A/N: Yes, I know it isn't the first Sunday of the month. Though I'm currently in the middle of my final exams and that pushed writing back a bit hence the delay…but it is done and that is what matters.

Chapter 15: Harry James Potter – Consulting Detective

The question now was, is Augusta Longbottom with him or against him?

Her entire demeanour indeed pointed towards the latter.

Marvolo observed the older woman for some time when he realised what she was after. She wanted to see how he would react. A reaction he could give her. With a faint smile, he sat back in the chair and calmly sipped his tea.

"You seem very calm for someone who has to fear that his secrets get exposed to the world," Augusta finally asked after a few more moments with a hint of amusement in her tone.

"Ah, but I don't think that you'll expose me," Marvolo replied with a chuckle. "For one, it looks to me that as long as I don't pose a threat to you or your grandson, you're more content watching me making Dumbledore's life harder. Or you would long since have brought to light what you know.

"Then there is also the fact that you backed some of the latest laws and regulations I brought before the Wizengamot," he continued now with a smirk. "Yes, I keep close eyes on who votes for and who against my bills. This shows me that you at least partly agree with my agenda. It wouldn't be a good political move to take out the one who furthers said agenda.

"Lastly, you also have your grandson to think about. If you expose me to the world, Dumbledore surely will want to start another war against me. However, with Harry no longer under his thumb – worse, working with me –, who do you think he will drag to the front as his symbol for the light? You know what he already did to your grandson. I doubt that he'd stop at that should Neville refuse, which I think very likely.

"So, yes, you could expose me, but I doubt that you will unless I give you an excellent reason to do so."

Silence reigned in the room until Augusta began to laugh.

"I see you lost none of your wits, and it is good to see that you regained your sanity. I always thought that it was a great loss for the wizarding world that you walked down the path you did," she finally said. "I have to wonder what Lucius Malfoy did to anger you so much to deserve his fate when you can stay so relaxed while facing possible exposure."

Now it was upon Marvolo to chuckle.

"That would assume that it was me who sealed his fate," he replied with a vicious smirk.

"Mr Potter?" Augusta asked, shocked.

"Indeed. Harry can be very protective of those he deems worthy of his attention. Lucius made the mistake of insulting the goblins in Harry's presence and consequently lost his entire wealth," Marvolo explained in a proud tone. "When he then later attacked Harry in retaliation while he had his back to the man…you surely can understand that I couldn't let that one go."

Augusta nodded solemnly. She could understand very well that Marvolo wouldn't let something like that go unpunished. Merlin, she would happily rip anyone to shreds who attacked her grandson while his back was turned. Attacking the heir of an old family was bad enough but being so cowardly and not even facing him directly...

"Would anyone try that with Neville, they should be glad if their body was ever found."

"That brings me back to the second reason for why I wanted to meet you today," Marvolo said, bringing them back to the original topic. "I offer you to remove both the block on Neville's magic as well the other spells found."

Again, Augusta looked at him for a long time, contemplating whether to accept the offer or not. She knew very well that Marvolo had ulterior motives. The question was, what were they.

"A clever political move for sure, offering the family who leads the Neutrals in the Wizengamot to help with such a matter," she mused but wondered whether there was more to the offer.

"I would lie would I say that wouldn't appreciate your help within the Wizengamot," Marvolo conceded. "However, my main reason for offering my help is that Mr Longbottom is Harry's friend hence why this offer comes with no obligations for House Longbottom."

"So, it is Mr Potter you want indebted to you?" she questioned with narrowed eyes, trying to determine whether Marvolo was merely abusing Harry's trust.

Marvolo though shook his head.

"It is the other way around. I'm repaying Harry for everything he did for me," he said in a solemn voice. "Without Harry, I wouldn't be here. Wouldn't pursue my goals politically and helping to better the British Wizarding World instead of destroying it. He is not only the reason why I'm back but also that my sanity is restored. Harry also showed me quite a few things that are amiss with the magical world and that I'm set on changing."

"So, in essence, you're keeping Mr Potter safe and happy so that he keeps helping you. Well, as long as it helps the magical world and doesn't endanger my grandson or Mr Potter, I can agree with this," she conceded.

"It is more than that," Marvolo said in a distant voice, deep in thought. "It is true that at first, I only saw in him means to further my own agenda. However, over the summer, I have to admit that he grew on me. Now I see in him more a son I never thought I would have."

That confession truly shocked Augusta. She would never have thought, that the man she once knew as a cold and aloof boy, would see the boy who managed to defeat him as his son. But here they were, and she could see that Marvolo truly meant it. Not even all his masks were able to hide the pride and dare she say love for the boy. Calling it surprising would be the understatement of the century.

Dumbledore always insisted, that Marvolo wouldn't be able to love anyone and that he was practically born evil, but she never truly believed that. Sure, Tom Marvolo Riddle never was a light boy and ending on the wrong end of his wand had been a grave mistake even back in school. However, he only became the evil psychopath Dumbledore painted him as when he lost his sanity during the war.

Love…well how was that defined anyway? Could you call genuinely caring for a person loving him? If so then yes she was sure that Marvolo loved Harry, just in his own way.

"Is that so?" she questioned him.

Marvolo narrowed his eyes at her. "I would do nearly everything to keep him safe and happy," he said with a sneer. "Harry already suffered enough in his short life and not in a small part because of my actions. It is a small miracle that he helped me at all. I have no desire to do anything that would lose me his trust."

Augusta though only chuckled, not in the least bit intimidated by the glare that the man sent her way.

"Good then you know what I'll do to you should your ritual harm Neville in any way."

Marvolo was surprised with how easily Augusta relented and agreed to him performing the ritual to get rid of Neville's core-block. She hadn't even asked about the ritual, but considering how old the House Longbottom is, it stood to reason that she knew the cleansing ritual. Especially with what happened to her son and daughter-in-law, it was more than surprising that she agreed at all.

But then she was right, he knew what he would do should Harry come to harm and he doubted that she would be any different regarding her grandson.

"Indeed," he replied with a curt bow of his head.

With that topic done with, they discussed other things like Dumbledore, politics and even a bit of their shared past. Marvolo had to admit that it was quite pleasant talking with someone who knew who he was and didn't cower in fear or defer to him. All in all, it was a lovely morning and he wouldn't be averse to repeat it sometime in the future.

It was Sunday late afternoon when Marvolo stepped through Severus' floo in his rooms. Quickly scanning the room, he saw that he was alone. So, he sent a small paper bird with a message to both Severus and Harry, before he walked over to the kitchen and made himself a tea.

He had to wait fifteen minutes before the door opened and Harry came in followed by Draco. Draco bowed to him curtly, while Harry just slumped down in a chair. Marvolo shook his head in amusement over the boy's antics, not in the least perturbed by them. All Harry wanted to achieve was to get a rise out of him but that was something he wouldn't give him. Though seeing him try was always quite amusing.

"Good afternoon, Sir," Draco greeted him.

"Draco," he replied.

They fell into a comfortable silence, Harry reading a book about dark curses he stored in Severus' rooms as not to be caught having it since it wasn't legal to own it. Draco was leafing through a Potions magazine he found on the table while Marvolo sipped his tea.

It was another five minutes later that the door opened again and Severus, followed by a very nervous Neville, entered.

Severus bowed curtly with a "My Lord", copied by Neville who greeted Marvolo with a "Lord Slytherin".

"Heir Longbottom," Marvolo greeted him, gesturing him to take a seat. "I had a very enlightening meeting with your grandmother this morning and discussed the removal of the block on your core with her. She agreed with me that it would be better to remove it as soon as possible and allows me to do so under the condition," he added with a slight grimace at the memory. "That you come to no harm."

Harry, of course, saw it and grinned.

"What? Did she threaten you?" he asked amusedly. "That I would have loved to see."

"Of course, you would," Marvolo shot back with a sneer but there was no heat behind it before he turned back to Neville. "If you don't object, I would suggest removing the block now. The entire procedure will take an hour at most though it is very draining. I suggest that you rest afterwards. You should be fine by tomorrow morning."

Neville fidgeted a bit, but after a few moments, he straightened his back and nodded resolutely. His granny agreed to this and he trusted her decision. It was interesting to see that even the Dark Lord was wary of his granny's reaction should he come to harm. This reassured him more than any words would.

"Where do we do this?" he therefor asked.

"There is a ritual room in the dungeons not far from here that will suit our needs. The ritual itself is fairly simple. You'll have to lie in the middle of the ritual circle while I perform the cleansing," he explained. "Though what I cannot promise you is that the ritual will be entirely painless. Especially with the block on your core, it is bound to be extremely painful. I strongly suggest that you don't fight against unconsciousness should it want to claim you."

Neville winced but nodded. He wasn't a stranger with pain, with his uncle trying to get him to perform magic and all, but that didn't mean that he wasn't wary about what was to come.

After a few more words of advice, Marvolo led Neville out of the room, followed by Harry and Severus. They both would wait outside for the ritual to finish, Severus in case his healing abilities were needed and Harry because Neville asked him to.

It was halfway to the ritual room that the twins came sprinting after them.

"Wait," George wheezed out, gasping lungs full of air.

"Dumbledore and the Idiot Brigade are on their way here," Fred took over, equally breathless as his brother.

Harry's eyes widened. "Estimated time?" he demanded to know.

When Dumbledore and his blasted former friends including Ginny – whom the twins came to call the Idiot Brigade since they didn't seem to get the memo that Harry couldn't care less about them – came their way, he certainly had to hide Neville. There was no chance in hell that he wanted the boy to be seen together with them and place him in even more danger. Not when he just managed to break free.

"Two minutes max," Fred instantly replied.

"Fuck," Harry swore. "Can you hide somewhere close?"

The twins nodded and without another word sprinted down from where they came before vanishing behind a tapestry. Harry, on the other hand, dug into the bag he always wore at his belt and pulled out his cloak before throwing it over Neville who looked utterly confused.

"You have an invisibility cloak?" Marvolo questioned surprised when he saw what it did. "Do you know how rare those are?"

"It is probably the blasted cloak from his father," Severus growled but instantly cleared his face of any emotions when they heard hurried footsteps coming closer.

"Professor, I tell you, they cannot be up to any good," the know-it-all voice of Granger echoed to them.

It seemed that recently Granger got over the happenings on the train and was back to her usual, very annoying self. Pity.

"You're right but now hush," Dumbledore admonished them right when they came into sight.

"Ah, Severus and Harry, my boy," he greeted them with a grandfatherly smile. "And Lord Slytherin. I didn't know you were here?!"

Dumbledore made it sound like general curiosity, but all three of them knew that he was prying for information.

"Headmaster," Marvolo greeted cordially. "I thought I should familiarise myself with the legacy left by my ancestor. Professor Snape offered to give me a tour and when we met Harry, he decided to join us."

"Why didn't you call me? I would gladly tell you everything that there is to know about the castle," the headmaster wondered in apparent disappointment. "You should have informed me about your visit anyway so that no one gets the wrong impression. See, young Ms Granger as well as Mr and Ms Weasley saw you and are worried about what an unknown man was doing in the castle."

Marvolo sighed deeply. This was highly inconvenient. He wanted to get the ritual done in a timely manner and not trade verbal barbs with Dumbledore. Usually, he liked getting a hit on Dumbledore but today wasn't one of those days.

"Headmaster, you should know that, as the Lord of the Slytherin line, it is not only my right but also my obligation to visit the castle regularly to ensure that everything is going as it should. For that, I don't need to inform anyone," he patiently explained. "I looked it up myself so that I wouldn't go against any rules."

The twinkle in Dumbledore's eyes dimmed considerably. Disappointment and anger stole itself on his face.

"I would ask you nonetheless to inform me beforehand," he told the man.

"If I find the time to do so," Marvolo replied dismissively. "Now was that all? I don't have all day."

It seemed that Weasley's patience ran out. Not that the boy had much, to begin with.

"We saw Longbottom with you! What did you do to him?" he accused the three. "Where is he?"

"Longbottom? Do I look like his nanny to you?" Severus spat in disgust and with his trademark sneer as if it was the worst thing in this universe. "That incompetent, foolish dunderhead is probably in the Gryffindor common room where he belongs. I cannot fathom what he would want in the dungeons outside of potions classes."

Harry could feel how Neville tensed next to him but had to commend him for not reacting in any other way. They both knew that Severus had to play his part, but that didn't mean that Neville was unaffected by it.

"I see," Dumbledore muttered, stroking his beard. "Well, I'll leave you to explore the castle then, Lord Slytherin. Have a nice afternoon."

"Headmaster," Marvolo said with a curt nod of his head, mirrored by Harry.

"Albus," Severus added with a glare at the three children.

They watched as the four turned around and walked back to where they came from. Shortly after the group walked around a corner, they heard Ron calling Severus a greasy git. The boy obviously thought they were out of hearing range.

"Mr Weasley, twenty points from Gryffindor for calling a professor names," Severus called after them with satisfaction.

The result was that Weasley spluttered in outrage while Granger began to loudly admonish him.

Once they weren't able to hear them anymore, Marvolo whipped out his wand and scanned the corridor for other life signs but didn't find any other than them and the twins hiding behind the tapestry. Nodding to where he knew Neville stood, the boy took the cloak off and handed it back to Harry with a muttered "thanks".

"No problem," Harry replied. "I don't want to know what Dumbledore would do should he get proof that you're not under his influence anymore. Just be careful in the future."

"I will," Neville said with a solemn nod.

The four set into motion again and a few more feet down the corridor, they reached a heavy wooden door. It opened with a flick of Marvolo's hand. Torches flared to life, revealing a large round room with an altar in the middle made of black marble. Other than that the place was empty.

"Harry, you and Severus will have to wait here. No one else can be in the room," Marvolo explained. "Severus, stay ready. Neville might need medical attention once the ritual is over."

"Yes, my Lord," Severus replied with a curt bow.

Marvolo nodded. When he and a very nervous Neville were in the ritual chamber, the door closed automatically. Harry slid down the wall, left to the door and pulled a book from his bag and began to read.

However, soon his thoughts strayed to the twins and how they warned them. He had no idea how they did it, but he knew that he would have to reward them for their foresight and good thinking. It would have been horrible had Dumbledore seen Neville not only with him but also Marvolo. Neville was the man's Plan B in defeating Marvolo and learning that he not only lost his primary weapon to the Dark Lord but also his backup would make Dumbledore desperate.

Yes, he really needed to award the twins for the warning, and he already had an idea what to get them. A few rare potion ingredients to experiment with would surely help them in their endeavour of creating more pranks and…other things.

Happy that he found a solution, Harry went back to his book while he and Severus waited for the ritual to end.

It was over an hour later that the door opened again and revealed an exhausted Marvolo. Severus instantly snapped to action and handed the man a Pepper-Up potion. Once the dour man was sure that the Dark Lord wouldn't collapse any time soon, he swept into the room and over to Neville who leaned against the altar bent over.

With a few flicks of his wand, Severus determined what the boy needed. He handed over a row of potions, which Neville dutifully took without a word. Once the potions kicked in, he already looked far better than he had mere moments ago.

"Thank you, Sir," Neville told the man with more confidence than the man was used to in his presence.

"I suggest that you go straight back to your dorm and get some rest," Severus ordered him, looking him over once more to determine whether Neville was even able to reach Gryffindor tower before handing over one last vial. "This is Dreamless Sleep. Take it before lying down. It should get you through the night, without lingering pain disrupting your sleep."

Thanking the man again, Neville slowly made his way towards the door, careful not to trip over something because he was so exhausted. Outside he met Harry and Marvolo, who still looked like he could use a good night of sleep too. The twins were also there.

"Neville, the twins will bring you back to Gryffindor Tower," Harry ordered after giving him a critical once-over. "When you pass the kitchens get him something that he can eat in the dorm before going to bed."

"Consider it done, boss," the piped simultaneously before flanking Neville, placing an arm on the boy's back each and hefting him up much to his admittingly weak protest before marching down the corridor.

Harry could only shake his head over their antics and was secretly glad that it was dinnertime so that it was unlikely that they would be seen. He had to concede though that the twins had a way to get around unseen. He had no idea what those means were but he didn't really care as long as they didn't get caught.

Together with Marvolo and Severus, he made his way back to the professor's chamber where Draco was waiting for them and giving them an alibi if necessary.

Once there they said goodbye to Marvolo. Severus invited him to join him for dinner in the great hall, but the man was too exhausted and wanted to rest.

All in all, they had to agree that this had been a very productive day.

Arthur just came home from work and was enjoying the delicious dinner his lovely wife cooked for him, when the fire in the fireplace flared green, and his oldest son Bill stepped out, closely followed by his brother Charlie. Both wore serious, concerned expressions, which was strange in Arthur's opinion since both were usually quite cheerful. Something must have happened. He dreaded to learn what it was.

"Evening, dad," Charlie greeted him neutrally while looking around as if in search of something or someone. "Where is mum?"

"She apparently forgot something and went down to the village to get it," Arthur replied with a smile but nonetheless wary of what was going on. "Has something happened? You look like someone whose Kneazel got killed."

The expression on both his sons instantly darkened.

"Has something happened?! You tell us!" Bill snarled. "Not only did you disinherit our brothers just because they asked to get resorted and ended up in Slytherin at the beginning of the year, but you also deemed it not important enough to inform us about it. We only learned it through sheer happenstance a few days ago. A month into the school year!"

Arthur blinked a few times, not really comprehending what his sons accused him of. He disinherited their brothers, his sons? Because the twins – who else could they mean – were resorted into Slytherin? This had to be a cruel joke, right?

However, seeing how furious his oldest sons were, he quickly reassessed this thought.

"Wait, wait, you say I disinherited the twins? Why would I do something like that? They are my sons!" he exclaimed in shock. "I cannot remember having done anything of that sort!"

Bill and Charlie looked at each other in surprise. When they came here, they expected to be confronted with some flimsy excuses and reasoning, especially from their mother. Sure, she is the woman who birthed and raised them but the older they got, the more they saw that she didn't care, not genuinely. She always went on and on, that they should take up real jobs at the ministry. As if what they were doing was just playing around. So, it didn't come as such a surprise that their opinion of Molly wasn't that high.

However, it seems that they were lucky that said woman was currently out because something was obviously very, very wrong. Bill had some idea what that something was and should he be correct…there would be one hell to pay.

"Dad," Bill carefully said as if his father was a dangerous animal about to lash out and considering that they had no idea what exactly happened that could very well happen. "I'm sorry, but you'll have to come with me now."

"Wha-, why? I want answers first!" Arthur demanded. "You come in here and tell me that I disinherited two of my sons and now you say I should come with you? I don't think so."

Once again, Bill and Charlie looked at each other, their concern visible. After a long moment, they both nodded before Bill swiftly pulled his wand and stunned his father. It was evident that whatever happened to their father was constructed in a way that if it even remotely looked as if someone wanted to undo it, their father would retaliate.

"We need to get him to Gringotts," Bill said worriedly. "The goblins will be able to find out what has been done to him."

"Do you think it was m…Molly?" Charly questioned, not even able to call that woman his mother anymore should his suspicion be proven correct.

"I don't know, but she would be the most likely culprit. Though I don't understand what she gains from disinheriting the twins," Bill replied with a shake of his head.

He could scarcely believe what they learned in the last few minutes. What would anyone gain from all this? It wasn't that they were rich or that the twins were that important all things considered. They weren't even anywhere near inheriting the Weasley fortune, however small that was. So, why going through all the trouble to force or coerce their father to disinherit them and obviously wipe his memory of it afterwards?

"Let's hurry up before she comes back," Charlie muttered.

Bill nodded, and after giving his brother the floo address of the Gringotts employee floo, he levitated his father and went first. Charlie shook his head, wondering what was going on. With a last look around his childhood home, he followed his brother.

A week before Halloween suddenly an unknown owl flew towards the twins at lunch. They looked at each other, wondering who was writing them. The only one who wrote them regularly since they got adopted was Narcissa as she was also doing with Draco. However, she used her eagle owl, and her letters came on Sunday, asking how their week had been and whether there was anything she could do for them. It had come as quite a surprise just how much she cared and how easily she accepted and treated the twins as if they had always been her children.

The only other owl the twins received from time to time was a black one that was Marvolo's. Those letters manly contained spells for the twins to learn or books to read. Even while the twins were at Hogwarts, the man took their training seriously.

Nonetheless, the owl that just landed in front of the twins they never saw before, so they were suitably surprised. They both shrugged and after checking the envelope upon spells, Fred carefully untied it when they came back negative. After opening the envelope and rechecking the letter – which also came back negative – he pulled out the letter and unfolded it. He began to read it with his brother leaning close to read it over his shoulder.

The further they got, the more shocked and surprised they were. Once they finished reading, they looked at each other completely baffled, wondering whether this was a hoax or not.

"What's wrong? You look like someone stole your favourite toy," Harry questioned when it became apparent that the twins won't recover any time soon.

"Some-…read," Fred snarled, shoving the letter at Harry.

Harry raised an eyebrow at his friend for the tone but nonetheless took the letter and began to read. The further he got, the more his eyebrows climbed towards his hairline.

"Huh," he said in the end. "You want to go, don't you?"

"Of course, we want to go," George retorted.

"If there is any truth to this…," Fred continued.

"We always thought that dad was a pushover…."

"Always did what Molly said…."

"But this…."

"This changes everything!" they finished together.

Harry looked at them for a very long time and even Draco, Theo and Blaise looked at them in curiosity. They didn't know what was going on, but it was evident that something happened to Arthur Weasley.

"Okay," Harry conceded. "BUT! You'll write to aunt Cissa. Have her or some other adult accompany you. I don't want you running headlong into something that could very well be a trap!"

The twins opened their mouth, wanting to protest but Harry silenced them holding up his hand.

"I know that the probability of this being a trap is pretty slim though I certainly don't put it beneath the old fool to pull something like this. However, your safety is more important than some misplaced pride," he chides them sternly.

Both snapped their mouth shut and nodded solemnly. They knew that while Harry might not cry should they get hurt, he nonetheless cared. Just in his own way and to be honest, he wasn't the only one who was worried that this might be a trap. To the twins, this news sounded too god to be true. Both of them had always loved their father, more so than they had ever loved Molly. Hearing now that he might not have wanted to disown them came as a harsh blow, to learn the reason made them incredibly angry.

They badly wanted to go and meet with their former father and brothers to get the full truth and if that meant that they had to invite their new mother along so mote it be.

Therefore, George pulled out two pieces of parchment, two quills and an inkbottle. Fred took one parchment and quill and promptly began to write down a reply to the invitation to meet next Hogsmead weekend one week after Halloween. George in the meantime, wrote to Narcissa, asking her to accompany them.

They dearly hoped that it wasn't a hoax, but only time would tell.

It was on Halloween when their contentment came to an abrupt end.

They were currently sitting in the great hall enjoying the Halloween feast while having some fun with hexing each other. It was nothing serious just some stinging hexes or spells to change the colour of hair and clothes. So, all in all, more on the pranking side.

For Harry, it had been quite some time since he could relax in such a manner and so he gladly participated in the hexing match with the twins and Luna. Draco, on the other hand, stayed out of it, not wanting to get into trouble himself while Theo gladly hexed the others. Blaise took the slyer approach and while he did his own fair share of hexing, none of the others suspected him of being the one.

Only when McGonagall had enough of their antics and ducted twenty points for it, they stopped. She silently wondered why Severus let it go on for so long since he's known for being very strict and since it was his own house that was behaving more like her lions usually did, she was quite surprised.

However, they all sported broad grins, not in the least perturbed by it. They would make up for it anyway and that was the only reason for why the rest of their house didn't say anything. Well, and the fact that Harry would gladly hex them into the next week without remorse if they did.

Also, the threat to end like Lucius Malfoy was a good incentive for the other Slytherins to play nice with Harry. This was especially since still, no one knew how Harry had done it in the first place.

It was around half-past nine that the feast dwindled down, and the first students went back to their common room. Harry and his friends also soon called it a day, joined their housemates and went down to the dungeons.

Harry was just in the middle of preparing for bed when suddenly the fifth-year prefect came into their dorm with a worried face.

"Mr Potter, you and your friends are expected on the second-floor corridor that leads to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom," he told them. "Dumbledore demands you come as quickly as possible."

Harry and Draco looked at each other in confusion but nodded and followed the prefect to the common room. Right behind them, Theo and Blaise walked after them. In the common room they were joined by the twins and Luna. Led by the prefect they together left and walked to the corridor on the second floor.

Five minutes later, they reached a large crowd that was blocking the way and animatedly talking about something. Even more confused, they made a way through the crowd.

Once they reached the other end of the crowd, they could finally see what all the fuss was about. In huge blood-red letters stood written on the wall:

The Chamber has been opened. Enemy of the heir beware.

Beneath it, hanging from a torch bracket was a cat that upon closer examination turned out to be Ms Norris, Filch's cat. Said man was standing to the side and wailing about how he wants the person who killed his cat being punished.

Pooling on the floor was water that none of the friends wanted to know the origins from.

To the side stood Dumbledore together with the heads of the houses as well as Lockhart, who was currently trying to convince Dumbledore that he was the only one who could find the culprit.

The twins, as well as Draco, looked surprised at the writing while Luna giggled. Theo and Blaise though seemed quite concerned. Harry rose an eyebrow but didn't say anything. Instead, he looked expectantly at Dumbledore.

"Ah, Harry, my boy, how nice that you and your friends could make it," Dumbledore greeted him, cutting Lockhart off in the middle of a recollection how he defeated a banshee once. "I would like you to tell me what the meaning of this is."

This surprised Harry because Dumbledore should be very well aware that he didn't even come close to this corridor the entire day. However, Harry knew exactly how to react to this.

"Give me a moment, and I can tell you more," he said to Dumbledore before he turned to his friends. "Guys, investigate! I need to know what happened here and possible culprits. Chop-Chop! I don't want to be here any longer than absolutely necessary."

The twins mock saluted and walked over to the large letters and began to cast several charms over it. Luna, in the meantime, ambled towards the toilet seemingly disinterested in what is going on while Theo and Blaise looked at him surprised.

When Harry looked at them expectantly, Blaise decided that seeing whether Myrtle might know something would be an excellent point to begin and walked over to the bathroom to find her. Theo, on the other hand, started to look around the scene of the crime.

Meanwhile, Draco looked at Harry in utter disbelieve. Harry gave him a pointed look upon which Draco only rolled his eyes before he walked over to the apparently dead cat and began to examine it.

They sifted through the entire area, watched by the teachers as well as the students who still lingered in the hallway. None of them knew what to think of what was going on but they all were fascinated by it.

Dumbledore, however, looked with shock and surprise how Harry's friends examined every inch.

Harry in the meantime while Dumbledore and the rest were sufficiently distracted, walked over to Neville, who stood in the front but to the side. Leaning against the wall next to his friend, he cast a glance over the students and professors.

"Have you heard anything?" he asked in a low voice.

"Nothing too helpful," Neville answered in an equally low voice. "It was Ron and Hermione who stumbled over this. They were found staring at the wall by the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws who were on their way back to their dorms. They both haven't been at the feast, but I doubt that they did it. The only other Gryffindor I found missing was Ginny Weasley."

"Interesting," Harry mused while smiling at his friend. "Thank you. Keep your eyes and ears open."

After Neville nodded at him in understanding, Harry pushed off the wall and walked back over to Dumbledore because he could see, that the others were finishing their investigation.

"We report! The letters are written in blood," the twins said militarily but nonetheless in their twin speech, being the first to finish their examination.

"Chicken blood to be precise."

"The height of the letters ranges from two to three feet, and they were drawn with the fingers but no prints were left which indicates that the culprit wore gloves."

"The perpetrator must have either used a ladder or the levitation charm on himself as the first row is at a seven feet height."

"The cat is not dead," Draco took over once the twins were done with their report. "She is only petrified, and the correct potion will have her running around in no time. Though the potion will need finely cut mandrake as an ingredient. Assuming that none can be bought on short notice, Professor Snape will have to wait until spring next year as Professor Sprout's mandrakes are still too young."

That was when Luna bounced back over to them, carrying something in her right hand.

"I found this floating in the water near the entrance of the toilet," she said while handing it over to Snape.

From what the others could see, Luna found an enormous scale though from which animal they had no idea. This, on the other hand, Snape could answer when he got Harry's approval.

The Potions Master turned to the closest torch and eyes the scale from every angle.

"This is the belly scale of a reptile, more precisely a snake. Considering its size, it must be an enormous snake of at least fifty feet. The only snake that could even remotely reach that size is a basilisk, but none has been sighted in recent history. So, it stands to reason that it has been in the castle for a very long time now or some dunderhead thought it a good idea to breed one," the man listed his findings.

"The theory that it is a Basilisk is affirmed by the fact, that I found a stream of spiders fleeing the castle despite the cold outside," Theo added. "It is known that spiders fear the Basilisk and flee from it. Furthermore, there is the belief that Salazar Slytherin himself built a Chamber somewhere in the school, leaving some kind of monster within."

That was when Blaise stepped forward. "Myrtle told me that she didn't see anything because she was sitting in the u-bent of a toilet. However, she could tell me that she heard a distinctly female voice hissing something which she didn't understand. Considering that we're dealing with a massive snake, it stands to reason that the person spoke Parseltongue."

Harry nodded and turned around to Dumbledore, pushing up his glasses that the twins had developed against the gaze of a basilisk onto his head.

All of his friends were actually wearing them. They had been approached multiple times about them and whether others could also get a pair, but they always said no. By now, everyone was convinced that it was their trademark.

Harry had also wanted to get Neville a pair, but it would have been too obvious and since neither of them wished other people to know just how close they were they desisted from it. However, the twins were currently trying to work them into contact lenses but they were having difficulties with it.

"There you have it. A person opened some kind of chamber and released a giant snake, a Basilisk. Said Basilisk then came across Ms Norris, who must have seen the snake's gaze in the water that is pooling everywhere in this corridor.

"Basilisks are known for having a deadly gaze, but I would assume that when you see it as a reflection, it doesn't kill and only petrifies you.

"Then once the deed was done, the culprit used the blood of chickens, I would assume roosters as I heard rumours that all roosters of the school have recently been killed, to paint the message on the wall and hanging the cat from the torch bracket," Harry summarised the finding of the others when an idea struck him.

"As Blaise reported, a female voice speaking Parseltongue was heard around the time the crime was committed. If you think this through to the end, the only known Parselmouth in recent history is Voldemort.

"Since you're very adamant that he isn't truly dead, it is undeniable that he found his way to Hogwarts and opened the chamber by using a girl to do the deed for him. Alternatively, there could be a Parselmouth in between the students or staff who is hiding his or her gift and who opened the chamber.

"Either way, you have a problem since this means a massive gap in the security of Hogwarts...again.

"However, there are quite a few facts that stand against this theory. For one, the oldest recorded Basilisk died at the age of 354. That means, that even if there had been a Basilisk placed in the Chamber by the founder, it would have long since died, not to mention that it would have starved long before dying of old age.

"It also has been proven through multiple sources, that Voldemort is genuinely dead so there is no way that he could have released some fictional Basilisk into the school.

"So that leaves only one other possible reason for what happened. Either some dunderhead tries to recreate the gaze of a Basilisk through magical means or someone botched a ritual or spell they had absolutely no idea what it would do and accidentally petrified Ms Norris with it. Trying to cover their blunder, they made it look like someone opened that mystical chamber and released a long-dead Basilisk blaming an equally dead Dark Lord.

"Now that you know what this means, are we done here? I'm tired and want to go to bed," he snarled the last part because seriously, why did they even call for him? "Oh, and if you think that I'll do your bloody job again by searching for the chamber...not going to happen."

Harry looked at Dumbledore expectantly though neither the headmaster nor the teachers or the students seemed to be able to form a coherent sentence, all gaping at him. Well, that was except for Snape, who obviously had a hard time to suppress a smirk and sneered at him instead.

"Harry, my boy, I fear that I cannot let you go yet. This is a severe transgression, and you know very well that the Dark Lord isn't dead...," Dumbledore began once he found his voice again but was interrupted by Harry.

"I just gave you the answers to what has happened, how it has happened and even the most likely culprit. What more do you want? The Dark Lord is dead and no amount of you denying that fact will change it.

"And before either you, or some other idiot starts to spout some nonsense about me being the culprit...20 docked points tell a different story not to mention that I'm not a girl! They are giving me an airtight alibi as Professor McGonagall can certainly confirm you," Harry growled. "Other than that, I see no valid reason for why you would want to keep me from getting my sleep. Next time you want something from me, make an appointment, I'm not going to jump just because you want me to. Except if you see Merlin running over baby unicorns on a unicycle. That I would love to see!"

With that, he turned around and walked back the way he came, parting the gathered students like Moses did with the red sea. His friends stayed behind for a moment longer, glaring at Dumbledore and his audacity before they followed him.

"Lord Slytherin surely will learn how you're leading this school and endangering the students," Draco said in parting.

Dumbledore stared after them in shock. This didn't go in the way he wanted it at all.

A/N: You didn't really think that I would forget the Weasleys, did you? 'til next chapter!