Disclaimer: Not ours :D

Chapter 21

Myrtle

Harry was perturbed. He felt something was off with the whole castle. Thinking back on their meeting with the Founders, he frowned. Though Slytherin did look dark and mysterious, he did not feel Slytherin to be evil. In fact, he was very much like Snape… dark, sarcastic, a bit twisted but ultimately good. How can such a person create something like the chamber? Suddenly he came to a standstill, remembering an old conversation he had with Hermione during their training days.

"Harry!"

"Mia, I'm here. You don't need to shout! I can hear perfectly well."

"It's not that. I'm just…excited!"

"Merlin, I hadn't guessed."

"Harry!"

"Ok…ok. Tell me what it is."

"Severus gave me Salazar's Journals! They are absolutely fascinating."

"Severus? When did you start calling that slime-ball by his name?"

"Harry! He is a professor and a very good friend. Don't you dare disrespect him!". Hermione was looking furious.

"Friend? You gotta be kidding me!"

Hermione looked absolutely exasperated. She continued as if he hadn't said anything worth of notice.

"In his journals, he says he created his chamber "in the follies of my youth." He absolutely regretted it later. He couldn't even imagine murdering the muggleborns, especially since he was married to one later in his life. He also didn't want to kill the basilisk since it was such a rare creature. He hoped his heirs would be wise not to use the basilisk for nefarious purposes. He even left instructions inscribed in the chamber. Of course, Voldie being who he is wouldn't have given much notice. But I'm glad he wasn't evil."

"How can you be friends with Snape?!"

"Harry!"

He smiled wistfully and resumed his journey towards his common room. Life seemed much simpler in the past from his current vantage point. But then again, the grass always seems to be greener on the other side. In his ire with Mia for being friends with Snape, he had only half-listened to what she said. He made a mental note to ask about the journals in detail, in future. He also sent a small apology for thinking of Snape in such a bad light for so long. He wished he could rectify his mistakes. Snape would have been more of a friend than the distant mentor he was to Harry. Lately, regrets seemed to be the only thing in his life. Suddenly remembering where Mia was currently, he decided to check up on her.

Psst! Mia!

Harry?

Thank Merlin! I thought he had killed you and left you as an appetizer for his pet Basilisk.

Harry!

What? Don't tell me you believe him to be all nice and fair!

Urgh! Of course not. I told you, he won't dare to do anything to me while you are a witness.

There she goes, daring dark lords to do things. Mia! What have I told you about suicide tendencies?

Harry Potter, you better shut your trap or I am going to….

"You are concentrating really hard. A Knut for your thoughts?"

He heard Riddle talking distantly through her mind. Hermione slammed her Occlumency shields down. Harry sighed. It was for good. No need to feel anxious about Mia at all…no need at all. Harry sighed again. Abruptly he stopped. He could hear distinct sobbing coming from around the corner. Quietly summoning his wand from the holster, he slowly stepped towards where the sound was coming from. Peeking around the corner, he saw a squat girl with dark lank hair, fringes, pimples and thick glasses sobbing. She was sitting in the corridor, leaning against the castle walls. She looked vaguely familiar to Harry. "Hello?" He approached the girl cautiously. She was startled and let out a girlish shriek. Harry quickly stowed his wand away and raised his hands in a universal sign of peace.

"I didn't mean to startle you…. I heard you crying…"

The girl started sobbing again, loud noisy sobs that seemed to echo in the corridor. Harry felt rather helpless. Like every other man, female psychology was an unexplored Atlantis to him.

"I'm sorry… Please don't cry."

The girl was vainly trying to curb her tears. The dam had burst and the water had to run its course. Remembering everything he had ever done when Mia was crying, he took a seat next to her, keeping a vigilant eye on the surroundings. Taking his wand, he silently conjured a hanky and gave it to the girl. She accepted it gratefully and loudly blew her nose. Harry winced and the girl mumbled a sorry. After a while, she spoke.

"Thanks. No one ever has been this nice to me."

"Er… that's alright." Harry said, suddenly feeling flustered.

"I'm Myrtle by the way. Who are you?" Harry's breathe whooshed out. No wonder she looked familiar. It was moaning Myrtle.

"Moaning Myrtle? It's you?"

Seeing her face crumble, he cursed himself for his stupidity.

"I'm sorry….I didn't mean to hurt…"

"Hurt me?" She laughed ruefully. "No one ever does. Not Olive Hornby or her cronies. Not the other kids. Not the purebloods. At least no one pretended to be nice before. You can go tell them. It's far more painful. Yay! Successful experiment. Test subject: Myrtle"

"No…no.. I really didn't mean to hurt you. Please don't be angry. I just…. It came out." Remembering what Mia used to tell Ginny when their goofing around had resulted in her tears, he continued.

"I was just being a typical boy. You know we have got the emotional range of a teaspoon!" Myrtle snorted and then laughed.

"You are funny. Who told you that?"

"Err…my friend."

"Ah you are the new guy! Amelia's friend!"

"You know Mia?" Harry was surprised. He didn't know Hermione had already met Myrtle.

"No… Well…that is, she doesn't know me. She helped me once, when two Slytherins were bullying me. Used some kind of hex that made their bogies turn into black bats, which crawled out of their nostrils and flapped around. She didn't even wait to let me thank her. Just rushed off, mumbling something about being late for potions. And I wasn't brave to approach her afterwards. She was really nice. You are too." She added after a short pause.

"Thanks, I guess." Harry was relieved to be back in Myrtle's good books.

"May be we should get going…. It's dangerous right now to be after hours." He stood up and gave Myrtle a hand. She blushed and took it, leaving Harry feeling uncomfortable.

"Bye then. See you around?"

"No. No." Seeing Myrtle's stricken expression, he quickly added.

"I'll take you to your common room. You don't have to walk alone." Myrtle's face broke in to such a sweet smile that it seemed to transform her face.

"Thank you, but really, there's no need…I can go alone…"

"Please, let me escort you back."

"Ok."

She looked happy at Harry's insistence. "Er… Will you lead? I don't know the way."

Myrtles sudden laughter echoed in the corridor, making Harry feel both happy and embarrassed.

So much for being the gentleman.

"Yes, Tom, eyes. Leona Higgins was subjected to visual petrification, as per her diagnosis."

Score! You clever little girl!

The inner Hermione was jumping with joy now that the tables have turned. Now, looking at him, she could see that his whole body had tensed.

"The only things that can cause a visual petrification are the medallion of medusa and…"

"Aaaarrr!"

Her words were interrupted by the unlikeliest of screams from Hagrid. Apparently, Aragog had woken up and bit into his left arm. In the sudden shock, Hagrid had let go of the Acromantula, who fell on its back and was struggling to get back on its feet, it was still wobbly from the earlier stun. Riddle suddenly drew out his wand and cocked it back.

"No! Let'im go. He aint done nothin'." Hagrid groaned, gripping the bite mark on his left arm with his right.

"Expelliarmus!"

Hermione acted quickly to knock the wand out of Riddle's grip.

"WHAT are you doing? It's DANGEROUS!" Riddle screamed in fury.

"I don't think IT'S the most dangerous thing here." Hermione retaliated.

In this moment of confusion, Aragog had managed to claw its way upright and began scrambling in circles, unsure where to go. "It's moving again! I can feel it moving again!" Aragog squealed in a painful voice.

"What?" Hermione said in a surprised voice.

Then, Aragog just froze. There was a moment of silence. "So sorry, Hagrid"

He pushed back and leapt at the window. The glass shattered and Aragog fell into the darkness of the night.

"Aragog!" Hagrid let out a cry.

"This wouldn't have happened if you'd just let me handle him." Tom fumed at Hermione.

"The Acromantula said that IT's on the move. Come on, we must go." She couldn't let anyone else be a victim to the serpent. But, as she turned, she was stopped by a 'thud' behind her back. Hagrid had just collapsed. Damn! I'd forgotten that about Acromantula venom. But, she was sure that Aragog would've never have injected venom in fatal quantities, yet there was no other choice, Hagrid had to be taken to the Hospital wing.

"Tom! Hagrid's down. We have to get him…"

"If only that Acromantula was dealt with!"

"TOM! I cannot carry him alone, he is half-giant and magic won't work on him. Come here! Help me!"

With a weary look on his face, Tom Riddle bent down to pick up Hagrid. Hermione could feel reluctance radiating from him. Good! This will keep Riddle far away from the chamber for tonight. But, Aragog said that "It's on the move". I must warn Harry. With all their strength, they lifted Hagrid on their shoulders and began their march to the Hospital wing.

Clang! Kling! Some rustle of metal made Harry look back over his shoulder. Could it be?

" …. And that's what she said! She's the one who's most rude to me. I mean, what have I ever done to her? All these years I've been in this castle, and what do I have to show for it? Nothing. No medals, no titles and no friends. I think that this is the longest conversation that I've ever had inside the castle. No one ever listens to me; I'm glad that you came along now. I'll have a friend to count on for at least the next two years… Having friends is nice isn't it? You could talk whatever's on your mind openly to one another, you could…"

Gee, she doesn't stop. Does she? And who can blame her? Looks like I'll have to hear three years' worth of stories from her tonight. Another clang. Is the silence playing tricks on me? Or is IT on the move? I better be on my toes.

"What are you so edgy about?"

"Huh, what?"

"You look kind of nervous, what is it?"

"Uh, nothing. It's just that we're out after hours. If we're found, it would mean a lot of trouble for us."

"Don't worry; there'll be nobody around at this hour."

"You seem quite sure."

"Yes, I spent many a night alone in these corridors, so I know."

Harry felt a little sympathy for her. He had always thought the best thing about Hogwarts was the friends that lived there with him. It was not so much the vastness of the castle, or its secrets, or the magic that was performed inside its walls, but the people that it presented to him. And here was a girl that had none of that. Yes, he had talked to her ghost before. But talking to a ghost was one thing, and meeting the person in flesh was quite another. He could relate to her in some ways, well, he did spend most of his childhood in a cupboard under the stairs. He knew what loneliness was, how it was to be bullied at, and the relief of finally meeting someone who actually cares. It was what changed his life, but now he had the chance to do it to someone else. And sure as hell, he was certainly going to make the most of the opportunity.

"Well, now you don't have to." Harry smiled.

It was greeted by Myrtle's signature snort-laugh. Another noise. Movement. Harry placed his hand on his holster.

"Say Myrtle, how long to your common room?"

"It's just around the corner. We have to take a right at the end of this corridor, and we're at the foot of the stairs that lead to the Ravenclaw common room." Myrtle sniggered; apparently she liked the way she delivered that sentence.

"Good."

They were approaching the end of the corridor. It was more of a junction, a path to the left as well as to the right.

"What's to the left?"

"Oh, it's just the washroom."

Harry's eyes bulged. Washroom?

"Here we are then! Now, go on up and just don't wander about carelessly like you did today, ok?"

"Ok, thanks Harris!"

"Anytime!"

Kling Klang!

It sounded much closer now.

"What's that?" Myrtle stopped.

"Probably, just water flowing through the pipes, now go on."

Harry could see that Myrtle was not satisfied with the reply she got, but turned around and walked anyway.

Harry?

Mia?

The basilisk's on the move…

Yeah, I think I might've found it.

What? Where?

I can hear it in the pipes, near the entrance to the Ravenclaw common room.

We're taking Hagrid to the Hospital wing. Me and Tom.

Hagrid?! What happened?

Long story. You be careful. I'll be there as fast as I can.

You just focus on Tom, I'll deal with the Beast.

Harry, don't go looking for trouble.

Do I ever?

Harry suddenly put up his occlumency shield; he felt this was one thing that he had to do now. I won't allow any more deaths. Myrtle had just entered the staircase. So he slowly turned toward the washroom, drawing his wand from its holster. He entered the room and ventured near the pipes, which were aligned through the walls on his right. Slowly, he opened one of the pipes, and water flowed. It's not in this pipe system. He moved across the room, to the pipes on the opposite side. As he slowly turned the pipe, he was startled by a voice from the door.

"What are you doing?" He turned, only to see Myrtle smirking at him.

"I thought I told you to go up."

"I was just about to. But, when I turned to have a last look, you know – to wave goodbye…" she snorted in between her words , "I saw you heading towards here, looking all ready for a duel of sorts, so I followed."

"It's dang…." Harry was interrupted by a loud clang behind him, and bolted back to see that there was no water flowing through the pipe he had just opened.

"Go! It's very…" Suddenly, one of the toilet stalls burst open, and a gigantic green serpent appeared through to the scene. Myrtle let out the most high-pitched scream that Harry had ever heard. Harry immediately looked down at its belly, knowing well enough not to look anywhere near its head.

He shouted, "Run, Myrtle! Go back! And whatever you do, don't look at its eyes!"

He moved swiftly and ducked below the pipes on the wall, but was alarmed to see Myrtle rooted to her spot.

"MYRTLE! MOVE!"

But Myrtle fell on her knees and Harry could see that she was shivering, hyperventilating. He had to do something quick. He searched his mind; the only thing resistant to a basilisk's eyes was…

That's it! If there ever was a time, it would be now. Summoning all his strength, Harry leapt forward and with all his might, he let his core erupt, at once engulfing him in a blinding light. The light scattered throughout the room, temporarily even overpowering the basilisk. The basilisk growled and closed its eyes shut, a sudden reaction to the blinding light. Slowly, the light started condensing and forming into a shape. It dissolved into a fiery orange glow and slowly started fading. From the glow, feathers emerged which formed into wings, talons hung down, a beak emerged near the top and finally a bright, majestic figure of a phoenix came to be at the very spot. The phoenix stood wings outstretched in front of Myrtle, who was lying on the ground in a position where her head was tucked between her knees, which were locked in position by both her hands.

The phoenix flapped its wings, which riled up the air in the room. It took flight and at once aimed for the eyes of the Basilisk. Its beak clashed against the scaly eyelids of the beast, but it was not effective, the skin was too tough and as long as the eyes remain closed, nothing would penetrate through. In the next fly through, it was able to inflict a tear on the belly of the beast, where the skin was much thinner. The basilisk let out a roar of pain and waved its neck around; still the eyes were closed shut. On third wave of attack, Harry was able to scar the upper belly of the beast; it was a serious blow, and in a stuttering roar, it fell onto the ground, shaking the whole room.

This sudden tremor made Myrtle shift her position; she raised her head from her protective posture, only to see the Basilisk down on the floor and a phoenix soaring in circles near the ceiling of the room. She got up slowly and took a few seconds to get her bearings right. She was still shivering and swaying. The phoenix up top slowly cooed. She looked up to see its eyes fixed on her. A warm bubbliness flowed through and it suddenly calmed her. The phoenix let out another sound. She understood its message and began to take steps backward. As she moved back, a huge breath of air was let out through the giant nostrils of the basilisk. Realizing that it was about to get back up, Myrtle immediately turned round.

The shadow of the beast was visible on the wall. The shadow rose up and she deduced that the basilisk was looking straight at the phoenix from the posture of the shadow. The phoenix let out a loud bellow and dived down. As the shadow of the phoenix got closer, the upper body of the basilisk swayed left and in a flash, back to the right. It was a well-timed hit; the phoenix was knocked onto the side wall, leaving the shadow of the Basilisk standing tall on the wall. Myrtle broke to a pacey walk, but the shadow had noted her, and it immediately lunged forward. She could now feel it to her extreme right and in one swoop to the left; she would be in its mouth, torn to pieces. Her arms quickly grabbed their opposite elbows, her entire body stiffened and her eyelids clamped down tightly. She was ready for the inevitable. She heard a whoosh of wind, and a sound of thud. That's it. When she opened her eyes, she was in the clouds.

She was softly but quickly released. Myrtle scrambled up, slowly blinked, and as her vision cleared, the fire-lit stone-laden hallway of Hogwarts blurred into her view. I'm alive?

She turned her neck to see the shadows on the wall – the phoenix was between her and the basilisk, biting on what seemed to be its neck. The basilisk was waving left and right, but the phoenix had the grip on tight. The door was blocked and she did not want to look in its eyes, even by mistake. So, she turned in the other direction, suddenly there was a high pitched coo from the phoenix, and she found herself looking straight into the two round, bulging, yellow eyes of the basilisk. Her pupils dilated, and expanded.

Bad call, Myrtle. The phoenix was fighting the tail, you stupid witch. You walked right into the hands of death. You had finally made a friend and now…

Harry saw Myrtle falling back on her back, her glasses slipping on impact and bouncing off the floor.

No! No! No! He let out a scream of outrage, his phoenix body glowed bright red, making the basilisk close its eyes and squeal. Harry rushed toward Myrtle and landed right next to her, still glowing red. Behind him, the basilisk shut its eyes and retreated into the pipes. Its target was achieved although it got much more than what it bargained for.

Myrtle! Myrtle! No, no, not dead, not yet… Myrtle!

The red glow got stronger and the hue went darker.

Phoenix tears! That's right! It can heal anything! That's right! Heal! Heal! Carefully and smoothly, he lifted her left eyelid with his talon and he bent down, looked her straight in the eye. The pupil had dilated all through her eye, there was no white, only black. He let down a tear from his eye onto hers. It filled over the blackness in her eye.

Myrtle! Wake up! Myrtle! The tear just laid still over her eye, stagnant.

He let out another tear. The tear landed on top of the already filled left eye, making the eye overflow.

FOR GOD'S SAKE! WAKE UP! COME ON!

The teardrop left her eye, ran over her cheek and hit the floor.

A/N: R&R. Nothing more.