The Chamber of Secrets

It took the monster a moment to finally give him an answer to his question.

~Iiii haaaavvvveeeeee noooooonnnnnneeeeee tooooooo caaaaalllllllll myyyyyyy oooooooooooowwwn~

Harry frowned at the creature's response.

~That is a shame. A beautiful beast like you deserves one~ The boy began petting the scaly hide of the enormous snake without a modicum of fear, surprising the monster for his bravery.

~Thaaannkk yooouu, Ssssppeaakerrrr~

~Right now, I'm more curious about where you came from. Would you mind telling me? ~

~Aaa prevvviiiooouuusssss Ssssppeaakerrrr brrrrooouuuggggttth meeeee mmmmaaannnnyyyyy cccyyycccllllleeeeeesssss aaaagooooo. Lllleeeefffttt meeee toooo gguuuaaarrrrd hiiiissss seeeeccccrrreeettttssss, hiddddeeeeennnn iiiiinnnsssiiiddddeeeee tthheee caaasssttttlleee~

The Boy-Who-Lived frowned at the information.

~Hidden? Where? Could you show me?~ If somebody had brought the monstrous reptile to Hogwarts, they needed a place big enough to accommodate for the creature's dimensions.

Nodding silently, the talking snake turned around and began slithering away from the Acromantula's nest. Harry started following the retreating beast and the two moved towards their new destination.

It didn't take long before the pair stopped in front of a hidden hole beneath one of the many trees that littered the Forbidden Forest. Looking at it, the young wizard could see it was wide enough for the magical creature to slither through and the two began descending towards it, sinking into the muddy ground.

Surprisingly, they found themselves in a pocket of air no taller than a man but cramped enough that they couldn't fully fit together.

Instantly, Harry and the monster stopped in front of a metal door incrusted into the earth, more similar to a latch found in the vaults of banks than a typical one found in houses. Its design was elaborate, with the symbol of Slytherin carved into the iron. He hummed, storing the choice made to use such a specific design in his mind to ponder about later.

Approaching it, he searched for some way to open the latch and even tried forcing it. But it was useless. He was about to ask to his companion when she suddenly whispered a single word.

~Oooooopppennnnn~

At that simple command, Harry watched as the iron door began to move, opening the hidden passage it had behind.

Once it was wide enough, the two resumed their advance.

Descending further and further, finally they reached their destination.

It was a massive chamber, build inside what appeared to be a cave. Carved snakes coiled around stone pillars that reached a decorated ceiling of granite. A paved passageway lead from one extreme of the room to another, and the floor was slightly wet from dripping water that leaked from small openings in the roof of the chamber.

It was an impressive display of architecture, but old and covered in dust and moss. Harry calculated that the place was at least a hundred years old.

There was at least one question that remained in his mind. Why did he hear the creature's voice while in the school? But that wasn't a priority for now.

Looking the place over, there was only one certainty when considering the possibilities. This chamber was exactly what he had been looking for since his first year. A place hidden, where he and his friends could finally make some real progress.

~This is amazing~ Harry looked at the massive ophidian creature and smiled ~Thank you for showing me~

The beast made an expression that could be interpreted as gratitude for is words of praise.

~Ttthiiissss iiiissss foooorrr yooouuuu, asssss theeee ppprrrevvviiiioooouussss Sssspppeaaaakerrrr waaannnttteeeeddd thooosssssee liiiikeee hiiimmm too uuuussseeee thiissss plllaaaaccceeee~

Harry nodded at that and began pacing through the chamber, wanting to see everything in detail. Once satisfied, he approached the beast and began to tell it about his plans.

~I want to renovate this place. First, we will move the eggs here. I also want to add some equipment for building tools and weapons. Altars for the Gods. Some kind of way to speed the construction of other rooms around the Forbidden Forest…~ The boy's mind raced with the possibilities this room contained ~There's also more people I want to bring here, my friends. Between all of us these tasks should become easier and faster to do. Would it be okay for me to show them? ~.

The magical creature watched him speak and found herself surprised at his desire to consider her opinion.

~Iiii aaammm aaaa meeerrree sssseeervaaaannntttt. Whaaaaattttt yoooouuuu dooooo wiiiiitttth thiiiiissssss plaaaaaccccce isssss noooooot myyyyy cooooonnnnnceeeeeernnnnnn~

~Excellent. Now, the only thing I want to ask is this. Is the entrance in the forest, the only one? ~.

The monster shook her head in denial. Without speaking a word, the beast pointed to one extreme of the chamber and he followed her gaze.

Walking toward where she had indicated, he found another door similar to the one in the forest but a little bit bigger.

~Okay. I will come back tomorrow to see you with some of my friends. You stay here and rest~

~Yessss~

Satisfied with her answer, he turned around.

~Open~ Imitating the creature's actions to open the other door, he repeated the word used before.

Instantly, he watched as the massive iron hatch unlocked with a faint clicking sound uncharacteristic of such a cumbersome structure.

Once on the other side, he found a set of ascending stairs and he began climbing up.

At the end of them, he found himself on a public bathroom. Exiting it, Harry discovered it was one of those in Hogwarts. Specifically, the girl's lavatory of the second floor.

He noticed that one of the faucets had a small snake carved into the metal, an inconspicuous detail that could easily be missed and that marked the entrance to the chamber.

'Hmmm, so this is where it leads to…'.

It also explained how it was possible that he had heard the creature's voice the other times.

Satisfied for having solved the mystery, the boy walked back to his room before one of the wandering ghosts or Filch could find him sneaking after curfew.

Laying on the bed, Harry felt a giddiness to begin the many plans he had for the school for real.

XXX

Hermione Granger considered herself a logical person, as expected of one of the countless disciples of the Omnissiah. Always thinking of the consequences of her actions, what was rational to do and think. But that kind of mentality was useless to predict the kind of ridiculous and extraordinary attitude that characterized one of her best friends.

Minutes earlier, the boy with a lighting bolt-shaped scar had appeared on the Gryffindor Common Room and dragged her and some of their group without revealing what he wanted from them, reuniting them with the rest of their friends and asking them to accompany Harry to an undisclosed location deep in the Forbidden Forest.

Imagine her surprise when he suddenly pushed them all into a hidden entrance blocked by a massive iron door and dragged them along into the cavernous depths of the opened tunnel.

Lo and behold, what awaited them in the other side made her have a small heart attack.

"A basilisk…" She muttered. Once the girl understood what it was, she quickly averted her gaze from the massive serpent.

Harry and the others turned to her and the green-eyed boy arched an eyebrow, silently asking her to elaborate.

"What did you say, Hermione?" Ron said with a tinge of fear in his voice.

"…That is a basilisk…" She cleared her throat before continuing "It's an extremely dangerous magical creature that can kill anyone that looks at it directly in the eyes. Or "luckily" petrify them if doing it through a reflection".

At that explanation, all but Harry spun around. He grinned at that information, but didn't seem to care.

"Don't worry, guys. I told her to not do that to you".

Hermione frowned.

"What do you mean?".

"I can speak with her through Parseltongue", He said, as if that was all the reassurance they needed.

"Fascinating" She muttered.

"Bloody hell, mate. This is amazing! Could have asked us to help you, though…" Ron said.

"Sorry, guys. But I couldn't wait. And also, didn't want you to get hurt. But now Aragog is dead so there's nothing to worry about from him".

Lavender swooned a bit at those words with a lovesick sigh and flushed cheeks, hugging her boyfriend tightly.

"Are you really going to adopt the freaky spiders? And the basilisk too?" Draco wondered, with a small hint of curiosity.

Their friend nodded.

"There are many things I wasn't able to do since we had to be careful not to be discovered. But this place is perfect for some of our plans".

"I really like this place too" Hermione apported "Maybe we can bring the car here? His machine spirit has calmed after the holy prayers and oil treatments, but I want to make some modifications to its blessed form".

The green-eyed wizard hummed in thought and raised a thumbs up as a confirmation.

"I want a training room" Goyle announced.

"Oh, me too! I'm itching for a way to prepare. We were too weak, mate. To become stronger, so we can help you in case you need help fighting someone" Crabbe seconded.

"Yeah! Maybe we can spar with each other! Have a proppa' fight! Be ready to scrap with some gitz" Ron grinned excitedly.

Padma and Parvati

"Don't worry guys. This marks just the beginning of our wildest dreams being fulfilled. All of us will have plenty of opportunities to do what we want".

Hermione gasped and the boy with the lightning bolt scar arched an eyebrow.

"This is the Chamber of Secrets! Of course, how did I not put it together earlier!" She chastised herself.

"What do you mean, 'Mione? Do you know what place this is?" He asked while approaching the young witch.

"What?!" Draco exclaimed in surprise. An expression of understanding formed in the blonde's face at her words.

"Yeah. There's an old tale about Hogwarts that talks about a hidden chamber build by Salazar Slytherin. That place was built by the founder to guard his most ancient wisdom and artifacts. Somewhere none of the other three could ever find. He also put inside it a powerful monster that would protect it from intruders".

Harry and the rest listened attentively to the girl's story with fascination.

"Slytherin, according to the legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to unseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horror within, and use it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic" The girl continued "And now someone has opened it".

They all turned to look at their famous friend.

"You are suggesting I'm Slytherin's heir?" Harry's voice was filled with a tinge of scepticism.

"It's the only logical explanation. You speak Parseltongue, can communicate with the basilisk and opened the Chamber of Secrets".

Shaking his head, the wizard sighed exasperatedly.

"I don't care about that. And even if I was, that is only a means to an end for me. Convenient sure, but not my priority".

"I knew it" Malfoy declared "You are really worthy of my loyalty".

Unexpectedly, the blond boy kneeled in front of his friend.

"Draco?" Lavender inquired.

"Harry James Potter. I am your humble servant. My loyalty to you will forever be absolute. My life is yours to do as you wish".

"I appreciate the sentiment, my friend. Please, rise. I will never be your superior, for there's none among equals".

Draco Malfoy got up and looked at Harry with naked admiration.

The rest of the group watched the exchange with fondness. This display only served to reinforce their friendship and loyalty to the emerald-eyed boy.

"Hehehe… Harry, you are amazing" Lavender kissed her boyfriend enthusiastically while hugging him.

"The location of the entrances are pretty inconvenient" Harry mused once they stopped "But it's nothing we can't work with".

The rest coincided on that statement. They would have to be careful not to be caught by the professors or any other student not on their group. Only Hermione, Lavender and the twins could go through the entrance in the bathroom without arousing suspicion and even then, the problem was about opening the door since they didn't speak Parseltongue.

"None the less, this will help us pick up the pace. We have been delayed by everything going on with Aragog and are a little behind schedule. How about we begin with…".

The group spent a couple of hours talking about the various plans they had and organizing everything before starting, and helping Harry relocate the many Aragog's children inside the chamber.