FINAL PROTOCOL
Lord Silvere
Chapter Nine: Forty-Third
Susan went home to Aunt Amelia's house for Christmas. Amelia, of course, had to maintain a normal work schedule despite Susan being home from Hogwarts. While Amelia was at work, Susan went to Drury Lane and dyed Harry's hair as she had done just prior to the start of the term. After Harry used some makeup to cover his scar, he and Susan made their way to Diagon Alley to do some Christmas shopping.
They separated while Susan went to buy Harry a gift. Harry went to make a withdrawal from the bank so that he could buy Susan a gift and some other items he had been vaguely wanting to purchase.
After buying Harry an extensive sampler collection of hot cocoa powders and two mugs to go with it, Susan set out to find Harry. Where are you? she asked over the mental link as she made her way out into the busy thoroughfare.
Quidditch shop, Harry replied.
In Diagon Alley's Quidditch shop, Susan found Harry eyeing four used Cleansweeps while a salesman, apparently on commission, looked on anxiously.
"Surely you can afford something new," Susan said as she sidled up and eyed the broomsticks skeptically.
"He can't talk," the salesman told Susan.
"That doesn't excuse him," Susan said. She looked at Harry. "Cleansweeps? Really? Even I know they aren't very good."
I'll buy new when the Firebolt is available, Harry told Susan as he finally picked out a broom and arranged to buy it.
Harry and Susan were just leaving the broom shop together when they were spotted.
"Susan!" Ginny Weasley called out from somewhere behind the two of them.
Susan grimaced.
I will just keep walking as if we were not together, Harry told her confidently.
Susan put a smile on her face and turned around to greet Ginny Weasley as Harry casually continued down the street alone.
Ginny was shopping in Diagon Alley with her mother. Ginny's mother was concerned to hear that Susan was alone. Soon, Susan found herself being escorted to the Leaky Cauldron for a quick snack as the motherly Mrs. Weasley talked on and Ginny beamed at Susan.
She doesn't seem like she is possessed by You-Know-Who, Susan told Harry while pretending to take an active interest in the conversation she was having with the Weasley females.
Great, Harry said. I'm seeing if I can pick up a used wand or two. Using your family wands is not ideal, seeing as they can be traced.
Beginning to feel guilty for ignoring the Weasleys, Susan tuned back into the conversation.
"Now that the Ministry is scaling back its efforts to search for Harry Potter, they're having my husband resume and intensify the raids for Dark objects and misused Muggle artifacts. They think some of the Death Eaters from the former war might be hanging onto them. Then of course, there was that raid in Diagon Alley right after Harry's disappearance.
Susan suddenly smiled as she remembered something from a long discussion with Harry about the details he remembered from his alternate future.
Harry, don't the Malfoys have a stash somewhere in their manor? Susan asked.
As in dark artifacts? Yeah, under their drawing room. Harry replied absently. Maybe we ought to pass that tidbit on to Mr. Weasley.
"I've got a tip for your husband," Susan said. "Just don't let him know it came from me."
"Oh?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
Christmas came and went. Harry was pleased with the hot cocoa and mugs. Susan was surprised and thrilled by a cookbook and television set, which would be set up at Drury Lane so that she could watch Muggle cooking shows and other TV shows, the reruns of which she had enjoyed while in the alternate future.
Harry and Susan were sitting on their couch while watching TV and sipping morning cups of cocoa when an owl delivered the Daily Prophet. The newspaper announced that Lucius Malfoy had been "detained" by the Ministry after the discovery of numerous dark artifacts in a secret room in Malfoy Manor. The investigation was ongoing and law enforcement officials had no further comment.
I wonder if he bothered to sell any of them this time around? Harry mused. It does not sound like Mr. Weasley was doing his raids like he was in the alternate future.
"What amazes me is how your absence changes some things so dramatically while having no effect on others," Susan said.
Harry shrugged. Hopefully, the ultimate result is better this time around.
Susan was disappointed to note, as school resumed, that a lack of attacks from the Heir of Slytherin, coupled with a holiday, had resulted in students becoming less concerned about the danger. By day, the students were completely unconcerned. Fortunately, by night, they at least avoided wandering the castle and used mirrors to check corners when they did. In a perverse way, Susan wished there were attacks. That way, she and Harry would be able to have some idea of what was going on.
Come mid-January, Harry had decided they needed to put some sort of warning signal on the entrance to the Chamber as a way of detecting whether the Heir was accessing it or not. Harry researched the spell and taught it to Susan, who decided to put the spell in place while most of the castle was eating dinner one night.
Susan ate her dinner rapidly, watching with some amusement as Ron Weasley and Draco Malfoy, whose father was still in trouble, but not yet in Azkaban, glared malevolently at each other. After finishing, Susan strode briskly from the Great Hall and pulled a mirror out of one of her pockets.
As quickly as possible, Susan made her way to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, checking around each corner with the mirror and even checking into the bathroom with the mirror. Staying quiet so as not to disturb Myrtle, Susan cast the spell on the entrance to the Chamber. The spell sapped a good deal of Susan's strength. Breathing heavily, she exited the bathroom and made her way to her dorm, notifying Harry on the way that she had been successful.
Life at Hogwarts continued to be uneventful until Valentine's Day. In the early hours of the morning of the fourteenth of February, several loud explosions, accompanied by the barking of what seemed to be twenty invisible dogs roving the castle, woke up every single person at Hogwarts.
The trap has been triggered, Susan told Harry as soon as several minutes of her telepathic prodding brought him out of a deep sleep.
Interesting, Harry mentally communicated to Susan.
The Hogwarts students were confused. They became scared when the professors came to the dorms and told their students to stay put until further word. Many of the Hufflepuffs ended up going to their common room and huddling together in blankets. Susan went back to bed.
When she woke, she discovered that the professors had given the all clear and that breakfast was proceeding as normal in the Great Hall. At breakfast, Susan learned that the Heir of Slytherin had left another message on the wall. The message, and its implications, occupied all conversation despite Gilderoy Lockhart's ridiculous Valentine's Day arrangements for decorations and singing trolls.
"And what did the message say?" Susan asked Hannah.
Hannah was only too happy to share news with somebody who had not yet heard or bothered to go view the message. Apparently, the message had read as follows:
HUFFLEPUFF—DID YOU REALLY THINK YOUR BOOBY TRAP WOULD KILL ME? YOU WILL DIE FOR YOUR INSOLENCE, EVEN IF YOU ARE A PUREBLOOD.
Susan passed the message to Harry. By the time breakfast ended, Harry had come up with a response for Susan to put on the wall at her first opportunity. On the pretext of belatedly viewing the message, Susan finished breakfast quickly and made her way to corridor. There, as soon as nobody was looking, she rapidly cast the spells that would cause Hufflepuff's response to appear in much a similar way as it had on Halloween. The difference was that Susan set it to appear at a certain time instead of on command.
The response began appearing, letter by letter, as students left their final classes for the day and went to dinner.
SLYTHERIN, YOU SILLY NIFFLER, THE TRAP WASN'T DESIGNED TO KILL YOU.
Professor Sprout awarded Hufflepuff another fifty points, and dinner that night proceeded with more students than usual gathering at the same time instead of straggling in and out as was common during non-feast dinners. Speculation about what was going on between the Heirs of Hufflepuff and Slytherin abounded, and students laughed hysterically at the thought of the Heir of Hufflepuff insulting the Heir of Slytherin.
Despite the laughter, there was also an atmosphere of fear and caution. The professors, fearing the response that Hufflepuff's message might provoke, encouraged students to return directly to their dorms after dinner and do their homework there. Without any sign of protest, all the students of Hogwarts were in their dorms by half past seven.
It seemed the students and professors need not have feared. Slytherin's response came well over a week later and without any violence. Students on their way to breakfast discovered it.
HUFFLEPUFF—YOU WOULD NOT BE SO FLIPPANT IF YOU TRULY KNEW ME.
"An empty threat?" Susan wondered aloud as she sliced and diced ingredients for her latest cooking experiment.
Not quite, Harry told her mentally.
"Then what is it?" Susan asked.
He's nervous. He's trying to see how much we know about him. Harry mused.
"So, what do we do next?" Susan asked.
I need to think about it, Harry told her.
On one Thursday night, Susan nearly had a heart attack upon arriving at Drury Lane. She found a twenty-gallon glass fish tank sitting atop the dining room table, and, in it, a snake. Apparently, Harry had gone shopping.
"Harry!" she yelled after gasping.
Harry appeared at the top of the stairs and slowly made his way down. Yes?
"Why a snake?" Susan demanded.
Practice, Harry told her. He walked over to the table and peered down through a wire screen into the tank. He blinked a few times and then suddenly, there was air hissing through Harry's teeth. The snake in the tank froze and looked upward toward Harry.
It sounds like gibberish to him, Harry told Susan mentally. But I have already made a lot of progress. I think it is time for you to put up our response to Tom Riddle's latest message, but it will have to be a little different this time.
Professors McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick, and Sprout entered Professor Dumbledore's office, each nearly out of breath.
"What is it Albus?" Professor McGonagall demanded.
"Have a seat," Dumbledore invited, gesturing absentmindedly at his bowl of lemon drops "I have a received a message directly from the Heir of Hufflepuff." He picked a piece of parchment off his desk and passed it around.
The House heads each examined it. The message had been formed using words and letters from Daily Prophet headlines.
Professor Dumbledore,
My response to the Heir of Slytherin's latest may incite a violent reaction. I urge you to take all possible precautions. I realize this will not please you, but as things stand, the Heir of Slytherin presents an imminent threat, which must be neutralized before it is too late. Unfortunately, he is now all but invulnerable and will remain so unless provoked into overextending himself.
"Maybe we should hunt down the Heir of Hufflepuff and force him to reveal his secrets," Snape said angrily.
"Maybe so," Dumbledore said. "For now, we will need to see about safety precautions."
"Why is Snape always in that hallway?" Hannah whispered to Susan after they and half a dozen other Hufflepuffs had walked past Moaning Myrtle's bathroom on their way from dinner.
He's waiting for the new message to appear, Susan told herself. To Hannah, she merely said, "I don't know."
"It probably has something to do with all the new rules," Hannah said.
"Maybe so," Susan agreed.
Snape was present when the message Susan had placed on the wall finally appeared, seemingly of its own accord. He immediately summoned the other high-ranking professors to the scene. Professor Dumbledore was the last to arrive and took time examining the message.
I KNOW PRECISELY WHO YOU ARE, ANAGRAM BOY.
"I don't understand," Professor McGonagall said.
"I think I do," Dumbledore said slowly, his thoughts racing. "This situation is perhaps more dangerous than I realized."
"What does 'anagram boy' mean?" Flitwick asked.
Dumbledore sighed and looked around to make sure he and the professors were the only persons present. Seeing nobody, he drew his wand and proceeded to explain. "When the Chamber of Secrets was last opened, I strongly suspected that a student named Tom Marvolo Riddle was responsible."
"But wasn't Hagrid arrested for that?" Flitwick demanded.
"Yes," Dumbledore said. "But, I think Tom Riddle framed him."
"So, what does this Tom Riddle have to do with it or this message left by the Heir of Hufflepuff?" Professor Sprout asked.
Dumbledore smiled wanly. He held up his wand, and the letters to spell Tom Marvolo Riddle zoomed out of the tip and began hovering in the air. He swished his wand casually, and the letters rearranged themselves.
I AM LORD VOLDEMORT
Professors Sprout and McGonagall gasped as they read the phrase.
"I think you will all agree that my suspicions about Mr. Riddle were correct," Professor Dumbledore said as the letters faded away. "It would appear that the Heir of Hufflepuff believes that Lord Voldemort is still functioning as the Heir of Slytherin."
"Well, do you think he is?" McGonagall demanded.
"I hope not," Professor Dumbledore said.
Less than a week later, the Heir of Slytherin struck during the night. Unfortunately, a certain couple had been out of their dorms and meeting each other for a romantic encounter. Fortunately, despite ignoring the special rules, they had been carrying mirrors.
"Fools!" Snape thundered as he and the other professors looked down at the floor where the petrified forms of Percy Weasley and Penelope Clearwater were slumped against a wall. Above them, written on the wall, was a message.
WHO ARE YOU, HUFFLEPUFF?
"What were they doing alone?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"Being stupid," Snape said.
"We have no way of knowing that or what they were doing," Professor Dumbledore said generously.
"How is You-Know-Who doing this?" Flitwick asked. "He's supposed to be dead or far away."
"He has perhaps found some way to influence events in the castle," Dumbledore surmised.
At Professor Dumbledore's command, every student and staff member gathered in the Great Hall at the same time for dinner. Before the food appeared on the tables, Dumbledore stood up to address everybody.
"The situation is serious," he said, "and I anticipate it will get worse. If you choose to disobey the rules, you run the risk of meeting death at the hands of Slytherin's heir. I beg the Heir of Hufflepuff to come forward and share any information that will help us apprehend the Heir of Slytherin in a timely fashion. If you do not come forward, I will be disappointed that you have chosen to put lives at risk, but nonetheless, I promise that neither I nor the Hogwarts staff will interfere with your activities. If any of you observe any suspicious activity, please report it to a professor immediately. Do not attempt to confront the person. He or she might not be the heir you think you have detected. Thank you."
Dinner then proceeded with the students talking quietly and eyeing the Hufflepuff table.
I don't think I will be able to sneak out of the castle as often as I have been, Susan told Harry.
Lockdown? Harry asked.
Not quite, but close, Susan responded.
Let's do one more response, if you can, Harry suggested.
Over the next few days, Susan casually made her way to the corridor outside of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom on multiple occasions. But, each time, she did not feel comfortable enough to perform the magic to arrange for the message. It seemed students were carefully watching for any suspicious behavior in the hallways. Susan thought she might be able to dodge the observation of the students, but she feared that the professors might have found some way to monitor the location. Perhaps the Heir of Slytherin himself would be watching.
Susan and Harry eventually decided that the message would have to appear elsewhere in the castle. This proved to make stealthy activities easier and allowed Susan to be more elaborate with the next message. As students proceeded to class one morning, two simultaneous explosions heralded the appearance of a Hogwarts flag and a Hufflepuff flag on brackets anchored to the wall outside of Professor Lockhart's classroom. In between the flags, Hufflepuff's message appeared:
SLYTHERIN—ALL REASONABLE FACTORS CONSIDERED, I CALCULATE MYSELF TO BE YOUR FORTY-THIRD WORST LIVING ENEMY.
An excited and amused buzz raced through the throng of students that had already been present when the message appeared. As news of the message raced through the castle, Professor Lockhart emerged from his classroom to strut around and give comfort to the students. He was a little displeased by the "forty-third" designation, though.
"The estimate is very conservative. It doesn't do to brag too much," he told a group of teenage witches, as he postured in his yellow and black robes and sipped from a large glass of water. "Obviously, the Heir of Hufflepuff is number one in terms of anybody who can do anything about the situation and is attempting to lull the Heir of Slytherin into complacency."
Susan smiled. Harry had wanted to list her as at least third, next to himself and Dumbledore, but she had convinced him that it would be more amusing to make it forty-third and place it outside of Professor Lockhart's classroom. After pausing to admire her handiwork, she continued making her way to her next class.
"A joke perhaps?" Flitwick suggested. "What is the Heir of Hufflepuff trying to say?"
"I know of one joke," Snape scowled. "Can't we fire Lockhart on the pretext that any decent Defense Against the Dark Arts professor would have solved this problem by now?"
"Is there any chance that Lockhart really is the Heir of Hufflepuff, or assisting the Heir of Hufflepuff?" Professor Sprout asked.
Snape scowled and stormed out of the room.
"I don't think Professor Lockhart is really the Heir of Hufflepuff," Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling wildly. "I hope for his sake that the Heir of Slytherin shares my opinion."
"Will you stop hissing at that thing?" Susan scowled as she speared a chunk of fire-roasted chicken off her plate.
I'm just enjoying the ability to finally conduct verbal conversations, Harry told her mentally.
"It is not a verbal conversation," Susan said. "Nobody can understand it. How about you try speaking English?"
I try every day, Harry told Susan. No luck.
After a visit and dinner with Harry, Susan returned to the Hogwarts castle later than usual one night. It seemed that the Honeydukes was conducting an inventory of their stock. The activity of the shopkeepers and their employees made it nearly impossible for Susan to access the secret passage in the shop.
Susan wasted valuable time waiting for the possibility that the workers would take a break from their labors. Once Susan concluded that the inventory process would last into the night and that she was running out of time, Susan made haste for the Shrieking Shack. From there, she took the secret tunnel to the Whomping Willow and slipped into the castle only minutes before curfew.
Using a mirror and all sorts of other detection spells to avoid any accidental encounter with the basilisk, Susan made her way toward the Hufflepuff dormitories, unsuccessfully trying to take the most direct path and having to take detours to avoid professors and prefects on patrol. Thanks to one particularly inconvenient detour, Susan found herself in the corridor outside of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Susan was surprised to discover that there was a new message from Slytherin on the wall. The red paint was still wet and still dripping.
THEIR BONES WILL LIE IN THE CHAMBER FOREVER, AND THEIR BLOOD WILL BE ON YOUR HANDS, HUFFLEPUFF.
Uh, Harry … , Susan said, reaching out to Harry telepathically.
Yes? Harry asked.
It looks like the Heir of Slytherin has struck. Susan then described her discovery to Harry.
There was a long pause while Harry considered the situation. Finally, he responded. Has anybody else seen the message?
I don't think so, Susan said. There are no alarms. The professors and prefects are behaving as normal.
Destroy the message. I don't want anybody to see it. Harry said.
Okay, Susan said, drawing her wand and thinking of some cleaning or scouring spells.
No, wait! Harry said. Hide it. We might want to use it to our benefit later.
Okay, Susan acknowledged, shifting her train of thought to imagine the different spells she could use to camouflage the writing on the wall.
As soon as you take care of it, hide nearby. Maybe in a room with a window so I can meet up with you. I'm getting my broomstick and will be there soon, Harry instructed.
Susan used several illusion spells to hide the message and then retreated to a classroom near the corridor outside of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Telepathically, she described the classroom's location to Harry, who then responded and told Susan that he was familiar with the room.
After about fifteen minutes, Harry arrived, and began hovering on his broom outside the classroom's windows.
How are you going to get inside? Susan asked. I don't know if you can sneak in through one of the doors of that castle and avoid detection.
We'll just have to break the windows, here, Harry told Susan. Can you cast some silencing charms so that nobody inside of the castle can hear the windows break? And then maybe you should be the one to blast them so that the glass explodes outward instead of inward toward you.
Susan drew her wand, cast the requisite silencing charms, and then let loose with a blaster as soon as Harry signaled he was safely out of the way. The windows exploded outward. As soon as the glass shards had settled, Harry zoomed into the room with his broom, dismounted, and signaled Susan to follow him.
We need to be away from here just in case somebody heard that or saw it from the other side, Harry said, carrying his broom and walking toward the door.
Susan, who could see that Harry was having to physically strain himself, darted to his side, both to keep up with his pace and so that she could be there if Harry needed an arm to lean on.
"You are making a mistake Minister," Professor Dumbledore said as he, Professor Snape, and Professor McGonagall made their way across the Hogwarts grounds to Hagrid's cabin with Minister Fudge and a couple of his flunkies.
"I have to do something," Fudge stubbornly insisted. "Hagrid was the one responsible last time."
"I have evidence that he was framed. It was somebody else," Dumbledore said firmly.
Fudge stopped and turned around. "Then, who was it then and who is doing it now?"
"It would not be wise to divulge that information quite yet," Dumbledore hedged.
"In other words, you do not really know," Fudge said, throwing up his arms in exasperation. "You know, I almost wonder if you are competent to be Headmaster of this institution. Lucius Malfoy suggested as much to me last fall."
Snape sneered at the Minister of Magic. "You mean right before he was arrested?"
Fudge scowled and opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted when an explosion and the sound of tinkling glass sounded from the direction of the castle. "What was that?" he demanded.
"It sounds like somebody just blew out one of the castle's windows," McGonagall said faintly.
"We must return to the castle immediately," Dumbledore declared.
Quietly, Harry and Susan entered Moaning Myrtle's bathroom and moved toward the sink that served as the gateway to the Chamber of Secrets.
"So, this faucet has never worked, eh?" Susan said, reaching out her hand and twisting the faucet handle as Harry eyeballed the small snake etched into the metal.
Harry was about to respond but was surprised as the sink abruptly fell away despite Harry not having said anything in Parseltongue.
Of course, Harry observed to Susan, Tom doesn't realize that he is dealing with somebody who speaks Parseltongue. He would have had to make it so that the Heir of Hufflepuff could fall into his trap. I guess my preparations were unnecessary. Are you ready?
Susan nodded nervously. Let's do it.
Harry mounted his broom, and at his invitation, Susan mounted behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and squeezing tightly. Slowly, Harry guided the broom into the pipe shaft. As soon as the broom passed into the dark tunnel-pipe, the entrance slammed shut.
I hope you can open it from the inside, Susan said to Harry, purposely using only the mental communication.
It shouldn't be a problem, Harry said as he cautiously guided the broom downward. Let us try to prevent Tom from discovering that there are two of us before we are ready to make our move.
I know. I remember the plan, Susan told Harry.
The professors and Minister of Magic found the shattered window with relative ease. Finding the perpetrator and an explanation for the explosion proved to be far more difficult.
"It might just be a prank," Minister Fudge scoffed.
"Not with the location of the attacks so close at hand," Snape said as he angrily surveyed the damage. "This is clearly tied to the Chamber of Secrets. Which means that Hagrid, who was at his cabin, is probably innocent."
Fudge scowled.
"Let's search for any new message from either heirs and see if we can detect any irregular activity around the castle," Dumbledore said.
"What about checking the dormitories?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"No," Professor Dumbledore responded. "We don't want to alarm the students unnecessarily." Under his breath, he also muttered something else. "We also don't want to shackle the Heir of Hufflepuff, just in case something serious really is happening and he or she is attempting to take action."
The memory of Tom Marvolo Riddle impatiently paced up and down the aisle between the snake statues in the Chamber of Secrets. He knew that the timing of things made it so that it could be hours or even an entire day before the disappearance of his victims was discovered and the Heir of Hufflepuff took the bait. He did not necessarily mind waiting. The longer he waited, the stronger he would be. But, the Heir of Hufflepuff might also be better prepared if he or she took time to prepare for the confrontation.
As he paced, Tom Riddle arrived at the base of Slytherin's statue where his two victims lay on the stone floor. Draco Malfoy, the pathetic little idiot, clutched the horcrux diary. Getting a hold on Draco's soul had been difficult. Draco had mostly responded to flattery. It was not until Draco's father had been arrested and Draco had been feeling vulnerable enough that Tom had been able to get his fangs into Draco's soul.
As for the other victim, Gilderoy Lockhart, if all went well, his death and the death of the Heir of Hufflepuff would lead to the creation of additional horcruxes. Tom had also intended that Lockhart's death would serve to instill fear into the hearts of those who believed Gilderoy Lockhart to be the greatest fighter against the Dark Arts in the world, except for Albus Dumbledore, of course.
Unfortunately, when Tom had led Draco to confront Lockhart, Tom had learned that Lockhart was nothing but a fraud. The little squealer had retreated into his bedroom and hid beneath the bed, literally losing control of his bladder. Tom had then realized that Lockhart's killing would not be considered a great feat by those who knew Lockhart's real nature. Feeling particularly vicious, Tom kicked Gilderoy Lockhart's unconscious form.
Tom was about to kick again when he heard the doors to the Chamber slide open. Quickly, Tom retreated into the shadows and waited for the Heir of Hufflepuff to appear. Faint footsteps sounded, drawing gradually nearer to the base of Slytherin's statue. For a moment the footsteps paused, just when the Heir of Hufflepuff would be about halfway up the length of the Chamber. After a moment, the footsteps resumed.
Tom nodded. This Heir is not a complete fool. He or she did not just blindly rush toward the victims at first sight.
Finally, the Heir of Hufflepuff came into sight. Tom was surprised to see a young witch with long red hair. As had been implied by her claim that she was Hufflepuff's heir, her school uniform and colors confirmed that she was a member of the Hufflepuff house. She studied Malfoy and Lockhart's prone forms for a long time without moving. Then suddenly, she looked up straight toward where Tom was hiding in the shadows.
Tom Riddle froze. Though she surely could not see him, he felt like her eyes were boring straight into him. This Hufflepuff was no innocent little schoolgirl. She was … something else. Perhaps a more formidable enemy than he had imagined.
Refusing to give the witch the pleasure of being the one to draw him out of the shadows, Tom waited. Eventually, the witch turned her attention back to his victims. Deftly and without any hesitation, the witch plucked the wands of Malfoy and Lockhart away from their unconscious forms. Within seconds, she had broken both wands.
Suddenly, Tom wanted to lash out. He almost did. He should have taken his victims' wands before the Heir of Hufflepuff had arrived. But, it was no matter. He had the basilisk. He would probably be able to take Hufflepuff's wand from her, too.
Tom stepped out of the shadows as the Heir of Hufflepuff backed away from the victims, her wand drawn and aimed toward the shadows.
"It is all right," Tom said. "I am not going to hurt you. Who are you?"
The witch smiled. "I am your forty-third worst enemy, of course. Who are you?"
"I am Tom Riddle. Perhaps you have heard of me."
"Should I have heard of you?"
"Who are you, really?" Tom asked, ignoring the coy question.
"My identity is not important," the witch said, dodging the question.
Tom was beginning to feel intrigued. Perhaps he would not kill her. Somebody this clever might prove useful. "Why are you my enemy?" Tom asked.
"Aren't you everybody's enemy?" the witch asked, firmly pointing her wand at Tom.
"I don't look at it that way," Tom argued. "What are you planning to do? Kill me? You won't find it easy. It would be far better if you joined me. As Hufflepuff and Slytherin, we could rule Hogwarts together."
"I think I will satisfy myself with informing the Headmaster that I have discovered the location of the Chamber of Secrets," the witch said. She began walking backward, keeping her wand and eyes trained on Tom.
"Going to summon my first worst enemy, are you?" Tom chuckled.
"Professor Dumbledore rates as your second worst enemy on my list," the witch said, "but he will have to do for now." She was now backing away more quickly.
"You won't escape," Tom said, turning toward Slytherin's statue and hissing in Parseltongue for the mouth to open and let the basilisk loose. The basilisk began to emerge from the statue. Already, the witch who was the Heir of Hufflepuff was running.
Tom laughed and then gave his instructions in Parseltongue. Kill the witch!
The basilisk slithered forward, quickly gaining ground.
Somehow, the witch must have known that the snake was getting ready to strike. She darted off the main aisle of the Chamber and into the shadows among the pillars. Tom rolled his eyes. Surely, she did not really believe that she could hide from the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets itself.
Suddenly, a deafening explosion roared. Within milliseconds, the snake that had been chasing the Heir of Hufflepuff was hurtling across the Chamber of Secrets. With a sickening crunch, the basilisk's head crashed into Slytherin's statue, and it let out a shriek of pain. As the basilisk attempted to regain its orientation, another spell blasted into the snake's head, causing it to shriek even louder. Another half of dozen explosions sounded, each followed by sickening thuds and reptilian shrieks.
Tom knew, without having to look, that there was no way the basilisk's eyes could have survived the brutal onslaught of pure magical strength. Hissing, Tom looked into the shadows and was surprised to see somebody who was not the Heir of Hufflepuff emerge. It was a wizard—young, with dark hair and blazing green eyes. His wand was drawn, but he also looked relaxed.
"Who are you?" Tom demanded.
The answer was oblique, and in Parseltongue, which shocked Tom.
If you had been cleverer, the wizard told Tom, you would have realized that your forty-third worst enemy was baiting you into a trap set by your first worst enemy.
"That doesn't tell me who you are," Tom snarled.
I am Harry Potter, the wizard hissed. When I was a baby, I killed Lord Voldemort when he came to kill me in my crib.
"No," Tom said, "you did not kill me. It is impossible to truly kill me."
I wouldn't say impossible, Harry hissed, just more difficult. Fortunately, you have provided me the means. He raised his wand and pointed it at the basilisk, still writhing in agony and possibly brain damaged beyond repair from having its head repeatedly battered against a large rock. A loud bang sounded, and suddenly, a lance of ice had embedded itself into the basilisk's skull through one of the bloody eye sockets.
Harry and Tom watched and listened as the basilisk's last breath wheezed from its corpse.
"You still won't be able to kill me," Tom told Harry. "In fact, it may already be too late."
I think not, Harry hissed, waving his wand.
Suddenly, the diary in Draco Malfoy's arms ripped free and began flying in the air. It zoomed toward the basilisk's mouth and impaled itself on rows and rows of fangs dripping with basilisk venom. As ink spurted and gushed from the diary, Tom exploded, and was no more.
After Tom Riddle had exploded, Susan emerged from the shadows and took a position at Harry's side. "That went well," she observed.
Indeed, it did, Harry told her telepathically as he let himself relax into a bit of a standing slump. Happily, I have more strength leftover than I thought I would have at the end of this confrontation.
Malfoy and Lockhart began stirring from their unconscious states before Susan could respond to Harry's comment with her concern for how little strength he did have left.
Stun them as hard as you can, Harry directed.
Susan was only too glad to go over to where the two lay and let loose with two of the strongest stunners she had ever cast.
They'll keep for a while, Susan told Harry mentally as she returned to his side.
Let's go have a rest and plan the Heir of Hufflepuff's grand finale, Harry said, hooking arms with Susan and turning toward the entrance of the Chamber of Secrets.
Susan stealthily made her way back to the Hufflepuff dormitories. She was pleased to discover that none of her housemates were pulling an all-nighter in the common room.
Knowing her roommates would have noticed that her bed was empty, Susan decided to sleep in the common room. Susan sought out a secluded corner of the common room. Without rearranging the furniture, Susan set things up to make it look like she had been studying and had fallen asleep.
All clear, I think, Susan informed Harry through the mental link.
I'm setting the timers now, Harry told her. Remember to act normal tomorrow.
I've had plenty of practice, Susan replied drowsily.
"Did anybody ever find out who broke the windows?" Professor McGonagall asked as Snape sat down to his breakfast.
Snape scowled. "No. But, at about 4:30 in the morning, somebody broke into Filch's office, stole several dozen confiscated dungbombs, and set them off in the dungeons—right in front of my living quarters."
"I'm sorry to hear that, Severus," McGonagall said. "But if somebody did that, it shows that breaking the window may have not have been connected to the Chamber of Secrets."
Snape was still in a foul mood as his morning class began. He had not gotten far into the lesson when an announcement from Dumbledore blared through the school.
"Attention students. Please proceed to the Great Hall immediately. Professors, please also proceed to the Great Hall and supervise. Professor Snape, please proceed to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom as soon as you are able."
Snape goaded his students toward the Great Hall and then took the shortest route possible to the Defense classroom. There, he found Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, and the second-year students of Gryffindor and Slytherin.
Many of the second-year witches were sobbing. Many of the second-year wizards looked torn between amusement and fear. In front of the class sat a chalkboard. On it, a message had been written:
STUDENTS: PROFESSOR LOCKHART'S CLASS IS CANCELLED THIS MORNING AS HE HAS BEEN EATEN BY THE BASILISK. I WISH I COULD TELL YOU THAT HE PUT UP A GOOD FIGHT, BUT I WOULD BE LYING TO YOU IF I DID. LOVE, SLYTHERIN.
"What happened?" Snape asked. "Do we have any confirmation? Or is it a joke?"
"Shortly after class was scheduled to start, the message appeared," McGonagall informed Snape. "Miss Granger, Mr. Longbottom, and Mr. Weasley came and fetched me from my class, and I notified the Headmaster."
"Nobody has been able to locate Professor Lockhart," Dumbledore said solemnly.
Professor McGonagall shook her head. "We may have to close down the school. It looks like the Heir of Slytherin is killing people now."
Dumbledore was frowning. "It seems strange to me. This message does not seem like the Heir of Slytherin's style."
"What, killing people or the snarky chalkboard message?" Snape asked.
"The chalkboard," Dumbledore said. "Minerva, please take these students to the Great Hall. Severus and I will check the corridor where messages normally appear and then meet you and the other professors at the Great Hall."
Without further ado, Dumbledore and Snape left the classroom and cautiously made their way through the castle to the corridor outside of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. There, they found the message Susan had found the night previous.
THEIR BONES WILL LIE IN THE CHAMBER FOREVER, AND THEIR BLOOD WILL BE ON YOUR HANDS, HUFFLEPUFF.
Dumbledore sighed and shook his head. "We will have to take roll and see who else is missing. We will then have to see to organizing a rescue effort. Minerva, please notify the Ministry and see if they can send us some Aurors."
"Or maybe we should find a way to unmask the so-called Heir of Hufflepuff," Snape suggested.
Hermione meandered among the students gathered in the Great Hall, staring suspiciously at every student she saw—especially the Slytherins. She stopped when she found Susan Bones sitting at the Hufflepuff table reading a copy of Witch Weekly.
"You seem awfully calm," Hermione observed, joining Susan at the table.
"What else am I supposed to do?" Susan asked, turning a page in the magazine.
"I don't know. Aren't you afraid?"
"Of what?" Susan asked.
Hermione was about to argue with Susan when Professor McGonagall announced that the staff was going to do a roll call and that each student should cooperate with the staff member who came around to check people off the list.
"You would think they would have done that a lot sooner," Susan muttered.
"What was that?" Hermione asked, only have caught the tail end of Susan's comment.
"Nothing," Susan said, turning another page.
Hermione kept something of a conversation going. When Neville, Hannah, and Ron joined the table, the pace picked up a bit more. Soon, Professor Sprout came by and checked each student off the list.
Eventually, the roll call results came back. Professor McGonagall stood up and announced that both Professor Lockhart and Draco Malfoy were missing.
Susan snorted. "No wonder the Heir of Hufflepuff hasn't done anything. As far as I'm concerned, the Heir of Slytherin can keep his victims."
Ron and Neville laughed out loud.
"Surely you don't mean that!" Hermione gasped.
Susan shrugged and went back to her magazine while the second years who had gathered around her chit-chatted with each other.
It was nearly dinnertime. Various dishes full of foods had begun appearing on the tables. The professors and Aurors who had been helping with the rescue effort were beginning to gather into the Great Hall with slumped shoulders and disappointed expressions on their faces. They had been unable to find any clues that would help them rescue the Heir of Slytherin's hostages.
"This could be end of Hogwarts," Hermione said.
"I sincerely doubt it," Susan said, finally putting down her magazine, standing up, and stretching.
Hermione shook her head. "What makes you so sure?"
Susan grinned. "It is the same as how I knew you would be in Gryffindor. I can feel it right here." She pointed to her elbow.
Hermione shook her head. She had just opened her mouth to retort when a creepy-sounding whisper began echoing throughout the Great Hall. Not all the students instantly noticed the whisper, but all were silent after Professor Dumbledore cast a mass silencing charm over the student body so that he could hear.
Attention students and staff of Hogwarts. This is the Heir of Hufflepuff speaking, and I have good news for you. After learning of the Heir of Slytherin's attack on Professor Lockhart and Draco Malfoy, I forced my way into the Chamber of Secrets. There, I killed the basilisk and saved Lockhart and Malfoy from certain death. I regret to say, however, that I was not able to kill the Heir of Slytherin, for he is a truly brilliant and dangerous wizard who is not easily killed. Despite being unable to kill Slytherin, I banished him from the castle on a temporary basis. He will stay away for a season, but he is certain to return within a matter of a few short years. I do not know whether I will be able to stop him, then. I suggest you prepare yourselves. For those of you who wish to attend to the needs of Lockhart and Malfoy, the useless pieces of rubbish that they are, you will find them deep in the Chamber of Secrets near the basilisk's carcass. Proceed to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, tap your wand on the sink with the faucet that does not have water, and say "Open says me." The entrance to the Chamber will be revealed to you. Have a nice year, and feel free to have a feast or three in my honor.
With the Heir of Hufflepuff's last word, explosions began sounding all around the Great Hall. When the explosions ended, the Great Hall was covered with Hufflepuff banners and yellow and black confetti. The students cheered, and without further ado, Professor Dumbledore, the staff, and several Aurors were rushing to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.