Harry looked toward the source of the sound. The Sorting Hat had been knocked away by the Basilisk's thrashing body as it writhed in pain. It landed right on top of Harry. He caught it in his arms and suddenly felt something long and hard inside.
He pulled out a silver sword, much longer than the hat. Harry had no time to wonder how it had been stuffed inside. At least he had a weapon now.
On the other side, the Basilisk broke free of Fawkes and charged at Harry. Its mouth gaped wide, and its two largest fangs looked even longer than the sword in Harry's hand. An eerie green light gleamed on them. The venom would surely be enough to finish him off.
"Serpensortia!"
"Expelliarmus!"
Ron and Draco, standing on either side of the Basilisk, both acted at once, hoping to buy Harry some time.
"..." x4
Ron: "You think an ordinary snake can take down a Basilisk?!"
Draco: "And you're any better, Weasley? Were you planning to disarm its fangs?"
Fortunately, their arguing worked. The Chamber of Secrets was so vast that their voices echoed easily, and by the time Riddle had pointed the Basilisk in the right direction again, Harry had already climbed to a higher spot and readied himself to fight.
The Basilisk lunged at Harry, and Harry raised the sword with all his strength. The fangs pierced his arm, while the sword thrust through the Basilisk's upper jaw and straight into its brain.
The boy and the serpent both fell. But Fawkes was more than just a pretty bird. He pressed his beautiful head against the spot where the Basilisk's fangs had pierced Harry. A pearl-like tear fell onto the wound. Harry remembered what Dumbledore had told him that night: Phoenix Tears had healing properties.
"You're one lucky boy, Harry." Voldemort still seemed to have everything under control. "Actually, this is even better. I can deal with you myself once I've fully revived. Oh, it seems you have a little problem to handle before I'm fully revived."
For some reason, the creature that had been pierced by the sword began moving again. Its vitality was so great that it hadn't quite died yet. Summoning its last bit of strength, it tried to drag the little thing that had killed it down to hell with it.
"Hundred-step Flying Sword!"
A red Horizontal Saber flew in. Its violent Sword Qi churned the Basilisk's skull into a bloody mess. At last, the thousand-year-old Basilisk was dead.
The four of them looked toward the entrance. Bing Huan had made it there with Hermione supporting him, and in his other hand was Crimson Trail, which had just flown back to him.
"I remember you, you annoying Eastern brat. But you're so weak now. That last strike was your final attack, wasn't it? So how are you going to face a fully revived, young, and vigorous Voldemort?"
"Then we just won't face him." Bing Huan seemed completely at ease, as though everything had already been settled.
"Still putting on a brave face? If you'd saved that last strike for when I'd just revived, you might actually have succeeded. What a shame. Your meaningless loyalty to your companions has doomed you. Now then, let's—wait. Why isn't my power continuing to grow? No, it's draining away!"
Bing Huan pointed at his head, then gestured toward the diary, telling Voldemort to look. When the Basilisk had fallen, one of its fangs had pierced the diary.
Ink gushed from the diary. Voldemort twisted, shrieked, and struggled, then finally disappeared. A flash of fire appeared, and Fawkes brought Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall to the Chamber.
"You nearly scared me to death, especially when Madam Pomfrey told me that Miss Granger, who had been petrified, had disappeared."
Harry told the two professors everything that had happened. This time, he also shared more of his concerns with them, such as his Parseltongue and the Sorting Hat's initial wish to place him in Slytherin.
Dumbledore picked up the pierced diary and shook his head. "He could have become Hogwarts' finest graduate." Then he picked up the long sword and showed it to Harry.
"Engraved on it is the name Godric Gryffindor. Harry, you do have Slytherin qualities, but you chose Gryffindor. And only a true Gryffindor could draw Gryffindor's Sword."
"Ah!" Bing Huan suddenly cried out. Everyone turned to look at him.
"I know plant magic! Couldn't I have just forced the Mandrakes to grow faster? Ow, I completely forgot in the rush." He said this, then his eyes rolled back and he fainted.
They hurried him to the Hospital Wing. After Madam Pomfrey examined him, she confirmed that Bing Huan was simply weak from using his powers while suffering from blood loss. A couple of days' rest would be enough.
Once they were sure Bing Huan was all right, Hermione stopped Dumbledore.
"What is it, Miss Granger?"
"Professor Dumbledore, could you check whether something's wrong with my memory?"
Before Professor McGonagall could ask anything, Dumbledore silenced her with a gesture. Hermione followed him to the Headmaster's Office. Unlike Harry, who had been drawn to other things when he came in, Hermione was captivated by the dazzling array of books on the shelves.
"I expected this day to come a little later, Miss Granger."
"What do you mean?" Hermione was puzzled. The old man in front of her seemed to have known for a long time that something was wrong with her memory.
"Because I was the one who sealed your memories in the first place."
Hermione: ∑(O_O;)
Three days later,
Hermione ate lunch, bored out of her mind. She was beginning to believe what Bing Huan had said. She couldn't get through even a single day without him.
In the School Infirmary, Bing Huan stared helplessly at the adults in front of him. "It wasn't me. I just woke up. Did you really have to come and talk to me about this right now?"
Grindelwald shrugged. "If you were able to get out of bed, your first stop would probably be to see your little girlfriend. Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let you leave in your current state anyway, so why not chat with a few old-timers?"
Bing Huan said, "...But, Old Dumbledore, I've noticed something."
"What?"
"Have you noticed? For the last two years, we've beaten Voldemort without relying on our wands, right? And Harry's loved charging straight at danger since his first year.
"Now Ron and Draco have the same problem. Back then, neither of them even dared to go into the Forbidden Forest. And now? They're willing to cast spells at a Basilisk, all while shouting their heads off. If Fawkes hadn't blinded the Basilisk beforehand, those three would've been done for. Is a wizard's final form just a berserker?"
Lucius said, "Draco's that impressive now?"
Dumbledore stroked his beard and laughed without a care. "Those are just matters of technique. They can be corrected later. What matters more is that they have good character."
Bing Huan said, "Really... can that still be corrected?"
By dinnertime, Madam Pomfrey finally let Bing Huan go. He ran to the Great Hall and spotted those few people right away.
"Oi!"
Hermione turned around and saw the person she'd been longing for standing in the doorway. She ran over excitedly and threw herself into Bing Huan's arms.
"I'm back."
"Don't ever do that again."
"Okay~ Next time, I definitely won't be so weak."
Hermione punched Bing Huan. "That's not all I meant."
"What else? I haven't made you mad lately, have I?"
"I remember now."
"What?"
"Everything. Being eight, my birthday, the vampire..."
"..." Bing Huan hugged her a little tighter. "I'm glad you remembered."
They only blushed and returned to their seats after Professor McGonagall walked by and couldn't help clearing her throat. At dinner, Dumbledore announced a Special Award for Services to the School for the five of them. He also informed all the students that exams were canceled this year. The Great Hall erupted in celebration. (Except for Hermione.)
The next day, the five of them, who had no classes, sat by a lake outside, basking in the sun. To Harry's surprise, Dobby, the House-elf he hadn't seen in a long time, appeared before them.
Harry said, "Dobby!"
"It's been a long time, Harry Potter."
Ron asked, "Can you come and go whenever you want now?"
"Dobby is free!"
Bing Huan said, "What's that supposed to mean? You're free? Oh!" Hermione smacked him on the head with a book.
"What? So, Dobby, how did you get your freedom back?"
Dobby looked at Harry gratefully. "It's all thanks to Harry Potter. My master freed me because of him, so Dobby can grant Harry Potter one wish."
"Then~ stop trying to save my life."
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" x6
And the good news didn't end there. That night, Hagrid returned to Hogwarts, his name cleared. Thanks to Zhang San's efforts, Fudge paid the price for the wrongful verdict he had handed down. Even so, nothing could make up for the fifty years Hagrid had lost.
But Hagrid believed that the days ahead would be much more meaningful.
You ask about the House Cup? Do you even know what it means to have Gryffindor "winning" so much?
Before you continue