A/N: Wow. Sorry for the wait. I have not had a good week. But to make it up to you, I will do another chapter within three days, as I know this is very short. But please review still! Thanks for all the reviews. And to Nightlit- I am very, very sorry. Everybody- I made a big mistake. JUSTIN IS DEAD, and is not in the DA. I was not feeling good when I wrote it, and don't feel like rewriting it as I rarely make such big mistakes. And about the DA comment- I said in Chapter 16 or 17 that this year all grades would be admitted into it. And I'm sorry that Dumbledore's poisoning was confusing, but nobody else thought so, and this chapter hopefully will clarify it. Thanks for the review.

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Chapter 18:

Harry and Lenore went straight to the Gryffindor tower after saying bye to Draco. When they reached it, the Fat Lady was talking in a low tone to her friend, Violet. When she saw Harry, she gasped. "Mr. Potter! Is it true? Is it true, what the other Portraits are saying? Is Dumbledore- the Headmaster isn't-?"

"Dead?" volunteered Lenore. The Fat Lady gasped, and her friend's eyes widened.

"No," said Harry, frowning. "Not dead. Study for your Newts," he said dully. The Fat Lady still looked shocked.

"But what's happened, my dear boy? Why would the other Pictures be saying that-"

"Study for your Newts!" exclaimed Lenore, annoyed. The Fat Lady swung open huffily. "You could at least give an explanation for-" she began, but Harry cut her off slamming the portrait. Just at that moment, a voice erupted through the school.

"Attention all students!" It was McGonagall. "Head to your Common Rooms immediately! The school is in lockdown. Nobody is to leave your Common Room! Anybody unaccounted for will face severe consequences. Your Heads of Houses will arrive and explain shortly." Harry looked around the common room, where everyone was talking at once, alarmed.

"What do you think happened?" yelled Ron, making his way towards Harry. Hermione and Ginny were right behind him.

"Let's go up to our dormitory where not so many people will be listening," whispered Harry as the group reached him. Everyone nodded and they quietly slipped up the staircase and into the dormitory.

"Well?" asked Hermione, scared, as they all sat down in the room. "What happened? What was the snake saying? Why are we in lockdown?"

"You don't have many questions, do you, Hermione?" asked Lenore sarcastically. Everyone ignored her and looked at Harry.

"Well… er… okay. Here it goes: Ivy is still here- he disappeared onto Lenore's arm."

"She, not he," said Lenore.

"Okay, then, she," corrected Harry. "She said that if Lenore, Draco, Ginny, and I can go help the old heirs, then they can give me what's needed to defeat Voldemort. And someone's poisoned Dumbledore or something- he appeared dead, but Snape said he was still alive…. He was lying on the floor in his office. Something weird happened there. And Moody said the last one he was with was Karkaroff…"

"What?" gasped Hermione.

"Are you bloody serious?" asked Ron unbelievingly. Harry and Lenore nodded.

"And I think Moody is trying to blame Snape…" Harry added.

"Wait- why was Moody even there?" asked Ginny. "Are you sure that it was the real Moody this time?"

"I think so," said Harry. Lenore looked confused and Harry realized nobody had ever told her about the events of their fourth year. Oh well- she could find out later.

"But Karkaroff?" asked Hermione thoughtfully. "Doesn't that seem a bit odd? I thought he had been in hiding or something; at least that's what Viktor said." Harry's eyes darted towards Ron, as did everyone else's. He looked as if he was controlling any anger, though he was a bit more red than usual.

"Really weird," said Lenore thoughtfully. "I mean… also about Ivy. And Dumbledore. Could they be related, do you think?"

"Maybe," said Harry. "But I don't see how it could be… It would have had to be really thought out, you know? And it's all well enough if we have to go help Amara and them to get the key to defeating Voldemort- but what if something happened to us there? Then there'd be no chance at all of defeating Voldemort."

"It may be our only chance, though," said Ginny quietly.

"I wish we could do something to help," said Hermione wistfully. "It seems like we've hardly been able to do anything ever since this heir business began…"

"Welcome to my world," said Ginny dryly. "I couldn't do anything until that began."

"We took you to the Department of Mysteries!" protested Ron, scowling. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Listen, now isn't the time to be fighting!" said Lenore angrily. Ivy slithered out of her sleeve and around her hand. Hermione began backing up nervously and Ron's eyes widened.

"She won't hurt you," said Harry, eyeing the snake. Hermione nodded, but still looked skeptical, while Ron looked as if he'd rather eat a Fever Fudge than go near the thing.

"I wonder what's wrong with Dumbledore," said Hermione nervously. "I mean, if something's happened to him… what's stopping You-Know-Who? And what on earth will the Order do without him? Nobody will trust each other, there's no way at all…" Harry silently agreed with her.

"Well what should we do?" asked Ron finally. "If he was poisoned or whatever, should we go to Moody or something?"

"I actually think our best bet is Snape," said Hermione quietly.

"Snape?" asked Harry and Ron in unison, disbelievingly. Hermione nodded. "After all, he's so adept at Potions and all- he would be able to find out the poison and possible antidote, I'm sure…"

"Hermione," said Harry, frowning. "You could probably do that for Merlin's sake!" Hermione shrugged.

"I don't know about that Harry. All I'm saying is that it's a good thing Dumbledore's alive… but we're more in danger now than ever before. Even in the days of your parents and the first Order, at least Dumbledore was there! What were his symptoms exactly? Maybe I could find some thing in one of my books…"

"He… er… wasn't moving," began Harry thoughtfully. Ginny rolled her eyes. "And he was lying there. And he looked- well… dead, but had a pulse."

"He sort of looked as if he could've been asleep maybe," said Lenore. Hermione gasped.

"I think I might- no, it couldn't be…. That hasn't been used in hundreds of years!" She then stood up. "I'm going to the library-"

"You can't!" said Ron. "School's in lockdown!" Hermione sighed disappointedly.

"Well there may be a book in my room… Be back later!" With that, Hermione took off. Ginny then sighed and followed her. Ron shrugged and followed as well, saying something about going to hear the announcement. Lenore then sat back on Harry's bed, cross-legged, looking at Ivy curiously.

"Think it's about time for a Parseltongue conversation?" she asked Harry thoughtfully. Harry nodded. "Definitely. But you can talk first." Lenore sighed.

"I knew that would happen. Okay. Ivy?" The last word of her sentence came out as a strange hiss.

"Yesss?" hissed the snake, blue eyes glittering.

"Can you tell us more about what we are to do? The Heirs?" asked Harry. The snake nodded slowly.

"You are to asssissst in the battle against Acacia. Slytherin hasss left the school. He was a good man, Slytherin. But now he has gone… They need you to save Hogwartsss…"

"But how do we get there?" asked Lenore.

"You will leave when it issss time. All of you."

"What is the key to defeating Voldemort?"

"I know not," hissed Ivy seriously. "But it is a power so great that many mortalsss go mad just being near it… You will not, though. You will defeat Acacia and then her heir." Harry thought for a moment. This didn't really sound all that great, to tell the truth. Then a thought occurred to him: what if they could change the future? Kill the basilisk in the chamber while it was still an egg… then Hagrid wouldn't have been expelled, Ginny wouldn't have been possessed… Tom Riddle may not have ever found out about being the Heir of Slytherin, or whatever he was. And maybe he wouldn't have gone bad- and Harry would be normal, and his parents and Sirius still alive?

"Ivy? Is there a Chamber with a basilisk in it in the castle, created by Slytherin?" The snake peered into Harry's eyes. The reptile was better at Legilimency than Harry might ever be.

"Do not change the past," Ivy said gravely. "It would not be wise, Mr. Potter, Heir of Gryffindor. What happened happened. And you happened in it. You already did what you did, and are living as a result of it. Don't kill the basilisk, Harry Potter. You could severely ruin the present and future. Not that I care- I am a serpent."

"How long will you be staying here?" asked Lenore.

"I know not," said Ivy sadly. "I was caught in a fight with another snake, and Mistress sent me here. I am here until she sends for us, which could be quite a while…" Harry nodded.

"Well, feel free to stay," he said to the snake. Having Ivy around might be nice- but Hedwig surely wouldn't like it.

"Thankssss," hissed Ivy, reminding Harry of a snake from Brazil. He sighed and waited for the next occurrence, slightly tense and alert, as he'd been ever since his sixth year began.

A/N: Again, sorry for the length. New chapter SOON! Review please!

((Jinglez))

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