A/N: Thank you for reviewing; I cannot emphasize it enough, but it really means a lot to me. Review Responses can be found at the end of the chapter! And I'm very sorry that it took me so long to get this chapter out. I have been sick, and school has been in the way...but I'm already working on the next chapter, so hopefully it will not take as long
A few of you have pointed out that last chapter is a little confusing; I know that could very well be the case as I, having known the plot already, would think something is obvious when it is not. However, some confusion may be deliberate, as I was adding some foreshadowing and such for future chapters. Here are a few quick points about last chapter and what it signified: 1) The Chamber is opened (by Ginny, as you should all know by now); 2) Malfoy thinks it is Harry who opened the Chamber; 3) Harry had an attack/vision...that may be connected to the Diary's activities; 4) Lord Voldemort does not know the plan about the Diary.
Well, can't say anymore for now; ask me if there are more confusions that I did not address. And could you please point out which ones were unclear, so I might edit the story accordingly?
Choice – Chapter 11: Things Unfold
Beta'd by borne-shadow-childe, thank you!
Noiselessly the figure swept across the floor. After sensing for any magical trigger, long, elegant fingers slid over the door expertly. The door had looked ordinary and harmless enough, and if any were to see the scene they would probably question why any sane man would ever want to stare at it in so intense a fashion. Yet things in the Base were anything but ordinary. The fingers retreated as they sensed no alarming change, and the figure relaxed slightly. So it was still safe, sealed securely behind the door, waiting for its rightful owner. He was about to turn away when he sensed something else. It was very well disguised, and it was of the magical signature of another – it should not have been there.
Amber eyes narrowed and then widened as he uncovered what was definitely a replica of the original locking spell, hidden under the broken magic and dead shell of the original one. It was ingenious, as that way almost no one could have known that the spell had ever been broken. And it also showed the caster's power, as such was no easy feat. But then, he wouldn't have expected anything less.
"What are you up to, Isidore?" Softly, he whispered the question, momentarily lost in contemplation. Things were happening, and he did not like it.
The figure sighed softly; just then his superior senses picked up the shift in magic throughout the room. The man cursed silently as he realized a second too late that he had let his own magic wander. Instantly an alarm sounded. Wincing, he retreated swiftly; it would seem that the inactivity of the past four years had indeed blunted some of his edges. And in this game one small misstep would be fatal.
The common room was unusually crowded, filled with the soft hum of lively chatter. Harry Potter, sitting comfortably in the chair near the fireplace, half shielded from the view by the large pile of books in front of him, shifted slightly as he turned over a page of the ancient volume he held in hand. At the moment he was extremely glad that he was a Ravenclaw; just imagine the voice level in the Gryffindor common room right now! At least most of his housemates were, just like he himself, reading quietly. The mysterious attacks did not cease after the incident with Mrs. Norris. In fact, a student had been found petrified in the corridor in the few weeks that were to follow. Much fear and uncertainty had arisen, and now Hogwarts was under whole new security measures. Students were led between classes by teachers, the higher years were ordered to walk with the lower years, and no one was to be out after supper – which was why they were all stuck in the common room.
Many had complained, yet Harry was, in fact, quite content to just sit in a corner and eat away his supply of books. After some pondering, he had come up with the perfect plan to go about his study with wandless magic. For his yearly research project in History of Magic, he deliberately proposed to work on "mythical" magical abilities. Not only could he now check out ancient text on such subjects with proper reasons, the fact that he was doing it for History on a paper about myths made it loud and clear that it was purely of non-practical interests. No one would suspect anything; besides, although he had to study some other subjects as well to quell suspicion, those so-called mythical abilities were interesting to read.
Of course, there were mentions of pure myths that were only a waste of time, such as necromancy. Magical or not, no wizard could fight against the course of nature in matters of death and such; there simply was no way to raise the dead. Yet those were all the more reasons that he should throw them into his paper – if only to emphasize the mythical part.
And then there was so much more. The books also discussed some rare abilities; for starters, Harry had realized that he was probably a parselmouth – the incident in the Knockturn Alley had confirmed that. It wasn't impossible, as the book stated that there indeed were known parselmouths, except they were extremely rare (in fact, there were only three such cases: one being Salazar Slytherin, another was Aelwen Ellingham, and the most recent one being the Dark Lord Voldemort himself). It was quite a fascinating discovery, Harry had decided. Although he would think that he should have known before now. Nonetheless it could come in handy – provided that he managed to keep others from ever knowing it; he knew of the association of this gift with the Dark and shuddered to think what the school's reaction would be if he were ever found out. Really, Harry thought, it was quite stupid; after all, magic is neutral and it was the caster that steeled the course. That didn't mean he would go gloating about his newfound ability; of course, as he knew better than to go against the public's fear (however irrational it may be).
Then, an even more delightful discovery was made. Among the books about myths, legends and folklores, Harry found a few lines about the Chamber of Secrets that was now the center of so many speculations. The book had said that, according the story; a rift had begun to grow between Slytherin and the other Founders about admitting students of Muggle parentage. Before leaving the school, Slytherin had built a hidden chamber that only his true heir could unseal, unleashing the horror within and using it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic. Interesting bits of information, Harry reflected, that definitely explained what the Slytherins had said the other day, and no wonder they looked none too worried about the situation – unlike other houses.
Despite suchdiscoveries, however, Harry was a little disappointed at his progress in wandless magic; which, ironically enough, was the main point of the whole research. He had secretly tried a few moderate spells, and found his ability still somewhat unstable and lacking in power. The few books he found tend to center on theories and speculation. That didn't come as surprising, as he had known that such ability was almost unheard of and was sure those who were gifted with it usually kept it to themselves. Even though he still couldn't do the major spells without a wand, his talent in this area could come in quite handy as an element of surprise in the future. So, for now, Harry was satisfied with slowly harnessing his power and finding the way himself, rather than risk exposing himself in the hunt for a passable mentor – not that he'd be likely to find one even if he tried.
Harry was suddenly interrupted from his thoughts by a slight wave of dizziness, and he furrowed his brows in frustration. Since the start of the term, he had not been in the best of health. These strange fits had continued, and he found himself feeling tired far easier than usual. Yet he could find nothing wrong with himself, and the fits had been mostly irregular and thankfully rare – so far. What troubled him however, were the strange dream visions. They all seemed to be about a mysterious boy – and most of them unpleasant. They had first occurred after the fits, but now he was having them at a much higher rate. The vivid images of those dreams sent him twisting for hours in bed, depriving him of even the solace of sleep with their chaos.
Harry sighed as he put his books down. He would need the strength tomorrow for his extra lessons; he was sure Snape would not take insomnia as a legitimate excuse for poor performance.
"Now, Potter, if I find out that you wandered a miniscule step away from the direct path to your dormitory, you've been forewarned of the consequences."
Harry only grinned as he bid his professor farewell. They had, much to Snape's chagrin, agreed to have his extra potions lessons on weekends in accordance to Hogwarts' new security measures. And Harry had just managed to convinced Snape that there was no need for the professor to suffer more time with him and walk him back to his common room, solemnly promising that he'd go straight back. Harry was a bit puzzled by his own confidence, as he was not one to put himself in danger with a potential monster lurking around Hogwarts; yet somehow he had a strange assurance of safety, as if he knew the monster didn't pose a threat for him.
The tutorial with Snape had gone quite well as far as he was concerned, and he had almost gotten the hang of the potion now. It was his fifth meeting with Snape since they had first struck the deal, and he found the Potions Master quite agreeable. Oh, he was still as much a snarky bastard as ever, but Harry had come to find those sarcastic comments quite amusing over time. There was, however, one eccentric thing he had noticed about the Potions Master. Snape kept throwing him strange looks whenever Harry happened to mention anything about his past. On a few occasions he seemed even on the verge of commentary, which was very unusual since the man strived to give the impression that conversing with Harry was quite painful and should be avoided until absolutely necessary. And then, there were of all those references to their previous encounters that Harry couldn't quite grasp the meanings of; which, Harry decided, was to be expected as he still couldn't recall such events well.
Still thinking, Harry ran into - or rather - through a silvery figure. Recollecting himself, he turned to apologize, knowing that most ghosts took offense when people ran through them even though technically it caused them no discomfort, "I'm sorry, I –"
The ghost with a gaunt face, and robes stained with silver blood widened his eyes in surprise. "So you decided to talk to me again, Harry Potter?" The Baron inquired.
Harry repressed an urge to flinch at the silky voice," Um...Have we met?"
A pair of silvery eyebrows shot up as the ghost regarded Harry, his shadowy face inscrutable. Finally, after a stretched silence, he spoke up, "Indeed we have, Mr. Potter."
Harry felt rather uncomfortable under the scrutiny of the cold eyes, "My apologies...it's just that there was an incident, and I have found that my memory seems to fail me concerning certain occasions since then..."
"Indeed..." the ghost's piercing eyes never let Harry, as if he knew the boy hadn't been trying his hardest to recover. Harry squirmed. Then, as if he could read thoughts, the ghost spoke up again before floating away, "You do not have all the time in the world...things are stirring; do not be too late, my little kindred spirit."
Harry sighed as he looked after the ghost; it seemed that he was doomed to be encircled by strange-behaving people (alive or dead) this year. He supposed it was because of his losing memory; everyone seemed to know something he didn't. The ghost's last warning disturbed him, but he still couldn't, and wasn't ready, to regain his full memory. He knew that, in a way, he had promised Remus...but still...
It was then he felt another one of those fits. "Great timing" was all he got out through clenched teeth before his knees hit the floor. The feeling of being ripped apart was back again, and Harry lost awareness of his surroundings as pain clouded his vision. Luckily, just like in all other instances, it passed momentarily, leaving Harry breathless.
Still gathering his bearings, he thought he heard someone speaking. Heart sinking, he realized that he was still lingering in the castle – alone. He could only hope that it wasn't the Potions Professor. After all, it wasn't his fault that he hadn't gone straight back to Ravenclaw Common Room. But while other teachers might be more tolerate, Snape definitely would not buy this explanation.
Looking around, though, Harry saw no one in sight. Yet just as he thought he had imagined the voice, he heard it again: "Ssso hungry...for sssso long..."
Harry inhaled sharply; instantly alert despite the weakness he was experiencing. This was definitely not any teacher or student. In fact, now he thought of it, the voice had a rather hissing tone, not unlike ... the snake he overhead in the Knockturn Alley!
A snake, in Hogwarts? Harry looked around for possible hiding places the creature might take, all the while trying to trace the source of the voice. When he heard another string of hisses again, he was sure it was moving away – moving upward. He stared at the dark ceiling; how could it be moving upward? Whatever the thing was, it must be moving within the walls. The passage about the Chamber of Secrets quickly jumped into his mind; could it be... Yet should he willingly put himself in dire danger to find out? Sure he supposedly fought a Dark Lord last year, but that didn't mean he'd be the school's resident savior.
After a moment's hesitation, Harry decided to follow the noise. He figured that he would just find out if it had anything to do with the attacks and alert the teachers if it were indeed so. It shouldn't be too life threatening as he had no intention of confronting the creature; besides, even if it came down to that, there was that strange sense of confidence again that he would be able to handle the monster somehow. As his instincts so far had not failed him, Harry decided it was worth a try.
Silently, Harry pressed himself onto the walls, moving mostly among the shadows. He didn't want to get caught by some bungling prefect on the way. Although, running into a potentially monstrous snake didn't sound too much more appealing to him, either. He ran up the stairs and turned into corridor after corridor, trying to find the mysterious voice, only to face a particularly dark hallway. The torches had been extinguished by a strong, icy draft that was blowing through a loose windowpane. Vaguely he could make out a few dark figures on the other end; yet, even as he watched, a figure disappeared around the corner. And as it passed the dim light that slid in through the broken window, Harry thought that he hadseen a flicker of red.
Harry waited for the voice to return to give away its position, but it never did. After waiting for what he deemed a reasonable amount of time to make sure that the danger was truly gone; Harry moved along the corridor cautiously and reluctantly. The walls were bare, without armors or paintings that could provide him with hiding spots, and walking through the hall would definitely expose him as an easy target.
Luckily he made it all the way without a disturbance. Letting out a breath, he looked down at the figure –
And immediately caught his breath sharply again. Lying on the floor was a student, rigid and cold, a look of shock frozen on his face, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. Harry bent over the figure and was relieved to find that whoever he was, was still alive. He frowned as he thought the events over; the voice he heard definitely had something to do with the attack then, this just confirmed that. However, although the staff should be notified of the connection somehow, he didn't think his being found alone in a relatively unused corridor with a petrified student would be the best way of doing that. His mind made up, Harry turned to slip away.
Yet just as he was about to turn the corner he heard what was unmistakably the voice of Filch yelling after him, "Who's there?" Harry only quickened his pace and as he heard footsteps after him; then, just as he rounded the corner, a pair of arms grabbed him and dragged him into one of the empty classrooms.
Instinctively Harry reached for a curse and only just stopped himself in time as he realized whom exactly the arms had belonged to. He schooled his face into that of panic and meek confusion as he faced one Draco Malfoy.
They waited in silence as the caretaker's footsteps died away. Malfoy then sneered, "Consider yourself lucky that I decided to take an afternoon stroll."
"S-stroll? But the attacks..." Oh, Malfoy was getting on to something very interesting indeed; Harry made sure he looked bewildered – just to encourage the prideful Slytherin on.
"Ah, you have no clue, have you? I have nothing to fear about the attacks, unlikethose Mudbloods," Malfoy spat, "Be careful next time; we can't very well have you caught so early, now can we?"
Harry looked as Malfoy strode away, his expression turning from one of bewilderment into that of thoughtfulness and cool calculation. Why did Malfoy help him? And what did he mean about being caught? Harry sighed as he shook his head, talking about strange-behaving Slytherins... However, he was sure the other boy's words held some clues to the present situation. Malfoy, as Harry noted before, had too much pride for his own good. Harry had a feeling that Malfoy had let slip more than he should today, and he would definitely look into it.
Shrugging, Harry slipped out of the room, intending to end what was now a very, very long walk back to his common room.
Important A/N: Thank you all so much for reading! And I have a few questions for you all:
First, I was a little worried when some of you said the last chapter was confusing...So, er, was this chapter clear? Did I explain things well? Also, this probably won't come up until much later (and I'm still not a hundred percent sure he'll have one), but I'm thinking of giving Harry a pet, and I'm wavering between:
a) a jobberknoll (A tiny blue speckled bird which makes no sound until the moment of its death, when it lets out a long scream consisting of all the sounds it has ever heard; their feathers are important ingredients in making potions that affect memory...I like this one best personally since Harry's memory and such);
b) an augurey (Irish Phoenix...greenish, grayish, calls rains and stuff...I'm a bit wary about this one since I don't like to make my character all-powerful so if it should be chosen, its tears will NOT have healing powers...and it will DIE a natural death w/out rebirth);
c) Any suggestions you might have? Although no snakes please!
Oh and I must've been very bored that afternoon...but I looked up pictures of snake rings. Check the links out in my profile if you're interested.
EmpressTryphosa: Thank you so much for reviewing! I try to have as much Voldemort as possible; but, as I said before, it is quite difficult...
Julie Long: Thank you! Here is the next chapter and I'm glad to hear that you enjoy this story and hope you continue to do so.
borne-shadow-childe: Heehee, thanks again for a job wonderfully done ::Loves::
Yana5: Thank you for reviewing!
Shadowface: Thank you! It will probably be that pairing...though I'm having trouble deciding when it should start...
Night-Owl123: Thanks! Here is the update!
DARKMARK33LV: Thank you so much for reviewing! Yes, you are about right on both accounts. And this chapter should hopefully have explained things further.
Igonia: Thank you! I'm so glad you liked the Potions lesson, as I was agonizing over writing it...I was so afraid that I wouldn't do Snape right!
ManicReversed: Thanks for reviewing. You seem to like Draco...a question for you: do you mind if I torture him a little later on? It is not absolutely necessary, so if you do, then I'll let him be.
Crissy Potter: Thank you! Here is the update!
GoddessMoonLady: Thank you for reviewing! I'm sorry about Harry's memory; I promise he'll remember soon!
sami1010220: Thank you for reviewing! : ) Did the note help? Please let me know if there are other unclear things.
Ladyraebef: Thank you for reviewing! Harry will get better – or worse, depending on your point of view – soon, so don't worry!
Sil : Thank you so much for the in-depth review. I'm so glad that you find this story worth your time for a well-thought review. And I'll definitely look into your suggestions.
AsheslovesHarry: Thank you for reviewing, hopefully the note at the start cleared up the confusion a bit.