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Harry Potter And The Game of Death

Level 1

Chapter Eleven: Destroying a Horcrux

Wormtail woke with a shudder. Jumbled, half-remembered thoughts of Sirius laughing as he tortured Wormtail raced through his brain. His heart hammered inside as he looked around, half fearful that even now his two old friends had discovered him and come to finish what they had started the night of Wormtail's escape from Hogwarts.

But it was just a dream. And dreams could not hurt him.

With a soft sob of relief at discovering he was still alone, Wormtail grasped hold of a nearby water bottle. The thing was half-empty, nearly broken, and represented the total sum of his remaining provisions, having been scrounged from the wreck of a long-deserted trailer he had come across while fleeing. He carefully undid the cap and gulped the tepid water greedily.

Some of it splashed across his face when his trembling hands squeezed the weak plastic a might too hard. The dirty liquid went up his nose, causing him to jerk and splutter when he breathed it in by mistake. He fell forward, gasping for breath while hanging his head down low to clear his airways.

When he felt that he could breathe again without coughing, Wormtail raised himself to his feet and looked around. His panicked moment of near drowning had caused him to lose focus on his surroundings. And for a man in his position, that loss of focus could be deadly.

He could not be certain that he would be alone for much longer. Not when wizards and witches could appear from thin air or even hide themselves in plain sight. In fact, the only way he could be certain that he was lone right now would be to cast a spell… though doing so could also lead to his death if the Aurors were indeed after him. After all, it was much easier to detect magic than it was to hide it.

That clinched things. When on the run it was always best to err on the side of caution. So Wormtail turned to the one magic which detection spells always had trouble with: an Animagus form.

Once he had become the rat, his corpulent body transforming into the small rodent in a flash and twist of magic, Wormtail darted into the forest's undergrowth. His tiny body was soon swallowed from sight by the foliage as he scurried along the forest floor.

He took stock of his current situation as he ran.

To throw off any pursuers, he had spent the night in a forested area close to the Channel. The place was located near his penultimate destination and had offered the most secure spot to rest before completing his escape. It was a restricted magical creature preserve set up by the Ministry of Magic; only certain magic users were permitted to visit it, and only after going through a labyrinth of bureaucratic procedures. Wormtail himself had only managed to obtain the requisite information on how to enter the preserve thanks to a lucky afternoon spent eavesdropping on a conversation between Dumbledore and Flitwick, in which the two had jubilantly discussed how the creatures contained within appeared to be thriving.

It took over thirty minutes of running in his rat form before Wormtail was able to leave the preserve. From there a quick series of Apparitions while in rat form – a trick which had taken him considerable practice to learn – took him to the final leg of his escape.

The dark, cold waters of the English Channel stretched out before him. An overcast sky and a stiff breeze seemed to have kept the pleasure boaters inside for the day. A positive sign for Wormtail as it lessened his risk of discovery.

Upon reaching the Channel's edge Wormtail switched back to his human form. A sense of justifiable paranoia had begun to act up as he neared his destination, and he knew that he would need to risk casting a detection spell.

He could not afford to allow an ambush to catch him unawares at this critical juncture.

Silently, Wormtail began to cast spells around his location. His hands trembled while sweat began to bead upon his balding head. Spells for detecting humans, spell traps, magical signatures, latent levels of ambient magical energy, and more swept through the damp sea air.

Only when every spell came back either negative or normal did he give a deep sigh of relief. He was safe for the moment and could allow himself to relax and complete the final task at hand.

Wand still raised, Wormtail walked over to a nearby tree. And with a slight grimace, he drew the tip of his wand across his closed palm, opening a gash on his left hand. As blood began to well, he opened his hand and pressed it against the tree's rough bark.

A soft thrum of noise filled the air as his blood interacted with the Dark spell he had cast upon the tree years prior.

Several seconds later, small nail that one might find on any wooden shed fell into his waiting hand and Wormtail smiled in victory. With this trans-continental portkey in hand, there was nothing anyone could do to stop him from escaping. And his quest to find the Dark Lord, so that together they could take their vengeance upon those who had wronged them, would soon begin in earnest.

Several seconds later the portkey activated. And in a flash of magic, he was gone.


Harry bounced from one foot to the other as he and Ginny waited for Hermione to return. What should have been a short wait had turned into a much longer one than he had initially anticipated. And after their engaging talk of all things Quidditch had begun to die down, both he and Ginny had grown somewhat awkward in each other's company. The short redhead had begun to gain a slight blush on her cheeks whenever she looked at Harry, reminding him somewhat uncomfortably of her behaviour the year before.

Clueless as to how the situation had taken such a turn when things had been going so well between them, Harry tried to think about something else they could talk about. Yet nothing came to mind, and the more he looked at her without saying anything the worse her blush seemed to become.

So, with that avenue not appearing to be viable, Harry had decided to start working on exploring the room. Given that the only thing he knew about it was that the room could seemingly create and vanish objects as a person willed, Harry first tried to see if he could make a chair appear.

But after ten minutes of trying with no results, Harry gave up on the chair ever appearing. Thinking that he might have tried to start too big Harry tried to imagine other objects. Small things like quills or bottles of ink.

Still nothing happened. So Harry gave that idea up as a lost cause and decided to put the room's inherent strangeness aside until he had some free time to mull it over.

And without anything else to distract him, Harry turned to look at Ginny once again. The younger girl had remained standing next to the doorway after they had separated, her eyes fixated on the Diadem as she stood in sombre contemplation.

Though he was no mind-reader Harry had a good idea as to what might be on her brain. And thankfully it was a topic that he could talk about without feeling terribly awkward. He gave her shoulder a gentle jab to garner her attention. "You don't have to go back to the Chamber if you don't want to, y'know? A large part of me doesn't want to go back there either."

Ginny raised her gaze to look at him. A shadow of could only remembered pain still seemed to linger deep within her eyes.

"You're right, Harry. A really, really large part of me doesn't want to go back there at all," she replied in a low tone of voice. "But I should go back. If I go back there, with you, back to the place where the… the Diary took me, and I get to see something like it get destroyed…then doing so might help me to finally get over what happened to me back then.

The small girl closed her eyes and gave a shuddering sigh as she finished speaking. Then, as if sleepwalking, Ginny shuffled towards Harry, closing the gap between them. She leaned her small head against his shoulder while wrapping her arms around herself to ward off the room's chill.

Flummoxed as to what to do in this situation – only Hermione had ever done something like this with him in the past – Harry tried to stay as still as possible and think of something to say.

It was all he could do not to jump when the annoyingly loud sound of a notification from the Game of Death rang out in his ears.

Ding!

Hidden Quest Alert Notification

Stoke the Fire Within

Heal Ginny Weasley of the Trauma Suffered During Her First Year

Quest Rewards:

Max Reputation with Ginny Weasley

+10000 Reputation Points with All Weasleys

Do You Accept?

Yes or No

Seeing the quest notification from the Game only made Harry feel even worse about the situation. Because this time it felt like the Game was hitting Harry right where he was most vulnerable. Because if someone he knew was hurting, then Harry sure as hell was not going to sit back on his butt and do nothing.

Even if he had no idea how to go about doing so.

Harry discreetly pressed 'yes' on the quest notification and took a deep gulp. Then, hoping that he was doing the right thing, he gently placed an arm around Ginny's shoulders. Different than when he had done so while they were laughing, this time Harry tried to follow Hermione's example when she had used hugs and embraces to comfort him in the past.

After a short period of silence Ginny raised her head from Harry's shoulder to look up at him. "Did you know I still have nightmares about what happened?"

Harry shook his head. "No. I didn't."

"They come to me almost every night. I've had them here. I've had them at my home over the summer and winter breaks. I even had them at my friend Luna's house when I stayed over for part of the summer last year."

"Madame Pomfrey can't help?" Harry asked softly. "Or, uh, other magic doctors? Or whatever they are called? I know the muggle terms, but I'm not very familiar with how medicine works in magic."

Ginny gave a bitter laugh at his words. "Unfortunately, no. Potions and medicine can't fix what's left. Only time can do so. Or so the Healers at St. Mungo, which is where wizards and witches get treated for things, say."

Harry looked up at the stone ceiling. He could empathize with Ginny's bitterness. Various people throughout Harry's life had told him similar things regarding the terrible events and tragedies that had happened to him. And while well meaning, it had offered little comfort.

Ginny took a deep breath. The shadowed look of pain within her eyes strengthened as she did. "It scares me, Harry. Because whenever I dream it's always the same. First, I see a pair of large eyes glowing within a dark cave. Then I hear a smooth, cultured voice speaking words I can't quite understand but which I know are meant to cause harm. And after it stops speaking, I hear your voice. Just, not like it normally sounds. It sounds odd, too. After which I hear a roar, followed by the sound of your voice screaming in agony."

A shudder ran through her slim figure. "But thankfully that's not the end. Thank the Queen of Dreams that it's not. Because at the end of my dream, everything changes. A beautiful song begins to play in the darkness. One that fills me with such hope and strength that it chases away the fear."

Harry nodded slowly. What Ginny was describing, and the way she was describing it, was familiar to him as well. For it was a nearly accurate retelling of the battle he had waged against the Diary and the Basilisk to save her life.

But it seemed to be incomplete. As though she were unable to fully remember the events and was stuck with half-remembered feelings instead.

That got Harry to thinking. If Ginny could not remember what had happened, then how could she ever fully heal? After all, was it possible to heal from a terrible event that you could barely remember? He did not know. But out of hope that it might help, Harry decided to tell her what he could remember of that terrible night.

"Your dream is more than just a dream, Ginny," Harry said slowly. He wanted to help her, after all, not make the situation worse, so he chose his words carefully. "It's about when I fought the Diary. The part about the eyes probably has to do with the Basilisk. While the part where you hear Riddle and I speaking, but it's all garbled, is because he and I were talking in Parseltongue at the time."

Ginny nodded. "I figured as much. And I think that the roaring, and the screaming, that comes next is from when you fought against the Basilisk to save me, right?"

"Yeah. But that part still bothers even me." Harry ran a hand through his messy black hair and grimaced. He had long since put this behind him, and dredging it back up was less than pleasant. "I came so close to failure that night that it's honestly frightening. Without Fawkes' help, I would've died, plain and simple."

Ginny placed a gentle hand to his shoulder. "But you didn't fail. You beat the Basilisk, Harry. A feat most grown wizards could never accomplish. And you somehow killed the Diary in the process, too. While… while managing to save me, as well."

Harry gave her a wry smile. "It's not as simple as you make it sound."

"Why not?"

"Just… well, it isn't!"

"Then tell me."

Feeling uncomfortable because he had never been good at speaking of his past heroics, Harry sighed and moved away from her. Then he began to roll up one of his sleeves, as the story was easier to tell when he used the physical proof that remained on his body.

"After the Basilisk was released," he said gruffly, "Fawkes came and helped me fight it. At first I had to keep my eyes shut while I ran around the room and tried to hide; a single look from the snake would've been enough to kill me had I looked at it by accident."

Boy was that the truth. Harry remembered being so scared of accidentally looking at the creature that he had considered blinding himself. It had been far from his bravest of moments.

"But somehow Fawkes was able to blind the thing before the situation became too terrible," Harry continued. "Doing that gave me the time I needed to gather my courage, pull the sword of Godric Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat, and stab the sword through the Basilisk's mouth when it lunged at me. Which, as I found out shortly afterwards, was probably not the smartest of ideas I've ever had."

Harry finished rolling up his sleeve and showed the joint of his arm to Ginny. A dark blotch around the size of a thick galleon stood out from the rest of his pale skin. "You see, the moment I killed it the Basilisk's head fell on top of me. And since it's head was really massive – probably bigger than your dad's old Ford Anglia – the force of it falling caused one of its teeth to puncture my arm and inject the creature's venom directly into my body."

Staring at the dark scar tissue which was the permanent reminder of his tale, Ginny reached out a hand to touch it. Her soft fingers ran across the scar. "And the venom of a Basilisk is one of the deadliest substances in the world."

"Yep. The only reason why I survived is because I had one of the three cures quite literally hovering over my head. The tears of a phoenix can heal nearly any injury short of death… and thanks to Fawkes crying over me, I was able to recover on the spot. After that I managed to take the Basilisk fang that had punctured my arm and drive it into the Diary while Riddle was distracted. It made a terrible, ghastly sound the moment I stabbed it, but the Diary died all the same."

Its use over, Harry undid his rolled-up sleeve and covered the scar once more. He did not like showing it to anyone, even those to whom he was closest. But as the only other person who had been there with him, Ginny was a special exception. And if a little embarrassment on his part helped her to feel better, then so be it.

Harry patted his sleeve to smooth the fabric and gave the pretty girl another wry grin. "And that's pretty much the story of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Because after that Fawkes took the two of us out of there, I talked to Dumbledore about everything, visited you, Ron, and Hermione in the infirmary, and then watched everything go back to normal shortly thereafter."

Ginny flashed a gentle smile at his words. "Oh, I don't know about that last bit, Harry. Maybe things went back to normal for you, but they certainly didn't for me."

"Yeah… I gathered that from what you said earlier. I had it relatively easy, but everything afterwards had to have been pretty intense for you, what with finally being free from Riddle's control and all."

"But it wasn't easy for you either!" Ginny said forcefully. The small redhead seized the collar of Harry's robe and shook him as she spoke. "I know that it wasn't, so don't bother saying otherwise. Especially since you had to go back and live with those awful relatives of yours right after!"

Harry shrugged his shoulders while making sure to keep a tight lid on his emotions. Best not to bring the Dursleys into this situation, as his feelings regarding his relatives were… complicated… to say the least. "Eh, maybe not, but I still had it easier than you did."

Ginny gave him a strange look. The girl opened her mouth as if to say something in reply, only to seemingly change her mind and close it at the last second. She then paused as if trying to figure out what she wanted to say

But after a while, with nothing more said between them, Ginny merely sighed and gently let go of his collar. "We'll just have to disagree on that for now, Harry… but thank you for telling me the story. I don't know if it'll make the nightmares stop, but hearing you tell it has made me feel… better."

Ginny then wrapped her arms around Harry for a hug that rivalled any of Hermione's. Before she then stepped away from him while blushing madly. "A-a-and I really appreciate it. A-a-and I hope that w-w-we c-c-c-an b-b-b-become f-f-friends."

"Of course, we can!" Harry said with a smile. The girl was blushing again, but this time it was probably due to embarrassment over her actions and stuttering rather than out of some misguided crush she still held for him. "Like I said earlier, this trip is about letting us get to know each other. And from what I can see, you and I are going to be great friends in the future."

Smiling at one another, Harry moved the discussion to a different topic, that of the latest Hogwarts gossip. It had little bearing on anything, but it was a topic which might keep the happy mood between them going until Hermione returned.


Severus Snape was in a foul mood even by his own standards.

Sirius Black, the stuck-up Pureblood dandy who had tormented Severus during their youth, had come within eyeshot of receiving his just comeuppance. A one-way trip to a Dementor's kiss had been waiting for the man, with Severus slotted to have a front row seat to the event. But then that fool, Lupin, had ruined everything. The moron had forgotten to take his Wolfsbane potion, and in his irrational state had knocked Severus unconscious and allowed Black to escape Severus' custody.

Being ordered by Dumbledore to not drop so much as a hint as to what had truly happened that evening had only served to further infuriate Severus. Especially when he considered that the biggest winner of the whole, sorry evening had been Hogwarts' resident glory hound.

Harry Potter. The person Severus most loathed after the Dark Lord. And just thinking of how the boy was undoubtedly pleased with the way things had turned out caused Severus to see red.

Thoughts of Harry Potter inevitably led to remembering how the boy's father had stolen Severus' one true love. Which in turn was guaranteed to cause a surge of nearly uncontrollable anger and rage to well up within his entire body.

Subtly casting a non-verbal spell to detect the presence of anyone nearby, Severus found that he was alone. Good. He had learned many years ago that the paths to power and vengeance ran through self-discipline and an iron will. But sometimes the occasional venting of one's emotions was also necessary.

He whipped his hand around faster than most eyes could follow, selected a target, and released his rage upon it. The curse tore a nearby suit of armour apart in a satisfyingly visceral manner, the metal rent and torn to shreds from the power of the Dark Curse. A follow-up Vanishing Charm removed the evidence, and quiet descended on the hallway once again.

With that done, a much calmer Severus was able to continue his journey. His thoughts eventually settled into a wonderful mixture of seething hatred and self-loathing as he walked, so that when Severus opened the door and stepped into Minerva McGonagall's office, his customary sneer was firmly in place.

He gave his fellow professor a curt nod in greeting. "I am ready, Minerva, as Albus requested. Open the way so that I may depart."

The woman nodded her head in return. "Thank you for doing this, Severus. I know that it cannot have been easy for you."

Severus snorted in derision. Many thought the woman beautiful, but to him any woman other than Lily was as attractive as a common whore.

The powerful woman, one of only three people in Hogwarts stronger than himself, gave a light glare in response to his snort. But she held her tongue, choosing to instead point her wand at a nearby fireplace.

Roaring red flames filled its mantle as Minerva held out a jar of powder to him. "Albus will be awaiting you in the Ministry's detention area. He has managed to persuade Amelia Bones of Sirius' innocence, but Ministry regulations require the administration of Veritaserum to seal the case beyond reasonable doubt."

Severus grimaced, picking up far more from her words than Minerva had most likely intended to provide.

It seemed that the old man did not trust Minister Fudge to play with an honest hand when it came to the matter of Sirius Black. Dumbledore must have suspected that the Minister would try something fishy with the powerful truth serum's administration, and so sought to circumvent the fool. Bringing in an outside expert to consult on the matter, such as Severus, was well within the old man's authority as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot.

But it was also an act likely to cause a great deal of discontent within the Prime Minister's office after everything was said and done. And in doing so cause opportunities once though impossible to become… possible.

Since the old wizard's departure from the castle with Amelia Bones, more than one of Severus' old associates had owled him over the past week in the hopes of gathering inside information on the matter. They had begun to pick up on the tension that had been building between Dumbledore and Fudge ever since Black had been rescued. And many of Severus' old associates, Lucius Malfoy chief amongst them, were eagerly planning on how they could take advantage of the situation.

Were it not for his overwhelming desire to have vengeance upon Lily's murderer, Severus would have gladly refused the Headmaster's request and allowed Dumbledore to waste his own time in freeing the Pureblood. But the Dark Lord was a master at taking advantage of the schemes of others, and the events of the coming year would provide a golden opportunity for the fallen wizard to regain his power.

As a result, Dumbledore's own power would need to be as intact as possible in order to destroy the Dark Lord. And if Severus could prevent some of that power from being siphoned away in order to protect Black, then he could live with the discomfort of saving the man.

Plus, Black would officially owe him. And Severus would happily hold it over the man until his dying day.

Grabbing a handful of Floo Powder from the pot, Severus threw it into the roaring flames as he called out his destination. Then he stepped through the fire at a brisk pace and into the Ministry of Magic.


"I'm back! And I've got the bag." Hermione's voice sounded as she barged in through the Room's mahogany door. "Now, how do you want to get the Diadem inside? I've been going over the situation while I was walking – I usually like to sit still when I'm thinking, but maybe there is some truth to that old saying about walking helping to clear one's head – and I think we should start out by using a levitation spell."

Harry gave his best friend a quick nod of agreement. "Yeah, that sounds good to me, Hermione. Ginny, any thoughts?"

Ginny shook her head, which Harry took as the signal to proceed. Rubbing his hands together to warm them from the room's cold air, he cautiously moved closer to the Horcrux while Hermione followed him, the bag held in her outstretched hands.

"Here goes," Harry said. Taking a deep breath, he cast Leviosa.

The Diadem did not so much as budge.

So he tried again.

Still it did not move.

Wondering if he had miscast the spell – in spite of his protests to the contrary – Hermione switched places with him. Only to achieve similar results.

Then the two of them tried in unison while Ginny held the bag.

Still nothing.

From there the group began trying spell after spell from Hermione's vast arsenal of knowledge. Ginny even used a few household Charms that her mother had taught her, while Harry simply tried to pump more magic into the spells to see if it was a question of strength.

But no matter what they tried, the delicate crown of silver did not so much as shiver.

Ordinarily, most students at Hogwarts probably would have ended at that point. Or resorted to some sort of desperate measure like tearing up the flooring. But with two magic users present who had been raised by Muggles, the group instead resorted to more mundane means.

To that end, Harry left the two girls behind to guard the room and while he made his way to the Quidditch field to pick up some props. Harry knew that Madam Hooch always kept the public facilities unlocked during school hours just in case any students wanted to try and get a pickup game going. And the bats used by beaters would be perfect for lifting the Diadem into the bag without having to touch it.

Or so Harry hoped, because otherwise they really might have to resort to tearing up the flooring.

On his way to and from the field Harry also used his wand to cast 'Observe' on more of the students. By this point he had caught most every student in Hogwarts, but there were still nearly a hundred who he had not been able to catch. He only hesitated in using it when he saw Cho Chang hanging standing in a corner with another girl. The Asian beauty's almond shaped eyes fluttered when she saw him, and Harry felt his face begin to flush the moment their eyes made contact.

Ultimately, the decision was removed from his hands when Cho walked up to him asked what the weather was like outside. The gorgeous girl curled a lock of black hair around one of her fingers while she spoke, giving Harry a wide smile that lit up her face.

Only just noticing that the girl had her own broom over her shoulder and remembering the beater bats still clutched in his hands, Harry grabbed at straws as he tried to think of what to say to her. But he came up blank. His brain seemed to shut down under the pressure and he could not for the life of him remember what it had been like outside despite having just come from the pitch.

The next thing Harry knew Cho was thanking him and moving past. Whatever had happened, Harry must have said something that made her happy, because the girl patted his shoulder as she went by him. Her hand lingered on the last pat, giving his arm a squeeze before leaving. The whole interaction must have taken five minutes or less, but to Harry it felt like an entire semester had just passed. It took a moment or three before he was able to pull himself back together and resume walking.

By the time he arrived back at the room it was to find Ginny and Hermione deep in conversation. Both whipped around when they saw him, and Ginny's face began to flush a bright red.

Hermione, though, just smiled, and gestured towards the Horcrux. "Let's get to it, then. And just in case something happens, and you start to act funny, I'll stand by to knock the bats out of your hands. I uh, I did a little reading ahead using next year's material and taught myself how to cast the Banishing Charm. Hitting you with it shouldn't hurt you. But it would hopefully knock the thing out of your hands pretty effectively."

Ginny looked at Hermione in shock. "Yeah… but isn't that a fourth-year spell? A mid-fourth year spell?"

The brown-haired witch blushed prettily and nodded her head. "Yes, but it's just a spell like any other. I'm certain Harry could cast it if he tried. Maybe you as well."

Harry gave a shake of his head and wisely kept his mouth shut. While he did plan to increase his level of effort regarding his schoolwork, trying to compete with Hermione in that arena was a fool's errand. Ginny seemed to agree as the redhead soon shook her head in apparent exasperation.

Signalling the girls that he was ready, Harry approached the Horcrux with both bats in hand. And in a rare sign of caution, Harry slowly reached one of the bats out to give the Diadem a tap.

It budged.

Harry looked back at the two girls for confirmation that everything was okay with him. Both nodded, and Ginny moved up to take one of the bats from his grasp.

"It'll be easier with two of us working together," she said. "And since Hermione can cast the Banishing Charm, I should be the one to help."

The short redhead took up position on the other side of the Diadem, while Hermione cast a Levitation Charm onto the small bag she had brought to carry the Horcrux.

Eventually, and after no small amount of swearing from both Harry and Ginny as they figured out how to balance the Diadem without dropping it, the two were able to deposit the Horcrux into the bag floating beside them. The Levitation Charm failed the instant the Horcrux made contact, causing the bag to drop to the ground with a muted thunk.

Moving quickly, Harry tossed his bat to Ginny and scooped the bag into his arms before either of the two girls could make a move on it. "Let's get going to the Chamber. 'Cause the sooner we finish this, the better."


The trio made their way down the floors and to the bathroom containing the entrance to the Chamber. Aside from a brief run-in with Peeves, who had tossed butterbeer caps at them while singing a rather raunchy tune, the trip was wonderfully uneventful. And with no issues, the three soon found themselves standing before the Chamber of Secret's hidden entrance.

Harry looked around to see whether the coast was clear. He did not spot anyone like Malfoy or Snape lurking about. Nor did he hear or see Moaning Myrtle, a blessing as Harry did not want to get stuck listening to the ghost's stories of woe and despair.

Feeling comfortable that they were alone in the room, Harry stepped forward. He looked at a specific sink, with stone carvings shaped like a snake, and opened his mouth. "~Open~"

The sibilant hiss of Parseltongue echoed through the air. With a grinding of stone and mortar the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets was soon revealed, its gaping mouth yawning wide like a snake stretching its jaws to eat them.

Which, in turn, brought up another issue.

Harry gave the girls a sheepish grin. "I kind of forgot to mention this, but the entrance is a bit of a slide down. Literally. And without a broom, getting back out might be a bit of a bother."

Hermione shot him a hard, questioning look. "Harry, are you saying that Salazar Slytherin, one of the four Founders of Hogwarts, went down a slide to enter his hidden Chamber of Secrets?"

"I think so," Harry said with a nod. He then gestured towards the dark hole. "I mean, do you see any stairs here?"

"No. I don't. But I think that someone of Slytherin's stature and reputed character would never do something so silly as to slide down to his secret lair. Something like that just reeks of Disney, not real life," Hermione stated primly.

Harry got a bit of a chuckle out of that as he imagined a cartoonish version of Slytherin cackling madly as he slid down into his secret hideout. Ginny, though, appeared to be confused by the Disney reference, undoubtedly because of her lack of experience with the Muggle world. Harry would have tried to explain it to her, but Hermione kept talking with hardly a pause. "No, there's got to be something else to this that we're missing. Something like another entrance, or a collapsible staircase of some sort."

Harry shrugged his shoulders. There probably was a better way down. But he had no idea how to go about locating it.

When he said as much, it was Ginny who responded. "Um, it seems sort of obvious, but maybe you should try saying something about stairs in Parseltongue?"

"Like what?" Harry replied.

"No clue. But I believe in your ability to solve this, Harry!"

Rolling his eyes at the vote of confidence in his abilities, Harry stepped closer to the hole. Figuring that it would not hurt to try, he did his best to think like a wizard with a bad case of megalomania. "~Arise, Slytherin's Stairway of Destiny~, ~Come, Slytherin's Staircase~, ~Rise, Stairway of Slytherin~."

Much to his surprise, Harry appeared to be quite good at thinking like Salazar Slytherin. For with a loud, booming sound, the surface of the tunnel began to ripple in the light.

Indentations rose from the smooth stone surface of its bottom layer to form the basis of a staircase. The slime that had previously covered it vanished as though it had never been present. And when the rumbling finally stopped, an imposing length of stairs composed entirely of dark black rock lay before them.

Torches burning with green fire burst into being along the edges of the path, lighting the way down.

Harry fixated on the torches; their green glow reminded him somewhat worryingly of the Game of Death's green text.

But after stealthily casting an 'Observe' on them and finding nothing out of the ordinary for ancient magical torches, Harry turned to face the dark tunnel once more. He took a deep breath and readied himself. Then, he took his first step back into the Chamber of Secrets, with Ginny and Hermione following close behind.

It was a slower journey than when he had first entered the Chamber with Ron and Professor Lockhart over a year ago. But the benefit was that when they reached the bottom, this time no one was injured by the trip. And since someone – or perhaps something – had cleared away the rubble from Lockhart's idiotic cave-in, they faced no issue in reaching their destination.

That said, all of Harry's terrible memories from that night came roaring back when they stood before the Basilisk's body. The monstrous snake's scales still shone in the torchlight and there was no hint of rotting flesh in the air. Were it not for the creature's ruined eyes and the bloodstained hole where Harry had thrust the sword of Gryffindor, one could have been fooled into thinking it still lived.

When they saw first it, Hermione muttered something about the snake being larger than any on record. While Ginny, much to Harry's surprise, merely gave the corpse a cold smile.

Just to be on the safe side Harry cast 'Observe' on it.

Ancient Basilisk (Corpse)

?

That was probably the least descriptive 'Observe' Harry had ever cast. But at least it gave him the information he sought.

Certain in its non-living status, Harry moved closer to see whether the creature's fangs could be used to destroy the Horcrux, watching where he stepped. Some of the poison from the creature's fangs had continued to flow even after it had died, causing a shallow pool of the venomous liquid to form underneath the creature's fallen head. And Harry had no need of the Game of Death to tell him that the stuff was still poisonous even now.

Which, on second thought, might make things simpler. And which in turn gave him another thought on how he could go about solving another of the Game of Death's quests.

Clearing his throat, Harry grabbed the attention of the two girls next to him. "Rather than stabbing the Diadem with a fang, what do you think about dropping it into a pool of venom? That should work, right?"

"Hm… I don't see why not," Hermione responded. Her brow crinkled as she thought the matter through. "After all, it's the venom which should be what destroys the magic in the Diadem. Not the fang itself."

"Perfect! In that case, Ginny, I think that you should be the one to toss it in."

"What?" Ginny yelped in surprise. Harry's decision seemed to have caught her off-guard. "But the Diadem has part of Voldemort inside of it. Shouldn't you be the one to destroy it?"

"No. Not in this case," Harry said with a shake of his head. Hermione shot him a questioning look as well, but he ignored it. "I think that, if you're the one to do it, here in the Chamber of Secrets, doing so could help you to feel better about what we were talking about earlier. And, maybe, help you begin to heal from what happened last year."

Ginny stared at him intently, as though running over his words in her head and picking them apart with a fine-toothed comb. Harry merely stared back. He had said everything he wanted and had nothing more to add. While Hermione, for her part, looked back and forth between them, looking torn between annoyance over being left in the dark about things and empathy for her friend.

After a minute ticked past, Ginny finally began to move. Ever so slowly, she moved closer to the bag Harry held outstretched in her direction. Her jawline stiffened, and a determined look came over her face.

With hands as fast as lightning, the short redhead snatched the bag from his grasp, opened it, and tipped the Diadem out. It entered the dark liquid with a soft plop. And for a moment, all was quiet.

But the quiet did not last.

DING!

DING!

DING!

DING!

DING!

A barrage of notifications from the Game of Death went off in Harry's brain like rapid-fire gunshots. Then a terrible screech, the likes of which Harry had only heard once before, tore through the cavernous Chamber of Secrets, causing the three of them to clap their hands over their ears.

A writhing, twisting face screaming in unbearable agony rose from the venomous pool. It was the spirit of Voldemort, reaching out in pain as its vessel was destroyed. The spirit stretched spectral fingers towards the three students, howling its rage and hatred of those who would see it destroyed. Harry could make out snakelike features on the thing, as though it had become more beast than man.

As the disembodied spirit drew close, Harry let go of his ears to grab the hands of both girls. Ginny and Hermione clutched his hands tightly, and together they stood to face Voldemort's shade.

"Get the bloody hell out of here, you snake-faced bastard!" Harry yelled. "You're done for!"

Ginny tightened her grasp on Harry's hand. "That's right! A 12-year-old girl just ended you, arsehole! You can't hurt me or anyone else ever again!"

The ghostly hands reaching towards them began to convulse as their words hung in the air. The shade's mouth opened wide, but no sound came out.

"You've lost," Hermione said simply. "Now go away for good."

The form convulsed at her words. A blinding white light began to radiate from its ethereal form while a soft noise, as though a million tiny bells were ringing in the distance, began to sound. As the sound grew louder, the shadowy figure reached one hand upward as though in supplication. Then everything ended, and the figure formed from the cloud of smoke vanished into thin air as thought it had never existed in the first place.

Breathing hard, Harry gave the hands of Ginny and Hermione a squeeze. Ginny looked at him with unshed tears in her eyes, but anything she wanted to say was stopped when Hermione wrapped the younger girl into one of her patented hugs which stopped her from saying anything.

With the danger over and Ginny seemingly distracted, Harry looked at the Game's notifications to see what had happened.

He smiled at what he saw.

Ding!

Main Quest Notification

I, Horcrux

You Have Managed to Destroy One of Voldemort's Horcux'

Progress:

2/7 Horcrux' Destroyed

Ding!

Quest Alert Notification

Stoke the Fire Within

Heal Ginny Weasley of the Trauma Suffered During Her First Year

Progress:

You Have Helped Ginny Conquer Her Nightmare

Now You Need to Help Her Get Stronger

Find a Way

Ding!

You Made a Hard Choice in Spite of Temptation

Horcrux Quest Reward Updated

Now Includes Bonus Levels for Each Horcrux Destroyed

You, Hermione, and Ginny Each Gain 10 Levels

Future Level Gains from Quests Will be Limited to Party Members Only

Ding!

Quest Alert Notification

Restore Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem

The Goblin Silver of the Diadem has now Absorbed the Basilisk's Venom

Find a Goblin Smith and a Wizard Runesmith to Restore it to its Past Glory

Quest Rewards:

+10000 Reputation Points with the Goblin Race and Professor Flitwick

Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem

Goblin Friend Trait

Do You Accept?

Yes or No

Ding!

Quest Alert Notification

Save Your Teacher's Job

Professor Lupin is in Danger of Quitting his Job Due to the Influence of a Horcrux Powered Curse

Progress:

You Have Found and Destroyed the Horcrux Located in Hogwarts Before Lupin Leaves

Now You Must Convince Him to Stay

The quest notifications made Harry feel good. Real good. Since with another one of his Horcrux' destroyed, Voldemort was one step closer to being defeated for good. And with this one gone, the decades old curse on the DADA position was now broken. All Harry had left to do was to convince Professor Lupin to stick around. Which was something Harry would have done even without the Game's prodding, but the extra levels he could give his friends were also very nice in that regard. As was the validation of Harry's decision for Ginny to be the one to destroy the Horcrux.

Closing the notifications after clicking 'yes' on the quest for restoring the Diadem, Harry began to search for something he could use to pick up the former Horcrux; it was fully intact and, aside from a tarnished look, showed no further signs of being damaged. But the only thing within eyesight were the Basilisk corpse and the giant carving of Slytherin's face, so Harry was left to scratch his head as he tried to figure out a way to safely remove the object from the venomous pool.

His actions did not go unnoticed. For a second later Harry saw Hermione point her wand at the Diadem. A shouted Wingardium Leviosa caused the Diadem to rise into the air. Droplets of the deadly liquid fell from its tarnished surface as it hovered in the air, where a quick water charm from Ginny soon had it clean. Hermione then floated the Diadem to where they stood and tucked it back into the burlap bag.

Harry stood in stupefied silence as he watched it all take place. The two girls had moved so quickly and efficiently that he had had no time to object to their actions. Only once they had finished did he finally find his voice.

"But that shouldn't have worked!" Harry said in shock. "We tried that before and it didn't work then. So why did it work now?"

Both girls shared a bemused look with one another. Apparently, they both knew something he did not. And gosh was that annoying! Was this how Ron had always felt when Harry and Hermione had cottoned on to things faster?

"It worked because the Diadem was soaked in Basilisk venom," Hermione said with a chuckle. "The reason why the snake's venom is so deadly, as well as probably being the reason it was able to destroy the Horcrux, is because Basilisk venom corrodes and destroys nearly all things. Including magic spells."

Ginny took up the rest of the explanation. "Which basically means that, even though the Goblin crafted part survived, the Diadem is now just a piece of fancy historical jewellery."

"Which is a shame, as crafting the Diadem was supposed to be Rowena's greatest achievement outside of helping to found and create Hogwarts. Although… maybe, once we defeat Voldemort for good, we'll someday be able to add a footnote to Hogwarts, a History about this adventure. Surely the tale of how the Diadem was found and a Horcrux destroyed is worth mentioning in it?"

"Really? That's what you're thinking about at a time like this? Is the reason why you join Harry on all of these adventures to find a way to get your name listed in that old, musty book?"

"I – you – that's – no! Ginny, that's not why I help Harry at all!"

"Riiiiiight. Suuuuuure it isn't, Hermione. I toooootally believe you."

"Oh, don't you even start with me, little miss valentine!"

Ginny's face turned a bright shade of Vermillion at Hermione's rejoinder. But it served as a motivator for her too, and in short order the two girls started squabbling with each other in earnest.

At the side, Harry felt like he was trapped in some strange and different reality as he watched them banter. It was almost like how Hermione had bantered with Ron. But something was… different about it with Ginny. As though the swirling undercurrents in a familiar river had gone all crazy and wacko on him.

It was a very odd feeling.

And when Harry gave voice to his confusion and asked just why they had started to fight, their reaction only served to confuse him even more. The two girls merely shot Harry an amused look before they locked arms and walked away from him while giggling. As though they had not been fighting with each other two seconds previously.

Giving up on trying to understand their strange behaviour – girls were barmy, plain and simple – a curious Harry took aim at Ginny with his wand. For one reason or other he had not been able to look at her stats with the Game of Death. And if she was going to be joining them for more adventures in the future, then looking at them might help him to come up with a viable plan of action for taking his revenge upon the duo.

Only to once again be reminded that using the power of 'Observe' sometimes came with the unfortunate consequence of unwanted knowledge.

Ginevra 'Ginny' Molly Weasley

Ginny is the youngest child of seven and is out to prove herself to the world. Although she has faced setbacks in her first two years of school, the young spitfire is out to make the next few years special. She is head over heels in love with Harry Potter, and has determined that it is either him for her or no one else. Her dream is to be a professional Quidditch Player and to be married to Harry with two or three children sometime after they graduate from Hogwarts. (See Character Page for Further Information)

Age: 12

Level 31

Stats:

STR: 49

DEX: 67

CON: 60

INT: 68

WIS: 48

CHA: 81

Traits:

Loyal

Survivor

Headstrong

Large Family

Only Daughter

True Friend

Clutch Performer

Boy-Who-Lived-Fangirl

Amateur Quidditch Player

Life Bonded to Harry Potter (One-sided)

Former Horcrux

Pureblood

Free Spirit

Dedicated

A/N: Regarding Wormtail, I always felt that he was underused in canon. Here you had a spy type character who had successfully managed to act as a double agent for years. Someone that not even Dumbledore suspected. And yet outside of his betrayal of the Potters… in canon, he does nothing spy related. It was a terrible waste of a character.

Meanwhile, you can probably see where I am taking things with Ginny. She won't be as kickass as someone like Tonks, but I rather like the fics where I've seen Ginny become a tough fighter. I'm attempting to build a little more depth into her characterization along the way as I fill in the blanks left in canon. Because what we got in canon was not nearly enough.

Until Next Time,

Elsil