p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 15.75pt;"'That was close.' Drei smirks as her nephew tried desperately to get to his girlfriend. After a few tender moments, he sprints into the hall. She takes one look at the pile of rubble, and more specifically, the pool of blood under the rock. 'If the other girl doesn't stop the bleeding, she'll be dead in five minutes. Good luck.' she smirks, sprinting after her nephew, matching his steps so he doesn't notice her /br /After several minutes, he'd stopped running and she crept quietly up towards him. Suddenly, he hisses, almost unnerving her. 'That could be useful if scythe does turn him.' she smiles, 'I'm starting to see what he sees in him. Quite the interesting boy.' As he walks in, she quietly creeps behind him. br /br /p
p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 15.75pt; border: none; padding: 0in;"br /br /Harry walks through the rows of snake statues. Water poured from each mouth like a waterfall, forming small rivers on either side of him. At the front of the room, carved in stone is an old man's face. Thought slightly distorted by erosion and time, it is unmistakably the face of Salazar /br /The sound of the water seemed to echo in the spacious room. The slightest sound made Harry close his eyes, for fear of the basilisk revealing itself. Slowly, Harry marched through the chamber. br /br /Harry finally made it to the front of the room. Lying on the floor, red hair contrasting vividly against her unnaturally pale skin was Ginny. Harry rushed to her side, unknowingly kicking a small black book. br /br /Kneeling beside her, he grabbed her hand. Her skin was cold as ice. He started shaking her, calling her name. br /br /"She won't wake." a calm voice says from the /br /Harry's wand was pointed towards the mystery voice. Stepping out of the shadow was a boy, only a few years older than him, with short trimmed Harry. "Who are you?"br /br /"My name is Tom. Tom Riddle. But you can call me-" he smiles, waving Ginny's wand. Flaming letters appeared between them. br /br /Tom Marvolo Riddlebr /br /The man waved the wand again. The letters rearranged themselves, forming four words. Harry felt the blood leave his face as he read. br /br /I am Lord Voldemortbr /br /"Voldemort." Harry spits, standing with his wand pointed towards them man that killed his parents, "You were the one who was attacking all these people."br /br /"I'm afraid that's wrong." Riddle smiled, "Ginny attacked them all. For you."br /br /"For me?" Harry gaped, "You liar!"br /br /"I never lie." Riddle smiled, "I might twist the fact, but everything I say is true. Ginny opened the chamber because I told her to. The people that were attacked, that was her doing."br /br /"Why would she do that?" Harry glared, wand pointed towards the smiling psycho. br /br /"The same reason as your mudblood mother gave her life to save your life. Because she loved you." he smiled evilly, "Such fools are drawn to you. Your mother, those two girls in the entrance hall, and this little girl. None of them will be alive after tonight, you included, of course."br /br /"You will not hurt them." Harry glared /br /"Will you stop me?" he laughed, "Will you stop the basilisk? This should be amusing." The next second, his voice changed. Though he could understand what was said, it clearly wasn't English, $Basilisk, your master calls!$br /br /The pipe above Slytherin's face burst and the great serpent launched itself towards Riddle. $Obey me alone, and kill the boy!$ he hissed. The snake turned towards harry, who quickly shut his eyes. He turned and grabbed Ginny, dragging her with him as he ran towards one of the side exits. br /br /A soft song filled the chamber. A flash of silver flew through the room. A pained shriek followed, along with a roar of anger. Harry chances a glance and sees a green and silver phoenix flying around the ceiling. The basilisk was lashing around, blood pouring from its eyes. br /br /"Blind or not, it can still kill you!" riddle roared, firing spells with Ginny's wand at the /br /Harry smiled at his good fortune. The basilisk's most dangerous weapon was gone. Now, he might have a chance. "Diffindo!" he yelled. br /br /A white light smashed into the lashing snake, which screamed anew. Blood poured from lower body. Despite the amount, it was only a small scratch. "Damn it. Basilisk hide isn't very vulnerable. Maybe... Reducto!"br /br /The orange blast knocked it across the room. Harry placed Ginny along the edge of the room and ran towards the stone face at the front of the room. While he was climbing, the basilisk charged towards him, mouth wide. 'I've only got one chance at this.' Harry gulps as he watched the great snake bear down on him. br /br /The snake lashed towards him. Harry sidestepped and hissed in pain as one of the curved fangs rips into his arm. Luckily, it wasn't deep enough to affect his plan. Harry jumped onto the basilisk's head, wand aimed at its wounded eyes. br /br /Drawing upon all of his training, and the name of the spell he read in advanced potion making. The basilisk started shaking to throw him off. He used all of his senses to keep his balance. Slashing his wand like he would a sword, he shouts with all his might, "Sectumsempra!"br /br /An invisible blade slashed the snake. The thrashing stopped instantly as its head split straight across its eyes, blood pouring from the massive gash in its face. Harry slid in the blood, failing painfully onto the hard ground. Beneath him, his already cut arm shatters on impact. br /br /"Well, potter, that was quite impressive. To think you knew dark magic strong enough to pierce the basilisk's skin. And you used it flawlessly. You would have become great had you not been killed." Riddle /br /"I'm not dead yet." Harry laughs, eyes growing blurry, "Sectumsempra!"br /br /The spell passed harmlessly through him. "Nice try, but you see, I'm not truly alive. I'm simply a memory preserved in that diary. I have grown stronger, that is true, but still I cannot be killed. That will all change soon." riddle laughs, as the phoenix lands beside Harry, several of its wings singed by /br /"How?" Harry gasps, barely maintaining /br /"My strength grows as her life dims. When she dies, Voldemort will live again." He smiles, "But you won't live to see that. The basilisk's venom will snuff out your life within a minute. See? Even the bird weeps!"br /br /Harry turns his head to see the bird crying on his arm. Slowly, his blurry vision clearly. His shattered arm mends, and he regains movement in his arm. "Stop! You bloody bird!" Riddle shouts, "Avada Kedavra!"br /br /The green light collides with the bird, which promptly bursts into flames. Harry smiles as he raises his wand, "Too late. Let's see how well you do now."br /br /"You can't kill me." riddle sneers, raising Ginny's wand, "But the same doesn't apply to you."br /br /Before either of them can cast a curse, dark fire rolls along the rivers created by the snake statues, water hissing as it evaporates. Voldemort's sneer vanishes, eyes wide in fear as he waves the wand. The flames are violent fought off of the girl lying along the /br /'Why is he protecting her?' Harry wonders until he saw something on the other side of the room. A small black book. 'He said that he was a memory preserved in a diary... Maybe this'll work.'br /br /Harry grabs the book, runs to the wall, grabbing Ginny and pulling her to safety. "Hey! Voldemort! Looking for this?" he yells, throwing the book into the /br /Riddle screams as the book touches the flames. The book is charred the moment it touches, and emanates a scream itself as it crumbles. The memory fades away as the fire dies down, leaving the room strangely peaceful. Behind him, there were two rapid flashes of light. Harry turns, wand pointed at the empty chamber. Another soft, beautiful melody is sung, and Harry turns his attention upwards. Perched atop the stone face of Slytherin, the same phoenix that had not five minutes early had been hit by a killing curse was singing a song that seemed to calm Harry's heart. Something moves in his arm and he looks back down. br /br /Ginny was cover in soot and her arm was black and burned, but she was alive. Already her face regained its color and tears formed at the corners of her eyes. She awoke moments later, screaming like she had just woken from a terrible nightmare. The phoenix song grew louder and slowly she quieted and /br /"Oh Harry!" she cried into his shoulder, "I'm so sorry! Everything was my fault! I opened the chamber and I hurt so many people!"br /br /"It's alright." Harry assured her, "It wasn't your fault. Everyone will be okay. It's over." br /br /The phoenix flew beside them, tears streaming down its beak. The tears fell onto Ginny's blackened shoulder. As they flowed down her arm, the burn healed, and by the time they had reached her hands, the arm was only a little /br /Harry took a finger and stroked the bird, "I can't thank you enough. You saved my life not just once, but twice."br /br /Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something utterly horrifying. The basilisk's supposed dead body began to move slowly. "Ginny, you need to get out of here." he says sharply, facing the wounded snake, "I'll hold it here."br /br /"No, don't!" she cried, clinging to his arm. A pair of talons lightly gripped the skin on his shoulder and his surroundings burst into flames. The scene at the chamber vanished before his /br /p
p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 15.75pt; border-style: none none solid; padding: 0in 0in 1pt; border-bottom-width: 0.75pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext;"br /br /Cal watched with mild amusement as her nephew fought against the serpent. Sometimes, magically enhanced sunglasses are an excellent idea. Not only could she watch the fight in perfect detail despite her distance, but she was immune to the basilisk's deadly gaze. br /br /Maybe she could use a basilisk egg to kill off one of those aurors, Moody. The idea had merit, but she'd worry about it later. Her darling nephew seemed to have gotten into a bit of trouble. Cornered by the basilisk atop that horrible stone face isn't the best place to be. br /br /To her surprise, her intervention wasn't needed. He sidestepped almost perfectly and slashed the basilisk's eyes open with the most powerful cutting curse she knew of. 'That was nice.' she applauded silently as her nephew had a few words with the man. br /br /At the mention of the diary, her eyes shot to the book about a hundred feet ahead of her. Even at that distance, the stench of dark magic left its mark. 'Bloody bastard made a horcrux! I hate having to track those down! Luckily, I know just the spell. I just need a diversion...' she thinks, waiting for the perfect moment. br /br /'You idiot!' she sighs, as he brags about the bird weeping, 'If you want to kill someone by poison, don't let a phoenix anywhere near them till there pushing up daisies!' she comments to herself about his sloppy murder attempt. br /br /Finally, he remembers murder one oh one and tried to kill the bird. 'Two things. One: too little too late. One phoenix tear could counter the effects of the small amount of venom he was exposed too. All the others just made it faster and healed his arm. And two: killing a phoenix is a waste of time.'br /br /Fortunately, her nephews attempt to duel the immortal man was all the opening she needed to lift her cloak slightly and wandlessly conjure some fiendfyre. 'See how you like that.' she smirks. br /br /The man immediately turns his attention to the fire. Yet rather than stopping it from approaching the diary, he starts protecting the girl. Now she can't help but laugh, "He doesn't know that she doesn't have it!" br /br /Harry seemed quick in the uptake. He races to the diary, grabs the girl and chucks it into the fire, all the while mocking his mortal enemy. As the horcrux screamed, she vanished the fiendfyre and stepped back to enjoy the rest of the /br /After a heartwarming moment, her eyes glance at a flash of light at the back of the room illuminated the dimly lit room. For the briefest moment, she sees a familiar face at the back of the room. The next second, and another flash later, the phoenix is fully grown, flying up to the stone face, singing a very familiar song. She is suddenly overcome with memories. Some she hadn't thought of in years, and some she has no memory of. Her tears after Judy's death. The day she meet Reiji. Her training, and Judy's revenge. A moment alone with Reiji as she was bleeding in a church. The tears flow easily from her eyes for the first time in years. Another memory materialized. Her drinking after she'd killed Lizzie. 'No, I didn't kill her! It was Ein!' she yells in her mind. br /br /The song ends and the tears stop as the phoenix cries onto the burns she'd caused with her fiendfyre. Suddenly, her gaze is drawn to the slow moving, but clearly still alive snake in the back of the chamber. 'You didn't cut deep enough!' she frowns, 'Make sure it's dead this time.'br /br /Instead, he takes the coward's way out and the phoenix flames both him and the girl away. She groans and walks out the way she came, ignoring the hunger snake hissing behind her. "Get lost." she says, voice echoing in the empty chamber, "You couldn't possibly kill me in your condition."br /br /The snake didn't move. Possibly it understood her, and possibly it simply followed its instinct, which must have been screaming to run. Either way, she left the room uninterrupted. br /br /She passed by the collapsed corridor and found it clear. "Either she saved her, or she moved the corpse." she shrugs. br /br /Once she made it back to the main entrance she looked around and found a single brick that was too far out. Grinning, she tapped it with her wand. The wall collapsed and revealed a staircase. br /br /She followed the staircase to the top and pushed on the wall. It opened, and directly across from her was an office labeled Severus Snape. She crept past the door and walked up the stairs to her boss' /br /She throws the door open like she always does, throwing herself into her favorite armchair and pulling out a bottle of booze. Scythe doesn't look too surprised, "I trust your mission was successful?"br /br /"Yeah, your golden boy made it through relatively unscathed." she sighs, "Turns out that the Weasley girl was behind it all."br /br /"I'll need your memory of this." he says, holding out his hand with a clear vial. She places a fingertip to her forehead and removes it along with a silvery memory. Placing it in the vial, she sighs again, "I'm taking a nap. Just so you know, I'm retaliating against whoever wakes me up with hollow points."br /br /"Have a good dream. Hopefully, tomorrow, our real job will commence." scythe comments as he places the memory inside the pensieve, reliving the incident as if it had been /br /"Well, that is interesting." he smiles, jotting a quick note for his records before altering the memories flawlessly to conceal the phoenix's /br /p
p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 15.75pt; border-style: none none solid; padding: 1pt 0in; border-bottom-width: 0.75pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext;"br /br /"We have to help him!" Susan shouts, slamming her fists against the headmaster's desk. br /br /"My dear, please relax." Dumbledore smiles, "In just a few minutes, the healer will be here to remove the charm that he placed upon your mind."br /br /"He didn't! He's down there fighting the basilisk to save that girl, and you're just going to let him die?!" Susan shouts, smashing the headmasters instruments with her bare hands. br /br /"He attacked Miss Greengrass." Dumbledore says calmly, "I'm sure you'll feel better after you've been examined."br /br /"Don't even think about it!" Snape snapped, "Miss Bones does not need to submit to any examine unless a parent or guardian agrees. I'm sure Amelia will be quite upset with you trying to railroad potter into Azkaban. And that's not even counting what Morgan or Sirius would do. And you'd better pray that Cyrus stays missing, or you'll be in for a long and very painful life."br /br /"Severus, surely you can see the truth..." he starts before a mass of flames erupts in the middle of his office. Harry stood clutching a crying Ginny Weasley with a phoenix upon his shoulder. The same phoenix that had been in his room earlier that same /br /"Harry!" Susan squeals, embracing him and /br /"Susan!" he sighs thankfully, "Are you okay? And what about Daphne?"br /br /"She's fine." Susan smiles, "I took her to the hospital wing as soon as I got her out of the rubble. Thankfully she regained consciousness long enough to help me get back to the top of the tunnel. Madam Pompfrey says that she's in bad shape, but she'll pull through. She'll be up tomorrow morning with the students who were petrified."br /br /"Thank god." Harry sighs, before he finds himself chained to a chair, "What the fuck?" br /br /"Mr. Potter, you are under arrest for attempted murder of your fellow students." Dumbledore smiles grimly, "You will be taken to Azkaban to await your trial."br /br /"Don't even think about it!" a voice yelled, knocking the aged headmaster to the floor "He's not going anywhere until I talk to Amelia." Sirius growls. Snape runs to Dumbledore's floo and quickly calls Amelia, who appears within /br /"What happened?" she glares at Susan's crying face, Harry look of outrage, Sirius unbridled fury, and Snape's calm demeanor. br /br /"Our esteemed headmaster was about to break several laws." Snape sighs, "First, he wanted to force Susan to submit to a potentially dangerous examine for memory charms, without informing you. The healer is already on the way."br /br /Amelia had the top of her wand so close to Albus' eye, it was a wonder he wasn't screaming in pain. Snape smiled, and continued, "Next, he detained Harry-"br /br /"Which I have full right to do!" he shouts, earning him a glare from everyone /br /"He detained Harry without proof, reasonable doubt, or provocation. And he was prepared to illegally remand him to Azkaban until trial, which can only be done by your order." Snape continued, each word adding another nail to Dumbledore's coffin. br /br /"The boy attacked five of his classmates!" Dumbledore screeches, "He kidnapped Arthur Weasleys daughter for Merlin's sake!"br /br /"No he didn't!" Ginny cried, "Harry didn't attack them! I did!"br /br /They stared at her in disbelief. None more so than Dumbledore, whose face lost what little color it /br /"She was controlled!" Harry yelled, struggling against the chains bringing him to the /br /Amelia handed Dumbledore his wand, "Release him, or so help me you'll beg for life in Azkaban."br /br /Dumbledore waved his wand and the chains disappeared. "It was Voldemort." Harry says, pulling the crying girls into a hug, Ginny squawking at his use of the name, "He controlled her through a diary."br /br /"And where is this diary?" Amelia asks, pulling out a quill, wand still aimed and /br /"He was using it to try and revive himself. It was draining Ginny's life force to restore his own." Harry said as the girl in question cried harder than ever, "The only way I could stop it was to destroy the diary."br /br /"How?" Amelia asked /br /"There was this really weird fire that sprang up from nowhere. While Voldemort was fighting it off, I dragged Ginny out of harm's way and threw the diary in." Harry said as the two Phoenixes started /br /"What was this strange fire?" Amelia asks sharply, "Describe it."br /br /"It was really dark red, and it changed shapes. One second it's a dragon, than a basilisk, then a griffin." Harry answered, racking his brain for /br /"Fiendfyre." she says darkly, turning towards Snape, "how many people in this castle can conjure Fiendfyre?"br /br /"Five. Myself, professors Giuseppe, McGonagall, Flitwick, and Dumbledore. Also, unless I'm mistaken, both you and black can as well." Snape /br /"This is bad." Amelia says as she starts pacing, "What happened to the monster?"br /br /"It was a basilisk, and I hurt it, but I ran as soon as it started moving again." Harry answers, growing /br /"And Ginny was unconscious until that point?" she /br /"Yes, she woke up after I destroyed the diary." Harry answers, not sure where this was going."br /br /"Harry, unless we get a witness, I have to bring you in for questioning." she says after a /br /"What!?" all of them yell, except the headmaster, who is /br /"We only have your word on what happened. Without some kind of evidence, I can't help you. And with a basilisk running loose, finding that evidence is almost impossible." she sighs sadly, "This is one of those times where I hate our legal system. And as a result, I can't charge Dumbledore. He was acting in accordance with the law restraining a potential dangerous suspect."br /br /"What about me?" Susan yells, "Can't you charge him for what he was going to do to me?"br /br /"Not if he was acting to protect you from a possibly badly preformed memory charm." she sighs, "Unless we can prove that Dumbledore had some knowledge of these events and still took these actions, he was acting in full capacity as headmaster."br /br /"I must say that I never once lost faith in our justice system." Dumbledore smiles, restraining Harry again, "Madam Bones, please take the accused away. He has been expelled."br /br /"No can do." Amelia shots back, making the old man jump, "Let's get two things clear. First, he's not accused if anything. He is a person of interest. Second, He is legally an adult and you can't expel a lord unless charges are proven in court."br /br /"And they never will be!" a voice pants at the /br /"Professor?" Susan sniffles. br /br /"Madam Bones, I have proof to back Harry's claim." he says, handing her a /br /"Whose memory?" she asks attentively as she pours it into Dumbledore's /br /"Mine." he pants, catching his breath, "I guessed that this might happen, so I ran all the way from the chamber of secrets to here."br /br /"How did you come by this?" she questions as she comes out of the memory. br /br /"Dumbledore instructed me to keep an eye on potter, so I did. I admit that I was fearful when potter opened the chamber, but I followed anyway to make sure that I got proof. After he was separated from his friends, I watched as Harry confronted Voldemort and rescued her. I admit that I help a bit with the Fiendfyre, but it was mostly potter. Before I could reveal myself, this phoenix had already flames then away, so I ran back through the corridors and arrived just in time."br /br /"But you didn't help Daphne and Susan?" Amelia says venomously. br /br /"Forgive me, ma'am, but as a teacher, the needs of the many outweigh one. I did what I could to help without being noticed. A shield to block most of the rubble, a cushioning charm underneath her, and a charm to stem the bleeding. Luckily, I understand that Susan is an apprentice healer. I trusted her ability to handle the situation." Giuseppe says /br /"And you didn't help Harry before that little stunt with the Fiendfyre?" she adds /br /"I am a moderately skilled wizard. However, I have no desire to face Voldemort and a thousand year old basilisk on the same day. I was always ready to intervene and rescue the both of them if Potter hadn't shown such promise." Giuseppe /br /Amelia stares at him for a moment in silence, then sighs, "Well, I can't charge Dumbledore with anything, but I think there is sufficient evidence that neither Harry nor Ginny were responsible. Harry, is the chamber sealed?"br /br /"I sealed it when I left." Giuseppe smiles, "The basilisk can't hurt anyone for now."br /br /"Over the break, I'll dispatch trained hunters to deal with it. Harry, would you be available to let them into the chamber?"br /br /"Anytime." Harry nods, "Now, can someone get me out of these things!?"br /br /Dumbledore sighs defeated and vanishes the chains. Harry rubbed his wrist and glared at the headmaster, "Thank you, sir. Just so you know, clear out your desk at the end of the school year. You're fired."br /br /Harry and Susan walk out of the room, leaving the adults quiet, Ginny crying, and Fawkes letting out a small cry. The other Phoenix had disappeared without a /br /p
p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 15.75pt; border-style: none none solid; padding: 1pt 0in; border-bottom-width: 0.75pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext;"br /They left the headmasters office and went down the hall to the hospital wing. Inside, Pompfrey was stirring a potion in the back, adding several strips of a rootlike substance. "Mr. Potter." she glares, "I'm sorry to say that I don't have anything to cure basilisk venom."br /br /"No need to worry." Harry smiles, "I got phoenix tears, so I'm good. But Ginny needs some help."br /br /Ginny sniffles next to him, drawing the matron's attention. She bustles over to her and begins waving her wand. Harry and Susan leave her and sit next to the sleeping form of /br /"She'll be fine in the morning." Pompfrey frowns, "But I'm not so sure here. There are long term signs of dark magic exposure. I don't know how much we'll be able to correct."br /br /"Please try." Harry /br /"I'm surprised that you care so much about her." Pompfrey says, "As I recall, you and the Weasleys have been going at each other since day one. I've lost track of the number of time that I've had to patch him up after dueling club"br /br /"I hate Ron and Percy's a prick, but Ginny hasn't done anything to me." Harry shrugs, "Besides, The only person that I hate more Weasley is Voldemort."br /br /"Did you kill the beast?" she asks, laying Ginny down with a calming /br /"Wounded pretty badly, and it won't be able to petrify anyone again, but it's alive." Harry sighs, "With Ginny free of its control, no one but me can open the chamber."br /br /"Well, I'm glad. At least none of them will be coming back any time soon." Pompfrey sighs in relief, returning to stirring her potion, "You can wait with her for a little while, but it's getting late. In twenty minutes, I want you to go back to bed."br /br /"Yes ma'am." Susan smiles, "Will they all be okay?"br /br /"The mandrake draught will be administered just before breakfast tomorrow. I expect them to throw a feast." she sighs, storing in a few more ingredients, "But between them, Miss Weasley, and Miss Greengrass, I'm in for another all-nighter."br /br /"I'm sorry..." Ginny cries sleepily, "It's all my fault."br /br /"Sheesh now, my dear." Pompfrey says soothingly. "Far more powerful witches have been manipulated by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. You have nothing to be guilty about."br /br /Ginny nods, tears streaming down her cheeks and fell into an uneasy sleep. Pompfrey smiles and she pulls the blanket over /br /"I hope that she'll be able to live a normal life." she sighs, "But there isn't much of a chance of that happening. She's been possessed for too long. There's bound to be some lasting damage."br /br /"I should've known sooner." Harry sighed, "I should've tried to find it at the beginning. Maybe I could've saved her."br /br /"You did." Susan smiles, gripping his hand, "You saved her when no one else did."br /br /"The result would have been far worse if you hadn't done anything." Pompfrey assured him, "You two had better get back to the dormitory. I'm sure that Daphne will be at breakfast tomorrow morning."br /br /"Thank you." Harry says as the two of them leave the hospital /br /"I'm glad you're alright." Susan smiles, "I was so scared."br /br /"I'm glad that you two made it out alright." Harry sighs, "Part of me was afraid that you two would be trapped down there with the basilisk."br /br /They were silent for the rest of the walk. After they'd opened the entrance to the common room, which was unusually empty, Susan pulled him into a hug, "Thank you for coming back." she leaned in and gave him a peck on the /br /Harry stared as she ran up to the girls dorms. A moment later, he heard a loud squeal from the staircase and chuckled. 'Guess it's my turn.' he thinks as he slowly walked up the stairs and through the door to his /br /Predictably, his dorm mates were awake and talking rapidly. Malfoy was the first to notice him and laughed, "Come back for your stuff? When are you going to leave?"br /br /"I'm not." Harry glares, "The monster's dead. The chamber is sealed. Tomorrow, all the victims will wake up. The girl who was taken into the chamber was saved. I win."br /br /"You killed it?!" Blaise stares in awe, "How?" br /br /Harry smirked, staring at Malfoy's trunk. He flicked his wrist, and then swung his wand like a sword, "Sectumsempra!"br /br /The trunk split down the middle, carving a gash in the floor beneath it. Malfoy roared in disapproval, drawing his own wand from his pocket. Harry looks at him, unimpressed. "If I could break you trunk, I could kill you easily. After the day I've had, don't fuck with me."br /br /Malfoy pales, and lowers his wand. Muttering, he climbed into bed, closing the curtains behind him. Crabbe and Goyle do the same, leaving only Blaise. br /br /"Bloody hell." he gaped, "Where did you learn that?"br /br /"I got a pass to use magic last summer." he shrugged, "Only natural that I pick up a few tricks." Raising his voice slightly so that Malfoy could hear him, "It's too bad that Malfoy didn't have the same luck. After all, he could have been practicing for years..."br /br /"Shut it, Potter!" Malfoy yells from his /br /"Care to say that out here?" Harry smirks as Blaise roared with /br /Aside from slight muttering, there isn't any reply. Blaise starts pressing him for all the juicy details, which he is not in the mood to /br /"Blaise, sorry, but I'm exhausted." he yawns, "I'll give you all the details in the morning, but here's a brief summery. I went in with Susan and Daphne. We got separated. Voldemort reveals himself and tried to kill me. Monster appears. Monster dies. Voldemort vanquished. And we all lived happily ever after." His stomach twisted at the lie, picturing the broken girl he'd left crying the hospital /br /"Come on!" Blaise whines, "At least tell me who got kidnapped!"br /br /"Ginny Weasley." Harry sighs, climbing into his bed. br /br /"Is she alright?" Draco asks, with something that might have been concern in his /br /"She's had better days, but she'll live." Harry yawns, "Good night, and May Merlin help whoever wakes me up."br /br /p
p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 15.75pt; border: none; padding: 1pt 0in 0in;"br /br /'I'm ruined.' Dumbledore thinks as he drafts his speech for the next morning. Fawkes was flying around the room, singing a sad song. 'Time to think of a new plan. I'll converse with Molly over break. This will not end me! Not until potter is rotting on the ground.'br /br /"Fawkes, my friend, what do you know about that other phoenix?" Dumbledore sighs, rubbing his temple, "My plan would have succeeded if it weren't for that meddling bird!"br /br /Fawkes cries loudly, voice echoing through the room. Dumbledore shakes his head, "Why can I not hear your voice as I once did?"br /br /'Because you are not the man you once were.' the phoenix cries sadly, flying out the window to hunt, 'I pray that in time you will realize that for yourself.'br /br /p
p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 12pt; line-height: 15.75pt;"br /br /The next morning, Harry woke quickly when the door to his dormitory was blasted open. Half of Slytherin was clambering into his room, all talking at /br /"I can't believe you killed it!" a seventh year /br /"Malfoy kept harping on about you being arrested!" a fifth year /br /"Bloody hell, you need to stop doing this!" Flint whines, "Between the crazy shit you get into during the year and during quidditch, I'll have a heart attack before I graduate!"br /br /"Who opened the door?" Harry yawned, and the fourth year at the front raised his hand. Harry quickly levitated him to the ceiling and hit him with a tickle curse. br /br /Blaise was holding his ribs as he remembered Harry's last comment the night before. "Shouldn't have copped to it, bro. Nothing more dangerous than waking him up."br /br /"Except getting in the way of my breakfast." Harry growled. All the students laughed and made a path. All the boys followed behind him, even Draco, though begrudgingly. br /br /In the common room, all the girls were talking excitedly with Susan. Their attention quickly shifted to Harry as soon as he stepped into the room. Harry tried to answer, but the questions were none stop. Finally, Susan had enough, "A word of warning!" she yells, "Getting between Harry and breakfast is hazardous to health."br /br /The girls giggled, but moved aside, allowing Harry to leave the common room. All of Slytherin house save Daphne was trailing behind him. br /br /They walked into the great hall, silencing the crowd with their show of unity. Well, most of the /br /"Potter!" Weasley yelled, "What did you do to my sister?!"br /br /"Weasley, as the entire house learned earlier, I'm hungry. So get out of my way or else!" harry yelled back, "And have you checked the hospital wing? I left her there last night after I risked by life to save her. FYI, I had no real reason to do that, so you should be ok your knees thanking me!"br /br /Weasley was flabbergasted by that comment. Blocking their way, Percy wasn't. "How dare you! You weren't in any danger, we're you? It was your monster!"br /br /"It wasn't my mobster, and right now, it's just a corpse. Care for a demonstration?" Harry threatens, wand in hand. br /br /"You wouldn't dare." Percy smirks. br /br /"I just killed a basilisk." Harry informs him, "You'd be surprised at the daring that takes." Spinning, wand pointed towards the Gryffindor banner along the edge of the hall, Harry yelled, "Sectumsempra!"br /br /The massive banner split down the middle. The cut looked more like a burn than a cut. Like Harry had used a blowtorch. Harry turned towards the pale prefect, "Last chance to move."br /br /Percy looked ready to retort, but quickly started backing away when faced with almost all the Slytherin wands. "Fifty points from Slytherin for threatening a student and destroying school property!" he shouts, barreling towards the Gryffindor table. br /br /Harry led his house to the table and everyone sat bunched up, begging Harry for details. "After breakfast." Harry assured them. br /br /The door to the great hall opened after breakfast had already begun, which was relatively unusual. Turning, a grin came to Harry's face as Daphne came sprinting through the door, followed closely by the previously petrified students. Cheers erupted from all for tables as each welcomed back at least one student. br /br /The only student that seemed to be absent from the wonderful feast was Ginny. Madam Pompfrey was also absent. In the back of the room, Harry's blood boiled as he saw Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who were pacing next to the door. br /br /After the plates had been cleared, Dumbledore stood and stepped up to the podium. "As you all have no doubt noticed, those students petrified by this string of attacks have been restored to health, thanks in no small part to the team of Madam Pompfrey and Professor Sprout. I believe a round of applause is in order!"br /br /No sooner had the words left his mouth then cheers erupted from all four tables. The sound was deafening and it didn't seem to get any quieter. Even Dumbledore's usual cannon blast could barely be heard of the roaring applause. After nearly a five minute standing ovation, Dumbledore finally had the silence he needed to continue. Smile plastered on his face, "I believe ten points to each house for the most enthusiastic applause in Hogwarts history. Now, as I was saying, as many of you know, last night, one of your fellow students was taken into the chamber of secrets. Luckily, we had a hero ready to save her."br /br /The crowd looked at him with a puzzled expression, so he continued, "Harry potter, who most everyone had ridiculed and exiled, found the chamber of secrets, discovered and defeated the heir and his monster, and saved the little sister of his mortal enemy. He nearly lost his life saving Ginny Weasley. For that, I award Slytherin one hundred points!"br /br /The green clad students roared in approval. This was probably the single most points that Slytherin had gotten from a teacher other than Snape. Dumbledore smiled and continued, "As a reward for the student body, all exams have been cancelled!"br /br /Again the student body cheered. Every person except a certain bushy haired Gryffindor were on their feet clapping. br /br /"If you like that, some of you will like this next part even more. Further, today is the last Hogsmeade weekend of the school year. For this one time, the village will be open to all students, regardless of year." for a second everyone was quiet, until the realized what that meant. They could go to the village. First and second years roared louder than anyone would have thought possible with their small lungs. br /br /Dumbledore waited until the cheering had finally subsided, then said sadly, "This brings us to my last piece of news. I have taught at Hogwarts for more than sixty years. During that time, I have watched countless students and teachers walk through these halls, each destined to be great. One such student who had dreams to be the transfiguration teacher, approached me after graduation and asked, "When will you know when it is the right time to retire?" I smiled at this transfiguration prodigy and answered that i would only retire when I felt that I had nothing left to teach. This last year has proven that perhaps I never noticed that that point had passed me by. Thus I have decided that effective at the end of this school year, I will be resigning as headmaster of Hogwarts. Replacing me, I will nominate the very student who asked me that question so many years ago, Minerva McGonagall. For the many wonderful years of teaching, I thank you all from the bottom of my heart." br /br /The hall was silent for a while, and the crowd changed his name, even the Slytherins who held him in such low esteem had enough respect for the man to join in. Only Harry and Susan didn't, because they saw it for what it was. Nothing more than him trying to conceal the fact that he'd been fired by resigning /br /"Thank you all for the wonderful experiences. I hope that after you leave these hallowed halls of learning, you will take the time to visit an old man and share stories of your wonderful lives. I remain, as always, available if you need advice. Simply send me an owl. The carriages will be departing from the courtyard to take you to the village in two hours. I hope you all enjoy yourselves." he smiles tearfully, stepping down from the podium. br /br /The student body was abuzz with discussions about Dumbledore's impending retirement, though the Slytherins still wanted all the detail from the chamber. Harry waved them downtown the common room. "I'll be right there. I just want to check on something." he assured them, "Daphne, want to come with?"br /br /br /Daphne smiled and ran next to him, grabbing his arm. Susan smiled knowingly, and ushered the others down the stairs. Tori's eyes were swollen from the tears of Joy she shed when Daphne return, and aha gave then each a hug before joining the crowd going back to the /br /Harry and Daphne walked through the halls towards the hospital wing. Harry opened the door and saw Ginny sleeping softly with her parents sitting beside her. Mrs. Weasley glared at him, but Mr. Weasley beckoned for him to join /br /"Lord Potter." Arthur sighs calmly, "I don't know how I can ever repay you. Not only did you spare my sons life last summer, but you saved Ginny despite your grudge against this family."br /br /"Call me Harry; I'm only lord potter at social events. As for Ginny, it's no secret that I despise Ron, loath your wife, and think that Percy is the greatest prick in Hogwarts history, but I have no ill will towards the rest of you. I'm certainly not petty enough to let your daughter die because you stole a little money." Harry smiles, "Will she be alright?"br /br /"I don't know." he says, tears streaming down his cheeks, "Madam Pompfrey can't help her any more than she already has. It would take an expert healer to help, and we don't have anywhere near the money."br /br /"You get Ginny the help she needs. Have them send me the bill." Harry smiles, br /br /"We don't need your pity!" Molly /br /"I would think that you would want what's best for Ginny. Is your miserable pride really more important than your daughter's life?" Harry /br /"That's enough, Molly!" Arthur snaps, "I am in your debt, Harry."br /br /"No, your wife is. This isn't any problem. Consider it a favor for your other sons." he waves off the bowing /br /"They are not our children." Molly snaps, "They were disowned. We don't want any part of them."br /br /"And if I had my way, I'd never have anything to do with you. But I'm still willing to help you because it is the right thing to do. It's your choice." harry shrugs, walking out of the /br /Harry sighs, rubbing his forehead, "I swear that woman can really get on my nerves."br /br /"But that was awfully sweet of you, offering to pay for her medical bills." Daphne smiles. br /br /"I've got the money, and it's not like I have any other use for it." Harry /br /"That reminds me." she smiles, "I forgot to do something yesterday."br /br /"What?" Harry asks turning towards her just in time to find her face an inch from his. Before his brain can process what was happening, she'd leaned in and places her lips on his. After a moment she leaned back and smiled. br /br /"That was for saying I love you in the chamber." she chuckles, "I love you too."br /br /"Maybe we can have a date at Hogsmeade?" he asks, smiling /br /"I'd like that." she laughs, leading Harry back down to the dungeon. 'I can't wait to get to Hogsmeade.' Harry thinks happily as he follows her, 'I've just gotta survive the interrogation.'br /br /Sighing, Harry gave the password and stepped into his own personal interrogation room./p
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