Author's Note

This is my first work of fan fiction, though not my first written work. I do hope that you enjoy it, as my desire is to entertain readers just as much as it is to get this story out of my head.

I despise typos, continuity errors, and formatting mistakes. Do not hesitate to point them out so I may set them on fire, though I would prefer you DM me so my shame does not live eternal in the reviews. Unless it relates to apostrophes, which I have learned I have no control over.

Please. Review. I cannot stress this enough. Your feedback, both positive and negative, motivates me and helps me to become a better writer.

Do. Not. Post. Spoilers. In. Your. Review.

Disclaimer: I am not the immensely talented and inspiring woman known as J. K. Rowling, and therefore hold no claim to the fantastical world she allows our imaginations to frolic in.

I am sorry for the absurd delay with this chapter, I took a week off for a vacation and somehow came back with pneumonia of all things. Even weeks later I am still just getting back on my feet. I will try to get back on my regular release schedule as soon as I can, thanks for anyone who has been waiting for more. I've been working furiously on these next four chapters so I can release them on the same day, as a bit of a thank you towards you all.

Chapter 09: Dungeons and Drapes

"Lumos."

Harry held his wand over his head, casting light around the dark cavern as he looked about. The walls shimmered with moisture as the light hit it, and he could easily make out the long tunnel ahead. He stared down it, remembering the last time he had come this way over a year ago. Even though Harry wasn't in a rush to save someone's life this time the same sense of urgency washed over him as he took in the familiar surroundings. His fingers flexed around his wand and he started to breathe heavily as he stared into the darkness beyond his light.

But just as he was about to rush forward, a hand placed itself gently onto his shoulder.

"It's alright Harry. There's nothing left here that can hurt you."

He looked back and saw Dumbledore looking down at him, the concern on his face obvious. Just seeing him there relieved Harry of most of the tension in his body and he slumped his shoulders.

"Sorry sir." Harry began. "Bad memories. I'll try to forget about them."

Dumbledore shook his head slowly and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"Never try to forget the past. It is impossible to do so, and you will only torment yourself. Instead learn to accept the fact that you did what you thought was best at the time."

"How long does it take to learn that, sir?" Harry asked.

The old wizard gave him a sad look with a small smile. "My dear boy, I will let you know."

Harry wanted to ask what the Headmaster meant by that, but before the two of them could continue their talk they were interrupted by the loud sound of a body hitting the ground behind them.

Harry rushed over and offered his hand to the older boy on the ground with a look of concern. "Are you okay? I did say it was a rough landing."

But even in the dim light of Harry's wand it was easy to see that Cedric Diggory was smiling broadly. "I take worse hits at quidditch practice. But that slide was brilliant, how far did we go? We have to at least be under the dungeons!"

Harry smiled back bemusedly as he helped the tall boy up. If someone had told him that he would be spending his morning under the castle with the Headmaster and the other Hogwarts Champion he wouldn't have believed it, but once the Hufflepuff had heard where they were planning to go he had practically begged to come along.

"It's not quite as grand as I thought, but I'm still surprised to see it under the school. And especially that we had to go through the girls' bathroom to get here." Cedric said as he raised his wand and added his own light to the tunnel.

"This isn't it." Harry responded in a serious tone, remembering again where they were headed. "We'll have to walk for a few minutes before we get to the proper entrance. And there was a cave-in up ahead Professor."

Dumbledore nodded absently as he was slowly waving his wand, twisting it slightly as he did so. The rocky earth beneath their feet began to shift as if it were melting, and within seconds Harry and Cedric found themselves standing on a completely smooth pathway. As the Headmaster turned towards the tunnel the path began to quickly lengthen until Harry couldn't even see the end anymore. But just as he wondered how far it went the old wizard pointed his wand down and began twirling it in a tight circle.

On either side of the path pillars began to rise up, smooth and made of stone, spaced several feet apart. Just as they reached around ten feet in height the ends seem to explode in slow motion. More of the same smooth stone shot out and began to connect with each other until, after only a few seconds, they formed a completely seamless ceiling.

Then, slowly, what looked like giant mushrooms seemed to sprout straight from the center of the ceiling. But as they lengthened and began to hang down the shapes became more elaborate and artistic. With a final flick of his wand small blue flames sprouted into existence along what Harry now recognized as chandeliers, and the entire pathway became brightly illuminated.

"There now, that should last awhile. We shouldn't have to worry about any cave-ins going forward." Dumbledore said with a smile, brushing his beard thoughtfully.

Harry gazed in awe at the corridor the Headmaster had just brought into existence. Even after the last few years of his life there were times where magic would leave him speechless. But even more than that, it reminded him of how much more he still had to learn. He looked over at Cedric, who was running his hand against one of the pillars appraisingly. While he was clearly impressed, he wasn't floored in the same way that Harry was. He wondered how much more magic the sixth year understood that Harry had yet to even learn.

"Harry?"

The sound of Dumbledore's voice dragged the teen from his thoughts. "Sir?"

"While I have endeavored to make our travel a bit less hazardous, I daresay this is still your adventure my boy. I would appreciate it if you would lead us on." Dumbledore said with an excited twinkle in his eye.

Harry nodded and began moving down the now cozy tunnel, his two companions coming up soon behind him. After a few minutes of travel he did manage to see the corridor in front of him meet abruptly with the same type of uneven dark rock it had originally been. But with every step Harry took the corridor seemed to extend, with new pillars and lights springing up automatically. He saw sections of rock easily pushed aside to make room as if they were made of marshmallow, and in fact, he could swear there was a boulder waddling out of the way on its own.

He turned back to see Dumbledore with a serene smile on his face, his wand still in hand but kept loosely at his side.

"Sir, if I may ask, how is the hallway doing that?"

"Ah." Dumbledore replied eagerly. "You will learn, Mister Potter, that it is much easier to modify an existing structure than to create one. In fact it barely takes any concentration at all."

"We've only just started on structural transfiguration." Cedric interrupted. "But I don't think even Professor McGonagall could have done this quite so quickly considering the density. And Sir, honestly, it would take most people a lot of effort even just to maintain this."

Dumbledore hummed a moment in response. "Correct me if I am wrong, Mister Diggory, but as I recall Transfiguration is your best subject?"

Cedric grinned widely. "I'm more interested in conjuration, Sir. I'm excited for next year. Though I admit I have studied ahead a bit. I feel lucky to be attending Hogwarts, Headmaster, considering that you are currently the only master of conjuration."

The older wizard smiled and nodded. "Oh I daresay, I doubt I am the only master. Never forget, either of you, that there are plenty of powerful witches and wizards in the world who are quite content living ordinary lives. Not everyone needs to have their name on a certificate, or to be highlighted in the Daily Prophet for their achievements. Why I once knew a witch who could create the most delightful peanut butter and pickle sandwiches out of thing air."

Harry smiled as he moved forward, listening to the exchange between the Headmaster and the Hufflepuff. He loved Ron and Hermione with all of his heart, but he was starting to wonder what he was missing by not having more friends. Just that morning he had bumped into those older Gryffindor's, who had seemed perfectly willing to stand by his side against Malfoy. And if breakfast had shown him anything it was that even people he knew, like Neville or Ginny, seemed to care for him much more than he thought.

And now here he was listening to Cedric, who had begun asking Dumbledore about the laws of transfiguration, and he felt like he was learning more just from listening to him talk than he did in an entire day of class. He wondered if he would be able to make friends with the older boy, or if the nature of the tournament would prevent it? On the quidditch pitch Cedric always seemed very friendly, and didn't seem to be bothered that they were on opposite sides. During the tournament, however, they would be competing even more directly, and he wasn't sure if Cedric would be able to maintain his usual sportsmanship.

Just then, as Harry was listening to Dumbledore explain an easy method for transfiguring wood into stone, he came to a sudden stop. Several feet in front of him the passageway ended, blocked off by a massive circular door. A circular door with seven ornate snakes built into it.

Harry felt his breath catch in his throat as he tried to speak, and his body tensed with nervousness. He never thought he would find himself down here again. On the other side of the door would be the place that once held the dying body of Ginny Weasley. It was the place that was home to a thousand year old basilisk that killed most creatures with a single look. But worst most of all, it was the place where he had met the memory of Tom Marvolo Riddle.

"The Chamber of Secrets." Came Cedric's awed voice.

Harry turned as the boy walked up to stand beside him, his eyes glued to the doorway and scanning every inch of it. Dumbledore's eyes, on the other hand, never left Harry as he approached the door.

"Mister Potter." He began quietly "If you need a few moments we can wait, I know it must be hard coming down here. We do not even have to go in if you do not want to."

He looked back at the Headmaster with a bit of surprise. "But Sir, wasn't it your idea to come down here?"

Dumbledore sighed, his forehead creasing slightly as he spoke. "You asked me earlier how long it takes to learn from your past. I must apologize, as I still do not know the answer. However, I do know that the very first step is to face it. But I want you to know that it does not have to be today."

Harry looked at the Headmaster for a few seconds in thought. This didn't seem to be a test, or even a riddle, like so many of the conversations they had had in the past. Dumbledore seemed to be simply offering him a choice. But before he could think of a response they were both distracted by a sudden sound.

TAP. TAP. TAP.

Harry turned to see Cedric loudly tapping his wand against the edges of the door and then, to Harry's confusion, doing the same against the raw stone it was built into.

"Blimey. This door wasn't made here, Professor, it was transfigured somewhere else and then brought down. Why would he go through all that work?"

Cedric had such a large smile on his face that if he were a dog, Harry thought, his tail would be wagging. He had to remind himself that the older boy hadn't had any part of the events that transpired here, and wasn't being haunted by the same dark memories that were holding harry back. To him this must be a grand adventure that few ever had the chance to experience.

For the second time since he had come down here Harry smiled. Maybe it was Dumbledore's reassuring presence, or Cedric's clear excitement, but he could feel much of his own wariness vanishing. Perhaps sensing this Dumbledore smiled and motioned to Harry that they should rejoin Cedric.

"I am certain, Mister Diggory, that Salazar Slytherin has warded this door with countless enchantments." Dumbledore began. "Especially when you recall that he most likely built it for the express purpose of keeping out his contemporaries, each of whom was a master of magic in their own right. I am quite certain that if Mister Potter was not with us, we would have no hope of accessing the Chamber.

Both of them now turned to Harry who was looking intently at the snakes attached to the door.

~Open~ He hissed.

He stepped back as the serpents came to life and one by one slithered away from the edges of the door, each making a loud sound like a lock being undone. As the snakes became still once more the door slowly swung outwards, creaking loudly after a year of disuse.

Cedric and the Headmaster had stepped back when the door opened, but Harry moved forward. He didn't understand why, but he felt like he had to be the first one to enter the Chamber, otherwise he might never go in. He approached the dark entrance, which seemed oddly smaller than the last time he had been here, and moved through it.

The second his foot landed on the other side of the entrance green light sprung forth from dozens of braziers against the walls, illuminating the rows of serpent statues that lined the pathway. Harry took a few steps forwards and looked past them to the center of the Chamber, a large circular stone cavern with a massive statue on the far wall. Salazar Slytherin looked as intimidating as he did when Harry had only been twelve, his mouth hanging open as if frozen in a scream while his eyes were cast in shadow. But what attracted Harry's attention the closer he got wasn't the Chamber's architecture, but it's one time resident.

The body of the great basilisk lay in the center of the room, its massive head turned awkwardly to the side, while its scales shimmered in the dim torchlight. But as Harry drew nearer he could see the effects that time had had on the corpse. While the scales had maintained their luster the skin seemed to sag unnaturally throughout its length, like a long balloon that had been slowly losing air. Its mouth hung open, still crowded with dangerous looking fangs, but the interior was pitch black with decay. However, what was most noticeable to Harry were the large empty sockets that once held its deadly eyes.

He stood there just staring at it for a moment, taking everything in. But the longer he stared into the empty spaces where the creature's eyes had been the more he could hear its loud echoing hiss. The last moments of its life played through his mind, and he recalled the feeling of the basilisk's fang piercing through his arm. He held his arm lightly as he then remembered holding Ginny Weasley's near lifeless body in his arms.

That's when he realized where he was standing.

As Harry looked down he saw that the stone floor around him was stained black, shooting out in all directions from exactly where he stood. The screaming howl of Tom Riddle filled his ears and became so loud he almost grabbed them to block it out. He wanted to leave, no, he wanted to run. Harry wanted to turn around and never lay his eyes on this room ever again.

What Harry did was punch the basilisk.

Two, three, four quick steps forward and he threw his fist directly into the side of its head. He could feel the hard cold scales give way instantly without any flesh to support them, only to quickly meet bone and become a solid surface. Harry heard a satisfying crunch from the corpse, as well as a jolt of pain shoot out through his fingers and up his arm. He stood back and looked at the relatively small indentation he had made in the creature's hide.

His breathing was heavy, and his hand hurt, but there was nothing for it. He knew that Tom Riddle had forced the creature to obey it, but it was still the beast that stalked the halls of Hogwarts for months and threatened the lives of countless students. It was still the monster that haunted his nightmares for weeks after, turning every long shadow into a vision of death. And even now staring at its dead body he half expected it to rise up and strike back at him. His bruised hand tightened automatically, readying itself just in case.

But just then a firm hand slapped onto his shoulder, surprising Harry who had forgotten he wasn't alone. When he turned he was again surprised to see that it wasn't the Headmaster, who was standing several feet back giving him a regretful look, but rather Cedric. The older boy was staring hard at the place Harry had hit with a very serious expression, before finally turning to face him.

"Good thinking Harry. If he wasn't dead before, that surely finished him off."

Harry blinked. And then, without any control over it, snorted loudly and began to laugh. The other boy grinned and gave him a pat on the back, while Dumbledore shook his head while he himself chuckled. The tension that Harry had felt slowly building during this entire journey slowly began to lessen and he noticed, once he stopped laughing, that he was having an easier time breathing. He hadn't even noticed how heavy the air had seemed until that feeling went away.

Dumbledore walked over slowly, and as he did so he waved his wand in a broad arch and all of the sickly green torches began emitting light of soft reds and golds. Almost immediately the damp cold that clung to the air dissipated, and Harry was surprised by how warm he was able to feel in the Chamber. He then joined the two students next to the basilisk, giving it an appraising look.

"It saddens me greatly to see such an ancient being dead before me. I must thank you once more Mister Potter for bringing to justice the one responsible for turning it into a weapon against the students." The headmaster said gravely, while slowly stroking his beard in thought.

"But Professor," Cedric said sounding confused. "It was a monster that wanted to kill students, surely it's good that it's dead?"

Dumbledore shook his head slightly before addressing the boy. "Did it want to kill students? Or did it only do so because it was ordered to? And even if not, is it right to hold an animal to human values? Surely in that situation killing it was the only practical option, but that does not mean it was not regrettable."

Harry listened carefully to the words of the Headmaster, as he moved quietly to the edges of the room. He didn't have the same interest in the basilisk that Cedric and Dumbledore had, and was perfectly happy to take a seat as far away as possible. Unfortunately this did mean that he was sharing a stone platform with a five foot tall snake statue, but with the change in light it didn't bother him as much. In fact, Harry mused, where the dim green light had given the statues evil grins, the bright orange light seemed to make them smile.

Harry decided not to share this opinion with anyone.

"The first thing to do." Came Dumbledore's voice, echoing slightly in the chamber as he and Cedric walked over towards Harry. "Is to remove the body of the basilisk. Afterwards we should seal off any areas that look dangerous, and then give the place a good cleaning. I can then make sure to fully stock the chamber with the same training equipment that the other champions have access to."

"Professor." Harry said. "I know that the body is half the size it used to be . . . "Cedric paled considerably at these words, though Harry didn't notice. "But can we levitate it out with just the three of us?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "Oh no my boy, considering its length that would be an arduous task indeed. And I wasn't planning on us doing the majority of the needed work regardless. Now that you have shown me the chamber I was planning to ask a few of the Hogwarts house elves to assist us."

"House elves?" Harry said thoughtfully. "You mean like Dobby?"

POP

"Harry Potter Sir calls for Dobby!?"

A bullet, the size of a small child, suddenly struck Harry in the side, knocking him from his perch and onto the cold stone floor. His hand, the non-injured one, landed hard and he could already feel another set of bruises forming. He winced as he sat up, rubbing his hand, and looking down at the pair of tennis ball sized eyes staring up at him.

Dobby looked significantly better than the last time Harry had seen him. His skin had gained more color and didn't seem to drape off of his bones quite as much. The tea towel he was wearing was bright white, without any dirt, and had the schools emblem embroidered proudly onto it. The elf even had on a pair of bright red socks that wouldn't have looked out of place in the Gryffindor dorms. He also noticed that the perpetual hunch he usually had was absent. But more than anything else it was the smile on the small creatures' face that told Harry that things had changed significantly for the house elf.

"Dobby?" Harry said in confusion while trying to get back on his feet. "You work here now?"

The elf backed up suddenly, as if just realizing what he had done, but though the smile turned tentative it remained on his face.

"Oh yes Harry Potter Sir! Dobby has been so happy here. No one punishes Dobby or makes him do things he shouldn't be doing. Headly-Master even pays Dobby! Dobby gets one galleon a week! But most of all Dobby gets to see Harry Potter Sir every day!"

"What? Dobby I haven't seen you since the end of my second year."

At this statement Dobby's ears became droopy, and his massive eyes suddenly took a great interest in the stone floor. He twisted his long thin fingers together just as his spine began to bend in that all too familiar hunch.

"Dobby is a Hogwarts elf, but Dobby still cares greatly for Harry Potter Sir. House elves are not supposed to be seen, but house elves can still be doing the seeing. Dobby sees Harry Potter Sir as often as he can!" He completed with a squeak.

Harry could hear Cedric stifling his laughter, but he didn't care. He looked down at Dobby, trying to catch his eye.

"How often do you check up on me Dobby?" He asked.

If possible Dobby hunched even further. "Dobby has been very busy lately, Harry Potter Sir. Dobby has been having to watch over a friend, and Dobby cleans Gryffindor tower on his own. Dobby does not have the time he did over the summer. But Dobby still checks on Harry Potter Sir forty or fifty times."

"Dobby! Look at me!" Harry said in disbelief, causing the elf to crane his neck upward. "Are you saying you've seen me fifty times this year?"

Dobby's already massive eyes seemed to grow to almost twice their size. "Of course not Harry Potter Sir! Dobby sees Harry Potter Sir at least that many times each day. Dobby would do more, but Dobby does have work to do."

At this the nearby Hufflepuff lost his composure and began to laugh in earnest. Even the Headmaster seemed to gain a sudden interest in a statue across the room, as he had suddenly turned away. His violet robes almost hiding the shaking of his shoulders. Harry could only stare at the elf.

"Dobby." He said firmly while stepping closer. The elf instinctively flinched when he reached out his hand, but Harry rested it carefully on his small shoulder.

"The next time you come to see me, I don't want you to be hidden, I want you to say hello. You are my friend. I like seeing my friends."

Harry smiled down at Dobby who just stood there staring up at him. His eyes began to shimmer in the firelight, as his body slightly swayed.

"Harry Potter Sir is truly the greatest wizard to ever live." He said softly, a slight tremble in his voice.

Harry coughed and looked away, uncomfortable as always with some of the things Dobby said. But a part of him was still glad to see the elf again, and know that he was doing well. His appearance also had the benefit of making Harry completely forget about his earlier anxiety. In an effort to distract Dobby he started to move back towards the center of the chamber.

Dumbledore followed while stroking his beard, a twinkle in his eye, but silent. Cedric had forced himself to stop laughing rather quickly, but lagged behind until he regained his composure. Dobby had followed Harry without looking away from him, the soft sound of his sock covered feet echoing lightly as he scurried along.

"So Dobby . . " Harry started, trying to move things along. "The Headmaster says you can help us get rid of this?" He motioned towards the corpse of the great snake.

The elf's still wet eyes shifted to the body. "Yes Harry Potter Sir. Dobby can do so without trouble. Where does Headly-Master want me to take it?"

Dumbledore hummed for a moment in thought while walking around the remains in a slow circle.

"The skin should be powdered and delivered to Professor Snape, he can use it to brew several uncommon potions that Madame Pomfrey will greatly appreciate. The venom must all be carefully drained away, especially from the fangs, as it is still rather potent. And the skeleton . . . hmmm"

Dumbledore looked to Harry, a smile clearly present under this bearded face.

"I believe that you should have it, Mister Potter, as you were the one who slew the beast."

Harry was a bit taken aback. He had never come down here to "slay a beast", he had only meant to get Ron's sister out of here as safely as possible. He looked it over briefly. The decayed body, though less than half its original size, was still massive and he had trouble thinking of a place that he could store it. Even his Gringotts vault wouldn't be big enough, and he didn't even know if the Goblins would be willing to store it.

And besides, Harry didn't particularly want it.

"I would rather just let the school have it Professor." Harry admitted honestly.

He didn't catch the astonished look Cedric, who had just caught up with them, made. Only the intense merriment in Dumbledore's eyes had his attention.

"Very well my boy, I promise to find a suitable place. Dobby, would you please remove the body and take care of what we have discussed, and then come find me for further instructions."

Dobby nodded vigorously, his bat-like ears flapping hard against his face. He then placed a hand on the creatures scaly body, gave Harry a shy wave, and then . .

POP

The body of the great basilisk was gone, and so was Dobby. The Chamber seemed much larger now, and significantly less ominous.

"Well now." Dumbledore began. "Since I have two capable assistants, how about we make some improvements? Mister Diggory, you say Transfiguration is your favorite subject, yes? That pool of water by the statue is a bit dangerous, and it would be a fine test of your skills to take care of it. Mister Potter, I know you are not as advanced in your studies, but I think some simple cleaning charms would honestly do this place wonders."

The two students nodded and strode off in two different directions, while the older wizard stared up at the ceiling with a thoughtful expression. Harry walked purposefully towards a black stain in the center of the chamber, his wand pulled eagerly into his hand.

"Scourgify!" he incanted, striking his wand downward towards the floor. The black ink that seemed to permanently stain the stone suddenly vanished in a cloud of particles, as if it were just a pile of soot waiting for a strong breeze. The area around it also lightened in color significantly as a thousand years of grime vanished. Harry grinned, a small weight lifting from his heart, and he eagerly began casting the spell again on the surrounding stonework.

Cedric on the other hand was extremely quiet, holding out his wand with both hands and pointing it to the small pool of water at the base of Slytherin's statue. He had the appearance of someone struggling to catch a large fish at the end of an invisible line, twisting and turning his hands slightly and trying to pull back against an unseen force.

But very slowly the water began to recede, and new stonework seemed to grow out of the old and cover up the area it had been in. It was obviously not an easy transfiguration for the Hufflepuff, but he was grinning as his magic worked. After about five minutes, around the time Harry was done throwing scourgify's around, there was solid floor right up to the statue without a hint of any water.

Dumbledore, on the other hand, waved his wand like a painter creating a new masterpiece. His arm soared in wide arcs, creating banners and drapes that hung from the ceiling, some of which reached all the way to the floor. The cold stone walls were soon covered in soft velvet's of green, yellow, red, and blue; all of the Hogwarts house colors.

He looked upward and spun his hands, twisting his wand, and a flat yellow object began to form. As if he were tossing a pizza he tossed the spinning something into the air, which suddenly expanded out to an enormous size. Cedric had to quickly move to the side of the room as a plush rug landed onto the freshly cleaned stone floors.

Both students had stopped working by now and were watching as Dumbledore circled the area, stroking his beard in thought. With a bit of a hum he pointed his wand towards an empty space, and whipped it quickly to the side. A long blue sofa, large enough for at least several people and in the shape of a half circle appeared from nowhere, hitting the ground with a loud thud. A large coffee table joined it quickly, with a massive bookcase a few feet behind it against the wall. Two armchairs, both a deep green, appeared on the opposite side of the table just before a number of smaller end tables came into existence around the area.

In less than a minute Harry was staring at a very comfortable sitting area that felt more like a house's common room than the feared Chamber of Secrets. He turned to say something to the elder wizard, but he had already moved on to the other side of the room.

Dumbledore tapped his wand against the lone wall still had the original exposed stonework, and after mumbling a few words softly he seemed to nod approvingly. Pulling from his pocket he set down half a dozen small objects, which Harry almost thought looked like tin soldiers from far away. But as the bearded wizard waved his hand the small forms grew considerably.

They were not tin soldiers, but they did have a human shape. The figures were seemingly made from wood and completely black, except for a large white circle painted on the chest. And instead of legs there was a single wheel. The headmaster pointed his wand and each of them backed up against the wall on their own.

"There now, I think that will do for starters." He clapped his hands and turned to his two students. "An area to study and an area for practice. The walls of the Chamber, as I had hoped, are highly protected against magic. You should not have to worry about causing any damage. And of course no one other than those you let in Mister Potter while be able to get in." He said, smiling excitedly.

Harry looked around the room in awe, unbelieving that this was the same chamber as before. It looked as if he were inside of a huge lavish tent rather than being underground in a stone chamber. The only things that remained to prove this was still the Chamber of Secrets were the rows of snake statues along the entrance, and the massive statue of Salazar Slytherin.

"I'm allowed to bring people down here, Professor?" Harry asked.

Dumbledore chuckled. "I have no doubt that you would have brought down Mister Weasley and Miss Granger regardless of my permission. But yes, this room is for the Champions use. You can bring down anyone that you wish to aid with your training. I'm also going to be assigning your friend Dobby to take care of your needs down here."

Dumbledore frowned a bit and looked towards him seriously.

"You have a lot of catching up to do Mister Potter. The other Champions are highly skilled and much more knowledgeable about more advanced forms of magic. I know you like to do many things yourself, but the time it would take you to get to the library and back is time you need to spend studying."

Harry was half ready to disagree with the Headmaster, but he also knew that he was right. Instead he simply nodded, somewhat sheepishly. Dumbledore beamed again, and looked back and forth at each of the boys.

"Well now, we should make our way back upstairs so we do not miss lunch. I personally would like a lemon tart after all of this adventure." He finished smiling.

Dumbledore headed towards the exit, Harry following after another moment of looking around at the redecorated Chamber. Cedric, surprisingly, didn't move.

"Hold on, we're not going all the way back out the snake's exit are we?" The Hufflepuff said with a questioning look

Both Harry and Dumbledore stopped their retreat and turned to look at him. The older wizard stroking his beard as he did when he was in thought, and the Boy-Who-Lived just giving him a questioning look.

"The snake's exit Mister Diggory?"

Cedric cocked his head slightly and nodded towards the large entryway.

"Giant circular door? Five times bigger than it needs to be? Opens on its own when a snake speaks? Winds through a bunch of dirty tunnels to a massive slide? That's clearly not the way people are meant to get in and out right?" The older boy said looking confused.

Harry had never thought of this. The only way they had managed to get out originally was by having Fawkes fly them out, which would be a very impractical way to get in and out of the Chamber. Even the entryway in the girl's bathroom seemed a bit unorthodox now that he mentioned it.

Dumbledore's eyes turned towards Harry, twinkling brightly as if fireworks were going off inside of his head. "You know my boy, I think I would agree with Mister Diggory. Perhaps we should investigate the chamber a bit? Maybe there is still a mystery here." He said, bouncing slightly on his feet.

"That may have been easier to do Sir before we modified everything." Harry said with a frown, looking around at all the covered walls and hidden away alcoves.

But the Headmaster simply waved his hand. "Not to worry, not to worry, I am sure we can still find it. I would recommend splitting up, but I dare say it is more likely that we will need your special talent to locate the exit."

Harry nodded and looked around, his eyes landing on the nearest snake statue. He walked over quickly and started peering at the snake's likeness. The fangs, the tongue, the scales, they all reminded him of the basilisk that he was so afraid of not even an hour ago.

~Open?~ he hissed. Unsurprisingly though, nothing happened. He tried hard to keep the image of a snake in his mind, as he pulled away from the statue. He started to walk around the room very slowly, not wanting to lose it.

~Open!~ he hissed again, much louder this time. He almost felt himself slip back into English, but he remembered the sounds the basilisk made as it struck at him, and how the scales had shimmered in the dim light.

~Open!~

~Doorway!~

~Exit!~

Suddenly there was a loud grinding of stone, and all three heads turned. Harry's jaw instantly dropped. He had expected something like the Chamber entrance in the girl's bathroom, or even something like the entrance to Dumbledore's office. But this? Well . . . this was a bit much.

Author's Thoughts

I can't believe how long it took me to write this chapter. I fell terribly ill halfway through it, and even though I tried to write here and there I never really got anywhere. I literally took months before things got back to normal, and I ended up having to rewrite the whole chapter because I had so many sections that didn't connect anymore.

But overall I think this is a fun chapter. It ran much longer than I had expected, I had not originally planned for so much to happen. However the more I wrote it the more it felt like "this is when x should happen." Originally setting up the room, meeting Dobby, exploring the chamber, that was all going to be spread out at different times in the story. Instead the writing flowed from me much more when I decided to just let it all happen at once.

Cedric is such a fun character to write. We never really get to see a lot of him in the books, so I realize this is my 'headcannon' Cedric. But I like him, and we're going to be seeing a lot more of him for sure.

The entire scene where Harry punches the basilisk corpse is something I wrote when I had a fever, and I don't remember writing it. I laughed so hard when I reread it that it's literally the only part of my original draft I kept. Does it fit the tone of the story? Not sure. Was it fun? Heck yeah.