Soon, silence was complete as Megan stepped carefully forwards. She would have preferred not to be alone, but time wasn't on their side if they wanted to save both Ginny and their school. Megan was terrified, there was no denying it. Her heart was hammering like a racing car. But there was no other way. At this point, safe was not an option. She just hoped the wall didn't cave in again on the boys. And that this would end soon, because she was getting dizzy. The tunnel kept on turning. Though, when she thought about it, it made sense. She thought it was probably because snakes never moved in a straight line. Every bit of her body was trembling uncomfortably. She both wanted and dreaded the end of the tunnel. Presently, she reached another turn and found a solid wall. On it, two snakes were carved, the emerald green of their eyes glowing unpleasantly. She took a deep, shaking breath, and stepped forwards. These snakes were easier to picture moving as she said:

"Open."

The snakes clicked inwards, forming large S-like shapes, like when they prepared to attack, and the door opened. She breathed in deeply to give herself some courage, took a few steps forward, and looked inside. The door had opened onto a very long, gloomy chamber. There were huge snake heads on either side of the room, and at the back, the giant stone carving of a man's head, its long beard reaching the floor. A small pond glistened at the bottom of the statue. Megan had never seen Salazar Slytherin, so she had no idea what he looked like, but since the Chamber of Secrets was the dwelling of the Heir of Slytherin, she thought it safe to assume this represented him. There was a long stone path between the snake heads and water on either side of the room. Megan climbed down the small ladder into the chamber. Her footsteps echoed as she looked around, her heart racing; where was the basilisk? And what about Ginny? She carefully walked forwards, wand raised. Just then, she saw in the gloom, by the water, a small shape on the floor. And shape with red hair.

"Ginny...!" Megan gasped, running forwards, forgetting all prudence.

She reached her, dropped to her knees and caught Ginny's shoulders.

"Ginny! Ginny, wake up!"

She wasn't petrified, but she was limp... and dreadfully cold.

"Ginny...! Ginny, come on...! Wake up! Don't be dead, please!"

She tried shaking her gently, slapping her, but she stayed lifeless.

"Ginny..." Megan murmured desperately.

She couldn't be dead, she couldn't... it wasn't fair. Ginny had never hurt anyone. Why was she down here, what did she have to with all this...? Was this some twisted idea to get to her through Ginny? She would have been easier because Megan didn't spend much time with her. Ginny was in another second year group and didn't have many classes with Megan.

"Ginny, please wake up...!" Megan said.

"She won't wake." said a voice behind her.

Megan spun around. A tall boy with dark hair and Slytherin robes stood before her, watching her. He was several years older than her, she could tell by his face. But she immediately recognised him.

"... Tom Riddle..." she said. "What d'you mean? She's not..."

Fear filled her heart as she waited.

"She's still alive," he said. "Only just, but alive."

Megan looked at Riddle. He was exactly the same as when she had seen him in the diary. But that had happened fifty years ago... how could he be standing here, the same as then?

"...Are you a ghost?" Megan asked, slowly getting to her feet.

"A memory. Preserved in a diary for five decade." he said, pointing at Ginny.

Megan looked at her too. Then, she realised he wasn't pointing at her, but at the small black book by her. The diary.

"... Ho-"

Then Megan understood. She meant to say something as she looked at Tom. Then, she saw he was playing with his wand. Which Megan then recognised as hers.

"... Give me my wand, Tom." she said.

She had never trusted him completely, because he was a Slytherin, and the truth about Hagrid had aroused her suspicions. Maybe he hadn't known Hagrid was innocent, but she also knew that he had been desperate to not let the school close.

"Oh, you won't be needing it." he said.

"I will if the basilisk comes," Megan pointed out coolly.

"It won't come until it's called.' he replied just as evenly.

Megan looked at him warily.

"What d'you mean?"

"I've been waiting so long for this moment." he said, a cold smile on his lips. "To see you, speak to you."

He started circling around her.

"How did Ginny become like this, what did you do to her?" Megan asked eyeing him as he turned around her.

"Ah", he said, still smiling his soulless smile. "An interesting question. However, you managed to find me down here, so I suppose you're an interesting person."

Megan didn't pay any attention to the "compliment", if it even was one, and waited for Riddle to go on.

'The reason for Ginny's presence here," Riddle said, "is that she has been spilling her little heart out to me."

"...How?" she asked, frowning.

Ginny wasn't that naïve, surely.

"The diary," he said. "She found it and has been writing in it for months. Her petty worries about not being very good in class, her brothers teasing her, you never there to talk to her... she wondered if you were angry at her."

Megan felt worse than ever. How had she let her "little sister" end up in this mess...? And what was with that chilling, hungry-looking stare Riddle kept giving her as he circled around her?

"It was really quite boring, listening to the silly troubles of a twelve year old." he said. "But I was patient. I wrote back, sympathised."

Megan realised Ginny must have been writing to Riddle and answering the same way she herself had the night he had shown her his confrontation with Hagrid.

"Ginny absolutely loved me." Riddle went on. "She said only I understood her."

Megan didn't try to hide her disgust. He had used Ginny, her weakness... it was despicable. Riddle laughed a high, cold laugh that sent chills through Megan's body.

"So, Ginny poured her soul out to me, and it turned out she was exactly what I needed. I grew stronger, and more powerful. So, I eventually began pouring a little of my soul back into her..."