Harry Potter: I became Snape

"You haven't come to see me in a hundred and fifty-three days."

Severus Snape ignored the "Out of Order" sign and pushed open the door to the girls' bathroom on the second floor. Myrtle Warren, known as Moaning Myrtle, drifted out from behind a faucet, catching him off guard.

Her pearlescent glasses were fogged with mist as she hovered in the doorway, her voice thick with resentment. "You said you'd come see me... I've been waiting here all this time..."

"Myrtle!" Snape jumped, taking half a step back. "I'm here now, aren't I?"

As he spoke, he hurried into the bathroom, quickly pulling the door shut behind him to avoid being spotted sneaking into the girls' loo by any passing students.

Passing through Myrtle's ghostly form, Snape felt as though he'd plunged into a bucket of ice water. A shiver ran through him, his teeth chattering faintly.

"That's not all," Snape said, raising his hands to his mouth and breathing warm air onto them. "Would you like to live somewhere else? Somewhere better than this place. I've got a new friend I'd like you to meet."

"A new place?" A spark of hope flickered in Myrtle's eyes, but it faded quickly, her expression turning forlorn. "I don't want to be laughed at or chased away again."

"It's a hidden spot, trust me," Snape said gently. "Want to come take a look? If it's not right, you can always come back here."

Myrtle hesitated, then gave a small nod. "Alright, I'll go see it."

Snape told her their destination, but to his surprise, Myrtle shot straight through the bathroom's ceiling.

"I'll wait for you up there, Severus," she called.

Snape jogged through the winding corridors, heading toward the eighth floor, where a tapestry of a troll dancing ballet hung. By the time he arrived, Myrtle was already there, floating in the air, her form gently bobbing.

"No one saw you, did they?" Snape asked.

"No," Myrtle replied. "There's not a soul around here."

"Good," Snape said, catching his breath. He pointed at the plain stone wall in front of them. "Myrtle, could you slip inside this wall and tell me what's there?"

Myrtle gave him a puzzled look but didn't question it. Obediently, she glided into the wall where the entrance to the Room of Requirement lay.

Seconds later, she emerged, her face creased with confusion. "There's nothing in there, just stone."

"Thank you, Myrtle," Snape said, nodding with satisfaction. "That means not only people but ghosts can't get in directly either."

"What place?" Myrtle asked, even more confused. "What's in there?"

"Just wait, you'll see in a moment."

Snape stepped up to the wall, tapped his knuckles three times, then clapped his hands together three times at a slower pace, and finally tapped the wall three more times quickly.

A weathered oak door materialized on the blank wall.

With a creak, the door swung open, and Pandora poked her head out. "Come on in!"

Snape slipped inside, then leaned out to beckon Myrtle. "Hurry in!"

As Myrtle floated into the room, he swiftly pulled the door shut.

"Step one was correct," Snape said to Pandora with a grin. "When someone's inside the Room of Requirement, even a ghost can't get in."

"Oh, right," he said, turning to Myrtle. "Do you know Pandora?"

"I do," Myrtle said, circling Pandora slowly. Her voice softened. "A girl who's been laughed at, just like me..."

"It's a good place for us, isn't it?" Myrtle said, her excitement growing. "A place even Peeves can't get into..."

"I don't think he can, Myrtle," Snape said. "We'll need your help to test a few more things later."

Myrtle did a cheerful somersault, her eyes gleaming with anticipation. "So I can stay here from now on?"

Snape glanced at Pandora, who smiled and nodded. "I think so," Snape said.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Myrtle asked, giving a polite bow before letting out a delighted giggle.

"The rule here is that as long as someone's inside," Snape explained, "no one outside can open the door. Now we want to know if it works the same way with a ghost inside."

"That means," Myrtle said, adjusting her glasses, a glint flashing across their pearlescent lenses, "you two go out, and I stay in here."

"Exactly," Snape said approvingly. "But first, let's see if you can pass through the walls inside this room."

Myrtle immediately dove into the stone wall of the Room of Requirement.

A moment later, she reappeared, shaking her head. "No good. It's the same as outside—just endless walls."

"Perfect," Snape said. He hooked a strange device onto the door handle, its other end connected to an odd contraption. "This device will pull the door open if it hears a loud noise."

"Remember the pattern I used outside?" he said to Myrtle. "Three short taps, three slow claps, then three short taps again. When you hear that, you can open the door. Got it?"

Snape demonstrated the rhythm twice more, then pressed his ear to the door to listen for any sounds outside. Satisfied, he nodded to Myrtle.

Myrtle took a deep breath and let out a deafening scream.

"Stop!" Snape cut her off, as Pandora's magical device—crafted with the vocal cords of an Erkling—yanked the door open a crack. "You can stop once the door's open!"

He and Pandora stepped out of the Room of Requirement, watching as the entrance vanished back into the wall.

After failing to open the Room of Requirement with conventional methods, Pandora cast a Muffliato charm on the surrounding corridors, then recreated the rhythmic sound pattern.

The door reappeared, and they stepped back inside.

"Brilliant!" Snape and Pandora high-fived, their faces alight with excitement. "This place is so much safer for us now! Myrtle, if you ever want to go for a wander, just let us know."

"Go out? No way," Myrtle said. "I like this sunny place, as long as you lot come by often."

Then she let out a mischievous giggle. "What a strange bunch—Moaning Myrtle, oddball Pandora, and Severus, who likes peeking at bare bums..."

"Hey!" Snape protested, his voice rising. "You're always in that bathroom, aren't you?"

"Sometimes I sneak out," Myrtle said with a sly smile. "I've seen yours too..."

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