Disclaimer: I didn't create Harry Potter, nor do I own it, and I'm not making any money from this story.
Warning(s): There's some language and some violence.
Shououts: Thanks to for reviewing! My guess as to who you are: codla! If that's you, thanks so much for being such an awesome reviewer.
A/N: I know the previous chapter was a little short, but as I said, I wanted to get it out there. I hope you enjoy this next part!
Recap:
They steeled themselves and then walked down the tunnel towards Salazar Slytherin's fabled Chamber of Secrets.
Chapter 12: Snakes, Wolves, Dementors, Oh My!
Daphne gasped.
In front of them was a snakeskin that was at least forty feet long.
"Let's hope that it's not any bigger than that," Draco said.
They lit the tips of their wands as the tunnel became darker, and soon, they reached a gilded door. Hermione did the same thing as before, and the door swung open.
The chamber was dark and dank, and smelled like dead animals. A stone pathway, edged by small channels of water and tall pillars, led to the face of Salazar Slytherin, carved in stone.
Pansy muttered. "Someone had an ego."
"So what do we do now?" Hermione asked.
"You're the bloody genius," Draco snapped.
"The snake's probably somewhere inside the statute," Neville reasoned. "Why could find something to coax it out."
"The mouth," Daphne said quietly. Everyone turned to her in confusion. "The Dark Mark. The snake comes out of the skull's mouth. The basilisk probably comes out of the statue's mouth."
Draco nodded, "You're right."
Hermione thought for a moment, and then said. "Wands up. On three, hit the statue with a blasting curse." It was outside of the Hogwarts curriculum, so of course all of them knew the spell.
"1...2...3!"
They all fired, and soon, the stone had been blasted to smithereens. An angry hissing could be heard from the bowels of the statue, and Harry yelled, "Cover your eyes!"
Daphne and Pansy pulled out small pocket mirrors, Colin put his camera over his eyes, and the rest put one hand over their faces.
The basilisk's body hit the chamber floor with a heavy, wet thud, and coil after coil emerged from the stone mouth of Salazar Slytherin's image.
Harry and his friends tried to move out of the way of the furious beast, slipping and sliding on the wet floor as they did so.
Suddenly, a loud, calming croon filled the air, followed moments later by the pained roars of the giant snake.
"Bloody hell," Draco said.
Harry dared to look.
The basilisk had been blinded by a phoenix.
"That's Dumbledore's familiar," Hermione said knowledgeably.
The group picked up their wands and prepared to fight, except for Colin, who took shelter behind a stone pillar and snapped pictures with his camera.
Fawkes flew away after disabling the basilisk.
It was up to Harry, Neville, Draco, Hermione, Daphne, Pansy, Susan, and Hannah to finish the beast off.
They fired every spell they knew at the creature's hide, but mostly aimed for the inside of its mouth. The shots that hit the basilisk angered it even more, and it swung its head from side to side, attempting to pick up a scent.
It ended up knocking Hannah into the water, and Harry thought he saw her hit her head, but he didn't have time to check. Susan ran over to her friend instead, and pulled her over by Colin.
Now it was six against one. Except they were second year students fighting an a thousand year old basilisk with razor sharp teeth.
They kept throwing everything they had at the basilisk. Harry could tell that it was getting weaker.
Suddenly, he saw a small form appear on the top of Slytherin's statue.
"Daphne!"
The basilisk turned in her direction and opened its massive jaws.
"Incendio!"
Fire poured out of Daphne's wand in a small spiral.
Harry and the others saw what she was doing, and kept firing their own spells to keep the snake distracted.
And then the snake began to fall.
They cleared out of the way, and the basilisk's corpse fell to the ground, creating a giant spray of water that drenched all of them.
Daphne slowly climbed down from the statue, but by the time she reached the ground, her legs were shaking. She fell were she stood.
Harry was the first to rush over, followed by the others. Susan was still tending to a still unconscious Hannah, and Colin was distracted and was taking pictures of the dead snake.
"Daphne, what's wrong?"
The blonde girl chuckled weakly. "Never put your hand too close to the mouth of a basilisk."
Harry looked down and saw that Daphne's left had, which she had wrapped in the folds of her skirt, had a large wound through the top of it, and it was bleeding profusely.
Hermione gasped when she saw what had happened.
"Basilisks fangs are deadly," Draco said quietly.
The group formed a small protective circle around their friend as her eyes blurred over. Harry held her non-injured hand. However, something penetrated their circle. It was Fawkes. The fiery red bird tilted his head to the side and let two pearly tears land on Daphne's hand.
The skin smoked and slowly knit back together, and moments later, it seemed as if nothing had happened at all.
Daphne's eyes fluttered open and she asked, "What happened?"
"Phoenix tears have healing powers," Hermione said in awe.
Daphne turned to the bird and said reverently, "Thank you."
Fawkes nodded his head to her before turning around and offering his tail.
"Phoenixes can carry an extraordinary amount of weight," Hermione added. "I think he wants to help bring us back to the surface."
Two trips later, and Fawkes had returned all of the students to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Hermione performed a bit of complex magic, for a second year, and closed the entrance to the chamber.
"I think we need to go see Dumbledore," Hermione said.
Neville responded, "Or the hospital wing."
They were quite a sight, walking through the halls. They were all soaking wet and covered with grime. Of course, they had to run into Higgs on the way to Madam Pomfrey's domain."
"What in Merlin's name happened to you?"
"It's a long story," Harry said. "Can you just help us get to Pomfrey?"
Higgs nodded and took Hannah away from Susan and Draco, who were carrying her. Harry supported Daphne, and they finished their trek to the infirmary.
Madam Pomfrey must have heard their arrival because she bustled out of her office, but when she saw them, she stopped dead. "My goodness..."
"Hannah hit her head," Susan said after Higgs laid her friend down on a spare bed, getting straight to the point, just like her aunt.
"And Daphne was bitten by a basilisk, but she's fine now." Harry said.
"What did you say Mr. Potter?"
"I believe that Harry's being truthful Poppy. Fawkes left my office in quite a hurry, and he only just returned. He led me here," Professor Dumbledore said, entering the infirmary. The students' head of houses followed behind him.
Professor McGonagall asked, "What happened?"
"We wanted to clear Hagrid's name, Professor," Neville said. "So we figured out where the Chamber of Secrets was and what the beast inside it was. It was a basilisk."
"It was?" Professor McGonagall asked in horror. "Do you mean to tell me that it's dead?"
Harry nodded. "We all fought it, but Daphne finished it off."
"But if Fawkes hadn't been there, I would have been finished too," Daphne said.
"Are you alright Miss Greengrass?" Slughorn asked.
"A bit tired, but I'll be fine."
"Did you achieve what you set out to do?" Dumbledore asked.
Harry nodded. "Hagrid didn't do it. He may have been keeping a pet Acromantula in the castle, but he wasn't the Heir of Slytherin, and he didn't kill Myrtle. That as Tom Riddle's doing."
"Thank you," Dumbledore said. "All of you. You did what was right, even though it may not have been easy. I believe nine shields for Special Services to the school are in order. And one must be removed from the Trophy Room."
For once, the rest of the school was in the dark as to what had transpired in the Chamber of Secrets. All they knew was that the mythical chamber was, in fact, real. It was probably for the best, as after the basilisk was salvaged for parts, Dumbledore sealed the Chamber of Secrets forever.
Two people who were rather put out at being left out were Theo and Ginny, but after long hours of explaining and apologizing, they both came around.
At the feast before the winter holidays, Dumbledore made a speech to congratulate them. "First, for using intellect and logic in times of stress, I give fifty points to Hermione Granger. Next, fifty points to Hannah Abbott of Hufflepuff for knowing to do the right thing. And to Susan Bones, I give fifty points for staying by her friend's side and never giving up. To Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter, Neville Longbottom, and Pansy Parkinson, I give fifty points each, for bravely facing certain danger."
That caused almost everyone in the Great Hall to do a double take. Dumbledore had given Slytherins house points for bravery.
Once the hubbub died down, Dumbledore continued his speech. "Sixty points to Daphne Greengrass, for outstanding use of magic and outstanding courage. And last, but not least, ten points to Colin Creevey, for his unbridled curiosity."
The additional points gave Slytherin a large lead over the other houses, and it looked like it would be another year of Slytherin domination.
The rest of the school year flew by, and sure enough, Slytherin captured both the House Cup and the Quidditch Cup once again. Harry was undefeated for the second year in a row. The only sad thing was that Flint, Higgs, and Bletchley.
In an odd way, it was the end of an era.
Summer was peaceful, and it flew by once Harry, Neville, and Draco were out of school.
A few days after the summer holidays started, all of their friends from their year got together at Malfoy Manor.
After a light snack, Daphne got the conversation going by asking, "So what's everyone taking for their electives?" They had made their decisions in the spring, but they hadn't actually discussed it with each other.
"Arithmacy and Ancient Runes," Theo said automatically.
"I'm taking Care of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, and Arithmacy," Hermione said. "I wanted to take Muggle Studies and Divination too, but Professor McGonagall convinced me not too."
Draco snorted. "Why would you take Muggle Studies? You're a Muggleborn."
"And quite honestly," Theo added, "Divination is a joke. Everyone knows that Trelawney's a fraud."
Harry, Draco, Daphnem, and Pansy ended up taking Arithmacy and Ancient Runes with Theo. Neville was taking Arithmacy and Care of Magical Creatures with Hannah and Susan.
On a hot day in mid-July, right before Harry and Neville's birthday party, when Mr. Malfoy strode into the dining room carrying a special edition of the Daily Prophet.
He slammed it down on the table, causing the dishes to shake.
"What happened Lucius?" Narcissa asked, standing up in alarm.
"Greyback. He escaped from Azkaban late last night."
"Oh my goodness."
Harry scowled. "He's the bastard who bit Remus."
"Language, Harry," Mrs. Malfoy said. "Lucius, have you secured the Manor?"
Lucius nodded. I did it the moment I found out. Can you believe that Fudge was actually trying to keep this a secret? There would have been a mass outrage is Fudge had tried to cover this up." Lucius caught his breath and sagged into the seat at the head of the table. "Boys, we're not going to Diagon Alley this year, and you can't go into Hogsmeade."
When Draco began to protest, his mother cut him off. "It's too dangerous. Fenrir Greyback isn't an ordinary werewolf, and he's definitely nothing like Remus."
Draco sighed and said, "Fine."
A voice then echoed through the house. "Remus Lupin is seeking access to Malfoy Manor via the Floo System." Lucius got up and headed toward the nearest fireplace, and returned moments later with Remus.
Remus took one look at the Prophet and said, "I can't believe that monster escaped."
"Neither can we," Mr. Malfoy said.
"I came over because I wanted to teach the boys and their friends the Patronus Charm. Only the fifth, sixth, and seventh years are supposed to learn it at school."
Mrs. Malfoy asked, "Why would they need to learn it?"
"Normally only the seventh years would learn it, but Dumbledore asked me to teach it to the fifth and sixth years, as well."
"Fudge is stationing Dementors at Hogwarts," Mr. Malfoy said.
Mrs. Malfoy sat down in shock.
"Aren't the Dementors supposed to be guarding Azkaban?" Draco asked.
His father nodded and said, "Yes, but they are stationing thirty at Azkaban in the hopes of capturing Greyback and administering the Kiss."
"The Dementors are going to kiss him?" Neville asked in confusion.
"The Dementor's Kiss is when a Dementor's sucks out a person's soul through their mouth. It leaves the person alive, but as an empty shell. The Dementor's kiss is a fate worse than death," Narcissa said softly.
Remus said, "And that is why I want to teach Harry, Draco, and Neville the Patronus. Dementors are dangerous, and even more dangerous if you don't know how to defend yourself."
"Can our friends learn to?" Harry asked.
Mr. Malfoy asked, "Who do you have in mind?"
"Daphne, Pansy, Hermione, Susan, Hannah, Ginny, Theo, Fred, and George," Harry said.
"I'm willing to teach them," Remus said, "but Ginny may be too young. I'll let her try, but if I think that she can't do it, she'll just have to watch."
"I'll talk to their parents," Mr. Malfoy said. "But I'm not dealing with the Weasleys. I'll have Amelia ask them instead."
A few days later, their first meeting took place. Remus spent the whole time explaining the function of the Patronus, and let them actually attempt the spell, one at a time, at the end of the hour-long lesson. Needless to say, none of them, even Hermione, managed to produce the thin mist that Remus had mentioned.
By September 1st, none of them had made any progress with the Patronus except for Fred and George, and they were only able force a silvery mist out of their wands that were nowhere near to being a corporeal Patronus.
The train ride to Hogwarts was the same as the two years before, except this time, Ginny and Colin joined them in their compartment, and Ginny brought a friend.
She had wavy blonde hair that reached her waist, had her wand tucked behind her left ear, and seemed to have permanently dreamy look on her face.
However, right after the conductor announced that there were fifteen minutes left in the train ride, the Hogwarts Express ground to an abrupt stop.
The windows began to creep up the window, and Harry and his friends felt a chill sweep thought their compartment.
"Dementors," Draco whispered.
Then the lights went out and screams could be heard up and down the train. Moments later, the lights came back on and the conductor said in a shaky voice, "We're almost at the station. Your professors are waiting for you."
Fred said, "Thought-"
"-that we-" George added.
"-might be needed," they finished together.
"We're alright," Daphne said. "Just a little shaken. We should get changed."
The boys left and changed in another compartment before rejoining the girls. Fifteen minutes later, the train stopped at the platform at Hogsmeade Station, where professors were waiting with bars of chocolate. In an abrupt departure from tradition, the first years also took carriages up to the castle. The normal passage across the lake was simply too dangerous with the Dementors around.
When they arrived at Hogwarts, all of the students went directly to the Great Hall. Cups of hot chocolate were waiting at each place on the tables, and bars of chocolate were stacked on every available surface.
The sorting that year was more subdued that usual, and once it was over, dinner appeared on the tables.
"Rumor is that Ron fainted when the Dementors came on the train," Ginny said, eliciting laughter from those at the Slytherin table, lightening the mood for a few moments.
The mood dampened when Dumbledore stood up to make his start-of-term speech.
"As I'm sure you know, Dementors are residing just outside the Hogwarts grounds. Do not go out on the grounds after dark. All students must be in their common rooms by nine o'clock at night. And I must beg of you, stay away from the Forbidden Forest, it has been named that for a reason."
On that note, all of the students went to their dormitories for the night.
Harry and his friends received their schedules the next day. This was the first year that they would not all be in the same classes, but at least they all had friends to accompany them. Hermione had the least free time out of all of them, as her extra class had been squeezed into her schedule.
They all had Transfiguration first, and by the end of it, the third year Slytherins and Gryddindors knew that it had definitely gotten a lot harder. Next, Hermione, Neville, Susan, and Hannah had Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid while the others had a break.
"Are those your books?" Pansy asked in shock.
Neville and Hermione both carried two books that were covered in fur and were held shut by belts.
"The Monster Book of Monsters," Neville said ruefully.
"Glad I'm not taking that," Pansy said with a flip of her hair.
But when Hermione, Neville, Hannah, and Susan returned from Care of Magical Creatures, Pansy wished she had taken it, if only to see the hippogriffs.
Draco asked in awe, "You got to ride one?"
Neville nodded. "It was amazing. But you should have seen Weasley. He was dumb enough to insult one of them. Buckbeak would have killed him if Hagrid hadn't stepped in."
"Too bad," Draco said, "I wouldn't have minded not having Weasley around for the next four years."
The others laughed, and Harry said, "At least we have another howler to look forward to hearing."
And that was Chapter 12 of Not Afraid to Live! I hope you enjoyed it and don't forget...REVIEW! Seriously though, review...they make me smile :)
