Bella and the Chamber (Book Two)

Chapter Thirty-Nine

She lay there on the cold, hard floor, eyes closed, face pale, not knowing that her life was in danger. But, no one was there to help her. Not a single soul. She grows weaker...

*

"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."

Myself, along with all the other Gryffindors - minus Bella, I still don't know where she was - were packed inside the Gryffindor Common Room listening to what McGonagall had to say in silence. She rolled up the parchment that she was reading off and said in a choked voice, 

"I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. It is likely the school will 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"

Professor McGonagall then (and very awkwardly) climbed out of the portrait hole, as soon as she left, the chatter in the Common Room got louder.

"That's two Gryffindors down, not counting a Gryffindor ghost, one Ravenclaw and one Hufflepuff," Lee Jordan said, counting them on his fingers. "Haven't any of the teachers noticed that the Slytherins are all safe? Isn't it obvious all this stuff's coming from Slytherin? The Heir of Slytherin, the monster of Slytherin - why don't they just chuck all the Slytherins out?" he roared, to nods and applause.

"And that's not all," Fred spoke up, standing on the armchair. "A Gryffindor is missing - Bella Swan. Nobody has seen her since before the Match"

I gulped. "We don't know she's missing..."

"Harry come off it," George spoke up. "First Hermione is attacked and then Bella goes missing? There's something strange going on here..."

"Are you saying Bella's the one behind this?" I roared, crossing my arms.

George shook his head. "I'm not saying that at all, I'm worried about Bella...what if we never find her?"

"She'll be a great loss to the team, that's for sure," Fred said, nodding. 

I swallowed thickly. "She'll turn up, she's strong...she'll be okay"

I wasn't sure if I was reassuring them or myself...

I looked behind Lee to see Percy Weasley sitting in a chair, but for one he didn't seem keen to make his views heard. Hewas looking pale and stunned. George walked over to me and stood next to me.

"He's in shock," George explained quietly. "That Ravenclaw girl - Penelope Clearwater - she's a Prefect. I don't think he thought the monster would dare attack a Prefect"

I was only half-listening. I can't seem to get over the fact Bella was nowhere to be found and that Hermione was lying on the hospital bed as though she was made out of stone. To make things even worse, if whoever was responsible for all isn't caught soon, the school will close and I'll be forced to go back to live with the Dursleys. And that's hell...literally. Tom Riddle had turned Hagrid in because he was faced with having to live in the Muggle orphanage if the school closed...I now knew exactly how he felt. 

I do not want to go back to that hell-hole. Ever. Hogwarts is my home.

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

"I dunno, but we've got find Bella," I say, already making up my mind. "And the first step to finding her is speaking to Hagrid - don't give me that look, if Hagrid is responsible, he may know what happened to her"