"Of course not," Hodge Blackthorn said firmly.
"Or," Tonks mused, eyeing the broom cupboard thoughtfully, "maybe you're sleepwalking? I read about it in a book my dad had—he's a Muggle, you know… but they say sleepwalkers move all stiff-like." She stared at Hodge with keen interest, as if expecting him to break into an impromptu dance to prove whether his movements were rigid or not.
With no other choice, Hodge pulled a small diary from his pocket and shoved it into Tonks's arms.
"Listen, I need you to do something important for me," he said. Tonks flipped open the diary, curiosity sparkling in her eyes. "What's this? A diary?" She turned a few pages, accidentally tearing one. "Oops, sorry! Why's it blank?"
"Remember the Chamber of Secrets?" Hodge asked.
"Of course."
"And—remember how I promised to introduce you to Dumbledore?"
At that, Tonks pouted slightly.
"I'm curious about the founder of the Order of the Phoenix," she said. "You know about the Order, right? It's a secret society that played a big role during the war. I couldn't find much about it, but once Alastor let something slip, and I remembered. Later, I found out Kingsley's part of it too, but they never talk about it in public—"
"I know," Hodge interrupted. "And now you've got a chance to talk to Dumbledore himself. I guarantee, if you show him that diary, he won't say no."
Tonks raised the diary, inspecting it. "What is this, exactly?"
"A crucial clue about the mastermind behind the Chamber," Hodge said.
"Oh," Tonks said, her interest piqued. "But why aren't you giving it to him yourself?"
"That brings us to another key piece of the Chamber puzzle. The mastermind and the one attacking the ghosts aren't the same. I've found what I think is the monster's hiding place." Tonks's eyes widened as she glanced at the cupboard. "Exactly what you're thinking. I'm staying here to keep watch. You go find Dumbledore. Hurry—don't waste time. The monster's out there, and it's hungry!"
Hodge gave Tonks a gentle push. Clutching the diary, she stumbled a few steps, nearly tripping over her own feet.
"Ow!"
Once she was gone, Hodge took a deep breath and approached a sunken section of the wall. With a firm push, the wall crumbled with a loud crash, revealing a hidden passage. He stepped inside. He was going to hunt the basilisk alone. Truth be told, once he'd figured out the creature was a basilisk, things got simpler. A rooster's crow could kill it. But Hodge had other plans—he wanted to test his ancient magic.
Behind the wall was a dark, dry pipe, clearly long abandoned. His projection—a faintly glowing figure—walked ahead, casting a dim light that barely illuminated the path. As Hodge moved deeper, he spotted small pebbles and rat bones scattered on the ground, likely the basilisk's snacks. Then, a faint noise came from behind him.
Hodge and his projection exchanged a glance.
"Midnight watch," the projection muttered softly. "Guess who?"
"Probably Tonks," Hodge replied. "She's sharper than she lets on."
They continued quietly, the pipe curving ahead, likely leading toward Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. At the corner, they stopped, waiting in silence.
After a moment, they heard rustling footsteps, accompanied by an odd, muffled clucking sound, like someone was choking a chicken.
The projection dimmed its glow. The sounds grew clearer.
"Stop pushing!"
"I stepped on some animal bones, I swear—"
"Both of you, keep it down!"
"Ow!"
"Why'd we stop?"
"What's going on?"
"Let me see."
Then, silence fell. Hodge stared ahead into the empty darkness, the voices fading as if they'd been a hallucination. "It's past midnight now," he said flatly, his voice devoid of emotion.
Utter silence.
"I really don't get it," Hodge said, breaking the quiet. "Why are you lot here? Anyone care to explain?"
More silence… until—
"Alright, fine. I'll head back and wait for Tonks," Hodge said. A ripple of water shimmered in front of him, and Harry pulled off his Invisibility Cloak. "No, wait! We want to help," Harry said quickly. Behind him, Ron and Hermione nodded vigorously. Oddly, Harry's stomach bulged, and he was covered in dirt.
"Sorry, Hodge," Hermione said. "We didn't mean to follow you—"
"Actually, we were following Tonks," Ron cut in, revealing the truth.
"Oh, shut it," Hermione snapped. "Tonight—" She paused, recalling Hodge's earlier comment. "I mean, last night, we overheard Minister Fudge talking with his people. They're reopening the investigation into the Chamber from fifty years ago. They mentioned Hagrid, and it sounded like they're coming after him… So we thought Hagrid might know something from back then, since he was framed for the attacks. He could have clues. We already know it was a basilisk that killed Myrtle, and that matches Harry's Parseltongue…"
She glanced at Hodge, who didn't seem surprised, so she continued.
"We went to Hagrid's before curfew. He didn't know much, but it confirmed our suspicions. Then… Fudge showed up. He insisted on taking Hagrid to the Ministry for questioning. Fudge and Dumbledore got into a huge argument—I've never seen Professor Dumbledore so angry…"
"And then?" Hodge prompted.
"Well…" Hermione hesitated, embarrassed. "We were hiding under the Invisibility Cloak the whole time. We only came out after they left. On the way back, Harry realized the Chamber's entrance might be in Myrtle's bathroom, so we doubled back. You know Hagrid keeps chickens in his backyard."
Hodge's eyes flicked to Harry's bulging stomach, his expression odd.
"I see," Hodge said. "Basilisks are terrified of roosters' crows. You didn't—"
"You got it, mate," Ron said proudly, clapping Harry on the shoulder. Reluctantly, Harry reached under his robe and pulled out a disheveled, feathery rooster. The poor creature looked ill, its legs flopping weakly as it wheezed pathetically.
"Er, I might've squashed it a bit…" Harry said sheepishly.
Squashed? He looked like he'd just rolled through a mud pit.
Hodge stared at Harry, finding the whole scene absurdly comical.
For a moment, he forgot about Hermione until she spoke again.
"We got attacked on the way," she said. "A big black dog. Harry—"
"What?" Hodge exclaimed, barely believing his ears.
"We were shocked too," Ron muttered. "At first, we thought it was Fang. It was so dark. But then it started dragging Harry by the leg toward the forest. Hermione and I realized it wasn't Fang. Her Stunning Spell missed, but my Waddiwasi hit the mark."
"I also got a good punch in on its nose," Harry added.
Hodge nodded calmly, his face unreadable.
"After that, it took us a while to catch the runaway chicken," Hermione continued. "Poor thing was terrified. We were going to find Professor McGonagall since we weren't sure where Dumbledore was… but then we ran into Tonks."
"Honestly, she's rubbish at sneaking," Ron said bluntly.
Hodge cleared his throat and pointed behind him.
————
Supporting me on Pa-treon to gain early access to advanced chapters and enjoy expedited updates. Your support is greatly appreciated.
pat-reon .c-om/Dragonhair
(Just remove the hyphen - and space, to access Pa-treon normally.)