Chapter Eleven- To sleep, to dream
Voldemort- or more precisely, Tom Marvello Riddle, had not been idle. While he generally favored long, convoluted plans that tended to unfold against one Harry Potter at the end of the school year, he was not above the quick skirmish. (Hell, if his brilliant schemes didn't work, maybe a more direct approach would.) He'd spent days finalizing his plan; to kill his short, scar-headed nemesis, perhaps off Dumbledore, and to steal the fascinating and obviously powerful magical weapon off of the 'other-world' brat. However, simply showing up at Hogwarts would not be acceptable. He was enjoying the obliviousness of the Ministry far too much, and had many sneaky, brilliant, and ruthless schemes that were currently in delicate stages. So an assault on the castle was out. But a sneaky Slytherin like Voldemort didn't have to show up at Hogwarts with an army to get what he wanted. No, he had a much better idea…
It was just unfortunate coincidence that his plan unfolded at the same time that Harry and the Death Eaters were under observation in the hospital wing.
Albus Dumbledore, the only one Voldemort had ever feared- except, possibly, Harry- was up in his office contacting the Ministry of Magic in regards to the captured Death Eaters while Harry sat under Pomfrey's watchful eyes munching on chocolate. (Only in the wizarding world would chocolate have official, medical benefits. Still, after horrific potions like Skele-grow, medicine that tasted nice was somewhat of a novelty…) The motley band of Death Eaters lay bound in enchanted sleep, as well as being physically tied down to their beds. There were five of them, four males and one male-turned female. Harry had blushed when Madame Pomfrey had discovered the hex on the Death Eater, but said nothing. Apparently, he'd been so annoyed when he'd cast his charms it would be a while before they faded.
What a shame.
It was a somewhat warm and cheery scene, with Ron, Hermione, Sora and his friends all gathered around Harry drinking hot chocolate and distracting Madame Pomfrey every time she went to chuck them out. It wasn't as if Harry was badly hurt, after all. Madame Pomfrey had had a somewhat perplexed look on her face as after her fifth scan she concluded that Harry had survived his little jaunt in the Forbidden Forest with the centaurs and the Death Eaters without serious injury.
"It had to happen sometime, Madame Pomfrey," the boy had teased her.
"I still think Malfoy should have gotten worse than a few detentions," Ron whined pathetically, swiping a chocolate frog in mid-jump as it made it's bid for freedom.
"A few? Try a week of detentions, and the loss of fifty House points. Really, Ron, what did you expect?" Hermione shouldn't have asked, because Ron instantly adopted a maniacal expression and began to cackle half under his breathe about being expelled, dragons, and something about Dobby…
His friends wisely ignored him.
"I wouldn't worry about it either way," Harry broke in.
"The twins are always looking for new test subjects, after all. I know for a fact that Malfoy's about to have a really bad week." Harry drifted off with a dreamy smile.
He was a Gryffindor, after all, no matter how many Slytherin traits he had.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that," Poppy muttered to herself from where she stood organizing her potion's cabinet. Minerva hummed agreement from where she stood guard over the unconscious captives.
Unaware of their audience, the little group lying sprawled over the two beds continued on, wondering what kind of creative spells the twins would try out next. Suddenly, however, Sora sat bolt upright with a gasp, grabbing everyone's attention.
"I forgot! Hey Harry, you know how I found you, with the Keyblade? I think I can do the same to find the Keyhole as soon as I get some idea of what the Keyhole is." His friends burst into excited chatter, but the Hogwart's crew looked a little lost.
"But Sora, won't you disappear then?" Hermione asked tremulously. Sora sighed and ran a hand through his wild hair. (Both him and Harry had hair that seemed as if it was constantly trying to escape.) Harry and Ron looked crestfallen.
"Yeah," Sora said softly.
"That's the thing I hate the most, in my travels. I meet the most amazing people, see the most amazing worlds…and I always have to leave. As much as I love it here, I've got a job to do. As peaceful as everything seems right now, it's not. There's some seriously dark stuff going down, and me'n Donald and Goofy and the King need to stop it. Otherwise all the worlds and all the people I've met will fall into darkness." There was a heavy silence.
"Plus, we didn't arrive here in the normal fashion." Sora blinked.
"If you can ever count a gummi ship as normal…but once we get back, maybe we can find this world again, and visit." Hermione sniffed and ran a sleeve over her eyes.
"Yes, you have to visit all the time! And if you ever need any help…" Her friends agreed, fiercely demanding he promise.
"Whoa! I'm not gone yet! The Keyhole's still hiding, so I think there's something I've still got to do here. But don't worry, no matter where I am, you'll all be in my heart. That may sound a little funny, but it's true. I won't forget any of you, and you'll be safe there." Ron was uncharacteristically silent as he listened. Harry nodded fiercely, echoing the Keyblade Master.
"In my heart…I like that." Sora smiled. At the potion's cabinet, the unnoticed Poppy wiped at her eyes and smiled.
--
While this touching scene was being played out, something dark and unusual was happening elsewhere in Hogwarts. (Dark and unusual, sure, but not for Hogwarts…)
And no, it wasn't Creevey prowling around with his camera, although on occasion that fit the description…
It began simply, with just another owl soaring down to join the others in the Owlery, a non-descript bird with a small package and letter tied to it's feet. The bird mixed with the others for a while, before searching for someone in the castle. If you looked really, really closely, the words Severus Snape were visible on the face of the letter…
To give the Potion's Master credit, he wasn't playing fast and loose with the 'light' side of the war, but regardless of his own, messed-up personal feelings, he bore the Dark Mark. He may be secretly defying the Dark Lord and acting as spy, but the presence of the Mark was undeniable. And when it came to the Dark Lord, such an innocuous thing had several hidden abilities no-one was aware of.
Whether he liked it or not, Snape was going to play an important part in the night's events.
"Speak to me, Slytherin, Greatest of the Hogwart's Four…"
And what a night it was going to be, one way, or another.
--
There are potions that can do some truly amazing and terrifying things. People can use them to change form, induce luck, and to counter poisons. They can also use potions to subvert free will, to cause pain and delusions, force truth and even potions that a single whiff of the fumes would kill instantly. Yes, people often scoffed at the Art of potions, because it was a time consuming process, an exact art, unlike the more popular wand waving that got instant results.
It's fairly easy to counter a spell, compared to trying to counteract a substance that runs through your blood.
The question now, was what was Voldemort doing that involved a possessed Potion's Master and the Chamber of Secrets?
--
Harry was just beginning to yawn. It had been an eventful evening, after all.
"Maybe we should all go to bed," he offered. Ron sighed, eyeing a near-by chess board longingly.
"You don't want to-"
"No, Ron. You'd just win anyway. Just consider me beaten for tonight."
"Harry needs to sleep, anyway," Hermione said in a bossy tone.
"He's had a busy day." Harry lifted an eyebrow slightly but conceded the point. Ron suddenly yawned.
"Blimey, you might be right. Suddenly I'm exhausted too." Madame Pomfrey, who had long since finished her organizing, stifled a yawn herself, fighting the sudden, inexplicable need to sleep.
"Well, come on then," Harry said, getting to his feet with an effort. Maybe his run in the Forbidden Forest had tired him more than he thought. Hermione shuffled next to him, face drawn. Harry frowned. Ron ignored them both, having tipped over into the spot Harry had vacated, and was now snuggled into the pillow, eyes shut.
"Ron? Come on Ron, we know you're awake. Let's go already. We can't sleep here."
Ron didn't answer, and Harry reached over and shook him.
"Ron, alright already." The red-head didn't stir, but lay limply. Harry yawned again, and realized Hermione was leaning heavily against him.
Why am I so tired?
Sora was watching this all with a frown, staring at the barely awake Harry, the sleeping boy on the bed, and then turned to stare at the two teachers.
Madame Pomfrey was shaking her head, and Professor McGonagall was blinking rapidly from where she'd slumped against the wall. A chill ran up his spine.
"Sora, something's wrong," Harry cried out. Sora turned to face him, noticing that he was dead white, his eyes glittering emerald against the pallor. He was trying to wake Hermione up, but slumped against him, she didn't even stir.
"They won't wake up!"
Finally, he managed to get Hermione into a chair where she folded up, still asleep.
"Madame Pomfrey! Professor McGonagall! Something's making you all sleep! You've got to fight it," Sora yelled, racing to Harry's side and jerking the nodding teen's head up. His eyes were beginning to glaze, but a desperate spark within burned, and somehow the youth remained awake.
Thump.
Madame Pomfrey had slid to the floor, and now lay still and quiet, draped across the floor as if it was her bed. Professor McGonagall swore terribly, swaying.
"It must be a spell. Harry, you need to contact the Headmaster, find out if it's just us or not. Hurry!" And eyelids fluttering, the teacher managed a quick spell, a shining gold beam lancing across the room to hit the Boy-Who-Lived before she too passed out.
The light seemed to help, and although looking like he was about to drop any second, a little more life flared in Harry's eyes as he straightened. Sora and his friends, seemingly unaffected by whatever had touched the others, most likely because of their resistance to wizarding magic, tried quickly to rouse the others, but nothing worked.
"Come on! Something terrible must be happening!" With incredible inner strength, Harry with the aid of his teacher's spell, was fighting the affects of whatever was clouding his mind and draining his strength. It wasn't like the Imperio curse, because Harry couldn't seem to throw it off. He would push it back, and then it would come again. Stubbornly, Harry kept on going, latching onto Sora's arm for support as they raced towards the Headmaster's Office. It was late, now, but even still they saw several unconscious students lying terribly still as they passed. A concerned ghost spotted them and called out, but the little group didn't stop.
--
The basilisk that had plagued the school had avoided detection because of its chosen method of travel- the pipes. And now, from down in the lower areas of the school, in a hidden chamber assessable only by Parseltongue's- or those possessed by them- an infuriated but helpless Potion's Master was supervising the release of a potion. The bubbling cauldron released waves of heavy bluish smoke that drifted up and into the pipes, loosing color as it did so and merging with the air. Before long, the fumes would be distributed all over the school, rendering all it's occupants temporarily helpless. The Potion of Forced Sleep…
No wonder Harry couldn't fight it off. He was constantly breathing it in, after all.
--
Despite it all, the guardian to the Headmaster's Office refused to let them pass.
"You've got to be fucking kidding me! Lemon drops! Mars bars! Blood pops! Sugar Quills! Just bloody open up before I turn you into rubble!" Before Harry could burst a blood vessel, Sora summoned Oathkeeper, and leveled it at the gargoyle. Without a word, brilliant gold light lanced from the weapon and slammed into the stone creation, forcing it out of the way. They hurried up.
"Professor? Dumbledore? We need help!" Gasping for breathe, Harry burst into the office.
"Headmaster?" There was no-one there. Why, when they needed help, was no-one ever there?
"Where could he- Sora! Do you still have the Map?" Sora was lost for a moment, then remembering, whipped the enchanted object from his pocket and thrust it into Harry's hands.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he hissed hurriedly.
Padfoot greets you and welcomes the young mischief maker back.
Prongs agrees. What wonderful mayhem may we help you unleash today?
Scanning for the dot marked 'Dumbledore', Harry somehow wasn't surprised to find it absent from the map.
"I don't know how much of this you can understand. But there's something bad happening at Hogwarts, and it's probably got something to do with Voldemort. Dumbledore's missing, and everyone's fallen under some sort of sleep spell. Can you tell me if there's anything wrong with the map? I mean, can you sense intruders, or something?" Briefly abandoning the map, Sora was over at Dumbledore's desk, frowning as he searched through it's contents.
Moony is sorry to hear that there is trouble in Hogwarts. But if Dumbledore is not on the Marauder's Map, then he is not in Hogwarts.
Sora shook his head.
"Not necessarily, uh, Moony. Harry here was lost in the Forbidden Forest earlier, and the Forest isn't on the map."
Harry was searching out the teachers on the Map, fingers gliding over the old parchment, muttering to himself.
The Forbidden Forest? Prongs must offer his appreciation for such a bold move.
Padfoot heartily agrees. The Forest, however, is not on our Map, the Map is for the Castle alone.
Harry stared down at the Map in despair, fingers hovering over the dot marked 'Flitwick'. It, like the rest of them, was still and unmoving. All of the teachers…
Hold on, Harry thought, where's Snape?
"You know, Harry, it's possible Dumbledore went to speak to the ministry about the captured Death Eaters," Sora mused.
Harry sat bolt upright. He'd forgotten about that, in all the panic. Double-checking the map, he looked up at Sora, still pale and exhausted.
"I also can't find Snape anywhere in the castle. All the other teacher's are here- even Hagrid's still in the kitchens. He wouldn't have gone with Professor Dumbledore, not and risk his spy status. But I can't find him." Goofy and Donald exchanged looks, lost. Sora bit his lip so hard it bled. Harry was still fighting the effects of whatever spell had been cast, everyone else was unconscious, and the most suspicious teacher at Hogwarts was missing.
"Harry, is there anyway we can contact people outside the castle? Perhaps call Dumbledore back?" Harry rocked back and forth in thought.
"We can't use the floo, we don't have authorization. All I can think of is sending an owl. That'll take a little while, but is suppose it's the best we can do."
"Alright, we need to do that, then. Meanwhile, Snape's still missing, and someone's put everyone to sleep for a reason, and I doubt it's a good one."
"We'll talk about it on the way to the Owlery." Sora nodded, helping Harry up as they turned towards the door.
"?" The long musical note had a questioning sound. Startled, Sora whipped round in time to receive an armful of phoenix.
"Fawkes? What-" The bird climbed up onto his shoulder and warbled cheerfully.
"Well, at least you're okay."
"Hold on," Harry exclaimed, excited.
"Fawkes here can get to Dumbledore! Can't you Fawkes?" The bird in question warbled curiously and tightened his grip on Sora, clearly planning on going nowhere.
"Please, Fawkes, it's really, really important! There's something really wrong here! Wouldn't you just take a message to him?" The phoenix half-spread his wings, thwacking Sora in the head. A glittering dark eye rolled to stare at the swaying Boy-Who-Lived.
Taking this as an answer, Harry pulled some scrunched up parchment from his pocket, and racing to Dumbledore's desk scribbled a quick explanation.
"Here!" The phoenix extended one red-gold leg and grabbed the measly letter in one glittering golden claw. With a sweet cry, he leapt into the air, and in a flash of fire was gone. There was a moment of silence.
"Now what?" Harry fought to think through the ever-growing fog that threatened to drag him under.
"What is Tom after? Me? Dumbledore? Something else? Merlin, what if he's planning on taking over Hogwarts," the boy panicked.
" Calm down, Harry. You told me he's still hiding from the Ministry. He wouldn't dare try such a bold move." Yet. And Harry and Dumbledore were still fair game…
"You're right. What do we do, then?"
"I suppose we should try to secure all the entrances and exits. And keep an eye on the map to see if Snape or anybody else shows up."
Several Weasley Twins trap jinxes later, Sora and his friends admired their work.
"Do you know any other entrances or exits, Harry? Secret passages, or something?"
"I think we got them all," Harry said absently, eyes flittering over the Map.
"Right, Prongs, Padfoot?"
The Map agreed.
"Right, then. I suppose Dumbledore-" Sora broke off as Harry stiffened, hands whitening around the Marauder's Map.
"No, no it isn't possible…I didn't even think…But surely he couldn't get in? Why would- but Ginny…oh no." Sora, Donald and Goofy were understandably confused by Harry's incoherent mumbling.
"What? Harry, what is it?" Harry seemed to snap out of his horrified daze, lifting dead eyes to stare at them.
"The Chamber of Secrets. It isn't on the Map because the Marauder's never discovered it." Unnoticed, the Map erupted into excited scribbling.
"The Chamber of what? Isn't that where you faced a basilisk?" The Map moved into an absolute frenzy.
"Yeah, the entrance is located in the old girl's bathroom. But you have to be a Parseltongue to enter, and Snape isn't one. But neither was Ginny, and she got in because she was possessed by a memory form of Voldemort. Snape's a Death Eater. Although I'm never certain on any given day whose side he's on, I bet you anything Voldemort's using him somehow to enchant the school. He's a potion's Master, he could do it."
"Well, Bloody Hell."
"We can't wait for Dumbledore. If someone just keeps an eye on the entrances, the rest of us should stop Snape so we can undo whatever he's done." Sora nodded, thinking fast.
"Donald, Goofy, you guys stay here and keep an eye on things. When you see Dumbledore arrive on the Map, get to him and let him know what's going on. Me and Harry will go to this chamber- you're a Parseltongue, aren't you Harry?"
"Yeah- are you sure you want to-"
"Don't bother even trying Harry. It's all you can do to stand, right now." And after a quick, hissed argument with Donald, the group split up, Harry handing the map to the duck Mage and leading Sora off towards the hidden chamber.