cue the it's been 84 years... gif

you guys know i'm sorry lmao life just likes to screw with me a lot. but i do want to say thank you sincerely to everyone that reviewed/reviews bc i really do appreciate it, and an even bigger thank you to the people that have stuck with me through all the long waits and sporadic updates. you guys are a major reason why i'm still trying to finish this fic lol

hope everyone enjoys~

(p.s.! ffn doesn't allow right-sided aligning so a certain scene down below doesn't look as well as it would with it and could possibly get confusing due to a bit of jumping back and forth... it looks a lot better on ao3 should any of you guys want to jump over and read it there!)

—Mysteries, Flashbacks, and Riddles—

.

$$speaking in parseltongue$$

.

What with the way their Second Year began, one would think it would be a sign for how the rest of their year might turn out, but the weeks that followed for Kagome and her friends were nothing but ordinary – knock on wood.

It was back to the boring routine of waking up, going to lessons, doing homework, and then back to bed – something James complained about often and was doing so once again as they left Defense Against the Dark Arts for lunch in the Great Hall.

"I kinda miss old man McGreggor," her brother was saying offhandedly as they walked the corridor. His lips were pursed in a pout as he stared up at the ceiling, hands clasped around the back of his head. "He may be a stick in the mud, but this year's DADA lessons are an absolute bore in comparison." He stuck his tongue out, nose curling. "So much reading, my eyes burn just thinking about it."

"Haven't even cast a spell yet!" Sirius joined in, a similar look of distaste marring his pretty face, "It's almost October. It's not like we're first years anymore!"

In their first DADA lesson of the year, they were surprised to find not Professor McGreggor waiting for them at the front of the classroom but instead another man, one even older than the retired Auror. Where McGreggor was a stiff, stern, and occasionally intense professor, their new DADA professor, Radden, was the quiet, mild-mannered sort of gentleman with a voice so soft-spoken those sitting in the back were left leaning forward, straining to hear.

And where McGreggor often took to allowing a more hands-on approach when it came it his lessons, Radden was more the textbook-focused sort, insisting on them learning the theory like the back of their hands and then some before even thinking about taking up their wands.

"It's a shame he left," Remus murmured just a few paces behind the pair. "He was a fine teacher – I was looking forward to learning more from him."

Peter made a soft, curious noise. "But are we so sure he left?" He peered at the others with a nervous sort of look. "I heard Frank saying the other day, about how another DADA professor didn't last more than a year. Apparently, Professor McGreggor is just the latest in a long line of professors who didn't, or couldn't, make it past a year." A shiver visibly shook Peter and his voice dropped low as he continued. "There's a rumor going around that the position is cursed."

Remus snorted, showing just what he thought about that.

Kagome on the hand grimaced, adjusting her bag straps over her shoulders. "That's… unsettling, to say the least."

Remus rolled his eyes. "That's just a rumor."

"Plus, it's McGreggor," James added, also waving the idea off – and that, Kagome couldn't disagree with. McGreggor spent years as an Auror dodging lethal cursed and hexes – that he'd let one get the better of him after all this time was almost laughable. "He probably just decided retirement was too boring and went back to the Aurors! For all we know, he's gone underground to some seedy hidey-hole to break up a ring of dark wizards!"

Sirius murmured in agreement. "Can't blame the bloke if that's the case – teaching little kiddies magic is a far cry from hunting bad guys."

Kagome remained quiet, wondering if they were right. A part of her felt the same as her twin – their father had nothing but words of praise for the man, not to mention his skill and experience, and had once lamented what a loss it was to the department when McGreggor finally announced his retirement.

McGreggor wasn't so much paranoid as he was hyperaware of his surroundings – they could never get one up on the wizard during their many visits to the office, couldn't even get close to doing so, no matter how hard James and herself tried or how quiet they were. Even during their first year, where they would've though he'd let his guard down at the school, they had to be especially careful with him around. She was sure if it wasn't for the invisibility cloak, they never would have been able to pull off a handful of the pranks they did last year.

And yet, a lingering feeling of unease bubbled in the bottom of her stomach just think about it.

It was the same uneasy feeling that made itself known during her visit to Hargrid's hut earlier in the month with Kirara in tow – when, as he checked on Kirara's then mostly-healed injuries, Hagrid looked out of his window at one point into the Forbidden Forest itself and murmured about hearing strange things coming from those that lived within, only to clam up when she tried to inquire about it.

Hagrid also asked her about her own little cut. And when she showed him the faint pink line that was of it running down the length of her forearm, he wasn't subtle when he visibly relaxed, clamming up even tighter when she wondered out loud why everyone was so concerned over a tiny cut.

It didn't stop him from stressing when she was leaving that the Forbidden Forest was dangerous to someone so young and so she should take care not to ever venture into it again.

A part of her wanted to press him, then, was even tempted to mention the werewolves – except for the little problem of how she would know about them when she'd repeatedly claimed she never saw anyone but the centaurs.

It made her wonder now, though: if Voldemort was already recruiting like she suspected, was it really such a far-fetched idea that something could've stopped McGreggor from returning?

Or was she being the one paranoid…? Why would Voldemort do such a thing?

Kagome didn't get to spend much time lingering on the thought when she was startled back to the present by an arm being thrown around her shoulder.

Kagome whipped her head around to see that James had slowed down his pace enough to sidle up beside her; he raised an eyebrow when she startled, his head tipped to the side. "Daydreaming against?" he teased, before feigning a hurt look. "I called your name twice and you ignored me."

"Looks a bit too serious for a daydream," Sirius chimed in, now walking backwards so he could look at the two. He studied Kagome's face then, closely, and it wasn't long before his eyes gained a sparkle to them. "Unless…" he trailed off, he beginnings of a grin stretched across his face, "You're plotting?"

Kagome blinked for a long moment before snorting, incredulity bubbling up her throat as she giggled out," What, for Halloween?"

Sirius' face fell, his steps faltering. "You mean you weren't?"

Kagome rolled her eyes at him. They caught up to him then, and once Sirius turned around to walk normally, she threw an arm around his shoulder, the trio walking together now. "Halloween's a month away, Black," she said as she hip-checked him teasingly. He flashed her a sheepish grin before returning the gesture. "Never mind that all my free time lately has been seized by the authorities. Then there's homework and, well, other things." She stopped short before she let slip the research she'd been doing for their secret little side project in front of the person they were keeping it from.

"Other things?"

Kagome nearly winced – of course Remus caught onto that last slip.

"Hey, hey," James cut in, "We were actually talking about something a liiittle more pressing, and not to mention, more immediate than Halloween." Feeling her relax under his arm at his save, her brother shot her a little wink just between the two of them. "Besides, I've already got a couple ideas for that, they just need a bit of refining. Now back to what I was saying earlier."

James paused long enough to grin wide at Kagome, his eyes lighting up. "Quidditch tryouts."

"Oh!" That was right, those were this weekend. Kagome grinned, only for it to fall after a beat. "Oh no…"

James patter her fondly on the top of her head. "I know, I know, you'll be stuck cleaning whatever nook and cranny Minnie has in store for you while Black and I make our debut on the field. It's fine. I know you'll be cheering for us in spirit. It's okay."

Are you sure? Kagome wanted to ask, because it sure felt like her brother was trying to convince himself rather than her – a feeling Remus and Peter all but confirmed when they began snickering.

Ducking closer to her, Remus stage-whispered and said, "You already missed his whinging about it when you zoned out earlier."

Peter shot a sly look over to her left, towards James, before chiming in with, "Lucky you."

James blew the two of them a raspberry. "Shut it, you prats, no one asked for your commentary."

Kagome met their eyes and they all rolled their own in commiseration.

Before James could make a scene, Sirius calmly slid back into the conversation, pointedly ignoring his best friend's sputtering of outrage. "Since your detention won't be until later in the afternoon, we were wondering if you wanted to help us squeeze in a bit of last-minute practice?"

Kagome grinned. "Yeah, of course!"

.

.

Kagome almost regretted agreeing to help James and Sirius – had she known they'd wake up at the crack of dawn and make enough of a fuss that they drove one of the prefects to run up and beg that she deal with them, she would have set conditions.

Like no waking her up before nine in the morning, for starters.

Dressed for the morning's activities, Kagome left the girl's second year dorm with a lingering glance at Lily that held no small amount of envy towards the witch still snoring peacefully away in her bed.

She met up with the boys and they hurried her along, pestering her all the while as she went down to the Great Hall and grabbed something to eat. She had to threaten them with her spoon to get them to settle down and let her eat in peace. Even then, they were practically vibrating with excited energy, staring holes into her while they waited for her to finish her cereal before rushing to drag her off once she was.

Three vigorous hours Kagome spent with them on the quidditch field running drills and helping them train, until it was almost time for lunch and they had to take a break. But when it was all said and done, Kagome was glad she did it. They were sweaty and even looked a little tired, but James and Sirius wore twin expressions of satisfaction and with that she knew they were ready to blow the Captain away at tryouts.

Once they had freshened up and gone to lunch, Kagome wished the pair luck – not that they needed it, she had added, confident they would make the team – when Professor McGonagall walked over to collect and escort her to her final detention of her month-long punishment.

Her task?

Mopping up the mess Moaning Myrtle had made in the girls' 1st floor restroom.

Kagome would have complained had Professor McGonagall not looked at her, a curious glint to her eyes as she slyly glanced towards the boys and mentioned offhand that as soon as she was finished, she was free to go – and if she hurried, she might even make it before quidditch tryouts ended.

The look on the boys' faces when they heard that…

Suffice to say, Kagome marched her way upstairs with a renewed vigor and armed with a mop, a bucket, and a handful of rags to tackle her last detention.

.

.

Kagome would have thought mopping up the massive mess in the girls' restroom was punishment enough. Water was everywhere; literally from corner to corner, no part of the crummy, cracked tile floor was left unscathed to Moaning Myrtle's fit – caused by, apparently, an older student getting into a row with the ghost for whatever reason.

It was why most girls usually just avoided using the loo on the 1st floor in the first place, if they could – the ghost was notorious for her tantrums as it was, and no one wanted to have her wailing at them while they tried to pee. It wasn't worth the hassle and arguing with Myrtle only served to send her into an apoplectic fit, as evidenced by the mess Kagome was currently cleaning up.

What was worse, though, was that the culprit was still there and at large.

"Potter, huh?" Myrtle had said in lieu of a greeting as soon as the door had swung shut behind Kagome. She hovered in the air, weaving from side to side as she studied the second year with a sharp eye that was decidedly uncomfortable to be under. She sniffed noisily, looking down the length of her nose at Kagome. "I've heard of you."

Then, as Myrtle twirled in the air, she muttered something that Kagome only just barely caught under her breath.

"Of course you're pretty."

When she had turned back around and found Kagome staring, Myrtle narrowed her transparent eyes, pale lips pursing into an angry pout. "What are you staring at? Never seen a ghost before? Hmph!" The Ravenclaw ghost crossed her arms, sniffing once again in disdain this time as she turned her nose away. "Just finish what you came here to do and leave already!"

Kagome blinked. "O…kay…" she slowly said.

"Okay!" Myrtle repeated, huffing, and then up in the air she went before diving into one of the toilets. Water splashed up and spilled onto the already flooded floor, making waves in the water pooling on the ground.

Kagome barely held in her groan, and after a long, steadying breath, she set her bucket down and got to work.

That was over twenty minutes and half of the restroom's floor ago, and ever since Myrtle had been intermittently popping her head out of the toilets, just enough to peek over the lid at Kagome and watch as she switched between mopping up water and wringing it out into the bucket, occasionally stopping when she needed to dump it into the sinks.

At first, Kagome decided it was best to ignore it and leave Myrtle be, not wanting to upset her even more. If she did, she could end up missing her brother and Sirius at tryouts.

However… it became harder and harder to do just that. Myrtle kept staring and staring. It was like an itch Kagome scratch, progressively getting worse until she couldn't leave it anymore. Her back felt like it was on fire what with the way Myrtle's gaze burned into it.

After wringing the mop for what felt like the thousandth time, Kagome set it on the ground and finally turned her attention to the ghost spying on her.

"…Is there something I can help you with?"

Unbothered at being caught, Myrtle harrumphed and laid her arms along the rim of the toilet she was currently in to levy herself high until her chin rose above it. "Is there something I can help you with?" she parroted, head bobbing and mocking in tone. "You don't have to be so nice. Blegh. I'm dead after all." She made a face, sticking out her tongue and gagging, sound effects and all.

Kagome shrugged. "That's just how I usually am."

"Oh?"

Myrtle smiled. It wasn't a very nice one, by the look of it.

"That's not what I hear~" she said in a sing-song voice. She had pulled herself out of the toilet fully now, swinging her legs over so she could sit on it. Water sprinkled all over the stall's peeling wooden wall as she climbed out.

Aaand that's why I needed the rags, Kagome wearily thought.

Myrtle's ghostly lips twisted further. "And I hear all sorts of juicy things. Gossip, rumors… the occasional breakdown." Though she had tried for a flippant tone, the last at least roused a bit of discomfort from the ghost.

Kagome grimaced, gripping the mop handle a little tighter, not liking where this was going. Myrtle did say that she'd heard of her…

Myrtle caught the reflex, her eyes glinting behind her phantom glasses as she leaned forward. "Would you like me to tell you?"

Careful, Kagome turned away and resumed her task of mopping up the water. "I think I'd rather not."

Myrtle ignored her. "Scared? You should be, I hear all sorts of nasty things in here too, when girls think no one is listening." Though she was tittering, Kagome watched from the corner of her eye as the edges of Myrtle's mouth went tight.

"I'm always listening."

The ghost's dark tone had Kagome's arms slowing as she mopped, and she couldn't help the chill that crawled down the length of her spine.

"She's nice but, y'know, she can be so annoying sometimes."

Kagome stopped mopping completely to openly stare as Myrtle's voice changed to mimic that of whom the words supposedly came from, if not without a touch of mocking.

"Those pranks she's always pulling with her friends? Merlin, they were funny at first but they're getting tiresome." Myrtle turned wide eyes on Kagome then, her voice back to normal as she asked, "Speaking of pranks, did you know you made a girl cry once?"

Kagome flinched, turning away, trying to think back to when she could have possibly done that.

Myrtle didn't give her time to think very long before she flew through the air at her. She stopped just in front of her to hover and look down with a bit of a smug sort of superiority. "Not very nice of you then, hmm? And then, on the first day of school? Whoo boy, a lot of people didn't seem to like the way you held up the Sorting that night. And oooh, didn't you get a Professor fired last year?"

Mrytle floated backwards, appraising Kagome as her head tipped to one side. "Bit of an attention seeker, aren't you?"

Attention seeker?

Kagome's gaze fell to the ground for the moment, her jaw clenching, indignity rising hot in her chest. Am not, she wanted to snap back, the retort burning at the tip of her tongue, but she held it back as she glanced back up at Myrtle who was watching her, leaning forward in anticipation.

The sight of it was enough for Kagome to wrestle back up a bit of rationality.

She's just trying to get a rise out of you, Kagome reasoned with herself as she fought to keep calm, though she had no idea why Myrtle would, or what the ghost even had against her. It's not true…

Kagome knew well enough that the pranks they pulled were never about the attention they might get from them, or for popularity. They were for fun, and not just the pranks themselves but working with James and their friends to come up with and pull them off, sneaking around to set them up, and then the satisfaction that came from pulling a successful prank, the looks of shock and the peals of laughter they'd get...

They did get a fair bit of attention from it, and Kagome wouldn't deny that they even enjoyed it, but it was never the reason behind the pranks in the first place.

But…

If one of their pranks did hurt someone's feelings, Kagome wanted to know. To apologize. To make sure it never happened again.

Swallowing roughly, Kagome studied Myrtle's face closely for any sign of deceit. But in the face of Myrtle's pale wide eyes and eager grin, there wasn't much else for her to discern.

So, stepping closer and looking her right in the eye, Kagome asked Mrytle point blank, "Did I really?"

Myrtle tensed under her scrutiny, drifting away to put some distance between them.

Kagome followed her, taking a step forward as she pressed on. "Myrtle, did I really make someone cry? Do you know their name? Their House, maybe?"

"As if," the ghost scoffed, crossing her arms close to her chest. Avoiding Kagome's eyes, Myrtle sniffed and said, "A lot of people come in here, you think I'd get their names much less remember them? Merlin…"

Considering her restroom was known to be haunted and widely avoided by most, Kagome did. "You remembered them crying because of me," she pointed out, "And if that's true, I need to apologize."

Myrtle's head snapped around so she could stare. "Well, too bad!" she snipped back in response, perhaps a touch too hasty at that. She was looking at Kagome as if grew another head, eyes wide and a little wild, pale lips pinched thin, "It's not like I saw their face or anything!" With another scoff, Myrtle whirled around and retreated, shooting towards one of the toilets. "Hurry up and get out of my restroom already, will you?"

The ghost didn't wait for a reply as she dived down to disappear into the porcelain bowl, the force of it jostling the toilet. A series of gurgles and bubbles followed, before it spat out a torrent of water.

For a long moment, Kagome only stared at the floor she had just cleaned, flooded once more. Shoulders sagging, she mentally smacked herself for saying anything at all in the first place and resigned herself to even more mopping with a small groan.

.

.

It took twice as long as it really should have taken, but at last the restroom floor was dry.

Myrtle hadn't reappeared since her dramatic and messy exit, and, not wanting to count her blessings too soon, Kagome used that to her advantage to hurry up and finish mopping before her luck ran out.

It was just in time to make it to the quidditch tryouts too! A glance at her watch told her it was cutting it a bit close, but if she rushed, Kagome was sure she'd be able to make it just as they began.

Not wanting to waste any more time, Kagome grabbed the still-full bucket of water by her feet and carried it over to the sinks. She heaved it up, struggling a bit under its wait, before she balanced it against the sink and started to tip it over.

As she waited for it to drain, a glint below the mirror caught her eye.

Kagome paused for a moment before peering closer down at the faucet, still pouring.

A… snake?

Kagome blinked, eyebrows furrowing.

On the side of the faucet, there was a—

$$Open up,$$ Kagome said, the words a strange hiss as they fell from her lips, eyes intent on the sink faucet in front of her, only for her to stumble back as the snake flashed a brilliant white and began to spin.

The floor shook beneath her feet. Pale, freckled hands grabbed at her sleeves, holding on tight as the column of sinks in front of them shifted in a series of clanks and whirs, until finally all that was left was a dark hole on the ground in its place.

"Bloody hell, Harry…"

Kagome chanced a quick look at Ron, who, in a surge of bravery, inched forward and dragged her along with to peek down into the hole. Even Professor Lockhart couldn't help but do the same, equally stunned.

"Ginny's down there," her best friend said, not a question but a statement. One that Kagome immediately understood.

She murmured her agreement and with that alone they both knew what they were going to do.

"I can't see anything," Ron quietly said, "How far d'you think it goes?"

Kagome murmured she had no idea. "Only one way to find out, though."

That sent Lockhart reeling back with a sputter. "Y-you. You cannot possibly be serious! You're just going to, what, jump?"

Kagome gave him a grim smile.

"No, we are."

Distantly, Kagome heard the bucket clatter to the ground at her feet, felt what water that remained inside it still splashing against the tile and soaking her socks, seeping into her shoes, but her eyes were glued fast to the small, metal snake whose empty eyes seemed to bore right back into her. A rushing feeling swept through her head, leaving her lightheaded. Her heart began to pound heavily in her chest, her knees going weak and hands clutching at the sink like it was a lifeline, inhaling sharply as blurry impressions and sounds assaulted her in dizzying speeds—

Slimy, endless, other pipelines branching off from all sides but none as big as the one she was dropping down in, deeper and deeper, wind rushing past her, whistling high in her ears and whipping at her robes—

The crunch of something beneath her feet; a cast of her spell-lit wand to reveal her treading across the bones of small animals—

Skin, bright vivid green and translucent and big and long, littered across almost every inch of the tunnel – "Blimey," her best friend exhaled, fear rattling his breath and his words and his limbs, "Can't have come from—from something twenty feet at least—

A man, his normally perfectly coiffed hair a grimy mess from his feinted collapse, pale face gaunt and sweaty, hard lines and cold eyes round with fear but the stolen, Spellotaped wand he raised at her never shook as he sucked in a deep breath and shouted, "Obliviate!"—

An explosion, bright and blue-green, before the ground beneath her feet trembled and Kagome ran, rocks tumbling down and down until a wall was formed, her way out blocked off and her best friend stuck on the other side and only one way left to go now—

A long, dimly lit chamber, with towering stone pillars crumbling from age and carved serpents and a greenish gloom that lit the place, a small girl with bright red hair lying unconscious on its floor—

A handsome boy, tall and dark-haired and watching her with dark eyes that dared not to leave her face, blurred around the edges but his smirk nothing but sharp.

"—Tom Riddle?" Kagome both asked and gasped, the name falling from lips as she finally came back to, still clutching at the sink for dear life, the only thing that kept her weak legs from collapsing beneath her.

She panted and heaved, her eyes clenched shut against the throbbing that ravaged her head, trying to calm her racing heart and the icy phantom fear that still shook her to her core.

"What's with all the racket—!"

Kagome sucked in a sharp breath, eyes snapping open to catch the murky reflection of Myrtle's wide-eyed gaze in the mirror gaping back at her.

"What do you want this time?"

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Kagome croaked out, trembling, just as she said,

"To ask how you died."

The Myrtle of now, the one currently hovering behind her, looked like she didn't believe her for a second.

"You look like death warmed over."

"It happened right in here. I died in the very stall."

The grip Kagome had around the edge of the sink tightened to the point where her joints were aching, as if to anchor her not just to that spot, but to the present. It felt futile, it felt like she was sinking, shadows lapping at her ankles like sludge, just a few breathes shy of being pulled under once more.

"Just… a migraine," she strained to get out, gritting her teeth and fighting to compose herself.

"How?"

Myrtle paused to look at her, pale fingers gripping anxiously at her robes.

She looked frightened. Her voice sounded small.

"Do, do you. Should I get someone?"

"No idea. I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes."

Kagome's eyes glazed over, and Myrtle didn't bother to wait for her answer. She made a dive for the door and began to scream.

Kagome scrambled back as something stirred in the mouth opening of the gigantic stone statue that was Salazar Slytherin. Her heart in her throat and her eyes screwed shut tight, she only stopped moving up until her back hit a wall and there was nowhere else to go.

Something heavy, something huge hit the ground of the Chamber – she could feel it as the floor quaked beneath her feel, and she could imagine with vivid detail what was happening.

How the basilisk uncoiled itself from Slytherin's mouth, beckoned at it's Master's call.

"Kill him."

.

.

Kagome didn't come to in the girls' restroom on the first floor.

Instead, when she opened her eyes once more it was to find herself laying in a soft cot, a cool white sheet draped over her body and pulled up to her chin.

For a moment, Kagome thought she was dead.

"What…" she whispered, the word slurring on her tongue. Lights hung above, like fuzzy halos and so unbearably bright that Kagome could barely keep her eyes open. She turned away for a reprieve only for her gaze to meet faded green linen.

Curtains, it took her mind a moment to realize what was in front of her. There was a faint but astringent scent, one that was fairly familiar.

"You're awake, I see."

Rolling onto her back, Kagome squinted down at the foot of her cot. "Oh," she exhaled, it finally hitting her, "Madam Pomfrey." Her brows furrowed, confused, because that only meant…

"What am I doing in the hospital wing?"

The matron made a pursed look. "You don't remember, then?" At Kagome's slow blink, Madam Pomfrey frowned. "As Moaning Myrtle tells it, you were unwell and fainted in the restroom. You hit your head at some point on the way down."

That… would certainly explain why the right side of her forehead ached something fierce.

Sinking into the cot, all Kagome could say in response was, "Oh."

"'Oh,' is right," Madam Pomfrey said smartly. "You're very lucky it was only just a glancing blow. Now, sit up a bit, slowly now." Though her words were admonishing, her touch was nothing but gentle as she guided Kagome into an upright position.

Wand in hand, Madam Pomfrey wordlessly passed it over Kagome's head in what the younger witch assumed to be a diagnostic spell, only to hum a little.

"How are you feeling?"

"Achy," Kagome answered honestly, "And… a bit tired."

Madam Pomfrey gave her a skeptical look. "Just a bit?"

Kagome pursed her lips and shrugged but didn't say anything further, wondering what the matron's diagnostic spells had shown.

"You're more than just a bit tired, you're fatigued it seems." Madam Pomfrey peered at her closely with kind blue eyes. "Have you been getting enough sleep, Miss Potter?"

Kagome glanced away, fingers picking at her sheet. "…I've been having a little trouble lately, I guess," she admitted eventually, if a little reluctantly at that. There was no point in lying outright when the spell told Madam Pomfrey the truth anyway.

"Is it stress?" Madam Pomfrey inquired, gently now. "Nightmares?" When Kagome hesitated to answer, she continued unperturbed. "I must stress that a good night's rest is imperative for growing witches your age. That you went as far as to collapse is truly a cause for concern."

"Nightmares," Kagome finally admitted, worry stirring deep in her chest at the words "collapse" and "cause for concern" being used, for that could mean being watched and possibly a letter going out to her parents out of caution.

"But they aren't that bad," she was quick to add, if only because of the dreamless sleeping potions she took when they did get bad. "I just had a really bad headache earlier, and when I was dumping the water, I remember… I did get a little dizzy," she lied. "I think I must've lost my balance and slipped? The floor was wet…" she trailed off suggestively and shrugged.

Madam Pomfrey studied her very closely. "Fatigue can cause headaches," she informed Kagome, matter-of-fact, but still she straightened and stepped away, satisfied as she moved on. "Do you still have a headache now?"

Kagome gingerly shook her head. "Just my forehead's all that hurts now."

Madam Pomfrey nodded. "I'll get you a small potion for the pain, then," she said, moving to do just that as she continued to speak. "I'd like to let you reset a little longer, but you should be fit to go in another hour or so."

An hour? Kagome bit her lip, glancing at the windows. She was almost afraid to ask…

"How long have I been out?"

"You've been sleeping for almost an hour now, dear," Madam Pomfrey called back as she rifled through her cabinet.

Kagome went still, heart sinking in her chest. She buried her face in her hands and softly groaned.

The quidditch tryouts…

.

.

Once she administered the potion, Madam Pomfrey left Kagome to rest while she busied herself at her desk nearby. An hour to herself gave the young witch a moment just to think.

Kagome really didn't want to think about the crestfallen looks on her brother and Sirius' faces when they didn't find her in the stands watching their tryouts and cheering them on, so it was almost fortunate she had something else to focus on.

If she were to be honest, however, she didn't quite know which detail to consider first: the secret entrance hidden in the girls' restroom no less, the lethal creature that may or may not be lurking beneath the castle at that very moment, or the name that passed from Harry's lips to hers when she had faded out of that first flashback.

Or, perhaps, the fact that it was the second time her flashbacks physically affected her aversely like that, that they felt so… real.

The thought had Kagome picking at her nails. The first time she was lucky to have been in her own room. She could almost call herself lucky again that it was only Myrtle that had walked in on her this time, and that despite her accident, it wasn't as bad as the flashback about Regulus and the locket.

There was a connection between the two flashbacks, there had to be, really, to invoke such a substantial response.

Tom Riddle… Riddle…

Kagome tested the name, and she frowned.

The name sounded familiar, somehow, which made absolutely no sense if he had attended Hogwarts with Harry… But if this Riddle was the master of that creature, the basilisk – the same creature that killed Myrtle who's been dead for years now, then how could he possibly look like a sixteen-year-old student?

Kagome grumbled, feeling her head beginning to throb once more just thinking about it.

For all the flashbacks showed her, it didn't make any sense. She was missing something. Something big.

She had a feeling that Tom Riddle, whoever he may be, was the key. As well as the secret chamber hidden underneath the castle. The locket too, she remembered, was inlaid with emeralds to depict an 'S' – for Slytherin, no doubt. But until she knew more, there was no point trying to figure out how they were all connected.

Not even twenty minutes after Kagome decided to take a break from her thoughts and rest a bit, the doors to the hospital wing burst open.

"Kagome?!"

Startled out of her short nap, the witch jerked and sat up quickly.

Before Kagome could get a word out, Madam Pomfrey descended on the noisy intruder that dared to cause such a commotion with a sharp tongue and a severe expression that rivaled even Professor McGonagall before they could take more than three steps inside the room.

"Young man, this is an infirmary, not the Great Hall or the courtyard! I will not allow such raucous behavior behind my doors, it is beyond rude and inconsiderate towards those occupying my cots!"

Kagome winced. Madam Pomfrey wasn't yelling but with the fierce tone she was serving there was no need.

"I'm sorry," came the intruder's meek apology and Kagome's eyes widened as she recognized the voice instantly. "I really am, truly, I just—" The voice stopped suddenly, cracking mid-sentence. "My sister, I heard she was hurt, is she alright?"

A beat passed and Kagome was sorely tempted to sneak out of her cot and pull back the curtain a bit to see her brother, to show she was fine.

Before she could even poke a toe out from under her sheet, Madam Pomfrey spoke up at last. "Your sister is well, Mister Potter, and surely awake by now after that entrance of yours – despite that she was meant to be resting." Kagome couldn't see it, but she could easily imagine the face her brother was making and grimaced in sympathy. "Go on, go on, you can speak to her but do keep you voice down."

"Thank you!"

Kagome listened to the fast approach of James' feet before suddenly the curtain was pulled aside and she was greeted with her brother's worried face. He was still dressed in his full Chaser gear, his hair a windswept mess and his face sweaty and flushed, if a little drawn – like he just got out of tryouts and ran all the way over straight from the pitch when he got the news.

Knowing her brother, he probably did. She just hoped whoever told him waited long enough for tryouts to have finished before doing so.

When James only stared at her, eyes darting all over her to take her in before lingering at the top of her head, Kagome offered him a weak wave in greeting.

James' whole body seemed to slump as he stared at her, dumbfounded. "Kagome," he said, exasperated and quietly so but empathetically enough to make up no doubt for his desired volume.

Kagome could only let out a nervous laugh, "Whoops?"

James' eye twitched. "Whoops?" he repeated, incredulous, "Kagome, you were supposed to be mopping up a restroom. How could you possibly get hurt mopping?"

"…I slipped?"

James stared at her. Kagome shrank under his gaze. "…And I hit a sink? On the way down?"

James' eyes rolled up towards the ceiling, lips moving as he muttered something she couldn't hear under his breath, but Kagome had a feeling it wasn't anything particularly generous towards her. He dragged himself towards the chair just off the side from her cot and dropped into it unceremoniously.

"That explains the goose egg on your head," he finally said louder for her benefit, gesturing at the top of her head with his chin.

Kagome pursed her mouth, gingerly touching the bump on her forehead. "Is it really that bad?"

James didn't spare her feelings as he nodded and said, "Yeah, like a huge purple zit."

Kagome barely reigned in the urge to grab the pillow she was currently reclining on and chuck it at his dumb face. "You're supposed to be nice to injured people, you git!"

"Not when you keep giving me heart attacks," James said with zero sympathy, and Kagome winced once more.

"Sorry," she muttered, shamefaced as she sunk into her cot, "And, uh, sorry for missing your tryouts too, by the way."

James let out a heavy sigh. "It's not like you meant to knock yourself out," he said magnanimously, only to pause and look at her with narrowed eyes.

Kagome groaned, rolling her eyes. "Merlin, no, I did not slip and hit my head on purpose, prat."

"The why're you apologizing?" he snarked, "You should be on the edge of your cot asking if we made the team."

"Why ask when I already know it was a sure thing?'" Kagome shot back, before she grinned, "Collin's would be mental not to have you on the team."

James huffed, but there was no hiding how his chest puffed up with pride. "Blown away on all accounts," he bragged, "We've got our first practice next week!"

"Congratulations, James," Kagome softly said, more seriously now. It made her smile when James, in a rare show of bashfulness, looked away, red-cheeked and boot scuffing the floor as he mumbled his thanks.

"If you miss our first game, though," he said after a moment, and shot her a look that was hard as steel, "Not only will I never forgive you, I will disown you as my sister."

Kagome laughed and held her hands out in surrender.

"Okay, okay, I'll definitely be there – can't miss you trouncing the Slytherins, can I?"

.

.

When Madam Pomfrey came around later to discharge her, Kagome missed the long look her brother had shot her when the matron mentioned the dreamless sleeping potions if she ever had need of them.

.

.

Sirius wasn't even slightly bummed that Kagome had missed what he proclaimed to be his "shining moment" at tryouts.

Instead, he burst out laughing the moment he laid eyes on her.

"Only you would slip mopping and bust your head on a sink," he outright sniggered that night at dinner. "Merlin, what is your luck this year, Kagome?"

Peter at least shot her a sympathetic look. "You don't think someone put a curse on you too, d'you?" he asked, genuinely concerned.

"Like on the DADA position?" Remus laughed a little at the idea and eyed Kagome with mirth. "No, I think Kagome's just that unlucky."

Kagome pouted. "Some friends you are," she muttered, sticking out her tongue and blowing them a raspberry. "This is why Peter is my favorite, he's the nice one out of all of you!"

"Taking the mickey outta you when you do something dumb is exactly what friends do, Kagome," her brother laughed out as he tossed an arm around her shoulders. "Imagine if Myrtle didn't get help and you died in that restroom. You could be spending the rest of your afterlife being her roomie and haunting the loo!"

Kagome shoved him off her. "Prat!" she said, but she could help but join him laughing.

It reminded her, though. She needed to thank Myrtle for getting her help.

She remembered how freaked out the ghost looked when she was looking much like a ghost herself clinging to the sinks after the flashbacks, the genuine concern in Myrtle's voice when she asked if she needed help.

It was so unlike how Myrtle acted when they first talked.

"Hey," Kagome said aloud, suddenly, her fork freezing in mid-air because she knew she heard the name somewhere before, "Any of you guys heard the name Tom Riddle before?"

"Tom Riddle?" Sirius was the first to say around his mouthful of beef and potatoes, although it sounded more like, "Ta 'ittle?" Kagome grimaced, and with a sheepish look, Sirius gave what looked to be a painful swallow to get all his food down his throat. "Yeah, doesn't one of the trophies in the trophy room have his name somewhere?" He squinted a little in thought. "Some big shot Head Boy, I think?"

Kagome blinked, surprised she actually got an answer that easy.

Remus snorted into his goblet just as he was about to take a sip. "That you can remember that off the top of your head goes to show how often Professor McGonagall has you polishing the trophy room for detention."

Sirius grumbled. "Yeah, I think she knows how much I hate it so she makes sure to give it to me whenever she can."

"You should try getting detention less often, then," Remus commented smartly, smirking.

Sirius shot him a dirty look, pointing his fork at him in warning. "Not everyone is a goody-two-shoes, Lupin," he snipped back, stabbing a piece of beef with a forceful little jab.

Beside her, James rolled his eyes before turning towards Kagome, knocking shoulders with her. "Why'd you wanna know?" he asked, ignoring the other two going off in a bout of bickering.

Kagome shrugged, pushing around her potatoes back and forth with her fork. "Name's been bugging me. Like, you know when something pops up in your head, and you know you know it from somewhere, but you can't remember where from?" She speared a chunk of potato and popped it into her mouth. "S'like that," she added once she swallowed.

"Hate it when that happens," Peter mumbled in commiseration, before he took a big bit out of his own dinner.

"Yeah," Kagome murmured, already planning a trip to the trophy room in the future. "Me too."

.

.

Kagome found herself returning to the girls' first floor restroom a week later.

It was empty, Kagome having made sure to stand outside the entrance and keep an ear out for any sound of Myrtle inside to double check just in case. After hearing nothing but the occasional gurgle coming from the dilapidated plumbing, she cast a look over her shoulder before slipping inside.

She made a beeline for the sinks, stopping in front of one in particular – the one with the wonky faucet that never did work; where, coincidentally, the image of a snake had been engraved.

Where underneath lied the entrance to the chamber from her flashback.

For a moment Kagome didn't do anything. She only looked, studying the faucet closely, until after a long moment she reached out a hand, fingers grazing along the serpent-shaped engraving.

She sighed, retracting her hand and letting it fall to the side when nothing happened. It was no use. There was no stirring in her mind, no matter how much or how hard she stared.

And the longer she stared, the more apparent it became that there was only one option left for her to take.

It was such a bad idea. She knew it – in her head, in her gut. It was dangerous and stupid and could go pear-shape in a million different ways but most likely ending in her death.

But she also knew answers lied in the chamber below. There had to be. There had to be more to the flashbacks she had last week, fragmented and rapid as they came and went, painting a picture she couldn't hope to cobble together without more information.

And the fact that those answers were so close within reach was too tempting to ignore.

She had to get down there. Even if there was a creature ten times her size and capable of killing her just waiting down inside the chamber.

Weepy sniffling startled Kagome out of her thoughts. Quickly she turned as the sound of ominous bubbling followed only to find Myrtle staring back at her in open surprise, poking halfway out of her toilet and one arm frozen where it had been raised mid-air to scrub at her face.

"It's you." The ghost recovered quicker than Kagome to pin her with a hard gaze as she pulled herself out of her toilet fully.

"What're you doing here?" Myrtle groused as she rose to hover above Kagome, trailing off to the side in the air to begin circling her. "The restroom doesn't need any mopping." The ghost eyed her empty hands. "But you're not here for that. Clearly."

"No," Kagome agreed, stepping closer to Myrtle. The ghost wasn't expecting that, her eyes narrowing in distrust as she unconsciously drifted backwards. Kagome stopped, not wanting to push. "I just wanted to thank you."

Myrtle froze in place. "Thank me?" she parroted, voice going up an octave.

Kagome nodded. "For getting help," she explained, "We… didn't get off on the right foot. You didn't have to go get help for me, so. Thank you, Myrtle," she said with sincerity. "It was really nice of you to do that."

Myrtle reared back as if Kagome had burned her, her face looking like she swallowed a lemon. "Well, what if you were dying?" she sputtered. "I couldn't possibly have you die here! A girl needs her privacy! And I can barely get it here as it is!" she complained, her voice starting to go shrill as she went on. "There's only room for one ghost in this restroom!"

Kagome paused to stare at the young looking ghost, her brows furrowing. "But I thought you can move through the pipes…"

"That's beside the point!" Myrtle snapped, waspish. "And you – you better not go spreading around what I did!"' she threatened, rearing up to tower over Kagome, "I'll know if you do!"

"Alright." Kagome backed off, hands rising in a show of surrender. Then, she paused for a moment, because if she was going to begin researching what she saw in her flashbacks, where better to go to than the source? "Um…can I ask," she suddenly said, before faltering.

It was rude to ask how a person died, wasn't it? And Myrtle in particular was pretty sensitive…

Myrtle saw right through her, however – in fact, she actually perked up, eyes practically glowing. It was the most excited Kagome had ever seen her be. "How I died, you mean?" Just as swiftly, her pale eyes narrowed, suspicious. "Why do you want to know?"

Kagome swallowed. "You just… look really young… And you're wearing your uniform, so I was wondering…" She quickly shook her head, looking away now, "Well, you don't have to answer if it's difficult—"

"It's not," Myrtle said, and quite gleefully at that. She floated back so she could sit on the top of one of the stall doors. "Maybe after the first decade or so, but you get over it pretty quick when you're dead." She shot Kagome a smile that was shark-like. "No use crying over spilt milk, right?"

"I think you're allowed to be upset about your own death," Kagome said in a quiet voice. "No matter how long it's been."

Myrtle's face twisted in a grimace. "How nice of you," she simpered, mocking. She lifted a transparent shoulder to shrug. "But if you're not gonna move on, you should get over how you died. You don't wanna be like the Grey Lady, all silent and sad all the time."

Kagome very wisely did not voice the irony behind Moaning Myrtle saying those words.

"Or angry," Myrtle continued to say, shooting her a look void of amusement, "There's a reason why you don't see any angry ghosts around here, after all."

Kagome grimaced. "I'll be sure to remember that, should I get brutally murdered and decide to stick around."

The corner of Myrtle's mouth twitched, before she quickly straightened herself. "Don't knock it 'til you try it," she said, before quickly adding, "Just don't get yourself killed around here."

"Only room for one ghost in this restroom, I remember."

Myrtle squinted at her. "Don't get cute," she snarked.

Kagome held her palms out in surrender once again and the ghost sighed as she began to swing her feet, legs kicking back and forth through the stall door, unimpeded.

"If you really want to know how I died, I guess I could tell you," Myrtle said at last, as if doing so was a big effort on her part and she wasn't just practically bouncing earlier at the idea. She stopped long enough to survey Kagome. "It's positively dreadful, though," she warned, doubtful that Kagome could take hearing it.

Kagome shook her head, waiting patiently. "If you're comfortable with sharing, I'm all ears."

Myrtle leaned forward from her perch, translucent eyes shining bright behind her spectacles and lips stretching into a slow curl.

It all started right in here. I died in this very stall…"

lmao funny how my favorite part was writing myrtle bickering with kagome. i feel like kagome would remind myrtle of her bullies when she was alive – popular and pretty and confident – and because of that she wouldn't like her right off the bat and would try to start shit.

but then at the same time, when faced with the possibility of someone getting seriously hurt or dying in front of her, it would hit a little too close to home, to how she died in the bathroom and no one found her for hours.

anyways, i hope you guys enjoyed it! and again, i'm really sorry for the long, long wait lmao;;; and also, be sure to check out my blog if u haven't – since the last update I posted a few things and wrote a couple of future snippets and scenes… it all should be in the fic's main tag at zefyre on tumblr!

'til next time~

rainlily