The weeks wore on. Students started turning up petrified and Harry was the main suspect, especially when he found out he could speak Parseltongue. Even his Uncle Sev seemed to suspect him. Harry had gone into a state of depression and not even Malfoy could help bring up his spirits.
"Come on Harry, you can't stay down like this the rest of the year."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Want to bet on that?"
Draco sighed. "You can't honestly care about what those halfwits think."
"I don't! I care what Un- never mind, it's pointless."
"What were you going to say?" Draco sat up on his bed and looked at Harry.
Harry kept his expression cool. "It doesn't matter."
"You care what Snape thinks. You were going to call him 'Uncle Sev', weren't you?"
Harry huffed and turned over in his bed. "Don't be daft, Malfoy."
"How close are you two?"
Harry was on his feet, wand in hand in three seconds flat. "You say one word, to anybody, and they won't find your body before it's done rotting and worms have made a home in your skull, understood?"
Malfoy's eyes widened comically and he nodded.
Harry backed down and sat on the edge of his bed. "He is my friend, has been since I was a baby. He helped me when my mum and dad died."
Malfoy's bleached-blond eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "But he's-," he paused and his eyes widened again. "He's a spy, isn't he?"
Harry didn't deny nor confirm Malfoy's revelation. "I'll leave that for you to decide."
"That's why you care so much?"
"He's the only family I really have. If he thinks I'm doing all the petrifying too I wouldn't really have anyone. No offence to you."
"None taken."
"I just wish there were some way I could prove it wasn't me."
A third year walked into the dorm interrupting the two, "Potter! That know-it-all Gryffindor is outside the common room. She wants you."
Harry glanced at Draco, "You coming?"
"Wouldn't miss it," the blond replied sarcastically.
"Harry! A girl was taken. No one knows where she is, we have to find her!" Hermione sputtered as soon as the boys walked out of the common room.
"Calm down, Hermione. Who was taken where?"
"Ginevra Weasley, she's a first year in Gryffindor. There was writing on one of the corridor walls, it said 'Her body will lie in the Chamber forever.' Harry we have to save her!"
"Hermione, how can we find her if nobody knows where the chamber is?"
"Harry, when are you going to learn that I know everything… with a bit of research that is," the bushy-haired girl replied with an impish grin.
"So what are we dealing with?" Malfoy asked in his bored, aristocratic voice.
"I think it's a basilisk, a snake. Its stare can kill but because everyone has only seen it indirectly – Colin with his camera, Mrs. Norris with the puddle – no one has died, they've only been petrified. And Harry, the voice, you've been hearing is the basilisk in the walls. It's been traveling through the pipes. The only reason you have been able to hear it is because you're a Parselmouth. Now, from what I know, I think the entrance might be in Myrtle's bathroom. I'm just not sure where."
Harry turned his excited eyes to Malfoy, "Shall we?"
"Fine, let's go."
The three made their way to Myrtle's bathroom without complication and began their search. It was Draco who found the symbol etched on the sink. "Potter, Granger, take a look at this."
Harry and Hermione leaned forward to the snake image. ::How do we open it?:: Harry asked. There was a rumble from beneath their feet as the sinks moved out from their spots and a tunnel appeared.
"Well," Hermione said. "That was easy."
"Now all we have to do is fall down the tunnel of doom, beat a basilisk without staring at its eyes, kill whoever opened the chamber and somehow get back up the tunnel of doom. Yeah, should be a piece of cake." No one had to guess whose sarcastic mouth that one had come from.
Harry looked back at the two of them. "Hermione, you should go and get the Headmaster, someone needs to know we're down here. Draco, if you want, you can come with me." With that said Harry jumped down the dark tunnel.
Draco looked down the seemingly endless tube. "Potter! You okay down there?"
There was a thud. "Ow! Yeah I'm fine. This place is littered with stuff."
Draco turned to Hermione. "Well, see you later, Granger." Draco jumped into the hole and Hermione left to find the Headmaster.
"What is all this rubbish?"
Harry looked down at his feet as he started walking. "Looks like bones. Come on, I think I see a door up here."
"Bones? You've got to be kidding me!"
Harry was up at the door. He traced his hand along the carving. ::open::
When they got through that door they were in a large chamber. The red-haired girl who had been taken was lying in the center of the room. A boy who looked to be about sixteen was standing over her.
"Hey! Who are you?" Harry asked walking up to the young man.
"Harry Potter," the boy said with a purely Slytherin smirk. "Oh, how I have waited for this day. But of course you do not recognize me. How rude of me not to introduce myself. I'm Tom Riddle, or as you may know me, Lord Voldemort. Ms. Weasley here has informed me of quite a bit. About you, about my so called followers in this school."
Harry felt his blood boil and he ran at the other wizard and, completely forgetting his wand, socked the young dark wizard right in his nose. Riddle fell to the ground as the blood began to spurt from the broken bone.
"What the hell did you just do?" Draco yelled.
"Oh, shut up, Draco," Harry said.
"Fighting like a Muggle. Too good to fight like your own kind?" Riddle said as he stood up and wiped his nose. "Fight me like a wizard Harry. Show me that you're more than a Mudblood's son."
Harry's wand flew from his hand and the young Voldemort caught it with a devilish grin. Harry smiled. "Malfoy, you need to leave. Now."
"Oh, come now, Potter, let the little traitor stay and play," Voldemort said as he turned his attention to the blond Slytherin.
Harry's body pulsed suddenly and a green light glowed around him. Riddle turned his shocked eyes to Harry. "Go, Malfoy!"
Draco ran.
::Come my pet. Kill the boy:: Riddle hissed.
Harry could hear the scratchy sound of the scales on the cement. "You think a stupid snake can stop me?" Harry almost laughed.
Riddle looked at Harry with a strange look. "We'll see then, won't we boy?" A loud rumble sounded through the chamber.
Harry turned to the large statue of the man as its mouth opened. Harry laughed again as the large snake began to slither out. He turned to Riddle. "If this is your only defense then I suggest you hurry up with another strategy." Harry didn't even turn as he made the snake turn on itself.
"What are you doing!" ::STOP!:: Riddle commanded the Basilisk.
"I tried to warn you." Harry turned to watch the snake start to eat its tail. A flash of light went off to his side and Harry ducked as a curse flew past him. Riddle dived at the girl and grabbed the book that was in her hands. "You know, if you didn't want me to know that was important, you really shouldn't have brought my attention to it." Harry held out his hand and summoned the book.
"No!"
A flurry of dark curses flew at the young Slytherin as he ran behind a marble pillar. Harry dropped the book in front of him and ran to another pillar.
"You can't hide, Potter, you might as well just give up now."
Harry looked over at the book, gathered his power and willed it to die. The pages curled in on themselves as the cover shriveled. The ink leaked out of the pages and the book started drying out. Riddle began to scream. When the book was completely dust the chamber was silent.
Harry moved from behind the pillar and collapsed as Dumbledore and Severus walked in.
"Grab him," Dumbledore ordered.
Severus ran over to Harry's side and picked up the small boy.
"You believe me now, right?" Harry asked weakly.
Severus hugged the boy to his chest "Yes, I believe you."
Harry passed out.
"Take him to the infirmary. Do not say anything about what you have seen here and see to it that Harry understands that this is not to be shared with anyone. Miss Weasley was found wandering near the Forbidden Forest, confounded… some Slytherins were playing a prank. Tell Marcus and Jones to see me in my office."
"Why?"
"Someone needs to be expelled, my boy."
Severus stared at Dumbledore, not allowing his anger to show, and nodded. "Very well," he said and took Harry out of the chamber and to the infirmary where Madam Pomfrey went to work.