Chamber of Secrets

A/N: Pat-reon: HelloDarkness07

Welp, I'm back home, back to being as miserable as ever. Vacation's over, even if I was in a medicine induced sleep for the most of it.

I'm alright, no symptoms as of now, my smell and taste have returned, so don't worry too much! I'm Fine!

Anyway, read on!

---​

"I beg your pardon?" I ask, looking at Merrythought incredulously. 

I had just gone through the DADA class, when Professor Merrythought asked me to stay behind. DADA was the third period of the day, after Charms, and Potions, so there was lunch after this and I didn't have to hurry for my next class. 

She frowns and says, "You heard me quite right, Mr Aves. You're being offered the opportunity to sit your OWLs one year early, and if you manage to keep up, your NEWTs next year." 

I had to use all of my control to not freak out. I literally just got so much new knowledge and my time here is being shortened even more? FML. I haven't even mastered one subject yet! 

Not showing all that on my face, I ask, "Why me? I don't think this has ever been done before." 

"It has been done before, a lot of times. But the practice of moving students up was abolished once the Ministry came into being. And you're being offered this, because, and let's be honest here, you're bored Mr Aves. 4th Year studies are too easy for you. Every Professor thinks so. So, what say you?" Merrythought says, in her Irish accent, and asks. 

I nod, and say, "I.. don't have any issues with it. I can sit the exam tomorrow, and still pass, I know that. But can I think on it?" 

Professor Merrythought nods, and says, "Very well. But, I need an answer by the end of the day. We need to inform the DME of our decision regarding your attendance before 9. But, also consider this, there's an apprenticeship offer waiting for you, in St Mungo's after you've passed your NEWTs. Think on it." 

I nod, and go out of the classroom. Once I'm out, I scowl. Bloody nosy teachers. They already know I'm interested in Medical magics, so they've prepared an Apprenticeship for me, which, while good for me, is also annoying. 

Granted I wasn't hiding my interest, I did have to request Madam James for access to medical books. But still.  It is annoying.

Why the hell do they have to keep such a close eye on me? Probably Dumbledore thinks I'm going Dark or something. Bloody manipulative old coot- well, young coot for now. 

"What did Merrythought want?" Tom asks, as I sit down for lunch. 

I start eating, and shake my head, saying, "Later. I'm going to eat first." 

25 minutes later, my group, with the addition of Tom McAvoy, was sitting in an abandoned classroom, because there were so many of them, and I tell them of the offer I just received. There was just me, Tom, Darla, Ana, and Dorea in here. 

Tom didn't spend much time with us anymore, since breaking all expectations, he had joined the Quidditch team last year. He was our Chaser, and was pretty good. We weren't winning the Cup every year, but we did win last year. But this meant he had to spend more time studying and practicing Quidditch, than he had to spend with us. We didn't have a fight or anything, he just.. drifted off. 

But well, since he asked, I was including him in this discussion. 

"Do you want to take the exams?" Darla asks, once I've finished explaining, while Dorea looks upset for some reason. Tom and Ana were just thinking. 

I nod, a bit hesitantly, so Ana says, "Well, then go for it. The last one to give their OWLs early, was a student in the 14th century. That's 200 years before the Ministry restricted this practice. You won't get a chance like this again. Plus, if they're serious about the Apprenticeship in Mungo's then you have nothing to worry." 

I sigh, and look at Tom and Dorea, who haven't said anything yet. I ask, "What about you two? What do you think?" 

Tom shrugs, and answers, "No offense mate, but I always knew you were a genius. You take this chance, or not, you're still smarter than the whole school. But, I'd rather you take this chance. As Greengrass said, you won't get an opportunity like this again." Then, as a joke, he adds, "Plus, it might give me an actual chance with the girls out there." 

I just chuckle, having seen him fail to get a girl to go out with him to Hogsmead, just last week. I wasn't the best looking in our class, but for some reason, Ravenclaw students found my intelligence attractive. Who'd have thought? 

Yeah, I didn't date anyone though. Feels too weird, even considering dating these kids. Maybe once I'm 20 or something, I'll start dating. I'm comfortable remaining a virgin till then, not like it's a new experience for me. And I mean dating those of my age then, not.. now.

Dorea sighs, looking sad, and says, "You're already one year ahead of me, and you'll go even more ahead." 

I snort, and shake my head. Damn her and her crush. She is cute, but she's literally 13. She's still the annoying little sister of Cassiopeia the Bitch for me. At least she accepted when I said I won't date while in school, which was a relief. That doesn't stop her flirting though. 

For her, I'm the guy that somehow defied her sister, whom she thought to be invincible. And that makes me an attractive target. Her thoughts are really loud, you know. 

Patting her head, I say, "I'm one year ahead of you and we're still friends. What makes you think we won't be if I'm another year ahead, Dorea?" 

Dorea pouts, which still only feels cute on her, and mumbles, "What if you get a girlfriend from the upper years then?" 

I look at the others and they're almost laughing now. Controlling my own laughter, I answer, "Well I'll make sure to tell you all about her then. Each and every detail. Not leaving a single thing out." 

That does it. Dorea blushes red, while Darla and Ana laugh at her expense. Tom just shakes his head, and mumbles, "Is he blind or is he doing it on purpose?" 

I wink at Tom, who chuckles, and hug Dorea close. Purely platonically. 

While this.. opportunity for passing out.. came out of nowhere, I can still take advantage of it. I'll have to take care of the Room of Knowledge sooner now. Damn, what can I even do? 

That night, after telling Merrythought of my decision to accept the offer, and going to the dorms, I make sure everyone's asleep and walk towards the 7th floor Corridor. Putting my left hand on the wall, I turn the knob as it appears immediately, and enter the gigantic Room of Knowledge. 

"Time." I state to myself, because for now, that is what I need the most. Time. 

Suddenly, I find myself in a new Room, with a little over 100 books kept in shelves. Either the study of Time isn't as expansive as I'd thought, or I'm really underestimating these 106 books. 

Picking the first book at random, I sit down on a chair that forms behind me, put my legs on a footstool, and mumble, "Lets get to it." 

Time, according to this author, is a fundamental concept very closely attached to Space. She literally said that Time and Space cannot exist without each other. Where there is Space, there is Time, and vice versa. 

The book was written in 15th century, so this is really surprising. A Witch hypothesized Space-time before it was a concept in the muggle world! 

The first few chapters were just an introduction, while the others gave some stories of people trying to mess with time. She had even personally met with a few Wizards that had successfully travelled through time. 

One of them, unfortunately, tried to something he really shouldn't have. The wizard went back 200 years, and tried to prevent his family losing a property that would have been burned down in an attack by a mixed army. There were wizards, as well as muggles in that army. And he stood alone, against them. 

The House was empty, his family having evacuated when they got the news of the approaching army. 

Well, he quickly realized something when he used Fiendfyre against those attackers, to stop them from burning it. Yeah, the Fiendfyre went out of control and took the house with it, meaning that he caused the tragedy he was trying to prevent. When he returned to his time, nothing had changed, but he was a lot more miserable than before. 

The others had the same stories. Either nothing they tried worked in changing what they wanted to, or they were the reason it happened in the first place. 

No matter what Magical method of Time Travel Wizards use, it won't work in changing anything. For us Wizards, Time is a closed loop. It has already happened, so of course it'll happen again. Our Magic ensures it.

Well, there was one witch who went back to stay indefinitely, just to study. She went back from the year 1472, to the year 616 AD. She stayed there, and lived there, for 856 years. 

And you know the best part? She didn't age a single friggin day! She couldn't even die there by any physical or Magical means! The woman claimed to have survived a Killing Curse to the chest, and being stabbed, burned, drowned, all while in the past. Each and every time, she found herself waking up far away from her death site, naked as the day she was born, or so she claimed.

Sure, she could be lying, but what's the need? Plus, the Room would have erased any false parts thanks to whatever enchantment Rowena cast here. 

Conclusion? The Magic that allowed us Wizards to travel through time also allowed the Wizards to retain their age, as well as prevent their deaths. Well, at least until they return to their own time, because the woman died 30 years after her return, of old age. But, it also prevented Wizards from changing anything. Everything that you cause to happen, has already happened.

There were no names mentioned, for the sake of protecting the Time Travellers, and no methods were given to even the Author, but she had her theories. 

She mentioned how the first Time Travelling spells were inspired by the invention of Portkey Charms. Then, the discovery of a mystical dust that they named the Sand of Time, brought forth a multitude of Rituals meant to turn back time. Obviously, no Ritual was shared with other Wizards, since the Time (heh) was not a very happy, or safe one. 

The Author of the book didn't know of any other methods of Time Travel that'll allow for a change to happen, and what effects it'll have on the Timeline, but I know. The Time Stone can definitely send someone back in time, and change it. 

Then there's the Quantum Time Machine that the Avengers built in Endgame, that definitely changed time. These two did not(or is it will not?) follow the closed loop of Time Travel. They literally changed a lot of things, to a lot of consequences, that I wasn't alive to see.

Speed- reading the first book takes me barely 15 minutes, and I keep it back, knowing just a little bit more about what Time is. 

Time is rigid. It follows a single Timeline, according to Magic, and no one can change what's already happened in the past. You can go back, observe events, but you cannot change anything. Heck, you can talk with the people of the past, but nothing you do will change anything. It has already happened! 

There's bound to be loopholes, probably depending on the methods of time travel, but I'll have to keep reading to find them. Maybe in other books in this room, I'll find something that'll allow me to Time Travel. 

Until I know what methods they used, and where I can find them if they're not in this room, I'll have to keep on reading. 

- 

A few days later, the month of March starts, which brings with it an increase in work load. I had been given time off from my classes, so that I can prepare for my exams. 

I took this to mean that I had more hours to do my own research in my different projects. 

There was the Time Room, which I was learning every Monday and Tuesday. Runes came next, for three days, and the weekend was for anything I want, which is usually looking through the Room of Hidden Things for hidden treasures. Just an FYI, I did not find much.

I had spent this entire day in the School Library for once, studying up on the Patronus Charm. 

Hey, if I'm being forced to sit my OWLs, I'm impressing the Examiners as much as possible. Being able to cast the Patronus is something that'll show my Charms genius. You know, just in case the Healer/Doctor thing doesn't work out. I am keeping my options open.

When night came, however, I exited my dorm, with a skip in my step. I was finally going to do something that I had delayed for as long as possible. 

The Mythical Chamber of Secrets. 

Well, not so mythical, since I know it exists. I'd even confirmed it once by sneaking into the 2nd Floor Girls' bathroom, obviously at night, when it isn't in use. 

Which is where I was now. Invisible, thanks to the Disillusionment charm I'd cast on myself, and with a subtle telepathic field around myself that discouraged anyone from looking too closely. 

This wasn't a new development, but I realized that I had it, embarrassingly late. The passive mode of this ability allowed me to seem like I belong there. I could be standing in the middle of this bathroom, in the middle of the day, while girls are using it, and no one will find it wrong. 

Obviously, I don't use it for that. I'm not that desperate, nor that immoral. Plus, this ability is not infallible. Like the Notice-me-not Charm, which Dumbledore had used during our trip to Diagon Alley, if someone was really vigilant, or really tried to find something that didn't belong, they can definitely see through it. 

Which is why, I had an enhanced mode of this ability. The Forget-me-not mode, as I called it. Inspired by the mutant of the same name, that I remembered reading about, I purposely use my Telepathy to make People's minds completely ignore my very existence. 

They don't see me, hear me, nor do they smell me. Completely broken, if it wasn't capable of being defeated by the simple use of the Mind Arts. 

Anyway, entering the Second floor Girls' bathroom, I first use my Telepathy to listen if anyone's there. Hearing no thoughts for at least a hundred meters, I approach the tap which I'd checked out before. 

Like the books said, one of the taps didn't work, at all. It didn't matter how many times they tried to repair it, both magically, and physically, the tap didn't turn on. Using my hand, I feel for the side of the copper tap, and sure enough, I could feel the very tiny snake etched on it. 

It was so small, that one might even dismiss it as a scratch. And it probably did fool everyone else, since despite the tap not working for literally centuries, no one bothered to find out, why. 

Huh, I wonder what the entrance was like before the pipes were installed. Hogwarts plumbing was installed in the year 1765, you know. 

Feeling Sly shift on my shoulder, visible for once, I ask, ~~You ready to meet the biggest, most dangerous snake we might ever see?~~ 

Let's be honest, the basilisk might be the most venomous, but it's definitely not amongst the most dangerous snakes in this world. Jormungandr the World Serpent comes to mind, along with all the mythical snakes like Gorgons and all. And every Myth has to have a little bit of fact behind it. 

Sly hisses, angrily, and says, ~~Like I told you that day. I'll show this one who's the strongest!~~ 

Snorting, I mumble, "Sure you will, Sly, sure you will." He does understand English, but unfortunately for him, he doesn't understand Sarcasm much. 

Turning towards the tap, I focus on parseltongue, thankful that I at least managed to distinguish my two main language categories (human and snake), and command, ~~OPEN!~~ 

At once, the tap glows in a brilliant white light, and begins to spin. Then, the entire sink begins shaking, grinding, it sends a lot of dust flying, making me wonder when he Chamber was last opened. It must have been decades, if just opening it is sending so much dirt flying out. 

I cast the Bubble Head Charm on myself, and do the same for Sly, wandlessly. While I do use my Wand while in school, sometimes, I like to use my hands so that I don't get used to the Wand. Don't misunderstand, I love my wand, but wandless magic is.. freeing. 

The charm covers my head with a protective bubble, that provides me with a continuous supply of fresh air to breathe in, and can withstand amazing pressures. So much so, that even if I directly punch the bubble head charm, it won't break. But it will send some of that pressure onwards to my head. 

~~TAKE IT OFF AT ONCE!~~ Sly yells, trying to bite the bubble around his head. That makes me snort, since his mouth doesn't even reach the bubble, no matter how much he tries. Sly glares at me, and slaps his tail on my neck. 

~~OUCH! THAT FUCKING HURT, YOU MORON!~~ 

~~THEN YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE LAUGHED! NOW TAKE THIS MAGIC OFF! I CAN'T SMELL ANYTHING!~~ Sly yells back, hissing angrily. 

Oh, right. His tongue. 

~~Sorry!~~ I say, and with a bashful look at my favourite snake, I remove the Bubble head charm cast on him, by using the Finite spell. 

Turning towards the sink, I see it.. sink into the floor, showing a hole in its place. Watching the newly formed hole, where the sink used to be, I ignore Sly's anger, and approach it. Being careful of falling down, I peek through, and see no end in sight. 

There was just a wide pipe, that could fit me horizontally too, and then darkness. Holding my left hand out, I cast the lumos charm, and hold the orb of light above my head. Still darkness. With the twitch of my finger, the orb moves away from my hand, and goes down tlowards the opening. 

Now I can see a little bit deeper, and see that the pipe is slowly inclining away from the steep drop. So, even if I drop hard, I'll slide through quite safely. 

Sly was observing the hole from beside my head, and says, ~~See you down there, you flightless wizard.~~ 

And the fucker jumps from my shoulder, and floats in front of me. He sticks his tongue out at me, and it's definitely for teasing, and then flies towards the opening in the floor. 

I gape for just a second, and then shake my head. Bloody bastard snake. Taking my wand out, I transfigure the wall within the pipe into a platform. Jumping on it, I order, ~~CLOSE!~~ because there's no guarantee the chamber won't stay open. 

And then, as the sink begins closing again, just to try it out, I order, ~~STAIRS!~~ 

Nope, nothing happened. Thank God I bought a broom this year. If I don't find another exit, preferably with stairs, I'll have to fly with the broom. 

With a leap of faith, and a prayer to all the Gods, I jump down the platform I transfigured for myself, and into the pipe. 

For a couple seconds, I just fall down, without touching anything, but then, my butt touches the still inclined wall of the pipe, and I just feel my clothes getting wet. Ugh. 

Slowly, the incline gets less and less steep, and I find myself sliding along with the pipe. But, my speed was still too damn fast. I don't have to worry about me turning into a pancake, however, as I automatically decelerate, despite the still significant slope. 

"Probably some enchantment on the pipe." I muse, as I observe everything that's in the pipe thanks to the Lumos orb following me. Grime, worms, and a lot of fungi. 

And my shirt and trousers would have been covered in all of it, if I hadn't cast the impervious charm on them as soon as I'd felt the first wetness. 

There were also more pipes, branching out from this one. But none of them were as wide as this slide. They were at most half the size. 

Soon, I find myself seeing the exit of the pipe, right in front of me, and before I can prepare, I crash down on the ground, sending a lot of rat skeletons scattering about. 

Thankfully, my lowered speed meant that I only slid a little bit away from the exit, and did not crash into the slimy wall that I could see. 

~~HAHAHAH! AGAIN, AGAIN! DO THAT AGAIN! I WANT TO SEE YOU CRASH ONCE MORE!~~ Sly yells, laughing to himself to my accident. 

Groaning, I stand up, ignoring the bones for now, and remove my wand from my wrist holster. With a single twitch downwards, I cast, "Tergeo!" which vanishes the grime that had gotten on my pant in the beginning, along with anything that might have gotten through the Impervious Charm. 

The entire cave was damp, which means I was definitely under the lake. How far? I have no idea. Hey, Magic can make it so this cave is 2x2x2 inches in dimensions, from the outside, and I wouldn't know. 

Seeing Sly enjoying himself, I say, ~~Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up. Not like you could fly until a few months ago.~~ 

~~I can fly now, and that's more important.~~ Sly counters. 

I look at the only direction the cave extended in, and say, ~~Shall we?~~ 

Sly simply starts floating forward, finally allowed to be freely visible, and unhidden. I can't help but smile, seeing him float everywhere in excitement, even if he doesn't show it on his face. As we take many a turn, my Lumos orb preceding us to show the light, I try to see if there's anything else recognisable. Unfortunately, there were just damp walls everywhere. 

The first look at least doesn't find any secret entrances, or something like that. I'll check more extensively later. 

Soon, we reach a point in the tunnel, where the end is blocked by a Metallic gate, that has two snakes entwined on it. The snakes were also made of the same metal, and had emeralds for eyes. 

Damn, if I didn't trust Salazar Slytherin to at least curse the emeralds, I might have tried to remove them. 

Shaking my head, I once more order, ~~OPEN!~~ 

The emerald eyes of the two snakes glow once, in an earie green glow, and once more, the sound of grinding occurs. The two entwined snakes separate, as if alive, and slither out towards the edge of the metallic door. One at the east, and the other at the west. 

Once at the edge, both the snakes start circling in counterclockwise direction, and as soon as they touch the other snake's tail, the door unlocks with a hiss. 

Rolling my eyes at the dramatic flair just for the entrance, I pull the heavy metal door open, and walk through. I look around, and just stop in awe. 

I was in a dimly lit chamber, that was a bit gloomy and awe-inspiring at the same time. The chamber floor was of stone, and there were high pillars supporting a ceiling that I couldn't see from here. The pillars had snakes carved on them, but these ones didn't look enchanted like the ones outside. 

There was a pathway that led to the end of the Chamber, surrounding which were pools of water on both sides. The water looked clean, but I'm not dipping there anytime soon. 

Finally, at the end of the chamber, was a familiar statue of the creator of the Chamber. Salazar Slytherin. Walking silently, I look up at the bust, allowing Sly to do what he likes. 

Standing about 15 feet high, the statue was made only of his head. It wasn't anything noticeable, but since I knew his mouth opened to allow the Basilisk an entry and exit point, I could see the place where it might detach. 

The mouth was also just a foot above the ground, so I won't have any trouble going in. 

Hmm.. will just opening the door call the Basilisk? I don't actually want to meet it, since I have no idea how I might be received by it. 

Wouldn't know unless I try it, right? 

~~OPEN!~~ I command, looking at the mouth of Salazar Slytherin. This feels weird, no matter how I phrase it. Damn Salazar, and his weird ego.

Unfortunately, nothing happens, even when I repeat the order a few times. 

Sighing, I say, ~~Four? Hogwarts Four? Greatest of the Hogwarts Four?~~ 

Nothing. 

Hey, it was worth a try. Not like I only have 3 tries before my access gets locked or something like that. 

Tom Riddle could have been arrogant enough to assume that the only possible password is "Speak to me Slytherin, Greatest of the Hogwarts Four" while the password was just the last word. 

"Looks like I'm going to have to say this." I mumble to myself, and then order, ~~Speak to my Slytherin! Greatest of the Hogwarts Four!~~ 

At once, the familiar grinding sounds, making me wonder how long it took for Tom Riddle to figure the password out, and how he did it, and the statue's mouth slowly opens. But that wasn't all, with the opening of the mouth, I hear what sounds like a giant being moving inside there. 

Sly immediately flies towards me and settles down on my shoulder, both of us staring at the opening. Remembering that this is a Basilisk, I run backwards a few dozen steps, to the other side of the chamber, and close my eyes. I ask Sly to do the same, and wait. 

I don't have to wait too long, before a soft thud sounds, as the Basilisk falls out of the mouth, head first. It was about 50 feet away from me, so I barely hear the first hissing whispers. 

It starts crawling towards us, and then I hear it, ~~Food.. kill.. rip.. tear.. blood.. food!~~ 

~~STOP!~~ I yell, stopping it in its place. Still with my eyes closed, I say, ~~We are not food. We came here to speak. I'm a descendant of your master.~~ 

I hear a hiss of annoyance, as the Basilisk says, ~~Food.. lies.. No.. master.. kill.~~ 

Frowning, I ask Sly, ~~Can you try and talk to it? I don't want to be eaten, you know.~~ 

Sly, in response, jumps in my shirt, and curls up in his pocket. I hear him say, ~~Nope, I was wrong. He's the strongest, good luck!~~ before I have to pay attention to the now once again moving Basilisk. Fuck you, Sly!

Turning my head downwards, I open my eyes and focus on our shadows. Thankfully, my Lumos orb was still hovering above, casting a very bright light into the chamber, and showing really clear shadows on the floor.

Seeing the basilisk coil around itself, I remove my wand, and with a small spin around myself, I yell, "Praesidio Totalum!" 

The Praesidio spell is a variation of the Shield charm, but where the Protego stops most mid level spells, and only a limited amount of Physical force, the Praesidio stops all the physical force thrown at it, and only the low level spells. Doesn't matter what hits it, if it's a physical object, and not a magical spell, then it's stopped. 

So, when the Basilisk snaps at me, hoping to either swallow me whole, or to inject its venom in me, it gets stopped by the shield. I look up for a moment, to see that its fangs had actually managed to pierce the shield. 

Clearly, it has a few weaknesses, besides the Magical spells.

"Bloody Basilisk venom." I mumble, and put my hand in my pocket. When my hand exits the pocket, I bring my broom out, a Comet 110. It almost slips out of my hand, thanks to the sweat on my palms, but I manage to clench it tight, and bring it out. 

The Venom of the Basilisk starts destroying the shield from the inside, as the Basilisk struggles to force it's jaw to close. Before it happens, I mount my broom and fly high up into the air, while cancelling the Shield, sending the snake crashing into the ground, head first. 

~~I don't want to kill you, Basilisk, but I will if I have to.~~ I say, preparing myself, my fast beating heart almost deafening me. It feels like it's literally beating in my ears. 

The gigantic snake snarls in anger, throwing a lot of venom flying, and looks up. I had not forgotten the fact however, and I manage to close my eyes before it can look up, let alone in my eyes. 

~~Food flies!~~ the basilisk hisses, almost surprised, and tries to snap at me again. 

Since I was floating up, however, it doesn't reach me, calming me down somewhat. 

~~So be it.~~ I say, resolved to do what needs to be done. 

The Basilisk is old, 900 years in the least. I am definitely reluctant to kill it, since it's the only snake of its kind, I think. But now, it's crazy! It thinks I'm food, and I don't think convincing it otherwise is possible. 

Flying higher, I avoid being caught in the Basilisk's jaws, and focus on my Telepathy. I know I can use it to control humans, the criminals come to mind. But animals? I hadn't tried yet. 

With a focused expansion of my Telepathy, I enter the snake's mind, and order, ~~STOP ATTACKING, YOU BLASTED SNAKE! I AM NOT FOOD!~~ 

The Basilisk doesn't stop, and keeps attacking me, failing to reach me thanks to its limited height. 

Frowning, I say, "Sorry for this. It seems you're beyond even Mind control." 

Pointing my wand at the water in the pools, I cast a spell that summons a blob of water from the pool. The water then moved according to my wand, and I send it towards the Basilisk. 

It hits the Basilisk on its head, and gets dispersed thanks to the Magic resistant hide. But, instead of just falling down, the water rises up again, and reforms into an orb of water. Only this time, it is smaller, and denser. 

I send it at the Basilisk, throwing it back from the force. 

With the twirl of my wand, a few more such orbs, all of them bigger than me, rise from the pools, and start getting thrown at the Basilisk. 

It gets angry, and starts attacking the orbs instead of focusing on my. Which proves to be its downfall. 

Keeping an eye on the Basilisk I keep a water orb near me, and transfigure it into a stone spear. And then, I wait. 

You see, transfiguring water to stone is not hard, but it is very rare to find someone doing it. Why waste perfectly good water? The spell needed me to just tap my wand on the water's surface, and it'll be transfigured according to my wishes. 

The Basilisk, still repeatedly calling me food, gets tired, with the multiple water orbs hitting its body again and again. Head, tail, body, there wasn't a single spot that wasn't wet. 

Finally, the snake is enraged beyond measure, and it swipes its tail, destroying most of the water orbs. The snake catches the next approaching water orb in its mouth, and bites it. 

Which is what I was waiting for. 

As the Water orb bursts like a balloon, the giant, 30 foot long snake finds itself impaled on a stone spear, right through its brain. 

I had taken the opportunity of an open mouth to send the stone spear flying with a Depulso charm, right through the water orb, and into the brain of the snake. 

With a thud, the Basilisk falls down, and twitches for a few seconds, after which, it dies. 

I sigh, having regretted killing it. It was necessary, but the snake is a beautiful specimen. Too bad, its old age had made it crazy. 

Wonder what Tommy was going to do to make it listen to him? 

Well, not my problem now. The snake is dead, he can't use it to kill anyone now. 

Pointing my wand at the ground, I burn the runic cluster necessary for a Preservation Ward into it, around the Basilisk, and activate the ward. I'll deal with the body later. But now, I'll explore the mouth of Salazar Slytherin. 

Yup, still gross. 

And then, I drop down on the ground, my hand on my chest, hoping that my heart doesn't give out after everything I've just been through. Oh, the shame I'll have to go through, survived a Basilisk, killed it, nd then died because his heart gave out. 

Goddamn, that was frightening. Those fangs look bigger than my fucking head! 

I'd ignored it as well as I could, but I'm fucking terrified right now! I should have planned this all more extensively. One single cut would have had me dead, with no one to know what happened to me. 

~~Oh. You survived.~~ Sly says, coming out of the pocket he was hiding in. 

I pinch my nose, and say, ~~You could at least pretend to be relieved, you dumb snake.~~ 

Sly climbs my shoulder, and says, ~~Too much work. Now, the big one is dead, huh? Good job.~~ 

~~I remember someone saying they'll show this snake who the strongest is. Wonder what happened.~~ I say, entering the tunnel. 

~~I don't remember. Must be Ash. Or Horny.~~ Sly says, turning his head away from me for some reason. 

I just snort, and stand up, having calmed a little. I have an entire Chamber of Secrets to explore, and just about 6 hours remaining until everyone wakes up. I can get by one day without sleep, but I'd prefer sleeping a few hours at least. 

At least no more monsters to fight now. 

--- 

A/N: Basilisk is dead, which is the first Major change. I could have had it join him, but its unnecessary. Horned serpents get big, so one big snake is enough, I think. 

Well, anyway. Enjoy! 

Tata!