After Astronomy class, the boys returned to their dormitory for the night. It didn't take long for Harry to fall asleep, but Kellen lay on top of his comforter, lost in thought. The boy was exhausted, but he couldn't keep his thoughts off his friends at Hogwarts, particularly Hermione. Even after confiding to his friends, and later to Professor Goode, his fears weren't one bit assuaged. They didn't worsen at least, but they were still strong. Even with his exceptional intelligence, he felt utterly confused - helpless, even. It was after two in the morning before he drifted off to sleep, but it was anything but a restful slumber.
What Kellen didn't realize was that Harry woke up with a scream followed by a cold sweat. The four posters' curtains were enchanted to muffle sounds so Kellen was none the wiser, but at about five fifteen in the morning, Harry crawled out of his bed and opened up Kellen's curtains.
"Kellen? That nightmare you described last night? I just had something very similar," Harry panted.
Kellen saw Harry's hair - it was even more disheveled than usual, and his pajamas appeared to be soaked in sweat. "Get in," Kellen whispered to Harry, as he closed the curtains to his four poster. "Now, tell me everything."
"I saw a lot of the same things you saw in your premonition - the snake, the ghost in the girls' lavatory, strange red writing on walls. 'The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir, beware!' And I saw a handful of petrified students, including Hermione!"
Kellen's face went stark white. "You remembered the writing far more clearly than I did, Harry... Chamber of Secrets? I have no earthly idea what that even is... I suppose I'll have to do some researching in the library during our free period tomorrow. But you need to tell Professor Goode at breakfast. I wish I could help you, but it's obvious that something utterly sinister is going to happen... we may not be able to prevent everything in those visions from happening, but we can definitely save Hermione and Daphne!"
The boys didn't bother going back to bed, as they only had a few minutes before their wake-up call, so they decided to get changed in to their physical training uniforms and headed down to the proving grounds at six o'clock sharp. After forty five minutes of exercise, the boys returned to their dormitory to get cleaned up, then they changed into their regular school uniforms and finally made their way down to the breakfast hall.
Neither Ana nor Nova ignored the pallid complexions on both boys' faces.
"You boys look like you've seen a ghost," Ana commented. "Is everything okay with you two?
Harry shook his head 'no'. "I... had the same dream last night... the vision Kellen had," he said in a soft whisper. Both Ana and Nova's jaw dropped - they might have expected this from Kellen, but not Harry.
"Have you ever had visions before, Harry?" asked Nova.
"Not that I remember," Harry admitted. "It's really weird because it's so much like the one Kellen had the night before... but I got a bit more of the message on the walls, if that means anything. 'The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir, beware!' I have no idea what that's referring to, but I know that there are some dark forces behind these nightmares... I don't think this is mere coincidence that Kellen and I had the same kind of nightmare."
"You've got me there, Harry," Nova murmured as she took a sip of her pumpkin juice. "Even though I do have a fair degree of familiarity with Hogwarts history, I can't say I remember hearing anything about a Chamber of Secrets... it's possible that my father's familiar with such a legend."
"And you did talk to Professor Goode last night, right Kellen?" Ana asked.
"I sure did," replied Kellen. "She seemed to take it seriously, but I think she needs more information... perhaps the additional information Harry has can expedite things. We need to tell either Professor McGonagall or Professor Dumbledore at Hogwarts... today."
"You both look like you're almost finished with your breakfast," Ana said. "You might as well go find Professor Goode at the faculty table while she's still there. When's your free period, again?"
"We have Transfiguration, then a free period, then Potions before lunch today," confirmed Harry. "Come on, Kellen, let's go see if Professor Goode is willing to see us during our morning free period." The boys got up from their table and headed for the faculty table. As they approached Professor Goode, she nodded at the boys in acknowledgement.
"Good morning, gentlemen," she said softly.
"Good morning, Professor," Harry replied. "I'd like to see you during my morning free period if you're okay with that... I had the same dream as Kellen."
Professor Goode nodded. "Both of you - meet me in front of the headmaster's office as soon as you're finished with your first morning class. I believe this is too urgent for me to handle alone."
"We will be there," Harry promised.
"Very good. And I trust you boys to not utter a word of your visions... the last thing we need is to cause a panic at Ilvermorny, especially when your visions don't even concern our school," Professor Goode replied.
"I agree wholeheartedly," said Kellen. "This is strictly need-to-know."
Professor Goode nodded her approval, and the boys returned to their breakfast table to spend their last few minutes of their meal with Ana and Nova.
"You have your first Shamanism class today, right Anastasia?" Kellen asked, his voice dripping with anticipation.
"As a matter of fact, I do," giggled Ana. "Right before lunch. I'm so excited... I'll be sure to tell you all about it at lunch today, mmkay?"
"Perfect," replied Kellen with a grin. "Knowing you, you've got a pretty full plate this term... I'm sure you'd take every elective if they'd let you!"
Ana's giggles grew louder. "You know me like the back of your hand, Kellen. Yes, I'd love to be able to take all of them, but before I finalized my schedule, Professor Frye told me to cut back a little bit because of my quiz bowl and quidditch obligations... she really recommended that I have at least one free period a week, which isn't a bad idea."
Kellen's ears perked up as Ana mentioned the quiz bowl. "Speaking of the quiz bowl, Professor Frye pulled me aside after Herbology yesterday and just offered me a spot on the team, straight up! No audition needed."
Ana's eyes widened. "That's a pretty big honor there, Kellen. I don't think I've heard of anyone just being offered a spot without trying out, even for incumbent members." She then smiled at Kellen. "You're also not just any quiz bowl player... you're the best our house has had in generations... maybe ever. Just try to save some of the glory for us little guys, mmkay?" She broke into soft giggles.
"No promises," Kellen replied with a sneaky grin.
After breakfast and their first class of the day - Transfiguration - the boys went upstairs to the second floor. Kellen had never been to Professor Fontaine's office before, but Harry had, and still remembered the way. "You'll like Professor Fontaine's office, Kellen," Harry assured his friend. "He's got quite the library in there." Kellen recognized the decor as being from Greek, Persian, and Egyptian mythology, among others. When the boys reached a dead-end at the end of the final corridor, they saw Professor Goode waiting for them.
"Hello again, Mister Potter and Mister Grimseth," purred the ginger-haired professor. "Give me just a moment please." She drew her wand, and tapped a pattern on the bricks on the wall. The outline of an invisible archway glowed in a bright yellow, and the bricks that formed the archway vanished.
Kellen arched an eyebrow. "Euler's number?"
Professor Goode chuckled. "Astute as always, Mister Grimseth. There's no fooling you." She gestured to the opening. "We best not keep the headmaster waiting." The three entered the archway and took the magically-powered lift behind it, and ascended to Professor Fontaine's office. When they reached the top, Professor Goode grabbed one of he large round knockers and struck the door twice. A few seconds later, the door opened magically. Kellen's eyes widened when he saw Professor Fontaine's personal library... floor-to-ceiling bookshelves dominated each of his walls, and the shelves were chock-full of texts - some modern, and some so ancient that Merlin himself might as well have written them.
Professor Fontaine himself was seated at his desk, hands folded on his chest. He had a most curious expression on his face - if he was worried or even frightened, he sure didn't show it, thought Harry. He also thought it reasonable to assume that the headmaster was fully aware of the gravity of the situation.
"Good morning, all of you," the headmaster began in a soft, silky voice. "It has come to my attention that the two of you have been experiencing visions of sorts recently. Would you care to elucidate for me, please? I'd like to try and make sense of this personally." He gestured to the luxurious looking seats across from his desk. "Please, make yourselves comfortable. Would either of you care for a pumpkin juice?" Both boys nodded. Professor Fontaine snapped his fingers, and just like that, two bottles of pumpkin juices instantly appeared in each boy's right hand. "Thank you, Professor," the boys said appreciatively.
A few moments later, the boys began telling their visions separately. Despite the similarity of their dreams, Professor Fontaine was keen to note that some parts of Kellen's vision were more detailed than Harry's - particularly regarding the black journal, while portions of Harry's vision were more detailed than Kellen's - namely the message on the wall. There were no inconsistencies that he could find between each version, otherwise. "I can't help but wonder if you boys share a dyad," he murmured. "A special bond between two entities, where memories and visions can be shared - even subconsciously. It's not unheard of in the magical world, but definitely quite uncommon. The dyads that exist tend to be between two people that a very strong personal connection... a husband and wife, for example. Or a father and son, or even two best friends, like yourselves."
The boys detected the faintest of smiles on the professor's thin lips as he leaned back into his chair. "There is a story I'd like to share with you... it's quite real, I assure you." He leaned forward. "Some of this might be... uneasy for you to hear, but my intention is not to frighten you. Some of this story will seem quite familiar - as portions of it were visible in your dreams."
"When Hogwarts was established, the four founders each established a house bearing their namesake: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. The first three allowed anyone with magical talent to study under them; but Salazar Slytherin was more... selective. He believed that only those who were of a certain lineage - meaning either a pureblood or a half-blood - were worthy of studying magic. He eventually estranged himself from the other three founders and left the school altogether, but before he did, he created a chamber, buried far beneath the castle, that housed a particularly loathsome beast. A serpent so large and so terrifying, that it strikes fear into the hearts of all of wizardkind: the basilisk. The basilisk's purpose was to eradicate no-maj born witches and wizards, and preserve Slytherin's tradition of teaching only pureblood and half-blood students. He sealed the chamber, where the serpent lie dormant for centuries; but before he crossed into the great unknown, Slytherin named an heir. An heir with the capability of opening the chamber, thus releasing the basilisk and wreaking havoc all over Hogwarts!"
Both boys found the story utterly fascinating - even Kellen was unfamiliar with this story. His eyes were wide - filled with healthy doses of both fear and curiosity.
The kindly headmaster continued his story. "Unfortunately, that did come to pass. Fifty years ago, Salazar Slytherin's heir opened the Chamber of Secrets and released the basilisk. It petrified multiple no-maj born students, and outright killed another - Myrtle Warren. However, we don't precisely know who the heir was, but a young Gryffindor student, known as Rubeus Hagrid, was ultimately expelled following the tragedy. However, my counterpart at Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, firmly believes that this Hagrid fellow was innocent all along and the real perpetrator set him up as a scapegoat. I have met Hagrid - the current groundskeeper at Hogwarts - on numerous occasions and I don't find him capable of releasing such chaos. He is physically imposing, yes, but he's got a gentle soul... it saddens me that his name is not stricken from the books; however, nobody has found the identity of Salazar Slytherin's true heir so far..."
"Myrtle Warren? I think she's the ghost that's been in my dream," Kellen surmised. "She's the only known fatality from the catastrophe, if what you're saying is true..."
"Mister Grimseth, your insight serves you well," Fontaine murmured. "She supposedly haunts a girls' lavatory somewhere on the second floor in the castle."
"Can it truly be opened again?" asked Harry. "Fifty years is a long time ago, so I would imagine that if the chamber is really set to be opened again, that would rule out most faculty... so the heir would most likely have been a student at the time."
"Very good, Mister Potter," chuckled the headmaster. "I'm also inclined to believe that the heir was also a student at the time... and most likely, a Slytherin. So it does narrow down our list of suspects, but that's still a pool of over a hundred and fifty students, and even then, there is no guarantee that the heir was sorted as a Slytherin. For all we know, he or she could have been a Hufflepuff!"
"And what about Hermione and Daphne?" asked Harry. "Especially Hermione - she's no-maj born, like Kellen... she could be in mortal danger should the chamber be opened again."
"You're absolutely correct, Mister Potter," concurred Fontaine. "I will be alerting Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall momentarily. I trust Albus with overseeing the bigger picture - but as far as individual students' welfare, I believe Minerva might be better equipped to handle that. I do think she will take these visions of yours quite seriously... I would personally recommend that she escort Miss Granger to Ilvermorny as soon as possible, I don't want to chance that child getting petrified... or worse."
"And what about Daphne?" asked Kellen. "She's a pureblood, so I would imagine that she's not in immediate danger herself."
"As a pureblood, she would not be specifically targeted like a no-maj born would, but that doesn't mean that she can't be petrified, for example," said Fontaine. "Though lessened, the threat to her still exists. If she would like to accompany her friend to Ilvermorny, we will gladly accommodate her. But while we can provide shelter for some Hogwarts students, we still have limited availability and unfortunately, we will not able to take in all who seek asylum."
Professor Goode gave the boys a hopeful expression. "We will keep you posted, regarding Miss Greengrass and Miss Granger. I would be most delighted to have them as students - even if it's only temporary. If either one of you experiences any more of these visions, please let us know. Leave no detail out - every tidbit could be vital."
"Please do... I lost a lot of sleep last night over them, and I'm afraid I won't sleep well until they're both here at Ilvermorny, safe and sound," Kellen pleaded.
"By all means, take a sleeping draught before you go to bed tonight," suggested Professor Goode. "You have potions next, right? I'm sure Madam L has a vial or two on hand, or at least she could whip one up for you... it wouldn't take her long at all."
Kellen merely nodded. "Sounds good, thanks." The two boys left the headmaster's office and headed toward their next class.
