Teachers gathered on the second floor at Professor McGonagall's command: the Heir had abducted one of the students. Unlike in the original canon, Snape lingered longer than usual—he joined the circle of colleagues just as Lockhart finished another one of his boastful speeches.
— Severus, what has happened? — McGonagall asked, noticing his deathly pallor and the troubled glint in his eyes.
— There was a fight in the dungeon corridors last night. The entire wing is in ruins, — Snape's voice sounded hollow. — Upon checking the Slytherin dormitories, I discovered that one of my students is missing.
— What? Who exactly is gone?
— Victor. He is neither in the dormitory nor in the Great Hall.
McGonagall frowned, struggling to maintain her composure. — Teachers, return to your houses immediately and conduct a full roll call. We must know the exact number of the missing.
The professors hurriedly began to disperse, the hems of their robes fluttering in the empty corridors. McGonagall was also about to head toward Gryffindor but noticed that Snape hadn't moved. He stood frozen, staring into space.
— Severus? — she called softly.
— It is my fault...
— Whatever do you mean? — Minerva asked in surprise.
— It is my fault. Victor has not slept in the dungeons for a long time. I knew this and allowed him such liberties. I should have... I was obligated to forbid these nightly wanderings, — an uncharacteristic bitterness seeped into his words.
Snape himself didn't realize when he had stopped treating Victor as just another student. Seeing the state of the corridor after the fight—the melted stone and deep furrows in the walls—he felt genuine fear for his pupil.
— Calm yourself, Severus, — McGonagall touched his shoulder. — We do not yet know what transpired. You said yourself he is hiding somewhere. Perhaps he is in one of his secret haunts even now.
Snape nodded slowly, gathering his thoughts. — I will go check the Restricted Section. He spent quite a lot of time there last year.
Until evening, Snape searched the castle, peering into its darkest corners, but found no trace of Victor. Finally, as the sun dipped below the horizon, he made a decision. There was one person who knew more about Victor's movements than anyone else. The professor headed off to find his sister.
Entering the Ravenclaw common room, Snape ordered for Adele to be summoned immediately. Hearing this, the girl frowned and came out to meet the professor.
— Miss Moss, do you know the current whereabouts of your brother? — Snape cut straight to the point.
— Victor? No, I haven't seen him since yesterday.
Snape stared into her face for a long time, trying to catch the slightest shadow of a lie, and sighed heavily.
— Adele... I know about the Room of Requirement. He is not there. Does he have other hiding places I should be aware of?
Adele flinched but quickly regained her composure, maintaining an inscrutable expression. — Forgive me, Professor, but I truly don't know where he might be.
Snape scowled, his black eyes flashing with disappointment. — If he shows up, tell him to find me immediately. That is not a request.
— I understand.
— Thank you, — he snapped dryly and swiftly left the common room.
As soon as the door closed behind the Head of Slytherin, Adele rushed to her room. Luna was lying on the bed, serenely flipping through a magazine and kicking her legs.
— Why was the professor looking for you? — she inquired.
Adele didn't answer. She feverishly grabbed her wand.
— Luna, I'm leaving. Stay here and don't go out. If anyone looks for me, tell them I'm... well, just make something up! — Without waiting for a reply, she bolted into the corridor.
Hiding in the shadows, she reached the second floor. Approaching Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, Adele heard muffled voices. Gripping her wand tighter, she took a deep breath and burst inside. The first person she saw was Lockhart. Then her gaze fell on Harry and Ron—the latter was holding the professor "at wandpoint."
— Adele? — Harry exhaled in alarm. Because of his shout, Ron and Lockhart turned around as well. Noticing the wand in the girl's hands, Ron aimed at her for a moment, then back at the professor, then froze in confusion, shifting his wand back and forth.
Adele was momentarily bewildered. The scene was strange: two students bullying a teacher in a girls' bathroom.
— To be honest, I'm dying to know what's going on here, but that's not important right now. Answer a question, and I'll leave, — her face became frighteningly serious, just like her brother's. — Where is Victor?
The trio looked at each other in surprise.
— Victor? Is he missing too? — Harry asked.
— You didn't know?
— No... — Ron lowered his wand slightly.
Adele looked Harry intently in the eyes and nodded—she could tell they weren't lying. Stowing her wand, she gave the boys a demanding look.
— So, what are you lot up to?
— We're going to save my sister, — Ron replied gloomily.
— Ginny?
— Yes, the Heir kidnapped her and dragged her to the Chamber of Secrets, — Harry said.
— Miss Moss, help me! I believe these students are under powerful charms, they've gone mad! — Lockhart pleaded, hoping for support.
Adele didn't even turn her head in his direction. Victor always called Lockhart a liar and a cheap fraud, and as a good sister, she never doubted her brother's words.
— Shouldn't you be looking for Victor? — Ron asked, eyeing her suspiciously.
— I'm coming with you. I'm certain that wherever a Weasley is in trouble, my stupid brother is bound to be there. He loves danger and wouldn't miss this kind of 'fun' for anything.
Ron glanced glumly at Harry. He still secretly believed Victor was behind all this, but he just couldn't wrap his head around why he would need to kidnap his sister.
Harry could sense what his friend was thinking, but he didn't believe in Victor's guilt. Turning to the tap with the snake engraving, he concentrated and hissed in Parseltongue. Immediately, the sink shuddered and slowly moved aside, revealing the maw of a massive pipe.
Approaching the edge, Adele peered into the impenetrable darkness. — So this is it—the famous Chamber of Secrets...
— Yes, this is it, — Harry confirmed.
— I really don't feel like jumping down there, — Ron gulped hard, backing away from the edge.
While they stared down in fascination, a rustle came from the doors. All four turned in fright, and Lockhart even stumbled from the surprise. Adele reacted instantly: she whipped out her wand and fired a spell toward the noise.
— Ouch! — A few centimeters from where the beam of magic passed, the air rippled.
When the Disillusionment Charm fell away, Adele's eyes rounded in shock. — Luna?! What are you doing here? — She rushed to her friend and began feverishly checking her over. — Damn it, Luna, I almost hit you! I told you not to leave the dormitory!
Luna smiled serenely and hugged Adele like a spoiled child who felt no guilt at all. — I got bored. Can I come with you?
Adele exhaled wearily, trying to steady the trembling in her hands. — No, it's deadly dangerous down there! And by the way... since when did you get so good at Disillusionment?
— Victor taught me, — Luna replied calmly. — While you were brewing your potions in the Room of Requirement, he was practicing with me.
Adele frowned, a flash of jealousy crossing her gaze. — You spend too much time with him. Stop it.
— Why? — Luna tilted her head curiously.
Adele turned away sharply, not wanting to explain the reasons. — Just stop! — But when she looked back at Harry and Ron, she noticed something strange. — Where is Lockhart?
The boys realized it too. The professor was nowhere to be found.
— Damn it, he made a break for it! — Ron growled, looking around.
— Mmm, if you mean Professor Lockhart, he fell into that hole, — Luna pointed matter-of-factly at the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets.
Harry and Ron looked down into the abyss in sync.
— Professor, are you okay? — Harry shouted into the darkness, but there was no answer. Only a faint groan from somewhere deep in the pipe confirmed that Lockhart was still alive.
Adele and Luna stepped to the very edge.
— Well, even if he's hurt, at least it'll be a soft landing for us now, — Adele noted. — So, who's next?
Harry and Ron looked at each other. They couldn't back down and let the girls go first, appearing like cowards in their eyes. Harry took a deep breath, steeling his resolve.
— I'll go. — After a moment's hesitation, he gathered his courage and stepped into the void.
Seeing his friend disappear into the pipe with a scream, Ron trembled visibly, but then took a deep breath. — I'll shout if it's safe, — he told Adele, though his voice cracked noticeably.
— Alright, — she nodded.
Ron froze at the edge, staring down for a long time and gathering his spirit. The seconds stretched painfully slow.
— Need a hand? — Adele asked politely, lifting her foot, preparing to "give him some momentum."
Ron shook his head in terror, squeezed his eyes shut, and finally jumped after Harry.
Adele waited until his screams subsided. She raised her hand, and from her magical ring—a gift from Victor—a broom instantly jumped into her palm.
— Alright, Luna. Now, go back to the tower. It might be too dangerous down there even for us.
Luna pouted. — I can take care of myself. Victor taught me a lot, — she argued stubbornly.
— No, this isn't up for discussion. Go back right now! — Adele insisted categorically, frowning.
Luna pouted again, pretending to give in. — Oh, fine... I'll wait for you in the dormitory then.
Adele nodded in relief and had already opened her mouth to tell her to be careful on the way back, but she didn't get a word out. With a cheerful cry of "Woo-hoo!", Luna suddenly dived into the pipe, vanishing from sight before Adele could grab her.
Adele was left alone in the bathroom. Her left eyebrow twitched nervously.
— This is all Victor's stupid influence... — Sighing, she gripped her broom tighter, braced her knee against it as she usually did, and began a slow, controlled descent into the Chamber of Secrets.