-Chapter Ten-

Secrets in the Chamber

Harry had forgotten how unpleasant the descent down the pipe was, falling at an incredible speed. Fortunately he reached the bottom fairly quickly, shooting out of the pipe and skidding to a halt. He got to his feet in a daze, before being knocked over as Willow arrived.

"Sorry about that," said Willow as he climbed to his feet. "That was quite a trip! Where to now?"

Harry got up and looked around. He pulled out his wand and whispered "Lumos!". The tip of his wand lit up and beside him Willow did the same. The tunnel leading down to the Chamber of Secrets hadn't changed much. The floor and walls were still damp and slimy, although Harry could hear faint sounds coming from down the tunnel.

"This way," whispered Harry, setting off down the tunnel, trying to look more confident than he felt.

The two of them walked slowly down the corridor, occasionally jumping at imagined noises. There was no sign of the discarded Basilisk skin that had been lying in the tunnel on Harry's previous visit (1), and Harry worried for a few minutes that there could be another one lurking about, but it would have surely made itself known by now.

As they got further down the corridor the noise start to become more distinct and they could make out the sound of people moving about, and voices. Harry could hear Malfoy's sneering tones ordering people about.

After they turned another corner they culled see a light up ahead. They couldn't be far away from the Chamber now, so Harry quickly whispered "Nox" andsignalled for Willow to do the same. Once done, Willow quickly took the lead and motioned for Harry to keep quiet. Together they crept up to the final turn of the tunnel and peered round cautiously.

While the tunnel hadn't changed much, the Chamber of Secrets looked considerably different now. Between the columns there were several different computer banks and other sophisticated contraptions, each one manned by a Death Eater. In the centre of the room was what appeared to be a large basin, at least 20ft wide. Harry could see several Slytherins doing various odd-jobs around the room. He spotted Crabbe and Goyle lugging around several cables that were connecting up to the computer banks and leading away through several doors that Harry could not recall seeing on his previous visit. There were also several different cauldrons lined up against the back wall, a different potion bubbling in each one. Dominating the back wall was the huge statue of Salazar Slytherin, one of the founders of Hogwarts who had built the Chamber after disagreeing with the other founder's beliefs. A large catwalk had been erected in the Chamber, creating an effective second floor. Harry could see several more computer banks up there, and was not surprised to see Draco Malfoy standing up in front of the statue of Slytherin, lording over everything that was happening (2).

Harry and Willow ducked back round the corner where they couldn't be seen. "Well, I'm guessing all that wasn't there last time." Whispered Willow.

"Definitely not," replied Harry. "What do we do now?"

"We need to get closer," said Willow thoughtfully, staring into space, thinking hard. "I want to see those computers more closely."

"My invisibility cloak!" said Harry suddenly. "It's up in my trunk, I can get it and be back here in around 15 minutes."

"No, that's no good," said Willow, shaking his head. "It's very busy in there - we might not have much time." He walked back to the corner and peeped round back into the Chamber. A Death Eater was walking by the entrance at just that moment. Willow pulled out his wand, and with a quick wave sent a small amount of pebbles flying onto the Death Eater. It reacted instantly, turning around and marching towards the tunnel. Willow ducked back. "Quickly, this way!" he hissed dragging Harry back around the corner.

They pressed themselves into the corner and waited for the Death Eater to walk past them. As soon as it passed them Willow stepped out behind it and quickly sent it flying with a quick burst of magic from his wand. Caught off guard, the Death Eater was flung forwards, hitting the ground with a crash.

After quickly checking that they hadn't been overheard, Willow knelt down beside the Death Eater. "When in doubt a disguise usually works," he whispered, reaching for the Death Eater's mask. Harry watched with baited breath and couldn't help but wonder who exactly it was they had taken out…

Willow tried to remove the mask only to find some resistance. Confused, Willow pulled harder and the mask came free. He froze, staring into the Death Eater's robe. "No… impossible!"

Confused, Harry moved closer to get a better look. What he saw was unbelievable.

Appendix

(1) While it may look thin, Basilisk Skin is surprisingly strong and durable and is highly sought after in the making of armour. It was once not uncommon for people to try breeding their own basilisks in an effort to take their skin when it was discarded, but after the near-apocalyptic Basilisk Breakout of '89 the practice was strictly forbidden.

(2) I feel obliged to point out here that I have not seen film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets so the description of the Chamber is from my own imagination, not the film