Chapter 24 Crystal Knocks
By Jelsemium
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, and no profit is being made.
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Tonks enthusiasm began to fade as soon as they got to the bottom of the slide. The ground was still littered with bones and the way was still blocked by the cave-in that Ron's wonky old wand had caused.
She looked around, eyes growing larger and larger as she tried to suck in any trace of light.
Even Dumbledore hesitated as he took in the forbidding climate.
"Come on, then," Dusty Binns said impatiently. The now youthful ghost was the only one in high spirits. "I've been waiting for this since before time began."
"Yes, of course, Dustine," Dumbledore said. He cleared the rubble from their path with a flick of his wand.
Fawkes darted ahead, lighting a path. The others followed, treading carefully through the greenish gloom that was only lessened slightly by the light from their wands, the Phoenix and Binns.
They stopped at the wall with the emerald eyed serpents. The malevolence in the emerald eyes gave pause to even Dumbledore.
"Wicked!" gasped Dusty in delight.
"Could we have a little less enthusiasm from the dearly departed?" hissed Tonks.
"Please, let's keep things at a professional level," Sirius said.
Remus was too overawed to make a snide comment at this unusual display of gravity from his friend.
"Harry?" Dumbledore said. "I won't insist that you go through with this."
"That's… I'll do it," Harry said. He swallowed hard, but ordered the doors to open.
Tonks pulled closer to Remus as the wall began to open.
"The more I see of this place, the more impressed I am by your courage, Harry," Dumbledore said. "You truly did prove yourself a Gryffindor that day.
Harry couldn't think of a reply. Much to his relief, Dumbledore continued on without waiting for one.
Sirius clasped Harry's shoulder. "Prongs would have been as proud of you as I am," he said.
"And I," Remus added. The werewolf looked like he wanted to put his arm around Tonks' shoulders, but he made no such move.
The chamber was exactly the way Harry remembered it. Pillars with carved serpents disappeared into the gloom that concealed the ceiling.
"This place looks gruesome," Tonks said.
"It is," Harry said grimly.
They squelched and crunched across the main chamber, towards the statue of Salazar Slytherin with Fawkes flying ahead and Binns floating behind.
"The Chamber of Secrets, at last," Binns said reverently. "Now I can finish my book and go on to the next world. My work here is finished."
"Ew," Tonks said. "Are we walking on bones?" She grimaced and directed her gaze upward. "No, don't answer that."
Sirius answered anyway. "Actually, it looks like glass," he observed.
Everyone, even Tonks, stared down in astonishment.
"Where did all this come from?" Remus wondered.
"I suspect that most of it came from when I took my OWLs," Harry said. "A lot of glass was broken. When I asked later, Dobby said he didn't know who had cleaned it up."
Dumbledore looked angry. "Stupid of me to have overlooked all the breakage," he muttered. "I fear I may be losing my edge."
Sirius shot him a glance. "I confess that I was more amused than alarmed at the breakage. I t didn't even occur to me that one of the examiners could be a fake."
"More proof of senility on my part, considering what happened to Moody," Dumbledore said.
"The elves wouldn't have put the glass in the Chamber," Remus said. "So who put it here and what did they hope to accomplish?" He crouched and reached for a large piece.
The glass moved away from his hand.
The glass behind them began to rattle.
They froze.
"I suppose it's too much to hope that was the wind?" Tonks said.
They whipped around, wands at the ready.
The glass was gathering together, like a reversed film of a vase shattering. Only this was no vase, it was long and cylindrical… No…
"Why don't I like the looks of this?" Sirius asked.
It was serpentine.
A long, serpentine form with four talon tipped legs and a jaw filled with razor sharp fangs. Emerald green eyes glittered in the gloom.
"A Chinese Fireball would explain your distaste," Remus said.
"Really?" Sirius said, as he tried to remember a good glass smashing curse.
"Get Harry out of here!" Dumbledore ordered as Sirius shouted. "Harry! Run!"
Fawkes darted from the ceiling, snatched Harry up in his talons and fled towards the exit.
The Glass Fireball twisted its head and snapped at them as they shot past. This allowed the adults to start throwing hexes.
The Glass Fireball doubled back on its own length in order to pursue Fawkes and Harry. Its agility confounding attempts to hex its eyes.
Sirius transfigured into Padfoot and lunged. He managed to sink his teeth into the Glass Fireball's right rear leg and hold on.
The splintery glass jabbed his mouth and sliced his tongue, but Sirius was not about to release his hold for such trivial pains when his godson's life was at stake.
The others ran back to the exit, Remus in the lead. However as soon as the Glass Fireball was clear of the sinks, it looked back over its shoulder and hissed.
The opening to the Chamber of Secrets slammed shut with ominous finality.
"This just can't be good," Tonks said. She looked at Dumbledore. "I don't suppose you have a spare key?"
"No," Dumbledore said grimly. "We'd better try to find an alternate route out." He looked around. "Dusty? If you would be so kind as to carry a message?"
But Binns was long gone.
"He always did have the worst timing," sighed Dumbledore.