(So here finally is the final chapter of the Chamber of Secrets part of this story. I'm sorry it took so long and I hope you enjoy! I own nothing but my OC.)
"Ughh...Oh yuck!" Ron groaned when the hair raising drop through the sink hole ended in a prickly pile of bones in a chamber that stank of waste.
Harry grimaced, but tried to shake himself off quickly as he quickly took in his surroundings. "Lumos!" He waved his wand, luminating the darkness and making Lockhart jump when the light fell directly on him.
After scanning the area for a moment, Harry turned and nodded towards his friend and professor. "It's all clear. Remember, any sign of movement close your eyes straight away." He warned and gulping, Ron nodded, tentatively pulling out his own wand.
Both boys and Lockhart froze when a loud unsettling crunch sounded beneath their feet upon their taking the first step through the dark chamber. Blanching, Ron strained his eyes to try to see what was on the ground, but aside from the light coming from Harry's wand it was pitch black.
Then his gaze caught on a large unusual shape in the pile of unidentified debris scattered around them. "Harry? What's that?" He gaped, pointing at the shape in terror.
Lockhart's expression was similarly horrified as Harry moved his wand to illuminate the object. "It looks like a...snake." He trembled as he took a step back away.
Harry cautiously approached it. "Well..it's not moving. Maybe it's asleep." He suggested, carefully walking around and examining the snake.
Ron's eyes widened as he followed his friend and got a better view of it. "Bloody h***...Whatever snake shed this must be twenty feet long...or more." He breathed as he turned slightly to follow the coiling ribbon of snake skin further into the chamber.
Harry nodded his head. "Makes sense." He agreed, starting to step further in when Lockhart gave a low sigh and tipped sideways into a pile of what the boys could now see was the remains of variously shaped bones.
Ron stared at his motionless form for a moment before shrugging and looking back at his friend. "Heart of a lion, this one." He started to move away when Lockhart suddenly sprung back to his feet, snatching Ron's wand from him in almost one fluid movement.
Ron flinched as he suddenly felt the tip of his still taped up wand dig into the side of his neck. Harry instinctively raised his own wand towards his former professor as the man fixated the two boys with a diabolical smile on his face.
"The adventure ends here boys." He quickly moved the wand from Ron to Harry without breaking eye contact. "But don't fret. The world will know our story...how I was too late to save the little girl..how you two tragically lost your minds at the sight of her mangled body..and yes how poor Lucy Potter and the other victims unfortunately succumbed to the effects of the Basilisk's paralysis. I'll even bind a limited edition of this book with this very snake skin. For added marketability of course." His smile turned into a sneer.
Harry shook his head. "You can't!"
Lockhart arched an eyebrow challengingly at him. "Oh really? So sorry to disappoint you, Potter. But it is time to say goodbye those memories of yours." He twitched the wand slightly between his fingers before raising to the leve of his head and giving it a wave.
"Obliviate!" The spell started to surge forward through the wand only to get caught at the break and bounce back on Lockhart, sending him flying back to the ground and causing large chunks of rocks to fall all throughout the chamber.
Ron and Harry instinctively threw themselves away from the largest boulders, ending up trapped on opposite sides of the chamber once the rock fall stopped.
Harry tried in vain to find an opening. "Ron!..Are you okay?" He shouted, hoping his friend would still be able to hear him.
There was a series of coughs before Ron finally responded. "Yeah!...I'm fine!" He tried to pull some of the rocks away when something wriggled out from under a few smaller stones and sat up revealing a head of dusty mangled blonde curls.
The figure looked around briefly before his gaze fell on Ron and with a slightly dazed look in his eyes he spoke. "Hello...Who are you?"
Ron furrowed his brows. "Uh..Ron Weasley?" Lockhart nodded thoughtfully at his response, still looking rather dazed.
"Really? And uh...who am I?" He asked.
Ron gaped at his former professor for a moment before the realization hit him. "Harry!" He turned back towards the rock wall where he was sure Harry was still standing.
"Lockhart's memory charm backfired on him! He hasn't got a clue who he is!" He exclaimed as the former Defense Against Dark Arts Professor reached carelessly for one of the smaller stones at his side and picked one up.
"It's an odd sort of place we are in, isn't it?" He chuckled and looked back at Ron with a cheerful grin on his face. "Do you live here?"
With a frown, Ron took the rock from Lockhart and tossed it to himself once before responding. "No."
Lockhart started to arch an eyebrow, but before he could respond Ron struck him with the stone, knocking him out cold.
Harry flinched hearing the thud as Lockhart crashed to the ground. "Ron! What just happened?" He asked.
With a shake of his head, Ron tossed the rock away. "I knocked him out! What do we do now?" He asked growing frantic.
Gritting his teeth, Harry tried to think quickly on his feet. "We can't waste anymore time with Lockhart! You keep an eye on him and try to move as much of this rock as you can to clear the path! I'll go on and find Ginny!" He instructed before shuffling away from the rocks.
Ron took a shallow breath. "Okay!" He took one last look at Lockhart's motionless form before kneeling down in front of the rock wall.
Harry quickly took off through the chamber, hoping Ron would be able to unblock the path and that he'd be able to find Ginny before it was too late.
There was no telling what the Monster in the Chamber was already doing to her.
...
"Open." Harry quietly commanded the gate, willing the command to come out in parseltongue. With a series of creaks and groans, the five snake heads which were engraved into the door pulled away from the center, unlocking and opening the entrance to a tunnel.
Harry peered in and sucked in a breath seeing a row of large stone serpents lining the path into the second level of the Chamber of Secrets. Steeling his nerves, he entered taking off at a brisk pace down the stone path, noticing the dark pool of water surrounding the area.
As he drew closer to the end of the hall, he spotted a statue of a tall imposing figure in wizarding robes, a beard and tall staff.
Harry briefly stared at the statue before his gaze lowered and fixated on the small crumpled figure laying in a heap on the ground at the statue's feet.
"Ginny!" He called out, recognizing the girl's long red hair and the gryffindor's emblem on her robes. "Ginny, please don't be dead! Wake up!" Harry slid to the ground, attempting to shake her away, but the girl remained impossibly still and unresponsive.
"Please wake up!" He continued to plead to no avail. Then he noticed a little black book clutched in Ginny's right hand. Recognizing the worn cover, Harry took the book from her slack grip and opened the front cover.
Property of Tom Marvolo Riddle...Harry read and felt the blood drain from his face. "Ginny! Please wake up!" He tried again to revive Ginny.
"She won't wake." A new voice spoke then and Harry flinched, startled as he turned to see the same young man he had seen in the memory the diary had shown him and Lucy a few days earlier.
"Tom? Tom Riddle? What'd you mean she won't...? I mean she's not...she's not-."
"She's still alive." The figure interrupted, his image misting as he moved carefully in a circle around Ginny's form. "But only just." He spoke gravely, though he didn't seem too worried about Ginny's fate at all.
Harry furrowed his brows in confusion at him. "A-are you a ghost?" He asked. Tom returned his gaze to him.
"A memory. Preserved in a diary for fifty years." He corrected. Harry sighed and looked back Ginny, reaching a hand to touch her arm and flinching when he felt how cold her skin was.
"She's as cold as ice. You've got to help me, Tom! There's a basilisk and-!" Harry began frantically only for Tom to interrupt him again.
"It won't come until it's called." He said in his continuing calm. His unnervingly unconcerned tone finally struck a chord with Harry and he looked back up at the boy, frowning as a coldness, different from the cold he felt from Ginny seeped into the lining of his stomach.
"Tom?" Harry addressed Tom again, turning his body completely towards him when he noticed that he had taken his wand at some point during their conversation.
Slowly, he reached out for his wand. "Give me my wand."
Tom started to shake his head. "You won't be needing it." He said in almost a sneer. Clenching his jaw, Harry tightened his grip on Ginny's arm slightly.
"Listen Tom, we've got to go now! We've got to save Ginny!" He insisted, but Tom shook his head.
"I'm afraid I can't do that, Harry. You see, as poor Ginny grows weaker...I grow stronger." He said as some of the mistiness cleared away, making him appear slightly more solid.
Harry started to stand to his feet. "But she's dying!"
"Yes," Tom nodded, letting his own gaze fall back on the poor motionless girl before him. "But then...at least this way, her pains will soon be ended." He remarked, his gaze almost turning affable before their former coldness returned.
Harry cocked his head to the side at this. "Her pains?...What do you mean by that?" Tom merely shrugged.
"For months, Ginny Weasley has been pouring out her pitiful worries and woes to me within the pages of my enchanted diary. As I fed on her darkest secrets and deepest fears, I felt it was only natural to give back to her...by pouring some of my soul back into her." He explained as a cruel smile appeared on his face.
Harry shook his head. "No..."
"Yes Harry. It was Ginny Weasley who opened the Chamber of Secrets!" Tom hissed with glee as Harry's expression morphed from shock to horror.
"No!..She couldn't! She..she wouldn't!..Not Ginny!"
"It was Ginny who set the basilisk on the mudbloods and Filch's cat! Ginny who wrote the threatening messages on the walls! Ginny who lured Lucy Potter to an abandoned sector of the school where the basilisk was waiting for her!" Tom continued on, his voice growing louder and sharper with each statement.
"But why?" Harry demanded. "Why would Ginny do any of those things? Lucy's been nothing, but kind to her-."
"Because I told her to." Tom explained simply. "You'll find I can be very..persuasive, shall we say. Not that she knew what she was doing really, she was...shall we say in a kind of trance? Still it wasn't long before the power of the diary began to scare her and she tried to dispose of it in the girls bathroom thinking it was over then. But then...who should find it next, but you and your sister? The ones I was most anxious to meet!" He spat, starting to circle Harry.
Harry squared his shoulders, not breaking eye contact with Tom. "And why did you want to meet us?" He asked lowly.
Tom raised his chin. "I knew I had to talk to you two. Meet you if I could. So I decided to show you both my capture of that brainless oaf Hagrid..to gain your trust. It was just too bad that Lucy was already too loyal to him to buy into my story."
"Hagrid was our friend!...And you framed him just like you did to me and Lucy!" Harry finally cut in, his tone as fiery as his temper as his confusion quickly turned to anger.
Anger for what happened to Ginny. Anger at himself for not trusting Lucy's instincts about Hagrid. Most of all, anger at Tom for petrifying all those people and letting the school frame him and Lucy for it.
Tom merely shrugged at his show of rage. "It was my word against Hagrid's. Only Dumbledore seemed to think he was innocent."
Harry raised his chin. "I bet he saw right through you." He said almost smugly.
"He certainly kept an annoyingly close watch on me after that!" Tom snapped, taking another step closer to towards Harry. "I knew it wouldn't be safe to open the Chamber again while I was still in school so I decided to leave behind a diary preserving my sixteen year old soul in its pages so that one day...I would able to lead another to finish Salazar Slytherin's noble work."
Harry stood toe to toe with him. "Well you haven't finished it this time! In a few hours the mandrake draughts will be ready and everyone who was petrified including my sister will be all right again." He said, clenching his hands into fists at his side.
"Haven't I told you?" Tom sniffed. "Killing mudbloods doesn't matter to me anymore. For many months now my new target has been you and Lucy. And believe me, your poor sister would be dead right now had it not been for a most untimely interference!" He took another step towards Harry and this time, Harry was forced to step back.
"How is it that two babies with no extraordinary magical talent..was able to defeat the greatest wizard of all time?...How did you two escape...with nothing but scars while Lord Voldemort's powers were destroyed?" Tom demanded, poking at the scar on Harry's forehead with the tip of his wand as he spoke.
Harry flinched away from him. "Why do you care how we escaped? Voldemort was after your time!" He moved away from the older boy's increasingly more menacing stare.
Tom shook his head. "Voldemort is..my past, present...and future." He retorted, turning swiftly on his heel and raising Harry's wand in the air.
As Harry watched, Tom began to write his full name in flaming letters in the air. When he finished, his flicked his wrist sending the letters of his name scrambling until they formed a single phrase.
I AM LORD VOLDEMORT.
Harry felt his stomach fall straight to the bottoms of his feet as he read he words and realized what Tom was revealing to him.
"You!...You're the heir of Slytherin!" He breathed as Tom returned his gaze to him, his eyes now completely dark and devoid of any feigned innocence.
"You're Voldemort!"
"Surely...you didn't think I was going to keep my filthy muggle father's name!" Tom retorted, his words as sharp as daggers.
"No. I fashioned myself a new name. A name I knew one day wizards everywhere would one day fear to speak! When I became the greatest sorceror in the world!"
"Albus Dumbledore is the greatest sorceror in the world!" Harry argued, allowing his anger to fill him again.
"Dumbledore has been driven out of this castle by the mere memory of me!" Tom argued back.
Harry shook his head. "No! He'll never be gone! Not as long as there as those who remain loyal to him!"
Tom started to reply when he was interrupted by a loud screech.
Both Tom and Harry turned back towards the entrance of the inner room of the Chamber, just in time to see the figure of a large red bird fly towards them clutching a strange lumpy package in its claws.
A Phoenix! "Fawkes?" Harry gaped at the bird as it dropped the leather parcel into his hands. Tom ducked as the creature zoomed over his head.
Fumbling with the straps, Harry quickly unraveled the package to reveal the sorting hat, its wizened eyes closed and its mouth motionless in his hands.
Tom scoffed at the sight. "So...this is what Dumbledore sends his mighty defender." He mocked. "A songbird...and an old hat."
Harry continue to stare bewilderedly at the hat until he realized that Tom was walking briskly back towards the statue of what he now realized was Salazar Slytherin himself.
Standing before the statue Tom began to chant in parseltongue. Harry tried to decipher what he was saying, but couldn't catch it in time.
At that moment there was a terrifying shuffling sound followed by the familiar bellows of the basilisk.
Wasting no time, Harry tossed aside the hat and began to run back across the chamber, making a beeline for the gate even though it was closed.
Tom let out a cold laugh. "Parseltongue won't save you now Harry! It only obeys me!" The creature let out another deafening roar as if agreeing with its handler.
Harry sucked in a deep breath and began to pick up the pace until his feet slipped on the wet ground and he went sprawling on his stomach, losing his glasses when he fell.
Quickly finding them again, Harry fumbled to get them back on his face, ducking to cover his eyes as the basilisk gained on him only to look up when he heard the sound of a phoenix screech again.
With another cry, Fawkes swooped over Harry's head and went straight for the basilisk's head. The basilisk let out a painful howl as the phoenix's claws tore into its eyes, gouging them out.
"NOOOO!" Tom cried, echoing the basilisk. Relieved that the basilisk would no longer be able to use its deadly gaze, Harry quickly got back to his feet and scrambled away towards one of the smaller tunnels in a darker part of the room.
"It's useless Potter!" Tom called out. "Your bird may have blinded the basilisk, but it can still hear you! And its fangs are filled with a deadly poison!" He threatened.
Gulping in air, Harry desperately pressed himself against the wall, making his way deeper and deeper inside until his back hit an iron grate, signally the end of the path.
Frantically, he backed as far as he could against the grate as the basilisk followed the soft sounds of his footsteps on the ground.
Finally spotting a stone at his feet, Harry quickly snatched it up and tossed it behind the basilisk's head.
Upon hearing the clattering sound the rock made hitting the ground, the large serpent turned and slithered away down the tunnel.
Not daring even to breathe until he was sure the basilisk had gone, Harry quickly scurried off in the opposite direction until he had come back out into the main area of the chamber.
Spotting Ginny still laying by the statue of Slytherin, Harry dashed back towards her, ignoring Tom's presence for the moment as he knelt back at her side.
Her cheeks had gone even paler than they had been before and Harry knew, even without feeling for her pulse that she didn't have much time left.
He reached for her hand again.
"It is too late. The process is nearly complete now, Potter. In a few minutes, Ginny Weasley will be dead and I will cease to be a memory." Tom crowed, seeming quite pleased with himself even with the venomous look Harry shot him.
"Lord Voldemort will return..very..much..alive."
"No!" Harry started to charge towards Tom only to be interrupted by the Basilisk shooting out towards him from the pool of water behind him.
Scrambling away from the water's edge, Harry started to run again only to catch sight of a strange shiny object poking out from the mouth of the sorting hat he had left on the ground.
Reaching towards it, Harry seized the object and pulled it out, revealing a large silvery sword with a jewel encrusted handle.
It was indeed a beautiful sword, but having no time to admire it, Harry quickly adjusted his grip on the weapon and turned towards the basilisk with the point of the blade pointed in his direction.
The creature lunged at him and Harry dodged out of the way, running towards the statue and climbing up on it to lure the basilisk away from Ginny.
With another shriek, the basilisk slithered quickly after him, rearing its head towards the statue and flicking its tongue at it to try and track Harry's scent.
Harry carefully pressed himself against the wall, brandishing the sword in front of him until the basilisk got close enough for him to strike.
He swung out once then twice and missed. He swung a third time and this time managed to nick the side of the basilisk's jaw.
Crying out in pain, the giant snake lunged out again this time managing to take out a chunk of the statue when Harry dodged and attempted to climb higher up the statue.
Not giving up on its prey, the basilisk attacked again and again, nearly causing Harry to lose his balance at one point. Finally he stood at the top and took a few more swings at the snake, managing to hit it in the nose before the great snake knocked him back nearly causing him to fall off the statue.
Harry gasped as his body slammed full force into the wall behind him, the sword skidding out of his grasp at the impact.
Seeing the basilisk about to take a final lunge at him, Harry quickly scrambled back to his feet, snatching the sword before it could fall out of reach. With one final swing, he stabbed the basilisk right through its upper jaw, getting one of its fangs stuck in his arm as he did so.
Yanking the sword free, Harry cried out with pain as the venom entered his veins and caused an immediate burning sensation through his skin.
Gritting his teeth against it, Harry tugged out the sharp tooth that had gotten lodged into the wound as the basilisk finally succumbed to its wounds, dying with a final screech at Tom's feet.
Quickly climbing back down from the statue, Harry attempted to rush back to Ginny's side, but his legs suddenly began to feel numb. Grabbing at his still throbbing wound, Harry stumbled forward and collapsed on his knees in front of Ginny's body, the sword clattering to the ground next to him.
She was now nearly dead and Tom was looking more stable than he ever had before.
Harry tried to reach out towards the girl again, but his wound flared up again
"Remarkable isn't it? How quickly the basilisk venom penetrates the body. I'd guess you have little more than a minute to live Potter. Not worry, you'll be with your dear mudblood mother soon Harry and as an extra bonus, I'll make sure your sister joins you as well." Tom spoke contemplatively.
"Funny," He continued, sounding amused. "the damage a silly little book can do. Especially..in the hands of a silly little girl." He sneered back down at Ginny.
A dark glare appeared on Harry's face then despite the obvious discomfort caused by the basilisk venom.
Looking from Tom to the diary, Harry realized he was still holding the basilisk fang in his hand and raised it up to examine the tip.
Grasping in his slightly trembling fingers, Harry quickly opened the diary and flipped through the pages until he found the very page where he and Lucy had memory traveled not too long ago.
"What are you doing?" Tom asked, for once not sounding at all confident or triumphant as he had been earlier.
Pressing the page open, Harry readjusted his grip on the basilisk fang and without hesitation brought it down onto the empty page.
"No!" Tom lunged forward to stop him, but he was too late. A blood curdling scream erupted from Tom's mouth as Harry stabbed the open pages of the diary with the fang, drawing a vile black liquid from it as if the book were bleeding.
As more of the black substance poured from the diary, Tom Riddle's image began to crack and fade. Seeing this, Harry stabbed at the book again causing Tom to fall to his knees, covering both hands on his face as he began to crumble and crack away.
Closing the diary, Harry took only the briefest amount of time to readjust his grip on the fang before stabbing it this time straight through its dark leathery cover.
More blood-like ink spurted out until finally what was left of Tom exploded in a fury of lights and sparks.
When the spectacle cleared, there was no sign of Voldemort and Harry, the fatigue of his efforts and of the quickly advancing state of the venom in his body collapsed in a heap at Ginny's side.
Startling awake, Ginny quickly scrambled into an upright position, her already wide brown eyes growing larger when she noticed Harry doubled over in front of her.
"Harry?"
Harry nodded. "You okay Ginny?" He asked, gritting his teeth together at the increasing pain in his arm.
Ginny shook her head. "Harry, it was me. But I swear, I didn't mean to! Especially not to Lucy! Riddle made me and..." Here she trailed off, catching sight of the ghastly looking wound Harry was attempting to cover up on his arm.
"Harry! You're hurt!" She gasped.
Harry attempted to hide his pain. "Don't worry about me. Listen! You need to get yourself out, Ginny! Follow the chamber and you'll find Ron. Hurry!" He urged her, grimacing as another wave of pain coarsed through his flesh.
Ginny opened her mouth to argue when she was cut off by Fawkes.
Both children looked up to see the phoenix land gracefully the ground between them, his black beady eyes turning towards Harry.
Harry smiled weakly at the magnificent bird. "You were brilliant Fawkes. Really...I just wasn't fast enough." He coughed as he felt the pain move further up his arm.
"Harry..." Ginny murmured mournfully.
With a sad chirp, Fawkes bowed his head dropping a few of its tears on Harry's wound as he did so.
Immediately the skin around the puncture made by the basilisk fang began to tingle until the terrible burning pain completely dissipated, closing up the wound as if it had never been cut in the first place.
Harry breathed in relief as his body regained its full strength and senses. "Of course...the basilisk has healing powers. Thanks Fawkes." He thanked the phoenix and looked up to meet Ginny's surprised gaze again.
"It's all right, Ginny." He tried to reassure her, holding out his hand to her. "It's over now. Nothing more than a memory."
...
"You both realize of course, that in the past few hours you have broken at least a dozen school rules." Dumbledore began in a lecturing tone as Ron and Harry stood silently in front of his desk awaiting judgement after Ginny had been dismissed to get looked over by Madame Pomfrey in the hospital wing.
"Yes Sir." The boys answered nearly as one, hanging their heads as they knew what was coming.
"There is sufficient evidence to have you both expelled." Dumbledore continued. This time Harry and Ron merely grimaced.
"Therefore, it is only fitting that you both receive...special awards for services to the school." Dumbledore finished with a soft smile, watching the boys with glee as their expressions morphed from dejection to shock then to sharp relief.
"Th-thanks Sir!" Ron sighed, barely speaking over a whisper in his relief. Dumbledore nodded.
"And now Mr. Weasley, if you would have an owl deliver these release papers to Azkaban. I believe we have need for our gamekeeper back." The old headmaster stood from his desk and held out a small sheaf of parchment to Ron who eagerly accepted them and after exchanging one last excited smile with Harry hurried to do as he was asked.
"Yes Sir."
Harry started to follow when Dumbledore called him back. "Oh Harry?"
Harry stopped in his tracks. "Sir?" A sincere, grateful smile crossed the elderly wizard's face.
"First, I would like to thank you. You must have shown me real loyalty down in the chamber. Nothing, but that could have called Fawkes to you." Dumbledore gestured to the phoenix who was sitting at his usual perch by the headmaster's desk again.
Harry offered the much older man a weak smile. "Thank you, Headmaster. It was nothing." He shrugged.
Frowning slightly, Dumbledore gently placed a hand on Harry's shoulder before speaking again.
"I sense," Harry looked back up at him. "Despite the news of the mandrake draught's successful administration on all the victims of petrification, that something is troubling you still, Harry. Am I right?" The Headmaster asked.
Harry swallowed gingerly.
"It's just..." He shook his head. "You see Sir I couldn't help, but notice certain things...certain similarities between..Tom Riddle and me..and Lucy. Well more me than Lucy I guess." He admitted slowly, frowning a bit as he recalled the conversation he had with Tom in the Chamber of Secrets.
He recalled too what he and Lucy had witnessed during their little trip into his magic diary which now sat completely destroyed on Dumbledore's desk next to the sword Harry had used to kill the basilisk.
"Ah I see." Dumbledore nodded. "Well you and Lucy can speak parseltongue and why is that?" He responded. Harry shrugged.
"Because Lord Voldemort can speak parseltongue." Dumbeldore answered his own question readily. "If I'm not mistaken, he transferred some of his powers to you and to your sister...the night he gave you both your scars." He motioned with one wrinkly aged hand towards Harry's forehead.
Harry's brow crinkled in confusion. "Voldemort transferred some of his powers to us? But why?"
"Oh, it was not likely done intentionally of course." Dumbledore shook his head, turning back towards his desk. "But yes. I believe that is why you both can speak parseltongue, and why your scars react to the presence of his powers in the way they do."
The Headmaster carefully lowered himself back into the chair on the other side of his desk and folded his hands together just under his bearded chin.
Harry let out a sad sigh and averted his gaze to the ground. "So it is true then." He said dejectedly. "I should have been in Slytherin." He couldn't keep the sadness out of his voice.
Dumbledore gently inclined his head to the side. "Yes it is true Harry, that you and indeed Lucy as well possess many of the qualities that Lord Voldemort himself prizes. Determination, resourcefulness and if I may say so, a certain disregard for the rules."
Harry ducked his head at this, feeling his cheeks flush a bit in self-consciousness.
"I..."
'Why then did the sorting hat place the both of you in Gryffindor?" Dumbledore asked, motioning towards the sorting hat which now sat unmoving on its stand near to the desk.
Harry shrugged and stared a the old rumpled heap of leather.
"Because...because I asked it to. Lucy told me she did the same thing, but-."
"Exactly! Exactly Harry! And that is what makes you distinctly different from Lord Voldemort!" Dumbledore interrupted enthusiastically gesturing with his hands.
"You see, it is not our abilities that show who we truly are. It is our choices. You choose to use your gifts to protect those around you, while Voldemort chooses to harm them. And if you need anymore proof that you belong in Gryffindor, I suggest you look more closely at this." The old Headmaster reached for the sword and pushed the hilt towards Harry.
Taking a deep breath, Harry picked up the sword and looked down at the still shiny blade, noticing for the first time that there was a name engraved onto the flat surface of the sword.
"Godric...Gryffindor." Harry read aloud and Dumbledore nodded. "It would take nothing less than a true Gryffindor to pull that from the hat. And now, I believe you are anxious to be reunited with your sister. They should be giving her a dose of the mandrake draught now." The Headmaster's smile turned sweet as he non-verbally dismissed Harry from his office.
A relieved smile crossed Harry's face and he started to turn to leave when a knock sounded at the door, making him freeze in his tracks.
Dumbledore raised his own attention towards the door. "Come in!" He called and the door swung open to reveal a distinct, well dressed man with long platinum blonde hair contrasting with his black robes. At his side was a very familiar house elf who shuffled nervously about at the much taller man's side.
"Dobby?" Harry gaped at the elf upon recognizing him before shifting his gaze up towards the man next to him. "Mr. Malfoy!...So this is your Master! The family you serve is the Malfoys!"
Dobby let out a tiny whimper at that as Mr. Malfoy turned a dangerous dark glare down at the elf.
"I'll deal with you later." He all but snarled, stalking into the room with his robes billowing out behind him, shoving Harry aside with the tip of his gold tipped cane.
"So!...It is true. You have returned to Hogwarts!" Mr. Malfoy exclaimed, seeming not all pleased with his discovery. Dumbledore of course merely nodded in acknowledgement of this statement.
"Ah yes, when it was discovered that Arthur Weasley's daughter had been taken into the chamber, they saw fit to summon me back to my post." The old headmaster smiled.
Harry saw Mr. Malfoy struggle with himself for a moment. "Ridiculous!" He spat out finally, tighting his grip on the top of his cane.
"Curiously enough Lucius, when questioned several of those who signed the petition to have me removed as headmaster were under the impression that you threatened to curse their families if they refused to do so in the first place." Dumbledore continued, his expression not shifting from its calm as Mr. Malfoy continued to shift his weight from one foot to the other.
Soon his expression turned from a stunned one to one of indignance. "How dare you? My sole concern has always been and always will be the welfare of this school..and its students." He straightened to his full posture and inclined his chin forward.
Dumbledore regarded him with quiet thoughtfulness. "Of course, Lucius."
Harry resisted the urge to glare at Mr. Malfoy himself.
"So then..." Mr. Malfoy continued wih the same tense and icy tone to his voice. "I presume the culprit has been identified and dealt with?"
Dumbledore nodded his head. "Oh yes. Quite so." Mr. Malfoy allowed his shoulders to relax a little. "And?...Who was it?" He asked, feigning ignorance.
For a few minutes, an uncomfortable silence descended into the room before Dumbledore leaned forward in his chair a bit.
"Voldemort." He answered simply. Mr. Malfoy of course was not surprised by the answer.
"Only this time, he chose to act through another...by means of this." The Headmaster quietly lifted up the destroyed magical diary with the hole Harry had stabbed into it still scarring the black leather cover.
Licking his lips only a bit nervously, Mr. Malfoy nodded in acknowledgement of the object held in the older man's hand.
"I see." Harry started to speak up when he felt a tug on the sleeve of his robe and looked down to see Dobby gesturing at Mr. Malfoy in a suggestive way after nodding at the diary.
"Fortunately, our young Mr. Potter discovered it with help from his sister before she too fell prey to the Basilisk. After this, one hopes that no more of Lord Voldemort's old school things will find themselves in..innocent hands again." Dumbledore continued, fixing Mr. Malfoy with a look that told him and Harry that the old wizard knew more than he was letting on.
"The consequences for the one found responsible for allowing Ms. Weasley to become exposed to Lord Voldemort's diary would be...severe." He shook his head.
After faltering only the slightest bit, Mr. Malfoy straightened his posture again curling the side of his lips in a sneer.
"Yes well...let us hope that the Potter Twins..will always be around to save the day." He turned his gaze towards Harry and the young wizard responded by fixating him with a determined unfaltering look of his own.
"Don't worry. We will be." His right hand clenched into a fist as he thought about Lucy again and the twisted way her body was left petrified by the basilisk.
At that moment, he felt a sudden warmth fill the core of his chest and smiled at the sensation until it faded away.
Dobby moved to tug at Harry's robes again when Mr. Malfoy harshly nudged him away. "Come Dobby! We're leaving!" He spat not flinching when the elf stumbled forward to the floor.
Harry winced as Dobby let out a whimper and cried out again when Mr. Malfoy struck him on the head. Frowning the young wizard started to squeeze the handle of the sword in his hand, wishing he could do something for Dobby.
As annoying and sometimes disastrous the house elf's various interferences had been on most of his and Lucy's year at school, he knew that Dobby's intentions were good and that no matter what, no one deserved to be treated the way Mr. Malfoy did to him.
Lucy would agree.
Spotting the diary laying on Dumbledore's desk again, Harry turned and placed the sword of Gryffindor back down, gazing at the damaged pages of the book for a moment before looking up to address the headmaster.
"Sir?...I wonder if I might have that." He asked carefully, hoping Dumbledore wouldn't refuse him.
The old wizard merely looked up at him with a knowing gentle smile.
...
"Mr. Malfoy!" Harry called after the man who had just left Dumbledore's office carrying Tom Riddle's ruined diary in his hands. "Mr. Malfoy!"
When Mr. Malfoy turned silently to regard him with a cold expression on his face, Harry stopped running and paused briefly to catch his breath before speaking again.
"Mr. Malfoy, I have something of yours." He thrust the diary out at the older man, placing it in his free hand as he did so.
Mr. Malfoy glanced down at the damaged book before returning his gaze to the boy. "Mine? I don't know what you're talking about." He started to hand the book back, but Harry stood his ground.
"Oh I think you do, Sir. I think you slipped that diary into Ginny Weasley's cauldron when she wasn't looking. That day in Diagon Alley?" He pressed.
Mr. Malfoy of course, was unaffected. "Oh you do? Do you?" He responded, almost toyingly with Harry. Harry nodded and Mr. Malfoy thrust the diary at Dobby before leaning over towards the younger wizard.
"Well why don't you prove it then?" He hissed. When Harry remained silent, Mr. Malfoy gave him a smug smirk before turning quickly on his heel.
"Come Dobby!" He ordered shrilly again and the house elf made to obey when Harry quickly stopped him.
"Mm-mm. Open the book." He whispered just loud enough so that Dobby would hear him and Mr. Malfoy would not.
Dobby stared inquiringly at Harry for a moment before doing as he was told. As the pages fell open Dobby's eyes became fixated on a small knitted object that was pressed into the pages and his already large eyes widened even more.
"Dobby? I said come!" Mr. Malfoy raised his voice, but still Dobby did not move.
"Master has given Dobby a sock!" The elf squeaked, hardly daring to believe what had happened as he turned to face his former master less timidly than before.
Mr. Malfoy turned abruptly on his heel in bewilderment. "What? No I didn-..." He started to snap, until he saw Dobby pull the grimy black sock from the remains of Tom Riddle's diary.
"Master has presented Dobby with clothes!" Dobby's voice climbed with excitement. "Dobby is free!" Mr. Malfoy continued to stare in utter confusion and resentment at the object in the elf's hands until his eyes flickered towards Harry who quickly shuffled one leg behind the other in response.
Suddenly his eyes blazed with fury. "You lost me my servant!" He screamed, pulling out the tip of his cane which Harry now realized was actually the handle of his wand.
When Mr. Malfoy began to advance on him with the tip of his wand pointed directly at Harry's head, Dobby moved quickly in a defense stance in front of him.
With a glare fixated on his odd face, Dobby held up a hand warningly at his former master. "You shall not harm Harry Potter!" He spoke sharply as Mr. Malfoy began to utter the killing curse.
Dobby reacted quickly and sent a powerful blast into Mr. Malfoy's chest sending him flying back down the hall at the impact.
Satisfied when the wizard went crashing down to the floor, Dobby crossed his arms with the glare still evident in his expression.
Quickly picking himself up, Mr. Malfoy turned a fierce stare at Harry, dusting off his robes and replacing his wand on his cane before jabbing a finger at the boy.
"This isn't over boy! Your parents were meddlesome fools too and mark my words! One day you and that insufferable sister of yours will meet the same..sticky end!" He threatened before stalking away, tugging at the collar of his robes as he went.
The glare lingered on Dobby's expression for a second longer, before it fell and the elf turned a grateful one towards Harry.
"Harry Potter freed Dobby! How can Dobby ever repay him?" He gushed, clutching the sock still tightly in his hands.
Harry merely smiled and raised his chin. "Just promise me one thing, Dobby." Dobby eagerly nodded. Harry's smile widened. "Never...try to save my life or my sister's again."
Dobby's smile turned a bit sheepish at that. "Ah ha...yes Sir. Will Harry Potter give Lucy Potter Dobby's regards and thank her for all her kindnesses?" He looked hopefully at the boy.
Harry nodded. "Of course. She'll be thrilled to hear that you're free now." Dobby let out a little chuckle and nodded his head.
"Yes. Dobby is free! Dobby is a free elf now!" He gave a little hop and looked back down at the sock again. Harry nodded encouragingly at him.
"Good luck with the rest of your life now, Dobby. Keep the sock." He said before turning to return back to the main areas of the castle.
Feeling another trill of warmth face through his heart, he smiled and placed his hand at his chest. See you very soon, Sis.
...
"Ah! There you are finally. The others revived an hour ago and went to join the feast. All except for Miss Granger of course. She wanted to wait for you. Do you feel any residual stiffness in your joints? Any muscle tension?" Madame Pomfrey asked, as she bent to examine her last patient.
Lucy only groaned as she blinked her eyes, slowly wiggling the toes on one foot than the other before trying to move her hands as her surroundings gradually came into focus.
Lucy? She paused hearing the familiar voice in her mind followed by a slight warm feeling in her chest.
Harry? She smiled then tried to stretch out her arms.
"I feel...a little stiff." She spoke after a minute, slowly moving to sit up when she felt something in her hands.
"Well that's to be expected. Take it slow now and don't try to do too much at one time for awhile. Mr. Creevey already landed flat on his face shooting out of the hospital wing like he did and I don't imagine you'd like to replicate his actions." Madame Pomfrey shook her head as she picked up some linens that needed to be washed.
Lucy allowed herself a soft laugh at this as she looked down at the scarf that was wrapped between her fingers.
"No Ma'am, I don't suppose so." She tried wiggling her toes again, then tried to turn her whole body to the left.
"Careful now. Remember what I said. Nice and slow." Madame Pomfrey warned lightly, stopping in place when she noticed the girl trying to move off the bed.
Lucy nodded her head and clutched the scarf in her left hand while reaching to steady herself on the bedside table with her right.
"Yes Ma'am." Carefully, she set her feet on the floor and tested them before moving to a standing position.
"You're up!" A familiar voice sounded close to her and Lucy turned too quickly, almost losing her balance.
"Hermione! You too! How are you feeling?" She asked, beaming when she saw her best friend standing by the foot of the bed with a broad smile on her face.
"All right. And you? Madame Pomfrey said they had to use a little extra of the Mandrake draught to break the petrification curse on you for some reason. That's probably why you were the last one to revive too." Hermione responded looking down at the scarf Lucy still held in her hands.
Lucy shrugged a shoulder. "Weird...Last thing I remember is seeing the giant snake and then Ginny getting in the way just before I blacked out-Oh my gosh! I forgot I was supposed to meet Harry and Ron in the library to research the chamber of the secrets!" She exclaimed, cutting off her own train of thought.
Hermione chuckled and shook her head at this. "I'm sure they'll forgive you, Lucy. Harry and Ron actually figured out the secret behind the Chamber and the Monster and stopped the one responsible for setting it loose on the school." She explained.
Lucy gaped at her. "Really?" Hermione nodded. "Yeah! By the way whose scarf is that you're holding?" She asked, nodding at the long piece of knitted fabric Lucy still held in her hands.
Lucy looked down and shrugged, her cheeks going a little pink. "Oh..it belongs to one of the Weasley Twins, I think. I..was going to return it." She twisted the object between her fingers a bit.
"Oh. Well come on then." Hermione shrugged and gestured towards the door. "Everyone's already at the feast. We'll be the last ones down."
Lucy nodded in agreement and hurried to follow her friend out of the hospital wing eager to see her friends and of course her brother again.
The two girls only stopped running when they reached the main entrance of the Great Hall.
"Look! There's Colin Creevey and Justin Finch-Fletchley!" Lucy motioned with her arm from one side of the Great Hall to the other just as Colin scurried across the Gryffindor side of the hall snapping a few pictures.
Justin saw the girls at the door and gave a little wave which Hermione and Lucy returned with a nod.
"And Nearly Headless Nick!" Hermione added just as the ghost in question floated up to them, smiling widely as the red and gold Gryffindor banners fluttered as he passed them.
"Ah! Hermione Granger and Lucy Potter! Welcome! Welcome! You're both looking quite well this afternoon!" Both girls beamed up at the kindly spectre.
"Thank you Sir Nicholas!" Hermione replied respectfully. "Yes! Thank you!" Lucy chimed in. She started to look around the Great Hall again until a familiar red haired figure ran into her line of sight.
"Lucy! Listen I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! Riddle made me and-!"
"It's okay!" Lucy cut Ginny off, happy to see that the younger girl seemed to be doing much better than she had been through most of the year.
"I know you didn't mean to and I'm glad you're okay now, Ginny. Maybe after today we can try to be better friends with each other?" She asked hopefully and Ginny nodded.
"I'd like that." She agreed and glanced at Hermione with a shy smile still on her face. "Well, I should get back to my seat. Welcome back again! You too Hermione." She added sheepishly.
Hermione nodded back at her. "Thanks Ginny!"
Both girls continued to comb through the crowd of students sitting in the Great Hall after Ginny left until Lucy's eyes finally found Harry, Ron and the other Weasleys sitting near the front half of the Gryffindor table.
Lucy poked Hermione in the arm. "There they are!" Hermione shifted her gaze and her grin widened when Ron noticed them and gave Harry a poke in the ribs with his elbow.
"Harry! It's the girls!"
Wasting no more time, the girls began to rush across the Great Hall towards their friends with Hermione throwing herself into an embrace around Harry while Lucy did the same with Ron.
"It's good to have you two back!" Ron said after he and Hermione had exchanged hand shakes while Lucy and Harry hugged. "Well...back to normal I mean." He added hastily.
Hermione beamed at him. "It's good to be back. Congratulations by the way! I can't believe you both solved it!" She said excitedly. Lucy nodded in agreement.
"Yeah! Way to go!"
Harry shrugged sheepishly. "Well we had loads of help from you, Hermione. And you too, Lucy." He glanced at his sister before facing forward again.
"Honestly I don't think we could have done it without you." Hermione looked pleased. "Thank you!" She nodded and turned to exchange glances with Lucy when two more figures rushed up, one of them grabbing Lucy up in a big bear hug while the other ruffled up Hermione's hair.
"Don't forget about us!" "Yeah! We were worried sick too!" The Weasley Twins chortled as George released Lucy from his embrace while Hermione huffed and smoothed over her curls.
Lucy giggled and turned to face them. "Thanks guys! Here's uh...here's your scarf back. Sorry it took me so long to return it." She apologized softly, holding out the long knitted piece of material in her hands.
The Twins exchanged glances then George reached to take the scarf back. "No worries, Lu. Just promise us you won't go scaring us like that again."
"Yeah mate, I thought Georgie here was going to pass out when word got out that you were attacked." Fred chimed in, playfully messing up his brother's hair.
George turned a narrow eyed gaze at his twin. "What? Me? That was you, ya git!" He gave Fred a playful shove which his twin returned. "No it wasn't!" Fred shouted back until a tinkling sound echoed through the hall, causing all conversations to come to a halt.
"Could I have your attentions please?" Professor McGonagall's distinct voice pierced through the sudden quiet, prompting the six friends to quickly find their seats at the Gryffindor table.
Dumbledore rose from his place at the middle of the teacher's table and addressed the crowd of students sitting before him.
"Before we continue the feast, let us have a round of applause for Professor Sprout and Madame Pomfrey, whose mandrake draught has been successfully administered to all who had been petrified." The old headmaster began and this pronouncement was answered by a hearty smattering of applause.
Lucy and Hermione exchanged smiles as they clapped along.
"Also!" Dumbledore added on as the applause began to die out. "In light of recent events as a school treat...all exams have been canceled." He said with a benevolent smile.
This annoucement was met with another even bigger round of applause with some students even getting to their feet in their enthusiasm.
Hermione's face however fell at the news. "Oh no." She moaned quietly. Lucy noticing her distress, lightly patted her arm.
Hermione looked up and the two girls exchanged wry smiles just as the doors of the Great Hall swung open again.
Harry and Lucy turned nearly as one to see the unmistakable large figure of Hagrid filling the entrance. With only a brief pause, the giant gameskeeper strolled into the Great Hall admist varied stares from everyone.
"Sorry I'm late!" He called out to Dumbledore as he moved closer towards the front of the hall. "The owl that delivered my release papers got all lost and confused! Some ruddy bird called Errol!" Hagrid shrugged.
Eyes widening slightly, Ron slowly turned to exchange an anxious glance with the Headmaster, relaxing when Dumbledore answered him with a wink.
Harry, Lucy and Hermione exchanged slightly laughing grins turning when Hagrid reached their places at the table.
"I just wanted to say," The gameskeeper began softly addressing the four second years who sat side by side with each other on the same side of the table.
"That if it hadn't been for you Harry, Ron, Lucy, and Hermione of course that uh...I'd still be locked up you know where. So I'd just like to say...thanks." Hagrid finished, gazing upon the four children gratefully as Harry and Lucy stood from their seats.
"I always believed in you, Hagrid." Lucy spoke up first. Harry nodded before adding on. "And besides, there's no Hogwarts without you."
Hagrid started to sigh with joy when Harry came forward and wrapped the much larger man in as tight an embrace as he could manage. Lucy joined in just as the half giant gently wrapped his arms around both of them in return.
"Aww shucks you two." He let out a watery laugh, raising one of his hands to wipe away at a few tears that managed to get loose from his eyelids.
The Potter Twins gave him an extra squeeze just as another round of applause gradually filled the Great Hall again.
As Harry and Lucy began to pull away from their giant friend to join in in the applause, Lucy felt someone squeeze softly on her upper arm and turned.
Hey, by the way, Dobby the elf sends his regards. Harry grinned while still clapping. Lucy smiled back at him at that.
You'll have to tell me everything after the feast! Everything that happened after I got petrified!
Harry merely nodded and shrugged a shoulder.
Sure. I'll tell you and Hermione everything. He promised, glancing back over at Hagrid and all the rest of his friends again.
There's so much to tell!
...