they were just kids [draco malfoy]

Year 2 - 6

"Well, the guy who made the Chamber was quite literally a Slytherin so it would only make sense if the Chamber resided somewhere in the Slytherin part of the castle."

Astrid had started talking with Daphne again. Not that she had particularly forgiven the girl, but if she would've waited for Daphne to apologize, the two would never speak again. Astrid had missed her best friend. She knew whatever Daphne said, she never meant to hurt others. Daphne was... just Daphne. She spoke her mind and she wanted to fit in just like everybody else at that age. Besides, even though she would never admit it out loud, Astrid was too scared to search for the Chamber alone.

A week had passed of them checking most corners and classrooms of the Slytherin side of the castle but with no success. The only at least slightly interesting piece of information that they had uncovered was that Adrian Pucey was snogging a Ravenclaw girl, whose name, as Daphne later discovered, was Ophelia Bletchley. Quite scandalous, if you would ask Astrid. After all, she was Miles Bletchley's little sister. And from the way the two had been going down on one another, definitely indicated that they had been hiding the relationship for some time already.

"But we've looked everywhere already. The Chamber isn't here."

"This castle is enormous. We couldn't have possibly looked everywhere."

"Oh," Daphne exclaimed and Astrid could almost see the lightbulb lighting over her head (an expression her wizard friends would sadly never understand). "What if it's in the common room?"

"Are you daft? Slytherin wouldn't hide the Chamber in the common room."

"But that's what's so genius about it. No one would ever go looking for it there."

"Yeah, and then where would you think would be the entrance? In the bloody fireplace? Or maybe you had to pull at a specific book for an entrance to reveal itself?" Astrid exclaimed mockingly.

"That's actually a really good idea," Daphne said genuinely. "How did you think of that?"

Astrid just shook her head. "I forgot you guys have never watched any movies."

The girls sat on of the common room couches in silence. The classes had ended for mostly everybody and so they weren't the only chattering pair there. The black leather couches were filled with students as they teased and mocked one another. What others might've found a very glum, cold, and spooky place, Astrid actually found rather homey. She liked the atmosphere the light shining from the water-blocked windows emitted along with the sound of the crackling fireplace and she liked the overall classy feel the room gave. Besides, if she ever decided to eavesdrop, she knew she'd always stumble onto some very intriguing conversations. Ranging from sports to ambitions, to things they loved, and to their most annoying classmates, Astrid knew whatever conversation she would overhear, it would never be boring.

"What do you reckon we do then?" Daphne asked breaking the momentary silence.

"There are a few places we haven't checked still. There is Snape's dungeon-"

"We are NOT going into Snape's dungeon. The guy probably has rotting corpses in there. Not pretty."

Astrid laughed before continuing. "Then there are the few locked classrooms we skipped and then the very furthest, deepest end of the dungeons."

"I've heard it's really smelly there. And cold. And wet."

"From whom?"

"Well, okay, I haven't heard but I think it must be really cold and smelly there."

"I doubt the Chamber would be in any of those places anyway."

For a few days now, Astrid had started to consider that it maybe wouldn't be as easy of a task as she had thought before. She didn't even know what she was supposed to be looking for and she hadn't even heard the voice again.