Despite the objections of Professor Snape, Jenny used her new power and influence for one special privilege. The Violet Badgers, and anyone else afraid of being killed by Basilisks, now had fashion statement permission. Sunglasses, the enchanted mirror-shaded kind, soon became standard school attire.
The break came near the end of April. Neville Longbottom and Hermoine Granger were petrified after they'd almost finished researching the last time the Chamber of Secrets opened. Finishing an interview of the spider, Aragog, they were found stone cold near the school library. Ron Weasley's unnatural fear of spiders saved him from a similar fate.
Working in secret, Jenny and Akuma reconstructed the evidence, but found Moaning Myrtle stoned in the girl's bathroom before they could question her. Faced with a dead end, Akuma finished the triangulation started by Hermoine using the two new attacks as data points.
"Tunnels or secret room under Myrtle's Bathroom." Akuma concluded, after triple-checking the numbers. An ecolocation spell, an obscure seventh year charm Jenny found while researching basilisk-avoidance, confirmed an empty space below one of the sinks.
Jenny and Akuma prepared and plotted. Expecting as many as a dozen basilisks, they did not go rushing in. Their real goal wasn't killing the serpents, but stopping the Heir of Slytherin.
On Tuesday, second week of May, Jenny slipped on her double-layered flame retardant dragonhide gloves, and stole Harry's wand from the infirmary's locked possessions cabinet. Noticing it, she also nicked his invisibility cloak. Comfortably snug, her iridescent red arm length gloves arrived in March, having been special ordered over the Christmas holidays. Right around the time Jenny called Amanda long distance, and explained she'd be handling this situation.
Loaded with silencing and scent-masking charms, Akuma added night vision and camouflage before blindly teleporting to the equation mapped danger area underneath the sink. Finding no traces of Basilisks except for shed skins, the devil-doll carefully mapped the main chamber and pipe-chute attached into it in near-total darkness. She did not map the additional openings to the dozens of space warping pipe-tunnels leading off the main chamber. She opened the snake-embossed spell locked door between the antechamber and the inner chamber from inside, before retreating.
By 3 A.M. Wednesday morning, an elaborate network of silencing and vibration dampening spells was in place. Wishing herself luck, Jenny destroyed the sink above the opening by firing a full strength demolition curse through Harry's wand.
Tossing on two eye patches, a blindfold, and Harry's invisibility cloak, Jenny added the obscure synesthesia spell, scent masking, and used the Dome of Selective Silence. The only outgoing noise not filtered by the dome would be verbalized magical spells. With Akuma scouting ahead, Jenny slid down the chute, and entered the Chamber of Secrets.
Synesthesia is a cross-wiring of senses, where one stimuli produces a reaction in a different sense. For Jenny, who had tuned the spell-experiences over a month of practice, the feel of air currents and taste of air gave a rough visual of space. Enough for fighting. Gazes of giant lizards were of no concern, though she lost reaction time.
Inching forward carefully, Jenny entered the Chamber of Secrets. Wards for detecting visitors did not trigger. Finding no living basilisks among the marble columns, she began exploring the side tunnels. In the third such passage, she found the first giant sleeping basilisk.
One half of the (suspected) mated pair, this basilisk definitely petrified Harry. Jenny's cross-wired senses told her part of its face had been blasted off and scarred. She couldn't tell if it really was missing an eye, but the weak point was large enough for her to take action.
Trusting Akuma would dodge, Jenny parted the invisibility cloak enough for one red glove and Harry's wand to peek out. Hiding behind an ugly carved serpent statue, she prepared to break cover. She didn't know, but the darkness inside the tunnels made invisibility a needless precaution.
"Reducto," said Jenny, and then dove back behind the statue as swiftly as she could.
With her full magical strength behind it, the curse shot out of Harry's wand and hit the damaged face of the sleeping basilisk. Powering past the innate protections of the magical creature, the spell worked. It worked well. In a gore filled explosion Jenny didn't hear and didn't see, the head of the huge basilisk exploded. Highly toxic potion ingredients splattered over the tunnel, but not on Jenny.
Noting the body of the huge lizard completely blocked the rest of the way, Jenny carefully retreated. She could only hope the other basilisks would not find her first. As carefully as she could, Jenny explored the rest of the hidden tunnels, inching her way slowly and thoroughly.
Five grueling hours later, she had encountered no other foes. The closest she'd come to another battle was finding the already dead corpse of her first kill from the other side. By then it's death throes finished and the great serpent was obviously dead. She could smell the foul blood still leaking.
She might be finished, barring the chance the other basilisks didn't move around during the night. That's where Akuma's part came in. Making her way with greater haste (but some caution), Jenny retraced her steps into a curving dead-end area.
By now Akuma should have dispelled any and all silencing and warding spells around the Chamber of Secrets. Still shrouded in her null sense construction, Jenny gave the signal using her own wand.
"Accio Akuma," she said.
The doll became magically pulled into her hand, and pinched Jenny's thumb. Akuma, unstoned, popped off.
Jenny counted ten minutes, slowly and methodically in her head, on guard for the appearance of dozens of basilisks. Slaying abilities active, she waited.
Nothing happened.
The adrenaline crash hit Jenny like a wrecking ball as she removed her blindfold and two eye patches in the silent darkness. Several Finite Incantums and a Lumos later, she shrugged off the invisibility cloak and listened to Akuma's report:
"Saturation crowing completed. Guldo the rooster has been returned safely to his barn in Godric's Hollow. No eggs found. No young basilisks encountered. Swept the tunnels completely after the cockerel concert."
"I can't believe we only fought one! We were prepared for dozens, and could have handled a hundred." Disappointed, frustrated, happy, and relieved, Jenny put the invisibility cloak back on over Akuma and herself.
"Did you repair the entrance?" She asked, returning to the main chamber at a slow walk.
"As best as I could with multiple Reparos. Took a lot out of me, even with increased reserves, I'm only nine inches tall." Akuma stretched out on Jenny's head, under the cloak.
"The crowing should have echoed across the school. The Heir to Slytherin should be here soon enough to check on his pet. Was there at least Domes of Selective Silence preventing rooster crowing?" Asked Jenny.
"Yes. One for each tunnel."
Settling down on the huge throne, created by Salzaar Slytherin in his egocentric heyday, the two waited invisible. Not falling asleep during those three patient hours was the hardest task of all.
Whatever Jenny expected, it wasn't the first year red-headed girl. Ginny rushed down into the chamber, dismayed by the smell of blood. Retrieving a slim book from a secret compartment inside a snake statue's mouth, she opened it and began writing as fast as she could.
A translucent young man appeared, hovering outside the opened book. "You stupid bitch." He snarled. "I've been discovered. Ginny, I trusted you, but you betrayed me with your incompetence."
In tears, the poor girl looked at the older ghost, pleading with her eyes. He turned away, scanning the room. Disinterested, he said, "Your energy will serve a purpose. Die now."
With a muffled scream, the first year girl collapsed unconscious, and the phantasm began slowly becoming more solid. Neither the sixth year girl not the nine-inch doll liked this development.
Speaking from invisibility, Jenny addressed her opponent.
"Tell us, Heir of Slytherin, did you know suspect our countermeasures before you controlled Ginny into spying on the Violet Badgers?"
The ghostly projection searched the room nervously for an opponent. Not finding one, he gave an answer, stalling.
"I didn't know about the Dome of Selective Silence until a week after your team discovered it. Hermoine Granger told Ron Weasley, who told his family, which included dear Ginerva. You had a week's window of time, where a blitzkrieg rooster assault, sonorous at all castle corridors, would have killed my precious pet."
"Too bad, so sad," Mocked Akuma, causing schoolboy Tom to turn his back to them, fooled by her projected voice.
"Like last year, you aren't prepared enough Tom. Maybe if you had a few more weeks to leech energy." At Jenny's pronouncement, the solidifying ghost looked panicked. That voice came from his right. He couldn't leave the area until fully energized.
"Goodbye, Mr. Riddle," said Akuma, from a fourth direction.
"Wait, I can offer you power, riches, fame if you join—"
"Incendiomega." Jenny staggered as she used the strongest fire spell in existence, able to out burn dragon's fire and hotter than the surface of the sun.
The red fiery torrent was angled in such a way that it passed completely through the still forming semi-solid incarnation of Lord Voldemort, and hit the diary behind him. The light and heat from the flames made Jenny step back and left a streaking red afterimage across her vision. The book burst into fluorescent pink flames, swiftly consumed. Ink evaporated into a foul smelling vaporous miasma that drifted up into the ceiling of the Chamber of Secrets.
Schoolboy Tom Riddle vanished with his container, in a terrified orange flaming implosion. Jenny put Harry's wand away and rubbed her eyes.
"Grandpa always said Voldemort was a pussy," said Jenny, removing the invisibility cloak. "Now Grindlewald, there was a proper Dark Lord. No divisive blood purity killing spree shite, just an iron fist of power. Who cares what type of wizard rules, as long as we do?"
Looking at the red-headed first year girl sprawled off to the side, Jenny sighed. "Bloody Weasels. Amanda warned me they were troublemakers, and to keep my distance. Dumb firstie better thank me later."
Casting mobilicorpus, Jenny levitated the unconscious body of Ginny behind her as she made her way out of the Chamber of Secrets. Now her Hufflepuff housemates, who'd she convinced into ignoring her, would want to kiss her arse. Yet again.
It turned out worse than she imagined. Thanks to her heroism, at the end of the term Hufflepuff won the house cup for the first time, well, ever. Professor Pomona Sprout, crying in happiness at the honor bestowed during the last Hogwart's feast, hugged Jenny and whispered in her ear.
"I knew you were really a good girl at heart. I'll do what I can to make sure you're a prefect for your last year."
Disentangling herself before the head of her house messed up her long brown hair, Jenny spotted the Violet Badgers trying not to laugh at her. Neville gave her thumbs up, and Ron, Hermoine, and Luna quickly copied him. Being a hero sucked. Her older sister would tease her about this for years.
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Harry heard his small guardian angel's demise, as she was smashed into hundreds of shards of stone. Foolish, he opened his eyes and was petrified through a veil of tears, instead of dying from locking gazes with a basilisk.
One second later, he was in a hospital bed inside the school infirmary. An animated angelic doll with gray wings that wasn't Akuma or Tenshi hovered anxiously near his face. She looked taller than his poor companion, an inch or two. Jenny stood next to his bed, but she looked changed.
Her long brown hair was in a functional ponytail, instead of the elaborate braided hairstyles she favored. Her cheeks had lost the last baby fat, and instead of overweight and indolent, Jenny looked lean and haggard. Like she'd won a competition or marathon after pulling two all-nighters. She still had the same silver-framed glasses, but she no longer faded into the background. Command presence. Jenny had developed an unconscious command presence, much like Amanda radiated.
"What happened?" Croaked Harry. Noticing the glass of water by his bedside, he drank.
Jenny told him. Akuma filled in the gaps.
"Thank you, my friends," said Harry, when they finished.
Jenny hugged him, and Harry hugged her back. It wasn't a short hug. Akuma joined after a few seconds.
"Tenshi." Harry paused, fighting the words out. "She's gone, isn't she?"
"A part of her lives on inside me, and inside your heart." Akuma bowed her head.
The two friends let Harry cry as long as he needed to, holding him the entire time.
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The encounter took place in a clearing of the forest primeval, metaphoric for all forests on all worlds. The massive trees towered into the skies above, but the fauna normally present had hidden themselves away. The cropped grass held two challengers, each less than a foot high. Both stood on large moss covered stones, two feet apart, so they could face each other properly.
"Expecto Patronous Petite!" Tenshi's ghost, with a golden halo on top her of her head, hopped into the small five-foot glimmering white transparent X-Wing that appeared.
"Expecto Patronous Petite!" Akuma climbed into her own miniature black auric TIE-fighter.
Battle was joined in graceful whirls and strafes. Both magically conjured machines spat red reducto spells from their weapons apertures, blowing divots through the clearing and causing soil and undergrowth to crackle, burn, and explode. Then Tenshi broke off and Akuma followed. They dueled through the Forest at unsafe, impossible speeds.
Akuma was crying. "You stupid angel!" She called over her vehicle's communication system. "We were supposed to have a grand battle at the end of the year. Light versus dark, woman on woman, forcesabre wands crackling. Now I'll never prove conclusively aggression trumps passivity, you jedi witch."
"Hahaha!" Came the answering hail of high-pitched tinny laughter. "Your raw emotions blind you, foolish demon. This is that battle. You merged with enough of me that the location is a dreamscape, but that doesn't make it less real. The force of magic flows through all."
"What!?" Akuma felt incredibly happy, and in that moment of weakness her opponent stuck. Multiple red reducto blasts hit the TIE-fighter's ghost, disrupting the magical structure. Going into a crazy spin, Akuma and her vehicle crashed into an irontrunked monster of a tree. An Acromantula-Ewok gibbered in excitement from its web above.
Tenshi popped out of her X-Wing, which vanished in a white shimmer of magic. "I am victorious Amanda Hawking!" She hollered. "The light side inside you is stronger than even you believe."
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"What the heaven happened to you?" Jenny asked her doll the next morning in Yorkshire, after gulping caffeinated tea delivered by her solicitous house elf, Pippy.
The gray wings Akuma had recovered from Tenshi were now white, and so were her own set of smaller decorative bat wings. Her tail seemed a bit shorter, and had turned from black to gray. She'd also grown another inch, bringing her height to ten inches tall.
"Lost a metaphysical fight with myself. Don't ask," said Akuma.
"You still you?" Jenny wanted to make sure, given the insanities Amanda's magic dolls stumbled into. (Stupid basilisk.) When she didn't get an immediate answer, Jenny began her day. She wanted to buy gifts and tell her grandpa about the school year.
Adopting a thinking position atop Jenny's head, the doll considered for minutes before speaking. "More dominant, is A-ku-ma's form. Yet Tenshi is in I. Magic is strong in this one." Realizing Jenny needed to watch Star Wars to understand a Yoda impression, the doll popped near Jenny's face and fluttered. "Call me Kumori now."
"Now I really can't wait to see what Amanda will say when she sees you again." Jenny and Harry were spending the summer with Amanda in America, and their flight left in three days. They'd been promised tourism, good food, and movie marathons.
"She'll be pleased. Neither of us knew what we really had inside. Now pardon me, I have to break in this ludicrous hybrid form. Think those gnomes in the flower maze heeded my warning last summer? I certainly hope not!" Kumori popped off with a displacement of air and maniacal laughter.