to turn white, and Tom once again came into focus. He was sitting on his bed with his diary out, writing furiously. His back was facing her, so she couldn’t see what he was writing. Her luck changed when Tom leaned over onto his side, grabbing something off his night stand. Miriam strained her eyes, trying to read what he had written on the page.
TOM
MARVOLO
RIDDLE
I AM
LORD
VOLDEMORT
October 31st, 1942
Something bad, really REALLY bad has just happened here at school. Sophie,
Marcella, and I were heading down to the Great Hall today for the traditional
Halloween feast when we happened upon a most disturbing sight....
---
“What is that?” Miriam asked, looking at the sight of a bedraggled owl lying in a heap on the floor.
As they stood there staring at the scene, they were unaware of somebody now
standing behind them. The person cleared his throat loudly, startling the girls as they turned around to see who was behind them... Professor Panes.
“What are you three doing here and not in the Great Hall?” he asked, eyeing them rather suspiciously.
“We’re on our way there now!” Sophie said defiantly.
“Watch your attit -” he began, his eyes leaving the girls and falling upon the scene behind them. “What on earth have you three done?” he exclaimed.
“We didn’t do that!” Sophie yelled, but Professor Panes didn’t listen to them. He
rushed up to examine the owl. “She’s been -” he began, but was abruptly cut off by Professor Dumbledore.
“What’s going on here?”
“These three were discovered here at the scene of the crime, which they so vehemently deny!”
Dumbledore strode over to examine the owl. After a few anxious minutes had passed, he finally spoke up.
“She’s not dead, but she has been petrified.” Dumbledore looked more closely at
the owl and continued, “No fifth year could do magic like this, Professor.” He turned to face the girls and said, “Please continue on to the Great Hall. Everything here is under control.”
The girls continued their walk toward the Great Hall but didn’t say anything to one
another. Each girl was replaying the horrible scene in her mind, wondering what could have done such a thing. As they turned down one hallway, Miriam heard
the distinctive sounds of something moving in the wall behind them....
“...I smell blood.... I SMELL BLOOD!”
November 3rd, 1942
I swear, I think that Hagrid is up to his old tricks again.... He’s keeping a forbidden pet in the Gryffindor common room again....
---
As Miriam reached for a book on the shelf of the large bookcase in the common
room that evening, Hagrid, in all his bumbling glory, forcefully knocked the book out of her hands, causing it to tumble noisily to the ground. Miriam let out an earpiercing shriek as a spider crept out from the books hollow pages.
“Aragog!” Hagrid yelled, plunging after the spider and causing Miriam to fall painfully on her derriere. Hagrid scooped up the frightening creature as Miriam slowly staggered uncomfortably back onto her feet.
“What the bloody hell was that?” she exclaimed, rubbing her behind.
“Nothin’! Nothin’!” Hagrid muttered, hastening past her.
“Don’t tell me that was nothing!” Miriam reprimanded. “That had to be the
biggest spider I’ve ever seen! Hagrid? Hagrid, get back here this instant!”
Miriam started running after him, but her normal sized legs were no match for his
long legs. He darted up toward the boys’ dormitories and locked the door behind
him, leaving Miriam to pound vigorously on the door.
“As Gryffindor Prefect I order you to open this... door... this... INSTANT!”
Miriam shouted and continued to pound on the door for ten whole minutes, but
Hagrid wouldn’t open it. Frustrated, she stomped back down the stairs and yelled up after him, “You’re going to pay for that!”
November 17th, 1942
I haven’t seen Hagrid’s pet spider recently, thank heavens. Oh, he tries to deny
everything about it, but inside, he knows that I know the truth.
Tom, meanwhile, has been rather standoffish lately, and he’s made some rather
bratty comments about the students when he didn’t think anyone could hear him. I don’t know what bug got up his butt recently, but I wish it would dislodge itself
soon... for the sake of my SANITY!
---
No more attacks had taken place since the owl was assaulted, but Miriam still didn’t feel safe when alone in the corridors. Dumbledore, she could tell, was a bit worried, but he tried to hide it from the students. Still preoccupied by that awful event, she absentmindedly walked to her Arithmancy class that afternoon, unaware that she had accidentally run into someone.
“Oh! Tom! I’m sorry!” she exclaimed. Their books had fallen to the ground, causing quite a commotion in the hallway.
“Watch where you're going,” he muttered, picking up and sorting out his books from hers.
“Excuse me?” Miriam demanded, slightly astounded. “It was an accident! I said I
was sorry!” Tom kept his head down, his face turned away from her.
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked.
“Why do you wish to question my sanity” he barked.
“You’re not normally this... snippy with people!”
“People change, Miriam,” he frowned, getting up and balancing his books, glaring at her with his green eyes.
It was then that Miriam couldn’t help but get the strange feeling and idea that Tom
could read her mind.
“And no,” he suddenly declared, x-raying her with his intense eyes, “I haven’t been sleeping with her.”
December 4th, 1942
Being a Prefect is so amazing! Though it does have its disadvantages at times, but for the most part, it’s simply magnificent! Why if I want, I can just ask the Head Girl, whom I sort of know, to deduct points from Slytherin whenever I feel the need. Luckily she was around when that stupid prat, Murdoch Black, talked back to me not even more than an hour ago.... He now finds Slytherin minus fifteen extra points.
---
It had been an exhausting, but fulfilling day. The best part of the day had been when the Head Girl got to dock Murdoch points for being a smart aleck toward Miriam. After that little fiasco, leaving Murdoch cursing them rigorously under his breath, Miriam joined up with her friends, ridiculing him as they headed to the Great Hall that evening. Their walk was interrupted when Miriam heard that oh-so-familiar movement from behind them.
Do... do you hear that?” she asked. Her friends shook their heads.
“Hear what?”
Miriam heard it again.
“... rip... tear... kill...”
Was her mind playing tricks on her, or was she really hearing that voice? Her friends were starting to look at her fearfully.
“It... it must have been nothing,” she lied, trying to appease her friends jitters, while inside she knew what she had heard. She decided to drop the subject when they heard a shout coming from a floor above them. Forgetting about heading to the Great Hall, they ran up the steps to encounter Myrtle crying and another girl
laughing at her.
“Give me back my glasses, Olive!” screamed Myrtle, tears still rolling down her face.
“Why should I, four-eyes?” Olive taunted.
“Give her glasses back now!” Miriam ordered. Olive looked up at Miriam and saw her Prefect badge shining in the candle light. Olive tossed Myrtle her glasses and ran, but not before Miriam made a mental note to have Slytherin docked another fifteen points.
“Thank you,” Myrtle sniffed, wiping her eyes and nose on her robe sleeve.
“No problem,” she smiled as Myrtle walked away, starting to sniffle all over again.
“That girl,” mumbled Sophie, “almost always cries over something, doesn’t she?”
Myrtle began to wail more loudly as Miriam responded, “I think she heard you.”
Their stomachs now growling, signifying their emptiness, they proceeded back toward the Great Hall when Marcella mentioned randomly, “Tom is going to go ballistic when he sees his house’s thirty point deficit.”