AN: Second year will have 13 chapters in total. I'm currently writing the last one.

Chapter 9: The Chamber of Secrets

"Let me GO!" Diana shrieked as she tried to break lose from Filch's iron grip. The man was silently weeping and hadn't spoken a word since the headmaster had found the three kids and the caretaker surrounding Hermione's petrified body. Filch was even then holding on to a hysterical Diana who kept trashing and turning, albeit less violent then she was doing now.

"Please child, calm down! It will not do anyone any good, and it most definitely won't help your friend," Dumbledore tried to reason with the girl, but the mention of Hermione only made the girl struggle harder.

"I'll kill them! I'LL KILL THEM! I'LL KILL THE SON OF A BITCH WHO DID THIS TO HERMIONE! I'LL KILL HIM!" Diana began tussling violently and screaming herself hors at no one in particular, and Dumbledore felt the mounting pressure on the girl's magical core and feared it might lash out at any given time.

"Headmaster!" barked McGonagall. "Stun the girl and let's take them to Madam Pomfrey before the other students finish their meal!"

Dumbledore was quite reluctant to do as asked, despite seeing the logic in the matter, but gave up eventually and stunned the red head.

"I am terribly sorry," he whispered as he saw the girl go limb in Filch's embrace. The sobbing caretaker hoisted the girl up in his arms and stiffly made his way towards the hospital wing.

"Heidi, Mr. Longbottom," Minerva came to stand beside the two children. They hadn't moved an inch from the moment the teachers had found them. They were both crouched on either side of Hermione. Neville was crying silently, while Heidi just stood still, looking just as rigid as the girl lying on the floor. "Come to the hospital wing with me," Minerva said kindly. "I'm sure Madam Pomfrey would like to check you two up."

Dumbledore helped Neville to his feet while McGonagall took hold of Heidi and guided her towards the hospital wing. Dumbledore levitated Hermione's petrified frame and followed the two with Neville by his side.

To say Madam Pomfrey was mad was an understatement. She was beyond furious. And mind you it had nothing to do with Hermione's petrified form, no, it was more related to the fact that it took two whole hours, three bottles of calming draught and one more stunner to call Diana down (meaning that she was lying unconscious in a hospital bed after being at the receiver's end of one of Minerva's stunners). Let's not forget about Heidi, who was apparently in a state of shock, and had refused to speak to anyone throughout the night. Pomfrey had opted to giving her a calming draught and dreamless sleep potion and see how she'd react in the morning. Neville was less of a problem, but still seemed very much shaken by what had happened to his friend, so Madam Pomfrey had chosen to keep him in the hospital wing for the night as well, "Just to be on the safe side," she said.

Dumbledore and Minerva left the hospital wing with a heavy heart, and had mutely promised to come and check on the kids first thing in the morning. But for now, there wasn't much they could do but concentrate on finding the perpetrator.

------

Heidi awoke at the break of dawn, just as the rays of the sun were slowly beginning to make their way through the hospital windows and envelop the dark room in a blinding gleam of light. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful day outside. Exactly the opposite of how Heidi felt on the inside.

Despite the calming draught and the dreamless night, she was screaming on the inside. Blood was pounding in her ears and all that she could think about was how much she wanted to kill the bastard which had stolen her first ever true friend from her. She longed to break the excuse of a being into pieces, see him crumble at her feet and be reduced to the pile of trash that he truly was.

But she needed to calm down in order to do that. She needed to plan this out. After all, she had all the pieces in her hand, now all she needed to do was strike the final blow. But she needed to be able to think properly and have her sister and Neville in a reasonable enough shape so that they could help her carry out her plan.

She slowly began rising from her bed, careful not to look in Hermione's general direction, less she knew she'd be unable to think straight for a few good hour, and then made her way towards her sister's bed.

"Diana," she shock her sister lightly. "Diana, wake up." Her sister cracked an eye open, albeit reluctantly and after identifying the person who had woke her, she snapped her eyes fully open and sat up straight in her bed.

"What's the plan?" she asked eagerly. "We are gonna do something about this aren't we?"

Heidi nodded her head. "We most certainly are," she assured. "But first we need to wake up Neville."

Diana nodded and the two made their way towards Neville's bed.

Waking Neville up proved to be a bit more troublesome then expected. Stopping the boy from bursting into uncontrollable tears again proved to be more difficult.

"Neville! Stop that!" Diana snapped. "Crying is not gonna do anybody any good!"

"I know," sobbed Neville. "It never did me any good when I visited my parents at Saint Mungo's," the boy choked out. Diana stood silent by his side and waited for the boy to elaborate.

Truth be told, the girls had found it kind of weird that the chubby young boy always spoke so often of his grandmother, but never said a word about his parents, which had made the girls think that he might not be in such a good relationship with his parents, or that something bad had happened to them. But they had decided that it was best not to push the subject and let the boy come clean about his problems when he was ready.

"They were Aurors in the first war against you-know-who," Neville told them. "They were brave, respected and admired by all of the other people...and I'm glad of being their son but...I just wished that they had been a little more selfish at times," he admitted, a tad of guilt entering his voice. "I wished that they hadn't been so bloody stupid and proud as to defy the Lestrange when they came to our house," he continued, his voice slightly rising in anger. "I just wished they would have know when it was best to just give up, so that they'd not end up in Saint Mungo's like two dummies that can't even recognize their own son when he's talking to them, who can't even speak anymore and just stand there all day and looking like lifeless puppets. And my grany tells me to be proud of them, well I am!" he shouted honestly. "I am...I just...I just would have liked it best if they were shunned for being cowards, rather then praised for being insane. Because then I'd still have them with me, I'd still have parents," Neville chocked out and started crying in earnest.

"Oh, Neville," Diana went over to the boy and wrapped her arms around him, her eyes glittering with tears. Heidi two came to stand by the sobbing boy and enveloped him in a warm embrace.

Madam Pomfrey, who had been alerted of the children's early wake by the hushed voices outside, stood silently by the threshold of her chamber, knowing that her presence would not be welcomed by the three children, but afraid to leave them alone in case one of them had another breakdown like last night.

Luckily (or not) for her, the door to the hospital wing slit open and in stepped a grim looking McGonagall and Dumbledore.

"Good morning," Dumbledore greeted and was rewarded with a quiet "Morning" from the kids which hurriedly separated and turned their heads away from the two adults.

"I hope you had a good night sleep," the old man said casually.

"Yes," Heidi replied, careful to hide any trace of emotion within her voice. She turned to give the two professors an impassive stare and asked: "We would like to head back to our dorms if you don't mind. We have a few essays that are due to be handed in tomorrow, one about the transfiguration of an inanimate object if my memory doesn't fail me." Heidi nodded her head in McGonagall's direction who hastily assured:

"Considering the circumstances, I will gladly postpone the deadline for the essay."

"Now that would be unfair for all the other children who had worked their asses out all night while we were in here whining about our miserable lives, don't you think?" Heidi asked in a blunt voice.

"I'm sure they'll understand-"

"Of course they will," Heidi cut her off sharply. "Who would be as dumb as to defy a teacher?" she asked sarcastically. "That's like jumping of a cliff and expecting not to get hurt! It just doesn't work that way! And frankly, I don't want the students thinking that I'm being favored by the teachers, so if you'll excuse us," Heidi stood up, Diana and Neville follows her example. "We have homework to attend to."

The three kids walked by the two Professors and were out the door faster then the two had time to recover.

"Well, I certainly know who has the guts to jump off a cliff and expect she won't hurt herself," huffed an offended looking McGonagall.

"Do you think it wise that the children be discharged Madam Pomfrey?" Dumbledore asked the nurse calmly.

"I should say not," the nurse answered. "However, I do think that being in the presence of their friend will not help their recovery, so I suppose it might be for the best. Heaven knows how many people chose to run away from their problems rather then face them, and while that might not accomplish much, I'd say it is best to let them deal with their problems when they are prepared to do so."

Dumbledore nodded in understanding and bid the nurse good day, before exiting the hospital wing.

-------

"Are we actually going to do our homework?" asked Neville disappointed.

"Of course not!" Diana said in a 'you didn't just fall for that' voice. "But seriously, when did you not accept favoritism?"

"It was an excuse to get us out of there," Heidi answered.

Heidi rushed forward, forcing the other two to quicken their pace in order to keep up with her and didn't slow down up until she reached the second floor corridor. She walked pass the horrid bloody writing which still adorned the corridor's wall, and straight into Moaning Mirtle's bathroom, where she banged the door shut after the other two walked in.

"Why are we here?" Neville asked confused.

"Because it's time for a little payback," Heidi stated simply. "So, you better listen up, because what I'm about to tell you isn't complicated, but I need you guys to focus so we can pull this thing off."

The other two nodded their heads and waited for the brunet to elaborate.

-------

McGonagall had been searching the castle like mad for the three kids. Despite the chat that she had with Dumbledore after they had left the hospital wing, she was still not convinced that the three were not going to do something brash or stupid like go searching for the monster in order to avenge Hermione. Diana had, after all, sent Malfoy and his gang to the hospital for insulting the girl, she was not willing to take any chances with her, and while most of the people didn't know, she had heard rumors of Heidi physically injuring the blond insufferable brat for the same reason, and considering the girl's calm and collective manner, that was more then a little worrisome.

Minerva rushed pass the spiral staircase and dodged the student's which were assembled in the entrance hall, and was just about to walk out the front doors, thinking that the kids might have gone outside for a walk, when she heard the unmistakable voice of Neville Longbottom coming from the crowd of students she'd just gone by.

"Think you're so though now that you've got Hermione in the hospital wing, don't you Malfoy?"

The voice was clouded with anger, and a fierce determination the kind Minerva had never expected to hear from the boy. The blond was purposely descending the spiral staircase, with both Potter twins on either side of him, his eyes singling out the proud figure of Draco Malfoy from amongst the crowd.

Malfoy looked stunned for a moment, whether it was the surprise of seeing Longbottom challenging him head-on, or because he had no idea what the boy was talking about remains a mystery, but the boy took care to cover up his shock with an impassive, slightly arrogant expression.

"Well, well, looking for trouble Longbottom?" Malfoy drawled in his most cocky voice, hoping to intimidate the boy. Crabbed and Goyle began clenching their fists and giving the boy threatening glares, which by the looks of it, had no effect whatsoever on the blond, because the moment he was close enough to the Malfoy heir, he shoved him hard, which had the boy stumble on his feet and nearly topple over, while Diana and Heidi pulled their wands out on Crabbe and Goyle.

"Think this is funny don't you?" Neville asked, practically spitting with rage.

Minerva had seen enough. She hurriedly pushed the student's out of her way, in a desperate attempt to reached the group before a fight ensured, but Neville's next words made her stop dead in her track and the blood in her veins run dead cold.

"Let's see how you like it when we kill your bloody snake, because we know where your pet Basilisk is, and we'll have him delivered to you by tomorrow, in pieces!" the arrogance in Neville's voice seemed alien to everybody in the hallway and the way he practically hisses the last two words, in a smooth, malevolent manner, made shivers run down the assembled students' spine, and a feeling of dread stirred up in Minerva's gut.

Neville suddenly turned towards the stairs and stormed back up, with Diana and Heidi following suit, but not after giving Malfoy and his cronies' one last menacing glare.

Minerva snapped out of her stupor and hurriedly resumed her desperate attempt at getting to the three children, which were officially insane. A Basilisk, what in Merlin's name were they talking about?

"Longbottom! Heidi! Diana!" Minerva shouted trying to get their attention, but the children had already reached the end of the first steps and had disappeared inside the corridor which led to the first floor. By the time Minerva reached the first floor landing, the kids were nowhere to be seen.

"Dumbledore," she muttered to herself. "I have to tell Dumbledore." And she huskily set foot for the headmaster's office, hoping that she wouldn't be too late in preventing a tragedy from happening.

------

By night time, an official search party was assembled in order to help locate the kids, Dumbledore himself was taking part in the actions, while the heads of house had sealed off the children in their respective common rooms, after checking and double checking that no other student except the ones petrified and the absent trio were missing. The students, for once, were only too glad to follow the teachers' advice.

It seemed that throughout the interval of barely two to three hours, the news that the monster in the chamber might be a Basilisk had spread throughout the entire school and had terrified the student body. While some were a little skeptic (mostly Ravenclaws) to believe that neither one of the six people who had been attacked had ended up dead considering the snake's deathly-glare, the fact still remained that there was little alternatives left regarding the identity of the monster, and Dumbledore wondered why it had not occurred to him sooner as to what the monster in the chamber could be, because now that he thought about it, it made perfect sense. What did not, however, make any sense to him was how the three children managed to figure out the identity of the beast and the location of the chamber. And speaking of the children, where in the bloody hell of lemon-drops were they?

Dumbledore was currently scooping the dungeons together with his trusty Potion's master, Severus Snape, and was turning up empty handed, in spite of his familiarity with the castle, and his brilliant mind.

"I don't understand," the elder wizard mussed. "Wouldn't it be reasonable to think that Slytherin built his chamber in the dungeons?" asked Dumbledore.

"Just because he built his common room here, doesn't necessarily mean he built everything down here," Snape stated coolly.

"Indeed," the old man started stroking his bear as he moved to open another door.

"Headmaster, pardon my saying," Snape addressed, "but isn't there an easier way to locate the girls, the point me spell perhaps?"

The headmaster chuckled. "Although the concept of such a simple minded spell working in Hogwarts is rather amusing Severus, I assure you that I have tried to find the girls using magical means and they have not worked."

"What do you mean by they have not worked?" Snape asked slightly confused.

"It means, my esteemed professor, that the kids are in an unplottable room, if not in the Chamber of Secrets itself," responded Dumbledore gravely. "And most tragically, it seems that Faux has run off on his own, without telling me," he added with a pout.

"Surely headmaster, you did not believe them when they said they had found the entrance to the Chamber?" Snape asked skeptically.

"At the moment in time, I find it hard to say that I don't," Dumbledore admitted. "I think, my old friend, that it is you who is underestimating the kids' mental capacities as well as their intuitive abilities. Or do you find the fact that they have – with no adult help, as far as I am aware of – unraveled the secret behind the identity of the beast which dwells within the Chamber?"

"I take it then, that you are convinced it is a Basilisk?" Snape quizzed, curiosity getting the best of him.

"It is the most likable suspect," Dumbledore answered. "Though, for once, I would be delighted if I were to be proven wrong."

Dumbledore risked a glance in Sanpe's direction and saw, to his great disappointment, that the man was stressed out of his mind. Sure he might seem like his usual grouchy self, but to the trained eyes, you could clearly spot his stiff demeanor, the slight if almost nonexistent anxiousness in his voice, the swift movement of his eyes, which seemed determined to record every spot on every wall for the faintest sigh of abnormality.

"You are concerned for the kids' safety?" Dumbledore dared to ask, and for a slight moment, he hoped he hadn't, since the Potions master's eyes grew cold and accusing.

"There might be a Basilisk at large in the school headmaster," he reminded tersely. "I, as a professor of the school, am responsible for the students' safety just as much as you are, and give the circumstances, I do believe no past favors that Fudge owns you will be enough to keep your head out of Azkaban, let alone mine."

Dumbledore nodded in acknowledgement and resumed his search of the chamber.

-------

Silent footsteps were making their way throughout the school corridors, their loud steps muffled by a hastily cast silencing charm. Stunning brown eyes with the slight flicker of red, which would pass unnoticed from a short distance, were wildly surveying the corridor for any sign of movement while long pangs of vivid red hair were fluttering around, occasionally managing to obscure the owner's sight who angrily brushed it under her ear.

A brown wooden stick was securely tucked in one of the person's hands, and an incapacitating curse or two were always running within her mind, as well as a silent prayer as to not stumble across the meddling old fool when she rounded the next corner.

And luck seemed to be on this person's side, for within moments, the gruesome sight of the bloodied wall greeted her, and the person indulged itself a short smirk before running past it and coming to a halt in front of the bathroom on the second floor. The person did a double check of the whole area, to make sure no one had spotted or followed her here, and then pulled the door open in one swift motion, just enough to let her persona slip through the crack, and then proceeded to close it as quietly as she could while at the same time, scooping the room for any kind of movements.

Truth be told, it was quite unbecoming of him to act so rash, without a well formulated plan, just like a bloody Gryffindor, but after hearing the threat the Potter twins and Longbottom boy had made in the hallway, and then there was the incompetence of the teachers to locate the trio, well, it had unnerved him quite a bit. So he had to check, if only to alleviate the worry that kept eating away at his nerves.

After establishing that there was no one else in the bathroom except for him, the person purposely made his way towards the sink in the middle of the room and stopped before one of the sinks which had an old trail of moss imprinted on it and opened his mouth to speak. The sound that escaped the thin, cherry lips was anything but human, more rather snake like.

The sink gave a sudden shake and then the six triangular shapes slowly began parting to reveal a gigantic hole in the ground, which looked as dark as a moonless night. The sink from right in front of the person sank down into the opening which had revealed itself at the original parting of the sinks, and in its place was left an empty space, large enough for a full grown adult to fit in.

The person in front didn't give a second thought as she hastily made her way through the entrance while another soft hiss escaped her lips. A spiral staircase started growing out of the dark wall and the peculiar person didn't waste a movement before descending the spiral staircase, which led deep into the eerie darkness below.

-------

Diana and Neville were currently crouched down in the shadow of a gigantic rock at the entrance of the chamber and silently awaiting the arrival of the perpetrator behind the whole chamber incident.

It had been almost four whole hours of nothing but standing still and waiting, something which discouraged the two quite a bit, and made them think that, for once, Heidi's plan might not have been such a good idea after all.

-------

Flashback

"So, you better listen up, because what I'm about to tell you isn't complicated, but I need you guys to focus so we can pull this thing off."

Heidi had then proceeded to order the sink to open, in parselthoung, and surprise, surprise, it actually did spring open.

"Is that the-"

Diana asked, not sure what to make of it at first.

"It's the entrance to the chamber of secrets," Heidi said. "I found it yesterday, but I didn't get the chance to study it; so that's what we're going to do right now."

"You want us to enter the Chamber?" asked Neville fearfully.

"Neville!" Diana labeled him with a pointed glare. "You want to avenge Hermione, right?"

"Of course I do," Neville said hastily. "But honestly, there's a Basilisk down there, who might be rooming around! And maybe the Heir of Slytherin himself's down there!"

"It would actually be so much easier if that were the case," Heidi stated and, without giving another glance to her companions, she jumped inside the whole.

It was no more of a pleasant feel then last year, when she had jumped through the trapped door, except now, she was sliding down a tunnel of sorts, and dirtying her robes with all the moss and germs which had assembled throughout the years. To top it all up, she landed straight in a pile of bones, which gave her a few cuts here and there, but nothing to serious.

Diana and Neville were soon to be heard tumbling down the passageway with terrified screams accompanying their journey. They landed with a crack, right into the pile of bones.

"Ew, grouse," Diana wrinkled her nose in disgust.

You couldn't make much out of the place, since it was too dark to see, but a quick "Lumos" spell later, the kids could perfectly distinguish what was in front of them.

They were standing in a gigantic pit which's floor was covered in tiny animal bones and a large entrance was visible in the opposite side from where the pipe ended. Diana felt suddenly sick after seeing the mountain of animal bones and nearly fainted on the spot. Neville and Heidi were quick to rush her inside the enormous opening, which looked suspiciously like a hole in the mountains.

Diana managed to compose herself after a few minutes of being carried around and decided to spare the other two of the burden.

"Where are we going?" asked a fearful looking Neville.

"Yeah, sis, what are we looking for?" asked Diana.

"We're looking for the entrance to the actual chamber," Heidi said. "We need to make sure that the Heir of Slytherin isn't already here."

Neville almost dreaded to ask the next question, but he did anyway.

"What will happen if we find him?"

Diana gave the boy a feral grin and said: "Why, we hex him into the next century."

The sweet and jovial tone that she used did nothing to alleviate the boy's nerves, and not long after that, the trio stumbled across the outline of something huge and curvy, lying right across the tunnel.

"What's that?" Neville asked his voice shaky.

"It doesn't look like it's alive," Diana remarked and stalked forwards with Heidi at her side. Neville followed them, though reluctantly.

The light of the wands slowly illuminated the obstacle ahead, to reveal a poisonous green snake skin, which looked about twenty feet long.

"If anyone still doubts that it's a Basilisk we're dealing with, I guess that proves it," Heidi said bitterly.

"Come on sis, we knew it was a Basilisk," Diana stated. "We're wasting time here, let's go," she prompted.

The kids left the snake skin behind continued their path amongst the tunnel, which seemed unending. More then once, the kids stumbled across a few more holes in the wall, but the trio ignored them, because Heidi reminded them that they didn't have time to fool around.

"Why don't we have time?" Neville asked just as the kids rounded a corner.

"Because, if the Slytherin bastard isn't in the Chamber, then we have very little time to set up a trap and try to catch him today," Heidi answered.

"Why today?"

"Because we don't want to give him time to attack another student," said Diana. "Neville, he might go after us next," she reminded.

"Why us?"

"Do you actually think it was a coincidence that Hermione got attacked?" asked Heidi.

The trio came to a sudden halt as they stumbled across a door reminiscent to the one they saw at Gringotts, with two entwined serpents carved upon it, their eyes set with great, glinting emeralds.

The kids' throats were suddenly dry, and their hearts racing at an incredible speed, while their minds struggled to come to terms with what lied ahead. It suddenly didn't seem like a good idea to go looking for the one who had petrified so many students on their own, and they remained rotten to the spot, cursing their Gryffindor stubbornness for refusing to let them turn back and run to the teachers like the little cowards which they were at the moment.

Diana, easily the bravest of the lot, bit back her fear and demanded that the door open in Parselmouth. If the bastard who petrified Hermione was in that Chamber, she'd be damned if she'd run away before cursing the idiotic being.

The serpents slowly parted to reveal the entrance to the camber, and the kids pushed aside their fears as they rapidly made their way inside.

What lay beyond the doors was a very long, dimly lit chamber. A long corridor which led to a gigantic statue of a robed old wizard stood at the end. Long stoned pillars which were shaped as the head of a serpent ready to strike were adorning the extremes of the corridor and a few tunnels leading away from the room were barely visible on the walls. Te ceiling was lost in darkness and the greenish gloom which reflected upon the walls by the flamed torches gave the place an eerie appeal and the trio an uneasy felling.

"We can still turn around right?" asked Neville in a squeaky voice.

"No," snapped Diana. "We've come this far, we're not turning around!"

"She's right," Heidi said. "So, Neville, will you be taking the middle road or a side one?"

"What do you mean?" Neville asked confused, while Diana turned a questioning glance at her sister.

"It would be very dumb of us to all go charging through the middle while we don't know if either the Heir of Slytherin or the Basilisk is here," Heidi stated. "So, we're going to split up, and scout the room from all sides. One is going through the middle, while the other two take the side roads."

"I'm taking the middle road," said Diana, but Neville held out a hand to stop her from advancing forth.

"The middle road is the most risky right?" He asked Heidi.

"Most would think so, but no, they all have their risks," she answered. "Though, I'd have to admit that the middle road does leave you more vulnerable to attacks."

Neville nodded apprehensively and said: "I'll take the middle road."

Heidi gave him a curt nod and headed towards the path on the left, while Diana shot him an encouraging smile and took the road on the right. The three kids stalked forward feeling less then a little confident, with their wands at the ready and head held high and alert.

The journey that followed was excruciatingly nerve breaking. The three expected to see a gigantic snake pop out of every tiny corner, or a curse fly their way at any given time, but nothing happened. They reached the landing on the other side on jelly legs and with racing hearts. Their breathing was hectic and their senses put on high alert as the stunned quiet of the room forced them to break out into a sweat and become more then a little paranoid.

They slowly and deliberately turned around and surveyed the room as they made their way backwards towards the others. They met in the center, where they stopped in their tracks, looking as rigid as the statues of the great serpents which festooned the room, but their eyes were moving wildly around, still searching for any sign of movement.

"He's not here," Heidi said after a couple of tens moments. The sound of her voice echoed in the silent chamber and made the hearts of her two companions stop with a jolt, as a cold tremor ran down their spines.

"Sorry," she muttered softy.

Neville let out a long, shallow breath, as he felt his heart start beating wildly in his chest, and he tried in vain to calm it. Diana took a few deep breaths and then turned towards her other two companions.

"So, what now?" she asked her voice withheld just a little bit of the fear that she was still having trouble discarding.

"Well, since plan A didn't actually go so well," Heidi started, but Neville interrupted her.

"Plan A? What was plan A?"

"Plan A was finding the bastard in the Chamber and taking care of him right here and now, but since he is clearly not here," she waved her arms around the empty room, "we have to go with plan B, which is a little bit more complicated then A."

"Meaning?" Diana asked eagerly.

"Meaning that, we have to force the bastard to come into the Chamber, so we can then take care of him."

"How are we gonna do that?" asked Neville.

"It's not as easy as plan A, mind you, but it's not that hard either. We have to trick him into thinking that we are going to go kill his little pet basilisk tonight," she stated. "The perpetrator, if he is dumb, will come directly to the chamber of fear that he might lose his pet snake."

"And if he is smart?" asked Neville.

"Then he'll wait a while before coming to the chamber and checking on his pet, probably sometimes around nightfall," Heidi answered.

"Are you sure he's gonna come?" Diana asked.

"Yes, I'm sure," Heidi replied confidently. "If he's smart, he's arrogant and will come running to the challenge, and if he's dumb, he's dumb and will come running to his pet. And I'm leaning more towards the smart person, seeing as he managed to get away with petrifying so many people. And with the right motivation, even the smartest people can be coned quite easily, especially if we don't give him enough time to think things through."

"So, what's the plan?" Diana asked.

"We have to start a riot," Heidi answered. "Bring the school in a stage of panic, and leave no doubt in the perpetrator's mind that we will kill his little pet tonight. And of course that we know where the chamber is and what we're dealing with. We have to seem brash and unreasonable, and we most definitely need to get the teachers involved."

"Why the teachers?" Diana asked.

"Because, as I've said, we need to give the bastard as little time to think as possible, and mount the pressure on him, force him to act, and what better way to do that then by having the whole teacher body on his back and the threat of exposure hanging above his head."

"So, how do we do it?" Diana asked, a slight trace of impatience clouding her voice.

"Why, we get into a fight with Malfoy, of course," Heidi said amusedly.

"We what?" Diana asked confused.

"We don't know who the perpetrator is," Heidi explained. "And even if we did, we wouldn't want him to know, because then he'd really have to be dumb to stick around and wait for us to unmask him, so, we get into a fight with someone who we are certain isn't the perpetrator and accuse him of being such."

"And you honestly think Malfoy is not the perpetrator?" quizzed Neville sarcastically.

"Yes, Neville, Malfoy is 100% not the perpetrator," Heidi assured. "He's too dumb to be!" Diana and Neville sniggered at hearing that, while Heidi patiently went on to explain her plans. "So, as I was saying, we need to get into a fight with Malfoy, and threaten to expose his little scheme, and we need as many witnesses as we can get, including a teacher. I'm thinking sometimes after or before dinner, since we've already missed lunch." Heidi leveled Neville with a hard glare and said. "Neville, you have to be the one doing the threats."

Bothe Neville and Diana turned to give her confused and doubtful looks.

"Why Neville?" asked Diana.

"Because, as I've mentioned earlier, we need to seem brash and unreasonable, and pardon my saying, but you for one," she pointed at Diana, "have a reputation for being brash, so you going up to Malfoy and threatening him wouldn't be anything new, and most of the students know that I physically assaulted him a few months ago, so that wouldn't seem to brash either. But the quietest and seemingly harmless of the team starting up a fight would look so out of place. That will definitely be enough to convince people that we mean business, including our Slytherin pray. The question is, are you up for the part Neville?"

Diana and Heidi turned to look expectantly at Neville, while the plump boy squirmed slightly as he thought things over.

Was he up for the part? A cowardly little boy like him picking on Malfoy? For Hermione? Of course he was! What kind of friends would he be if he just stood around while the girls did all the dirty work?

"Yes," he answered feeling more determined the he had in his whole life. "Yes I am!"

End of Flashback

-------

After that, they had sought out Malfoy and threatened him, like they established, and had gone down directly to the chamber to wait and see if the perpetrator would actually come. And now, after nearly four hours of nothing but tedious wait, the two kids were beginning to lose faith, and just when they were about to give up on the whole incident and go and get Heidi from the chamber, a light flashed faintly from above, signalizing that someone had opened the entrance to the Chamber.

Diana and Neville sat upright and pointed their wands at the entrance, ready to curse whoever was coming at a moment's thought.

No footsteps, or sliding noises, or anything of the like was coming from the eerie silence from above and the faint light disappeared completely, leaving the tunnel engulfed in a mantle of darkness. The two began to worry, thinking that the perpetrator might had seen through their plan, but a moment later, they heard a stirring coming from the bones of small animals which were spread across the floor, and a soft crack confirmed their suspicion that someone had walked inside.

Diana braced herself and stepped out from behind the rock; her wand fixed on the entrance to the chamber, and shouted "LUMOS!"

A brilliant beam of light illuminated the previously dark room, and the two kids had to momentarily close their eyes and blink a few times in order to let heir eyes adjust to the blinding light. What they saw before them, took them completely by surprise.

"You?!" Diana asked bewildered.