I don't own Harry Potter, nor am I making money from this endeavor.
Early Saturday morning found Harry walking quietly along a first floor corridor. His invisibility cloak and the Marauders Map ensuring he wouldn't be seen or followed. It was early enough that only a Ravenclaw would be awake, but he couldn't take any chances. The old man may have started watching him already
He came to his destination, a deserted girls bathroom, and turned the brass doorknob. It was as he remembered it. Gloomy, and depressing. The floor was damp, and the stall doors were dangling off the hinges. He walked over to the end stall and opened it. He was rather surprised to find it was empty.
"Myrtle must be out," Harry said to himself. He couldn't suppress a laugh at the thought.
There was a large mirror on one wall, cracked and spotted with age. Beneath it were a row of chipped sinks. He stood before the one in the middle and found what he was looking for. A small snake scratched on the side of one of the copper taps.
"Open," he hissed at it in Parseltongue.
The sink began to move, and then it sank completely out of sight. A large pipe had taken its place, just as it had done three years ago. Harry took one more look around, before dropping down the opening. The ridewas much as he remembered it, dark and slimy. The pipe twisted and turned before leveling out. He shot out the end and landed on a damp floor.
He cast a cleaning charm on himself, and his robes returned to normal. Walking forward, he flicked his wand and the torches on the wall burst into flame, filling the room with light. The floor was still littered with bones, and the giant snake skin lay curled on the ground.
He waved his wand in an arc as he muttered a powerful vanishing spell, followed by another cleaning charm. The bones and skin instantly disappeared, leaving behind the smooth walls and floor of the stone tunnel. A rush of memories came back to him as he walked down the passage. Memories that were both his and Voldemort's.
Making his way to the solid wall on which the entwined serpents were carved, he hissed for them to open. They sprang to life at his command, revealing the long, dimly lit chamber.
Harry flicked his wand once more. Unseen torches blazed to life, as light filled the grand chamber. Towering stone pillars rose to support the ceiling, all of them adorned with carved snakes. The chamber was easily twice the size of the Great Hall. It ended with the giant statue of Salazar Slytherin, looking as regal as ever. Even 1,000 years after it was made.
The basilisk was still there, as it had only been a few years since its death. He would need to salvage it, as the parts were necessary for one of the potions he planned to make. He knew Basilisk ingredients were dead expensive, and Snape would have probably had a mild orgasm just at the sight of the giant serpent.
He walked along the chamber until he came to the last pillar. Carved into the stone was an Egyptian cobra, poised to strike. He hissed at the snake, and its emerald eyes came to life. The wall behind the pillar slid open, revealing a stone passageway. It was just as he had seen in the Dark Lord's memories.
The passage led to aseries of smaller chambers, all heavily coated with dust. It looked as if they hadn't been cleaned since Slytherin left. Though Harry knew from his encounter that young Tom had used the rooms before.
It seems as though Voldemort isn't the cleaning type, Harry thought with humor.
The small chambers consisted of living rooms, a study, and a series of training rooms filled with ancient weapons. Harry figured Slytherin must have designed them as a private retreat of sorts. And as everything was Parsel activated, he figured the old serpent had either been highly paranoid of intrusion, or severely obsessed with his snakish gift.
What any Slytherin wouldn't give to be where he is now, Harry thought wryly.
He searched farther, lighting the torches and casting cleaning charms as he went. He found a small library full of books on potions, Parsel Magic, the Dark Arts, and other various aspects of magic. He started to search through them eagerly. Then he noticed something strange. They were all written in Parseltongue.
That could only mean one thing -
"Slytherin's personal library," Harry whispered in realization. Not just books Slytherin had owned. No, these were books he had actually written. Things he had discovered himself. Things that had been known only to him. And as he had no recollection of the place, he figured Riddle had never found it.
Somewhat reluctantly, he put the books back on their shelf. He would come back for them later. For now though, he had something more important to do. Picking his wand up again, he left the library.
He delved deeper into the chamber, looking for something he knew Riddle had never found.
Turning a corner he was met by a dead end. The tunnel abruptly cut off, and on the smooth, stone wall was carved a snake he didn't recognize. As he examined it though, he realized it was different from the others. All the carved snakes he had come across so far had been fitted with emeralds for eyes. This one though had what seemed to be black diamonds where its eyes would be.
His excitement growing, Harry walked up to the snake an ordered it to open in Parseltongue.
For a moment nothing happened . . . . . . and then the wall started to slid into the surrounding rock. It left an open passage in its void, and as Harry walked forward he was met with a gust of fresh air.
Just a slight cliffy!
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