Chapter 13

"Professor McGonagall, have you seen Cassie anywhere?" Harry asked his head of house.

It had been three days since they had traveled into the forest, 'following the spiders'.

"I have not. I was going to ask you the same thing." McGonagall shook her head.

"We haven't seen her in three days." Harry shook his head.

"Professor - has there been another attack and no one's said anything?" Ron asked, looking around the corridor in hopes of finding their friend.

"No. Not that I am aware of." McGonagall shook her head once again as she dropped them off to their next class.

Every teacher was on a lookout for another attack, and no one could seem to find Cassie as they tried to keep an eye out for her.

The next day, in midmorning, Harry and Ron were given the best opportunity.

"Mark my words." Lockhart's hair was not perfectly curled. He had been up most of the night, patrolling the fourth floor. "The first words out of those poor Petrified people's mouths will be 'It was Hagrid.' Quite frankly, I'm astounded Professor McGonagall thinks all these security measures are necessary."

"I agree, sir." Harry said.

Ron dropped his books in surprise.

"Thank you Harry." Lockhart said graciously while they waited for several Hufflepuffs to pass. "I mean, we teachers have quite enough to be getting on with, without walking students to classes and standing guard all night…"

"That's right," Ron nodded in agreement. "Why don't you leave us here, sir, we've only got one more corridor to go-"

"You know, Weasley, I think I will." Lockhart nodded, beaming down at him. "I really should go and prepare my next class -" And Lockhart was gone.

"Prepare his class. Gone off to curl his hair, more like." Ron sneered.

He turned to his right and was disappointed that Cassie wasn't there to agree with him. Harry gave an understanding pat on Ron's shoulder as they let the rest of the Gryffindor's walk ahead of them so that they could sneak off to Myrtle's bathroom.

"Potter! Weasley! What are you doing?" Professor McGonagall snapped from the end of the corridor.

"We were - we were-" Ron stammered. "We were going to - to go and see -"

"Hermione." Harry finished.

"We haven't seen her for ages, Professor," Harry trodded on Ron's foot to shut his mouth. "And we thought we'd sneak into the hospital wing, you know, and tell her the Mandrakes are nearly ready, and er - no one has seen Cassie and we could use her help." Harry finished.

"Of course." McGonagall responded with a strange croaky voice. "Of course, I realize this has all been hardest on the friends of those who have been… I quite understand. Yes, Potter, of course you may visit Miss Granger. I will inform Professor Binns where you've gone. Tell Madam Promfrey I have given my permission."

Once they had turned the corner, Harry heard the distinctive sound of a nose being blown.

"Cassie," Ron said with a grimace, "would have been proud of that story you told McGonagall."

Harry nodded as they made their way to the hospital wing.

Madam Promfrey was reluctant to let them in, but she did when they said had McGonagall's permission.

"There's just no point in talking to a Petrified person." Promfrey said.

"She's right." Ron murmured as they sat down next to Hermione.

Harry nodded as he stared down at Hermione.

"Do you think they can at least hear us?" Harry asked, taking off his glasses and rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Dunno." Ron shrugged.

Harry replaced his glasses and stared hard at Hermione.

"Hermione, Cassie is missing. She hasn't been Petrified like you, but we could really use your help." Harry patted her hand and paused.

Her right hand was clenched and there was a piece of paper crumpled in it.

"Ron, Hermione's got something in her hand." Harry said to Ron.

"Try and get it out." Ron whispered, moving his chair over so that Madam Promfrey's view was blocked.

Harry struggled to get the paper out. Hermione's grip was tight on it that the paper almost ripped several times but after a few tense minutes Harry got it out.

"Finally." Ron breathed as Harry smoothed it out.

'Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of the Serpents.

This snake, which may reach gigantic size and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad.

Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death.

Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it.'

In the corner, under the passage, in Hermione's cursive writing, 'Pipes'.

"Ron! Ron this is it! This is the answer! The monster in the Chamber's a basilisk - a giant serpent! That's why I've been hearing that voice all over the place and nobody else has heard it. It's because I understand Parseltongue." Harry looked up at Ron and then looked around the room.

"The basilisk kills people by looking at them. But no one's died - because no one looked it straight in the eye. Colin saw it through his camera. The basilisk burned up all the film, but Colin just got Petrified. Justin… Justin must've seen the basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick! Nick just got the full blast of it, but he couldn't die again … and Hermione and that Ravenclaw prefect were found with a mirror next to them. Hermione had just realized the monster was a basilisk. I bet you anything she warned the first person she met to look around corners with a mirror first! And that girl pulled out her mirror - and -" Harry explained in excited realization.

"And Mrs. Norris?" Ron whispered, hanging onto Harry's every word.

"The water…" Harry answered slowly. "Cassie - when the diary was thrown away in Myrtle's bathroom, Cassie said something about water being there the night Mrs. Norris was attacked. Mrs. Norris only saw the reflection…" Harry and Ron met each other's gaze with wide eyes.

"It all makes sense Ron! 'The crowing of the rooster is fatal to it'!" Harry read aloud. "Hagrid's roosters were killed! The Heir of Slytherin didn't want one anywhere near the castle once the Chamber was opened! 'Spiders flee before it!' It all fits!" Harry lightly shook the paper.

"But how's the basilisk been getting around the place?" Ron asked, running his hands through his hand. "A giant snake… Someone would've seen…"

"Pipes." Harry pointed at the the scribbled word. "Pipes, Ron, it's been using the plumbing. I've been hearing that voice inside the walls…"

Ron immediately slapped Harry's arm and then grabbed it, "the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets! What if it's a bathroom? What if it's in-" Ron started.

" - Moaning Myrtle's bathroom." Harry finished.

They took a minute to bask in their moment of brilliance.

"This means," Harry leaned forward towards Ron. "I can't be the only Parselmouth in the school. The Heir of Slytherin's one, too. That's how he's been controlling the basilisk."

"What're we going to do?" Ron asked, his eyes flashing with determination. "Should we go straight to McGonagall?"

"Let's go to the staff room," Harry jumped up. "She'll be there in ten minutes. It's nearly break."

They ran through the corridors. Neither wanted to be found hanging around in another corridor. And rather than be caught outside, they just stepped into the staff room. It was a large paneled room full of dark, wooden chairs. Harry and Ron paced around the circular room, not able to sit down in their excitement.

It was short lived, however.

"All students are to return to their House dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately please." McGonagall's voice echoed through the corridors.

"Not another attack! Not now!" Harry spun on his heel to face Ron.

"What'll we do?" Ron asked, "go back to the dormitory?"

"No." Harry shook his head and looked around.

He spotted a wardrobe slightly opened, it had the teachers' cloaks in it.

"In here. Let's hear what it's all about. Then we can tell them what we've found out." Harry opened the wardrobe and gestured for Ron to step in. No sooner had Harry closed the wardrobe door so that they could watch and listen, the staff room door opened and the teachers entered the staff room.

McGonagall arrived just behind Snape and closed the door firmly behind her.

"It has happened." She said to the silent staff room. "Two students were taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself."

"Two?" Ron breathed.

Flitwick squealed while Sprout clapped her hands over her mouth.

Snape gripped the back of a chair and was paler than usual, "how can you be sure?"

"The Heir of Slytherin," McGonagall was extremely white and was speaking in a tight tone, "left another message. Right underneath the first one. 'Their skeletons will lie in the Chamber forever.' "

Flitwick couldn't handle the sudden stress and burst into tears.

"Who are they?" Madam Hooch had sunk into a chair from the shock of the news.

"Ginny Weasley." McGonagall paused to take a breath. "And Cassie Zwart."

Snape broke the chair with his grip, Sprout had started to silently cry. McGonagall's throat sounded thick but she still spoke.

"We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow. This is the end of Hogwarts. Dumbledore always said -" McGonagall was cut off.

The door to the staff room had opened with a bang, and Harry had hoped it would be Dumbledore coming through, but it was just Lockhart.

"So sorry - dozed off - what have I missed?" He beamed around the stricken room.

"Just the man." Snape stepped forward with a sneer. "The very man. Two girls have been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last."

Lockhart blanched.

"That's right, Gilderoy." Sprout chipped in, wiping the tears off her cheeks. "Weren't you saying just last night that you've known all along where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?"

"I - well, I -" Lockhart sputtered, looking around the room.

"Yes, didn't you tell me you were sure you knew what was inside it?" Flitwick piped up in his squeaky voice.

"D-did I? I don't recall -"

"I certainly remember you saying you were sorry you hadn't had a crack at the monster before Hagrid was arrested." Snape drawled. "Didn't you say that the whole affair had been bungled, and that you should have been given free rein from the first?"

"I - I really never - you may have misunderstood -" Lockhart stuttered, his eyes popping out of his head.

"We'll leave it to you then, Gilderoy." McGonagall's lips grew thinner. "Tonight will be an excellent time to do it. We'll make sure everyone's out of your way. You'll be able to tackle the monster all by yourself. A free rein at last."

Lockhart's usual toothy grin was replaced with a trembling one. The lack of smile showed a weak and feeble chin.

"V-very well." Lockhart nodded. "I'll - I'll be in my office, getting - getting ready." He left the room with a final nod.

"Right." McGonagall looked around the room, her nostrils flaring as she blinked to clear her wet eyes. "That's got him out from under our feet. The Heads of Houses should go and inform their students what has happened. Tell them the Hogwarts express will take them home first thing tomorrow. Will the rest of you please make sure no students have been left outside their dormitories."

All the teachers stood up with nods and left the room, one by one.

Harry and Ron waited until the staff room was empty before leaving the wardrobe.

"Ginny…" Ron said in a thick voice.

"Cassie…" Harry nodded as they solemnly walked to their dormitory.

"So… You're a piece of the Real Tom's soul?" I asked, sitting on the ground with my legs cross as Tom and I talked.

"Yes. I'm a Horcrux." He nodded.

"What's a Horcrux?" I asked, stretching my legs out in front of me and leaning forward to touch my toes.

Tom chuckled and shook his head, "we should talk about something else. We'll come to that subject another time."

"What else are we supposed to talk about?" I rolled my eyes before flopping on my back, "I'm only thirteen! I haven't even had my first kiss!"

"You - you haven't had your first kiss?" Tom asked shocked.

"Yeah. Does that surprise you?" I asked sarcastically.

"Yes. Surely there's a boy who you wanted to kiss?" Tom asked.

I sat up on my elbows to look at the semi-transparent Slytherin boy.

"There is. But we were waiting. He's going to be my First." I explained.

"Oh. Shame you won't be getting out of here anytime to experience it." Tom shrugged.

"Ugh." I threw my head back on the ground and covered my eyes with my arm.

My eyes prickled with tears.

'George.'

George was in shock. His sister, and the girl he had a crush on, were in the Chamber of Secrets. Fred was also in shock, he kept putting a hand on George's arm and tried to find the words to comfort him, but nothing came out. George nodded each time it happened because he understood.

Fred had liked Cassie too. Not in the same was a George, but enough that George wished he could offer the same comfort Fred was trying to offer him. But neither of them seem to find the words.

Together, they both stood up. George reached a hand out and ruffled Ron's hair slightly. Ron nodded in appreciation as the twins went up to bed. Unable to take anymore of the quiet common room.

"She knew something, Harry." Ron said, speaking for the first time since the wardrobe. "That's why she was taken. Ginny. It wasn't about some stupid thing about Percy at all. She'd found something out about the Chamber of Secrets. That must be why she was -" Ron rubbed his eyes frantically. "I mean, she was a pure-blood. There can't be any other reason."

Harry stared out the window, watching the sunset as his blood continued to run coldly through his body.

"Harry." Ron tried to get Harry to respond to him. "D'you think there's any chance at all she's not - you know -"

"Cassie has been down there longer. She's been gone for three days. I don't think-" Harry cut himself off before throwing a punch at the wall.

Whatever students left in the common room jumped at the sudden movement and sound, but they left Harry alone. As it was his best friend, and other best friend's sister, in the Chamber.

"D'you know what?" Ron perked up. "I think we should go and see Lockhart. Tell him what we know. He's going to try and get into the Chamber. We can tell where we think it is and tell him it's a basilisk."

Harry couldn't think of a reason not to go, so he nodded. Ron and Harry both walked out of the common room and no one thought twice about it. Everyone was miserable and feeling sorry for the Weasley's and for Harry.

Harry paused and listened just outside Lockhart's office. There was a lot of activity going on inside of the office. Harry knocked and suddenly there was silence. The door opened a tiniest crack and Lockhart peeped out.

"Oh - Mr. Potter - Mr. Weasley -" He opened the door to show just a little bit of his face. "I'm rather busy at the moment - if you would be quick -"

"Professor, we've got some information for you," Harry said, stepping into the office. "We think it'll help you."

"Er - well - it's not terribly -" Lockhart looked uncomfortable. "I mean - well - all right -" Lockhart opened the door for them to enter.

His office was in the middle of being stripped. Two large trunks were open on the floor, robes had been hastily folded into one of them; books were jumbled untidily into the other. The photographs that had covered the walls were now shoved into boxes on the desk.

"Are you going somewhere?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"Er, well, yes." Lockhart ripped a life-size poster of himself off the back of the door and started to roll it up. "Urgent call - unavoidable - got to go -"

"What about my sister?" Ron asked jerkily.

"And our friend, Cassie." Harry added.

"Well, as to that - most unfortunate -" Lockhart avoided both their gazes as he shoved the poster into a box and started to empty out drawers. "No one regrets more than I -"

"You're the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!" Harry exclaimed. "You can't go now! Not with all the Dark stuff going on!"

"Well - I must say - when I took the job -" Lockhart muttered sheepishly. "- nothing in the job description - didn't expect -"

" 'He's a fraud, we just don't have any proof.' " Cassie's voice echoed in Harry's head.

"You mean you're running away?" Harry asked in disbelief. "After all that stuff you did in your books -"

"Books can be misleading." Lockhart said in a delicate tone.

"You wrote them!" Harry shouted.

"My dear boy," Lockhart straightened up and frowned down at Harry. "Do use your common sense. My books wouldn't have sold half as well if people didn't think I'd done all those things. No one wants to read about some ugly old Armenian warlock, even if he did save a village from werewolves. He'd look dreadful on the front cover. No dress sense at all. And the witch who banished the Bandon Banshee had a harelip. I mean, come on-"

"So you've just been taking credit for what a load of other people have down?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Harry, Harry." Lockhart shook his head impatiently, "it's not nearly as simple as that. There was work involved. I had to track these people down. Ask them exactly how they managed to do what they did. Then I had to put a Memory Charm on them so they wouldn't remember doing it. If there's one thing I pride myself on, it's my Memory Charm. No, it's been a lot of work, Harry. It's not all book signings and publicity photos, you know. You want fame, you have to be prepared for a long hard slog." Lockhart shut the lids of his trunks with a wave his wand.

'He's a fraud. He's a fraud. A fraud. Fraud FRAUD FRAUD FRAUD FRAUD!' Cassie's voice screamed in Harry's head.

"You're a fraud." Harry snarled.

"Let's see." Lockhart gave another quick glance around the room. "I think that's everything. Yes. Only one thing left."

Lockhart pulled out his wand and sighed, "awfully sorry, boys, but I'll have to put a Memory Charm on you now. Can't have you blabbing my secrets all over the place, I'd never sell another book -"

Just as he turned around, Harry already had his wand out.

"Expelliarmus!"

Lockhart was blasted backwards against his trunk, his wand flew into the air. Ron caught it and threw it out the window. Lockhart looked up at Harry sheepishly.

"Shouldn't have let Professor Snape taught us that one." Harry snarled.

"What d'you want me to do?" Lockhart asked weakly. "I don't know where the Chamber of Secrets is. There's nothing I can do."

"You're in luck," Harry gestured for Lockhart to stand up. "We think we know where it is. And what's inside it. Let's go."

Ron and Harry marched Lockhart in front them. They went down the nearest set of stairs and walked along the wall where the newest message shone. Harry clenched his jaw as Ron gestured for Lockhart to entered first. He was pleased to see Lockhart was shaking.

Moaning Myrtle was sitting on the tank end of her toilet.

"What do you want this time?" She asked when she saw Harry.

"To ask you how you died." Harry answered at once.

Myrtle lit up.

"Oooh, it was dreadful. It happened right in here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I'd hidden in here because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a boy speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet and then -" Myrtle swelled up in excitement. "I died."

"How?" Harry asked, blocking the door as Lockhart looked around to try and escape.

"No idea." Myrtle shrugged. "I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up and then I was floating away…" She looked dreamily at Harry. "And then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she'd ever laughed at my glasses."

"Where exactly did you see the eyes?" Harry asked.

"Somewhere there." Myrtle waved her hand over to the sink.

Harry and Ron hurried over to it, Lockhart stood well back. His face was going to be stuck looking in terror.

The ordinary sink didn't offer anything for the boys for a few minutes. But then Harry saw it, on the side of one of the copper taps was a tiny snake engraved into it.

"That tap's never worked." Myrtle said brightly as Harry turned it and nothing came out.

"Harry," Ron pulled back and pointed his wand at Lockhart who was side stepping to the door. "Say something. Something in Parseltongue."

"But-" Harry thought hard.

The only times he managed to speak Parseltongue were when he was talking to actual snakes.

"Open up." He said.

Ron shook his head when Harry looked at him, "that was English."

Harry nodded and looked back at the snake. He took a deep breath and willed the snake to be alive and opened his mouth,

"Open up."

He could hear the words in his mind, but what he actually heard was a strange hissing sound coming from his mouth. The tap glowed white and it started to turn before the sink started to, well, sink down and reveal a large pipe. Ron gave a gasp and Harry looked at him.

"I'm going down there." Harry said.

"Me too." Ron nodded.

They both had the faintest, slimmest, wildest hope that Ginny might still be alive. Along with Cassie.

"Well, you hardly seem to need me." Lockhart said, a shadow of his smile on his face. "I'll just -"

Lockhart went to put his hand on the bathroom door knob when Harry and Ron both pointed their wands at him.

"You can go first." Ron snarled.

"Boys -" Lockhart's face had gone white as Myrtle. "Boys, what good will it do?"

Harry jabbed him in the back with his wand.

"I really don't think-" Lockhart turned around to try and face them but Ron finally had enough.

Ron shoved him and Lockhart fell into the pipe. Harry didn't wait long before he got down and slid after Lockhart.

The pipe was a slimy slide. As Harry slid down, he passed different pipes going off in different directions and were smaller than the one they were in. Ron was thudding behind Harry. He kept running into the corners and would let out a swear here and there.

Just as Harry had started to worry about what was going to happen at the bottom of the pipe, it leveled out and he shot out of the end with a wet thud, landing on the damp floor of a dark tunnel. He stood up and was grateful he didn't have to bend over to in the pipe.

Lockhart was shaking his feet and robes off of the slime as best as he could. He was still as white as a ghost.

"We must be miles under the school." Harry's voice echoed through the tunnel.

"Under the lake, probably." Ron shrugged, squinting at the walls.

"Lumos." Harry lit up his want and held it out to reveal a tunnel leading away.

"C'mon." He said to Ron and Lockhart behind him.

As they walked through the tunnel, their shadows looked monstrous on the wall.

"Remember," Harry said quietly, "any sign of movement, close your eyes right away…"

He didn't see Ron nod, but he heard Lockhart gulp. They were used to listening to the sounds of their feet slapping against the stone tunnel that all of them jumped at the sudden crunch under Ron's foot.

"It's a rat's skull." Ron said once he inspected it.

Harry nodded and continued on walking. He didn't want to think of Cassie's skeleton…

"Harry - there's something up there - " Ron said hoarsely, grabbing Harry's shoulder and pulling him out of his thoughts.

They froze, keeping as still as possible, Harry watched as saw an outline take shape. It was huge and curving around the tunnel. It wasn't moving.

"Maybe it's asleep?" Harry breathed, not wanting to be any louder than he had to be.

He turned around to see Lockhart had his hands pressed to his eyes. Ron's were wide and he was breathing through his mouth. Harry turned back to the thing and his heart was beating so fast it was hurting his chest.

Harry slowly lifted his wand and took tentative steps forward. The light of his wand revealed a poisonous green snake skin. It was lying curled and empty across the floor. The creature that had left it behind must have been twenty feet long, at least.

"Blimey." Ron said in a weak voice.

There was a sudden noise behind them. Harry turned around to see that Lockhart's knees had given away.

"Get up." Ron said sharply, pointing his wand at the teacher.

Lockhart got up to his feet - then lunged towards Ron, knocking them both to the ground. Harry stumbled up from the skin and when he pointed his wand to Lockhart he was to late. Lockhart stood up with Ron's wand in his hand. His gleaming smile was back on his face.

"The adventure ends here boys!" He said gleefully.. "I shall take a bit of this skin back up to the school, tell them I was too late to save the poor girls, and that you two tragically lost your minds at the sight of their mangled bodies - say good-bye to your memories!"

He raised Ron's broken wand and shouted, "Obliviate!"

The wand exploded with the force of a small bomb. Harry flung his arms over his head and ran, slipping over the snakeskin and out of the way of the falling chunks of the ceiling. The next moment, it stopped shaking and Harry stood alone, facing the wall of broken rock.

"Ron!" Harry shouted. "Are you okay? Ron!"

"I'm here!" Ron's voice was muffled from being behind the rockfall. "I'm okay - this git's not, though - he got blasted by the wand - " There was a dull thud.

"What now?" Ron asked, sounding desperate. "We can't get through - it'll take ages…"

Harry looked around at the different shaped rocks and tried to think of how he could help. He didn't want to risk using magic to move the rocks, what if the tunnel caved in?

"Wait there." Harry said to Ron. "Wait with Lockhart. I'll go on… If I'm not back in an hour…"

There was a long pause between the two of them.

"I'll try and shift some of this rock." Ron was trying to keep his voice steady. "So you can - can get back through. And Harry - "

"See you in a bit." Harry tried to sound confident through his shaking voice.

Harry put his hand to a rock and waited a moment before turning around and setting off further into the tunnel.

Alone.

The tunnel turned several times and the noise of Ron shifting rocks began to fade away. Harry's nerve were tingling and he wanted the tunnel to end, yet he dreaded the thought of what he would find at the end of it. After another bend in the tunnel, Harry came to a solid wall in front of him. Two serpents were entwined together, their eyes glinted with emeralds.

"Open." Harry hissed.

The serpent's parted as the wall cracked open, the halves slid into the wall on either side, and Harry, shaking from his head to his toes, stepped inside.

We're coming closer to the thrilling conclusion! I am so EXCITED for you guys to read it!

Review from afkz94: I wanted to have Cassie know who her father was before her third year, because as we know Sirius breaks out of prison and yaddie yaddie ya. And even though she wanted to write a letter to Sirius, I didn't want her to send it for my own reasons that will be revealed. Plus she couldn't really focus on writing a letter with Harry listening to a strange voice and Ginny being possessed by a diary. So hence why it shall wait just a bit longer.

Review from UnicornPhoenix: Hello darling! I was wondering where you had gone! And don't worry I'm actually really proud of well I've been staying on top of my updates! And I'm so glad you're loving this story! That makes me feel so good!

Review from katie owl: Here it is! And I'm excited for the next one!

Review from LazyPurpleOwl: I'm so glad to hear about the feedback! Thank you thank you thank you! I'm so glad that there are people out there who are reading it well after it is finished! And don't worry, there's still more to come!

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