Harry, as well as his fellow classmates, quickly fell into a routine as the weeks slipped by. Between attending classes, Quidditch practice, and running his own classes, Harry's schedule was fairly full despite the free period he had from not attending Potions. And that was without considering the time needed for things like homework or Harry's own projects. And, whenever Harry did have any free time, he usually spent it in the Room of Requirement practicing spells from all of the books the room provided.
And so, the weeks slipped by until September ended, bringing them into October when the castle underwent a transformation for the impending holiday. Carved pumpkins filling the halls by the thousands, casting eerie multicolored light thanks to the flames flickering inside. Swarms of conjured bats, sinister green cobwebs, and skeletons summoned by Harry joined them to give the entire castle a macabre ambience that the students absolutely adored. For the most part.
A few, like Ron, were....unimpressed with some of the decorations, like the cobwebs.
Either way, the weeks of October also slipped by rapidly, until they finally arrived to Halloween itself. And what a Halloween it was.
Harry looked out across the grounds as five massive bonfires burned, courtesy of all of the....fuel, they had discovered in the Room of Hidden Things. A thousand years of old, broken items that had been cleared out and organized by the Hogwarts House Elves, and everything that was burnable was piled up on the grounds for tonight.
Four massive flames burned around the fifth, each one burning with different colors depending on the house they represented, green flames for Slytherin, blue for Ravenclaw, yellow for Hufflepuff, and red for Gryffindor. The fifth one meanwhile burned with nearly every single color imaginable, while the teachers and the tables laden with the Halloween feast were gathered around it.
Additionally, Albus had elected to charge each house with organizing some kind of event for the other houses to enjoy based around their bonfire.
Gryffindor house had chosen to erect several spinning boards that had some Gryffindor sixth and seventh years strapped to them. And while the boards were spinning, students could come and try to hit those strapped to them with various items that the Gryffindors provided, water balloons, fruit, dungbombs, and even some blunted arrows that Harry had provided. Somehow, the one who got stuck on the dungbomb board was Percy Weasley, which the twins swore they had nothing to do with. Harry didn't quite beleive them though.
The Hufflepuffs meanwhile had decided to organize a series of eating and drinking contests. The first round was to see who could eat the most mutton chops, followed by a butterbeer drinking contest. Then the final round centered around who could eat the most pumpkin pasties. Harry readily took part in the mutton and butterbeer contests, and won both.
The Ravenclaws meanwhile went with a scavenger hunt, giving the students who wanted to participate a list of items for them to hunt down throughout the school grounds. As tempted as he was to try this one as well, Harry ended up not doing so since he would have to handicap himself by not using the Clairvoyance spell. But that didn't stop Hermione from immediately challenging it and winning before everyone else.
And finally the Slytherins apparently decided to pay homage to their head of house, as they provided several cauldrons filled with various colored solutions that produced similarly colored fog that oozed out of them. And at the bottom of each cauldron were several apples, one of which was the winning golden apple, while the others would induce random effects to those unfortunate enough to take a bite out of them. Harry already saw several students walking around with various afflictions, such as turnips for ears, ending each sentence with 'nya', speaking backwards, or having all of their skin turn various colors.
What especially made the night though was the fact that it was Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington's, also known as Nearly Headless Nick, 500th deathday party. This meant that there were HUNDREDS of ghosts floating above the students, dancing and swaying to their own haunting music to give the entire grounds an amience that matched the occasion.
"Looks like a successful night overall." Harry said to Albus as he drifted over towards the dessert table towards the end of the night, watching his classmates enjoy themselves.
"Indeed. We may need to consider doing something similar in the following years." Albus remarked, even as he popped another bite of cake into his mouth.
"Good luck with that. I expect something even better next year." Harry said jokingly.
"Is that so? Then I suppose I shall discuss the matter with Professor McGonagall at once, so that we may prepare." Albus said with a tone of complete seriousness. Harry then watched with amusement as the old man made his way to Minerva, presumably to discuss what they had been talking about.
In all seriousness though, Harry did think that the majority of students would much prefer festivities such as this over a regular feast anyday. At least, he knew he did.
Harry continued wandering around the different bonfires, interacting with a few of his classmates as he did so, until a spectral figure blocked his path.
"Hello Nick. Happy deathday." Harry said to greet the host of the ghostly affairs, Nearly Headless Nick himself.
"Salutations young mister Potter, and thank you. How has this wonderfully macabre night been treating you?" The ghost asked while tilting his head like one would a hat, only his head was still attached to his spectral body by a flap of skin. Which had obviously been what earned him the nickname Nearly Headless.
"Its been well, Nick. How has yours been?"
"Its... Well.... I-"
"Nick!"
Harry looked over to see another ghost approaching them, this one holding his bearded head under one arm while he used the other to wrap around Nick's shoulder in a friendly manner, not that Nick seemed to appreciate it.
"Hello Patrick." Nick said wearily, before looking back at Harry. "Young mister Potter, this is Patrick. He is the 'head' of the Headless Hunt."
"AH!" Patrick suddenly exclaimed with interest before focusing on Harry. "That's right young man! And Nick here has been practically BEGGING to join us for centuries! Too bad he wasn't completely decapitated though! That little bit of skin left automatically disqualifies him!"
Nick sighed heavily as Patrick started laughing boisterously, joined in by several other ghosts that all had their heads removed from their spectral bodies.
"Well that should be an easy fix." Harry said as he held out his hand, which was immediately filled with a Bound Dagger.
"Feim Zii Gron!" He declared, and Harry's entire body turned transparent and ghostly, shocking all of the ghosts watching. But what shocked them even more was when Harry grabbed Nick's head while he held the dagger aloft.
"W-wait a second mister Potter!" Nick tried to protest worriedly.
"Hold still. I don't want to accidently bind your soul." Harry said as he brought the dagger down on the flap of skin, completely severing it as the head flopped free of his body to roll on the ground.
"Wha-? I-I'm headless! Completely headless!" Nick exclaimed as he looked up at his body from the ground, his face lighting up with joy.
"Yeah." Harry said, dispelling the dagger as his body became tangible once more. He then quickly moved his hand back from Nick's body as he felt the chill of a ghostly body. Not even the Sea of Ghosts was THAT cold.
"How did you do that?!" Patrick demanded.
"I got really good at killing ghosts before coming to Hogwarts. Its simple if you know how, and I just applied the same logic for Nick." Harry said with a shrug, and all of the ghosts around him backed away warily. After all, none of them had ever heard of someone being able to 'kill' ghosts before.
"Happy deathday Nick." Harry said to the ghost, who was still celebrating.
"Yes, yes! And thank you my dear boy! Thank you! Should you ever need any ghostly services in the future, please do not hesitate to ask!" Nick declared as his body began to awkwardly kick his head around like it was a ball.
Harry left the ghosts behind as he continued walking around the grounds to the various bonfires, where it was notably warmer than around the ghosts. Harry liked the cold as much as the next Nord, but there was a difference between some nice snowy weather and being surrounded by ghosts.
But all thought of Nick and the other ghosts left Harry's mind as he approached the Slytherin bonfire, and there was a somewhat familiar figure approaching him.
Hermione, covered head to toe with fur, a pair of pointed ears atop her head, and a tail twitching behind her.
"Catnip?" Harry asked while pulling out some of the stash he kept on him for Mrs. Norris, and her slitted eyes became moist.
"I got a bad apple..." She wimpered pitifully, prompting Harry to reach up and pat her on the head comfortingly. Which then turned to him scratching her behind her ears as Hermione seemingly enjoyed it so much that she started purring. Though whether or not it was because of her transformation, Harry couldn't tell.
Fortunately for Hermione, the Slytherins had sworn that the effects of their potions would only last for a few hours, so they should be all cleared up by the morning. Hopefully.
Regardless, neither of them were able to stay out and participate for much longer anyways. Though the regular curfew had been suspended for the night, especially since there weren't any classes tomorrow, students from third year and below still had to return to their common rooms by ten. Those fourth year and up however were allowed to stay out until midnight.
Harry didn't mind though. Despite how enjoyable this feast and the festivities were, it was still far cry from the feasts he was used to in Skyrim.
When it was almost ten Harry returned to Gryffindor tower along with his fellow first, second and third year Gryffindors, where they all started preparing for bed even as they eagerly discussed everything that had happened that night. Harry meanwhile retired to his trunk, and pulled out Tom Riddle's diary since he hadn't written to him yet tonight.
"Hello Tom. Happy Samhain." Harry wrote to him, using the 'proper' name of the holiday, according to Tom.
"Hello Harry. Happy Samhain to you too." Tom wrote back, sounding pleasedat the proper term. "How was the feast?"
"It was really good!" Harry quickly wrote back, making himself sound like an excited child. But then he added dejectedly, "But they didn't have any of the things you told me about..."
"Of course." Tom immediately replied. "I told you that wizards have been forgetting who they are thanks to muggles. First we had to hide our entire world from them, and then we started changing our customs and traditions for the muggleborns. I wonder how many witches and wizards even remember how to properly celebrate our holidays?"
Harry smiled wryly as he read what Tom wrote him, feeling like the situation was too regretable.
One of the reasons that the Stormcloaks in Skyrim rose up in rebellion was due to the steady erasure of their culture, along with the fact that they were being told what to do and how to act by outsiders from the Empire. Harry could see some parallels with wizarding Britain due to the lengths they went to in order to hide from Muggles. Plus he had already noted several instances where purebloods and muggleborns would butt heads due to cultural differences.
The difference however was that, while the Stormcloaks were fighting for the freedom of themselves and their brothers and sisters of Skyrim, especially from the cruel and sadistic actions of the Thalmor, Voldemort and his Death Eaters acted akin to the Thalmor themselves. So while Harry could understand their frustration with having to bow to the rule of Muggles, he also knew that they couldn't be allowed to do whatever they wanted.
So of course, Harry similarly feigned outrage as he replied to Tom, telling him all about the 'boring' feast that wasn't the slightest bit magical. But what Tom said back to him caught Harry's attention.
"It's not just about celebration Harry. Nights like Samhain, Yule, and the solstices are significant for a reason. Each one signifies something important to either people or the world itself, like the changing of the seasons. As such, magic can be particularly powerful on nights like tonight, making them popular for performing rituals or otherwise bringing about change."
Harry watched the words continued appearing before him on the page, surprising him slightly with the passion that Tom 'spoke' with. But then again he shouldn't be surprised. At the heart of his cause, Tom was fiercely proud of his wizarding heritage.
But what ended Tom's speech demanded all of Harry's attention.
"In fact, would you like me to show you something interesting?"
Harry only hesitated for the briefest of seconds before he wrote a single word back.
"Yes."
The ink didn't even have time to sink into the page before they began to blow wildly before seemingly stopping on one at random. In the middle of the page a small square formed that had something moving inside, like a tiny window. The next thing Harry knew, he felt as if he were being pulled forward right into the window before weightlessness claimed him.
For a moment everything was as black as ink around Harry, as if he had been pulled into Apocrypha, before the details began to form around him. And then Harry was standing in the middle of a massive underground chamber, where two rows of pillars stretched up into the darkness that engulfed the ceiling, leading to a titanic statue of a monkey-faced man with a thin beard that reached all the way down to the bottom of his robes.
And standing at the bottom of the statue, barely illuminated in the dim lighting, was a single handsome figure.
"Tom." Harry said plainly, already recognizing the youth from the memories he had received from Albus.
"Indeed I am." Tom replied with a disarming smile and nod of his head.
"And is this....the Chamber of Secrets?" Harry asked while looking around, as if in awe.
"Indeed it is." Tom affirmed. "Built by Salazr Slytherin himself nearly a thousand years ago. It has withstood the test of time while awaiting the return of his rightful heir."
"And now?" Harry asked with eagerness in his voice, like a child who was excited at the prospect of getting to join a secret club.
"I opened it while I was at school, fifty years ago. But because of Dumbledore, I was unable to complete my noble work of ridding this school of those unworthy of attending it. But now, with YOUR help..."
Tom left the last part unsaid, but Harry knew what he was getting at.
"I'll do whatever it takes! Where can I find the chamber?" Harry asked while trying to keep up his act, knowing that this could be the chance that he had been waiting for.
"In time." Tom said soothingly, before Harry noticed a sharp gleam in his eyes that hadn't been there before. "First I want you to tell me something. Is there a prominent Dark Lord in your time?"
Harry almost blinked at the unexpected question, before he had to fight the urge to smirk.
"No, there isn't." Harry replied in the most innocent voice he could muster.
"There....isn't?" Tom repeated slowly.
"Nope. No one comes to mind."
"I see... What about the most previously famous Dark Lord?"
Harry only thought about it for a second before he answered, "You mean Grindewald?"
Tom's eyes shifted then, becoming dark and filling with murderous intent.
"Are you saying that there has not been a prominent Dark Lord that has risen since Grindewald?" He asked coldly.
"None that I know of. I mean, there was one guy that tried to rise to power before I was born. But he didn't get very far. I heard that he ended up being defeated by a baby, collapsing his entire movement before it even started."
By this point Tom's eyes were practically murderous, his entire face appearing as cold and hard as stone as Harry continued talking. But, it seemed he had finally reached his breaking point.
"Enough!"
Harry's eyes shot up to him as Tom yelled, his entire body tensing as he prepared for whatever he decided to do.
"It appears I need to accelerate my plans..." Tom murmured to hismelf quietly, turning away from Harry now as if he was no longer there.
"What plans?"
Tom looked back suddenly as Harry spoke, his expression twisting into one that was meant to comfort him.
"I'm sorry Harry. But it looks like you won't be able to return to Hogwarts."
It was said with the utmost casualness, as if one were talking about the weather or something.
"And why is that?" Harry asked, dropping his innocent child persona. Though it seemed that Tom hadn't noticed.
"Such a meager legacy cannot be allowed to stand! Harry, what is the name of the baby that defeated the Dark Lord?" He demanded with a cold tone, as if refusal itself was not an option.
"Why do you ask?" Harry asked him suspiciously.
"Because, the first thing I plan to do after I return is hunt down this child and put an end to it myself!" Tom declared, to which Harry smiled. And for the first time, Tom appeared just ever so slightly uncertain until Harry responded.
"His name, is Harry Potter."
Silence prevailed within the dark and damp chamber as Harry's name seemingly echoed off the walls.
"You?" Tom asked, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
"Me." Harry replied calmly, though now his own expression began to harden as he stared at Tom.
"When I was only a year old, you came to our home and killed my parents before turning your wand onto me. But when you tried to kill me, your curse rebounded to destroy yourself instead. We met again last year, when you tried to make a comeback by stealing the Philosopher's Stone. The you I saw then was nothing more than a parasite, living off of another just to survive. The lowest of the low."
The more Harry spoke, the icier Tom's expression became until he looked downright murderous. But then, just as quickly, his expression softened.
"I see. And then you must have discovered my diary, and wanted to use it for some sort of payback. Tell me Harry, do you know the meaning of the word, irony?" He aske eerily.
"Enlighten me." Harry replied.
"Well, first you destroyed me as a baby, and now I'll be able to return thanks to you." Tom said, his mouth splitting into a vicious smile.
"Is that so?"
"Yes. You see this diary is more special than you realize Harry. It was designed to sap the life from whomever decided to write in it. My original plan was to turn you into one of my followers, and have you bring me someone worthy of resurrecting the great, Lord Voldemort himself! But now I decided to do something different. Now, you will die here, and your death will fuel my return."
At that moment Harry heard something moving behind him, something that sounded massive as it scraped and slithered across the floor.
A glance back and Harry saw what could only be considered a big ass snake, easily at least fifty feet long, and a width equivilent to the trunk of a tree.
Harry immediately fixed his eyes upon Tom before he could see anymore, as he strongly suspected what kind of snake it was that coiled behind him.
"Impressive, isn't it?" Tom asked gleefully. "The basilisk left behind by my ancestor, Salazar Slytherin. A thousand years it has been bidding it's time down here, feasting on vermin while awaiting the day it would be able to perform the noble duty of purging Hogwarts of any unworthy of learning magic! Now, kill him!"
Though the last part was hissed, Harry still understood it perfectly well as the Basilisk poised itself to attack. But then, he smiled as well.
"You think you're the only one with tricks up your sleeves, Riddle?" Harry asked him, right before the temperature in the chamber began to plummet.
"GROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!"
A savage roar accompanied the chill as a massive figure appeared out of thin air behind Harry, between himself and the basilisk.
"Tom, meet Karstaag." Harry said as the spectral frost giant he had summoned prepared to square up with the basilisk.
Standing at over 20 feet tall, Karstaag was a force to be reckoned with just based on his physical strength, which put him above nearly all other giants in Tamriel. But that wasn't all, as Karstaag was also gifted with immense control over ice and snow.
Wind and snow whipped at Harry's hair as he and Tom glared at each other, seemingly oblivious to the battle raging as giant and serpent fought. Though Harry noticed that Tom's eyes continued gancing back at Karstaag with unrestrained curiosity.
"Before I kill you, perhaps I shall dig every last secret you're keeping out of your head, Potter." Tom snarled as he raised his wand.
"Feel free to try, Riddle." Harry replied while raising his own wand in his right hand, leaving his left ready to cast other spells as needed.
Immediately Tom gave a casual, almost lazy flick of his wand while his lips just barely moved without producing any discernable sound, producing a flash of noxious orange light.
Harry responded by firing off an attack of his own, a Confringo that hit the attack head on, resulting in an amplified fiery explosion that coated the chamber in puddles of burning flame. But both Harry and Tom were still moving despite the flames, firing one spell off at the other without pause while the two monsters dueled in the background.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Karstaag roared angrily as the basilisk sank it's fangs into his arm, before ice began to coat both of their bodies as he began to freeze it in retaliation. This forced the basilisk to jerk it's head back and glare at him angrily as the temperature in the room continued to plummet.
Unfortunately for both of them, neither were the real deal.
Though still as powerful as he was in life, Karstaag was just a ghost, meaning he couldn't be killed by the basilisk's veneom, or it infamous deadly gaze. And while other ghosts would be otherwise affected by it, Karstaag was simply too powerful.
The basilisk on the other hand was also not really alive, being recreated from Tom's memories. So it wasn't even affected by the cold produced by Kartaag, only annoyed by the snow that blocked it's sight, and the ice that he would use to try and trap it.
"HSSSSSSSSSS!"
The basilisk hissed furiously as it lunged at Karstaag once more, sinking it's fangs into his body before the rest of it coiled around him to constict his movements. Karstaag however decided to stomp on the basilisk's tail before it could wrap around him entirely, smashing it while also freezing it to the wet ground.
On the other side of the cavern, Harry and Tom were locked in an equally fierce battle as they fired spells at the other without end.
Tom's lips moved constantly as he cast spell after spell, each one different than the last yet no less sinister as he tried to overwhelm Harry. The Boy-Who-Lived however was keeping pace with Tom as he skillfully deflected, blocked or dodged each spell sent at him. Something that was obviosuly beginning to annoy Tom, as there was no way Harry should be as skilled as he was as a twelve year old.
"Dumbledore must have trained you." He sneered while flicking his wand to create an X in midair of purple flame, before sending it at Harry.
"Not really." Harry replied as he used his free hand to create a wall of ice in front of him, absorbing the attack before retaliating with three rapid-fire stunning spells.
"Don't lie to me Harry. How else would you have become so skilled at dueling?" Tom asked as he began to slowly wave his wand through the air, creating numerous ghostly skulls that burned with silver flames as they honed in on their target.
"Lots of practice." Harry replied plainly, a ghost of a smile on his face as he was forced to evade the burning skulls before they touched him, as everything else they touched melted into slag. He then sent a couple of Bone-Breaking curses at Tom, who was forced to deflect them into the pillars behind him, both of which fractured and collapsed from the power behind Harry's spells.
"Interesting... Your life must have been difficult if you built up this much practice this early. And yet you still throw your lot in with Dumbledore?" Tom said, sounding impressed at first, but then expressing disappointment.
"Says the guy who got his shit rocked by a baby." Harry sneered back at him as he cast a Bombarda on the ground in front of Tom, causing it to explode while sending jagged rocks flying in every direction.
Even Tom had to flinch at that, or at least the teen version of him standing before Harry, which gave Harry the chance to hit him with a Depulso powerful enough that the fledgling Dark Lord was sent flying into the chamber wall. There, he crumpled to a heap on the floor while Karstaag similarly dealt with the Basilisk.
"How does it feel Tom? Knowing you were beaten by a literal milk drinker?" Harry asked as he slowly walked up to him, but keeping his guard up the entire time. He was actually having fun with this, as this felt like the first true fight Harry had gotten into ever since he had returned to Britain. Even the vampires the year before had basically been fodder once they realized he had a sword that could kill them.
Tom however was a decent opponent for Harry to train against while learning the magic of this world. Better than even Albus, whose biggest flaw was his constant restraint. It almost made Harry want to keep the diary around to use as his own personal training room for a while.
Almost.
For the moment, Harry approached Tom and stood in front of him, looking down at his crumpled form as he tried to pick himself up off the floor.
"Never taken a proper hit before? I'm not surprised since you seem like the type avoid antagonizing anyone who would actually be able to fight back. Expelliarmus." Harry said as Tom raised his wand suddenly, only for it to fly out of his hands and clatter across the floor.
"You dare?!" Tom snarled, having truly lost his cool even before Harry grabbed him by the front of his robes and picked him up to pin against the wall.
"I dare. Now you are going to tell me some things." Harry said with a snarl.
"Such as?"
"Where the entrance is located." Harry started, and Tom began to laugh.
"Really? You think I would tell YOU where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is located? All so what? You could bring Dumbledore down here and kill my basilisk?" He asked with disadain.
"Well I probably wouldn't bring Albus with me, but yeah." Harry said with a shrug.
"Ha! I'm almost tempted to just to see you get killed by it!" Tomn declared, though he still kept mum about it.
"If you aren't willing to tell me, then I'll just have to try and forcibly extract the information." Harry warned him.
"Is that so?" Tom sneered contemptuously. "Will the lacky of Dumbledore try and torture me, a memory?" Tom asked, pointing out that this wasn't even his true body. In fact, he could get out of this any time he damn well pleased since this entire world was created by his 'memory'. He just needed to keep Harry here long enough to absorb his life force in order to return.
What Tom did not figure on though, was what Harry did next.
Harry opened his mouth, but what came out were no words nor spells he had ever heard before.
"ZIIL LOS DII DU!"
...
"!!!"
Almost immediately after he Shouted Harry found himself back in his trunk with a very worried Kreacher watching over him. But there was no time for that, as a sinister ghostly wail tore through the entire trunk.
Harry watched in awe as Tom Riddle's soul fragment was violently ripped from the pages of the diary, and right into him in the same manner as a dragon soul. And just like when he consumed a dragon's soul, Harry's mind was flooded with information from Riddle's soul. Much of the stuff he had learned in school, as well as things he learned from forbidden books.
The entire process only took a matter of seconds, but it felt far longer as Harry processed everything he just confirmed.
Firstly was the Shout he used, which was unique and roughly translated to: Your soul is mine to devour.
Harry had learned that Shout when he fought Miirak, during which the first Dragonborn had used it to forcibly rip the souls from his dragon followers in order to become more powerful. Of course it had ultimately failed to help him, but Harry had stilled learned the words to the Shout himself. Even if he never actually used them until now.
However, Harry was sure that the Shout wouldn't work that way on normal people.
The Dragonborn was unique existence that can be considered a gift to humanity from the gods themselves. Not just anyone could rip out a being's soul and consume it, and the Dragonborn was tuned specifically to the souls of dragons.
HOWEVER, Harry and Voldemort were not normal.
Voldemort himself, regardless of whether or not he meant to, had planted a fraction of his soul into Harry's body. So Harry had wondered, if part of Voldemort's soul was already within his body, could he consume the rest?
Harry's initial curiosity had been just that, curiosity. He hadn't planned to actually try and consume Voldemort's soul. But then, the opportunity arose for him to try it. Especially since Harry needed information from him.
And now, Harry had it.
Not only did he acquire general knowledge about magic from Tom Riddle's soul. But since the diary was tied specifically to the opening of the Chamber of Secrets, Harry also knew about that to. Specifically, where it was, and how to open it.