Disclaimer: I own nothing. Well, except for the plot, some spells, a few locations, and the new characters. If it isn't familiar, it's probably mine.
I've been wanting to write this for a few years now and finally have the time and, hopefully, the skill to pull it off. Thanks to my magnificent beta, SecretAdmirer, and let the journey begin!
Right now I'm fixing some of the formatting inconsistencies in the chapters, so know that the content of this chapter is still the same.
Chapter 2- Unbound and Awake
Hogwarts at night was beautiful. The grey stone glowed faintly in the light of the torches, the windows shone brightly into the night from the fires lit within, the Black Lake glistened in the moonlight.
Not this night. This night, Hogwarts was scary. Lightning flashed overhead, very few windows were lit and the ones that were all in the same tower, the wind whistled around stone corners, trees whipped about in the icy rain, and the water poured from the slick roofs. Albus Dumbledore stood at one of the few lit windows, his silver robes reflecting the faint light from the candle he held. He peered out into the storm, finding it appropriate for the task to be completed that night.
"Ahh…" he mused.
"It is time."
He turned around to face the others in the room. Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, Professor Sprout, and Professor Flitwick all sat at the large, wooden table behind him. They all had varying looks of apprehension on their faces. Professor Sprout wiggled anxiously in her seat.
"Albus," she asked, "Do you really think that this is a good idea?"
McGonagall answered instead, peering through her small spectacles. "Really, Pomona, I don't think that we have much of a choice. We were told that this might happen when we took these positions."
Indeed, when they had been chosen to be Head of House, they had received an enchanted letter, dated from when Hogwarts was first created. This letter had been charmed to appear before the Heads of their time, warning them about what had to be done this night, giving them a brief glimpse at the secret lurking in the depths of Hogwarts. If they did not complete this task, severe consequences would arise.
Snape frowned and adjusted his sleeves for the second time that night. "If we do not do this, disaster shall surely befall Hogwarts. This must be done."
Flitwick tittered, "Severus, you are saying that simply because you alone have nothing to fear from it!"
The potion's professor sneered at the small teacher. "I cannot say that I regret this action, but surely you understand the magnitude of what is about to happen."
McGonagall nodded. "Filius, we have a duty to Hogwarts. We've gathered all of the items necessary and the time has come!"
"The time has indeed come, Minerva," said Dumbledore, walking towards the door to the classroom. "We must get to the cavern before the clock strikes midnight."
The rest of the teachers mumbled and stood up from the table, filing out into the hall. The school was empty, besides the professors who had been gathered for this night. The students would arrive in four days for the start of the school year and fill Hogwarts with noise and life again. Tonight, the school was dark and brooding. The storm raged outside and the cold from the wind seeped through the old stone. At this time, even the portraits were fast asleep, lords and ladies slumped over in their frames. The nearest stirred slightly as Dumbledore cast a lumos to dispel some of the inky gloom.
"Surely you know the way, Albus?" squeaked Flitwick.
Dumbledore nodded sagely and turned left, heading towards the stairs.
"Yes, thanks to Harry Potter."
They arrived in the girl's restroom on the third floor, facing the round sinks. The pale marble in the room reflected the flashes of lightning and the floor was cold. McGonagall peered at the sink in front of them with sharp eyes.
"I know that Mr. Potter opened this with parseltongue, yet none of us have this ability," she noted.
Dumbledore placed his hands in his sleeves, assuming the image of patience. "It will open, Minerva. On this night, the language of snakes is not needed to open it. Give it time."
The transfiguration professor harrumphed and crossed her arms.
Dumbledore was right, as was proven when the sinks began to spread out by themselves, gliding over the tile floor. At the edge nearest them, the sink sank into the ground to be covered by an iron grate. Sprout looked over the edge and into the inky darkness below.
"We don't have to slide down there, do we?"
Flitwick waved his wand in a slow circle in the air in front of him, forming a platform of opaque air. When he finished, he turned to his colleagues.
"We definitely shall not!" he squeaked.
A few moments later found the teachers standing in the Chamber of Secrets, facing the huge sculpture of Salazar Slytherin. The cold water swished around their ankles as if curious about their presence and the faint light poured down, bathing all surfaces in a green glow. McGonagall's nostrils flared slightly at the smell of water and stale air and she grumbled as her robes tangled around her feet in the water. Dumbledore looked at Snape.
"Severus, if you will?"
Snape nodded and strode forwards until he was at the edge of the underwater ledge. He reached into his heavy black robes and pulled out a dirty, tarnished locket. He held it out as if to the perusal of the sculpture and said, "Draco."
There was a heavy moment of silence in which the sound of rushing water could be heard echoing through the empty pipes. Then, the sound of grinding stone began as the Slytherin's mouth opened. Then the water at their feet raised and froze into icy stairs leading straight into the gaping tunnel. The teachers reluctantly walked in after each casting a Lumos.
Flitwick shuddered as he stepped into the mouth, saying, "Isn't this where the Basilisk was being held?"
Dumbledore nodded and gathered his robes in one hand before descending down the stone steps that led far underneath the school. "Yes, Filius. But Mr. Potter has taken care of that particular challenge for us, even as he did not know what it was guarding. Tom did not know of the Basilisk's true purpose either, thankfully."
McGonagall asked, "The monster of the Chamber of Secrets was a guard? A protection?"
"Yes. The chamber was created to give Salazar Slytherin a way to come down here without anyone following him. Tom merely had thought of it as a monster he could use, not having the information to know that it was guarding something much more dangerous."
"Serpents guarding serpents," Flitwick mused. "How appropriate."
They traveled down hundreds of slimy stairs, descending deep into the earth. Water dripped down the walls and mushrooms, which Sprout stopped many times to investigate, adorned the craggy walls. A few times, Dumbledore paused to unravel intricate webs of ancient enchantments that were designed to prevent unskilled wizards from progressing further. After about thirty minutes, the professors came upon the second door, an obsidian slab that obstructed their way. Dumbledore turned to Sprout this time.
"Pomona?"
She tightened her hatstrings nervously and stepped up to the door, pulling a small golden cup out of her pocket.
"Dormiens," she said.
The slab crumbled into an ashy heap that the Heads stepped over as they went deeper still. The third door was bronze. Flitwick toddled forward without prompting from Dumbledore and pulled out a tiara from his pocket.
"Nunquam!" He squeaked into the chilly air.
The bronze slab cracked into fragments and the teachers pushed on, descending even deeper. The third door was gold, glowing in the light from their spells. McGonagall stepped forward and pulled a shining sword encrusted with rubies from a scabbard at her hip, previously hidden by her robes.
"Titillandus," barked the head of Gryffindor. This time, the slab melted into a pool of hot metal that then solidified a moment later. They traveled for another half hour until they came to a large, crystal door at the end of a narrow tunnel. It was inscribed with a calligraphy 'S' and surrounded by carved vines entwined with serpents. This time, Dumbledore stepped forward alone and held out his hands, saying,
"Reditus colligi quatuor vetus promissi, ad portam sopitos dimittam draconis cubile cordis sunt."
After the headmaster said the words, the crystal sublimed into a thick purple mist that never strayed from the doorway, but licked around the edges like reeds in the wind. The four teachers behind him looked on questioningly at the whirling fog.
"I am not completely confident about the benign nature of this fog, Albus," said McGonagall.
Dumbledore chuckled mysteriously. "Minerva, beyond this lies something much more dangerous than vapour. I suggest you keep your doubts until then."
The transfiguration professor arched a thin brow in response at her superior's back.
Snape sneered. "Onward?"
Flitwick rubbed his hands together nervously. "It seems we must."
Then they all stepped forwards and disappeared in the mists.
When they emerged on the other side, all stopped stock still. Their silence stretched on and all that could be heard was a rhythmic movement of air. They stood in an enormous chamber ten times the size of the Great Hall. Stalagmites the height of the astronomy tower reached up into the darkness to almost be met by even larger stalactites. The cavern was shaped like a funnel, with the largest and deepest part on the extreme opposite end from the entrance. In the deepest part was a flattened space littered with dried reptile skin and scales, and two massive, metal shackles. Deep gouges marred the flat face of the back wall. The tension in the air was heavy, bearing down on the teachers with an ancient presence.
Sprout shivered once, intensely. "Albus… She's not… She's not here!" she whimpered.
Snape's usually bland persona cracked and he seemed to be on the verge of a mild panic. "Albus, she can't have awakened yet. Are we late?!"
Dumbledore's eyes widened behind his half-moon spectacles. "There is no need to panic, there is nowhere she could have gone. The door was shut and that was the only way in."
McGonagall held her wand further out, illuminating more of the cavern. "Then, you're implying, she's in here."
"But where?" asked Flitwick.
The five adults peered around anxiously into the darkness. McGonagall looked to Dumbledore and said, "I can cast a hominim revelio if that would help?" while raising her wand.
Dumbledore shook his head. "She's not human, Minerva. It would do no good. I shall do the honors. magicae revelare" he intoned solemnly. The spell was designed to reveal all magical signatures and traces, yet it worked too well. The entire cavern lit up with a blinding white light and all of the teachers shielded their eyes. After a moment the light faded away, sinking back into the dark stone.
Sprout gulped audibly. "Did you see where most of the light was coming from?"
Snape stiffened and raised his wand directly over his head. "I suggest that we do not move and use no sudden movements."
They all looked up at the huge pair of glowing, purple, slitted eyes that glared at them from the ceiling of the cave.
What are you doing here?!
A voice struck all of them in their minds, roaring in their perceived silence. It was huge, everywhere, and ageless with a slightly feminine tone underneath the outrage. Flitwick, Sprout, and McGonagall all collapsed under the burden of that voice, yet Snape and Dumbledore stayed standing. Snape because of his talented Occulumency skills and Dumbledore for his magical power. The voice rang out again.
Nobody is supposed to be down here! Get out! Leave me alone!
Dumbledore raised his hands in supplication. "Now, dear girl, we are here to release you."
The eyes narrowed.
Don't call me girl. I lived centuries before you were even born. I know every stone in this school and everything that happens here. Albus… I know why you are here.
Sprout and Flitwick whimpered and huddled together at the rage that saturated the voice.
You were going to renew the bindings.
Dumbledore coughed, "Now—"
DON'T LIE TO ME, ALBUS! I HEARD YOU! I KNEW THE BOOKS YOU WERE READING! YOU WERE GOING TO CONDEMN ME TO ANOTHER MILLENNIA OF SLEEP AND SERVITUDE!
The Headmaster paled and lapsed into silence. Snape frowned at the older man and looked back up at the violet glare.
"Hello, Arundhati." The black-haired man said.
The purple eyes widened as did those of his colleagues.
You… know my name… Severus?
Snape nodded. "Your grandfather left behind a journal that described you before your incarceration and entrusted it to the future Head of Slytherin one thousand years after you were bound."
He was always so clever, my grandfather…
Snape smirked. "Of course. He was Salazar Slytherin."
And you uphold his values in his house.
"I saw no other way, Arundhati. Slytherin was home for me and for many other pure-bloods. Created in the noble name of your grandfather, I would be foolish to tarnish the reputation."
The eyes widened.
Spoken like a true serpent, Severus. I remember… you. The quiet one. Yes, Severus, I do remember you. You who treated Hogwarts like a true home, you stayed up late as a student to study and to find peace, you who struggled through love and sadness and survived until the end, even against my cousin. A true Slytherin.
The potions teacher bowed. "I was taught from the best. Please come down so that we may see how big you are. Maybe then they would be more hesitant to re-bind you."
McGonagall spluttered for a moment while the girl considered.
"Severus," she protested, "you have no right to make those promises!"
No, he was in his right as Head of Slytherin.
Arundhati unraveled from between the stalactites and dropped gracefully to the ground of the cavern in front of the main Hogwarts staff.
The four teachers and the headmaster inspected the massive, black dragon in front of them. She huffed out a plume of smoke and settled to her stomach. Even laying down, she was huge. Her wingspan was the length of the Great Hall and her body trailed off past the sphere of light provided by the lumos. Her triangular head, adorned with obsidian spikes, arched over theirs and she peered at them.
So… you all knew what Albus was planning? And, yet, you still stayed with the plan? Have you no trust or thought for yourselves?
McGonagall stiffened. "Although the threat wasn't… specified, we knew that there was a chance that you could destroy the school. There will be children here in four days. We would have bound you to protect them."
The dragon stood up with a ripple of muscle and snarled, white teeth shining seven meters above them.
You disgust me. Protect them? I have been around them for one thousand years, protecting them. Why do you think that this has been the safest place in the wizarding world besides Gringotts? My grandfather bound me to the school both in magic and conscious. I have been half-awake for one thousand years, doing what I could. Did you truly think that Hogwarts stood against my dear cousin by the strength of your magic and that of the founders? Dragon's magic protected you all.
Dumbledore coughed. "Be that as it may, we still thought to protect the school and its residents from your possible rage. You cannot blame us for wishing to keep Hogwarts safe."
Arundhati seethed.
You are not listening to me, Albus.
The headmaster held out his hands in supplication. "I am trying, child."
DON'T CALL ME CHILD!
This time, the projected thought was directed only at Dumbledore. The old wizard nearly collapsed under the onslaught. Sprout and Flitwick whimpered and McGonagall rushed to help the Headmaster regain his feet. Snape merely stood and watched. Arundhati lowered her head to peer into Dumbledore's eyes and McGonagall flinched away from the spite in the dinner-plate sized eyes.
I. Am. Hogwarts.
The huge purple eyes glared at the faculty of the school under which she was imprisoned. The magnitude of what she said slowly sank in.
McGonagall drew herself up and asked, "You were Hogwarts?"
The black head nodded.
Do you know how I was bound?
Snape nodded. "Yes."
The others looked at him questioningly.
Flitwick squeaked, "Severus, I'm starting to think that you had more information than anyone here! Were you planning on telling us any of this that you knew?"
The potions professor shrugged. "I know this," he drawled, "because Salazar Slytherin left a manuscript for the future head of Slytherin. He loved his granddaughter and wanted her to be free. I am merely doing what any sane wizard would do."
This sparked an argument between the professors.
Arundhati considered the teachers as they bickered amongst themselves about the withholding of information. Clearly they did not know the whole story if there was this much confusion. She did not have time to deal with this amount of indecision and decided to handle it herself.
The story can wait. I want to get out of this cavern, and none of you can stop me.
Dumbledore raised his wand. "Sorry, dear girl, but you cannot get out of here in that form."
The dragon rolled her eyes.
Fine.
Arundhati's shape flowed and shrunk for a few moments, as if undecided about where it wanted to coalesce, until in her place stood a tall, painfully thin girl with tan skin, long dark hair, and violet eyes. She was wearing a long, black robe and her feet were bare. She sighed, "I have not put much energy into this form. It's so weak…"
Then she tried to take a step forwards and nearly collapsed. Strong arms caught her before she hit the rock floor. The dragon-girl looked up at Snape, who had caught her, and frowned. "I hate this. Being human is highly overrated," she announced.
Snape smirked and set her on her feet. "Welcome back, Arundhati Slytherin."
