117 Chapter 117: Following the trail

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Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K Rowling.

I own nothing but the original characters I make.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

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Chapter 117: Following the trail

"A basilisk?!" McGonagall got startled.

"A specimen of this size…it must be centuries old…maybe it was the original one, placed by Salazar himself," Dumbledore concluded.

"So is like a thousand years old?, can these creatures live that long?" She asked.

"We will have to consult with Hagrid, but this seems to be the case." Dumbledore looked around the room. 

He did not spot the other basilisk because it had fallen into the dark cave beneath the chamber and the third one was completely eaten by the giant monster before escaping.

There was not much else to observe in the main chamber. Everything had been completely destroyed and the place looked ready to collapse at any moment.

"You don't think the children killed it, right Albus?" McGonagall did not want to think about a group of young students facing a beast like this one.

The swords that Harry had used to kill the beast were gone already. All that was left were the many wounds he inflicted on its body.

"It seems to be covered in deep gashes…and is very recent. The blood looks fresh too." Snape commented.

"For what I remember…basilisks are extremely resistant to magic, almost to the point of immunity. The one who killed this one seems to have conjured a series of big-bladed weapons to do the job. Whoever did this…knew what they were doing." Dumbledore concluded.

"Albus, could this creature be the one responsible for all the tremors we have been suffering?" McGonagall asked.

"The beast is certainly big, but no. I don't think this basilisk would be capable of that. " was the Headmaster's answer.

"That being said…the answer for those events could be somewhere in here," he added.

"Headmaster…do you think I can process this creature? The materials could be invaluable for my potions…" Snape looked at the basilisk like it was a pile of gold.

"I don't see why not…but we have a job to finish first." 

"That's right. We haven't found any of the children yet." McGonagall spoke.

"Mmm…I don't think is safe to stay here much longer in any case. Let's use a quick way out then…Fawkes!" Dumbledore called for his companion.

They waited but…nothing.

"How strange…Fawkes!, I need your help, my friend." Dumbledore called again. 

"He is not arriving…." McGonagall had never seen this happen before.

"Something must have happened to him, he always answers my calls. We will have to use a different way…"

"Do we have to climb back that dirty pipe?" McGonagall didn't seem very pleased with the idea.

"Perhaps there is another way out…" Dumbledore stared up at the ceiling.

The two professors followed his sigh and spotted a massive circular hole in the middle of the cracked ceiling 

"Albus, what is that?!" McGonagall got alarmed. That hole was not made by accident. It looked like something had broken through the ceiling and crawled its way into the rocky foundation.

"It appears that some sort of creature has wormed its way into the ceiling," Snape commented.

"The size is disturbing..."

"Just disturbing? if that was made by another basilisk, then…it must have been at least ten times bigger than this one!" McGonagall pointed at the dead beast.

"Remaining here will solve nothing and if a beast like that is making its way into the castle…we have to stop it." Dumbledore took out a small piece of fabric from his robes.

"Engorgio" 

The fabric grew in size until it transformed into a big rectangular carpet that remained floating in the air.

"You have a flying carpet? Albus, they are illegal." McGonagall sighed.

"But never mind that now…"

"I'm afraid at my age, a broom is not very comfortable. I'm sure the good Minister would understand." Dumbledore jumped on top of the carpet with little effort.

"Yes, you seem very old and frail…" McGonagall and Snape climbed on top.

"Let us go then!" Dumbledore directed the carpet and this one flew into the massive circular hole left by the giant basilisk.

The carpet moved at great speed through the newly created tunnel. It had pierced through dirt and stone with little effort, going to show the power of the creature responsible for it.

"The diameter of this hole is at least seventy or eighty feet …(around 25mt)" Snape analyzed the tunnel as they traveled.

"Meaning the snake should be around eight hundred feet in length."

"That can't be right, Severus. A creature that massive could not have been hidden inside Hogwarts without anyone knowing about it." McGonagall said.

"I'm only talking about what I'm seeing. I don't have an explanation either." Snape admited.

They reached the point where the pipes started, but there was little left of them.

"Let us hope this tunnel leads to the outside…" Dumbledore was dreading the worst-case scenario. Where this monster enters the castle. 

If that is the case, they may not be able to evacuate everyone in time.

"Oh no…please." McGonagall was thinking the same thing.

The flying carpet increased its pace, moving as fast as it could possibly go, taking sharp turns left and right.

Finally…they were welcomed by a gust of cold wind.

"Yes!, is going outside!" McGonagall celebrated.

"Be ready!, we may have to lure this beast away from the castle, somehow…" 

Dumbledore was not the type to act without proper planning, but when the lives of his students were at risk…he was left with no other choice.

The flying carpet came out of the hole and into the open sky.

Looking back, they were once impressed by the sheer size of it…and the creature that made it.

"Where is it?!" Snape twisted his neck to the sides but could not spot the monster.

"Remember to not look at it directly," Dumbledore said, even though he was sure his colleagues knew this already.

He made the carpet fly around the castle but could not spot any giant snake moving around the castle's surroundings. 

"Headmaster, wait for me!!" 

Dumbledore stopped the carpet in the air and turned his head in the direction of the familiar voice.

"Is Nick!" McGonagall called after seeing the ghost approach.

"Headmaster, I saw it!" The ghost screamed.

"What did you see, Nick?." Dumbledore asked.

"A monster!, and a massive snake! it came out of the castle. It was so scary!. I saw it all!" 

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