Page 6 of 6

Part 20

Erin opened her eyes groaning. She looked around and saw that was actually in a little niche where two huge rocks had fallen and caught each other. She was very lucky, she could have been killed, but as it was she was just bruised and battered. She shifted some rock and found a hole where she could crawl out of.

The rocks had created a wall and she could see where Harry had gone and she followed. She found herself in a hall of sorts with snake statues on either side of a walkway; most of it was under water. She also saw a tall black haired boy, Ginny lying on the ground, and Harry holding his arm falling to the ground. "Harry!"

She rushed toward him. "Who are you?" The other boy asked.

Erin stopped and glared at him. "I am someone you do not want to mess with."

"Erin…it's him…its Voldemort…" Harry whispered, he looked to be losing consciousness.

Erin turned to him and she looked furious. "Voldemort…" She hissed advancing upon him with her wand out.

"Who are you?" The boy hissed at her.

"I am Erin Black." She whispered.

"Black…" Voldemort hissed. "You are…"

"The last, the very last of the Blacks and in me runs that blood, the blood of the Blacks and the Lyancomps. You killed my mother." She said and it seemed for a moment that a flame burned in her green eyes. "And you tried to kill me." Harry was all but out by now and he didn't hear them. Erin reached for her collar and pulled it back. There on her shoulder was an 'N' shaped scar. "You met your downfall by Harry and me." Out of the corner of her eye she saw a flash of red and a phoenix swooped down to Harry. Erin stepped forward more. "Did you hear me, Tom?" She knew now that Tom Riddle and Lord Voldemort were the same person. "I was there."

The boy was breathing heavily and glaring at her. "You are nothing." He hissed. "Nothing!"

"I am Erin Xenia Black and you are the one that took away my mother, you took away my father and you took Harry's parents, I could overlook my pain, but since you cause him pain and caused Ginny pain, that I cannot overlook…that I cannot condone." Erin's foot stepped on something and then she kicked it to Harry. It was the diary. "Harry…"

The boy was healed now and he looked at Fawkes gratefully before he picked up the Basilisk tooth next to him. He plunged it into the diary. Voldemort suddenly realized what was going on. "NO!" He yelled and lunged at Erin.

The girl pushed him back. "Never touch him or I will kill you." Light shone out of the boys face as Harry plunged the tooth in the diary. Voldemort wasn't through yet, but he had to get through Erin first to get to Harry, and that wasn't about to happen.

Harry closed the diary and plunged in the tooth once more. Erin cried out at the pain in her scar as she kept the older boy from getting past her. The light hit her and she was thrown back onto the floor. The light was blinding and the boy disappeared in that light.

"Erin? Erin!" Harry was kneeling next to her. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah." She said swallowing as Harry helped her to sit up. "I'm ok. Ginny?"

The girl sat up at that moment looking around. "Erin…Harry…I swear I didn't mean to. Riddle made me and Erin you're hurt…" She looked at the older girl afraid.

"It's ok." Erin said. "I'm all right, Ginny."

Fawkes landed near Erin and made a sound like a purr at her nuzzling her with his golden red head. Erin reached out and stroked his feathers. He hopped up on her and looked her straight in the eye, while he did that silvery tears erupted from his eyes and landed on the girl's lips. Erin licked her lips surprised and after a moment she felt herself healing from the inside out.

"Let's go." Harry said. "Thanks, Fawkes." The bird just chirruped happily and the three of them made their way back to Ron, Don and Lockhart.

It was a little while later that the six of them found themselves outside Dumbledore's office. "Sherbet Lemon." Erin said. The statue started to turn immediately and they stepped onto the stairs, Donovan last of all carrying Ginny in his arms.

At the top Erin knocked on the door and opened it. The result was sudden. Dumbledore stood up, McGonagall stood up, both of them surprised (well, as surprised as Dumbledore ever looked) Molly and Arthur were standing looking unbelieving and also ecstatic to see Ginny was all right. Fawkes swooped off of Erin's shoulder and onto Dumbledore's, a glint in Dumbledore's eye told Erin that he wanted to talk to her. Not surprising, but she didn't think it had to do with the night's events. She was glad to see him back, though.

"You save her!" Molly squeaked out and hugged the three of them and then Donovan, with Ginny still being held by him. "Oh, Ginny!" Molly wanted Ginny in her arms, but Ginny looked a bit adamant to stay with Donovan.

Harry walked forward quietly and laid the Sorting Hat, a ruby-encrusted sword and the diary on Dumbledore's desk. Erin still didn't know the entire story, but she figured she wouldn't have to wait long to hear it. "On the night the first message appeared I heard a voice…I didn't know where it came from, but I heard it and that's when Erin, Ron and Hermione found me and I went off to search for it. That's when we found Mrs. Norris and the words. Erin told us all about the Chamber of Secrets and how she knew it had been opened before. Everyone found out that I was a Parselmouth at the dueling club and I heard the voice two more times, once in the hospital wing before you brought in Colin and then again when Erin and I were headed back to the common room and we found Sir Nicholas and Justin." He took a breath. "Hermione finally figured out that it was a basilisk in the pipes, but she was petrified before she could tell us and Erin figured it out later, also. I know that you knew the three of us were in Hagrid's hut when they came to arrest him, Professor." The shocked a few people. "Ron and I were under my dad's invisibility cloak and Erin was just invisible. We had been arguing because Erin knew that Hagrid was innocent and Ron and I weren't so sure…because of a few things. And Hagrid got the message across for us to follow the spiders, so we did and we met Aragog, a huge spider—"

"Acromantula." Erin said.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "An acromantula, he told us about Hagrid and that he had raised him…" Dumbledore had a twinkle in his eye at that. "And he told us about the girl that had been killed in a bathroom. We figured out it was Myrtle he was talking about and that the entrance to the Chamber was in the bathroom."

"Very well…" McGonagall said. "So you found out where the entrance was… breaking a hundred school rules along the way, I might add—"

"Professor," Erin said. "Donovan was with us most of the way, so technically we were in the presence of an adult…"

"Erin, don't drag me into this." Donovan said sheepishly.

McGonagall ignored them. "But how did you end up here alive?"

"We got into the Chamber and there was a…accident that cause rocks to tumble down. Erin was caught under it when she pushed me out of the way. I went on to find Ginny since I was the only one on that side of the rocks. Donovan and Ron were on the other side trying to get to Erin. I went on and fought the basilisk who was being controlled by Lord Voldemort with the help of Fawkes' getting there with the Sorting Hat, the sword came out of it and I killed the snake."

Dumbledore looked at them. "How did Lord Voldemort manage to get here and enchant Ginny when my sources tell me he is in Albania?" So the old boy had known the entire time. Harry glanced at Erin and she shrugged. Dumbledore knew everything.

"What?" Molly said. "Ginny's been enchanted?"

"It was the diary." Harry said. "Riddle wrote in it when he was 16…"

"Brilliant." Dumbledore said taking the diary. "Of course he was probably the most brilliant student Hogwarts has ever seen…excuse me, he was the most brilliant. I am afraid our dear Miss Lyancomp and Miss Granger are definitely as brilliant as he is."

Erin blushed. "I'm sure that's not true." She whispered.

Dumbledore smiled, he knew that Erin didn't like praise or to be noticed really for what she did. "Few people know that Voldemort was once called Tom Riddle. I taught him myself, fifty years ago. He disappeared after leaving the school, traveled far and wide…and delved into the Dark Arts, transforming himself so no one ever guessed he was the handsome boy that was Head Boy here."

"But Ginny…" Molly said. "What's that got to do with Ginny?"

"I've been writing in his diary all year!" She sobbed into Donovan. He just acted like a big brother and soothed her and told it wasn't her fault. "He's b-been writing back all year!"

"Ginny!" Arthur was flabbergasted. "Haven't I taught you that if something thinks for itself and you can't see where something keeps its brains not to trust it? Something like that is clearly full of dark magic!"

"I didn't know!" She sobbed. "I found it in one of my books…"

"Miss Weasley should go to the hospital wing." Dumbledore said before anything else could be said. "Donovan, if you please…"

"Of course." He nodded.

Molly and Arthur followed him and McGonagall also leaving the others. He turned to the three sitting in front of him. "In the past year you three have broken so many school rules, I am not sure I have ever seen the likes of it. And there is enough evidence for you all to be expelled!" They looked very guilty. "So I think it is fitting that the three you, once again, receive Special Awards for Service to the School and 200 points apiece for Gryffindor." They all looked at each other. "But one of you seems especially quiet, why so modest, Gilderoy?"

The three of them had forgotten abou him standing there. He was currently bouncing on the balls of his feet smiling very politely. When Dumbledore looked at him he looked behind him to see whom the man was talking to. "He means you." Ron said.

"Oh, does he?" Lockhart asked.

"Uh, Professor, remember when I told you that there was a bit of an accident involving rocks?" Harry asked and Dumbledore nodded. "Well, he cause it, he tried to do this memory charm on us and my wand backfired creating the rocks to fall and he lost his memory."

"Dear me." Dumbledore said. "Ron, would you mind talking him to the infirmary also? And send an owl to Azkaban, we need our gamekeeper back."

Ron got up at once grabbing Lockhart's arm. When they left Harry and Erin looked back at Dumbledore. Dumbledore motioned for them to get up and follow him down into his little cozy study. They sat down and he sat in an armchair across from them by the fire. "Sir, there is something you wanted to discuss with us, isn't there." Harry said.

"First of all I would like to thank you." Dumbledore said. "You must have shown me true loyalty down in the Chamber, only that could have called Fawkes to you… please, tell me what happened."

Harry started. "When I got into the Chamber I found Ginny unconscious and then Riddle showed up telling me that she wouldn't wake. He was especially interested in me and wanted to know how I survived being attacked by Voldemort. When he received all the information I could give him we argued and he said he was the greatest sorcerer in the world. I said that you were and he said that you had been driven from the castle by the mere memory of him. I said you'd never be gone, not as long as those here were loyal to you. And then Fawkes showed up. He dropped the Sorting Hat and then Riddle called the Basilisk out. I ran to try and find something to fight him with…I think, I am not really sure, but Fawkes scratched out the snake's eyes so it couldn't kill me…at least not like that. I outwitted the snake and then went back to Ginny. I was more scared of the snake than of Riddle. It's a little hard to remember, Sir…"

"It's all right, Harry, just tell me what you remember."

"I remember that the snake appeared again and so did the sword from the Sorting Hat. With the sword I was able to kill the snake, but by doing so one of its fangs went into my arm…I was dying when I got back to Ginny. Erin appeared and confronted Riddle. I don't remember what she said, but Fawkes came to me and healed me. Then Erin kicked the diary over to me and I knew I had to use the fang on it and it destroyed Riddle. Erin was fighting with him while I did that. I think she was hurt…but Fawkes made her drink some of his tears."

Dumbledore's eyes shot to the girl, but they were as twinkling as always. "You showed me true loyalty down there, nothing but that could have called Fawkes to you."

"Sir, Riddle said something strange…he said that the two of us had certain likenesses about each other…" Harry said.

"Did he?" He asked. "And what do you think?"

"I don't think I'm like him!" Harry said indignantly.

"Harry…" Erin said quietly. Harry looked at her settling down. "It's true." She said sighing.

"Yes, Harry, it is true to some extent."

"But I'm in Gryffindor! The Sorting Hat point me in Gryffindor…" He paused. "Professor, the Hat tried to put me in Slytherin though."

"Me too." Erin whispered.

"It said I would do well in Slytherin and for a while they thought I was…and Erin also, that one of us was Slytherin's Heir. I can speak Parseltongue and Erin…well…" He looked at her, why did they think it was her?

"You can speak Parseltongue, Harry, why? Because Lord Voldemort, who is the last remaining descendant of Salazar Slytherin…" He gave Erin a poignant look. She blinked and was a little confused at what he was trying to tell her. "Can speak Parseltongue. Unless I am much mistaken he transferred some of his power to you the night he gave you that scar."

"He gave me some of his powers?" Harry asked.

"Unintentionally, I am sure." Dumbledore said.

"So, I should be in Slytherin."

"It's true, Harry." Dumbledore nodded. "You have many qualities that Slytherin himself prized in his students. Parseltongue, a rare gift, resourcefulness, determination, a certain disregard for the rules…and in Erin, Legilimens and as pure of blood as one could have, at least in his eyes. Oh yes, you and Erin would have been counted as jewels among his students. But the Sorting Hat placed you in Gryffindor, why?"

"Because we asked it to." Erin said.

"Exactly, which make you very different from Riddle. It is our choices that show what we truly are. Far more than our abilities." Dumbledore smiled even broader. "If you want proof, Harry, that you are truly a Gryffindor then just take a look at that sword."

Harry stood up and went to Dumbledore's desk. "Godric Gryffindor." He read from the blade, just below the hilt.

"Only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of the hat." Dumbledore said just as the door to his office burst open.