Ron and Harry can't wait for Bloom to wake up, if she even will before the snake is dead, so they go to tell Lockhart what they know of the monster.

What they find isn't a complete surprise to Harry or Ron: Lockhart's leaving.

Bloom said right from the start that he's useless as a teacher and a fighter - so it's not incredibly shocking to find him packing his bags right before he has to go fight a giant Basilisk.

Ron incredulously says "You can't leave! What about my sister? What about Bloom and Hermione?"

"Yes, that. Most unfortunate. No one regrets that more than I."

Harry yells "You're the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, you can't just go now!"

It may be the end of the school year, but really?!

"Well, I must say, when I took the job, there was nothing in the job description about-"

Harry interrupts, asking, "Fighting monsters? That's what you're supposed to be teaching us to do! That's the definition of the class!"

Ron asks "You're really running away? After all the stuff you did in those books of yours?"

Truth be told, after the first lesson everyone had their suspicions about Lockhart's exploits.

Lockhart smiles sheepishly, caught in his act, and says "Well, books can be misleading."

Ron yells "You wrote them!"

Lockhart says "My dear boy, use your common sense. My books wouldn't have sold nearly as well if people didn't think I did all that stuff!"

Harry yells "Your nothing but a fraud! You take credit for what others have done!"

Ron deadpans "Is there anything you can do?"

"Well, now that you mention it, I'm rather gifted with Memory charms. Otherwise, all those other witches and wizards would have gone blabbing. And, ah…I'm ah…going to have to do the same to you."

Lockhart takes his wand out, but finds Harry and Ron are already pointing theirs at him.

Harry says "Don't even think about it. Bloom may be the strongest witch in our century, but she's taught us a few things as well. She beat Draco in only a few spells, and, I can't believe it, he's better at fighting than you, Lockhart."

Lockhart visibly gulps, seems Bloom's performance dueling Draco is somewhat useful after all.

Lockhart keeps his hands in the air as Ron takes his wand off him for the time being.

They make it to the Girl's bathroom, and find Myrtle there as usual.

"Oh, hello Harry! Ron! What are you two doing here?"

Harry says "We need to know how you died. Was it the Basilisk?"

"I don't know. I heard someone come in while I was in this very stall. They spoke some words in a made-up sounding language, and it was a boy's voice. I opened the door to tell him to leave, and I just died."

Ron asks "Just like that?"

Myrtle snaps her fingers for emphasis, making all three living beings gulp.

"All I remember seeing were these two massive yellow eyes by the sink. Tell Bloom I say hello if you all live through this. And if not, you guys are welcome to share my toilet with me."

Myrtle smiles, like she really means it.

"Oh, but not Lockhart. Bloom told me once that she thought he was just a fraud faking everything."

Harry says "She's right, he is faking everything. The only thing he can do is wipe people's minds."

Myrtle glares at the man, as Ron runs his fingers along the faucet of the sink Myrtle pointed to.

It's got a snake design, and he says "Harry, this is it! Speak some Parseltounge!"

Harry says a few words, not really knowing how he can speak the language of snakes.

The entire sink suddenly turns into stairs, and Harry gets a sudden headache and a vision of a boy kneeling over the body of a girl.

He can tell there's some other presence - but he can't tell what, only that it's massive and evil.

Lockhart says "Well done Harry, I suppose there's no other reason for me to be here then."

Harry says "Oh yes there is, you first!"

"Now, really, what good what that do?"

Ron and Harry can both tell Lockhart's practically wetting his pants right now, and fear is practically spilling out of his voice.

Ron says "Better you than us."

"Um, well…obviously, yes. But are you sure you don't want to test it? No!"

Harry got tired of Lockhart's stalling and used a spell to push him over.

Bloom taught him that one, now he realizes how useful it can be.

Lockhart screams up "It's really quite filthy down here!"

Harry says "Well, this part is safe then."

"Right, let's go."

Harry and Ron jump, and both boys cringe when they realize what they've landed in - Lockhart wasn't kidding when he said it was filthy in here.

Harry and Ron go forward, ignoring Lockhart now that they know the possibility of them dying in this room is past.

Harry says "If you see any movement, shut your eyes immediately."

"Right."

Harry sees something and goes over to it, it's a giant snakeskin that must be sixty feet long and ten feet tall.

Ron is distracted by the massive skin, and Lockhart sees his chance and grabs Ron's wand - which is still damaged.

In Transfigurations class, it once turned Scabbers, his rat, into a water goblet that still had fur and a tail.

Just like the curse that backfired on Ron in the Quidditch field, Lockhart's Obliviate spell backfires on him and wipes his memory completely.

He hits the wall, which causes a collapse that leaves Ron and Lockhart on the side with the door while Harry is stuck with going deeper into the Chamber.

Harry can feel something changing in his connection with Bloom - like she's stirring from whatever was keeping her unconscious.

There's no time to wait, Ginny could die at any time.

Harry finds a large metal door with seven serpents engraved on it - a little Parseltongue opens it easily.

When Harry gets to the main chamber, there's a giant moat around what looks like a pillar - and Ginny's lying on the ground near the water.

When he gets to her, she's like ice and hardly breathing - not good.

A new voice says "She won't wake."

Harry looks up to see Tom Riddle standing there.

"Tom, Tom Riddle! What do you mean, 'she won't wake' - she's not-"

"She's alive, but only just."

Harry gets a thought, and asks "Are you a ghost?"

"Not exactly. I'm a memory, preserved in a diary for fifty years."

Harry says, half to himself, "She's as cold as ice, we have to get her out of here."

He turns toward Tom, not realizing Tom has his wand.

"Tom, you have to help. There's a basilisk."

"It won't come until it's called."

Harry suddenly notices what's in Tom's hand, and says "Give me my wand!"

"You won't be needing it."

"Tom, we've got to go! We have to save her!"

Tom gets a creepy smile on his face, and says "I'm afraid I can't do that Harry. You see, as poor Ginny grows weaker, I grow stronger. It was Ginny who opened the Chamber of Secrets."

Harry's shocked, but knows Ginny likely doesn't know a drop of Parseltongue - there's no way she could open the Chamber.

On top of that, she's far too sweet and kind-hearted to do something like this.

"She couldn't. She wouldn't!"

"Ginny was the one who wrote the threatening messages on the walls, set the Basilisk on the Mudbloods and Filch's cat."

"But why?"

Harry can't find any reason for Ginny to do any of this stuff.

Tom laughs and says "I asked her to. You'll find I can be very persuasive when I want to be. Not that she knew what she was doing though, she was, shall we say, in a kind of trance. Still, the power of my diary began to scare her, so she tried to dispose of it in the Girl's bathroom. But, much to my surprise, who would find it but your unusual friend?"

Harry goes stone cold when he remembers what Bloom said about the diary: it had an overwhelming amount of Dark magic.

"And, to my utter delight, she took it straight to you - the person I was most anxious to meet."

"You were trying to control Bloom, weren't you?"

"Well, I was simply trying to get her to take me to you. Then, when it became apparent you two are nearly attached at the hip, I tried to gain her trust as well - she rejected my magic instantly though, she's not a normal witch."

Harry asks "Why'd you want to meet me?"

"I had to talk to you, meet you if I could, so I decided to show you my capture of that brainless oaf, Hagrid, to gain your trust."

"Guess what, it certainly didn't gain Bloom's. And we've learned to trust her instincts on things like this."

Tom scowls, and says "Dumbledore kept an annoyingly close eye on me after that, and I knew it wouldn't be safe to open the Chamber of Secrets while I was still at school. So, I decided to preserve my sixteen-year-old-self in the pages of a diary - so one day I'd be able to lead another to finish Salazar Slytherin's noble work."

Harry knows what Bloom would say to that: murdering innocent kids because of who their parents are isn't noble, it's just murder.

Harry says "Well, you haven't finished it this time. In a few hours, the Mandrake Draught will be finished and all the Petrified students will be revived."

Tom laughs openly now, and asks "Haven't I told you? Killing the Mudbloods doesn't matter to me anymore. For many months now, my new target has been you - and your annoyingly resilient friend. How is it that you, a mere baby at the time, with no extraordinary magical talent, could defeat the greatest wizard of all time? Escape with a mere scar while Lord Voldemort's powers were destroyed? And how is it that the fire-haired girl can resist his powers so completely?"

Harry gets a very bad feeling, now he knows how Bloom feels so much of the time around dark witches and wizards - and around that diary!

"Harry says "You, you're the Heir of Slytherin, your Voldemort."

"Surely you didn't think I was going to keep my filthy muggle father's name? No, I fashioned myself a new one - one that I knew witches and wizards would whisper in fear when I became the greatest wizard of all time!"

"Dumbledore is the greatest wizard of all time!"

Tom yells triumphantly "Dumbledore has been driven out by the mere memory of me!"

"He'll never be gone! Not as long as those that remain are loyal to him!"

Suddenly, they hear a screech, and look up to see a familiar bird - its Fawkes!

"So, this is what Dumbledore sends? His great defender, a songbird, and a ratty, old hat?"

Fawkes and the Basilisk fight, after Tom calls it out and Harry tries and fails to control it.

Harry runs, trying to protect himself and keep his eyes off the Basilisk - it's not all that great for trying to get away from the creature though.

He gets into a tunnel, and slips - and then he hears screeching and hissing, and then a massive explosion.

A moment later, another one sounds much closer and Harry hears the sound of two heavy pieces of metal slamming into the ground.

Tom screams "What? No!" Harry feels a familiar surge in his connection to Bloom, and can tell when she hits Tom with a burst of her fairy magic.

When he peeks out, he sees Bloom healing Ginny fast, and Tom is fading from near-solid to ghostly with every moment.

Harry runs back out and grabs a sword from inside the Sorting hat, which he now realizes Fawkes brought.

Harry uses the sword to fight the Basilisk, noticing a ring of fire around Bloom's head as he does.

It must be to keep herself from being affected by the Basilisk this time, she can do it since nobody's around to see her but the person they have to stop once again.

Harry manages to get the sword though the roof of the Basilisk's mouth, killing it - but he also gets a fang in his arm.

Bloom gets an idea, and yanks the book from Ginny's grasp - and then she focuses her magic through it, burning whatever of Voldemort is in there to ashes.

All the pages turn black as ash, but Bloom doesn't stop until Tom Riddle disappears completely.

Fawkes heals Harry's arm, and then Bloom hugs Harry hard.

"Do me a favor and never get into that much danger when I'm not here to protect you ever again."

Harry grins and says "I'll try. You know me though."

AN: And what everyone's known since the Dueling club has been confirmed: Lockhart is useless! Also, Bloom's way tougher than most everyone in the school thinks - and her side has healed at last! Don't worry, I won't hurt her like that again. anybody think the Dursleys are going to have another miserable summer without their near-slave? *Harry* Read and find out! PS. have another story called 'Bloom in Asgard' if anybody would be interested. Updates are as regular as for this story, just much farther along in chapters.