Harry strained his neck and peeked around the walls. "I can't even see the statue from here. I think I can just go up there, say the words, and then run back here."
"That's risky, Harry. What if it jumps out and attacks you instantly?"
"Don't you think it might at least wait to ascertain who I am and what I want before killing me?" Harry asked.
Bellatrix shook her head negatively. "It's a snake, Harry, and a very intelligent one at that. If this dark lord is so smart, he's bound to have taken precautions against this asset being turned against him."
"Then what do you suggest?" Harry asked, feeling a little bit cross.
"Try your image projection spell," Bellatrix told him. "If it doesn't work out, we don't lose anything."
Harry shrugged and drew his wand. He pointed the wand at the floor and muttered the incantation. Magic whispered in its arcane, though silent way, and Harry felt his presence gliding across the Chamber of Secrets to a position in front of the statue. He came to a halt, and his form materialized in front of the statue. Appearing as if he really were in front of the statue, Harry looked up into its eyes and spoke in Parseltongue. " Speak to me, Slytherin, Greatest of Hogwarts Four!"
Slytherin's mouth opened, and Harry stood transfixed, staring at the dark opening. Abruptly, he felt someone poking his arm. Reflexively, he looked down at his side before realizing he wasn't really standing there. Quickly realizing that it must be Bellatrix, he ended the spell and found himself looking at Bellatrix's face.
"Don't be stupid," she hissed.
"Sorry," said Harry.
"Tell yourself that you're sorry," grumbled Bellatrix, quite obviously trying to strain and listen for sounds of the basilisk exiting its hole. "You're the one that could have gotten killed."
"So, you were able to feel me even though you couldn't see me?" Harry asked, curious about her being able to poke him while he was using the image projection spell.
"Yes, now be quiet," said Bellatrix as she shifted the struggling rooster into a position from where she could remove the silencing charm.
Harry and Bellatrix stood quietly, straining to hear for any sign that the basilisk had entered the chamber through the statue. A number of odd sounds could be heard, but neither Harry nor Bellatrix were sure whether it was the basilisk.
"Make it some bait," Bellatrix said in a deathly still voice. She pointed Harry's attention down to a small rock that would make a good transfiguration candidate.
Harry nodded, pointed his wand at the rock, and transfigured it into an unusually large rat. Before the newly-created rat could gain its senses, Harry pointed his wand and banished it away from their position in the makeshift bunker. A very loud thud signified that it had collided with a column or statue.
The rat began squealing loudly, and then they heard the basilisk roar. They then listened as the basilisk slithered, lunged, and roared while the rat squealed and squeaked.
"I would have thought the rat would die nearly instantly, what with the basilisk's eyes," Bellatrix said, a frown on her face.
"Well, maybe the rat has been lucky and has avoided looking into its eyes," Harry theorized, remembering clearly that Filch's cat had been one of the basilisk's victims during his second year at Hogwarts. There was no chance that the rat was immune to the basilisk's stare. "Are you going to let the rooster crow or are we going to completely sacrifice the rat?" Harry asked.
Bellatrix looked at Harry flatly. "It was a very ugly rat, Harry."
"I can't really say I'm fond of rats either," Harry admitted, as another roar and squeal, followed by a sickening crunching noise marked the end of the transfigured rat's life.
Bellatrix smirked, pointed her wand at the rooster, and then removed the silencing charm. Despite this, the rooster chose to remain silent. "I think you bought a defective rooster, Harry."
"They're supposed to crow whenever there is light," Harry complained.
Bellatrix glanced up at the glowing orbs Harry had used to light the chamber. "Try some normal fire," Bellatrix suggested, "or something more like sunlight, anyway. Either that or transfigure another animal. Maybe a pig, this time." A sound that sounded like it might be the basilisk's scales sliding over the stone floor of the chamber became louder. "Hurry!" she urged.
Harry conjured a very large fireball and lobbed it up in the air. The rooster stared at the fireball and then finally crowed, making the Chamber of Secrets sound vaguely like the friendly barnyard it wasn't. The basilisk shrieked, and Harry and Bellatrix were forced to cover their ears. The basilisk's death cries continued for nearly a minute before a thud marked its falling to the floor.
"Mission accomplished," Harry declared. "Let's go take a look."
Bellatrix put a hand on Harry's shoulder and held him back. "I think it would be better if we stayed here for a few minutes," she said. "We can't be sure that it's completely dead, you know. There's also the possibility that it might still spasm or that maybe its eyes are still capable of killing or stunning."
Harry winced. "With that logic, we'll never be sure whether it is safe to come out or not."
Bellatrix pointed to another small pebble. "Transfigure us a pig, Harry. We'll set it loose. If it can wander around the chamber for a while without anything bad happening, we'll call it good."
"Good plan," Harry said. He transfigured the rock into a pig of normal size and tried to set it loose. It was reluctant to move from the bunker until Bellatrix cast a few stinging charms at its rump. She also decided to send the rooster away, though it, however, was happy to leave the custody of those that had imprisoned it for the past day and a half.
Harry cast a few cleaning charms at the nasty floor and then sat down. Bellatrix followed suit and was soon leaning against the wall of their makeshift bunker with Harry. "How long do we have to wait, do you suppose?" Harry asked.
Bellatrix shrugged. "I don't know. I'm sure we can find something to talk about that will help the time pass quickly."
"Sure," Harry shrugged.
....
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