Thick stone pillars stood around the dimly lit hall.
They squatted upon the damp, dust-covered floor, supporting the ceiling that vanished into the darkness overhead. Great snakes coiled around the pillars, each seeming alive, their enormous amber gemstone eyes glaring maliciously at the uninvited guests in the chamber.
Zheng Qing stood at the end of the hall, inexplicably feeling that the place resembled an enormous coffin.
Hermione clutched his robe—Zheng Qing could clearly feel the Little Witch trembling—and the chilling silence made all three young wizards edge a little closer to him.
"The difference between fear and fearlessness lies in the light."
Zheng Qing reassured them in his usual tone. He drew The Wand with his other hand and pointed it diagonally ahead. "—In the darkness, light truly can grant us strength... The Moon Rises Brightly!"
His voice struck the surrounding walls, producing hollow, resounding echoes.
Along with the echoes, a point of white light emerged from the tip of his wand and floated into the air. It swelled in the wind, transforming in moments into a full moon that cast clear moonlight across the floor, illuminating the gloomy hall completely. Stone pillars, sculptures, portraits, murals—everything shrouded in darkness and shadow was exposed to their sight.
The unease born of the unknown immediately faded by more than half.
The three young wizards tilted their heads back, staring foolishly as the moon rose higher and higher until it finally hung beneath the ceiling. Harry drew in a soft breath. A huge basilisk sculpture hung upside down from the ceiling, its body coiled, its head facing downward, its eyes shut. Under the moon's glow, the scales on its body gleamed emerald green.
It seemed to sense the gazes fixed upon it from below.
The basilisk sculpture slowly raised its eyelids, revealing two