(Next Chapter! Sorry these are taking so freaking long! I hope you enjoy! Only a couple more updates and then the Chamber of Secrets Arc will be over! Yay! Haha. I own nothing but my OCs.)
"Ugh! Where is she? Break's almost over! We won't have time find out anything!" Ron wailed loudly, throwing his arms up in the air as he and Harry sat crouched in the doorway of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom which as usual was echoing with the faint sounds of Myrtle's cries.
Harry frowned. "It's not like Lucy to be late. Maybe we should go looking for her." He suggested, coming to a standing position just as a frown crossed Ron's expression.
"You don't...you don't think Lucy changed her mind and decided-."
"She would have come and told us that she was opting out." Harry interrupted and Ron sobering quickly nodded his head as he followed his friend out of the bathroom and back out into the corridor.
"Right. Sorry." Looking both ways to make sure they were not seen leaving the broken lavatory, the boys hurried down the hall intending to check in the Gryffindor Common Room.
Suddenly Harry stopped and clutched at his chest, furrowing his brows in confusion and fear as the chill remained in his heart. "Harry?" Ron stopped running as well upon noticing the look on his best friend's face.
"What is it?"
Harry cocked his head to the side and shook it back and forth. "I don't know. I feel like something's happened to Lucy." He turned suddenly to look at his friend and began to run again.
"Come on! Let's find her!" Ron took off again after him.
As they were approaching the Hospital Wing, Harry skidded to a sudden stop grabbing Ron by the arm to stop him as well when he saw a familiar dark clad figure swishing his way quickly down the opposite end of the corridor carrying a strange lumpy bundle in his arms.
Harry gasped when the man shifted his arm slightly revealing a pale oddly expressioned face curtained in a familiar curtain of reddish brown hair.
"It's Snape! He's got Lucy!" He squeaked just as the usually stern faced Professor rushed into the hospital wing, barking short orders at Madame Pomfrey as he entered the chamber.
Frantic, the boys rushed the rest of the way to the always open door and peeked in just in time to see Professor Snape lay Lucy's frozen body carefully down on a fresh empty bed next to Hermione.
Harry's heart sunk when he made out the terrified look frozen on his twin's face along with the slightly odd and unnatural way her arm was frozen in place as if she had been trying to stop a fall before she got petrified.
"Her too?" Ron squeaked, his eyes wide with horror as he watched Snape and Madame Pomfrey speak to each other in hushed worried tones.
Harry swallowed audibly and put his hand on his chest again. "That explains that weird cold feeling I got a few minutes ago." He muttered to himself, a deep frown crossing his expression as the full realization of what had happened began to sink into him.
Just then Ron grabbed his arm and pulled him forcefully from the doorway, surprising him and nearly causing him to fall over his own feet. "Hey! What's-!"
"Shh! Quiet! Snape's coming back out!" Ron hissed pressing himself behind the door just as the Potions' Master strode quickly out of the Hospital Wing, pausing briefly and staring into space before shaking his head and hurrying back down the way he came, robes billowing as usual.
When he was gone, the boys hurried back to the door of the Hospital Wing, this time running inside and startling Madame Pomfrey who was just leaving Lucy's bedside while wringing her hands.
"Oh! Boys! I'm not sure if-."
"Please Madame Pomfrey! Is that Lucy on the other bed? Is she petrified?" Harry asked, in his heart already knowing that it was her.
The old nurse hung her head and sighed dejectedly. "I'm afraid so. And I'm also afraid there is no point in visiting with her or Ms. Granger while they're petrified. They won't be able to hear or see anything around them until the cure is administered." She said sadly.
Harry nodded his head. "Can I see her anyway?" He asked and at last Madame Pomfrey nodded. "I suppose so. Not too long though." She said with a soft warning before floating away to check on another patient.
Harry and Ron immediately took up posts on either side of Lucy's bed though it was a bit more awkward for Ron to get a good seat since Lucy's arm was angled in such a strange way.
"Lucy." Harry breathed, seeing his sister. He reached to touch her hand and recoiled when he felt how stiff and cold it was.
Sighing he turned away only to have his gaze fall on the equally as awkwardly and terribly frozen form of Hermione.
Seeing her, Harry sighed and hung his head. "I wish you guys could hear us right now." He said lowly though Ron perked his head up hearing him.
"Ron and I could really use your help on stopping whoever's opening the Chamber of Secrets. You both are usually better at this." Ron nodded in agreement, biting his lip.
"Especially Hermione." He added softly.
Harry started to hang his head dejected when his eye caught on a small white sliver of parchment clutched in Hermione's frozen fist.
Furrowing his brows in confusion, he slowly leaned off of the edge of Lucy's bed and carefully slipped his fingers between Hermione's to grab the paper.
"Harry? What's that?" Ron asked, straightening to peek over Harry's shoulder just as he uncrumpled the paper that had been clutched in Hermione's hand.
Suddenly Harry stood to his feet, causing a loud creak to sound from the bed. "Ron, this is it!" He exclaimed suddenly, rushing out from between the beds and moving towards the door.
Ron scrambled to follow him.
"What?"
Harry leaned to show him the little scrap of paper as he caught up. "Of the many fearsome beasts that roam our land, none is more deadly than the Basilisk. Capable of living for hundreds of years, instant death awaits any who meet this giant serpent's eye. Spiders flee before it...Ron! This is the monster! The thing that's been living in the Chamber of Secrets and attacking everyone! That's why Lucy and I could hear it! It's a snake!" Harry exclaimed, pointing at the passage that had been circled in the middle of the page.
Ron still looked confused. "But if it kills...by looking people in the eyes, why is it no one's dead?" He wondered. Harry frowned contemplating this until he saw a reflection of the moonlight shimmering off of a glass window opposite from him.
"Because...no one did look it in the eye. Not really." He realized as he began to remember some of the details from the other petrifications.
"Colin saw it through his camera lens and Justin must have seen it through Nearly Headless Nick. Nick got full blast of it of course, but since he's already dead he can't die again! And Hermione..."
"She had the mirror!" Ron finished, catching on to Harry's logic. "Right! And Lucy!...Well I'm not sure about Lucy, but it's likely she didn't directly catch the Basilisk's eye either!" Harry started to get excited as the possibilities began to overtake him.
Ron suddenly grabbed Harry by the arm to stop him. "And what about Mrs. Norris? I'm pretty sure she didn't have a camera or a mirror, Harry." He pointed out.
Harry started to think about it. Then he had it. "The water!"
"What?"
"There was water on the floor near the bathroom the night Mrs. Norris was petrified. bet you anything she only saw the basilisk's reflection in the water." He asserted, fairly confidently.
Ron nodded, but he still didn't look completely convinced. "That makes sense I guess, but if the basilisk is as big as that page says, how did it get around the school without being seen?" He wondered.
Harry looked back down at the paper and pointed to a different spot where a handwritten word was circled just to the side of the print.
"Hermione answered that for us too that day she went to the library." He pointed out and Ron blanched. "Pipes?" He looked horrified. "You mean, it's been using the plumbing?" He spluttered.
Harry grabbed his arm to stop him as they passed by a lavatory door next to an empty classroom. "Ron! You remember when we followed the spiders out from Hagrid's house?"
"And why the bloody h*** would I want to remember the spiders?" Ron cut him off, horror painting over the earlier confusion in his expression.
Harry shook his head. "You remember what Aragog told us though? About the girl who died in a bathroom the first time the Chamber was opened. What if she never left?" He pressed and Ron's eyes widened.
"Moaning Myrtle!" He exclaimed. Harry started to nod when the slightly muffled and audibly frantic sound of Professor McGonagall sounded from somewhere further down the hall.
"All students are to return to their house dormitories at once. All teachers to the second floor corridor immediately!"
"Again already?" Ron wondered, but Harry was already running down the hall, rounding corners and mounting a staircase, skidding to a stop at a corner when he spotted a group of Professors including Professor McGonagall and Snape hurrying to a spot on the wall where a new message was written in the same chilling red as the first message had been, the night Mrs. Norris was discovered.
Ron squeaked as he barely managed to stop behind Harry in time and Harry whipped around to press his finger against his lips in a soft warning manner.
"As you can see, the Heir of Slytherin has left another message." McGonagall said worriedly as she waved her hand vaguely in front of the writing on the wall.
"Our worst fear has been realized. A student has been taken by the Monster into the Chamber itself!"
"No!...And so soon after Lucy Potter was found petrified!" Madame Pomfrey gasped as she clamped a hand over her mouth.
McGonagall only shook her head in despair, briefly meeting the school nurse's eyes before returning her attention to the horrible words written before her.
"I'm afraid there's nothing left to do now, Poppy. The rest of the students must be sent home. This will be the end of Hogwarts as it now stands." She pressed her thin lips together as she turned to give the rest of her staff instructions on the next proceedings.
Both the Professors and the two boys hidden down the hall, jumped when the slam of a door interrupted the Deputy Headmistress's words.
Harry internally groaned when he peeked back around the corner and spotted a familiar set of bright fuschia and gold colored robes swishing down the hall towards the group of Professors.
"So sorry! Dozed off. What have I missed?" Lockhart asked, flashing one of his trademark grins as he came to a stop at Professor Sprout's side.
Snape unimpressedly arched an eyebrow at him. "A girl has been snatched by the Monster not one hour after Lucy Potter was discovered petrified, Lockhart. I believe your moment has finally come." He said in a biting tone.
Lockhart only blinked at him response. "M-my...m-moment?" He stuttered, suddenly sounding nothing like his usual carefree and overly confident self.
"Weren't you just saying last night that you knew all along where the Chamber of Secrets is?" Snape persisted, his sarcasm more audible now as he folded his arms across his chest.
"D-did I now? I-I d-don't recall-."
"Well that settles it then." McGonagall interrupted, a wry smile on her face as she turned to give the Defense Against Dark Arts Professor her attention.
"We'll leave it to you to deal with the Monster, Gilderoy. Your skills after all are legendary." She said in a tone that seemed warm, but did not cover her true skepticism as she turned and began to murmur with the other Professors as they followed her out from the corridor, leaving Lockhart to stare terrified at the message on the wall.
"Who is it Minerva?" Harry and Ron heart Professor Sprout asked in a hushed voice as she and the others minus Lockhart continued on their way presumably to their respective house dormitories.
"Who is it the Monster's taken? Do you know?"
McGonagall sighed heavily and shook her head in despair. "Ginny Weasley."
Ron felt his skin go cold when he heard that name.
"Her skeleton will lie in the chamber forever." Ron read in a breathy and terrified whispery voice as Lockhart finally recovered himself to stride off quickly back in the direction of his office.
"Oh Ginny..." Ron felt his knees start to buckle, but Harry caught him before he could fall over completely.
"It's not too late Ron! There's still a chance we can save Ginny and stop anymore attacks from happening! We just got to go find Lockhart and tell him what we know about the Monster and the Chamber of Secrets! He may be useless in most regards, but if he really does know where the chamber is, he's going to be our best chance!" He tried to assure him.
Ron shook his head. "My little sister is down in the Chamber of Secrets with a Monster that can kill by looking at you!...Harry what if she's already-."
"She's going to be fine Ron! She will be!" Harry cut him off, refusing to believe otherwise. "Now come on! We haven't got much time before Lockhart tries to get into the chamber!" He grabbed Ron by the arm and pulled him in the direction of Lockhart's office.
...
"Professor!...Wait! We've got some information for you!" Harry shouted as he and Ron burst into the Defense Against Dark Arts Office, stopping short when they discovered the man springing up from an open and already partially packed suitcase.
Another luggage trunk was sitting packed in a corner on the other side of the desk.
Harry stared around in disbelief before re-fixing his gaze on his teacher. "Are you going somewhere?" He asked, the question coming out more accusatory than confused.
Lockhart offered him a shaky unconvincing smile. "Oh well...yes. Urgent call you see. Unavoidable. Got to go!" He started to resume his packing when Ron ran forward.
"But what about my sister?!"
Lockhart gave him rushed apologetic look. "Yes, as to that. Most unfortunate. I especially offer my condolences to you, Potter. Poor Lucy. No one regrets more than I. Now if you'll excuse me..." He started to shove more things into his suitcase before slamming the lid shut with a deafening thud.
"But you're the Defense Against Dark Arts Professor! You can't just leave now!" Ron protested, but Lockhart was quick to cut him off.
"Well I must say! When I took the job, nothing in the job description said anything about taking on the Monster of the Chamber of Secrets!" He snapped defensively at the boys while furiously straightening the front of his robes.
Harry stared at him in disbelief. "So you're running away? After all the things you faced down in your books-."
"Books can be misleading my Boy! Your friend Ms. Granger would know that well enough." Lockhart sniffed, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek as he attempted to look tall and sure of himself as he stood next to his trunks.
"But you wrote them! And there were newspaper articles written-."
"My Dear Boy! Do use your common sense! Those books wouldn't have sold half as well if people hadn't thought I'd done all those things!" Lockhart finally burst out, his complexion paling considerably when he realized what he'd said.
"You're a fraud! You've just been taking credit for what other wizards have done, haven't you?" Harry realized and Ron took a step back from his former Professor.
"I knew it. You couldn't heal Harry's arm, you couldn't get those pixies back into the cage...I bet you don't really know beans about the Chamber of Secrets! Is there anything you can do?" He asked.
Suddenly Lockhart raised his head, the earlier panic and dread disappearing from his face.
"Yes...now that you mention it. I've always been rather gifted with Memory charms. Had to be you see. Otherwise all those others would have gone blabbing and I'd ever never sold another book and now I'm afraid...I'll have to do the same to you boys." He started to whip out his wand, but Harry and Ron were faster.
"Experiallmus!" Harry waved his hand and Lockhart jolted back a bit when his wand went flying across the back of the classroom.
Ron jabbed the tip of his still broken wand closer to Lockhart's neck as he and Harry advanced on him.
"Not so fast, Professor. You said you were going to the Chamber of Secrets to save Ginny, and before you go running to make up another story about this, that's exactly what you're going to do." He said lowly as Harry pointed his own wand at the other side of Lockhart's head.
Lockhart looked from Ron to Harry a bit nervously. "Now Boys..."
"You heard him." Harry chimed in and poked Lockhart in the neck, making him jump. "Time to see what the true Gilderoy Lockhart can do."
...
"Now Boys, is this really necessary?" Lockhart continued to snivel as Harry and Ron led him down another corridor closer to the door of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.
Ron scowled and poked the taped up end of his wand sharply into the back of Lockhart's shoulder. "Keep walking!" He snapped as Harry reached to push open the door.
As the strange trio stumbled into the out of order girls' bathroom where Moaning Myrtle was moaning and weeping rather loudly as she floated in and out through a couple of the stalls.
The girlish ghost stopped in her dithering when she noticed the little group standing before her.
"Huh? Ohhh...hello Harry. What do you want?" She smiled suddenly, a bit flirtaciously. Harry swallowed thickly before responding.
"To ask you...how you died." He answered slowly, exchanging a glance with Ron as he spoke. Myrtle hung her head at the question, but her smile mysteriously remained.
"Oh...it was dreadful. It happened right here actually. In this very cubicle." She passed a white hand through the door of stall second to the last one against the wall.
"I'd hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. I was crying." Myrtle whimpered as she warmed to her story. "And then I heard somebody come in."
"Who was it, Myrtle?" Harry asked, sucking in a breath as he guessed who it was that had interrupted Myrtle's solitude.
"I don't know!" Myrtle's tone suddenly sharpened. "I was distraught! But they said something funny. A kind of made up language...and I realized it was a boy speaking so I opened the door to tell him to go away!...and I died." She shrugged, frowning a bit as she floated lightly in front of the two boys and their confused Professor.
Ron and Harry exchanged another look. "Just like that? How?" Harry asked. To this, Myrtle turned her gaze towards the set of sinks set across the bathroom from the toilets.
"All I remember is seeing a pair of great...big...yellow eyes over there by that sink." Her tone turned low and ominous and Harry swallowed again before moving away from Lockhart and Ron to check the sink Myrtle pointed out.
It seemed to be an ordinary basin, except for one thing. There on the side of the tap which was rusted from years of non-use, was a tiny silver snake with dark rusted eyes.
Harry quickly straightened and motioned for Ron and Lockhart to come closer. "This is it Ron! This is the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets!" He pointed to the faucet as soon as his friend got close enough to the sink.
Studying the serpentine design, Ron turned eagerly in Harry's direction. "Well go on! Say something Harry! Say something in Parseltongue!"
Harry furrowed his brows at the suggestion. He'd never consciously spoken it before and he wasn't sure how to start.
Shutting his eyes for a moment, Harry thought back first to that fateful Dueling Club practice, then to the day he and Lucy had spoken to the boa constrictor at the Zoo the previous year.
Remembering each moment of both encounters as best he could, Harry opened his eyes again, fixated on the snake engraved on the side of the tap and began to speak.
Ron's eyes widened and Lockhart flinched as Harry spoke in a unintelligible yet clear and distinctive way with a sharp hiss at the end of the phrase.
At that moment, the entire circle of sinks began shift with a hole below large enough for both the boys and Lockhart to slip down.
Lockhart, finally seeming to have found his nerve, peeked into the dark space before jolting up and turning as if to make a run for it.
"Well! Excellent work Harry! Good work! I'll just be going now! In case you-." He started to run, but Ron and Harry quickly blocked his exit.
"Not so fast Professor! You first." Harry quipped, keeping the end of his wand pointed directly at Lockhart's neck.
Lockhart gulped. "Now what good would that do?" He asked, trying and failing to keep from stammering.
Ron narrowed his eyes. "Better you than us. This was supposed to be your moment remember?" He pressed.
Lockhart sighed and turned reluctantly back to face the entrance to the Chamber yet again. Squeezing his eyes shut and muttering something about mussing his hair and robes, Lockhart took a leap and disappeared with a short yelp into the darkness below.
Harry and Ron waited, ears trained for any clue as to what was waiting for them below the sinks.
Finally there was a crackle as Lockhart presumably landed at the bottom of the pit. A moment of brief quiet followed before Lockhart's unmistable voice floated up to the boys.
"It's really quite filthy in here." He said clearly disgusted by his surroundings. Harry and Ron exchanged fairly satisfied expressions.
"All right. Let's go. For Lucy and Hermione." Harry nodded and Ron clenched his jaw, shutting his eyes before jumping into the blackness under the sinks.
Harry started to do the same when Myrtle interrupted. "Oh Harry? If you die down there...you're more than welcome to share my toilet." The ghost girl grinned as if relishing the prospect of Harry dying and becoming a spirit.
"Uh..." Harry swallowed dryly and somehow forced himself to nod. "Thanks Myrtle." Not giving Myrtle any further thought, Harry turned and threw himself into the blackness below, bracing himself for what lay ahead.
...
