Draconica spent several days processing the weight of what Harry had revealed to her: the house elves at Malfoy Manor were aware of something amiss at Hogwarts this year. Dobby had begun his attempts to 'save' Harry back in June, a piece of information that the blonde witch managed to extract from the elf. This led her to suspect that preparations for the attacks had commenced around that time.
In June, the manor had hosted few visitors, none of whom were dark enough to contemplate unleashing a horror upon a school full of children. Furthermore, her father hardly left his study, making it likely that he was the mastermind behind whatever was unfolding. Yet, Draconica could not fathom him being foolish enough to unleash a creature intended to reside in Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets, especially with the possibility—however slight—that it could harm his own children. This suggested that whatever was orchestrating these attacks was beyond her father's complete comprehension. The implications were troubling.
However, she resolved not to disclose this discovery to anyone—at least not yet. She wouldn't betray her family, and this piece of information didn't clarify who was responsible for the attacks, how they were being executed, or how to stop them.
~/ *** \~
Harry, Neville, and Hermione, along with their classmates, entered the Great Hall for the inaugural Dueling Club meeting. The identity of the club's leader was still uncertain, yet most students were hopeful that Professor Flitwick would take the helm. Those hopes were dashed when Gilderoy Lockhart, dressed in flamboyant plum robes, took the stage, flanked by Severus Snape, who appeared less than thrilled to be there.
"I think we should leave now. I doubt we'll learn anything useful from him," Neville remarked, gesturing towards Lockhart.
"That could be true..." Harry replied. "But I've heard Snape is quite adept with his wand, so we might still pick up something."
"Professor Snape, Harry," Hermione corrected him, but he dismissed her.
Lockhart was now drawing attention to himself. "Gather round, gather round! Can everyone see me? Can everyone hear me? Excellent!" he proclaimed, waving his arms for silence. "Professor Dumbledore has graciously allowed me to start this dueling club to prepare you for self-defense, as I have done on countless occasions—details of which you can find in my published works. Allow me to introduce my assistant, Professor Snape." With a broad smile, he continued, "He tells me he knows a bit about dueling and has sportily agreed to demonstrate with me before we begin. Don't worry, you'll still have your potions master when I'm done with him!"
The look on Snape's face revealed his thinly veiled desire to inflict pain on the man beside him.
"Observe the way we stand and how we hold our wands: this is one of the officially accepted positions for combat," Snape stated as they raised their wands like swords.
"On the count of three, we'll cast our first spells," Lockhart announced to the attentive crowd. "Of course, neither of us will aim to kill." Snape's expression suggested otherwise.
"One... Two... Three..."
"Expelliarmus!" Snape declared in a dull tone, sending a beam of red light toward Lockhart. The spell struck the DADA professor in the chest, blasting his wand from his hand and sending him careening off the stage, where he crashed against the wall before sprawling to the floor. This prompted cheers from some students, particularly those in Slytherin.
"Well, there you have it!" Lockhart exclaimed, staggering back onto the stage. "That was a Disarming Charm. As you can see, I lost my wand—ah, thank you, Miss Brown. Yes, an excellent illustration, Professor Snape, but if I may say so, it was rather obvious what you intended to do. Stopping you would have been trivial—however, I felt it was instructive to let them witness..." Lockhart was cut off by Snape's lethal glare.
"Enough demonstrating! I will now circulate and pair you all up. Professor Snape, will you assist me?" Hermione paired with Neville, while Harry found himself partnered with Su Li from Ravenclaw. Despite her usual shyness, the petite girl proved to be quite skilled with her wand.
Lockhart counted to three, and the students began practicing the disarming charm. The experienced upperclassmen executed it flawlessly, but many others struggled. Ron Weasley, still using a cracked wand, seemed to be faring the worst, as evidenced by an ashen-faced Seamus. Observing the practices, Lockhart decided that perhaps focusing solely on the disarming charm had not been the wisest choice.
"I think it would be better to teach you how to block spells," he announced. "But I need a volunteer pair..." Snape's eyes glinted ominously.
"How about Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy?" Snape suggested, a smirk falling across his face.
"What a brilliant idea!" Lockhart exclaimed, leading the two students to the stage. Once there, he instructed Harry while whispering something to Malfoy that made the latter smirk.
"Now, Harry, when he points his wand at you, I want you to do this." Lockhart raised his wand in a convoluted gesture, only to drop it. "Whoops! My wand seems a little overexcited..."
"Scared, Potter?" Malfoy whispered, just loud enough for Harry to hear.
"As if," Harry shot back defiantly.
"Three... Two... One... Go!" Lockhart began.
Harry immediately conjured a shield.
"Serpensortia!" Malfoy shouted, a dark-brown snake materializing at his feet. Screams erupted from the audience as they recoiled in fear.
"Don't move, Potter," Snape drawled, seemingly content with the snake's presence. "I'll take care of it." Seizing the distraction, Malfoy attempted to attack.
"Rictumsempra!" Malfoy's spell skittered harmlessly against Harry's shield. Undeterred, he tried again. "Tarantallegra!" Again, the spell failed as Harry's shield remained solid.
The ruckus from the crowd drew attention: Lockhart was now struggling to vanish the snake, which only made it angrier, and it slithered toward the nearest student, Justin Finch-Fletchley.
"Petrificus Totalus!" Harry shouted, targeting the snake to protect Justin. The spell paralyzed the creature effectively. Sensing movement out of the corner of his eye, Harry narrowly dodged Malfoy's disarming charm.
With newfound resolve, Harry counterattacked. Malfoy was caught off guard, lost his wand, and stumbled backward, nearly falling off the stage. Realizing things were spiraling, Lockhart quickly decided it was time to end the meeting.
"Alright, everyone!" he called out. "I know you all enjoyed our little club, but it's getting late, and you've got lessons tomorrow. I wouldn't want to keep you from preparing. So, I'll see you next week!" Snape's expression remained murderous as students began leaving the Great Hall, discussing the chaotic events.
"I'm not returning for the next meeting," Harry declared as the trio and their housemates walked back to Gryffindor Tower. Neville and Hermione agreed; they could better spend their time studying.
~/ *** \~
November passed, and with it the first two weeks of December, leaving Hogwarts glistening beneath a blanket of snow. After the attack on Thomas White, tensions ran high, with everyone bracing for the Slytherin heir's potential return to unleash the beast from the Chamber of Secrets. Patrols were heightened, especially after curfew, and students were advised to avoid roaming alone.
Meanwhile, only one more Dueling Club meeting was held. Lockhart seemed to acknowledge his inability to manage the club and decided to abandon the initiative, knowing he had little to offer the more advanced students of Hogwarts.
With finals mostly done, Harry was pleased that he and his friends—including Draconica, Susan, and Hannah—had performed admirably, even in DADA, where their professor attempted a confusing hybrid of a test that made little sense.
Even though the Slytherin heir had been silent for weeks, most students were reluctant to remain at Hogwarts for the holidays. Nearly all seats on the Hogwarts Express were filled as students sought to escape for Christmas. Hermione was going on a ski trip to the Swiss Alps with her parents, while Neville had promised himself a rare plant for his greenhouse. The Gryffindor chaser trio also planned to leave, likely wanting to evade last year's punishing Quidditch training with Oliver Wood, who, this time, also decided to go home.
Ultimately, Harry and the Weasley family were the only Gryffindor students opting to stay at the castle for Christmas—Percy claimed it was his duty as a prefect during troubled times. The Malfoys stayed as well, along with Crabbe, Goyle, a few sixth and seventh-year Ravenclaws, and one fifth-year Hufflepuff.
Despite the pervasive atmosphere of anxiety at Hogwarts, the Christmas dinner was delightful. The staff transformed the Great Hall into a winter wonderland with frost-covered trees decorated with living fairies, while holly and mistletoe adorned the ceiling. Dumbledore even enchanted warm, dry snow to fall, creating a magical ambiance.
The house-elves in the kitchens excelled themselves, preparing a feast so delicious that students indulged without restraint, some piling their plates high.
~/ *** \~
The following morning, Harry allowed himself a leisurely wake-up, wandering down to the Gryffindor common room around half past eleven. Percy had settled in by the fire, engrossed in a tome about runes while multitasking to keep an eye on the twins, who were conspiring in a corner.
As was tradition, a stack of wrapped gifts awaited Harry beneath the Christmas tree. He picked them up and sank into the nearest armchair. Among his gifts was a large tin of treacle fudge from Hagrid, which he intended to soften by the fire. Draconica had sent a box of chocolates in green and silver, while Harry had sent her a similar treat and a standard spellbook for DADA. Neville's family had gifted him an assortment of herbal extracts—Harry reciprocating with advanced Herbology texts. The Gryffindor chaser trio offered him a magical team photo adorned with their lip prints, and Oliver Wood gifted him a Snitch, which magically transformed into a small storage space accessible only to him. Lastly, Hermione's gifts included a postcard depicting the Alps, a geography book, and Swiss chocolate.
~/ *** \~
Hundreds of miles away, Hermione was unwrapping her presents. Her parents had gifted her 'book' money, sugarless sweets, and literature to ensure she stayed abreast of her private education. Though still thrilled by the trip, she wished the rented cottage's walls were thicker or that her parents were quieter; the previous evening had been somewhat chaotic.
Neville had sent her a book on common charms with an emphasis on the underlying theory, while Harry gifted her a collection of magical fairy tales and Honeydukes sweets. Padma Patil, a good friend from Ravenclaw, included body oils from India along with a postcard wishing her a Merry Christmas. Another postcard from Draconica, though minimal, brought a smile to Hermione's face.
~/ *** \~
Theodore Nott was satisfied with his current circumstances. Though he loathed Dumbledore's pro-Muggle stance, he had to concede that the headmaster's efforts made Hogwarts' holiday festivities superb.
His father had sent him various borderline dark artifacts that he couldn't wait to test back at school. He believed these tools might empower him to usurp the Malfoy heir. The recent vanishing of the Slytherin heir had brought back some supporters, but Nott knew he needed greater backing to secure his dominance over the house. Soon, he thought with determination, Basilius would get what was coming to him.
~/ *** \~
Tom Marvolo Riddle—merely Tom at this point—forced himself to maintain the façade of a supportive older brother to the girl who confided in his diary, lamenting her unrequited feelings for Harry Potter, the boy who had somehow destroyed him nearly eleven years prior. He was eager to learn how a mere toddler managed to thwart the greatest Dark Lord of recent history, but for now, he bided his time.
Instead, Tom plotted a new wave of attacks against mudbloods and blood traitors. He had remained too quiet for too long, and while the old fool remained vigilant, caution was paramount. His desired prey list was firmly in mind—he needed only to wait for the school break to conclude, allowing him to cleanse Hogwarts of its tainted blood once more. The girl he possessed didn't need to know his true intentions.