Harry was looking for a moment where he could talk with Ginny alone for a few days, but she was always with her classmates, or he was with his friends in the library. And before he noticed the next Quidditch game, Hufflepuff versus Ravenclaw, was announced and Olliver had decided that they had to train even more, as he wanted to make sure that they were the best they could be. Harry was glad that there was not another attack until now, but he knew that was only a matter of time until it would happen again.
When the next weekend arrived, the notice board was updated about the dueling club and that the first meeting was today, so everybody in the Gryffindor common room was getting excited, even if the girls were still a bit gloomy about the whole Lockhart incident and that he would not leading this club. Harry still could not understand those girls who seemingly were only going for looks, not even thinking about if they would have been compatible. And even when they could have been, a man with no talent in anything whatsoever could not be this desirable.
As it was a Saturday and the weather was nice but a bit chilly, Harry walked outside towards the obstacle courses to train a bit more before the Quidditch team would look for him to take him to the pitch. While looking over the grounds on his way, he saw John talking with Michael about something with Triss standing beside them and explaining something. Harry could hear what they were discussing as his plan for the basilisk was risky, but it was the best solution.
Flashback
Harry was sitting in the library after dinner alone since Hermione and the others were in the dungeons and brewing potions with supervision from Professor Snape, as this was also a new addition to the curriculum after Mr. Lockhart was arrested. Dumbledore told the students just a day after everyone got the Daily Prophet from their parents, that he decided to allow students to take additional classes if they wanted, but only after the normal class times for the day were finished from every teacher. Also, the students had to ask the teacher themselves if they would have time for them in the evenings for those additional classes. Almost immediately after the next Potion class before they would go to their Defense class, Hermione asked Professor Snape if she could brew another potion that she had read about and wanted to try it at least once. Daphne also wanted to be there, as her family was importing the ingredients for this potion and she guessed that it would be beneficial for her to know how those worked together. Professor Snape just nodded and told them to come into this classroom around seven o'clock, and then they would look at this potion that Hermione had mentioned.
Harry soon heard someone coming over to him and looked up, only to see that it was Triss now sitting beside him and smiling.
"So, I guess the male students are now all disappointed that you were taken after John came into your classroom and you kissed him on his cheek in front of all the students present?" Harry grinned at her, as Triss was only blushed for a bit for her daring to make it official.
"Well, they had it coming. They were all too young either way. Now, you told me that Geralt had sent you a book? About this basilisk?" Triss saw Harry took the book out from his bag; where he had stored it after removing the wrapping paper that morning. He than opened it at the bookmark that he had put in during his free time after lunch to the page where the king of snakes was described in great detail.
"Yes, I also had read almost all the pages about it. This book confirmed everything that I had found in this library already after the first attack on Mrs. Norris, but I was hoping to get your opinion on how we should confront the basilisk down in the Chamber. As far as I know,, my ability to speak parseltongue, that was what Dumbledore told me when he brought Cindy after the Christmas break last year and Professor Dumbledore heard me talking to her. That means I should be at least immune to its gaze and maybe even could talk to it and get it to stay down there. But I still am at a loss on why there is one down there in the first place, as all the information about Salazar Slytherin that I have found would suggest that he was very protective of all the students in this castle,not only to the students of his house. But he was afraid that the muggleborn children would be exploited by their families as magic could solve many issues in the world. As this would lead to envy towards them and eventually had them killed because of it. Salazar Slytherin only wanted to find a safe way, so the muggles would not find out about the magical society and all their families inside it, but he was not against the muggle-born students, if they agreed to not talk about magic when they were not in school. He was even used to perform a spell to prevent muggle-born or half-blood wizards and witches from talking about what they had learned in their school at all. So, with all this information, why did he hide a deadly monster down in the castle that only someone who could speak parseltongue could control and could be used to kill everyone in this castle? That makes no sense."
Harry surprised Triss with this summation about all the books he had spread over the table in the library they were sitting at. But she had to agree with him, something was strange about it. But she was hung up at something else.
"You mean, only you can go down there and fight it safely enough that you don't need to close your eyes? But this is too dangerous for you alone, we need to find another way." Triss was becoming worried about the young man sitting beside her, as she could no longer call him a boy when he was thinking like the adults did back home.
"It is the only logical way, Triss. Beside me, the only one who could survive the gaze of the basilisk without being petrified or worse killed, is Voldemort himself and Borch, as he is a dragon himself. And while we still don't know where Voldemort is hiding, we can be sure that he would not help us with this situation, and Borch will be occupied with raising Norbert to be a good dragon himself. I hope you do not believe that I want to fight it alone, but until I have at least destroyed its eyes somehow, all those who would accompany me are in danger. But to alleviate your worries, could you ask Uncle John if they had a set of armor like these men patrolling Kear Mohen that is in my size? That could help me in case the basilisk is faster than i could anticipate."
Flashback ends
Seeing her now with John and his comrade, it told him that they were discussing if he really could fight that monster down in the Chamber of Secrets, even when they were still looking for a way to go down there in the first place. But somehow Harry was sure that it had something to do with the book that Ginny had in her possession, he only needed to get his hands on it.
That happened sooner than he had expected, as when he arrived at an obstacle course, he noticed the youngest Weasley sitting under a tree, the small black book being open on her lap. Looking around, he saw that she was alone and decided that this was his best opportunity to ask her about the book. When he walked up to her, he wanted to make it as quiet as possible in hopes that he could see what she was writing in it. To his surprise, the words she wrote in it vanished and something else appeared in their place. He could only read *Watch out* written by the book when Ginny closed it in surprise and looked around, finding Harry standing just beside her.
"Hello Ginny, how is school for you? Sorry, I did not want to frighten you, but you were so concentrated on your little book. If you do not mind, can you explain why it told you to watch out? That was all I could read before you put it away." Harry really hoped that this direct approach was the correct one, as Ginny was looking pale and sick to him. Somehow, she looked like someone who did not sleep enough during the night, but that could have a different reason. He concentrated on his medallion, which was vibrating a bit in presence of the book.
Harry was just standing there, waiting for her to answer his question. She was compelled to just stand up and walk / run away from him, but she knew that she could trust him, even if he had some secrets for himself. She really had to fight the urge to run but grabbed her bag closer to herself. "No problem Harry, I really did not watch my surroundings. I was just thinking about things, also what happened to Collin and Mrs. Norris to be precise. I really hope that the culprit will be caught soon. As for why the book told me to watch out, it must have noticed you coming closer to me and was afraid that you would plan a prank on me. As for how it works; I could not tell you because I do not know. It was inside one of the used books my mother got me in Diagon Alley, and I used it as a kind of diary." She took the book back out from her bag, noticing that she was once again compelled to just stash it back and run away. She really was getting suspicious why this happened everytime Harry was close by, it could not be because she had a crush on him and was just afraid that he would notice it.
Harry held his hand out, hoping that Ginny would place the book in his hand so he could look at it. To his luck, she did just that but as soon she placed the book in Harry's hand, he saw that she was now panicking and wanted to take it back. He then asked her how it worked, as when he opened it, he could not find a single word inside of the book.
"You must write in it, and somehow the ink gets sucked into it and it answers you when you've asked him a question. I do not know how it works at all, only that it does. I saw the name Tom M. Riddle on the back and thought that he had charmed this book to be his diary and his friend if he wanted to remember something. He is nice, you know. He helped me with my homework when I got stuck and you or Hermione weren't around." Ginny explained to Harry how she got answers while she wrote in it, giving him enough evidence that this book was a strong object, as according to the date on the back of the book, it had to be 50 years old at least. And as far he knew, even the best charm could not last that long without recharging it somehow.
"Ginny, this question may sound a bit strange, but do you feel more tired since you got this book? Because I think it takes some of your magic without your permission to work. And if that's the case, it is a dark object and we must show it to Professor Dumbledore or at least to Professor Merigold, as she is our Defense teacher now. Of course, I can't force you, but when you told me the truth and it just appeared in one of the books, someone could have smuggled it into the cauldron with your books and tried to hurt you in some way. What do you say, would you give me the book so I can give it to the headmaster?" Harry decided spontaneously to give her the choice to give him the book, as her answer could indicate if she was really controlled by it and if it was voluntary. But her reaction told him that she was afraid that he was right and nodded to his inquiry, so he placed the book in his bag and held his hand out to her so she would understand that he wanted her to follow him.
When she grabbed it, she blushed and let him lead her to the staff room in the castle, as while they had talked Triss and John had left the training grounds towards the castle. She was sure that he hoped that someone in there could help them to get the headmaster or that Professor Merigold was in there too. As they walked up to the castle, she tried to think about her crush on the Boy-Who-Lived and how he looked at other people their age. She knew that it was a big hope that he would fall in love with her, but she saw how he treated Hermione and Daphne, as they were close with each other for their age. She also had noticed how Susanne Bones looked at him when Neville and Hannah were hanging out with them before the two girls had to go back to their own common room as both were in Hufflepuff. She was just a bit sad that her chances with him were small, but until he would turn her future advances towards him down, she would try to get him to fall for her. But she would not stoop so low like putting a love potion in one of his drinks, as this would be a method that could backfire greatly.
She soon found herself in front of the staff room, where the teachers would stay during the free time between their classes and prepare the next one. Harry knocked at the door with confidence like he knew who was inside and what would happen next. It was a bit terrifying for Ginny, but she trusted Harry to keep her safe. The door from the staff room soon opened and Professor McGonagall was standing in the door looking at them. "Mr. Potter, Ms. Weasley, how can I help you?" Her stern look was still frightening for Ginny, but Harry really showed his confidence in front of her when he asked if the headmaster was nearby. McGonagall looked at them both and seemed to understand what this was about.
"I will escort you both to his office, please follow me. Pomona, I am leaving for a bit, can you hold the fort in case another student needs help that cannot be solved by Poppy?" When she got a positive answer, McGonagall closed the door and walked in front of the two students up the stairs without saying another word.
Harry and Ginny soon found themselves in front of a gargoyle statue, to which McGonagall was saying "Sherbert Lemon" and it hopped out of the way and let them see another staircase that was going up in a spiral. They then walked by the statue and up the stairs until they were in front of a wooden door with griffin shaped object on it, this time it was a knocker that waited to be used. But just as McGonagall lifted her hand, the door was opened from the inside and John was standing there in his armor, looking down the stairs if they were followed. Harry could understand the precaution, as they kept appearance up that they did not know that Ginny was the one who ordered the basilisk to attack Mrs. Norris and Colin. So in Ginny's eyes, it should look like John was just making sure that no one suspicious was following them.
In his office, Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk and was looking over some paperwork as the board of governors wanted a detailed report on how Triss was preparing her classes. He was especially frustrated on the demands that Lucius Malfoy was telling him to do, like getting Gilderoy Lockhart back into a teaching position as these accusations were hilarious, as he had some eyewitnesses that would guarantee that Lockhart did all the things he did write about. But Dumbledore was sure that those eyewitnesses were bribed to tell everything that Lucius was ordering them to say. It was almost too simple to see the paper trail that Lucius had left in his endeavor to ensure that his will was executed as he wished, even when Dumbledore had to admit that he only knew where to look thanks to his sources in the Gringotts bank as well the warning he received before from Captain Laskey that Lucius was up to something. But he soon was taken out of his thoughts when the door opened to his office, and he was looking up to greet the visitors. He smiled his grandfatherly smile when he saw that John had let Professor McGonagall with two of her lions into his office, as she liked to call the students of her house.
"Ah, good morning Minerva, as well to you Mr. Potter and Ms. Weasley. To what occasion do I owe for this visit from the three of you?" Dumbledore was glad that McGonagall and Harry caught on that they still had to play the part like they did not know what Ginny had done. They also still needed to find out if she did this all voluntary or if she was controlled.
"Good morning Headmaster, my students here wanted to speak with you in an urgent matter it seemed. Now, Mr. Potter, please explain to us what this is all about?" McGonagall turned towards Harry and told him with a gesture that he should walk in front of the headmaster and tell them what he wanted.
Harry did just that, while placing the black book on the desk, also explaining how it worked like he heard from Ginny beforehand. While he talked, John was watching the body language of the small girl to see if she would try to attack the people in this office, but all he could see was her being nervous and looking at the book with an intense gaze like she just wanted to take it back and run away. But he also saw her thinking because she was compelled to do that as her brows arched together in thought. John then looked towards Harry and Dumbledore as the latter had the little book in his hand and investigated it intently.
"Fascinating. I have to say, it is the first time I heard of a book doing what you described to me, Mr. Potter. Ms. Weasley, where did you get this book from?" Dumbledore now looked at the young girl in his office, as she explained that she had found it between her schoolbooks after they had bought them in Diagon Alley when they were there. Harry then had a small brainwave, if Callie had helped him with that, he would have to ask her later.
"Was this not the day when we were in Flourish and Blotts getting your books when Mr. Malfoy was arguing with your father and had taken some books out of your cauldron? Could he have placed this book in there?" Harry now watched Ginny for any sign of recognition of this incident, which he got almost immediately as her eyes were almost popping out of her head in surprise. She nodded and said, that this could be possible, as now when she thought about this her mother had checked her books in the shop before placing them in her cauldron to carry and she surely would have noticed this black book inside one of them.
John was checking with Cortana if she could ask Callie for the recording of this event, to which he got a video file from Harry's AI that proved without a doubt that Lucius Malfoy had smuggled the book in the cauldron from the girl. He told his AI partner to forward this file and the report to the Infinity and the ONI detachment onboard, they could use it for the next step in their plan to get every Death Eater behind prison bars. According to the reports he had access to, thanks to Cortana, they had a solid lead and were now undermining every known member of this organization to prepare for the great reveal and get them arrested. The only problem was that there were some that could not be found that easily like Malfoy. John had to give it to Voldemort, he knew how to hide the real numbers of his followers even in his own organization.
Meanwhile Dumbledore was looking at the name on the diary that lies on his desk. He of course knew who that was in reality, as this was further proof that Voldemort had perverted magic to the extreme. Dumbledore was still sad that this talented boy chooses to go that way towards darkness, but for now he would keep this for himself as Ms. Weasley was still in the room. When they have left, he would tell the others what this meant, so hopefully Captain Lasky had his scanner ready to read magical signature so they could find the others as soon as possible and hoping to prevent his resurrection. But if the reports he got were any indication, it was still a long time until they would have it ready.
"Ms. Weasley, thank you for bringing me this object to my attention. I will investigate it for a while and will act accordingly to my findings. But be assured, you will not be thrown out of this school, as if my suspicions are correct, you have no fault in it. But I have now to ask you both to leave Ms. Weasley, Mr. Potter please see to it that she will arrive safely in your common room while I discuss the rest with Professor McGonagall and Chief Wulf. Have a nice day." Dumbledore dismissed them and let them go to their common room, as Harry looked at him with a knowing look and let him know that they would speak with each other later.
In another place in the country, Lucius Malfoy was angry at the reports he had on his desk. It was now pretty obvious that Lockhart was one of the biggest frauds in history, as almost every book he wrote was stolen from someone else after he interviewed them and then obliviated them. Some victims were not as lucky as this Arthur Lingley who defeated Lockhart in a duel in Hogwarts, as it was now known that some patients in St. Mungo's ward for the permanent spell damage was caused by him, and Lockhart now had to pay for the treatments beside his fine he was sentenced to. Luckily for him, even if Lucius got a cut from the book sales last summer due to that every student had to buy every book for school, he would not have to give it back as this was one contract that was not signed on parchment but a handshake. And as long Lucius would not have to testify under oath in front of the Wizengamoth he could keep it a secret for as long he wants. When he heard a knock on the door and told the visitor to his study to enter, his wife walked up to him with her eyes clouded from the latest dose of the potion he gave her to keep her in line. He was still glad that his house elf had to follow every order he gave it, otherwise it would be too difficult to keep her on it.
"Husband, Mr. Smith is here and said that you expected him?" Narcissa was standing just like Lucius liked it, with great regality and showing that she was proud to be a Malfoy, even when the Black family was the bigger name in the magical society.
"Thank you Narcissa, please show him in and then leave for your bedroom, I will join you later." His smile was predatory and every woman in her right mind would have run away. But as Narcissa was under the loyalty potion and also a solution that would enslave her mind between doses for a short time, it was like she was just a passenger in her own body.
Narcissa bowed and left the study, letting Mr. Smith inside the study and then did as she was told. Mr. Smith walked to the desk and took the seat that Lucius had pointed too. "Mr. Malfoy, I have news for you. It seems the reason you could not take the main Black vault in Gringotts even when your wife is the youngest of the three sisters, as long Sirius Black is not dead or sentenced in a real trial, the Goblins won't give you any kind of permission exceeding the trust vault from your wife." Mr. Smith was telling what he found out to further the trust that Lucius was giving him in preparation to nail him down. He was already disgusted how he used his wife just like a prize he owns and bound her free will to his. As soon as they would find the antidote back in the Infinity research bay, he would see that she would get it one way or another.
A/N: and here i am again with another chapter. Hope you like this chapter, as it was only thanks to HowInMadeHowie that i saw the bad parts in the first revision and this was the result from a rewrite of a great part in this chapter. Now, enjoy and stay safe.