Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets (Part Two)

"Lumos!" Professor McGonagall glanced around, lightly flicking her wand as she spoke in a low voice.

A faint glow shone from the tip of her wand, illuminating the path ahead.

"Ah..." Hermione gasped sharply at the miserable sight before her.

The broken remains of small animal skeletons lay everywhere. They had clearly been gnawed on by something, making the sight deeply unsettling.

"If you hear anything unusual, turn your heads away and close your eyes immediately!" Professor McGonagall turned back and sternly instructed the trio.

The three of them nodded seriously.

The tunnel was as silent as a graveyard. The group of teachers and students cautiously advanced deeper inside... Professor McGonagall led the way at the front, while Professor Snape brought up the rear.

"Crack..." With a soft crunch, Ron looked down and found that he had stepped on a bat's skull.

Just as he was about to mutter something, Professor Dumbledore suddenly shook his head at him, signaling for him to stay quiet.

"Fawkes told me... a giant snake is approaching us from not far ahead," Professor Dumbledore said calmly.

At the same time, music drifted in from somewhere, echoing through the empty tunnel... The sound grew louder and louder, ethereal and illusory, stirring a strange excitement in those who heard it.

A fiery red bird appeared behind them as it sang, then swiftly flew into the tunnel ahead.

Then, from the darkness ahead came the sounds of a fierce struggle, along with shrill hissing.

"Fawkes is a Phoenix." Dumbledore lowered his head, seeming to explain to Harry. "As an exceptionally powerful magical creature, she is immune to much terrible Dark magic... And Phoenix tears possess powerful healing properties as well!"

Harry nodded, only half understanding.

"Let's follow," Dumbledore suggested. "It seems to be trying to escape."

Harry and the others hurried after Professor Dumbledore. They passed through the tunnel and rounded another corner... At last, Harry saw Fawkes. Intense flames and a dangerous aura radiated from her body as she hovered above, confronting her target.

Below the Phoenix, Harry saw a terrifying giant snake... Its entire body was an eerie green, gleaming with the vivid sheen unique to venomous snakes. It was nearly two feet thick and perhaps forty feet long. Yet its enormous yellow eyes, like giant lightbulbs, had become utterly dim, while black blood continuously gushed from them.

Its eyes had been blinded.

"Well done, Fawkes... You have neutralized the Basilisk's most powerful weapon!" Professor Dumbledore praised.

"This... the monster... in Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets..." Harry stammered.

"Yes, Harry." Dumbledore patted his shoulder. "A snake, which is why you could hear strange sounds whenever it attacked... More precisely, a Basilisk, a terrifying magical creature created by Dark wizards. Its fangs are extraordinarily venomous, and the gaze of those large yellow eyes is fatal, so we must be careful."

Harry nodded blankly, not quite understanding why Professor Dumbledore was explaining so much to him.

"Leave the rest to me, Albus!" Professor Flitwick cried, drawing his wand and rushing forward.

His small, slender frame looked almost comical next to the enormous Basilisk.

But only seconds later, Harry suddenly understood why Flitwick was said to have been a dueling champion in his youth.

Flitwick waved his wand gracefully, and countless huge rocks around him began to float, as though completely under his control... Then, one after another, the massive stones slammed into the giant snake.

The giant snake was smashed violently against the wall, letting out a miserable hiss.

"You will not hurt my students again, monster!" Professor Flitwick roared.

The Basilisk struggled desperately, but it seemed unable to move any longer. Vine after vine grew from the walls, binding the giant snake firmly in place. Many of the vines sprouted thorns that pierced its thick skin.

"Devil's Snare and Ghost Vine!" Professor Sprout muttered to herself. "Powerful binding and paralysis effects. Even if you were a dragon, you'd stay right here. Don't even think about escaping."

The small animal skeletons on the ground suddenly rose into the air one by one, startling Ron.

It was Professor McGonagall. She was transforming the animals' remaining bones into birds with sharp beaks... Countless birds began to fly and circle around them.

"Oppugno!" Professor McGonagall shouted her spell.

All the birds shot toward the giant snake like heavy golden bullets.

Each bird's sharp beak plunged viciously into the Basilisk's body before exploding across its flesh. The giant snake's screams did not stop for a long time.

Throughout it all, it had almost no chance to fight back.

Snape could no longer bear to watch. He stepped forward a few paces and raised his wand.

A terrible spell struck the Basilisk.

Then the Basilisk's skin split apart as though slashed by an invisible sword, sending black blood spraying everywhere. Piece after piece of dark green snakeskin was carved away by Snape's spell, revealing chunks of black-and-white flesh beneath. The sight was almost unbearable.

At the same time, the Devil's Snare that had bound the Basilisk was severed by Snape's spell.

The Basilisk regained its freedom once more. Though it looked to be in extreme pain, it still struggled onward, crawling toward the lowest level of the Chamber of Secrets and leaving a deep trail of blood behind it.

Professor Flitwick wanted to chase after it, but Dumbledore held him back.

"Let me go, Filius," Professor Dumbledore said calmly. "Perhaps you can search around here and see whether you can find the diary Miss Weasley mentioned?"

"Alright, Headmaster Dumbledore." Flitwick nodded. "Leave it to us."

Then Dumbledore waved to Harry. "Harry, come with me!"

Harry froze for a moment. It was only after Hermione gave him a push from behind that he followed.

"Professor, why are you bringing me along?" Harry asked quietly, somewhat confused.

"Perhaps you have already faced enough danger, but gaining more combat experience is never a bad thing," Dumbledore explained with a smile.

At the same time, Fawkes the Phoenix dropped a tattered object into Harry's hands.

It was filthy, wrinkled, and patched in several places—the school's battered old Sorting Hat.