Bab 35: Chapter 39: 2-9: Chamber
Disclaimer: Being neither British nor Japanese, it should therefore come as no surprise that I own neither Harry Potter nor Naruto, nor anything from their respective franchises.
As the five arrived at the Great Hall, they met Headmaster Dumbledore and the four Heads of House. Filius looked upon Luna with relief, while Minerva's expression upon seeing the group was a strange mix of relief and pained resignation. Pomona simply looked worried, and Snape's dark expression was unreadable. Albus turned to the approaching group, his face a stony mask that softened somewhat at the sight of them. "Iruka, children, it is good to see that you are all well. Unfortunately, we have a most dire situation. Pomona, Minerva," he turned to the Heads of House, "remain here with the students, and once we have departed you must close off every entrance. Do not open them again to anyone that is unable to send a Patronus message requesting entry. I cannot stress that instruction enough; the lives of every student in that Hall may well depend upon it." The two witches nodded with resolve, and stepped into the Great Hall.
"The rest of you," he continued in a tone of command, "come with me, and I shall show you the site of the latest incident. I shall endeavor to explain as we walk, but we must hurry, for I fear that time is of the essence and that a young girl's life hangs in the balance."
"Headmaster," Snape drawled coldly, "I must protest. Students have no place in these discussions."
Already striding towards the stairs fast enough that Filius had to jog to keep up, Albus spoke over his shoulder without slowing. "And yet, Severus, it was these students who are reported to have determined the identity of Slytherin's legendary monster, something which perhaps they might share with us?"
Iruka took the lead, relating their conclusion and the evidence and reasoning that led to it in the clear, rapid tones of a battlefield report. The three other wizards looked thoughtful. "I cannot find fault with your conclusions," Snape bit out with a scowl that betrayed just how unhappy he was with that fact.
"Indeed," Albus added, "it explains a great deal which was previously unclear. Unfortunately, it also makes the situation even more dangerous than I had feared." He brought his wand tip to his temple for a moment, before drawing it away trailing what looked like a particularly wispy memory and incanting "Expecto Patronum Lotor!". A luminous silver phoenix shot from the wand back down the corridor towards the Great Hall. "Minerva and the others should now be forewarned, for whatever good that may do against such a monstrous enemy. As for our part of the report, another message has been found near the previous one, and based on a headcount of the students, we can only conclude that it refers to Ginevra Weasley." This produced a gasp of horror from Luna. "I have tasked young Percival to pen a letter to his parents, and an elf to carry it. Amelia Bones of the DMLE has also been notified, and will hopefully be gathering Aurors as we speak."
Soon they reached the corridor outside the girls' toilet occupied by 'Moaning' Myrtle. Just below the original message was a new one, also scrawled in blood: "Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever."
"Ginny..." Luna whimpered tearfully. Iruka placed a firm hand on her shoulder, giving what little reassurance he could offer.
Neville, meanwhile, was wearing a thoughtful frown. "Headmaster," he spoke up, "the girl that was killed last time - was it Myrtle?"
Albus nodded somberly. "It was indeed Ms. Warren. She was found in this washroom, just beyond the stall which she haunts to this day."
The two boys looked at each other, seeming to reach the same conclusion. "Three of the incidents right here, the Basilisk using the pipes," Harry listed off, "could the entrance to the Chamber be in the bathroom somewhere?"
The adults' eyebrows rose in near-unison. "An interesting question, Mr. Potter," stated Filius, "and one which we should investigate immediately. You children remain out here, for the moment, until we have confirmed that the room is presently safe." He nodded to Snape, and the two approached the door with wands drawn. A quick charm snapped the door open suddenly, and the two wizards surged inside, swiftly and efficiently sweeping the room for threats while ignoring the indignant protests of the late Myrtle Warren.
"You shouldn't be in here, this is a girls' washroom!" Her scolding came in a voice that sounded lugubrious and slightly damp. "Of course, nobody ever cares about poor, lonely Myrtle, except when they're teasing me or throwing books at me. Even that little red-headed girl just ignored me when I tried to talk to her, just hissed."
"Ginny!" the children exclaimed together.
"She hissed?" Harry asked urgently, "Where? What happened?"
"Don't know," Myrtle replied morosely, "when she ignored me I went back to my stall, then I heard that hissing sound like that boy just before I died, and the next time I came out she'd gone."
"It's in here." Harry's voice was resolute. "It's in here, and it must take Parseltongue to open." This prompted the group to begin searching, until Filius called their attention to a small, nearly unnoticeable engraving of a snake on the side of a non-functional tap.
"It would seem that a rescue mission is not entirely impossible," said the Headmaster. "Iruka, Harry, I shall want you to assist me. Severus, Filius, take the rest of the children back to the Great Hall."
While Snape looked indignant over something, Filius cut in sharply. "That won't do, Albus. You'd be best placed in the Great Hall, in case the Basilisk is brought out again to threaten the student body. Your duty is to all of the students, and I cannot permit you to place hundreds of them in greater danger for the sake of one. If a rescue must be attempted, then it should be Severus and/or myself rather than you. I am also uncertain of why you require Mr. Potter or Professor Umino to participate, though I have my suspicions."
Albus seemed to age twenty years in as many seconds at Filius's words. "You are of course correct, Filius. In that case, it would be best if you accompanied Iruka and Harry on this task - Iruka would have an easier time carrying you than Severus should an expeditious retreat become necessary. As for why the two of them, such are their secrets to divulge and not mine, though you will doubtless learn of some of them today. Come, Severus, children, we have tarried long enough as it is."
As the five left, the three students throwing worried looks back as they went, Filius turned to Harry. "I presume, Mister Potter, that you are a Parselmouth?" At Harry's surprised nod, he continued. "Then please, see if you can gain us entry."
Harry turned to the tap with a look of concentration, before a viscerally unsettling hiss came from his mouth. The tap flashed white, and the entire sink began to spin, before sinking downwards to reveal a gaping pipe well over a meter across.
Iruka, meanwhile, had shucked his robes and begun unsealing and donning his equipment under the curious gaze of the Charms Professor in between the diminutive man's glances towards Harry and the sink. A few Sticking Charms took the place of the cloth wraps that normally secured certain items and shaved several minutes off the process. Finally, he stood and pulled out two kunai. "We should all have as many tools as possible," he stated, holding them out pommel-first. "Filius, could you transfigure a couple of sheaths for the two of you?
The Ravenclaw Head pulled a scrap of parchment from his pocket, which soon became a simple leather sheath stuck to Harry's hip, before waving off the second kunai and pulling an ornate but still clearly functional dagger from his own robes. "I am part goblin, my dear Professor; I always carry a blade."
Iruka nodded while Harry sheathed the blade he'd been handed. "You should know that I fight mostly with bladed weapons and close combat, though I do have other abilities. I'm also faster, more agile, and more mobile than most people, which is probably why I'm being sent along. I'll go down first, then call up for you two. We'll need Harry to come with us in case there are more Parseltongue-locked doors, or in case this one closes behind us." Once Filius nodded, the chuunin drew and lit his wand, stepped into the pipe, and dropped away.
The pipe quickly turned from near-vertical to a more manageable slope, though Iruka remained ready to halt his slide with chakra if the need arose. He kept his wand out in his left hand, shining its beam ahead of him to give at least some warning of any upcoming hazards. Thankfully, though many smaller pipes branched off at various points, it was a smooth (if somewhat disorienting) journey. Finally, after what felt like a descent of dozens of meters, the steep slope came nearly level, before Iruka shot out into open air. He easily landed in a graceful crouch in a dark, roughly-carved stone tunnel. A quick scan of his surroundings showed no immediate threats, and so he called up as loudly as he dared. "It's clear!" While he waited, he busied himself casting a quick Cushioning Charm over the 'landing area'. Soon enough, Harry emerged, rolling his landing thanks to his training in S.E.N., followed twenty seconds later by Filius who performed a surprisingly similar and agile roll.
After checking to make sure everyone was unharmed, the three set off down the tunnel still in the order Iruka-Harry-Filius, with the admonishment to close their eyes at the first sign of trouble. Iruka quickly did a couple small hops and a walk onto the wall and ceiling to give Filius some idea of his capabilities, and he knew that if they made it back alive the Ravenclaw Head would be as enthusiastic for more information as Hermione had been.
Soon, they began to see increasing numbers of small animal bones littering the floor of the tunnel. They picked their way through carefully, occasionally aided by small Banishing or Vanishing spells to allow them to find footing that wouldn't announce them with a loud crunch. Rounding one bend in the tunnel brought them to a shed skin in a poisonous green. "What do you think, Filius - six, maybe seven meters?"
"At least," the Charms Master quietly replied, "and remember that snakes shed their skins when they outgrow them, so it can only be larger than this. Also, while I may be the one most affected by this issue, I should remind you both that Basilisks are tremendously resistant to magic, not unlike dragons. Their skin is also tough, though not quite as tough as dragonhide, so physical attack will be difficult as well."
"This is a rescue mission," Iruka reminded them both, "so actually fighting that Basilisk is not our objective. I'll be happiest if we can get in, get Ms. Weasley, and get back out without anybody doing any fighting. I'm just not optimistic that we'll get that lucky."
Another later bend in the tunnel revealed what almost seemed a dead end: A solid wall of stone blocked the way forward, adorned with a pair of carved snakes wound around each other with sparkling emeralds inset as their eyes. Harry hissed at this wall, causing the snakes to animate and slither apart on the stone, before the wall parted in the middle and slid aside to open the passage onward.
Just past the barrier, the tunnel opened out into a cavernous chamber stretching both forward and upward beyond the dim, sickly green light of torches burning with heatless and smokeless magical flames. Its high ceiling (wherever it was up there) was supported by tall pillars carved with a motif of winding snakes. The three rescuers advanced cautiously, sticking near the pillars in case they found themselves suddenly in need of cover. This proximity only highlighted the skill with which the pillars had been carved, as the snakes looked very lifelike, their eyes seeming to follow the trio and their bodies almost seeming to move in the flickering torchlight. Overall, the effect was not exactly comforting, and Iruka did a genjutsu release just to be on the safe side.
As they approached the far end of the chamber, two things came into view. The first was a towering stone statue at least fifteen meters tall depicting a dour, monkeyish old wizard with a long, narrow beard. The second was a tiny figure with fiery red hair lying between the statue's feet.
A hand on Harry's shoulder kept him from rushing forward unsupported, but the three wizards nevertheless advanced quickly towards the prone girl. Knowing Harry's attention would be focused on her, Iruka kept his directed outward, wary of threats, and noticed Filius dividing his attention between the two tasks. As they reached Ginny, Harry knelt down, dropping his wand, and shaking her shoulders, whispering her name interspersed with exhortations to not be dead. Filius cast a quick diagnostic charm over her, and frowned at the results. "She's alive," he said, "but in a deep sleep, and her vital signs are weak and gradually fading. We need to revive her, or failing that get her to Madam Pomfrey, as soon as possible."
"She won't wake." Iruka was startled by the soft voice - he hadn't heard, seen, nor otherwise sensed anyone but the four of them - and turned to see a young man leaning against a nearby pillar where he could swear there hadn't been anyone moments before. The boy had dark hair and pale skin, with handsome aristocratic features and a lean build, appearing to be in his mid-teens, but he was also somewhat blurry at the edges, as if he were more of an image than a real person.
Iruka kept his wand out, but also brought his right hand towards his kunai holster. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?" His question was more of a demand. "You're wearing Slytherin robes and a Prefect badge, but you're not any of the current Slytherin Prefects."
"He's not a current student of any type of any House," Filius chimed in, his wand leveled at the boy while his eyes continued to scan the Chamber warily.
"I'm a memory," the figure replied, pointing to a small black book on the floor at the statue's toes, "Preserved in a diary for fifty years. Tom Riddle, at your service." He finished with a slight, somewhat mocking bow.
Iruka's eyes narrowed. "Tom Marvolo Riddle, or as your later self preferred to be called, Lord Voldemort?" He heard both Harry and Filius gasp in shock. "A mass-murderer with delusions of godhood and a fondness for attacking noncombatants."
While Riddle's smile had grown at the mention of his nom de guerre, his expression had quickly turned to one of petulant rage as Iruka continued. "Crucio!" he bellowed, and the chuunin carefully sidestepped the notorious Torture Curse. "You will learn respect for your betters." He ignored whatever spell Filius shot in response, as it passed through his form as if he were no more substantial than mist. Unwilling to give the psychotic spectre the chance to try again, Iruka dashed forward at his best speed, easily snatching the wand from the startled shade's hand before hopping back to his companions and passing the wand to Filius, who then turned his attention to the diary. The diminutive former champion duelist shot a rapid barrage of spells at the seemingly innocuous book, and though the floor around the diary showed that many of those spells were quite destructive, the diary itself remained strangely unaffected. "I see the half-breed is well placed in Ravenclaw," Riddle sneered, "but it won't help you. None of you have the power to destroy that which I have created."
"Perhaps Severus might have been the better choice," Filius commented sourly. "With his knowledge of Dark magic he might be able to destroy whatever that diary is. Nothing I know of can survive Fiendfyre, and he and the Headmaster are the only ones I know that might be able to cast it without killing everyone in the Chamber. If we can get it to them quickly enough, we may yet be able to save Ms. Weasley and shut this thing up." He gestured to Riddle with his last comment.
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," Riddle drawled. "I require the remainder of that foolish girl's life-force if I am to be fully reconstituted. As for the rest of you, well, let's see how you deal with the true power of the Heir of Slytherin!" At this, he turned to the statue and hissed loudly at it, and the statue responded, in a way: Its mouth began to slowly open. The moment Iruka saw movement in the dark hole that resulted, he snapped his eyes shut and called for Harry and Filius to do the same before leaping away from the statue to stand nearer the center of the Chamber.
It was time to see if a shinobi could kill a basilisk.
A/N: Cliffy again! Muahahaha!
Anyway, at least half of the last chapter and all of this chapter were written over the course of a few hours. Sometimes I have to fight to get every paragraph on the page, and sometimes the story just flows. As I write this, I've already got a version of the upcoming fight written, actually written before I wrote Chapter 1, but events since then have changed my plans so it needs reworking. Details will be in the A/N of that chapter, and the original version will be lumped with my other outtakes/omakes/deleted scenes and posted if/when people express interest in such. It probably won't be substantially different though.
ADDITION FROM JUST BEFORE POSTING: Yeah, it wasn't very different. Speaking of chapters that fight me, I'm almost done writing Chapter 63...
Fic Recommendation: "Lost in the Woods" by Ardwolf - After an argument with Q, the Enterprise ends up very far from home, with the nearest ship a certain Firefly-class mid-bulk transport...
Posted 26 August 2018
Current WIP Chapter: 63
Status Power Mingguan
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