Redamancy (Harry Potter x Fem!Reader)

The Heir of Slytherin

The chamber was dark and cold. On either side of them stood great stone serpents half-submerged in murky water. They cast ominous shadows against the pathway in the green glow. (Y/N) briefly entertained the idea of turning back and helping Ron shift the rocks, but she knew she couldn't leave Harry on his own. She tightened her grip on her wand, and though her hands were shaking, followed close behind him as he moved deeper into the Chamber.

Their footsteps echoed loudly against the path. (Y/N) kept her eyes fixed on the ground; she didn't want to risk accidentally looking the basilisk in the eye. "Harry?" she whispered, heart racing.

He turned around. (Y/N) couldn't find her voice. She thought about the year before when Harry had to face Lord Voldemort all on his own. She felt miserable; she wasn't alone and she still felt as though she couldn't do it.

She didn't have to say a word. Harry moved beside her and held out his hand. "Here," he said. "I think we'll both feel better,"

(Y/N) almost smiled. She grabbed his hand – careful not to hold it too tightly – and felt a great sense of relief.

"Ready?" he asked.

She nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat. Then, they started forward.

It felt as though the serpents were watching them move. (Y/N) half expected them to come to life, though she knew it was foolish.

Finally, they reached the end, and a tall, tall statue loomed ahead of them. It was an ancient stone face with a beard that dipped in the murky water below. And just on the water's edge lay a small girl with flaming-red hair.

"Ginny!"

Together, they ran to her side and Harry dropped to his knees as he tried to shake her awake. "Oh, Ginny, please don't be dead," he mumbled, tossing his wand aside carelessly. He urgently shook her shoulders. "Wake up! Wake up!"

(Y/N) noticed the poor girl was unusually pale, and her skin was like ice to the touch. In her arms, she clutched Tom Riddle's diary and she, unlike the countless petrified students in the hospital wing, had her eyes closed. (Y/N)'s breath caught. Was she...?

"Please," said Harry desperately. "Wake up,"

"She won't wake."

(Y/N) nearly jumped out of her skin.

A tall, dark-haired boy stood at the edge of the darkness, watching them. He was dressed in Slytherin robes and looked no older than sixteen. (Y/N) wondered how long he'd been there and why he hadn't gone to get help. He looked remarkably calm as he approached them and (Y/N) had just begun to panic when Harry said, "Tom – Tom Riddle!"

He nodded in confirmation. (Y/N) felt a great rush of relief; he was an ally.

"What do you mean 'she won't wake?'" Harry questioned. "She's not...?"

"She's still alive," Riddle assured. "But only just."

"Are you a ghost?"

He shook his head. "A memory," he answered. "Preserved in a diary for fifty years."

(Y/N) understood why he hadn't gone to get help; he couldn't go anywhere when the diary was secured in Ginny's arms. She set her wand aside and gently took it from her hands. "She's freezing," said (Y/N). She tried once more to wake her to no avail. "We need to get her out of here before the basilisk comes."

"It won't come until it's called," Riddle promised.

Harry stood, slowly moving to stand in between the girls and Riddle. "Give us our wands, Tom."