December 19, 1992.
The Harry and Rose being slowly woke the next morning, feeling sad with grief, but also heavy with the knowledge Professor Dumbledore had given them. They opened their eyes and gazed at one another before slowly climbing from the bed. It was dark out, indicating it was likely early in the morning. Pulling off their clothes they wore the previous day, they entered the bathroom and showered before putting on clean clothes. The time on the Harry half's watch told them it was five o'clock. After a moment, they stepped out of their room and entered the Gryffindor common room.
It was silent and dark, the arm chairs and couches scattered around the room along with various tables. No fire was in the fireplace, and as always, the room was impeccably clean. The Harry and Rose being felt anxious to start studying, to learn all the spells they could so they could defeat Voldemort when the time came. Quietly, they climbed through the portrait hole and moved through the dark corridors. As they moved toward the library, they spotted a figure up ahead, though couldn't make it out clearly until they drew closer. It was Professor Dumbledore, who was striding into the library and seemed to be rather focused. Curious, the Harry and Rose being followed him. Only moments later, he turned around and face them.
"Ah, Harry and Rose." He stated calmly. "I see you wish to begin studying, perhaps."
"Yes, Professor." The Harry and Rose being replied. "I need to be ready for my confrontation."
Professor Dumbledore sighed and looked down, frowning.
"Very well." He said heavily. "I will not stop you, but I urge you not to use all your time studying."
"Defeating Voldemort is more important than fun, Professor." The Harry and Rose being stated practically.
"I fear that I have caused more damage by informing you of the truth now, than I would have had I withheld it from you a while longer." Professor Dumbledore said gravely. "I shall not stop you, but remember, it will be highly detrimental for you to avoid any time to relax in favor of studying all that you can."
"Have you found anything out about Sirius yet?" The Harry and Rose being asked after a long moment.
"I am afraid that Peter Pettigrew, who was being held in one of the ministries holding cells pending a formal investigation, is nowhere to be found. As such, my witness to the events was taken as unreliable evidence. I am afraid that Sirius Black will have to remain where he is for the time being." Professor Dumbledore responded. "In addition to this, my credibility in such events has dropped, and I am being considered for removal from all the positions I hold accept that of Headmaster of Hogwarts."
"Oh, no." The Harry and Rose being said, feeling their emotions plummet. "I'm sorry if we caused anything... We didn't intend to."
"I'm well aware of that." Professor Dumbledore stated. "The fault is not your own, I assure you. No doubt, you are aware of the lack of sense and logic many in the wizarding world contain."
"Yes, sir." The Harry and Rose being said.
"Given this, we shall have to proceed to my alternate plan, and take Sirius Black from Azkaban." Professor Dumbledore said. "I assume you are willing to proceed?"
"How legal is this plan of yours?" The Harry and Rose being asked, feeling terrible about asking the question.
"Highly illegal, in fact, such that if any of us were caught, we would spend our time in Azkaban." Professor Dumbledore responded.
"I see." The Harry and Rose being said. "And can we do it with a guarantee that we won't be caught?"
"Nothing is ever certain." Professor Dumbledore replied. "There are any number of variables that may prevent us from proceeding."
"Wait, are we safe from anyone listening?" The Harry and Rose being asked suddenly.
"If we weren't, I would not have continued this discussion." Professor Dumbledore replied. "Please, follow me."
As they walked through the book shelves in the library, the Harry and Rose being said, "If we don't know if we can proceed and succeed, we shouldn't. Helping Sirius wouldn't be possible if one of us ended up in Azkaban because we tried to break him out."
"Precisely the line of thinking I have come to expect from both of you." Professor Dumbledore said, pulling a book off one of the shelves. "It is not, in fact, regarding Sirius that I have chosen to research. It is instead, regarding the potential Basilisk that may be causing harm to the students. I believe you will agree that it is the more immediate, and thus, more serious problem."
"Yes." The Harry and Rose being said as Professor Dumbledore led them to one of the tables and sat, they doing the same across from him. They watched him as he quietly opened the book and scanned the table of contents before turning to a page, brow furrowed.
"This confirms the evidence you have gathered, and what I told you the previous day." Professor Dumbledore said, pulling the list the Harry and Rose being had been given by Hermione, and added to them self.
"What is it?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
Professor Dumbledore turned the old library book around and pushed it in their direction. The Harry and Rose being gazed down at the page, reading.
Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it.
"No one's looked at it directly. Nearly Headless Nick is already dead, so he can't be killed. Is that why they've all been petrified only?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"That would seem to fit the available facts, yes." Professor Dumbledore replied. "Still, questions remain. Where is the Chamber of Secrets, and how is Voldemort controlling the Basilisk within?"
"You said Moaning Myrtle died about fifty years ago, right?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"Yes." Professor Dumbledore responded.
"What if the Chamber of Secrets, its entrance, is in her bathroom?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"Entirely possible, but no one has found any evidence of an entry point before. Although, no one has thought to search the bathrooms." Professor Dumbledore's voice was thoughtful.
"Maybe Myrtle can help us." The Harry and Rose being said. "When should we look for it?"
"As soon as possible, I think." Professor Dumbledore stated. "If your theory is correct, I may have to contemplate giving you a special award for services to the school."
"I don't care about that, I care more about stopping these attacks." The Harry and Rose being said as the three of them stood.
"Quite admirable of you." Professor Dumbledore replied with a smile. "Follow me, then, and we shall proceed."
They followed Professor Dumbledore to Myrtle's bathroom where he stopped, turning to face them.
"I think I shall allow both of you to proceed ahead of me, but I shall listen from out here." Professor Dumbledore said quietly.
The Harry and Rose being nodded and entered the bathroom, Something sounded off somehow and they moved toward the stall where the Polyjuice Potion had been brewing. They heard nothing. Slowly, they opened the door and glanced in, the cauldron gone. It was reasonable, the Harry and Rose being thought, remembering they'd told Hermione and Ron who had opened the Chamber of Secrets before now. It would certainly put a dampener on the theory of Malfoy being the heir of Slytherin, as would Riddle's inability to speak Parseltongue.
As usual, Myrtle could be found on her end toilet, and at the moment, she was hovering above it. When she spotted the Harry and Rose being, she said, "Oh, it's you."
"I'm curious, Myrtle, how did you die." The Harry and Rose being asked.
Myrtle suddenly looked as if no one had asked her a more flattering question, her voice delighted as she spoke.
"Ooooh, it was dreadful." She began. "It happened right in here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I'd hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a boy speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet, and then..." Myrtle swelled importantly, her face shining. "I died."
"How?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"No idea." Myrtle replied in hushed tones. "I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up, and then I was floating away..." She looked dreamily at the Harry half. "And then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she'd ever laughed at my glasses."
"Where did you see the eyes, do you remember?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"Somewhere there." Myrtle vaguely pointed toward the sink in front of her toilet.
"Thanks." The Harry and Rose being said with a smile before they moved to examine it. They carefully looked at the top and bottom, sides, then the Rose half spotted a tiny snake scratched on the side of one of the copper taps.
"That taps never worked." Myrtle said brightly as the Rose half struggled to turn it.
"Hmm." The Harry and Rose being said thoughtfully.
The Rose half gazed at the snake on the tap, trying to imagine that it was an actual snake, that it was alive.
"Open." The Rose half said. The Harry and Rose being shook their heads. The only time either of them had spoken in Parseltongue was when they were faced with a live snake. The Rose half tilted her head a little and it looked as if it were moving. "Open."
Ah, that was it. Her voice had the hissing undertone to it that the Harry and Rose being had heard before. The tap glowed with a brilliant white light and started spinning. The sink then sank out of sight, leaving a large pipe exposed, which was large enough for a man to slide into.
"Found it, Professor!" The Harry and Rose being said.
Professor Dumbledore came striding in and looked at the exposed pipe. Myrtle stared on in shock.
"Interesting." Professor Dumbledore said. "Please, close that for me."
The Harry and Rose being concentrated and hissed, "Close." The sink reappeared and they followed Dumbledore from the bathroom, he closing the door behind them.
"What should we do?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"Until we know for certain how Voldemort is opening the Chamber, doing anything at this point would, perhaps, be unwise. It may cause more harm." Professor Dumbledore said.
"But if we kill the Basilisk now, there won't be anymore attacks." The Harry and Rose being replied.
"That is true. However, if we kill the Basilisk, lord Voldemort may accelerate any plans he may have, becoming more defensive when he realizes the Basilisk is dead." Professor Dumbledore responded.
"So, we find out how he's doing it, then we kill the Basilisk?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"That, I believe, would be the more reasonable course of action." Professor Dumbledore responded. "If you wish, you may speak of this to your friends Ron and Hermione. However, tell no one else of these discoveries."
"I don't want to just sit around doing nothing when I know something can be done." The Harry and Rose being said in a frustrated voice.
"Believe me, I am well aware of your frustrations." Professor Dumbledore stated. "If you discover any information, anything unusual at all, please, let me know immediately."
"I will." The Harry and Rose being replied. Professor Dumbledore left them at that and they moved back toward the library, deciding to study any defensive and offensive spells they could, and attempt to perform them during their holiday.
Later on that day, Hermione had confirmed that they'd decided to scrap the plan of using the Polyjuice Potion, which both she and Ron were glad about when the Harry and Rose being informed them of the recent discoveries.
"So only someone speaking Parseltongue can get in, then?" Ron asked.
"Right." The Harry and Rose being stated.
"That means it can't be Malfoy, he looked just as confused as the other Slytherins, though was far more gleeful than most." Hermione responded.
"Also, the monster, I'm reasonably certain, is a Basilisk, a giant snake that can kill with a look." The Harry and Rose being responded.
"But no one's died." Ron said, perplexed.
"That's because no one saw it directly. I and Mrs. Noris saw a reflection of its eyes in the water. Colin saw it through his camera. Justin saw it through Nearly Headless Nick, who can't die again so I think he'll be okay. Also, here's the other characteristics that are important. Spiders flee from it, and the crow of the rooster is fatal to it, and yesterday, Hagrid was investigating and attempting to get permission from Professor Dumbledore to use a charm to protect the dead roosters. Two have died recently." The Harry and Rose being explained.
"All the evidence seems to fit." Hermione responded. "So, now what? Are you and Dumbledore going to stop it?"
"No." The Harry and Rose being replied. "We've got to figure out how Voldemort's opening the Chamber of Secrets first, stop him, then kill it. Right now, Voldemort's secure in his plans. If we kill it, the potential for him to act more defensively exists, perhaps causing more harm than he would otherwise. Trust me, I want to do something now, but Professor Dumbledore's theory makes sense."
With no more ideas from anyone, the matter was dropped for the moment, the Harry and Rose being observing the students. What had been nervousness before was outright panic now, as the students spoke of the attack on Nearly Headless Nick and Justin. They were more focused on the ghost, though, frightened of the power that could immobilize someone who was already dead. Suspicion from the students regarding the Harry and Rose being's involvement with the attacks continued to rise, and they were glad for the large amount of people that were leaving for the holidays.
Unlike the Harry and Rose being, Fred and George were making light of the suspicion the students placed on them, which made them a little more cheerful. They went out of their way to go ahead of them down the corridor, shouting, "Make way for the Heirs of Slytherin, seriously evil wizard and witch coming through..."
Unsurprisingly, Percy disapproved, stating to them coldly, "It is not a laughing matter."
"Oh, get out of the way, Percy." Fred responded. "Harry and Rose are in a hurry."
"Yeah, they're off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea with their fanged servant." George chortled.
Ginny Weasley also didn't find it amusing, wailing, "Oh, don't!" She did this each time Fred asked loudly who they were planning to attack next, or George pretending to ward them off with a large clove of garlic when they met up. The Harry and Rose being managed to also make light of the situation due to the antics of Fred and George, which helped them deal with the other students suspicions. Draco Malfoy was rather aggravated by it, though, something the Harry and Rose being found rather delightful.
The term ended within a couple days and a silence the Harry and Rose being found peaceful descended on the castle. The holidays and lack of students in the corridors gave the Harry and Rose being far more opportunities to work on studying and practicing various spells than they'd had otherwise, and wondered if they could remain during the summer to do the same. More important than holidays was preparing for Voldemort's return, to learn to fight so they could defeat him. They practiced the disarming charm on one another until they could efficiently perform it, worked with the shield charm and attempted to practice, though knew they'd need another partner. As Mr. Ollivander had suspected a year ago, their spells dissipated on contact, and more than that, performing magic between their other halves and against one another felt odd, and depending on the magic, wrong.
The Harry and Rose being decided to wait until after the holidays to try and get some help with their dueling difficulty, as they didn't think asking anyone over the holidays would be well received. It didn't stop them from researching all they could, though, waking early and staying up as late as they could, getting perhaps five hours of sleep a night. They learned well enough and were still able to concentrate and focus, so decided the extra time to study was worth it.
Christmas morning found the grounds cold and covered in white snow. The Harry and Rose being woke early in the morning. Unlike the previous year, they weren't shocked to see presents at the foot of their bed. They climbed from the warmth of the sheets and dressed for the day before grabbing their gifts and placing them on the bed.
The Harry and Rose being then heard a tapping at the window and moved to it, where Hedwig was requesting entry. They pulled it open and she flew in, then the Rose half closed it as the Harry half stroked her feathers and removed a note and package from her.
"Thanks a lot, girl." The Harry and Rose being said.
Hedwig hooted as the Rose half opened the room door, allowing her to fly free from there rather than out into the cold again. As she did this, the Harry half opened the package and found a toothpick and a short missive from the Dursley's asking if they could remain over the summer. The Harry and Rose being decided to save that one with satisfaction, then remembered what Professor Dumbledore had told them about the wards that kept them safe. They sighed and lowered their eyes at that, realizing that asking would probably be futile.
The Harry and Rose being unwrapped the rest of their presents, having received a tin of treacle fudge from Hagrid, a book entitled Flying with the Cannons from Ron, which explained some interesting facts about his favorite Quidditch team, and from Hermione was a luxury eagle-feather quill along with some parchment and an ink vial. The last gift was from Mrs. Weasley, containing two hand-knitted sweaters, a large cake, and a card. The Harry and Rose being enjoyed the cake and the card, putting on their sweaters, feeling a swell of affection in their heart for the woman who had taken care of them when the Weasley's had brought them to her house.
It was still early in the morning when the Harry and Rose being exited their room. The common room was nearly empty accept for a small figure in one of the chairs. The Rose half gazed on, seeing the red hair of the girl more clearly. It was Ginny Weasley, and she seemed to be writing in something. Curious, the Harry and Rose being drew closer, the Rose half noticing that she would stop writing, then begin again on the same place of the page. Her eyes were wide, though, and she almost looked terrified.
"Hello, Ginny." The Rose half said with a smile.
Ginny jumped and slammed the book shut, though from the look of it, it was more like a diary. She stared up at the Rose half with wide eyes.
"What are you afraid of, Ginny? It's me, Rose." She said with a smile, trying to put the girl at ease.
Ginny gave the Rose half a fleeting glance and jumped up, turning bright red when she saw the Harry half. As she turned to leave, she stumbled and fell, the diary flying from her hand. Automatically with the reflexes born from Quidditch, the Rose half snatched it out of the air and stared, feeling a cold darkness, something barely perceptible at the edges of her mind. Ginny stared at her with the diary in her hand, freezing with even more terror.
"Here, Ginny." The Rose half said kindly, reaching to hand it back to her.
Ginny took a breath, rocking back and forth on her feet as the Harry half stepped closer, the Harry and Rose being looking concerned. Ginny looked pale, as if she'd not been sleeping well, though not by choice. The Harry and Rose being noticed she was looking almost stressed, her eyes locked on the diary in the Rose half's hands.
"I-I-I don't want it..." Ginny said quietly in a terrified voice. "Just don't... Don't tell anyone please..."
"Don't tell anyone what, Ginny?" The Rose half asked. "That this diary is... Wrong somehow, dark, evil?"
Ginny flinched and the Rose half stepped forward, gently taking her arm. Almost before she realized it, Ginny's eyes welled with tears and she grabbed the Rose half, sobbing into her shoulder. With a flick of her wrist, the Rose half sent the diary flying up into the air and the Harry half caught it quietly. Ginny didn't seem to notice and the Harry and Rose being felt no malevolence from the diary now. As the Rose half embraced Ginny and stroked her back, the Harry half opened the diary. ON the first page, he spotted the name T. M. Riddle, and found that the diary was apparently blank. Turning to the back cover, the Harry half spotted the name of a variety store on Vauxhall Road, London. Tom Riddle must have been muggle born, the Harry and Rose being thought. Voldemort, a half blood, how curious.
"Ginny, what's wrong, what is it?" The Rose half asked.
Ginny rose her head and her eyes widened. She seemed to realize the Rose half didn't have the diary any longer. Her face was white with terror and she suddenly ran for the Harry half, who was in the process of heading toward the portrait hole. She tackled him and tore the diary from his hands, then ran from the common room, quill and Ink in hand as well.
The Harry and Rose being were quick to follow her through the corridors. It was a few minutes later, however, that as Ginny rounded another corner, Professor Snape appeared around another corner like a silent shadow. The Harry and Rose being stopped, heart pounding.
"No running in the corridors, Potter's." Professor Snape stated in his cold tones. "Ten points from Gryffindor."
"I'm sorry, Professor, but we've got something important to find out." The Harry and Rose being said, hurrying off.
"Fifteen points from Gryffindor for disrespecting a Professor, and be glad it isn't more!" Professor Snape called after them as they walked quickly.
They found Ginny after a minute. She was no longer running, but instead, was walking with purpose toward Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. The Harry and Rose being felt relief as they hurried up to her. Ginny, hearing their approach, turned to face them with a smirk.
"How... Wonderful." She said, her voice cool. "I had hoped to wait, and while proceeding ahead of my schedule may be risky, it seems you left me no further choice."
Ginny drew her wand and waved it at them in a flash, the stunning spell sending both of them into unconsciousness before either could react. They became aware of cold stone as they slowly began to wake, struggling to move. As they slowly sat up, they became aware of Ginny laying on the floor next to them, the diary near her hand.
"Ginny..." The Harry and Rose being said, the Rose half pulling herself over to her, both shaking off the effects of the stunning spell.
As the Rose half touched her cold skin and shook her, the Harry and Rose being felt some relief. She wasn't petrified, at least, but she wasn't waking, either. The Rose half tried to check for a pulse, but couldn't seem to find one. As the Harry half stumbled to his feet and stretched, the Rose half slapped her face a few times, trying to get her to wake.
"I'm afraid you're wasting your time." The voice of a teenage boy said softly.
The Harry and Rose being turned to face him and saw a boy taller than the Harry half, perhaps as tall as the Rose half was now. His hair was jet black, and strangely, his features were blurred and out of focus somehow. Quickly, the Harry and Rose being stared around the chamber they were in, spotting stone pillars and an imposing statue of a wizard with a long beard. Carvings of snakes were on some of the pillars and the only other things besides them, Ginny, and the diary was the boy.
"Tom Riddle?" The Harry and Rose being enquired. "Is that who you are?"
"A name that has no meaning for me." The boy responded calmly, but in a cold voice. "You see, I, as you seem to have discovered from your reaction, am Lord Voldemort."
"You are no lord." The Harry and Rose being stated.
"Is that so?" Riddle asked with a smirk. "We are in a place that not even Dumbledore has discovered. Only I, the true heir of Slytherin, knows of this place, Only I, a memory stored in a diary for fifty years, knows of this secret. I, and of course, the real me, though that will be changing soon enough."
"What are you talking about?" The Harry and Rose being asked. "Real you, changing soon enough? What do you mean by that?"
"I suppose I'll tell you, as you've no way of stopping the process. But let's start at the beginning, shall we?" Riddle's voice almost seemed gentle, though was cold somehow. It was the voice of a man who could have been charming at some point, but wasn't now.
"I suppose, the real reason Ginny Weasley here is like this, is because she opened her heart to me, an invisible stranger. Ginny told me you found my diary, knew it was mine, was going to tell a teacher about me. Isn't that right?" Riddle was staring at the Harry half as he spoke.
"Yes, that's right." The Harry and Rose being responded.
Riddle looked between the two of them, eyes glinting.
"What a curious case indeed, the two of you." He stated quietly. "And you, Harry Potter, the down fall of Lord Voldemort, the most powerful Wizard who ever lived."
"Please, I didn't do anything." The Harry and Rose being stated coolly. "But you... You were foolish."
"I, foolish? I, Lord Voldemort, being made a fool? No, Harry and Rose Potter, I'm afraid it is you who are foolish!" Riddle spat in anger and fury, then seemed to collect himself and calm. "You know, if it weren't for you, I'd have rid the school of a few more mudbloods by now. But, as it is, I knew I couldn't let you catch me, take my diary to the teachers. I should thank Ginny for that, but of course..."
He trailed off, a red gleam in his eyes.
"And so, knowing from what Ginny told me that you'd pursue her until you got the diary back, I took control of her yet again." Riddle smirked.
The Harry and Rose being thought quickly, eyes widening at the realization. Voldemort, Tom Riddle, had been controlling Ginny through the diary. He had opened the chamber fifty years ago, and here he was again, using her to open it yet again.
"Three times you took her over, isn't it?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"So, the roomer of your deductive abilities isn't quite so fanciful after all." Riddle looked coldly at them. "Yes, as a matter of fact, it was three times, this being the fourth. The first, you were petrified, Rose, and somehow, was brought back by Harry Potter. The single soul bond has such great uses, does it not?"
"How do you know about that?" The Harry and Rose being asked, trembling a little as they looked around the chamber.
Riddle laughed a high, cold laugh, one they recognized slightly. They remembered that laugh, a flash of green light, pain in the Harry half's forehead. That was the same laugh of Lord Voldemort.
"How, you ask? Well, I've done much research on magic, such magic that no one but I know of." Riddle replied with a cold smirk. "I unlike many am quite willing to push the boundaries of magic further than ever before. I came across the single soul bond, a legend until I met you, I admit. But what I'm most interested in knowing is how you defeated Lord Voldemort."
The red gleam in his eyes had grown more pronounced, almost seeming to be a type of hunger.
"And what I'm interested in knowing is what you are." The Harry and Rose being said. "You're too self aware to be a mere memory, you're more than that, like a person."
"I'll make you a deal, shall I?" Riddle asked. "You tell me what I want to know and I'll be more than happy to answer your questions as well."
The Harry and Rose being glanced at Ginny and Riddle added, "We have plenty of time, and we're quite safe here, I assure you."
"Okay." The Harry and Rose being said quickly. "I don't know how it happened, but when the Harry half was young, the killing curse Voldemort cast at him was reflected back on him. It left him with the scar on his forehead. Dumbledore said it was love."
"And now, you speak Parseltongue, just as I do. You are an orphan, just as I am. You live with Muggles, just as I once did. The similarities are interesting, are they not?" Riddle asked. "We are much alike, you and I."
"Your turn." The Harry and Rose being stated. "What are you? You're no memory."
"True, and we did have a deal after all, one I'm more than willing to honor." Riddle looked at both of them with a level gaze. "Have you ever wondered about immortality, Harry and Rose? A way of saving yourself, even from the most grievous of injuries?"
"No, but I already know how to do that, but it leaves a curse." The Harry and Rose being responded, hands clenching into fists nervously as they stared around and listened to the silence, hoping someone, anyone would come to their aid.
"Ah, you speak, no doubt of Unicorn blood. No, such methods are crude. I needed something more reliable. So I made it, something difficult to destroy, something called a Horcrux. Do you know what a Horcrux is?" Riddle asked.
"No." The Harry and Rose being replied.
"A Horcrux will save you from death. It involves splitting the soul and placing a piece of it within an object." Riddle said.
"The diary." The Harry and Rose being stated with sudden comprehension. "It's a Horcrux and so are you."
Riddle clapped.
"Well done." He said. "Very impressive detective work. You're right, I am a Horcrux, but soon enough, I shall have life. Ginny Weasley on the other hand, will only be remembered."
Riddle was looking more solid than before, the Harry and Rose being realized. His features were becoming more real, not quite so blurred. The Harry and Rose being stared at Ginny and back at Riddle, the Rose half moving to Ginny and shaking her.
"Ginny!" She shouted, hitting her face again. "Ginny, wake up!"
"A waist of time." Riddle said coldly. "You see, Ginny Weasley lies here in the chamber where, I wrote, she would lie forever. I used her body of course, and an admirable struggle she put up, too. But now, she grows weaker as I grow stronger."
"You were stalling." The Harry and Rose being said, trembling.
"Quite right." Riddle said.
"Well you won't stall anymore!" The Harry and Rose being shouted, drawing their wands and aiming them, the stunning spell flying right at Riddle and threw him to the wall behind him. Riddle laughed his high, cold laugh again.
"You believe that will defeat me?" He asked.
"I know of someone who can." The Harry and Rose being stated with great conviction. "Someone who's more powerful than you are, someone who I believe will help, someone who will get rid of you for all time!"
"And who might that be?" Riddle asked.
"Professor Albus Dumbledore!" The Harry and Rose being shouted, their wands steady as they were aimed at Riddle. "He told me about you, told me you opened the chamber!"
"And you believe by calling his name that he will come, do you?" Riddle asked. "I'm afraid that won't happen. And you won't live to see Dumbledore again."
"Oh I think I will." The Harry and Rose being stated.
"We shall see." Riddle stated coolly. "It's time I taught you a lesson, your last I'm afraid. Lord Voldemort is more powerful than you will ever be."
Riddle walked over to the statue of Slytherin, staring up into the stone face. The Harry and Rose being turned to stare at it. Riddle spoke in a hissing voice of Parseltongue, but the Harry and Rose being understood.
"Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four."
The Harry and Rose being stared in silent horror as the stone face of Slytherin began to move, the mouth opening to reveal a giant, dark hole within. Something was slithering up from its deep depths and the Harry and Rose being shut their eyes tight. listening intently. Something giant hit the floor and the Harry and Rose being knew, realized this was the Basilisk. They felt the shutter as its large body slammed into the floor, could almost sense the giant snake with head raised.
"Kill them." Riddle spoke in his hissing tones.
The Harry and Rose being could hear the Basilisk slithering toward them across the stone floor, and at the same moment, could hear a strange, unearthly music that seemed to fill the chamber. The Harry and Rose being felt as if their heart was swelling to twice its normal size, felt hope filling them, a determination to see this through to the end.
The Rose half slammed into stone and the Harry half grabbed her, the Harry and Rose being feeling their way along the wall as Riddle stood frozen by the music. Something that sounded like flames appeared as the music reached new heights in volume and Riddle shouted, "Dumbledore!"
"Close your eyes!" The Harry and Rose being shouted wildly. "Basilisk!"
"Fawkes!" Dumbledore shouted moments later as the Harry and Rose being felt their way wildly along the wall.
They heard a mad hissing, spitting sound as something hit the Harry half and slid to the floor, the Rose half spinning and grabbing something that felt like an old wizards hat. They could hear the Basilisk thrashing, smashing into the pillars. Riddle shouted in sudden rage.
"No! Leave the bird, smell them, kill them! Leave Dumbledore to me!" Riddle's voice was completely furious, almost crazed sounding.
"Open your eyes Harry and Rose, look!" Dumbledore said before the Harry and Rose being heard a loud bang.
They trusted Dumbledore, how could they not? He'd told them a lot of truths that he'd not wanted them to, had proven himself to be trustworthy, so they did. The Basilisk's eyes had been pecked out by Fawkes, and the Rose half was holding the sorting hat. Dumbledore and Riddle were dueling, magical beams of light moving between them from their wands, one of the pillars in pieces on the floor. Dumbledore was sweeping his wand in a wide arc and sending the pillars, which were animating, directly for Riddle who blasted them into sand and sent it swirling at Dumbledore in a dust storm, who sent the storm back at him in flames, which Riddle made into a snake and sent at Dumbledore in a fiery whip, who transformed the flames into water which steamed and splashed to the floor, then Dumbledore sent yet another pillar toward him and the Rose half spotted the giant Basilisk out of the corner of her eye, tackling the Harry half to the ground and sprinting off, hearing the large snake coming after them before another crash and a mad hissing made them turn around.
The Basilisk was partly pinned underneath the rubble of one of the pillars, but even as they watched, the debris flew up and moved toward Dumbledore at a blurred pace. The Harry and Rose being made to shout something, but Dumbledore already took care of the problem, sending the debris crashing to another part of the chamber and producing a shield at the end of his wand, batting a spell away from him and toward the snake. He was incredible to watch, his long silver beard moving as if in an invisible wind, robes speckled with stars and bright, Christmas decorations swirling around him. A heavy power seemed to fill the chamber as he dueled Riddle, who laughed in a high, cold manner.
"You can't hurt me, old man!" He shouted, and the Harry and Rose being noticed Riddle was looking even more solid, as if the duel was somehow replenishing his strength.
"Professor stop!" The Harry and Rose being screamed, then the Harry half was slammed by the giant Basilisk and sent flying. Even as he flew and hit the ground, the Rose half continued, undeterred. "He's draining Ginny's life!"
"The hat!" Dumbledore shouted as he put up a shield, now acting more defensively rather than offensively. "Put on the hat!"
The Rose half scurried quickly away from the Basilisk before slamming the hat over her head. Professor Dumbledore had wanted her to do this for some reason, but why? Even as she waited, the Harry half hurried to grab the diary, ducking under spells that flew toward him.
"Help me, help me..." The Harry and Rose being thought fiercely as the Harry half dove next to Ginny, which was perhaps the safest place he could be at the moment.
Quite suddenly, the hat shrank around the Rose half's head, so tight she doubted she could remove it even if she wanted to. Moments later, she felt something slam into the top of her head, something hard enough to make her see stars. She yanked the hat from her head and reached inside, finding the sword even as she heard the Basilisk coming ever closer. She pulled on the metallic handle of a long, gleaming sword and took it from the hat, straightening up as she rose it. Without hesitation, she charged the Basilisk, ramming the sword straight into its open mouth and driving it into the roof of it. At the same moment, a sharp pain pierced her arm as one of the long fangs of the Basilisk sank deep into her right arm. A slow burning sensation began to spread from the wound as the Basilisk fell, the fang snapping off in her arm as she yanked the sword free and staggered over to the Harry half, feeling her vision blurring, the Harry and Rose being starting to separate, thoughts growing out of sync. No, no, no, the Harry half thought. I'm dying, the Rose half thought.
"No!" The Harry half shouted furiously, leaping up with the diary in his hand and running toward the Rose half, "No don't you die!"
He hardly noticed he held the diary as he grabbed the Rose half and lay her down, sensing her thoughts. She loved him, loved him with a deeper, more powerful love than he realized. How could she not love a part of herself with such strength? She was glad to see him, that her last sight would be of him. She smiled a beautiful, sad smile as the Harry half saw her paling as she started to shiver.
"No!" The Harry half shouted, tears starting to stream down his face as he ripped the fang from her arm, the Rose half flinching a little.
"You're very sweet, Harry." The Rose half said weakly, staring through blurred eyes at Professor Dumbledore and Riddle, both of whom were watching intently.
"You're supposed to stay with me!" The Harry half screamed as Fawkes flew over to them, then he grabbed her face and kissed her on the lips, just as he had to revive her before. He felt her delight and joy, her hands weakly grasping at his face in turn, colder than usual.
Their thoughts came back into sink with a jolt and they were one being again, fully one being. They felt the deep burning spreading throughout the Rose half as her arms flopped to the ground, the Harry and Rose being gasping in sobs at the knowledge of the nearing death of the Rose half. They couldn't imagine life with one half of them missing. As the deep burning grew hotter, the Harry and Rose being cried out, the Harry half spotting thick, pearly tears pouring on to the Rose half's arm. The wound was closing quickly, but the burning feeling was growing worse, sharper. It was burning them alive. The Harry and Rose being let out a shout of pain and the Harry half tumbled to the ground, shuttering along with the Rose half, both of them screaming as the liquid fire in their vanes grew hotter.
The pain was almost as if they were transforming on the full moon, but it was far worse, far more debilitating than that. The Harry and Rose being screamed in agony and Riddle laughed in a high, cold manner. A flash of flame appeared above them to reveal a beautiful bird with red and gold feathers, black eyes, and a long beak. While Fawkes was able to fly and apparently got Dumbledore here, he looked quite tired, still small, but not quite as he'd appeared before. The other was much larger and sang a musical song as it circled above them, the agony growing even worse. Another flash appeared to reveal yet another phoenix, the two singing a great song. The Harry and Rose being screamed as the acid in their blood melted their bodies from the inside out, screaming in pure agony even as the two Phoenix's landed on either side of them, one grabbing the Rose half in its talons and depositing her on the Harry half. The Harry and Rose being continued to scream even as new flames surrounded them, flames that grew as high as the stone pillars in the Chamber of Secrets, encasing and surrounding them. The Phoenix's were on them and still singing, and even in their pain, they felt a great hope swelling within them, a deep piece that everything would be all right. With a loud cry that seemed to make their pain disappear and sent hope to consume them utterly, the Phoenix's seemed to vanish and the Harry and Rose being, along with their clothes, burned hot and bright.
The flames burned through them and the Harry half felt a sharp pain in his scar, the Rose half spotting blood along with some type of dark, black, oily substance pouring from it. It was burned by the flames and emitted a shout. The diary, too, was burning in the Harry half's hand, and even the Harry half's knees, which had at times irritated him due to the number of sharp slams Dudley had given them over the years, were feeling better. Old pains and injuries were healing, even ones the Harry and Rose being didn't even know they'd had. Their minds were sharpening, becoming clearer somehow, more focused than ever before, the flames burning away all the pain and replacing them with a flame of calm, piece, purpose. The flames grew brighter for an instant, then soaked into the Harry and Rose being, who lay panting and trembling on the ground, heart pounding wildly.
A sound caught their attention, something foreign and alien. It was a sob. The Harry and Rose being slowly sat up and they stared around them, realizing they were in the Chamber of Secrets. Riddle's diary was still clutched in the Harry half's hand, but it was burnt and blackened, though was still in tact. They stared down at it and the Rose half grabbed it, though felt none of the coldness as before. They heard the sob again, then a wail of fear.
"I didn't mean it! I didn't, he made me!" Ginny Weasley shouted.
"I'm well aware of that." Professor Dumbledore said in a soft, kind voice. "Many wizards better than yourself have been manipulated by Voldemort, you won't be punished for this, Miss Weasley. You're quite safe now, he won't be returning."
Ginny was sobbing as the Harry and Rose being slowly stood in a strange, graceful motion, something that felt comfortable though wasn't quite familiar. The Harry half's vision was blurry, they realized, he removing his glasses to a clear, sharp vision, the same as the Rose half. As they looked at each other, they gasped in surprise. Their eyes had changed slightly, swirling with the dark black of the Phoenix. Hearing a trill from below them, they looked down and spotted Fawkes, who looked larger and stronger than he had before. He flew up from the stone floor and moved to Professor Dumbledore and Ginny.
"Harry, Rose, collect the sword and sorting hat for me, if you will." Professor Dumbledore said calmly to both of them.
The Harry half went to get the sorting hat as the Rose half grabbed the sword. It felt much lighter than before, the Harry and Rose being noted. Both moved toward Professor Dumbledore and Ginny, Fawkes hovering above them.
"Hold on to his tail, everyone." Professor Dumbledore said. "We shall be leaving this place, and we shall not return."
The Harry and Rose being reached up and grasped Fawkes's tail, then felt flame starting to surround them. They immediately realized what was happening. They were being transported by a Phoenix, and knew where they were going. The image of Professor Dumbledore's office was clear in their minds. As the flames flashed around them and they felt the familiar, comforting warmth of the Phoenix flame burning within them, they realized this was something they could easily do should they wanted. They even knew the process somehow, as if some innate knowledge had been given to them. The travel was short and left them standing precisely where they'd thought, everyone releasing Fawkes's tail as he flew to his perch. The Harry and Rose being were overflowing with questions and Ginny still cried. They felt an instinctive need to reach out to her, the Harry and Rose being doing so and stroking her hair.
"You're safe, Ginny." They spoke in a smooth, graceful voice, one that seemed to make Ginny's tears stop flowing quite so much. "Tom Riddle will never hurt you again, Ginny." The Harry and Rose being kept stroking her hair as they spoke to her, her sobs lessening. "Everything's going to be fine. We've done something good today, we got rid of the one controlling and possessing you. Calm down, Ginny, you're safe. Shh."
Ginny gazed up at them in awe and wonder, allowing herself to be led to a chair, not resisting.
"Will you be all right, Miss Weasley?" Professor Dumbledore asked.
Ginny stared around the office, then back at Professor Dumbledore. She blinked tears from her eyes even as she calmed, then said in a peaceful tone, "Yeah. Yes, I'll be okay I think. It... Doesn't hurt anymore."
"Very good." Professor Dumbledore replied with a smile, his blue eyes twinkling with pure joy and delight. "A great miracle has occurred here today. It would seem, Harry and Rose, that you are full of performing that which is known only to be legend."
"What do you mean?" They asked, sitting in a chair next to Ginny, again, Dumbledore making one they could sit next to one another in.
"Not only have we stopped Tom Riddle from his plans, we also witnessed the legendary regeneration of the Phoenix, a burning that two Phoenix's are said to perform willingly, a sacrifice of magic, abilities, and life force within those effected." Professor Dumbledore explained. "It is said that this burning will rid all things of the impure, heal injuries, and is even said to grant abilities of the Phoenix to those caught in its effects."
"I can travel like Fawkes if I wanted to, I'm sure of it." The Harry and Rose being said. "Things felt lighter than before, this for example." The Rose half gently and carefully placed the sword on Professor Dumbledore's desk.
"Ah, quite fascinating indeed." Professor Dumbledore replied, still smiling. "I suspected that only a true Gryffindor could have pulled this sword from the sorting hat, and it would seem I was correct."
"Professor, sir, I thought Fawkes had just been born. How did he get you to us?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
Professor Dumbledore let out a breath and suddenly looked older, more exhausted somehow.
"It is not often that a Phoenix does this, but Fawkes and I share a deep bond." Professor Dumbledore responded. "You showed great loyalty to me in the Chamber of Secrets today, and in so doing, Fawkes wished to come to your aid. I was near and felt his urging. When I took hold of him, he borrowed a portion of my magic to give himself the strength to become large enough to bring me to the Chamber, and assist in the ensuing battle."
Fawkes glided to Professor Dumbledore at that and gazed into his eyes, rubbing his beak against his cheek. He straightened, seeming less tired now. At the same moment, Fawkes's eyes closed and Professor Dumbledore gently took hold of him and lay him gently on the desk in front of him.
"Is he okay?" Ginny asked as the Harry and Rose being looked on.
"Yes, he is quite all right, only tired." Professor Dumbledore replied.
"Professor, I think the Harry half used to have a piece of Voldemort inside him. It's gone." The Harry and Rose being said. Even as they said this, they knew that it was true, somehow knowing the presence of the piece of Voldemort within them had been burned away.
"That is most excellent news." Professor Dumbledore smiled brightly.
"Would it be okay if I spoke to you alone a moment, Professor?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"That's okay, I'll just go back to the common room." Ginny said as she stood, smiling at them with a weary gaze and blushing a little. "I'll um... Thanks, Professor sir." She looked down shyly and a bit awkwardly, but no longer looked stressed as she had before.
"That's quite all right, Miss Weasley." Professor Dumbledore replied. "I'm honored to have helped you, and of course, we shall keep your confidence. As no lasting damage has been done, I believe we can safely keep this to ourselves."
"Thanks." Ginny said, smiling a little before turning and leaving the office.
"Now." Professor Dumbledore gazed at them over the top of his half-moon spectacles. "You wished to tell me something?"
"The diary, and I suspect the Harry half, were both Horcruxes." The Harry and Rose being stated promptly.
"Ah." Professor Dumbledore looked heavy with a deep burden, a grief. "I know only vaguely of the term, but a Horcrux is a most detestable thing. To think that Voldemort created one... I am not even certain how such a creation is possible. Not yet, but I shall research this."
"Professor, was that why I'm able to speak Parseltongue?" The Harry and Rose being asked. "Because of Voldemort?"
"I suspect so." Professor Dumbledore responded. "You see, in attempting to kill you, Harry, I believe Voldemort unintentionally transferred a portion of his powers to you those many years ago. Perhaps, with the information you provided me, that something was actually a portion of his soul."
"How?" The Harry and Rose being asked, though was also thinking quickly.
Voldemort had killed twice before he attempted to kill the Harry half, presumably, at any rate. Part of his soul split and entered the Harry half, making him a Horcrux. If his soul split and made the Harry half a Horcrux, murder could be the means by which a Horcrux was created. If that was the case, Voldemort surely wouldn't have stopped at one, a Horcrux that was so unprotected it found its way into Ginny Weasley's cauldron of books... Right after Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Weasley had been fighting, in fact. He could have put it there, the Harry and Rose being thought, then resumed thinking about Voldemort. Why stop at one Horcrux, they asked them self. He could have created more than one if death was used to create a Horcrux. He could have made two, three, perhaps more than that.
"I'm not certain. I shall have to research that as well." Professor Dumbledore said.
"Voldemort killed the Harry half's parents, then tried to kill him." The Harry and Rose being began. "He failed. A piece of his soul split from him and made the Harry half an unintended Horcrux. If that's the case, death of another might give someone the ability to make a Horcrux."
"Circumstantial at best." Professor Dumbledore stated. "Though, it sounds like such a thing Voldemort would have no qualms against doing. A terrible, heinous act to murder for the purpose of extending ones life."
"Is there any way we can find out for sure?" The Harry and Rose being asked.
"There may be a way." Professor Dumbledore responded. "However, unless you have anything further you wish to tell me, I suggest we postpone this meeting for a later date. It is, after all, the holidays. Such a thing as Tom Riddle's diary, a Horcrux of Voldemort being destroyed, and the knowledge no further attacks will be made against the students, ought to be celebrated, not brought down by such weighty topics of discussion."
"I agree." The Harry and Rose being smiled and nodded. "Well, then, Professor, until later."
"Very well, then." Professor Dumbledore said as the Harry and Rose being stood. "And, on another note before you leave, I would be most interested to learn what abilities you may have received from the Phoenix's sacrifice."
"So would I, Professor." The Harry and Rose being said, leaving the Headmaster's office with the peaceful flame of the Phoenix ever present in their minds, hearts, and souls.
As the door closed behind the Harry and Rose being, Professor Dumbledore sighed, picking up Fawkes and carrying him to the perch that held him. Gently, he placed him on it and lightly stroked him.
"Well done, Fawkes." He muttered. "And Harry, Rose, two-hundred points to Gryffindor. I shall have to look into that award for services to the school, most definitely, now." With a smile of satisfaction, Professor Dumbledore made his way to his quarters, changing for the rest of the Christmas day. It wouldn't do, after all, to continue walking around in dusty, filthy robes.