Halloween arrived, and a disturbance started on the second floor of the main castle. A handwritten message was painted on the wall. The letters were red and still shining wet. There was a strong smell of blood.
THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED.
ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE
Harry knew who the perpetrator was. Draco knew the details of The Chamber of Secrets and the Heir of Slytherin. It was time for another personal conversation with the waste of space.
Harry avoided the commotion and went back to his room. He opened his map book. The book had been enhanced to give Harry a log of the movements of certain people. If, for instance, Draco Malfoy leaves the castle or visits a significant place, a note will be written on Draco's movements page at the back of the book. The note showed the date and time and the door or window that Draco used. On some nights recently, Draco left the castle by flying his broom from the top of the Astronomy Tower.
The Escort and the Alliance were informed of Harry's new interest in Draco Malfoy. Harry got the group together after a practice session in the training room. Harry got their attention and told them about Draco's night flying.
"Night flying around the castle is not prohibited, but Draco Malfoy has been doing some nighttime flying, which coincides with some odd events. Each time Draco went for a night flight, Hagrid reported that one of his roosters went missing. Neville, Hermione and Dean have built up their friendship with Hagrid. They did this not only because they liked Hagrid but also because I asked them to. I want to know anything Hagrid notices as he works as the gamekeeper around the castle and grounds. I am applying one of Lord Greengrass's business rules. Lord Greengrass always listens to what ordinary people have to say."
Dean asked, "I felt a bit odd about that. Hagrid is a good bloke. Are we taking advantage of him by doing this?"
Harry nodded, "Maybe, but this is the only way I will hear anything about what Hagrid sees and hears. Remember, I'm a Slytherin. Hagrid will not be comfortable telling me anything beyond what is required by his duty. You are Gryffindors. He will chat with you all day. That sort of house rivalry and conflict is getting in the way. Hagrid may spill some secrets about what is going on. We must assume that Hagrid only knows secrets the headmaster wants Hagrid to spread around. The fact that Hagrid can't keep a secret is well-known. The headmaster must know, so I'm not the only one using Hagrid."
Dean frowned but didn't say anything about his doubts.
Harry beckoned Hermione to stand beside him. Harry said, "I have asked Hermione to research some things about the Hogwarts Founders. One of those things is The Chamber of Secrets."
Harry gestured to Hermione, who began her lecture.
"I have collected this information from Harry and other sources, like 'Hogwarts, A History'. I'm sure some of you know that I always refer to that book. There are other books in the library which have interesting stories in them. Some of you know this information, and others have only heard parts of it. Please stay with me until we are all caught up with the situation."
Hermione opened her notebook. "The Chamber of Secrets was one of the ancient stories every generation of Hogwarts students loved to hear. According to the legend, the Chamber of Secrets was made by Salazar Slytherin before he left the castle. He never revealed why he made this Chamber and what he put there. There are plenty of guesses and fables. The most consistent one is that the Chamber is home to a monster who obeyed Salazar Slytherin and would emerge to slay Slytherin's enemies on his command. There is one recorded instance where this might have happened. In 1943, a student was killed in the castle. Her name was Myrtle Warren, and she was found dead in the second-floor girl's bathroom."
Susan gasped, "Moaning Myrtle!"
Hermione asked, "What do you know about Myrtle?"
Susan replied, "Moaning Myrtle, the ghost in the second-floor girl's bathroom. No one uses it because she is always there, moaning and splashing in the toilets."
The boys pulled 'I'm grossed out!' faces.
Hermione continued, "Some of the stories about The Chamber of Secrets are that only the true heir of Slytherin can open the chamber, and the monster in the chamber will only obey that true heir."
Daphne glared at Harry. Harry smiled and nodded back to Daphne, who huffed and looked away.
Hermione followed this unspoken byplay and turned to frown at Harry.
"I will explain later. Please carry on, Hermione," Harry said.
Hermione frowned and continued, "Over the centuries, there have been many searches for The Chamber of Secrets, but no trace of it has been found."
Hermione turned to Harry, "Now, explain what is wrong with that."
"There's nothing wrong. What Daphne is reacting to is this." Harry lifted his right hand, and a ring appeared.
"This is the Slytherin heir's ring. I am the true Heir of Slytherin."
Fred shouted, "That's how you got Ginny's ring!"
George shouted, "That really is a Slytherin house ring! How did you get that?"
Harry replied, "I won't tell you how I became the heir. I asked the Gringotts goblins to send me the ring. Being the heir means I can control the monster in the Chamber of Secrets. I have been down to the Chamber and introduced myself to Matilda. She is a basilisk, a huge snake. You should look that up in the library. By the way, the story that only the true heir can open the Chamber is inaccurate. I opened it by speaking Paresltongue. That was before I became the heir."
"Who named a monstrous snake Matilda? Was it someone like Hagrid?" Hannah asked.
Harry shrugged, "I haven't had that many conversations with Matilda. I don't know how she got the name. It could have been someone who lived hundreds of years ago or Salazar Slytherin himself."
"Just a minute, Harry!" George said, "I know that Fred and I aren't in your inner circle, but we would be happier if we heard about things like this before mysterious things start happening, like that message written in blood on the wall."
Ginny reacted as well. "Fred and George were unofficially blamed for that. The professors didn't, but the other Gryffindors wanted to accuse them, and what is the connection to Hagrid's roosters?"
Harry nodded to Hermione.
Hermione said, "I looked up basilisks in the library. There isn't much. The connection to roosters is that a rooster's crow will kill a basilisk. That is the traditional story, anyway. There is no proof of that. I certainly wouldn't rely on it."
Hermione looked at her notes again. "Basilisks grow to a huge size over hundreds of years. They can kill with a glance, and they have deadly venom. If Salazar Slytherin made a home for a basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, then that original one could still be there."
Fred looked around, "Who knew about Harry being the Heir of Slytherin and the Chamber of Secrets?"
Some of the group put their hands up, and some didn't.
"That's better. I'm happier now that I know George and I aren't the only ones in the dark. You must know who wrote that message on the wall. Who was it?"
Harry smiled, "That's an easy one. It was Draco Malfoy. He knows about the Chamber of Secrets because I took him down there and showed him Matilda. Before you get upset about that, there is a reason why I did it."
Dean muttered, "This better be good."
"It is, Dean," Harry replied. "Lord Greengrass and I were looking for a way to upset Draco's father. We knew that Malfoy Senior had possession of a very dangerous artefact."
"THAT DIARY!" Six voices yelled at once.
Harry smiled, "Yes! We had to shake his tree and get him to do something silly. He certainly did something silly. I knew Draco couldn't keep it secret. His father has enough control over Draco to get his secrets out of him. Draco would try to keep it secret, but eventually, he would tell his father what I showed him, and Draco didn't disappoint. What do we hear from Draco when something doesn't go his way."
"Wait till my father hears about this!" Many voices recited with a nasal whine.
"This is a little-known fact," Harry said. "Lucius Malfoy does not want his Dark Lord to ever return to life. Since Voldemort was reduced to a wraith when he killed my parents, Malfoy has sat in Malfoy Manor and done nothing. All Death Eaters know that Voldemort is still alive in some form because they can feel a connection to him through their Dark Marks. Malfoy could have searched for Voldemort and assisted him to return to some kind of human form, but he didn't. He also did nothing about the loyal Death Eaters imprisoned in Azkaban with me. I can tell you that they are not impressed with Malfoy's lack of action on their behalf."
"What could he do? He denied being a loyal Death Eater." Daphne asked.
"He could have visited. He could have pretended to be questioning them about their remaining secrets." Harry said, "He could have done something as simple as slipping each of them a chocolate bar. That would have been something they appreciated. I know that Voldemort gave that diary to Malfoy to keep it safe. Malfoy panicked and tried to get rid of it when Draco told him about me being the Heir of Slytherin."
Hermione glared at Harry and looked at her notes, "To finish up, Harry and I guess that Draco knows the story about a rooster crow being deadly to a basilisk and is trying to make the connection to the monster being a basilisk."
"I want us to do something about Malfoy," Harry said. "I am tracking him, and when I see him doing something odd, I will confront him. Please keep your journals on you at all times. I will send a message when I need you to back me up. There shouldn't be any danger, but I will need reliable witnesses if Draco does something silly. Again!"
-ooOOoo-
The journals came to life. An 'All' message had arrived.
To: All
From: Harry Potter
Date: Wednesday, November 4, 1992
Time: 7:11 pm
Message: Meet me outside room 336.
Draco has gone to the room with five senior Slytherins.
I want to break up this meeting and confront Draco.
There will not be any fighting. I want as many witnesses as I can get.
Blaise, Daphne and Tracey went to the third-floor classroom corridor with Harry. Room 336 was a little used general-purpose classroom.
Harry waited, and soon Neville, Hermione, Susan and Hannah arrived.
Harry drew his holly wand. "Showtime!"
He flicked his wand through a series of movements. The door silently opened, and a gust of wind blew into the room. The temperature dropped to nearly freezing.
Harry moved into the room, and the gang followed him. They spread out behind Harry.
"Evening all!" Harry said.
Draco had been talking. Harry thumped the floor with his staff. Draco was facing the door. His face was frozen in the act of shouting something.
Harry moved around the circle of Slytherins, "Warrington, Pucey, Murk, Snyde, and Miss Selwyn, how nice of you to come to Draco's little get-together."
"What is this, Draco?" Frances Selwyn asked.
"Draco! Why is Potter here?" Bruno Warrington demanded.
Draco didn't answer.
Harry turned to Draco. "Oh! Draco won't talk right now. I froze him. He'll be fine once I release him."
Murk drew his wand and cast at Draco, "FINITE!"
Draco stayed frozen.
Harry looked at Draco and then turned to Murk. "That didn't work. You'll need more than that to release him."
"Now!" Harry looked around the group, "Let me guess what Draco has been saying. He promises and implies that you will be rewarded for allying yourselves with him. The purpose of this alliance is to cut me off from my friends. Is that right?"
Warrington snorted, "He said he would pay us if we put the blood traitors, half-bloods and the mudblood in their place. He seems to think that his father's money is inexhaustible."
"He is insulting you because he knows your families aren't on the same level of wealth as the Malfoys. He thinks he can drop a money bag on you and buy your allegiance." Harry said.
Frances Selwyn said, "Lord Malfoy could hurt my family's business if I don't join him."
Harry stared at the frozen Malfoy. Harry tapped his staff on the floor, and a snow cloud formed over Draco. It started snowing.
"OK! Look at this!" Harry held up his right hand and showed his Slytherin heir's ring. The Slytherins leaned forward. One by one, they recognized the ring.
"You can sense it, can't you. This is the Slytherin heir's ring. I am the Heir of Slytherin."
Murk laughed. "That message written in blood, that was you!"
Harry shook his head. "Draco killed Hagrid's rooster to write the message. He is trying to get people panicking. The rooster blood was supposed to hint that the monster in the Chamber of Secrets is a basilisk. An old story has it that a rooster call will kill a basilisk. That's not something that I would rely on."
"That's stupid. But I suppose if Draco is doing this, it doesn't have to be smart." Warrington said.
"How can we be sure about you being the heir?" Pucey asked. Then he noticed the snow gathering around Draco. It was now up to Draco's knees.
Pucey continued, "Ah! I suppose the atmospheric elemental magic is a big hint. As far as I am concerned, Draco Malfoy is now on his own. My father has been hoping for someone to rein Lucius Malfoy in. He is terrible for business. Are you that person, Potter?"
Harry shook his head. "Not me on my own. If people called Lucius Malfoy's bluff more often, he wouldn't have the same influence he has now. You should write to your family. Ask them to check the roll of magical houses in the Ministry. They will find that Slytherin House is not extinct. The name of the Slytherin head-of-house is Tom Marvolo Riddle, and the name of the heir is Harry James Potter. That should settle any questions. If your families want to support Lucius Malfoy against the House of Slytherin, they can suffer the consequences."
Warrington stared at Harry, "You don't want this kept secret? Aren't you concerned about what your allies will say?"
Harry turned and waved at the watching gang. "They know. If they were concerned, they wouldn't be here now."
Susan said, "Aunt Amelia checked that roll of houses in the Ministry. Harry is the Heir of Slytherin, and the Heir of Peverell, and the Heir of Potter. Aunty also said that because he is the Heir of Slytherin, he is also the Heir of Gaunt. The Potter-Longbottom-Bones alliance matters more than any other houses that Harry collects."
The Slytherins looked at each other and turned to leave. Frances Selwyn stopped to ask a question. "What did you do to Draco? That doesn't look like Petrificus Totalus."
Harry smiled. "I'm glad you asked. I created a small space-time bubble just for Draco. He isn't petrified. He is still living and moving. However, his time is running very slowly while ours is running at the usual pace. When I stop the bubble, he will carry on doing what he was doing when I came in with almost no time passing for him."
Harry swept his wand over Draco, "Watch!"
Draco shouted, "POTTER! GET OUT! THIS IS A PRIVATE . . . !"
Draco stared at the Slytherins as they walked out. "WHERE ARE YOU GOING? WHAT'S GOING ON?"
Snyde answered. "Try to keep up, Malfoy. The meeting is over. You are crazy if you think any of us will try to upset Potter."
Draco tried to move but slipped on the ice and snow around him and landed on his rear.
Harry waved to the confused boy. "Goodnight Draco. Remember the curfew, don't be late."
Harry and the gang followed the older Slytherins out.
-ooOOoo-
A week later, another Hermione lecture was held after training.
Hermione opened her notes. "We are here to find out about certain treasures connected with the school founders. Harry will explain why these are important for us."
George sighed, "Another lecture." Fred sighed, "Ho-hum."
Harry made a two-handed pinch gesture from the back of the room.
Fred and George jumped up. "OUCH!" "THAT HURT!" "We're listening!" "We're listening!"
Hermione began her talk. "Slytherin enchanted a goblin-made locket. This locket has a silver and gold case. It is worn on a chain around the owner's neck. A locket is usually used to contain a small, valuable thing. Slytherin's locket could only be opened by a Parselmouth. Slytherin seemed to assume that only his descendants would inherit the Parselmouth gift. This locket exists but hasn't been seen for many years."
Blaise asked, "This is very interesting, but what is the connection with us?"
"That will be explained soon," Hermione replied.
She reviewed her notes again, "Many other stories about the founders circulated around Hogwarts. Godric Gryffindor left his sword at Hogwarts. This sword was supposed to magically transport itself to any 'True Gryffindor' who desperately needed it. The exact location of Godric Gryffindor's sword isn't known, but tradition says it is somewhere in the castle. The other relic left by Godric Gryffindor, the Sorting Hat, was enchanted to carry the sword to the recipient. Helga Hufflepuff enchanted a gold cup. The cup was rumoured to have many magical powers, but there are no confirmed facts concerning that. The cup has also disappeared. Rowena Ravenclaw enchanted a diadem, a sort of fancy jewelled headdress. It has been missing for centuries. Ravenclaw's diadem was rumoured to give the wearer enhanced wisdom."
The twins shouted, "We want it!"
Ginny shouted, "You want it so you don't have to work to pass your exams. If there is a diadem, it should be mine, not yours. I'm a Ravenclaw!" The others jeered at the twins.
Hermione looked around the group, waiting for them to quieten. When she had their attention, she started a new page. "I've mentioned these things because Lord Voldemort was fascinated by them. Apparently, he couldn't interfere with Gryffindor's sword or the Sorting Hat. But, he has tampered with or used all those other artefacts. Other artefacts have been found that Voldemort has tampered with. One is the Gaunt head-of-house ring, another is his diary, which has recently caused some trouble."
Hermione stopped and looked at Harry.
Harry smiled, "Thanks, Hermione. What I am going to tell you is very secret and dangerous. There are ancient secret rituals in every field of magic. Many of these secrets should never have been discovered in the first place. You will not find anything about the secrets I refer to in the library. Any mention of them has been removed, most likely by the headmaster."
Fred asked, "Why is that? Why can't we trust Dumbledore?"
"Because the headmaster keeps too many secrets. He doesn't allow anyone to look over his shoulder at what he is doing." Harry replied. "One example, he told everyone that I was safe and happy in my relatives' home for more than nine years when I was in Azkaban. Aunty Amelia couldn't get a straight answer about where I was or how he knew I was safe. No one could check on him. He would not allow it. Dumbledore's mania about keeping secrets kept me in prison. Secrets are fine when needed, but everyone has to be accountable. Dumbledore is not. I am accountable. I report to Director Bones and Lord Greengrass. They know everything that I am doing here."
Harry pointed to Susan and Daphne, "Susan and Daphne also write home, and they report on me to Aunt Amelia and Lord Greengrass. Aunt Amelia and Lord Greengrass compare notes about me to ensure we are all mostly honest. If they are unhappy, I get a 'please explain' from them. Aunt Amelia is my legal guardian, so she has authority over me. Lord Greengrass is scary if you upset him."
"I think I get that, Harry," Hermione said. "I also think most of us are still too young to understand what that means. You have had experiences that others never get in their lives."
Harry shrugged, "Yes, OK. This is what's happening. Lord Voldemort used a dark ritual to make some things which would keep him alive forever. Each of those artefacts contains a piece of his soul. The diary that tried to capture Ginny was one of them. That thing was a Horcrux. Please don't mention that name again. It causes a lot of panic. I get people to call them artefacts."
"That thing! The diary! It had a piece of Voldemort in it?" George asked.
"Yes!" Harry replied. "I suspected it when I saw it, but I needed proof. The proof came when it tried to capture Ginny. Ginny's strength of mind and magic stalled the attack until we could help her. If she was on her own, it would have worn her down and possibly captured her. Luna sensed something was bad with the diary and told me. I asked Luna to watch Ginny as closely as possible, which saved her. This is also why I ask you guys to watch each other and stay together."
Hermione asked Ginny, "Are you OK with this, Ginny?"
"Absolutely, I want to do anything I can to finish this," Ginny replied. "The diary would have killed me."
"That is why we are here now," Harry said. "You have to know what we are dealing with. There are other artefacts. Hermione mentioned them before. They are Helga Hufflepuff's cup, Slytherin's locket, the Gaunt ring, and Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem."
The group became agitated. "How are you going to deal with them?" Blaise asked.
Harry gave the palm downwards 'calm down' signal. "They have all been captured and cleaned, except one. Lord Greengrass and his allies have been busy. Su Li isn't only here to beat you all up at training. Her family has done a tough job recovering the Gaunt head-of-house ring. The last one to be captured is Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem."
"Great! Where is it?" Tracey asked.
Harry shrugged. "In a secret room somewhere in the castle. This room is as big as the Quidditch pitch and is packed with things that the Hogwarts house elves have found over the years, and nobody has claimed. The castle elves call it the Come and Go Room. That is all I know. There could be millions of things to search through. I mean millions, too. Before the Blood War, Voldemort visited the castle to apply for the Defense Against Dark Arts professor's job. Obviously, he didn't get the job, but he did leave the disguised diadem for the house elves to put in their giant junk room."
"That's why you've collected so many of us," Fred said. "All of us will be looking through piles of junk for years to find this thing."
"Maybe," said Harry.
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