Chapter 6 - Diaries Can Be Hazardous
Harry sat in the infirmary beside Hermione all decked out in his Quidditch robes. The last game of the year for Gryffindor was due to start soon, but he was here by her side as he had been in almost all of his free time over the last three weeks.
McGonagall had said he could see his friend as much as he wanted and she was in charge now; Dumbledore had been dismissed by the Board of Governors after Hermione and Penny Clearwater had been petrified. Harry had also noticed that his Head of House was usually the one to escort him or whatever group he was in when he went outside of the Gryffindor Tower. He was actually very appreciative of that, as it made him feel safer.
Even better, Madam Pomfrey had told him this morning that the restoration potion was in the final preparation stage, and would be ready tomorrow. Harry was more than ready for Hermione to come back.
He reached up and caressed her hard arm for a moment. He had done that a few times, but normally did not. It seemed too invasive, too personal, and yet he really missed her words of encouragement before events like this. As he touched her hand, he suddenly felt something that was not hard. Perplexed, he stood up and twisted his head around to an angle he normally did not and looked. There appeared to a piece of parchment in the hand that had not held the mirror. He carefully worked it out of her fist.
As he unrolled it and smoothed it out, he saw that it was part of a page that had been torn from an old library book. That brought a smile to his face that had been so sad for the last three weeks. He would have to tease her about the sacrilege of abusing a library book. He looked at it carefully and read.
Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size, and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it.
(quoted from CoS by JKR)
Below that and written in her own handwriting was one word: pipes.
So Hermione thought there was a Basilisk in the school and it was the reason for everyone being petrified? But the text did not mention petrification, only death. He pondered that. Wait! He thought. Hermione had been using a mirror. Colin had been holding his camera. When Justin had been brought in, they had also brought in a petrified Sir Nick. He did not know what had saved Mrs Norris, but it seemed as though if you did not look directly at the monster, then you were only 'partially dead' or petrified. He looked back at the bottom of the paper. And it seemed as though Hermione thought the snake travelled through the pipes of the school. It was a bit of a stretch, but it made sense in its own way he concluded.
Harry reached out and stroked the girl's hard hair. "You really are brilliant," he told her reverently.
The noise of the door opening caused him to jerk his hand back and blush at having been caught touching his friend. He saw the three team Chasers come walking in, led by Alicia who was a Prefect. They were talking to themselves, so he guessed they had not seen his little indiscretion and he felt relieved.
"Harry?" Alicia called out to him. "Wood sent us to get you. It's time to go."
He looked at the parchment in his hand and shoved it into a pocket. He would tell McGonagall after the match. "OK," was all he said as he rose and joined them.
"Are you going to be all right today?" Katie asked him. She had always shown a little more concern for him, maybe because she was only one year older.
He nodded. "I think so. I'm sure once I'm flying it'll be fine. After all, they said she would be cured tomorrow."
Katie patted him on the back in a sisterly way; her hand did not linger there. "That's good to hear. At least we're only playing Hufflepuff and not Slytherin. They'll give us a good game, but they won't play dirty."
He nodded again and then looked at her with a mischievous smile. "And if I break my arm again, please don't let Lockhart anywhere near me."
All three girls laughed. Harry was starting to feel a little more like himself. He just had to ignore the missing part of himself for now, and that part would be returning tomorrow.
They were almost to the front doors when they heard Professor McGonagall's voice echoing throughout the castle. "All students will return to their house dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please."
The girls all groaned. "There goes the game," Angelina said grumpily.
They all turned around and headed for the Gryffindor Tower. Harry thought about the parchment in his pocket. He had to tell someone. "I need to talk to McGonagall. I'll join you in a few minutes," he told them and dashed off before they could stop him. He had to think hard about where the staff room was. After taking one wrong turn, he backtracked and eventually found it, just as McGonagall was going in. He would have called out, but it was a long corridor.
Running, he approached the room and started to knock when he heard her voice through the door.
"It has happened," she said. "A student has been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself."
He heard a squeal, and suspected Professor Flitwick had made it.
"How can you be sure?" Snape's unmistakable voice demanded.
"The Heir of Slytherin left another message. Right underneath the first one. It said: Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber for ever."
"Who is it? Which student?" That sounded like Madam Hooch.
"We believe it's Ginny Weasley." Professor McGonagall's voice shocked him. Ron's sister?
"We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow," said Professor McGonagall.
Whatever else she might have said Harry did not get to hear because footsteps were coming in his direction from a side corridor. Harry hastily fled and hid in an alcove just before Lockhart came around the corner and went into the staff room. He had heard enough and knew he had to tell Ron. After all, he would want someone else to tell him if something had happened to Hermione. He took off at a jog for the Tower, Ron should be there by now.
He was a little out of breath when he got there, but he gave the password and went in. Ron was easy to find. Harry did not see the other brothers anywhere, so he went over to his most-of-the-time friend.
"Ron!" He grabbed the boy's arm and yanked him away from where he had been talking with Dean and Seamus.
Ron almost stumbled and barely kept his balance. When Harry stopped, he jerked his arm away. "What's gotten into you?"
"Ssh!" he hissed. "Listen. I was just outside of the staff room to tell McGonagall something, and I heard her say that Ginny's been taken - and that they're going to close the school."
Ron stared for a moment and Harry could practically see the thoughts in his head. "They're not going to search for her, are they?" he said very quietly and looked sort of sick.
What could Harry say to that? It did sound that way from what he heard. "I don't know. I didn't get to hear everything. Lockhart came late and I had to leave."
Ron suddenly looked wildly around. Harry had seen that look before back at the beginning of the year in King's Cross. It was not hard to guess that he was looking for his brothers, but did not see them either.
"Let's go, we have to save her," Ron told him and grabbed Harry's arm, pulling him towards the Portrait hole.
Harry nodded, pulled off his Quidditch robes (dropping them on the floor), and followed. Outside the common room, Ron stopped for a second. A look of defeat was on his face. "We really don't know where to go, do we?"
"Actually, I do," Harry told him and started walking with Ron following. "Professor McGonagall said a new message was written under the first one."
"You mean the one outside of that girls' bathroom?"
"Yeah, that one," Harry said agreeably. "Also, if you think about it, all the victims were found near there, too. I just found a piece of parchment from Hermione that had the word 'pipes' on the bottom of it, that's why I was looking for McGonagall."
Ron grinned. "And bathrooms have pipes."
Harry hoped this next part went over as well. "The parchment also talked about a Basilisk. Hermione thinks a Basilisk is what's doing this."
"But, but Basilisks kill people," Ron protested.
"Normally, but that's only if they look at you directly. If there is something else in the way, like a mirror, a camera, or a ghost, then you're only petrified," Harry explained.
"But what about Ginny?" Ron asked, the fear in his voice very evident.
They rounded the corner, almost to the bathroom, and literally ran into Lockhart, knocking the man back a step and ruining his concentration, which caused the trunk floating behind him to drop to the floor.
The man flashed his patented smile. "Boys, what are you doing here? You should be in your dorms where it's safe."
Ron was looking between the man and his trunk. He quickly whipped out his wand and pointed it at his professor. "You're running away, aren't you?"
In the surprise of the moment, Harry reached out and took the man's wand that he was starting to lift and point towards them. Harry also caught a glimpse of why Ron was put into Gryffindor.
"You're a teacher and you will help us search for my sister," the redhead ordered the man, flicking his wand down the corridor.
Lockhart understood and started walking in that direction. They all saw the messages, old and new.
"I'm terribly sorry," Lockhart said a little too jovially for the situation. "I'd like to help, but no one knows where to look." He started to walk away and Ron pointed his wand at Lockhart's face. The man froze to the spot.
"Actually, we have a good idea," Harry said and walked into the girl's bathroom.
"Who are you?" said a girl's voice. It was high-pitched and a little grating.
Harry looked around and saw a ghost of what looked like a fourth-year sitting on the window sill. "I'm Harry. I don't think we've met. Who are you?"
She giggled. "Of course not, you're not a girl. What are you doing in here? Not that I don't mind, because I don't. So few people come in here."
"Oh, we're looking for a friend, a little red-haired girl. She should have come in here recently. Have you seen her?" Harry was thankful the other two were keeping quiet.
"She was here and left over there." A ghostly arm pointed at the sinks.
"Thanks." Harry walked that way and started looking around. "What did you say your name was?"
The ghost giggled again. "I'm Myrtle. You're kind of cute, and you're nice, too. If something happens to you, would you like to stay with me in my pipes?"
Harry was squatting down and looking when he heard the word. "Do you know anything about the snake that moves around in the pipes?"
Whatever good mood Myrtle had left her. "I think that was what killed me." She sniffled for a moment before wailing and zooming off into a toilet. They all heard a splash and then nothing more.
"That was bizarre, but at least you got some information out of her," Ron said.
While Harry agreed with the sentiment, it had been stated a bit rudely. That did seem to be typical Ron, he thought. Looking back to the sinks, he saw it - a snake symbol. He remembered back to the time it seemed like he could talk to a snake, when he was at the zoo with his cousin. Focusing on the snake, he said, "Open." To everyone's surprise, the sinks started to move. Harry jumped back. A moment later, they saw a big hole in the floor.
"Blimey," Ron breathed, "you're a Parseltongue." He looked a little scared as well.
"Huh?" That made no sense to Harry, and a glance at Lockhart showed the man to be looking very concerned, adding to the mystery.
"A Parseltongue. You can speak like a snake. I heard you hiss," Ron insisted.
"All I heard myself say was 'open'," Harry explained.
"Weird." Ron shuddered and seemed to get a grip on himself. He leaned over a little to look down. He shook his head and turned around. "You, get down there," he ordered Lockhart, motioning to the hole with his wand.
"You want me to jump down there?" Lockhart asked, looking incredulous.
"You're the teacher. After all the adventures you've had, this should be easy," Ron taunted him. When Lockhart did not move, Ron did, getting behind the man and pushing. It was unexpected and Lockhart went head-first into the darkness, yelling all the way down. Ron looked at Harry and Harry nodded. Ron lit his wand, took a step, and jumped feet first.
Now what? Harry asked himself as he too lit his wand and jumped into the hole. Unbeknownst to him, when the room emptied, the sinks moved back, as they had been magicked.
After a long slide, Harry arrived in a place where the floor was covered in muck and rat bones. Unfortunately, he slid to a stop on his back in said muck. He could understand why Lockhart was staring at his own robes and muttering. Lockhart even had some of the muck in his hair. Harry just shrugged and got up. Ron was watching Lockhart with amusement, so Harry walked on. The place they were in opened up into a much larger room, although the ceiling was not too high. It was all rock, basically an underground cave. He walked on, vaguely aware that Ron and Lockhart were following.
"Blimey!" Ron shouted, which echoed.
Harry looked where his friend was pointing, and to the side he could see a huge snake's skin. If the snake had shed that, Harry wondered how big the snake was now.
"Harry!" Ron shouted, a warning in his voice.
Harry turned and saw Ron and Lockhart struggling over Ron's wand. To his dismay, Lockhart seemed to be winning.
"This story will be mine too," Lockhart said through gritted teeth as he struggled with Ron.
A spell went off and it shot towards the ceiling. As the first bits of rock came down, Harry scrambled and then dove away. A huge crashing sound made him continue to roll away. When the sound had basically stopped, Harry quit rolling and looked back. In the light of only his wand, Harry saw rocks from floor to ceiling. He was trapped!
"Ron!" he shouted, hoping to hear an answer.
It was quiet for a few seconds and he started to panic when he heard a muffled, "Harry!" He sighed with relief. "Are you all right, mate?!"
"Yeah, I'm fine. How about you?!"
"I'm, I'm mostly good! A rock caught me in the leg and I think it may be broken, but I'm not bleeding or anything!"
Madam Pomfrey could easily fix broken bones, Harry thought with a grin. "What about Lockhart?!" Harry thought he heard a muffled laugh, but he was not sure.
"When we were fighting over my wand, he tried a second spell! I managed to hit his arm and I think he hit himself with the spell! He's out cold right now!"
Harry snorted. "The idiot," he mumbled.
"He broke my wand, Harry! It's completely dark over here! I can't see a thing! Do you think you can pass Lockhart's wand to me?!"
Harry had forgotten about it. "I can try!" He climbed the new rock wall.
"Over to the left, Harry!" Ron shouted. "I can see a little more light there!"
Harry moved over. He pulled a few small rocks away. He could see some more smaller rocks at the top, but most of the rocks were very large. "I can't do much more than that from here. The rocks are too big."
"I can see more light," Ron told him, his voice not as muffled and he did not have to shout now. "Can you throw it through? Maybe I can get it."
Not knowing what else to try, Harry pulled out Lockhart's wand. He held his lit wand near the hole to try and shine the light through. "Here it comes." He threw the wand sort of like a spear and hoped for the best. Listening carefully, he did hear it make a noise as it fell.
"I see it. Stay where you are for a minute."
Harry could hear some rocks being tossed and grunts from Ron.
"I got it," Ron called.
Harry moved his wand down and sure enough, there was now light coming from the hole on Ron's side.
"Hey, Harry?"
"Yeah?"
"I'll try to make the hole bigger, but can you continue on? I hate to ask you to do that, since it's my sister, but my leg won't let me continue," he said a little angrily.
"I understand. Stay there and try to think of a way back up. I'll bring her out, Ron. If there's any way possible, I'll bring her out." Harry promised, trying to console him.
"Thanks mate! I'd do the same for Hermione if our places were reversed."
Harry smiled to himself. Maybe there was more to Ron than he thought. He would have to talk to Hermione about that tomorrow. "I'm leaving now. I'll be back as soon as I can."
"Good luck, Harry!"
With a sigh, Harry climbed down the rocks and walked onward. Soon, he came to a door that had two metal snakes encircling it. Since it worked last time, he stared at the snakes and said, "Open." The snakes moved and the door opened.
Surprisingly, there was a weak light coming through the doorway. Harry poked his head in and saw a chamber nearly the size of the Great Hall with a few torches on the walls. It was very eerie looking.
He stepped through the doorway and extinguished his wand, although he kept it out. He wished he had learned more spells.
Again, it was all rock down here. There were a number of columns holding the ceiling up. About halfway through the chamber, he could see to the end and make out a big statue of a man's face. He could also hear the slow yet steady drip of water into a small pool at the base of the statue. That suggested he was under the lake. A few steps later, he saw something on the floor that looked like a body. He lit his wand and ran over. Sure enough, it was Ginny.
"Don't be dead, please don't be dead," he muttered as he ran the light over her, looking for injury. "Ron would be so upset." Curiously, he saw no injury. She looked like she was only asleep, so he shook her shoulder. "Wake up, Ginny, wake up!" He was happy to note that her body shook, so she was not petrified.
"She won't wake," a voice said from the shadows.
Harry turned and held up his wand to see more clearly.
A boy walked forward, twirling a wand as he did.
Harry knew him from the memory. "You're Riddle, Tom Riddle." Things were started to click into place, but he was quite sure there were important pieces of the puzzle still missing.
"Very good."
Harry looked down at Ginny.
"She's still alive, at least for the moment," Riddle confirmed.
"What are you? A ghost? You look just like you did in the book." He had to get more information.
Riddle chuckled. "No, just a well preserved memory." The wand stopped twirling for a moment and pointed to a little book at the edge of the shadows beyond Ginny's head.
It was the book he had found near Valentine's Day and that had later gone missing. The one that had T.M. Riddle embossed on it. Tom Riddle. He mentally berated himself; he should have figured that out earlier.
"Can you help me with her? I need to wake her up and get out of here. The monster might come back." Harry was almost pleading with him.
Riddle laughed and then abruptly stopped. "No. No, I can't do that. You see, I need her here, and I need what she has brought me."
"What has she brought you?" This conversion was tiring; he had to drag every little thing out of Riddle.
"Well, you for one." Riddle laughed at Harry's surprised look. "Yes, you. I was hoping to find out more about you. I caused her to write to me and pulled her in. The drivel I had to listen to was excruciating. She never would tell me what a baby, a plain and common baby, did to defeat me."
"I defeated you?" Harry asked confused. "I just stopped writing in your little book."
"No, not that," Riddle said a little exasperated. "When you were a baby," he said as if it all should have been clear.
"But I've never seen you before. When I was a baby, Voldemort was the one I defeated."
Riddle shook his head in pity. "They teach you nothing in History, do they?" He used the wand in his hand to write 'TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE' in fiery letters in the air. Then he used the wand to rearrange them. When he was finished, the letters now said, "I AM LORD VOLDEMORT".
"You see," the boy continued. "Even back when I was sixteen, almost seventeen, I knew that I was destined to be great."
"You're not. Everyone knows you fear Dumbledore, the greatest wizard ever." Harry was not sure he fully believed it, but it was what everyone said.
The superior look on Riddle's face was replaced by one of hatred. "And yet, Dumbledore has been driven from the school by a mere memory of me."
Harry did not know what to say to that, as it was pretty much true.
"The longer you talk to me, the longer you stay alive. So tell me, how did you defeat me?" Riddle was back to irritatingly calm questioning, much more like Dumbledore then Riddle probably wanted to admit.
Hoping for something that would give him a clue as to what to do, Harry decided to talk. "I did nothing. My mother must have done something with her sacrifice, or so I'm told."
Riddle considered that. "Hmm, one of the Ancient Magics I suppose. A ritual done beforehand and sealed with her sacrifice. Very clever for a Mudblood."
"Don't you call her that!" Harry shouted angrily. As he clenched his fists, he felt the wand in his hand. Impulsively, he whipped it around and cast, "Diffindo!" The cutting charm was one they had recently learned in class. Flitwick had cautioned them never to use it on a person, except in life and death situations, as it would cut people as well as objects.
The spell went right through Riddle, like he was a ghost.
Riddle laughed. "You can't hurt me, Potter. But if you want to play, I have a playmate for you." He turned to the statue and hissed, although Harry could understand him perfectly. "Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four."
The statue started to move and the mouth opened, creating a large hole. Hearing a slithering sound, Harry started to panic. He looked around and saw Ginny on the floor. He reached down and grabbed her robes and pulled her to the side next to one of the columns and in the shadows. He hoped she would be safe there. Looking down at his feet at the edge of the shadows, he saw the diary sitting there.
As a splash came from the base of the statue, Harry reached down and picked up the diary. Everything seemed to lead to it, but he did not know what to do.
"Kill him!" Riddle hissed.
"Yes, Master," was hissed back very loudly.
Harry ran towards the other end of the chamber. Maybe he could get through the other door and do something to the snake in the opening. Maybe he could drop a big rock on its head.
He was almost halfway down the chamber when the slithering noise sounded very close behind him. Jumping sideways as he came to a column, he hid behind it and heard what he assumed was the Basilisk slithering past him. He looked back towards the statue and saw the body of the snake was about chest high on him, or about three feet thick. He guessed there was over forty feet of snake trailing towards the statue. This was at least twice the size of the skin he had seen before. He did not think he could stay alive for very long this way, he knew he had to do something different.
As he heard the snake turn and the slithering start to come closer, Harry jumped out from behind the column and ran to the other side of the chamber and the other row of columns. Maybe he could get the snake wrapped around a few columns. Of course, this required him to jump over the body of the snake. He put his closed fists on the top of it and swung his legs and feet over, like he used to do to jump fences to get away from Dudley and his gang. He was surprised at the feel of the snake skin. It was soft and hard at the same time, sort of like if you could make cloth out of steel.
The snake hissed and it sounded angry.
Harry continued running, the diary in one fist and his wand in the other. When the snake hissed again, Harry decided to give talking to it a try. "You don't have to do this, you know."
The snake stopped moving. "Another speaker? You are only the fourth I have ever met."
That surprised Harry, but it was a start. "Yes, I can speak to you. Listen, if you let me live, I can help you. Maybe I can find a way for you to get into the forest above so you can escape."
He studied the diary and seeing his wand, he decided to see what he could do. "Diffindo," he whispered. The spell hit the bottom edge of the diary and nothing was cut. He mentally cursed. He would have to do something else, but he was almost sure the diary was the key. Everything kept going back to the diary.
"That would be nice. My route to the forest has become blocked over time," the snake hissed back.
"Do not listen to him!" Riddle hissed. "Kill him!"
"I am sorry, but I am bound to him and I must obey." The slithering started again.
Harry dashed out from behind the column and continued his run towards the other door. As the sound became close again, he jumped behind another column. Looking back, he could see the coils of the snake and he noticed that the snake was so large, it could not turn very tightly. Maybe he could use that to his advantage.
The nose of a large head suddenly appeared to his left side and Harry moved right, but not before seeing several very large teeth or fangs.
"Stand still and I will make this quick," the snake hissed at him.
Harry noticed it pulling back, presumably to strike again. He suddenly had an idea. It might work if he got very lucky. "I would be willing if I knew you'd bite me instead of looking at me."
The slithering stopped for a second. "Why? My stare would be faster and less painful for you."
"Because I don't want to become a statue for Riddle to gloat over," Harry hissed, hoping the snake went for it. Actually he had no idea if he would be frozen into a statue if he looked into the snakes eyes, but he could not come up with a better idea. "If you bite me, you could eat me afterwards. That would guarantee there's nothing left for him to make fun of me."
"True, you would fill me for a while and be the best meal I've had in a very long time. My path to the forest was closed not long after this place was last opened. I've had to hibernate to survive."
"Kill him!" Riddle hissed, but it was weak since he was far away, apparently unwilling to move far from where he was.
"If you'll move slowly so I can see only the end of your mouth, I'll put my hand out and you can bite me," Harry offered, not quite believing he was doing this. He put his curled left hand out a little. It held the diary, mostly hidden behind his hand and wrist.
A slightly warm wind momentarily hit the back of his hand. "A little more," the snake hissed.
Harry moved it a few more inches out, watching the floor for the bottom of the snake's snout to avoid the snake's eyes. Finally, the end of the snout came into view and it was opened. He moved his hand out and down a little more so the curled hand was right next to the teeth. He uncurled his hand and let the book touch the side of the fang and then laid it on top. He was holding the book by the corner, hoping most of his hand was actually outside the mouth. "Bite me," he hissed.
The mouth closed and the tough skin brushed his hand. He jerked it back and looked. It had been pinched in the folds of the skin of the mouth, much like being slammed in a door. It would be a little bruised, but he was basically unhurt.
From the other end of the chamber came a scream.
"Riddle!" he yelled in English. There was no answer.
"What have you done?" the snake hissed and then shook its head for a moment. "The bond is broken." The hissing did not sound completely normal.
Harry almost sagged to the floor, but managed to remain upright only by leaning on the column. "I'm sorry I tricked you, but I let you bite the book. It was what was causing all the trouble. You were bound to it. Are you sad not to be bound?"
"I am glad to be free of the bond. Even though you lied to me, I will not kill you because you freed me. But could you take this thing out of my mouth? It is hard to talk with it there."
"Oh, right. Sorry. Open your mouth and stay very still. I would feel a lot better if you closed your eyes too."
"My eyes are closed."
Harry slowly moved back around the column until he saw just the end of the snout, preferring to be safe in case the snake's eyes were still open. He saw the book impaled on a fang. He reached over and worked it up off the tooth. A black stain was left on the tooth, which Harry assumed was ink. "I'm sorry I lied to you. It was the only way I could think of to break the bond. I won't do it again. There, I've removed the book."
"Thank you." The hissing sounded normal again. "I must take a drink. I have a bad taste in my mouth. Do not worry, I will not look at you or the other one."
Harry heard the snake move back and then past him, heading for the pool. It was not until the head had gone by that he realized he had looked. Fortunately, the snake did indeed have its eyes closed. Remembering what it said about "the other one", Harry ran around the snake and over to where Ginny was.
When he shook her, she started to breathe deeply and her eyes fluttered open. "Are you all right?" he asked her, hoping she was. He watched her stare at him for a moment as if surprised to see him there, which he supposed she should be.
"You, you saved my life. I was going to die and you saved my life!" She sounded like her life's dream had been fulfilled.
He smiled at her. "I'm glad you're safe." As he said that, Harry started to feel a strange something in his mind, something wonderful that he had been missing. It only took him a couple of seconds to realize what had happened. Without meaning to, he had apparently bound someone else to him. To take one person's life choice away was bad enough, but now he had done it a second time. He closed his eyes and looked down. And yet, if he had not saved her, he was sure of the only one other possible outcome. Not only would she be dead, but Riddle would have become Voldemort once more, and that would not have been pleasant.
"Harry?" She called out to him, causing him to look at her. It was obvious she was about to cry. "Please don't hate me, please!"
Unable to stop himself, he reached down and pulled her up to him, hugging her tightly. "I don't hate you, Ginny. I think I hate myself for what I've done to you, but I hope you understand I had no choice."
"I could never hate you, Harry," she said fervently.
Harry noticed that she did not let go of him, as well as that her bare arms were around his neck. He supposed there was a simple way to find out if his thoughts were true, even if he was all but certain. "Ginny, I need to find out something. Please let me go for just a moment, OK?"
"But it feels so good to touch you," she said meekly, as if not wanting to admit that.
"I'm sure it does, but just for a moment. Then you can hold my hand again, I promise." He felt her head move up and down before her arms came away. As she finally let go, the wonderful feeling he had been immersed in left, confirming his assumption. She was bonded to him, as sure as she now looked suddenly lost and maybe in pain. He held out his hand and she quickly took it.
A look of pleasure came over her. "Why? Why does it feel so good to touch you?" She looked down suddenly. "And I can talk to you easily now, too," she said in a soft voice, as if she had not meant to say that out loud.
He noticed a blush come over her and grinned. She was cute, he admitted. Hopefully they were as compatible as he and Hermione. That thought made him wonder how Hermione was going to take all of this. He was sure she would kill him. Fortunately, she knew Ginny and seemed to get along with the younger girl already, so maybe this would not be too bad.
"Wizard," came a hiss from behind him.
Ginny screamed.
"Ssh," he told her. "I know there's a Basilisk there, but we're friends, I suppose."
"With a huge Basilisk?" The raw fear in her voice could not be missed.
"Yeah, my life is strange. What can I say?" he grinned at her and she relaxed - a little.
"My name is Harry," he hissed. "Do you have a name?"
"You may call me Sheba. Salazar called me that."
"Sheba, we wish to leave and to leave you in peace, but I did promise to help you," Harry hissed. "What do you need to get into the forest?"
"There is a doorway to my left, or behind you. If you can clear it, I can leave here to feed on my own. I stay here when not feeding."
"All right," Harry agreed. "Please continue to keep your eyes closed."
"I will not hurt either of you as long as you do not attack me. You are very clever for a young one, but I can tell you do not have the ability to bind me, as the other did."
"No, I don't. I wouldn't even want to. Please tell me, Sheba. Why are you here?" Harry hissed before whispering to Ginny. "Hold my hand and come with me."
Ginny looked at him with reverence and not a little fear, but did as he asked.
He slowly led her over to the snake. They stopped to pick up Ginny's wand from where Riddle had dropped it when the magic died.
The snake hissed, "I was put here by Salazar to protect the school."
Harry helped Ginny over the body of the snake, then climbed over himself. They walked to the wall to look for the other door. Harry lit his wand, prompting Ginny to light hers as well so they could see better. "There is a story that says Salazar Slytherin put you here to purify the school, to kill those not worthy. Is that a true or false story?"
In the middle of the left wall, they found the other door. The snake had slowly slithered down the middle of the chamber so she was close by, but thankfully not too close.
"That is a false story. He was a very kind man as long as he was not attacked. The school was attacked not long after it was built. Salazar helped to defend the school. After the attack, he created me and charged me with defending the school when he could not after he was gone." It paused for a moment. "Perhaps the false story came from my defending the school many years later. Those that had no magic tried to attack and I helped to defend the school, killing many."
Harry was looking in the open doorway. There were many rocks in the tunnel. Fortunately, they all looked to be about the size of a dog or smaller. He asked Ginny to do the levitation charm, pulling them out and stacking them to the side. Once he saw she was able to do that, he joined her and did the same.
"That is a possibility," Harry hissed back. "Many legends are stories that are twisted through the years." The snake did not reply.
As they moved rocks, more fell down. After many tedious minutes, they seemed to stop falling. Harry stepped through the doorway and looked as far as he could see; Ginny stayed back, stretching their arms. The tunnel sloped up and to the left.
"We've cleared this part. I don't know if there is more blockage or not," Harry hissed.
"Stand to the side and I will test it," the snake hissed.
Harry moved over and turned his face away, gently turning Ginny's head as well. They heard slithering and both tensed a little, not really being able to help it.
A moment later, the snake hissed, although it sounded a little distant. Harry turned and saw that the head was in the tunnel, although the body was still in the chamber. "The smell is fresher. I believe the way will be clear. Can you come back at a later time?"
"Yes," Harry agreed. "Can I ask you one more question?"
"Yes."
"Is there anything else down here? Or is it just a place for you?"
There was a hissing that sounded very strange. "No, Harry, I am all that remains. Riddle asked that as well. He was very disappointed."
Harry found that amusing, and then realized the strange sound from the snake must have been laughing.
"I was just curious. Happy hunting, Sheba. I have heard there is a colony of giant spiders in the forest now," Harry told the snake.
"Thank you. When you leave, close the other door. When you return, stand at the door and call for me. If I am here, I will close my eyes and answer."
"Good-bye for now, Sheba."
"Good-bye, Harry." The snake started to disappear into the tunnel.
Harry looked down at Ginny, whose expression was a mixture of fear and awe. "What?"
"You're a Parseltongue, a natural one."
"Actually, probably not. I think I got the ability when I got my curse scar. You can probably speak it too, you know. You did get down here," he half stated and half asked as he led her to the other door.
"No, I had no idea what you were saying. The only reason I could get down here is because of the diary," she explained, looking sad and guilty. As they came to the doorway to the ante-chamber, she asked, "Are you the only one who came down here to rescue me?" She had a shy look.
"No, Ron came with me, and we forced Lockhart to come, but as you'll see in a minute, there was an accident and rocks stopped them from coming." He continued to stand at the doorway, not moving through it. "We have a problem we need to discuss before we find them."
"What?" She looked very comfortable, as if she trusted him completely, which he supposed she probably did right now, even if it was a magically induced feeling.
"We're going to want to stay touching for about the next day."
"How do you know?" she asked with a puzzled look.
He pulled her back from the doorway and sat on a rock ledge that was nearby. "Because Hermione and I are connected, or bonded, or whatever this is - just like you and I are now."
She sucked her breath in and seemed to hold it for a long time. "You're serious," she finally said.
Harry nodded. "I'll tell you all about it soon, but we probably want to find a way to stay down here until this wears off. The problem with that is that they will come looking for us eventually, and your brother has an injured leg. So he needs to see Madam Pomfrey." He spread his hands. "I don't know how we're going to do this."
"Have I been missing very long?" Ginny asked him after a moment.
"Yeah, it's probably been at least a couple of hours," Harry said, trying to think of how much time might have passed.
Ginny nodded slowly. "If we go up now, my mother will probably be there. If she is, she'd grab me and try to take me home to protect me; she's very protective of us. Since you know what's going on, you're probably right that we need to stay down here." She looked up at him, arching one eyebrow. "Does it wear off?"
"It does," he said with a slight chuckle. "We'll be able to be apart and act normally after the …. well, the initial period. I guess the bond, as I'm starting to think of it, takes about a day to settle in. I'll explain more soon, but we really need to find your brother. He's probably going spare by now."
She giggled faintly and Harry was glad she was taking this so well. Given the other trauma that they had just come through, he wondered if the bond was somehow responsible for putting her in a good mood as well. After standing back up, they walked together into the antechamber and to the rock fall. "Ron!" Harry shouted.
"Harry! Did you find her?!" Ron shouted back.
He looked up at the hole and saw that it was no bigger. He looked at her and smiled.
"I'm here, Ron!" Ginny shouted.
"Whoo-Hoo!"
Harry and Ginny both laughed briefly.
"How are you doing, Ron?!" Harry asked.
"My leg still hurts! Lockhart woke up, but he's strange! It's like he doesn't know what's going on anymore! He just sits there talking nonsense to himself or sleeps! I tried to make the hole bigger, but I couldn't! Most of the rocks were too big to move and a few of ones I did move caused more to come down from the ceiling! Ginny, are you OK?!"
"I'm fine, Ron! I'll tell you about it later when I don't have to shout!"
"So how are we getting out of here, Harry?!"
"That's a really good question, Ron! Let me think about it for a few minutes!" Harry looked at Ginny, who just shrugged. He looked at the pile of rocks and it seemed hopeless. He pulled Ginny along and looked all along the barrier. Perhaps a different place would be easier to get through.
Albus Dumbledore came out of the fireplace of his office with his usual aplomb. He had expected one of the occupants, but was not surprised to see the other two.
"Albus! Thank Merlin you're here," Minerva McGonagall exclaimed, sounding like a damsel in distress, despite showing her usual austere look.
"Minerva." He inclined his head before moving to the other two. "Arthur and Molly, I am distressed at the news and came as soon as I could."
Molly nodded, her face showing signs of crying and looking like she was about to start again.
"Thank you, Albus," Arthur told him grimly.
"While we are happy to see you, I'm surprised to see you back," Minerva said, looking a little eager for the answer.
Dumbledore smiled and let a little of his good nature show. "Upon a little investigation, I found that Lucius had artificially helped my departure along. That has been corrected." He stood a little straighter. "Now, I understand that Miss Weasley is missing. Has any progress been made on finding her, or have any clues been uncovered?"
Molly sniffled loudly upon hearing about her daughter.
"We just have the new message underneath the old one," Minerva told him. "However, there has been an added complication."
"Oh?"
"There are two more students missing, and one professor as well."
When Minerva hesitated to go on, Albus guessed, "I assume Professor Lockhart is nowhere to be found?"
Minerva looked surprised. "Precisely. His belongings were found in a corridor, but he is missing."
Dumbledore nodded. "Perhaps it's just as well that he has left us. And the students?"
McGonagall sighed. "I've been told that Mr Potter ran into the Gryffindor common room and pulled Mr Ronald Weasley aside. After a hurried conversation, they both ran out of the common room before anyone could stop them. They have not been seen since, and that was over two hours ago."
Molly bowed her head and silently cried. Arthur put and hand on her shoulder to comfort her.
"Perhaps I should go and look at this new message," Dumbledore said and then started to leave the room. Before he could leave, a flash of fire burst in and settled on a perch. Dumbledore smiled and walked over. "Ah, Fawkes. It's good to be back, is it not?" Fawkes trilled a little and Dumbledore lightly petted him with one finger. He stopped after a moment and looked at the Phoenix carefully. "Fawkes, is it possible for you to find Mr Potter, Mr Weasley, or Miss Weasley?"
Fawkes looked at him and turned his head a little one way and then the other, as if examining something very closely. After a long moment, he trilled and launched himself into the air and left in a ball of flames.
"Did he say he knows where they are?" Arthur quickly asked.
Dumbledore gave a small smile. "Fawkes and I don't use words to communicate. We share something more like emotions, such as that he was glad to be here."
"And before he left?" Arthur inquired.
Everyone was looking at him. "Before he left Fawkes shared something like satisfaction. It is very hard to explain, but the emotion is positive, so I am optimistic. I believe I should also stay here for a few minutes." He walked over to his cabinets and pulled out a tea set. A flick of his wand heated the pot so steam was coming out. "Tea anyone?" he offered and began pouring.
He had just handed out all the cups when a knock came from his door. His gargoyle must have been left open, he mused. He would have to change that back later this evening. "Enter," he called out.
The door swung open and a very prim and proper Lucius Malfoy strode in followed by a bedraggled house-elf. "You should not be here, Dumbledore," he drawled. "You have been dismissed."
Dumbledore reached into his robes and pulled a parchment out. "Interesting, Lucius, because the rest of the Board of Governors told me a different tale not more than fifteen minutes ago." He unfolded the parchment and held it up. "It seems all of them thought they had been hasty in their decision to support you after they heard that a student had been kidnapped. They wished me to return as soon as possible." With a large smile, Dumbledore added, "Their last motion put forth as I was leaving was to decide if it would be Augusta Longbottom who took your place or someone else. It sounded as if Augusta had enough support, assuming she is willing to serve."
Malfoy's eyes narrowed.
"Also, unless I am greatly mistaken, which I strongly doubt, it seems as if our missing students have been found," he said happily as he looked at the Weasleys.
Molly burst into tears and Arthur did his best to console her. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"Fawkes is sending me very satisfied feelings. I can think of no other reason for him to be so pleased. I would not be surprised to see them momentarily." For all the look of elation on the Weasleys' faces, he was surprised by the look of anger that flashed across Malfoy's face. He then noticed a very pleased house-elf in the middle of a celebration.
Malfoy noticed the elf doing a happy dance and scowled, then he became angry. "You, you've…" He suddenly shut up and tried to kick the elf. The elf moved but not enough and was clipped by the edge of Malfoy's boot, knocking him over. "You are no longer part of the family. As my last order, you are never to say anything about the Malfoys or what you have seen or done in our house. Do you understand?"
The elf nodded and the squeaked, "Yes."
"Be gone with you then." Malfoy threw a glove at the elf, who caught it. "You are a disgrace to house-elves and I dismiss you from the House of Malfoy."
The elf looked at the glove with wide eyes and tears coming down his face. "Dobby is free. Dobby is happy!" He snapped his fingers and was gone.
As interesting as that was, Dumbledore was happy to see Malfoy sneer and then practically stomp out of his office. Albus wondered if he would find out what Dobby had done.
"What was that all about?" Minerva asked.
Dumbledore shrugged. "Beyond the politics? Only Lucius could say at the moment."
Anything else he could have said was interrupted by a flash of fire.
Harry was growing frustrated and tired. This was the eighth rock he had levitated away, only for another to fall and take its place. He and Ginny had yet to find a way for them to get through. As he sat down and contemplated what to try next, a flash of fire erupted overhead and a bird appeared. It glided and landed on a rock high on the wall before it trilled.
It took a moment for Harry to realize what had happened. "Fawkes…" he gasped quietly.
"What is that?"
"It's Dumbledore's phoenix. I met him earlier this year in the Headmaster's office," Harry told her as they watched the bird look around for a moment as he took in the surroundings of the cave.
The bird trilled a little and then glided down and stood on the floor before Harry and Ginny. They both reached out and petted him with one finger from their free hands. The phoenix gave a low guttural trill that made the two shudder, as if a wave of pleasure had gone through them.
"Wow, did you feel that?" Ginny asked.
"Yeah," he told her, each of them talking quietly. He looked back at Fawkes. "Are you here to help us get out?"
The bird nodded.
"Ron and Lockhart are on the other side of the wall. Can you help them too?"
The bird nodded again.
"Wait," Ginny quickly said. "Harry, we need to let Fawkes take the others back, but we should stay here until tomorrow. He could come back then."
Harry nodded. "Good idea, but how do we explain staying here?"
She lightly pulled at a strand of her hair, pulling it around her jaw as she stood there deep in thought. "I don't know. The only thing I can think of is to tell Ron that you're magically exhausted and are asleep and can't be moved until you wake. I can't pick you up, so we're stuck until you wake up. You haven't talked to him for something like half an hour and he can't hear us when we talk quietly like this, so he shouldn't really know."
He thought about that. "That sounds really lame, but I can't come up with anything better."
"Fawkes," Harry addressed the phoenix. "We need to you to take Ron and Lockhart back. They are both hurt and need Madam Pomfrey. Ginny and I need to stay here until tomorrow because," he paused not sure how to say it.
A trill interrupted him. The bird walked forward and nudged his head against their joined hands.
Harry smiled. "Yeah, we need to stay here because of that, even though I know that will make some people upset. Can you help us stay here?"
Fawkes trilled and nodded.
"You're the best," Harry happily told him, petting him again. If he didn't know better, Harry would have said the bird was very smug in his answer. Ginny joined in petting him and again Fawkes gave the low guttural trill the seemed to please everyone. Seeming to understand, Fawkes jumped up on Ginny's shoulder and nudged her with his head.
"I guess I'm supposed to do my part now," she said with a smile. When she let go of Harry's hand, the wonderful feeling went away. She sighed and got up. A moment later, she had climbed the rock barrier and was in front of the small hole that went through to the other side. She could talk here and not shout too loudly.
"Ron?"
"Ginny? Did you find something? It's been really quiet." He sounded worried.
"Yeah, we have a visitor over here."
"What?" he squeaked. "Did the Basilisk come back?"
"No," she told him with a smile, looking through the hole that was barely as large as her head. She was doing her best not to tease him. "Dumbledore's phoenix came to see us. He can help you and Lockhart get back." The bird jumped off her shoulder and walked through the small hole that connected them. "Fawkes is coming through."
"Blimey! It's a real phoenix," Ron exclaimed a moment later.
"Ron? Try getting Lockhart to hold onto you."
"OK. Then we'll get him to come back for both of you," Ron said excitedly.
"Uh, yeah, it will be later though."
"What? Why not now?"
He sounded confused and she was not going to help that much. "Ron, you haven't heard from Harry for awhile because he fell asleep. He looks fine, so I think he's just magically exhausted himself in the fight. Trying to move big rocks after all that fighting seemed like it did him in before I noticed and could stop him."
"But, you could grab him, couldn't you?"
"I don't think I'm strong enough," she countered. "Go on back, Ron. Harry just needs to sleep and then Fawkes can bring us up later. Everyone else needs to know we're all okay right now and Harry said that you need to see Madam Pomfrey."
"I suppose." Ron sounded like he did not like the idea, but he was willing to go along with it.
"If you could convince Fawkes to bring a picnic basket back down, that would be useful. I haven't eaten since breakfast," she added.
"Right, I'll see what I can…"
There was a flash and then there was no light coming through the hole. Ginny assumed they were gone and quickly crawled back down to Harry. She grabbed the hand that he was holding up and the good feelings washed over her again. She did not think she would ever get tired of that.
Harry pulled out his wand and cast a Bluebell Flame spell to give them some light. He was thankful to Hermione for teaching him that. He then cast a Cushioning charm on the ground and sat on it. Ginny smiled and joined him.
"Well, we have a long time to wait and we have a lot to talk about. Hermione and I shared a lot on the first day to get to know one another better," he told her.
"That sounds like a good idea, but we could be more comfortable while we talk," she suggested.
"Oh? How?"
Ginny raised her wand and cast a cleaning charm on both of them to clean their clothes. Then, she grinned impishly and pushed Harry backwards so he was lying on his back, floating at what appeared to be about a foot off the floor. She crawled over next to him and lay down next to him on her side, snuggling up and lying her head on his shoulder. Their hands were clasped and lying on his stomach. "Like this."
Harry chuckled as he blushed. The two girls were clearly very, very different.
One moment Ron was holding onto Lockhart's arm in the cave near the Chamber of Secrets, and the next he was in the Headmaster's office, courtesy of Fawkes the phoenix. As glad as he was to be out of there, he was also in a lot of pain as he was dropped abruptly and landed on both of his feet. His right leg was now filled with shooting pains, which caused him to groan and grab his leg with both hands.
"Ron!" His mother yelled his name and rushed to him, shoving an unaware Lockhart to the side. "We've got to get him to the hospital wing immediately," she said as if her word was law. However, no one made a move.
Dumbledore looked at his Defence professor, surprised to see him there. "Gilderoy, what happened?"
The man still had his winning smile, even if his blond hair and normally pristine robes were a filthy mess. He looked up from where he sat on the floor. "Hello there. Do I know you? Who is Gilderoy?"
Dumbledore barely stopped himself from doing a double take. "Mr Weasley, we'll get you to the hospital wing in a moment, but could you give us the short version of what happened?" He paused as he realized there was another problem. "And could you also tell us where Mr Potter and Miss Weasley are?"
Ron did his best to sit up, despite how much his leg hurt. His father moved over and sat next to him and let him lean against him. "Thanks, Dad," he quietly said.
"Glad to help. Does your leg hurt enough that we need to numb it for you for a few minutes?"
"Uh, yeah, I think that would be good if you could." Ron hated to admit that he was hurt that bad, but it was really throbbing after waiting a couple of hours, sitting only on rock, and then being dumped on the floor.
Professor McGonagall pulled out her wand and applied the numbing charm before she did a quick diagnosis. "Just a simple fracture and some bruising. Madam Pomfrey will have it fixed in a trice."
"Thank you, Professor," Ron said with a smile.
"Can you tell us what happened?" Dumbledore asked again.
"Err, sure, Professor. Harry heard that the person who was missing was Ginny, so he came and told me. I couldn't find my brothers, so we hurried to find her."
"But how did you know where to go?" McGonagall asked.
"Harry knew it was in the loo. He said everything that happened was always around that girl's loo on the second floor. As we got near there, we ran into Professor Lockhart trying to leave with his trunk, so we sort of forced him to go along with us." Ron hung his head but no one criticized that decision.
"Is that me you're talking about? Am I a Professor?" the man asked, as if very pleased with something. Everyone ignored him.
"We met a ghost in the bathroom and she talked about seeing Ginny over by the sinks. Harry found something and hissed at them and they moved to show us a hole in the floor." Ron looked at the Headmaster. "Did you know Harry is a Parseltongue?" Several people gasped; his mother was the loudest.
Dumbledore cleared his throat. "No, Mr Weasley, I did not. However, I'm not completely surprised. Please continue."
"Err, right. Anyway, we went down the hole and into this underground cave. I saw this huge snake skin and that's when Lockhart tried to take my wand away from me. He grabbed it from me and when I tried to get it back, he shot off a spell that caused a part of the ceiling to come down." His mother gasped. "Harry ran one way while Lockhart and I ran the other. I then managed to get my wand back, but not before he cast a second spell. I think he hit himself with it though. I don't know what he cast."
"I see," Dumbledore drawled. "Based on his condition, I'd have to say he was trying to Obliviate you."
"No!" Molly exclaimed angrily.
"Fortunately, it missed your son," Dumbledore assured the woman. "What happened next, Mr Weasley?"
"Well, I found that Lockhart had broken my wand and that Harry was still alive. Harry managed to open a small hole at the top of the rocks and throw Lockhart's wand to me so I could have light and try to make a bigger hole. But one of the rocks had landed on my leg and hurt it, so I couldn't move very well. I never was able to make the hole any bigger."
"And Mr Potter?"
"Oh, I told him to go on and save Ginny. It took him a long time, probably over an hour, but it was hard to tell time down there. He finally came back and had Ginny with him," Ron said happily.
"Oh, thank Merlin," Molly said, so happy she was about to cry.
Dumbledore looked at Ron and then at Fawkes who was sitting very calmly on his perch. "Then where are Mr Potter and Miss Weasley?"
Ron looked down. "Uh, well, when I couldn't move the rock, Harry tried. I didn't hear from them for awhile, and then Ginny crawled up to the little hole we had. She told me that between fighting the Basilisk…"
"Basilisk?!" several people shouted at once.
Ron looked embarrassed. "Err, yeah, sorry, I guess I skipped that part. He said he had to fight a Basilisk. He did convince it to leave them alone, since he could talk to it."
"Mr Weasley," Dumbledore looked at him very carefully. "I gather that a Basilisk came out of the Chamber of Secrets, and while the creatures do not normally petrify people, I do understand how that could happen. However, I do not understand how your sister got into the Chamber of Secrets. Can you explain that?"
"No, sir," Ron said as he shook his head. "They didn't tell me."
"Very well. You were trying to tell us about after they returned and Miss Weasley had talked to you through the little hole," Dumbledore prompted.
"Right. Ginny crawled up to the little hole and told me that Harry had magically exhausted himself between fighting the Basilisk and trying to move rocks. So she sent Fawkes through to bring us back. She also said that it seemed best to let Harry sleep and recover and then Fawkes could bring them back later."
"Absolutely not!" Molly Weasley thundered, making everyone but Dumbledore cringe. "I want my daughter back right now!"
Dumbledore found the situation quite interesting and wondered how it would play out. He turned to his familiar. "Fawkes? Could you bring Harry and Ginny back now?"
Fawkes looked at him and trilled a little before turning his head and working to straighten feathers on his left wing.
"Well?" Molly demanded.
Dumbledore sighed. "He gave me a very neutral response, as if saying that everything is how it should be. Fawkes, could you take me down there?"
The bird appeared to shake his head.
"Definitely negative feelings on that question, and a little amusement," Dumbledore said as he examined his familiar carefully for more of an answer.
Fawkes trilled again.
"And?" Molly asked.
"He's feeling hungry," Dumbledore said in a puzzled tone.
"Oh, Ginny also said to send some food down, that she hasn't eaten since breakfast," Ron told them. "Sorry, I had forgotten."
"That we can fix. Beaker?"
An elf popped in. "Yes, Headmaster?"
"Beaker, I need you to fix a very large meal for a pair of students, something that won't spoil over a few hours, and some equally large container of drink. Oh, please put it all in a picnic basket with a handle, too," Dumbledore instructed the elf.
"Yes, Headmaster," Beaker said and popped out.
"Albus, I want Ginny returned now," the woman insisted.
"Molly, I don't know how to get to them if Fawkes won't take me or retrieve them. I can't make him go," he said overly patiently.
"What about the way Ron got there, through the loo?" she asked.
Dumbledore looked at Ron. "Did the hole stay open, Mr Weasley?"
"I don't know. Harry was the last one through. But even if it was, there's still the problem with the rocks," Ron pointed out.
Dumbledore chuckled. "I think I can deal with the rocks. Which facility was it again?"
"The girl's loo on the second floor, the one near the messages on the wall," Ron reminded him.
"Which would be why I'm unfamiliar with it," he said with a grin that reached his eyes. He looked at the parents. "If you would take your son to the hospital wing, Minerva and I can examine the room in question."
Molly looked at her husband intently. He acquiesced with a nod. "I'm coming, too. Arthur will see our son to the nurse."
"Very well, as soon as…"
Beaker the elf popped in with a basket that was nearly as large as he was.
"Thank you, Beaker." When the Headmaster took the basket, the elf bowed and popped out. Albus turned to his familiar. "Fawkes, would you be so kind, even if you are being somewhat mysterious about this?"
Fawkes trilled and glided down from his perch. His talons had barely grabbed the basket handle when he flashed out. "He is entirely too pleased with himself. I fear he must be up to something," Dumbledore said quietly as he stood. "As I was saying before, as soon as the food is sent down, we can go. Since the food has gone, it is now our turn." He started for the door with the two women following him.
It did not take long for the trio to reach the room in question. Molly gasped when she saw the message on the wall. Dumbledore thought she was being overly dramatic, since they knew Miss Weasley was perfectly safe now, but then Molly had always been a bit that way, even when she was a student.
Walking into the bathroom, he looked around and quickly saw there was no hole in the floor. The sinks looked like they were where they should be. "Minerva? Does everything look correct to you in here?"
"Yes, Albus. The sinks are in their proper place," McGonagall replied.
Dumbledore pulled out his wand and cast several spells at them. They tested positive for magic, but there was so much there and it was so strong, it would take him weeks to figure it all out - perhaps it would be a fun project to explore over the summer. He put his wand away.
"Well?" Molly asked, sounding almost like a little girl about to have a tantrum.
"While I could break the charms on it, it would take weeks and Fawkes will bring them out far faster. We shall have to wait," he told her.
"I want my daughter," she said very firmly.
He held out his hand towards the sinks, welcoming her to them. "Be my guest, as long as you are careful that nothing you do brings the ceiling down on them, causing them to be buried alive."
Molly froze, her wand half out. "What do you mean?"
"Your son has already told us of one cave-in, which implies that the ceiling down there is not completely stable," he said calmly. "All of this," his hand swept around the room, "we must assume is attached to their ceiling. If you make a big enough disturbance here, it will have an effect down there. Therefore, I will not blast the sinks out of the way for fear of harming them, especially when we consider that they will be returned sometime soon anyway. The only way to safely open the entrance is to undo the charms. I found no less than nine wards and charms on the area, and that was only a quick survey." Dumbledore then fixed her with a stern glare. "While one of the students down there is your child, the other is not. Therefore, whatever you do, you are not allowed to put them in danger."
Molly hung her head and put her wand back, recognizing defeat.
"My suggestion to you would be to go visit your son in the hospital wing. Once you are assured of his wellbeing, you might want to return home and try to get a good night's sleep. I promise that one of us will contact you as soon as Harry and Ginny return, whether that is one hour or one day from now." He held her gaze and waited for her answer.
"Very well," she said and started to leave. At the doorway she stopped and looked back. "I'll return first thing in the morning," then she left.
"I don't recall her being quite that head-strong when in school," Dumbledore commented as they slowly started to walk out.
"I believe she was, but I don't recall it being displayed very often. Perhaps it's because this concerns her youngest, her only girl," McGonagall theorized.
"Perhaps," he vaguely agreed before he brightened. "Well, now that the mystery surrounding the Chamber of Secrets has been solved, school can finish normally."
"Normalcy seems so boring until you don't have it; then you yearn for it," she said.
"True, true. Would you like to make a small wager of a bottle of Scotch on when Fawkes will bring them back?"
She chuckled. "With you having inside information? I think not."
"Fawkes would not say except for the idea of it being tomorrow, as young Mr Weasley implied."
There was a long pause before she said, "I believe around lunch time, give or take an hour."
Dumbledore smiled. "I find you optimistic and believe it will be near dinner."
"I shall let you deal with Molly if you are correct," she told him with a grin she used only in private.
Dumbledore chuckled. "Actually, I think I shall avoid her too, at least until our wayward students return. Then we will let them deal with her."
((A/N: There you go, Ginny is indeed the second girl, as some have guessed. She will add some "spice" to Harry's life. We finish the second year in the next chapter, which will explain why Ginny was watching Harry and Hermione, and Hermione will be revived and have a reaction to Ginny.))