Harry's second year at Hogwarts began much like the first—there was danger, mystery, and the usual amount of magical nonsense. But this time, Harry wasn't about to waste time figuring out ancient puzzles or deciphering cryptic warnings. Nope. This year, he was prepared. He had something the rest of the wizarding world seemed to overlook. Something simple. Something effective. Something that, in his opinion, really should be taught in Defense Against the Dark Arts.

His trusty Colt.


The trouble started with whispers of a secret chamber. According to the legend, the Chamber of Secrets had been opened once before, unleashing a terrible monster upon the school. Now, students were turning up petrified, frozen like they'd seen a particularly shocking price on broomsticks. Hermione, of course, was doing her usual Hermione thing—researching in the library, compiling notes, cross-referencing dusty tomes that were older than Dumbledore himself.

Ron, on the other hand, was taking the more practical approach of "panic, eat a sandwich, and hope the problem goes away."

Harry? Harry had a plan.


Late one night, after Hermione had finally tracked down the answer ("It's a basilisk, Harry!"), the trio decided to head straight for the Chamber of Secrets. The clues had led them to the entrance, located deep within Moaning Myrtle's bathroom—because of course it was in the most depressing bathroom at Hogwarts.

As it turned out, the only reason Hermione hadn't ended up as a human statue like the others was pure, dumb luck. Thanks to her obsessive love of reading, she had her nose buried so deep in Moste Potente Potions that she missed the creature's stare reflected on a nearby mirror.

That, or the basilisk took one look at her towering stack of homework and decided she had already suffered enough. Either way, Hermione was spared—not through any clever spellwork, but because, for once, a book actually saved her life.

Ron shuddered as they stood in front of the giant stone sink. "We're really going down there, aren't we?"

"You heard Hermione," Harry said, inspecting the Colt as if it were an ancient artifact from Salazar Slytherin himself. "There's a giant snake that's petrifying everyone. We can't let that thing slither around unchecked."

Hermione eyed the gun nervously. "Harry, you can't just shoot a basilisk. It's enormous. Its skin is thick enough to deflect spells. You'll need to use your—"

But Harry wasn't listening. He tapped the side of his holster confidently and grinned. "Hermione, this baby's got stopping power."

She opened her mouth to argue but thought better of it. She'd learned from the troll incident that, sometimes, Harry's unconventional methods did get results. She still didn't approve, but at this point, she figured arguing was a waste of breath.

After muttering "open" in Parseltongue, the sink shifted, revealing a dark tunnel leading into the depths below. Ron gulped. "Brilliant. We're crawling into a hole to face a gigantic snake. Totally sane."

The trio slid down the tunnel, landing in a heap of slimy bones and debris. It smelled exactly like you'd imagine the sewer system of a thousand-year-old castle would smell, which was to say, awful. Harry held his Colt in one hand and used the other to wave away the stench.

"Lovely place," he muttered. "Salazar Slytherin really knew how to decorate."


As they ventured deeper into the Chamber, the oppressive atmosphere weighed down on them. Enormous stone pillars lined the cavern, carved with serpents that seemed to glare at them as they passed. It wasn't long before the trio came face to face with the monster itself.

The basilisk slithered into view, massive and menacing, its yellow eyes glowing faintly. Even without looking directly at them, the sheer size of the creature was enough to make Ron's legs shake like a pair of faulty broomsticks.

"Harry…" Ron whimpered, backing up as the serpent reared its head. "That thing's as big as a bloody train."

The basilisk hissed, baring its lethal fangs, which dripped with venom that could melt stone.

Without hesitation, Harry pulled out his Colt, aimed it at the massive snake's head while avoiding eye contact, and squeezed the trigger.

BANG. BANG.

The chamber echoed with gunfire. Stone chips flew as the bullets hit their mark. The basilisk, clearly not expecting this level of firepower, let out a horrible, screeching hiss. It writhed and coiled in agony as Harry continued to fire, each shot reverberating like thunder in the ancient hall.

Ron and Hermione ducked for cover behind one of the pillars as the serpent thrashed about, smashing into the walls of the chamber. Hermione peered out, her jaw dropping. "Harry! You're actually… you're actually shooting it!"

"Yeah," Harry called over the noise, reloading his chamber with a swift motion, "what did you think I was going to do? Read it poetry?"

BANG. BANG.

The basilisk's enormous head jerked backward as more bullets tore through its thick hide. The snake's movements slowed, its massive body collapsing against the floor in a final, earth-shaking thud. The entire chamber seemed to tremble as the great beast's tail gave one last, weak twitch before going still.

Ron popped out from behind the pillar, looking pale but impressed. "Bloody hell, Harry. You just… you just shot a giant snake to death."

Harry holstered his Colt with a satisfied smile. "Just another day at Hogwarts."

Hermione, however, looked more concerned than impressed. "Harry, the venom… even though you didn't look directly at it, basilisk venom is still incredibly deadly! If you'd been bitten—"

"I wasn't bitten," Harry said confidently, brushing off her concern. "I'm fine. Snake's dead. Problem solved."

But the chamber wasn't done with them yet.


From behind the fallen basilisk, the faint outline of a figure began to materialize. Tom Riddle, or at least his teenage projection, stepped out of the shadows, a smug smile plastered across his face.

"You think killing the basilisk will stop me?" he sneered, looking every bit the overconfident teenage villain. "I'm more than a memory. I'm—"

BANG.

A single shot rang out, echoing through the chamber. Harry didn't even wait for Tom to finish his monologue. He simply raised the Colt and fired a single round straight into the diary sitting on the floor.

The diary exploded in a burst of ink, splattering across the stone floor like black rain. Tom Riddle's form flickered, his smug expression replaced with one of sheer disbelief.

"You—" he stammered, his voice cracking with indignation. "You can't just—"

BANG.

Another shot. Tom Riddle's projection distorted further, writhing like a glitch in reality. With one final screech, he evaporated into nothing, his figure dissolving like ink in water.

The chamber was silent once more.

Ron blinked, staring at the spot where Tom had just stood. "That was… quick."

Harry blew imaginary smoke from the barrel of his Colt, because why not? "I don't have time for villain speeches."

Hermione looked from the shredded diary to the now lifeless basilisk, then back to Harry. "I'm not saying I approve of this approach," she said slowly, "but it's… very efficient."

"Exactly," Harry said, holstering his gun. "If we'd done it the old-fashioned way, there would've been an epic battle with monologues and dramatic pauses, and frankly, I'm not interested in dragging this out."

Ron nodded, still in awe. "Makes sense. Why waste time when you can just… you know, shoot everything?"

Hermione sighed. "This isn't how wizards are supposed to handle things. It's… unconventional."

"Hey," Harry shrugged, "I'm The Boy Who Lived, not The Boy Who Follows the Rules."


Back at Hogwarts, the aftermath of the basilisk incident was surprisingly quiet. Sure, word had spread that Harry had dealt with the monster, but by now, the student body had come to expect his, well, unique methods.

Even Dumbledore seemed unfazed when Harry and his friends returned to the Great Hall, covered in ink. The headmaster's eyes twinkled as usual, though they did linger a bit longer on the Colt at Harry's side.

"Well, Harry," Dumbledore said with a small smile, "I see you've dealt with the situation once again."

"Yep," Harry replied, casually patting his holster. "Handled it."

The rest of the hall erupted in applause, though a few students still seemed unsure about the whole "guns at Hogwarts" thing. Draco Malfoy, for one, looked absolutely scandalized, as if Harry had committed some unspeakable crime by not relying on magic alone.

"Disgraceful," Draco muttered to Crabbe and Goyle, who nodded along as if they understood what was going on. "What kind of wizard uses Muggle weapons?"

But Harry didn't care. The Chamber of Secrets was closed. The basilisk was dead. And Tom Riddle? Well, he wasn't coming back from this one.

Hermione, despite her usual adherence to the rules, finally sighed in resignation. "At least no one got hurt."

"Exactly," Harry said, grinning. "And next time, if Voldemort decides to make another appearance, I've got plenty of ammo."

Ron clapped Harry on the back. "Yeah, mate. And we'll be ready. Next time, we'll face whatever comes at us with magic… and maybe just a bit of good old-fashioned firepower."

Harry leaned back in his chair, feeling completely at ease. The year wasn't over yet, but somehow, he knew that whatever came next, he'd be more than prepared to handle it.

After all, magic might be powerful, but sometimes, all you need is a well-placed bullet.