Chapter 10: The Chamber

My first week back at Hogwarts was a whirlwind of classes, homework, and planning. I had made up my mind to kill the basilisk. It was a dangerous move, but necessary. As a Muggle-born, especially being a Muggle-born in Slytherin, I was a target, and I wasn't about to wait for the snake to come after me. The Room of Requirement became my training ground.

Every evening, I slipped away, making my way to the seventh floor. The Room was always ready for me, transforming into the perfect training space for my needs. First on my list was figuring out how to fight the basilisk without meeting its deadly gaze, and with that I realized that fighting it head on would be extremely stupid, so I needed to catch it off guard and kill it fast, but I still needed to avoid its gaze.

Training to walk and fight blindfolded was the hardest part. The Room created various scenarios for me to navigate. At first, I stumbled and tripped, missing my target by a mile. But slowly, I got the hang of it. My other senses sharpened, compensating for my lack of sight. The Room was unforgiving, but it was exactly what I needed.

I also practiced transfiguring objects into living creatures. Specifically, I turned chairs into roosters. Their crowing was known to be like kryptonite to a basilisk. I needed them to weaken the basilisk. After a few days, I had perfected the spell.

The next part of my preparation was learning the Killing Curse since it was the most Effective and fast way to kill the snake. Most people struggled with it because they lacked the will to kill and the necessary negative emotions. For me, it wasn't a problem. I had made peace with killing a long time ago. The incantation and wand movement was simple enough, but the intent behind it required focus. It took a few tries, but soon, I could cast the curse without hesitation.

The final part of my preparation was to gain access to the Chamber of Secrets. The Room provided me with a book on Parseltongue. Apparently, it wasn't exclusive to Slytherin's bloodline. Apparently, old Salazar Slytherin was really fond of lying out of his ass. Parseltongue was an actual language used by other wizarding communities, mostly in India. I only needed to learn one word: "open." It wasn't that easy, and I practiced for a couple more days until I was confident in my pronunciation.

With my preparations nearly complete, I turned my attention to Ginny Weasley. I needed to get Tom Riddle's diary from her. For two days, I followed her under the Disillusionment Charm, learning her schedule and waiting for the perfect moment. She was always surrounded by friends or in the library, making it difficult to catch her alone.

Finally, my opportunity came. Ginny was walking down a deserted corridor, carrying a stack of books. I waited until she was distracted, then bumped into her, causing her to drop everything.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" I said, crouching down to help her pick up the scattered books.

"It's fine," she mumbled, looking flustered.

As I handed her books back, I slipped the diary under my robes, casting a small Confundus Charm on her to ensure she wouldn't notice its absence.

"I'm really sorry about that," I repeated, giving her a sheepish smile.

"No problem," she said, her eyes a bit glazed. "I should get going."

I watched her walk away, satisfied that she was none the wiser. With the diary in my possession, I had everything I needed.

Back in the Room of Requirement, I went over my plan one last time. The blindfold, the rooster, the Killing Curse, and the word to open the Chamber. I was ready; it felt like getting ready for a hit. It actually made me feel nostalgic, except this time my target was an overgrown snake that learned how to be racist.

The following night, I slipped out of bed and made my way to the second floor, avoiding Peeves and Filch. The bathroom was deserted, just as I had hoped. I approached the sink, took a deep breath, and whispered the word I had practiced so many times.

"hss…Open."

The sink shifted, revealing a dark tunnel. I glanced at the rooster, now perched on my shoulder, and stepped into the abyss.

The tunnel was damp and dark, the air thick with an ancient, musty smell. I navigated the twists and turns trying to make the least amount of noise possible, my senses alert for any sign of the basilisk. my mind was clear. I knew what I had to do.

Finally, I reached the end of the tunnel. I peeked through the corner and saw The Chamber of Secrets open, vast and echoing. The statue of Salazar Slytherin loomed above, and at its base, I saw the slithering form of the basilisk. It hadn't noticed me yet.

I put on my blindfold and released the rooster. It crowed loudly, the sound echoing off the walls. The basilisk hissed in pain, thrashing about in complete confusion.

I started getting closer, and when I could actually feel the foul stench of the beast, I pointed my wand.

"Avada Kedavra!" I shouted, aiming where I thought the basilisk was.

There was a flash of green light, and the hissing stopped. I removed the blindfold and saw the massive serpent lying still, its eyes dull and lifeless. Relief washed over me, but I knew I wasn't done yet.

That was the first time I had used the killing curse on something living, it was a weird sensation, I would think about that later.

I approached the dead snake and, with some help from spells, managed to remove one of its fangs.

I approached the diary and opened it. Tom Riddle appeared in front of me, his face full of rage and indignation.

"You think you've won?" he raged. "This isn't over."

I did not even bother with a reply; I simply smirked and flipped him off.

I proceeded to stab the diary with the basilisk fang. Riddle let out a guttural scream and disappeared. The diary released some sort of pulse, and everything went quiet after that.

With the basilisk dead and the diary destroyed, I made my way back through the tunnel and closed the entry, feeling a sense of grim satisfaction. The threat was over, and I had ensured my own safety.

1 out of 7 Horcruxes down.

Back in the dorms, I slipped into bed, my mind racing with the night's events. I had done what needed to be done, and now I could focus on the rest of the school year without that shadow hanging over me.

The next day, I was in the Great Hall eating breakfast, and I let out a small chuckle as I watched the other students going about their day, unaware of the threat that had been hiding under their beds. This was going to be a calm year from now on. Next year's problem was all up to Harry. I did not care about Sirius Black.