You guys are incredibly enthusiastic reviewers, did you know that? I turn my computer on in the morning and there are 12 new reviews. 12 reviews in less than 12 hours. Thank you.
But 12 reviews on this and only one new one on 'The Second and the End'? Come on guys. You're killing me here. You asked for the sequel, now let me know what you thought!
Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or Harry Potter
It was somehow decided that they would all go down to the chamber the next day and figure out what to do with it - sans Ginny, of course, who despite the insistence that she would be fine refused to go anywhere near it while the basilisk was still there.
So that was how Gabriel found himself standing in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom on a Saturday, accompanied by several confused wizards and one witch.
"The entrance is in a bathroom?" Hermione questioned, looking around skeptically.
"Hey, I didn't build it." Gabriel walked over to the sinks, looking for the snake that showed the entrance. "Here it is - §open.§"
Ron jumped at the sudden strangled hissing noise [and Gabriel was still really curious as to how, exactly, that worked] and all three of them watched in fascination as the sink descended into the floor, revealing a long pipe which was still absolutely filthy.
"Wow, it's even dirtier than I remembered." Gabriel peered over the edge, and whistled. "Anyone know any cleaning spells?"
"Couldn't you just use your power?" Michael asked.
"I could." Gabriel snapped his fingers, the grime vanishing from the pipe. "Unfortunately this thing doesn't have any stairs, so we'll have to slide down. I vote that Ron goes first."
"Why me?" Ron demanded. "Why not you?"
"Because I just cleaned off the entire thing and I've got to go last to close it behind us, remember? Get in the damn pipe before someone walks in on us."
"Honestly," Hermione huffed, walking forward. "I'll go first, if it's that big of a deal." She stepped up to the edge of the pipe and looked down nervously.
"Watch out for the skeletons at the bottom," Gabriel warned cheerfully. Hermione shot him a look that said she wasn't sure whether or not he was joking, but she took a deep breath, sat on the edge, and pushed herself in.
"Next?" Gabriel looked at Ron and Michael as Hermione vanished down the pipe.
"What the hell," Michael muttered, and jumped in without any sort of pretense. Ron eyed the pipe in worry, taking a few steps forward.
"You were joking about the skeletons, right?"
Gabriel rolled his eyes and pushed Ron in. He waited for the yells to fade a little bit and then stepped inside himself.
It was remarkably easy to stay still at the top when you made yourself float.
"§Close.§"
Gabriel let himself fall as the sink ground back into place and bent the space of the pipe as he went, making it much shorter while still connecting the bathroom and the chamber, so that it would be that much easier to get back up to the school. When he landed at the bottom, he was greeted by a pale-faced Hermione.
"I thought you were joking!"
"Well I never said they were human skeletons," Gabriel retorted, vanishing the skeletal mess under their feet as he stood up. "And let me remind you that this was your idea, not mine."
He walked forward across the now-clean floor, noting that the chamber was identical to how he'd left it - giant snakeskin and all.
"Holy shit!"
"That's not the actual snake, you know." The skin was still strewn about the antechamber, as poisonous green as it had been the last time Gabriel was down here.
"Merlin," Hermione breathed. "It's huge."
Gabriel nodded. "That it was, Hermione, and you're welcome for me killing it." He stepped over the skin, which vanished in the thought. "Come on, the actual chamber is this way."
"There's more of this?" Michael shook his head as he followed Gabriel. "How much space did Slytherin need?"
"Judging by the snake? A lot."
Words seemed to fail the trio as they stared at the body of the basilisk, still lying on its side on the floor of the main chamber.
"You know," Gabriel mused, striding forward and completely ignoring the giant corpse, "I didn't really pay attention before, but this place is filthy."
Michael made a small noise that might have indicated exasperation. "That's really all you're going to comment on?"
"Well, I already saw the snake, so yeah." Gabriel spun around to face them. Hermione was still staring at the basilisk, and Ron was looking a little bit pale, but Michael seemed to have mostly recovered.
"So..." he walked forward cautiously. "You're sure there's nothing else in here?"
"Nope." Gabriel frowned at a dark brown stain on the floor, which dripped all over the place before mixing with a larger black spot. "Huh."
Hermione did another double take when she saw what Gabriel was looking at. "Is that blood?"
"Probably." Gabriel glanced around at the spotted trail. "I must have moved around more than I remembered." His attention drifted back to the basilisk, and Gabriel frowned thoughtfully - should he just vanish it all in one swoop?
"That's your blood?" Hermione stepped away from it quickly.
"Well, I can guarantee that it wasn't Ginny's, because if she'd lost that much she wouldn't have recovered nearly as quickly," Gabriel said, deciding to just vanish the lot of the snake and snapping his fingers to do so. The chamber looked much bigger as soon as it vanished. "Though an argument could be made as to how, technically, it's my - er, Harry's blood."
Hermione gave Gabriel a calculating look but didn't call him out on the blunder. "Can't you get rid of it?"
"Sure." Snap. The brownish stains vanished, but the dry ink remained. Frowning, Gabriel tried again, and it still resisted his efforts. "Huh." Gabriel poked it with his foot. "That's some pretty dark stuff."
Michael glanced at the dark spot warily. "You can't get rid of it?"
"I can," said Gabriel, using his best insulted voice. "But it's probably better if I wait until you three are gone so I don't burn out anyone's eyes."
"Oh," said Ron, who had been mostly quiet. "Alright then. So, er - what do we do?"
"Well, if any of you feel like chipping in and trying to make this place somewhat habitable, feel free."
A few hours later, the Chamber looked like it had undergone a sort of deep-clean, courtesy of Gabriel shoving everyone else out of the room so he could get rid of the ink stain from the soul-shard diary and man, how did Voldemort manage to be so irritating when he probably wasn't even within a hundred miles of the place?
Hermione had ordered them all to meet her in a shady bar called the Hog's Head that Hogsmeade weekend, and Gabriel was practically held against the wall and sworn to obedience when it came to Hermione making sure that he came.
"Anyone who comes is going to be expecting you to be there, anyway," she said, "So you can't skip out or else they'll think you're lying."
"What, about Voldemort? Come on, Hermione, I've got more important things to think over than a bunch of preteens' opinions."
But Hermione glared so fiercely that eventually Gabriel just went along with it to stop her from looking up 'ways to trap angels' and trying to forcefully drag him into Hogsmeade.
The crowd of twenty-something students, however, was totally unexpected.
"I thought you said some people?" Gabriel hissed, his face not betraying anything. "We need to work on your counting skills, Hermione."
Hermione gave him a dirty look. "It was a little more popular than I expected."
"A little?"
In twos and threes the large group settled around the table which Michael had found, near the back of the rather empty pub - Gabriel made sure that even if anyone were listening, they wouldn't be able to make out what any of them were saying.
It wouldn't do to be found out before they even started, after all.
Hermione cleared her throat once she realized that everyone was staring at the four of them expectantly, with a couple stray eyes lingering on Cedric, who was one of the first people to show up.
"Well - er - hi," Hermione said eventually. "Er...you all know why you're here - I had an idea that it would be good for us to - I mean, that it might be good for people to actually study Defense Against the Dark Arts - and I mean actually study it, not the rubbish that the professor teaches us, because no one can seriously call that defense." Her voice got stronger as she continued.
"Hear, hear," said Anthony, who for some reason had shown up and was avoiding looking at Gabriel.
"And by that, I mean learning to defend ourselves properly - the real spells, not just theory, anyway-"
Michael interrupted. "And I'll bet all of you want to pass your Defense OWL, right?"
Several people nodded and exchanged glances. There was one girl sitting next to Cedric's girlfriend who could not have looked more clearly like she wanted to be anywhere but in the dingy pub, but she was one out of twenty-five, so Gabriel didn't pay too much attention.
"Well, yes, Michael," said Hermione, shooting him a no doubt meaningful shut up glance, "But also because we've got to be properly trained in defense, because..." she took a deep breath. "Because Voldemort's back."
There was the usual cacophony of reactions - one girl spilled her Butterbeer down her front - but their attention remained fixed on Hermione.
"That's the plan, anyway," Hermione continued. "If you want to join us, we need-"
"Where's the proof You-Know-Who's back?" asked a student with a Hufflepuff scarf suddenly.
Funny. Cedric had given Gabriel the idea that they were all on his side.
"Dumbledore believes it-" Ron started.
"Dumbledore believes him," said the Hufflepuff, jerking his head at Gabriel.
"And me," Cedric pointed out, somewhat stiffly. "Zacharias, I told you about all this already."
Oh Christ. His name was Zacharias? Gabriel could already see him causing problems, if he was anything like Gabriel's brother.
"Look," Hermione was swift to try and intervene, "That's not what this meeting's supposed to be about. We're here to discuss the club we're forming, but if you're here for an account of what happened last year you can leave right now."
Zacharias shifted in his seat uncomfortably but didn't get up.
"So," Hermione continued in a firm voice, but Gabriel could tell she was still nervous. "We'll need to figure things out, like how often we'll meet-"
"Is it true that you can do a Patronus?" A ginger girl interrupted.
Gabriel realized she was talking to him. "Me? Yeah. Why?" There was a shift around the group as people sat straighter in interest.
"One of the ghosts said you did," she admitted. "I was talking to the Grey Lady and she mentioned it."
The Grey Lady must have been the Ravenclaw ghost's name.
"I never knew that," said a boy with dreadlocks, looking impressed. "A Patronus is supposed to be really difficult."
"You know," said a boy Gabriel was fairly sure was a year or so below him in Ravenclaw, "I was in Dumbledore's office last year, and one of the portraits said you killed a basilisk with the sword Dumbledore's got in there. Is that true, too?"
Dumbledore had put the sword up as decoration? Gabriel had just stuffed it back in the Hat when all was said and done - he really couldn't be bothered messing about with whatever secret room Gryffindor had, and the sword was honestly a nightmare. It would have been embarrassing to use - all those rubies and whatnot. Ridiculous.
"Course it's true," Gabriel replied, making everyone who didn't already know stare in outright shock. "You didn't think the whole mess with the chamber solved itself, did you? And speaking of the Chamber, I hope no one's got a problem with visiting it."
There was absolute silence after this declaration.
"Sorry," said Cedric eventually. "Visiting the Chamber of secrets?"
Gabriel arched an eyebrow at him. "Do you have a better idea of where we should meet? It's secret, and I'm the only one who can open the door. But if anyone's got a better idea, speak up."
People glanced at each other warily, but either the shock of being told they were going to meet in the chamber of secrets kept them silent or no one did, in fact, have a better idea. Gabriel was betting on a combination of both.
"Right," said Hermione, who was looking relieved that no one had started an argument. "I suppose the next thing would be to talk about how often we should meet, and when-"
"Make sure to leave time for Quidditch practice," said Michael hurriedly.
The Weasley twins nodded in agreement. "Angelina would kill us if we didn't show up." Fred said sagely.
"And that's not an exaggeration," Geroge added. "I think we'd better check with Puddlemer United to make sure Oliver hasn't been killed, because she might be channeling his spirit."
"Alright, enough," said Hermione good-naturedly as several people laughed. "I'm sure we can find a night that suits everyone, but this is rather important, we are learning to defend ourselves against Voldemort's Death Eaters-"
"Well said!" said a rather pompous-sounding boy sitting near Gabriel. "Personally, I think this is really important - even more important than OWLs, really!" He looked around, as if expecting cries of agreement. "I'm really at a loss to say why the Ministry has given us such useless teachers at a time like this - I mean, we didn't have Umbridge long, but her replacement isn't much better!"
Gabriel wondered over the merits of going after the defense teachers so that it would appear that the 'curse' on the position came earlier every time they replaced one.
"Obviously, they're in denial over the return of You-Know-Who, but to give us a teacher who actively prevents us from performing defensive spells-"
"It's because the Ministry thinks Dumbledore is trying to make his own army," said Luna in a calm voice.
The people sitting around her glanced over and then at their friends, as if to say is she serious?
"It's because he's got his own army of Heliopaths and doesn't want any competition," Luna continued.
"He hasn't," Hermione snapped.
"He does, actually."
"What are Heliopaths?" A Gryffindor Gabriel only barely recognized asked with a blank look.
"Spirits of fire," Luna told him solemnly. "Great, tall, flaming creatures that gallop across the ground and burn everything in their path."
"There's no such thing," Hermione said impatiently.
"Yes, they do!" Luna said angrily.
"And where's the proof for that?" Hermione asked, slightly haughtily, as if she imagined that the argument would end there and then.
"Okay, okay, calm down," Gabriel said, raising his hands. "And I don't know about Heliopaths, but they sound an awful lot like Ifrit."
Hermione stared at Gabriel, obviously surprised that he'd taken Luna's side. "A what?"
"Ask me later, I'm not running a magical creatures class." Gabriel put his hands back on the table. "And I thought we were discussing when to meet?"
"Right," said Michael, who looked entirely relieved that he hadn't been the one forced to stop the argument. "How about once a week? That way we probably won't get in the way of anything."
There were murmurs of agreement and nods around the circle.
"Alright then, we'll send a message out when we've got a time for the first meeting." Hermione seemed to steel herself for something, but it was so subtle that Gabriel doubted anyone other than himself had noticed it. She reached down to her bag and produced a parchment and quill, placing it on the table and sliding it into the middle.
"I think we should all write our names down, just so we know who was here," she said. "But also," Here Hermione took a deep breath. "I think we should also not go shouting about what we're doing. So - so signing is basically agreeing not to tell Professor Ackerly or anyone else about what we're doing."
Well. Gabriel had expected a lot of things, but tricking everyone into signing a magically binding contract was one of the things he hadn't expected Hermione to do.
Fred reached for the quill and immediately put his name down, and so did George, but the pompous Hufflepuff - who was sitting next to them - hesitated.
"I - well - I am a prefect," he finally said. "I mean - if this gets out-"
"Honestly, Ernie," Hermione said sharply. "Do you really think I'd lose this list?"
"Er - well, no-" Ernie shrank back slightly under Hermione's stern look. "Yes, I'll sign." And he did so. The list made its rounds until it was sitting in front of Gabriel, who signed Harry Potter with a flourish.
They dispersed after that, a flood of students leaving the pub and vanishing to various corners of Hogsmeade, and Ron, Hermione, Michael, and Gabriel were standing outside the Hog's Head when Hermione turned around and pressed the parchment on Gabriel again.
"Okay, you can actually sign it now."
Michael frowned. "What?"
Gabriel grinned, taking the parchment. "Let me guess - you know it's not valid unless I use my real name?" He waved the parchment in the wintry-cold air. "Magically bindign contract. Tsk tsk, Hermione. I didn't think you had the nerve."
Ron blanched behind her. "Magically binding?"
"Oh, relax, Ron," Hermione said impatiently. "Unless you want to go running off shouting about the club, nothing will happen."
"Yeah, those were the terms." Gabriel glanced down at the quill Hermione was offering. "What makes you think this signature doesn't count?"
"Well-" Hermione seemed almost reluctant to say it. "You're not really Harry Potter, are you? So it shouldn't count."
"Smart." Gabriel nodded. "Technically true. And you want to see my fancy angel signature, don't you."
Hermione blushed lightly but didn't answer. Ron, however, looked intrigued.
"Do you have one?" he asked. Gabriel rolled his eyes.
"Maybe I do, Ron. Ever occurred to you that there's more than one language in the universe? English didn't magically spring into existence at the beginning of time."
Gabriel took the quill and, with three people peering over his shoulder, signed the parchment with the triangular sigil that meant Gabriel. "Satisfied?"
Hermione peered at the sigil. "What language is that in?" Michael was also looking at it thoughtfully, while Ron just looked a bit confused.
"Mine," said Gabriel cheerfully, shoving the parchment back into her hands. "And if no one minds I'm going to explore."
He flew off before any of them could protest.
Hogsmeade was really boring and Gabriel spent the rest of the time allotted for visiting the village in the Forbidden forest instead because why not? It was more interesting than hanging out around a load of wizards anyway.
As soon as he got back inside, though, Luna was waiting for him.
"I was wondering about what you said about Ifrit," she said immediately. "Do you really think I've just been calling them by the wrong name?"
"Sounds similar enough," Gabriel replied, shrugging. "I don't know about the whole 'galloping' thing, but as far as spirits of fire go? Basically the same thing, from what you've said. But I doubt the Minister has his own army or whatever - their only weakness is magic, so they'd probably do their best to avoid you guys."
"Oh." Luna looked disappointed. "I'll have to let Daddy know, then. It's too bad. He was really sure about that one."
"Well, let me know if you've got any more conspiracy theories about magical creatures and I'll see what I know."
"Alright then. What about Nargles, though?" Luna pinned Gabriel with a wide-eyed, curious gaze.
"I thought they sounded a bit like Maras - they're Slavic spirits, go around causing confusion. As far as I can tell, you've just got the names wrong."
Luna hummed to herself, nodding. "That might be why we can't find any of them - we might have something else wrong. Thank you!" She dashed up the stairs to the girl's dorm, leaving Gabriel in the common room.
Well. Gabriel couldn't help but feel like he'd started something outside his control.
Yeah, you guys get a little more Luna at the end of this chapter. I can't help but like her. There should have totally been more Luna in the books, because you can't just make a side character like that so awesome and then not include them at all!
Just so you know, I'm starting school this Tuesday! So way less frequent updates. I don't even know how I managed to write all this, AND do like half my homework in about four hours.
Read and review!