Notes: Ahh! I kiss you all! I started this story 8 days ago and I have 792 hits! Well, 500 of those were probably me rereading it, but still – I'm on 10 people's alert list, and I'm in 3 c2s (and I don't even know what a c2 is).
I think I'll write another one today, cause I don't feel like helping with the cleaning. (My sister's birthday is tomorrow.)
One (actually 2) thing I want to clear up though – whoever posted this in a review, I'm not picking on you, I just want to clear it up for everyone:
#1: Harry's reaction to hearing Ginny's name: He hasn't seen her in months, then suddenly he sees her again, then she's gone again. The poor boy's heart is going in circles. I'm trying to show just how much he loves her. It might be useful later on (I'm not sure – I don't have the ending set yet.) But I am quite the romantic at heart. ((winkwink))
#2: Ginny wanting to go with Harry: She said she understood that he wanted to do it by himself, not that she accepted it or agreed with it. And Ginny is a strong girl – she loves her man, and would probably want to be right there with him rather than waiting back home.
Again, not picking on you, but just clearing up. I love all my reviewers more than my cat. (No not really…)
Now, on with the chapter! Another long one!
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Harry and Hermione popped into Hogsmeade. Ron had stayed behind at Grimmauld Place, because Bill was supposed to stop by with the pensive. Harry remembered the last time he had popped into Hogsmeade….
"Harry?" Hermione asked, "You okay?"
"Yeah." Harry said, looking up at the castle. "I'm not going to like this at all, but I have to do it."
"Yes, you do." Hermione pushed him a bit to get him going. "I know it's hard, but -"
"It must be done." Harry ended. The two of them walked quickly up to the gates. Filch came out slowly.
"Oh, it you again." He said when he saw Hermione. "Weren't you here yesterday? Why don't you just come back to school if you like to visit so much?"
"Thank you for letting us in, Mr. Filch." Hermione said, pushing past him.
"He hasn't improved much." Harry mumbled to her after they were farther away.
"It's kind of the talk of the school. The famous Harry Potter and his friends drop out of school."
"Of course." Harry said. He tried not to look to his left, where a white tomb was glistening in the sunset. But he couldn't look to his right either – there was a quidditch match going on. So he just looked down and followed Hermione until they got to the entrance. Filch had left the doors unlocked.
The two of them walked quickly to McGonagall's office. Hermione figured they should tell her the plan before they went searching the school. More than a few people stopped and stared as they passed.
"Ms. Granger, I didn't expect to see you again so soon." McGonagall said as they entered the office. Harry noticed that she hadn't changed the office much. Maybe she hasn't had the time… "And Mr. Potter. I think you've figured out that leaving has made you an even bigger celebrity than you were before."
"I need to get into the Chamber." Harry said quickly, trying not to look at the portraits above him.
"What? Why?"
"Because. I was just letting you know before I started running around your school."
"You know that Albus sealed the Chamber up years ago."
"I can open it." Harry said, turning to leave the office. "Don't worry." Hermione stayed behind to talk with the Headmistress, but Harry was already speed walking toward Myrtle's bathroom.
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Harry arrived and looked at the sinks. He wondered if the basilisk was still down there… it had to be nearly rotten by now…
Just as he found the correct sink, Hermione entered the bathroom. "Want to come along this time?" he asked her.
"I guess. I didn't get to last time. What about the basilisk?"
"I killed it, remember? But it will be interesting to see what's become of it since then." Harry told the Chamber to open, but it wouldn't budge. "Hmm… he really sealed this thing."
"Try a different word." Hermione suggested. Harry tried every enter word he could think of, and every weird word that popped into his head, but nothing would open it.
"Open, damnit." Harry said, kicking the sink.
"I don't think that's going to work."
Harry sat down on the floor and thought. What word would he use? With Dumbledore, you could never tell… Harry suddenly wanted to strangle Snape more than ever.
"Who's there?" said a whiney voice. "Who are you?"
"It's okay Myrtle. It's me. Harry." Moaning Myrtle stuck her head through a closed stall door.
"Oh. What are you doing here? I thought you left for good."
"I need to get into the Chamber. I need to find something down there. But it won't open."
"That's because you didn't say the right password." Myrtle said, looking as if she knew it.
"What is it?" Myrtle laughed and pulled her head back through the door. "Myrtle! I need that password!" Harry got up and went to her stall. She flew through him, making Harry feel as if he had suddenly apparated to Antarctica.
"Why would I tell you?"
"Myrtle, please." Hermione pleaded. "We really need to get down there. If we don't, then Harry can't destroy Vol – V – oh you know."
Myrtle seemed to have a slight change of heart. "Well, you were always nice to me." She said, looking at Harry. "Okay, I'll tell you. You point your wand at it and tell it to open."
"I already did that Myrtle." Harry said.
"Not in that snake tongue. I watched him set the password. I think it was in mermish."
"Of course!" Hermione exclaimed. "That's the only language – Voldemort – doesn't know!"
"Or anyone else, for that matter." Harry said. "So now we're stuck."
"We do have merpeople here. Dumbledore set all the protection barriers in mermish last year."
"I don't suppose you know mermish?" Harry said.
"No. I didn't think it would be necessary, as I don't like to swim much anyway – but I know where we can find it. I'll be right back." Hermione sprinted off. Harry wondered where she was going, but then hit himself for even thinking about it. The library…
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"Okay, I got it!" Hermione said. She ran quickly to the sinks and murmured something Harry couldn't understand. The sinks split apart.
"Hermione, if Ron didn't like you so much I'd kiss you."
"What!" Hermione protested, but Harry had already slid down into the Chamber. "Harry!"
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They soon found that finding anything in the Chamber wasn't going to be easy. Harry wished that they hadn't created that cave in…
"It's really disgusting down here. I'm glad I didn't come last time. It's bad enough on it's own, without the giant highly poisonous snake." Harry agreed and climbed through the hole on top of the caved in rocks. He could just barely fit through.
"I never thought I'd have to do this again." Harry said as they came up to the Chamber entrance. Harry opened it, and a horrible smell ran straight into them. Harry fell backward, nearly vomiting up the little that he had eaten for breakfast. He told it to close. They moved back away from the stench. "I dunno about you, but I'm not going in there." Harry said.
"There's a spell that blocks the sense of smell." She said through gasps of air. "I can't remember exactly how to pronounce it though."
"It's pronounced 'arretezlodeur'." They heard from on top of the rock mountain. "And you shouldn't leave Chamber entrances open like that." Ginny Weasley walked down the rocks slowly.
"How'd you know we were here?" Harry asked.
"They don't keep you a secret, Harry. I heard you were here, and I went to check the map. I saw you in Myrtle's bathroom. Figured you'd be coming here. Either that or you have a particularly odd attraction to whining ghosts."
"What about quidditch?"
"Didn't Ron tell you? I'm not playing this year. Besides, the Gryffindor team is horrible without it's seeker." She helped Harry off of the ground. Harry felt his heart speeding up…
"Oh please. Get a room." Hermione said. "We're here to catch bad guys, not to have a make out section." She smiled knowingly at Harry and pushed him toward the entrance. "Go on."
"Why -?"
"You're the hero Harry." Ginny said. Ginny put the smell charm on the three of them, and then Harry reopened the Chamber.
"It would be really pretty in here if it weren't for the giant snake corpse." Hermione said, sounding like she had a bad cold.
"Pretty?" Ginny said. "You think this is -"
"Both of you stop it." Harry said angrily. "We need to find this book before we all gag. Start searching." They spread out, Harry getting stuck with the area around the long dead Basilisk.
"Harry!" Ginny called. "I think I found it!"
"Don't touch it!" Harry said. He found where she was. A large black book was stuck inside one of the snake statue's mouth. "Accio Ravenclaw's book." It didn't work. "Of course."
"Why can't we just -?"
"The last time I touched a horcrux a bunch of dead people attacked me. And Dumbledore's hand turned black because of a horcrux. I'd rather not risk it." Harry looked at the book, wondering how he was going to get it out. "Ginny, go back to the bathroom."
"But Harry!"
"Go! Now! You too Hermione."
"But -"
"Go!" The two girls sauntered off. Once they had left, Harry reevaluated the situation. He took his wand and poked at the book. Nothing happened. He remembered that the last time he had tried to summon a horcrux, the waiting army of corpses had warned him not to. Nothing like that had happened this time. Or had it?
Harry looked around. Nothing seemed to have changed. The Basilisk looked as if it had moved a bit. Of course… Harry poked the book again, and the Basilisk twitched. He was glad that he had sent the girls away.
Harry quickly made a plan. He went back through the entrance and climbed up the rocks to make the opening a little bigger, so as to make it easier to get back through. He was going to grab the book and run for it. The rocks and the Chamber entrance should hold the Basilisk back… Harry couldn't believe it – Apparently Voldemort had found out about the Basilisk being dead (Malfoy… Harry thought, noting someone else that needed strangled) and had bewitched it, just in case.
Harry took several deep breaths and reached for the book. It has to be done… just do it and get it over with. He grabbed the book and yanked on it hard. The book came free, and Harry heard a giant water splash and a roar behind him. He turned and ran for his life.
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Harry pulled himself through the rock pile and fell down the other side. He hadn't been fast enough to close the Chamber entrance. He hoped that the rocks would hold it back…
"Hermione!" Harry yelled up to the bathroom.
"Harry? Harry, what happened? Did it wake up?"
Harry began to scramble up to the bathroom. "Get me out of here!"
"Uncio Harry!" Harry felt himself being pulled violently upward. Seconds later, he flew up into the bathroom. Hermione closed the sinks, and Harry sank onto the floor, gasping for air.
"It's loose again. You need to go tell McGonagall." Hermione ran off. Ginny sat down next to Harry.
"Are you okay?"
"Hold this." Harry said, handing the book to her. "It's okay. It can't hurt you now. We need to stop the Basilisk."
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I think this is long enough. More next chapter.
Oh, so you know: Uncio is a spell I made up. I didn't spell Accio wrong. ;)