A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for such a great turnout for the first chapter :) I want to thank all 7 people who favorited this story and the 15 people who followed this story. Also a big thanks to anotherboarduser, dancingfingers, EndlessChains, Philosophize, and texan-muggle for reviewing! :D You guys are awesome, and replies to your reviews are in your inboxes :)

Note to everyone, obviously this is AU, so some events have been moved up because if you take out one catalyst, events fall and happen differently. It's a literal case of cause and effect, so just remember not everything will follow what happens in the book. :)

So with that, I hope you enjoy.

(Also, thanks so much to texan-muggle for having my back with spelling. You're awesome. :D )


Year Two: Basilisk

The past year seemed to have flown by quickly, according to Harry, at least. His friendship with Hermione grew stronger, much to his pleasure. There were some things that bonded people together, and taking out a twelve foot mountain troll was one of them. His friendship with Ron, however, seemed to flounder every time the redhead insulted Hermione, or bullied her. Ron just didn't seem to understand that a condition of being Harry's friend was being a decent human being, and so far, the redhead wasn't living up to the task.

It was unfortunate, because Ron was fighting so hard to be his friend.

Despite having faced Voldemort at the end of the year last year, Hermione stuck by his side, and refused to let him face everything alone. She had, at first, argued vehemently with him, trying to persuade him not to go. They had already ruled out Professor Snape being the perpetrator, having researched and thought logically about it, no doubt making Rowena Ravenclaw proud. However, they couldn't figure out who exactly was going after the stone. When Harry had to leave Hermione in the Potions room, it killed him to do so, his confidence wavering without her by his side.

In the end, he had defeated Voldemort, but wasn't able to vanquish him forever. Waking up in the hospital wing to find a sleeping Hermione at his side calmed him instantly. But when he finally met with the Headmaster, only more questions were brought up, instead of answered.

Now, was a second year of challenges, a second year of trying to stay on top of his grades-with help from Hermione of course-as well as try to stay alive. The third week of September, a monster had started attacking students, petrifying them and, thankfully, not killing them. But with two attacks already, the school was on edge. Students were being escorted to-and-from class, and the castle was essentially on lockdown.

Unfortunately, the haunted house and trick-or-treating plan that Hermione had been working on over the summer, when she wasn't writing to him of course, had been cancelled, for fear of the students' safety. When she had come to him upset, yes, he had been disappointed, but went over her plans with her to refine them for next year, to help get her mind off of it. There was little nowadays to get his mind off of the danger surrounding them. He knew now why Dobby the House-Elf had come to him in the attempt to prevent him from going to Hogwarts. If it hadn't been for Hermione being with him at the platform (they had agreed to meet up with each other an hour beforehand), he would never had made the train. The barrier seemed to close whenever he tried to get through, but family after family were able to get in no problem. It was only Hermione's ingenious thinking of going in first, and with her body half in the Muggle world and half on Platform 9 ¾, she was able to pull him through. Her parents had already been on the other side and were waiting for them.

Neville had joined their duo, turning them into a trio, and on some days, they were joined by Parvati and Lavender, who became infinitely more protective over Hermione after Ron hexed her in the common room a few days after Christmas break, attacking her with a spell that made her front teeth grow so large, she had to go to Madam Pomfrey to get them fixed. Ron then had the audacity to talk friendly to Harry after that, and when Harry tried to ignore him and talk to someone else, the redhead then laid into Neville.

Harry was done, and as best he could yelled at Ron that he would never be his friend so long as all of his friends kept getting insulted. Blissfully, Ron left them alone after that.

It was one less thing to worry about when Halloween finally came around, and when Harry awoke, he was reminded about not only the beast roaming the castle, but also reminded of what the anniversary of today was. Getting out of bed, he got ready for the day, well before any of the other boys in his dorm even woke up. Heading down to the common room to get some studying in (Hermione had rubbed off on him too much), he made sure to bring his books with him. They had a Potions test right after breakfast, and it was on any of the five potions they've learned so far this term. As he skirted around the couch, he found Hermione already at the low table between the two couches before the fireplace, asleep with her head resting on her books. He set his materials down on the low table next to her things before crouching beside her. One of the communal afghans was wrapped around her, and Harry found the sight adorable. Reaching out to gently shake her awake, a stray thought made a frown appear. She must have been researching through the night on what the creature in the Chamber could be. She had lost her faith in their Defense teacher after the Cornish Pixie incident and didn't trust Lockhart to do his duty to keep the school safe.

"Hermione, Hermione!" The girl jerked awake, page marks from her book lining her cheek. "Good morning, sunshine!" he greeted with a grin.

"Oh no! What time is it?" she exclaimed worriedly, shuffling her papers together frantically.

"Calm down. It's about an hour before breakfast. I was planning to study for Potions. Want to join me?" Hermione paused and stared at Harry for a moment before visibly deflating.

"Let me get cleaned up and I'll join you." Packing up her things, Hermione headed up the stairs to her dorm to freshen up and pack her bag for the day.

Harry had already looked over the first two potions they had covered in class, his 1000 Herbs and Fungi open next to him as he made notes in his book by the time Hermione settled in across from him, ready to quiz each other on the five potions they needed to study.


Breakfast came quickly enough, and the two packed up and headed to the Great Hall just as the early rising Seventh years started filtering down the stairs. With a thankfully uneventful breakfast, they were joined by a yawning Neville soon after. Neville himself, by spending more time with Harry and Hermione, has grown a little more confident. With this confidence booster, he has been doing better in class. His magic was shaky at best, but at least a lot of his doubt had disappeared.

"I don't want to go to Potions today. I am not ready for this test," the boy moaned as they wandered down to the dungeons, escorted by a pair of Seventh year Gryffindors.

"Just think of the Double Herbology after lunch," Harry reminded with a grin. Neville matched the grin as Hermione spent this time with her nose buried in a book. Harry even had to lead her down one of the staircases with a trick step because she was so absorbed in her reading.

They were only waiting a few minutes in the Potions corridor before the classroom door opened. Settling in and looking at the board, the trio braced themselves for their test.

Leaving an hour and a half later for their next class, the three left with hopefully passing marks, Hermione most likely getting an E or higher. Surprisingly enough, after the troll incident last year, Professor Snape was less hostile to Harry than before. He still took loads of points off of anyone who wasn't a Slytherin, but he left Harry alone and didn't call him out a lot. Not being harassed by a teacher was refreshing and let his academic life flourish.

At lunchtime, everything was going fine. He and Hermione would be studying the next set of Potions for class before heading down to Sir Nick's Deathday Party before sneaking into the Halloween feast. Harry wasn't even sure why he was invited, since he barely talked to the ghost, but Hermione had suggested it might have just been his name. He was the Boy-Who-Lived, after all. This left a sour taste in Harry's mouth, which he tried to drink away with pumpkin juice.

A open book slammed on the table in front of him, and Harry looked at the picture of a basilisk before looking up at Hermione.

"This is why I can hear it, isn't it?" he asked her quietly, Hermione nodding back.

"This is why i told you not to showcase your Parseltongue," she whispered back as she sat down next to him, straddling the bench. "The whole school would believe you're the Heir otherwise."

"If it wasn't for you, the whole school would have thought that, after the duel. I'm so glad Professor Snape was there. Between you shouting at me and Professor Snape banishing the snake, you both saved my arse." With Hermione's interjection of 'Harry, language!', he continued. "After having to deal with Lockhart, I'd trust Professor Snape with my life," Harry commented, sending a glare up at their current Defense teacher. First Quidditch match of the year and Harry's the only one sent to the Infirmary, all thanks to Lockhart. It seemed like everywhere that man went, disaster followed.

Reading more of the passage, Harry frowned. "Do we assume that thing has been there since the last time the Chamber has been open?"

"We can only assume so. Living for that long, the beast must be huge. How would it move around without anyone knowing or seeing it?" came Hermione's reply. They both thought hard as they went to tuck into their meal, and just before dessert came out, Hermione choked on her pot pie. Turning to face Harry so quickly her hair fanned out behind her, she stared at him unblinkingly. "Pipes!" Understanding immediately dawned on him.

"That's why the last person who died, died in a bathroom," he said. Nodding in agreement, the two finished up and waited for Neville. The trek to the front door of the castle was short, so they didn't need an escort to any of their outdoor classes, so the three second years were able to head down to the greenhouses at their leisure. Bringing Neville into the loop of what they know, he brought forth a good question.

"Why did the basilisk only petrify instead of kill?"

"Perhaps it's like Medusa, where her gaze petrified anyone who looked into her eyes. The only way she could be defeated was by being turned to stone by looking into her reflection," Hermione theorized, thinking hard on any other myths of petrification.

"So the water on the floor-" Neville started.

"And Colin looking through his camera-" Harry continued.

"Exactly," Hermione replied. "I'll send home and see if Mum and Dad can get me two hand mirrors. Start checking corners if you're ever alone or if you start hearing the voice again, Harry."

"What about you?" Harry asked, noting she only spoke of him and Neville.

"I have a makeup compact from Lavender from last Christmas somewhere in my trunk still. I can use the mirror in that. Just. . .be safe, guys. Don't go looking for trouble."


After class, in which they had another lesson on Mandrakes, the trio headed back to the castle. After a quick trip to Gryffindor tower to stow their bags, they headed down to the Great Hall with the rest of their house. Lamentably, however, as the group followed the lit candles to get to the feast, Harry, Hermione, and Neville followed the chilling blue flame lit candles down to the dungeon. Reluctantly, Harry looked after his peers who headed towards the warm Great Hall, with jack o'lanterns big enough for three men to sit in them comfortably, live bats swooping through the air, and something that suspiciously sounded like music.

The candles cast a dim light over everything, making the corridors seem smaller than usually in the scant light. The temperature dropped with every step that they took, moreso than usual for the dungeons, and as they drew closer to the empty classroom Nick had directed them to, the sound of nails against a chalkboard filled their ears. Harry could already see the grimaces on Hermione and Neville's faces, and knew one adorned his own.

"Music. Why can't the dead appreciate music made by the living?" Neville moaned as he drew his robe closer to him, trying to stay warm. Hermione's hand found Harry's as she looked around them, ghosts beginning to swoop past them, also on their way to the party. Turning the corner, they found Nearly Headless Nick standing just next to a doorway draped in black velvet curtains.

"My dear friends," Nick said mournfully. "Welcome, so pleased you could come." Thinking back to Hermione's words, Harry snorted. Were they really friends or were they just there because of a name he didn't want? Turning his attention back to the ghost, Harry followed his friends into the room as they got bowed inside.

It truly was an amazing sight. The dungeon was full of hundreds of ghosts, so much that it was terribly difficult to navigate without accidentally walking through someone. A lot of the ghost-guests were dancing to what amounted to music, shackles hanging on the walls clanging noisily like a drumset. There were candles in the air as well as bats like in the Great Hall, but none of the warmth accompanied it. The trio's breath misted before them, as they stood shivering in place, looking around. A buffet table was off to one side, but as they drew closer, they changed their minds. Everything smelled, and looked to be rotting. They looked to be the only living people here, and so there wasn't much for them to do besides just stand around and endure as long as possible.

There was an encounter with Peeves and Moaning Myrtle, the former setting off the latter. Myrtle flew away, bawling and screeching, while Peeves chased after her, cackling. Nick came up to them and asked the trio if they were having a good time, but Harry was saved from answering when a trumpeted fanfare sounded from somewhere beyond the far wall. Everyone turned and witnessed several ghosts on translucent horses burst through the wall, the leader the one with the trumpet as he held his head under his arm. With Nick's following moan, they learned this was the Headless Hunt.

Now was as good a time as any.

"Let's get out of here," Harry suggested to the other two and they both nodded enthusiastically. Skirting the ghosts that were now surrounding Nick as the leader of the Headless Hunt approached him, Harry, Hermione, and Neville headed for the door.

"Next time, please say no, Harry," Neville commented as they burst through the room, nearly at a run in the attempt to get away.

"I have to agree, Harry. We are just not meant to go to those things," Hermione added.

"I couldn't agree more," came Professor Snape's voice from next to them. All three jumped back, their hearts beating fast as they turned to look at their Potions Professor. "What do you three think you are doing here?"

"Sir, I was invited to Nearly Headless Nick's deathday party," Harry started.

"We came with him because it's much too dangerous for him to go alone," Hermione interjected, and the glower on Snape's face only grew worse.

"None of you should be here! There is a reason why we wanted everyone in the Great Hall for the feast. Three second years, if the ran into trouble, would be no match for the creature roaming the castle if you ran into it. Five points from Gryffindor, each!" Snape said, before turning to head back towards the Great Hall. Without complaining, the three Gryffindors followed their Potions Professor towards the warmth of the feast.

"Sir?" Hermione asked hesitantly as they headed up the stairs, a frown gracing her features as she noticed Harry stop and look down a side corridor.

"What is it, Miss Granger?" he asked, stopping as well when he noticed Harry as well. "Mister Poster, get over here!"

Harry turned to look at the three and said simply, "I hear it again!" before taking down the side corridor.

"Harry!" Hermione and Neville exclaimed out in unison before taking after him. Scowling, Snape followed afterwards, all three catching up with Harry easily. Harry had stopped, staring confused at the corner, before horror seized him. Whirling around, he tried to push them all back down from where they came.

"Get back! That thing is down there!" he whispered to them in a whisper.

"Mister Potter, what are you talking about?" Professor Snape asked him, and the three Gryffindors share a glance before looking at their professor.

"Sir, I can talk to snakes. Hermione calls it Parseltongue," Harry started.

"We believe the creature is a basilisk, and only its reflection has been seen, instead of a full gaze. That's why everyone is petrified, not killed," Hermione continued.

"It might be using pipes to get around. That's why no one can really see it coming before it strikes," Neville finished.

Professor Snape was silent, the color gone from his face as they explained themselves. "We have to get out of here," he said resolutely, narrowing his eyes and looking down the corridors. "We must be careful, if that thing is loose. We have to get back to the Great Hall and warn everyone." Looking to Harry and debating something, Snape lifted his wand and produced a silvery projection of a doe. Speaking to it quietly, he sent it off and it raced off to the Great Hall. "We must be cautious-"

"Sir, I have a mirror we can use to look around the corners to see if the coast is clear," Hermione offered, and Snape nodded.

"Good. And Potter? Listen for the beast. If it sounds like it's getting closer, let us know and we'll run. Understood?"

"Yes sir," Harry replied, straining his hearing to listen for the beast.

"Let's go."

Taking it slow, the four of them navigated the corridors, having to turn back and change direction several times. It almost felt like the basilisk was herding them in a specific direction. They were eventually trapped. The corridor they needed was two corners away, but Harry heard the basilisk near them everywhere they turned. As Snape pressed them against the wall to get them all to catch their breath, Harry felt Hermione lean to get closer to the corner, her hand pulling on his. He shifted to give her more room to lean more.

"Professor, the hallway looks clear. If we run we can-" Hermione felt silence, her hand turning cold in his hand, and Harry turned to look at his friend. With horror, he looked at the stone statue that was his friend, wrenching his hand free from her stony grasp.

"HERMIONE!" Harry screamed as he whipped himself around to grab at her, the mirror falling out of her hand, clanging and breaking on the stone floor, the sound echoing through the hallway. An arm suddenly wound around his middle and he was pulled away, Harry struggling to get to Hermione. He continued to call her name frantically. With a flick of Professor Snape's wand, the petrified Hermione was lifted up and floated in front of them, and they took off, Neville keeping pace with Professor Snape who had both Harry and Hermione.

Turning another corner, they suddenly ran into Professor Dumbledore and several of the teachers. Quickly relaying what happened to them, Snape handed all three children off to Professor McGonagall, who, with her wand out, led them to the Hospital Wing. The rest of the Professors there went to go hunt the beast down.

All Harry could think of as he sat next to Hermione's bed in the Hospital Wing was that had they just gone to the feast she would have been fine. They wouldn't have been down in the dungeons at all, and no one would have gotten hurt.

This was all his fault.


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