Chapter 20: The Underground Chamber

Neville listened closer as Professor McGonagall continued. "I am afraid that this could be the end of Hogwarts. I'll have to arrange for the Hogwarts Express to take the students home. There's no other option, unless Gilderoy is willing to go after the Heir of Slytherin himself?"

"Me? Why would I do that?" Lockhart sounded startled.

"You have always said you know who the Heir is and where the entrance to the chamber is. We should just let you have at it and get it all cleared up."

"I-I don't think we need to be that drastic." Lockhart stammered.

"Nonsense, we need immediate action to save her." Professor Richman answered at once.

"I-well…I better go to my office and prepare…" Lockhart sounded nervous as he left the room.

"Well, I need to talk to my House and inform them on what's going on. You three better do the same. Then we'll formulate a plan, since I doubt Lockhart will do the job." The door opened and Neville heard the professors leave the staffroom.

Neville opened the cabinet door and stepped out, followed by Ron and Harry. Ron looked pale. "What do we do now?" Ron asked, anxiously. "We have to save my sister.

"We're going to do that, I promise." Harry nodded. "We should tell Lockhart what we know so he can be prepared if he's taking on the chamber."

The boys ran up the stairs to Lockhart's office. They arrived there to find Lockhart's walls bare and the trunks open, half packed with clothes and photographs. "Professor, what are you doing? Are you going somewhere?" Harry asked, shocked.

Lockhart started, looking to the door. "Oh boys, sorry I can't talk. I have urgent business in London that can't delay. I have to leave immediately."

"What about my sister!" Ron yelled. "You're just going to let her die?"

"No one regrets it more than me, but there's nothing I can do!" Lockhart protested, returing to his packing.

"How can you say that when you did all those things you wrote about?" Harry demanded, angrily.

"My dear, none of my books would have sold as well as they did if I told them the truth. The people who did those things were pathetic nobodies that didn't have an ounce of celebrity status. I had to do a few memory charms once I got the story out of them. I couldn't let them blab that they were really the ones who did those things."

"You took credit for what other people did? That's-"

"How things are done in the real world. You are children and you have no idea how the real world works." Lockhart looked at them coldly. "Let me show y-"

Neville raised his wand, pointing it at Lockhart, cutting him off. "We're not going to let you leave Ginny to the monster. You're going to come with us. Now."

"Where are we going?" Lockhart asked, nervously, eyeing the wand.

"We're going to the Chamber of Secrets. You may not know where it is, but we have a good idea. Now go."

Lockhart stumbled as he walked out of the office with Neville, Ron, and Harry behind him. Neville kept his wand pointed at him.

They led Lockhart to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom and shut the door behind them. "Harry, keep your wand on him while I open the Chamber." Neville told Harry before turning to the sink. "Open." He ordered the serpent engraving on the faucet.

Ron shook his head. "You're speaking English."

Neville concentrated on the serpent and tried again, "Open."

Something clicked within the sink and it began to move. It slid and shifted, leaving a large hole in the floor. "You first, Lockhart."

"You wouldn't send me first, would you?" Lockhart asked, panicking.

Harry raised the wand. "Get in or we'll push you."

Lockhart stepped back and reluctantly leapt into the hole. They watched him drop into the darkness.

Neville turned to Harry and Ron. "You guys should get help, I'll go find Ginny."

"We're going with you." Harry said at once. "You'll need help."

"And I'm not leaving my little sister down there." Ron's face was set.

"Fine, but let's hurry." Neville leapt into the hole, darkness settling quickly around him. He landed with a crackle of something beneath him. He lit his wand and realized he'd landed on a floor scattered with small animal bones. He heard a cry from above and dodged out of the way as Harry fell and landed on the bone-strewn floor as well. Ron landed shortly after.

"Where are we?" Ron asked, looking around.

"Under the school, I expect. Close your eyes quickly if you see movement." Neville led the way.

As they rounded the curve in the tunnel, they saw a huge snake skin, at least thirty feet long. Lockhart dropped to the floor. "What's up with him?" Ron asked, raising an eyebrow at the other two.

As they shrugged, Lockhart leapt to his feet, snatching Ron's wand from his slack grip. "Aha, game's over, boys. This is where your adventure ends. I'll wipe your memory and come back with the snake skin as proof. I'll say that you lost your minds at the sight of the girl's mangled body when it was too late. Obliviate!"

A blast like a gunshot sounded, as well as a flash of light. The ceiling collapsed, separating Neville and the other three. "Ron! Harry!" Neville cried, trying to disturb the rocks in the way.

"Go on ahead and save my sister, we'll be fine!" Ron called back. "We'll try to get the way clear for you to return!"

"Stay safe." Neville urged, before hurrying on down the tunnel. He reached another doorway, with serpentine engravings. Knowing what to do this time, Neville said, "Open."

The snakes slid back into place and the door opened, revealing a large chamber with large columns and emitting a greenish light. He stepped inside, the door closing behind him with a clunk.

"Ginny!" Neville cried, spotting the flaming-haired figure lying on the ground at the feet of a large bearded statue. The diary lay beside her. He ran over and knelt beside her, flinging his wand aside to touch her. She was ice cold. "Please don't be dead, please don't be dead!"

"She won't wake." A soft voice replied from behind him.

Neville looked back and saw the dark-haired figure of a teenage boy, shimmering in and out of focus as though not quite there. "Tom Riddle, what are you doing here? You've got to help me, there's a giant snake and we need to help-"

"The snake won't come until it's called." Tom answered softly, his eyes hungrily examining Neville's face. Neville's wand was pointing at his face. "Neville Longbottom, the boy who stopped the Dark Lord."

"What are you doing with my wand? Give it back." Neville insisted, but ignored him.

"I wondered how a toddler could destroy such a powerful wizard. I had to see you for myself. But you are an average boy, not worthy of my time." Tom idly twirled the wand in his hand.

"What do you care about You-Know-Who? He was after your time." Neville frowned.

"Is that what you are calling him these days?" Tom made a face. "Voldemort is my past, present, and future." With Neville's wand, he wrote in the air, forming the words: "Tom Marvolo Riddle"With a wave of the wand, he made the letters rearrange themselves until they said: "I am Lord Voldemort." "Did you expect me to keep my filthy Muggle father's name. No, as soon as I could, I chose a name wizards above all would fear! Even Dumbledore has left the castle for fear of me."

"He didn't fear you, in any time." Neville spat. "Whatever you're going to do, just do it. Leave Ginny alone."

"Ah…" Tom looked down at Ginny, a smirk toying at the corners of his lips. "I almost forgot about little Ginny. How she poured her heart out into my diary and ensured my return to life."

"What do you mean?" Neville asked, confused.

"Ginny has been writing to me for months, pouring out her little twelve-year-old soul into the pages of the diary I wrote while at Hogwarts. Until I was able to leave the pages completely. Of course, she had no clue what she was doing at first. She didn't know that it was her that was attacking Muggle-borns in the castle and on that cat."

"Ginny opened the Chamber of Secrets? But how?" Neville frowned, trying to distract Tom so he could formulate a plan.

"I told her how. Let's just say I was a big influence on her." Tom laughed, a cold mirthless laugh that rang off the walls. "She was afraid of what ways the diary was changing her so she threw it away. However, when the diary was opened, who did I meet? You. The one person I wanted to meet above all. And here we are."

"So you lured Ginny into the Chamber of Secrets." Neville gritted his teeth.

"I convinced her to write her own good-bye message and come down here to wait for you. And here you are." Tom smiled. "Now, like you said, we shall go on with whatever I want to do with you."

Tom turned to the bearded statue and said, "Greatest Hogwarts founder Salazar Slytherin! Let forth your great serpent and slay my enemy!"

Though Tom was speaking in Parseltongue, Neville understood very word. As the mouth of the statue opened wide, Neville shut his eyes tight and ran. Something was slithering from the depths of the statue, landing with a thud that shook the chamber floor. Neville hid behind a column as he heard hissing. "Kill him."

Neville held still, listening. As he heard the snake approach, he dove. The snake dove as well, missing Neville by inches. He knew he couldn't outrun the snake forever and had no idea what he was going to do.

"You can run but my basilisk will find you!" Tom called as Neville ran to another column.

What am I going to do? I need help, anything. Neville thought desperately.

A musical cry echoed in the chamber, forcing Neville's eyes open. A scarlet-and-gold bird the size of a swan flew through the chamber, carrying a lumpy package in its talons. It flew over his head, dropping the bundle in Neville's outstretched arms. Neville hurriedly unfolded the bundle as the sounds of hissing sounded behind him, punctuated by the musical calls of the bird.

"It's the Sorting hat…" Neville gasped in shock, as he found himself holding the frayed wizard's hat. "How is that going to help me?"

"Your savior sent you a bird and the Sorting hat. Boy does Dumbledore love you." Tom sounded amused. "Good luck using those items, Neville. They won't stop my basilisk from killing you."

Neville jammed the hat on his head. Please, give me something to help! He thought desperately.

The hat suddenly contracted hard, and something hit Neville hard in the head. Seeing stars, he pulled the hat off, reaching for the object and found a handle. A glittering silver sword with rubies on the hilt had appeared out of the hat. Scrambling to his feet, he turned, keeping his eyes narrowed. The bird dove, sinking its beak into one of the snake's bulbous yellow eyes. A shower of blood spattered the floor. The basilisk hissed angrily as the bird dove again, blinding it.

Neville opened his eyes, and saw the basilisk's ruined eyes, still streaming blood. "You can still smell him! Sniff him out, you foolish creature."

The great snake swayed while the bird flew around it before diving for Neville one more time. Neville drove the sword forward, thrusting the sword deep into the basilisk's mouth. Pain seared through his right arm as he pulled the sword out. He looked down and saw a foot-long fang buried in his arm. The snake swayed a moment longer before falling to the floor with a thud that made the floor shudder again.

The chamber swam before Neville's eyes as the venom began to spread through his body. He dropped the sword and sank to the floor, growing weak He pulled the fang out of his arm. "You're dying, Neville Longbottom. And there is no one to save you this time." Tom said quietly.

The bird landed beside Neville, resting its head on his injured arm. "Get away from him, bird!" Tom ordered, trying to shoo the bird away. A tear rolled off its feathers and landed on his arm, followed by several others. The wound healed. "Phoenix tears, I forgot…"

Neville gripped the fang with the remainder of his strength. Raising it over his head, he plunged the tip into the heart of the diary. Ink spurted from the cover, where the venom burned a hole through the book. He plunged it again and again, until his strength gave out. Tom gave a horrendous shriek and burst in a flash of light. He was gone.

Ginny woke up with a start, sitting up and looking around. Her eyes widened at the sight of Neville's blood-soaked arm. "Neville, you're bleeding."

"It's nothing, don't worry." Neville answered. "We better get out of here, everyone is worried about you."

"Oh no!" Ginny moaned, horrified. "It's all my fault! I was the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets! I'm going to be expelled for sure, and I've been wanting to go ever since Bill started school."

"It's all over, Ginny. We need to get back to the others. Harry, your brother, and Lockhart are waiting on back there."

"Can you walk?" Ginny asked, anxiously.

"I think so." Neville got to his feet and picked up the hat, sword, and diary before following Ginny. They exited the inner chamber and reached the blockage. They could hear a frantic removal of the rubble. "Ron, Harry? You okay?"

The noise stopped and Ron said, "We're fine, did you find Ginny?"

"Yeah, she's with me. Can you get us a way out?" Neville asked.

With Neville's help, they managed to get a space wide enough for Neville, Ginny, and the bird to get through. Harry stopped at the sight of the bird coming in. "Is that a phoenix?" he asked.

"That's what it is? Are you Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix?" Neville asked, gazing into the bird's intelligent black eyes. The bird made a trilling musical note as if in answer. "How is Lockhart?" He asked, turning to the other two.

"His memory charm backfired, he's lost his memory." Ron gave a disgusted look at Lockhart, who was sitting on the floor, looking bewildered.

"How are we going to get back up to the bathroom?" Neville asked, looking between them.

"Phoenixes can carry immense loads, I bet Fawkes can fly us up there." Harry pointed out. "What? My dad told me about phoenixes. Let's hold hands and I'll grab Fawkes's tail feather."

The group did so and Fawkes took flight, pulling them with it. In mere minutes, they were back on solid ground in the bathroom. "What now?" Ginny asked, shivering.

"We go to the headmaster's office." Harry answered.

"It must be really late, though. And Dumbledore's still gone." Ron pointed out.

"I have a feeling he's back. Who else could have sent Fawkes?" Harry answered.

They headed to the headmaster's office and Neville gave the password "sherbert lemon." Taking the moving spiral staircase up to the top, he knocked on the door. "Come in."

"Ginny!" Mrs. Weasley, cried as they stepped in. She hurried over. Mr. and Mrs. Weasey had been waiting with Lily, James, Sirius, and Augusta for them to arrive. "My word, you're freezing! What happened?"

"I-I was the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets, Mum, I didn't mean to!" Ginny cried, her eyes welling up with tears.

"You? What-I don't understand-how could that happen?" Mrs. Weasley looked confused as she looked back at Dumbledore questioningly.

"Through this." Neville held up the ruined diary. "It was possessing her."

Mr. Weasley looked outraged. "Didn't I always tell you, Ginny? Never trust an item that can think for itself if you don't see where its brain is!"

"I'm sorry, Daddy." Ginny cried. "Please don't expel me, headmaster. I didn't mean to do it."

"You're not expelled, Ginny. However, I would like to have Madam Pomfrey check you out to make sure there are no lasting damages. The people that were Petrified are waking up as we speak and she can tend to you in the hospital wing."

Ginny nodded and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley led them out. Mrs. Weasley paused at the door. "Neville, Harry, Ron, thank you for saving Ginny."

"It was Neville who did the saving, not us." Ron shrugged.

Once the door was closed behind them, Dumbledore looked back at Neville. "May I see that diary?" Neville passed the diary to the headmaster and watched while he examined it. "I see. This is a powerful magical object. No wonder Ginny was possessed. Explain what happened in the chamber, Neville."

Neville explained the events that happened. When he finished, Dumbledore nodded. "Good thing you destroyed it, Neville. I am not surprised that Riddle was interested in you. You share a lot of common qualities. You both come from pure-blood lines, his from Salazar Slytherin himself. You both speak Parseltongue."

"Why is that?" Neville asked, curious.

"You speak Parseltongue because Voldemort speaks it." Dumbledore said mildly. "If I am correct, he passed a bit of his own power on to you when he attacked you."

"Can Harry go? He's tired and needs some rest." Lily insisted, drawing Dumbledore's attention to her. "Thank you for making sure my son made it back alive, Neville, but he needs his rest."

"Yes, go on, Harry. We'll talk later." Dumbledore nodded, and Lily, James, and Sirius left with Harry. The door had been closed for only a few minutes when Lucius Malfoy burst in, a house-elf behind him. "Lucius." Dumbledore nodded to him. Neville saw that the house-elf was Dobby. He was pointing frantically behind Malfoy's back at the diary and at Malfoy, hitting his head with his other tiny fist.

"So, you came back. After the governors ordered you away." Malfoy sneered, looking down his nose at Dumbledore.

"I did. The governors sent me a letter claiming that they needed me back after Ginny Weasley was taken, saying that they made a hasty decision under the threat on their families. So I hastened my return to ensure that the culprit was caught."

"And was he caught?" Malfoy asked, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed.

"Indeed he has." Dumbledore nodded.

"And who was it?" Malfoy asked, mildly, though his face twitched as though fighting irritation.

"The same person it was last time. Voldemort. It seems that one of his personal possessions wound up in the hands of one of the students. You don't know anything about that, do you?"

"Why would I?" Malfoy scowled, clearly not liking the accusation.

"You slipped the diary into Ginny's cauldron that day in Diagon Alley." Neville said at once, turning Malfoy's attention to him.

"You'll have a hard time proving it." Malfoy spat.

"Oh, there's no way to prove it, now that the diary has been destroyed." Dumbledore said, grimly. "However," he paused, as Malfoy turned away. He turned back. "If one of Voldemort's possessions wind up in the hands of one of my students' hands again, I will personally make sure it is linked back to you."

Malfoy swept from the office, ordering over his shoulder, "Dobby, come now."

Dobby gazed at Neville as he was forced to obey. "Professor, can I have that a moment?" Neville asked, pointing to the diary.

"Go ahead, Neville." Dumbledore nodded, his eyes twinkling.

Neville hurried out of the office. He pulled off his soggy shoe and sock, slipping it between the ruined pages. He spotted Malfoy at the end of the hall with Dobby following behind him. "Mr. Malfoy, wait up! I want to have a word."

"Oh, it's you." Malfoy sneered, turning back to him. "What is it now? Another unfounded accusation?"

"I wanted you to have this." Neville handed him the diary.

"Why would I want this?" Malfoy asked, passing the diary to Dobby. "Come now, Dobby."

Neville pointed to the diary in Dobby's hands. Dobby opened the diary and picked up the sock, amazed. "Dobby? Come now!" Malfoy ordered.

"Master has given Dobby a sock! Dobby is free!" Dobby squeaked, tears welling in his big green eyes.

"What?" Malfoy spun on his heel. Neville lifted up his pant leg, showing the lack of sock. "You lost me my servant!"

As Malfoy reached for his wand, Dobby pointed a threatening finger. "Come near Neville Longbottom, and it will be the last thing you do!" he squeaked, sending a bolt of light, which knocked Malfoy backward. Malfoy climbed to his feet, gracelessly walking away.

"Neville Longbottom freed Dobby, sir!" Dobby looked up at Neville with watery adoration. "How can Dobby ever repay Neville Longbottom?"

"One thing, Dobby." Neville cracked again. "Never try to save my life again."

"Of course, sir!" Dobby said happily, and with a crack, he was gone.

Hermione arrived midway through the celebration feast along with the other Petrified people, shouting, "You figured it out!" Hagrid showed up late in the night, crushing them in a bear hug. "Couldn't have made it without you three." He grinned, his beetle black eyes glittering.

"It was all thanks to you two. You told us to follow the spiders and you figured out that it was a snake." Neville grinned at the two of them.

The train pulled into King's Cross station after leaving Hogsmeade station earlier that day. Students leaned against the barrier between platforms nine and ten and slipped through in small groups. James, Lily, Sirius, Augusta, and the Weasleys were waiting for them on the other side and they were greeted. "I hope next year is less eventful than this." Harry sighed, being hugged by Lily.

"I really hope so, otherwise I will not be able to handle Hogwarts." Neville shook his head. "See you this summer?"

"Can't wait." Hermione grinned, giving them a hug.