The capture of Peter Pettigrew became the next hot topic of Hogwarts students. Daily Prophet informed Magical Britain how Peter Pettigrew betrayed the Potters and framed Sirius Black. The article didn't mention that he hid as a pet rat of the Weasley family thanks to DMLE's consideration. Many students congratulated Harry and praised the Weasley boys. Percy and Ginny also commend their brothers for quick judgment and proper actions. What made Fred, George, and Ron happiest was an enormous reward. Amelia Bones announced that three Weasleys and Harry would get 1,250 galleons as the bounty on Pettigrew's head was 5,000 galleons.

Pettigrew had trial two weeks after the capture. Harry wanted to attend it, however, both guardians didn't allow his attention. He heard what happened in the courtroom via a two-way mirror that night. Amelia Bones let the betrayer dosed Veritaserum as he claimed he's not guilty. After the confession of every crime, Wizengamot decided life imprisonment in Azkaban. Pettigrew begged for mercy to Sirius and Remus till he was dragged from the courtroom. The next morning, Daily Prophet published an article of Peter Pettigrew's trial including his additional crimes on the front page. Harry was satisfied that this article reminded Magical Britain that Sirius Black was a brave and loyal friend of James Potter and a devoted fighter to the Light side.

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There was no more incident till the end of term. The Chamber of Secrets was almost forgotten. Students were most concerned about the Christmas break. When the Great Hall was decorated with 12 big Christmas trees, most students packed their luggage.

In the Hogwarts Express, five second-year Gryffindors shared their Christmas break plans. Ron's family would visit Egypt. At first, only Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were supposed to visit Bill and all kids stayed in Hogwarts during the break like last year. However, Fred, George, and Ron insisted to go together as they got lots of galleons. Moreover, other family members wanted to know the detailed situation about capturing Pettigrew. Hermione would visit her grandparents as usual. Neville would have New Year's eve dinner with relatives. Ellie would visit her No-Maj grandparents in Briton. Harry was delighted to have Christmas time with his own family. And all of them promised to enjoy the musical Cats at the end of the holidays as Mrs. Klein invited them. Ellie added that one of her aunts played at the musical so they should not refuse the invitation.

After the train reached the King's Cross Station, all students reunited their families and bid goodbyes to friends. Harry also ran to Sirius and Remus and hugged them tightly. Many students from Muggle families expressed their gratitude to the old and young Marauders for the offer of heritage tests. Sirius thanked Fred, George, and Ron for the capture of Pettigrew again in front of Mrs. Weasley who beamed with the proud. Finally, the raven-haired boy and his two guardians left the station.

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At Black Manor, Arcturus Black and Taukey embraced Harry warmly. They had a welcome back dinner which was full of Harry's favourite foods. All adults focused on the boy's story in the sitting room after dinner. The patriarch of the Black family seemed satisfied that the boy dealt with difficulties successfully, such as making Duelling Club and leading Muggle-borns and Muggle-raised to have heritage tests. He complimented the grandson of Fleamont Potter on his good decisions and actions. Harry smiled brightly at his honorary grandfather. The twelve-year boy was really happy to be back at his home.

The Christmas holidays were similar to the last one at Ellie's house. The difference was that Harry was with his own family at Black Manor. Old and young Marauders were busy decorating the house including the Christmas tree. And they went to many Muggle shopping malls and Diagon Alley to buy Christmas presents. Padfoot and Moony also checked Prongslet's Animagus process every night. Older wizards anticipated that the younger one would transform into full black falcon next summer. They were so proud of their boy.
Of course, Harry had tea time with Grandfather Arc when Sirius had a treatment from the mind healer. Remus hinted that the therapy would be completed next spring. Then, Sirius would join the Wizengamot as Black Heir.

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Before the night of Christmas Eve, three wizards finished wrapping Christmas presents and had tea time in the sitting room. When they talked about Quidditch, Harry remembered the topic to share with his guardians. So Prongslet asked the older wizards the way to make Dobby quit 'saving him'. Two guardians agreed that Malfoy's house-elf should stop doing crazy things to their cub. Sirius and Remus were not Marauders for nothing. After a few minutes of discussion, Sirius wrote a short letter for Lucius Malfoy. Harry read what it said, "My godson accidentally got this little book at the Mourning Myrtle's bathroom after Hallowe'en. I found out that it's one of your old master's items. So I send it to you cause I know you'd want it as a souvenir. Don't worry about the dark magic. I already made Gringotts curse breaker cleanse it."
Remus cast a duplication spell on the Riddle's diary and the cub could see the identical black book on the table. Two old Marauders gave mischievous smiles at their works.

A dark-haired man said, "It would be an unforgettable Christmas present for Lucius."

"Yes, I see why Fred and Geroge look up to you." A raven-haired boy laughed at two guardians' brilliant idea. Suddenly, an idea popped into the boy's head.

"Moony, can you put the fake diary in the stocking as Muggles?"

"Oh, cub, you want to make Lucius free the house-elf accidentally?" Remus understood Harry's intention but Sirius didn't get it.

"Yes, Dobby will be free if he catches the stocking when Malfoy's father throws it unconsciously." Pronglet beamed at Moony.

Moony conjured a Christmas stocking and put the duplicated diary into the stocking. Padfoot finally remembered Lily's explanation about Muggle's Christmas decoration and laughed loudly. He couldn't wait to see Lucius's face after Christmas.

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Harry's first Christmas with his own family was fantastic. He got an enormous amount of presents under the Christmas tree so it took a long time to unpack all in the morning. At noon, the family in Black Manor had a wonderful Christmas dinner with magical Christmas crackers. All of them felt euphoric as it was the first family Christmas time after a long time. They knew it was a blessing and a miracle. Accordingly, they wanted to protect their family and this happiness.

After dinner, Sirius, Remus, and Harry went to Godric's Hollow and visited the tomb of Lily and James. A dark-haired and green-eyed boy said what he had done last summer and autumn including expulsion of the soul part from his scar. Old Marauders added Prongslet's works. "I know you are very proud of your son, Prongs and Lily flower." After putting down the bouquet of lilies and roses in front of the tombstone, they left the place.

Two adults and a boy went to the cinema and saw 'Aladin'. They enjoyed the animation very much. Sirius and Remus used to see Muggle's movie with James and Lily in the past. However, Disney's musical animation was totally different. All of them promised to see movies as much as possible.

After younger wizards returned to Black Manor, all family members had supper and saw many memories with a pensive. Harry could see his grandparents and parents with Sirius and Remus in the memories. Not only a kid, three adults felt nostalgia. It was a really special Christmas night.

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The remained Christmas break was filled with various appointments. In Gringotts, Harry confirmed the family's business situation and had a medical check-up including vaccination. Letty expressed her satisfaction with her patient's good health. And Harry's family and Neville's family had dinner at Neville's home on New Year's Day.

Ellie's family visited the Black Manor after they returned from Briton. Both families were quite close and shared confidential information without hesitation. The Black family's agent found a Parselmouth in Mycenae. Mrs. Klein's brother also got the information from one of his colleagues in Peru. So Arcturus Black promised to send the other agent to Peru and search for the target from the next day. Adults from two families anticipated to contact and record Parseltongue before Easter. Harry and Ellie were delighted to the news about Parselmouth. Sirius and Remus informed kids that Hagrid's monster which led him expelled might be an Acromantura. They saw Hagrid talking with one in the forbidden forest on the full moon night. Both kids remembered that a basilisk was the mortal enemy of spiders. Therefore, it was more certain that Slytherin's monster was a basilisk. Adults advised two kids that they should make a perfect plan to avoid eye contact with a basilisk. Before finishing the tea, Ellie announced that her animal was a Diricawl. Sirius and Remus were really surprised that her animal was really rare. Harry congratulated his best friend. Mrs. Klein couldn't hide her astonishment as there had been no Animagus in Dietrich. Mr. Klein was pleased to hear that his daughter has a special talent. The head of the Black family ordered Taukey to bring champaign and both families toasted to Ellie's rare Animagus form.

The Black family also invited Fred, George, and Ron to lunch. Three Marauders finally thanked the Weasley boys to make a good cover story for catching the traitor. Ron said how much their mum and dad got shocked at the news and complimented them to capture Peter Pettigrew, the betrayer of the Potters and the Light side. Mrs. Weasely showed a particularly emotional reaction as she got to know the reason for her brother's death. He added that three kids decided to give their parents 500 galleons each and to spend 50 galleons each year. For their future, they would open their own vaults and keep the rest of the rewards in Gringotts. Arcturus Black praised their wise plan and asked what they want to be in the future. The Weasley twins explained their blueprint for the joke shop excitedly. The bounty became seed money, however, they wanted to investigate till their graduation. Sirius promised to arrange the meeting with the twins and his account manager before the end of the break. The youngest Weasley boy mentioned his interest in professional chess players in the Muggle world. The older wizards encouraged him to study chess strategies and gave him some galleons to buy an owl as promised. Ron couldn't hide his glee.

Finally, the day to see the Cats came. Ellie's family greeted Harry, Hermione, and Neville at Leaky Cauldron. Ron, Fred, George, and Mrs. Weasley appeared at the pub after visiting Gringotts and shopping at Diagon Alley. Ron's owl was a tiny one that hooted happily in the cage. According to Fred and George, that owl landed on Ron's shoulder when they entered the Magical Menagerie and didn't leave him even though he tried to shoo it away. The youngest red-headed boy didn't look happy, unlike his new owl.
The twins and Mrs. Weasley returned to the Burrow via Floo and Ellie's family and kids moved to Leicester Square. Sirius and Remus joined at the theater.
They sat down in front of the stage in two rows. Mrs. Klein let Neville and Ron sit in the end. Both boys didn't know the reason but they realised it after the show began. The actors and actresses who disguised as cats grazed them in the beginning and patted their heads softly later. They talked about the sensation of their touches excitedly at intermission. Ellie agreed that actors' touches were one of the attractions of Cats. Most kids became boring at Act I, however, all of them liked the songs at Act II. After the curtain call, Mrs. Klein brought the kids and two Marauders to the dressing room. A woman disguised as a white cat came out and hugged Ellie and her mother with a shout for joy. She was the cousin of Mrs. Klein and said hello to Ellie's friends and two adult wizards pleasantly. They had chitchat shortly and took a photo together. Harry could notice that Sirius and Agnes, Mrs. Klein's cousin, seemed closer than the last meeting at Barcellona.
During returning to Leaky Cauldron, all kids chatted about the performance they enjoyed. Ron and Neville were really impressed by the Muggle's musical and talked about the dance and costumes with Harry while Hermione and Ellie hummed 'Memory'. It was another good memory for young witches and wizards.

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Before the end of the Christmas break, Sirius and Remus encountered Lucius Malfoy at the Ministry atrium after meeting with the head of the Department of Mystery. The remained Marauders showed their memory with pensive at Black Manor later so their boy could see details of older Malfoy's reaction. As anticipated, the adult Malfoy growled at the suspicious present. Padfoot and Moony could catch the anxiety and anger of the most loyal follower of Voldemort even though he tried to suppress it. Two guardians burst into laughter when they described how Lucius Malfoy wanted to hex them for destroying his old master's item and ruining his plan to eliminate Mudbloods from Hogwarts. Sirius and Remus played the arrogant Malfoy for a fool as he couldn't show his true color as a Death Eater. (They informed the boy it was the name of Voldemort's followers.)

"How horrible it might be if the Chamber of Secrets indeed opened this time. Fortunately, it seems just a prank as there's no victim after Halloween. I bet, Lucius, you know what had happened 50 years ago."

"Yes, I am really glad that Hogwarts is safe as usual."

Remus swore he heard the sound of gritting Malfoy's teeth as his hearing was much more sensitive than normal people. Harry bent at the waist with his hands on his knees uncontrollably laughing his head off. He couldn't wait to share this hilarious story with his friends. He could imagine that their compartment would be filled with laughs.

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On the last day of the break, Harry went to 12 Grimmauld Place where Sirius grew up for fifteen years. The godfather brought his godson and friend to his old house to search for the books about Basilisk. Sirius's old house was the most gloomy place, much worse than the cottage on the island, in Harry's opinion. Moreover, he could feel the heat and vibration of the locket after he left the kitchen and ascended the stairs. Padfoot grumbled that this house became worse and worse every time he came. Moony agreed with his friend. Prongslet offered his godfather to purge the dark magic items or to cleanse them at least. Remus agreed to the offer as a steward of the Black family. However, the Heir didn't seem to care about his pub's opinion. Harry joked, "I won't be surprised if you find Slytherin's locket in this house as it's full of his symbol and dark magic." Both adults stopped moving and looked at their boy with straight faces. The raven-haired boy rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders.

Two adults and a boy entered the library and searched for the targeted books. Sirius warned Harry of the books which contained dark magic. It didn't take a long time to find out what they were looking for. They confirmed the contents of basilisks as detailed as possible. There was the information of the weakness of the king of serpents and the story of its hunting as well. To avoid the loss of the books, the Heir of the Black family made the related pages be copied to the empty parchments. Harry was thrilled to get detailed information about Slytherin's monster.

After finishing research, the wizards bumped into Kreacher, the house-elf of Grimmauld Place. Harry got a shock when Kreacher said to them badly, "The traitorous Master and a filthy Half-blood and a werewolf set their feet in the house of Black. What poor mistress would say if she saw it." He could understand immediately why his godfather hated his original house and this house-elf. Besides, he reckoned that Kreacher was very unhealthy as he'd lived alone in this gloomy house, full of dark magic. So he decided to persuade Sirius and Grandfather Arc to eliminate items with dark magic later.

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Finally, the Christmas holidays came to an end. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Ellie shared their break in addition to Cats excitedly. Of course, Harry and Ellie informed Ron, Hermione, and Neville how far adults searched for Parseltongue. All of them were pleased to hear that they would get the recorded snake's language nearly Easter. The raven-haired boy added that he got the information on basilisk. And he asked his friends whether they would join to search for Acromantura in the forbidden forest to confirm whether it saw Slytherin's monster. Ron and Neville paled with fear immediately. On the other hand, Ellie seemed excited to have an adventure. Hermione suggested visiting Hagrid and letting him talk with the giant spider instead of going to the forbidden forest. So all of them agreed to visit Hagrid next Sunday. Later, their compartment was filled with laughter when Harry told his friends the encounter of Sirius and Lucius Malfoy in the Ministry. Particularly, Ron was tickled pink at adult Malfoly's reactions to the adult Marauders' prank.

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The first day of the new term passed without incident, unlike last year. Actually, McGonagall had her first years' interview in October already and arranged the second-year students in February. Instead of howler, Daily Prophet's article attracted most students. Lily Potter Scholarship Fund announced the results of heritage tests of the students from the Muggle families during the Christmas holidays. The results showed that all tested students were descendants of wizards and witches, mostly Squips. Sirius, the acting head of the fund, claimed that the improper term 'Muggle-borns' should be removed as their magic was inherited from magical ancestors. And magic could not be stolen from other witches or wizards as some Purebloods insisted. The heir of the notorious Pure-blood family demanded the Ministry of Magical use the term 'Returners' instead of 'Muggle-borns' as they returned to the Magical world. All tables were busy sharing students' magical ancestors. Dean Thomas happily informed that his father was a wizard who fought against Voldemort's followers. Other second-year lions congratulated that Dean became a Half-blood wizard. Of course, some of Slytherins including Mafoy looked upset or unhappy at the article.
At High table, Flitwick beamed at Daily Prophet and McGonagall showed a rare smile. Dumbledore also smiled brightly.

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On Sunday, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Ellie visited Hagrid. The gamekeeper welcomed five kids and offered tea and rock cakes. Neville ate the too-hard cake and almost lost his teeth while the others had only tea. At first, they talked about last Christmas break. Hagrid expressed his interest when he heard how close the musical actors and actresses looked and acted like cats. And he was really surprised to hear that one actress was a witch. When five Gryffindors finished their teas, Harry asked what they really wanted to confirm.

"Hagrid, I asked Sirius and Remus what happened when the Chamber of Secrets had opened 50 years ago. Can you guess what I heard from them?"

The kind gamekeeper went pale and suddenly stuttered, "Well, I don, don't know ... at all..."

"They found out that a Slytherin prefect discovered a third-year Gryffindor student secretly grew a monster in the school."

Hagrid's face was as white as a sheet. Ellie didn't beat around the bush.

"And I wonder whether that monster is an Acromantura which lives in the forbidden forest."

"We believe that you didn't attack students," Neville added in haste. Ron nodded encouragingly.

"Yes, we want to help you be cleared of the wrong accusation," Hermione seized the game keeper's enormous hand.

For a while, Hagrid looked at the kids without words. Then, he started to weep.

"Thank you, thank you so much for believing me. It was only Dumbledore who's believed my innocence."

Five pre-teens tried to soothe their big friend for some time. It seemed like the overwhelmed man calmed down finally.

"Hagrid, we reckon the Slytherin's monster should be kind of serpentine as Slytherin's symbol is a snake," Hermione cautiously mentioned their guess.

"Yes, could you tell me whether your Acromantura knows the identity of Slytherin's monster?" Harry also asked carefully.

Hagrid stroked his beard for a while and tried to recall what his beast told him.

"Aragog didn't say what Slytherin's monster was... He just said he should leave the castle immediately... I've asked and asked again but he only said it's an ancient creature spider fear above others... He really seemed scared of it..."

"That's enough!" "It's basilisk!" "Yes, we were right!" "Thank you, Hagrid."

All five kids beamed at their big friend. On the contrary, Hagrid seemed embarrassed, however, he also chuckled in the end.
They promised to clear his name and left his hut.

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AN: You can see Harry and his friend's adventure in the Chamber of Secrets next chapter.