Marauders-era Characters Watch Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets

[Harry and Ron exit the cabin and glance to their left at the window, to see the spiders scurrying out the window, down the side of the house, towards the Forbidden Forest.]

Harry: Come on.

Ron: [fearfully] What?

Harry: You heard what Hagrid said: "Follow the spiders."

Ron: They're heading to the Dark Forest! [Harry walks towards the forest, carrying Hagrid's lantern; Ron reluctantly follows] Why spiders? Why couldn't it be "follow the butterflies"? Harry, I don't like this. Harry, I don't like this at all.

Harry: Shush!

Ron: Can we go back now?

"Yikes. Those spiders give me the creepy crawlies." Peter shuddered.

Harry: Come on. [They walk through a spider infested tunnel. They exit the tunnel.]

Raspy voice: Who is it?

"What the fuck?"

Harry: Don't panic.

Raspy voice: Hagrid? Is that you?

Harry: We're friends of Hagrid's. [A giant spider emerges from the ground.]

"OH MERLIN!" Peter screamed and hid under a pillow.

"Aragog?" Regulus whispered to Remus.

Harry: You're--you're Aragog, aren't you?

Aragog: Yes. Hagrid has never sent men into our hollow before.

Harry: He's in trouble. Up at the school, there have been attacks. They think it's Hagrid. They think he opened the Chamber of Secrets, like before. 

Aragog: That's a lie! Hagrid never opened the Chamber of Secrets. 

"What?" Marlene asked.

"Then it's not the monster- but what is the monster then?" James asked.

Harry: Then you're not the monster?

Aragog: No. The monster was born in the castle. I came to Hagrid from a distant land... in the pocket of a traveler. 

Ron: Harry.

Harry: Shush. But if you're not the monster, then what did kill that girl 50 years ago?

Aragog: We do not speak of it. It is an ancient creature we spiders fear above all others. 

Harry: But have you seen it?

Aragog: I never saw any part of the castle, but the box in which Hagrid kept me. The girl was discovered in a bathroom. When I was accused, Hagrid brought me here. 

Ron: Harry-

Harry: What?

Severus rolled his eyes. "He got that Potter 'charm,' I see."

[Ron whimpered pointed upwards.]

[Numerous spiders are descending from a massive hive high above towards Harry and Ron.]

Harry: [glancing at Aragog again] Well... thank you. We'll just... go.

Aragog: Go? [Ron nods fearfully] I think not. [more spiders emerge from around him] My sons and daughters do not harm Hagrid on my command. But I cannot deny them fresh meat when it wanders so willingly into our midst. [as hundreds more spiders appear from the trees] Goodbye, friend of Hagrid.

"Death by spiders?" James asked incredulously. Peter nodded.

"Downright terrifying, that would be."

Ron: [glancing at Harry in terror] Can we panic now? [a big spider lands right next to the boys; Ron points his wand at it in fear, while Harry swings the lantern at it, then at another spider before throwing the lantern to the ground and taking out his wand before he and Ron stand back to back as the spiders surround them] Know any spells?

Harry: One, but it's not powerful enough for all of them.

Ron: Where's Hermione when you need her?

[The spiders inch closer to the boys. At the moment, the sound of a car engine is heard; Harry and Ron look in the direction of the noise, to see the Ford Anglia drive into Aragog's nest, towards them; they back away towards Aragog as the car comes to a stop, then opens its doors for them.]

"Nice car!" Sirius whistled appreciatively.

Harry: Let's go! [they run for the car; a pair of spiders come in for the attack; Ron whimpers as he gets in on the driver's side, closing the door on a spider's leg, but manages to pull itself free; Harry points his wand at the other spider as he reaches the passenger's door] Arania Exumai! [a beam emits from his wand, blasting the spider away; Harry gets in the car and closes the door, one spider lands on top of the car, while another lands on the hood] Go!

[Ron puts the car in reverse, and it backs away as fast as it can, as they go under a tree root, the spider on the roof falls off onto its back. The car then goes flying backwards over a hill.]

Harry and Ron: Whoa! [as the car lands on the forest floor, the spider on the hood falls off; the car then comes to a stop]

Ron: [grips the steering wheel, then turns to face Harry] Glad we're out of there.

[Suddenly, another spider climbs onto the car, and sticks its head through the window; Harry jumps as the spider goes for Ron, putting its pincers around his neck; taking his hands off the steering wheel, Ron tries to get the spider off, squirming and screaming. Harry calmly reaches into his pocket and pulls out his wand, and points it at his frightened friend. Ron, his eyes and nostrils wide with terror, moves to the left, giving Harry a clear shot at the spider trying to eat him.]

Harry: Arania Exumai! [a beam of white light emits from Harry's wand, blasting the spider off Ron and away from the car]

"Oh, thank Merlin!" Peter shuddered. "Those spiders are so terrifying."

Ron: [glancing out the window and turning to Harry again] Thanks for that.

Harry: [putting his wand back in his pocket] Don't mention it. [looks out the windshield as a twitching sound is heard and squints; the spiders appear at the top of the hill, and begin moving towards the car; seeing the spiders, Ron whimpers] Get us out of here. Now! [Ron puts the car in reverse] Come on! Come on, move faster! [the boys scream as Ron makes a sharp turn] Come on, go! [Ron puts the car in drive, and steps on the gas; as they drive through the forest, the spiders pursue the car, moving almost as fast as cheetahs] Get us in the air.

Ron: [pushing the gear] The flying gear's jammed! [the spiders gather at a tree branch up ahead, intent on intercepting the Ford Anglia]

Harry: Come on. Pull!

Ron: I'm trying!

[As they drive into the pack of spiders, knocking them aside, the car takes the air, with one spider managing to grab hold of the car before falling to the ground. Flying over the trees, the car descends and lands a few feet from Hagrid's house before coming to a complete stop in front of the house; Harry opens his car door and lets Fang out.]

Ron: [evidently furious that Hagrid had to put them in such danger] "Follow the spiders". "Follow the spiders"! If Hagrid ever gets out of Azkaban, I'll kill him. [the Ford Anglia backs up as Fang reenters Hagrid's house, then drives past Harry and Ron, and back into the forest again] I mean, what was the point of sending us in there? What have we found out?

Harry: We know one thing: Hagrid never opened the Chamber of Secrets; he was innocent.

Remus glanced at Regulus. "This is another thing that cements that our theory is right." He whispered. Regulus nodded. 

"I still can't believe it." Marlene stated. "I mean, if not Hagrid then who?" 

"Perhaps we should tell them, since the likelihood of our theory coming true is high." Regulus murmured. Remus nodded.

"Okay guys?" All attention turned towards him. "Regulus and I have been theorizing, and we believe that Tom Riddle framed Hagrid for opening up the Chamber of Secrets...and not only that, but that-"

"Tom Riddle is the Dark Lord." Regulus finished. Silence filled the room for a solid minute as everybody thought through it.

"No." James said. "It's a big leap, and Tom seemed friendly enough." Regulus shook his head.

"It fills in a lot of the questionable factors that we do not know." He explained.

"Like what?" Sirius asked. 

"The Diary is powerful magic. Voldemort making something as...self-aware as the diary makes sense." Remus breezed. Alice shook her head.

"I'll need more proof." She expressed. Regulus and Remus nodded.

"Of course. I'm sure time will prove our theory right." Regulus stated. Narcissa glanced at him. She, for one, did believe the pair. Narcissa looked around to see if anyone else agrees with them, but only met Lily's eyes. Of course the Mudblood would believe them, she thought sourly. 

[The next day, Harry and Ron are visiting Hermione in the Hospital Wing again; Harry takes the old dried up flowers out of the vase next to Hermione's bed, puts in some new white flowers (most likely roses), then sits on the bed.]

Harry: Wish you were here, Hermione. We need you. Now more than ever.

[Hermione just lays there with her glossy facial expression as Ron sighs sadly. Harry rubs Hermione's left hand; feeling something in it, he looks down and removes his hand to discover a crumpled up piece of paper, a library book page, which he carefully removes and straightens out.]

Ron: [glancing at the page] What's that?

Harry: [examining the page] Ron, this is why Hermione was in the library the day she was attacked. [glances at the page and then back at Ron as he gets up] Come on! [Harry and Ron walk through the corridor as Harry reads from the page] "Of the many fearsome beasts that roam our land, none is more deadly than the Basilisk. Capable of living for hundreds of years, instant death awaits any who meet this giant serpent's eye. Spiders flee before it..." [looking up at Ron] Ron, this is it. The monster in the Chamber of Secrets is a Basilisk. That's why I can hear it speak. It's a snake.

Peter nodded. "That makes a lot of sense." Lily shook her head.

"My son, facing a basilisk. Fantastic."

Ron: [processing the information they just read] But if it kills by looking people in the eye, why is it no one's dead?

Harry: [thinking for a few seconds then looking at the window] Because no one did look it in the eye. Not directly, at least. [they walk along as they go over how each of the victims were petrified] Colin saw it through his camera. Justin... Justin must've seen the Basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick. Nick got the full blast of it, but he's a ghost. He couldn't die again. And Hermione... had the mirror. I bet you anything she was using it to look around corners in case it came along.

Ron: And Mrs. Norris? I'm pretty sure she didn't have a camera or a mirror, Harry.

Harry: [thinking about how Mrs. Norris got petrified, then remembering] The water... There was water on the floor that night. She only saw the Basilisk's reflection. [Ron nods; Harry takes another look at the page, then walks to a nearby torch to more easily read the page, running his finger along it as he reads] "Spiders flee before it." It all fits.

Ron: But how's the Basilisk been getting around? A dirty great snake, someone would've seen it.

Harry: [as he and Ron glance at the bottom of the page where the word "Pipes" is written] Hermione's answered that, too.

Ron: Pipes? It's using the plumbing!

Harry: Remember what Aragog said about that girl fifty years ago, she died in a bathroom? What if she never left?

Ron: Moaning Myrtle. [Harry nods]

Regulus made a face. "That's so sad."

Professor McGonagall: [on the speakers] All students are to return to their house dormitories at once. [Ron glances at Harry in surprise, wondering what could be going on now] All teachers to the second floor corridor immediately.

[Harry and Ron hurry to the second floor corridor. In the section where the bloody message is, Professors McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick, Madam Pomfrey, and Filch run up to the wall, where Professor McGonagall directs their attention to a newly written message.]

Professor McGonagall: As you can see, the Heir of Slytherin has left another message. [Harry and Ron walk into the corridor behind them] Our worst fear has been realized, a student has been taken by the monster, into the Chamber itself. [sadly looks at the others] The students must be sent home. I'm afraid this is the end of Hogwarts.

Lockhart: [happily walking up to the group] So sorry. Dozed off. What have I missed? [grins at Snape and McGonagall]

Snape: A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Your moment has come at last.

Lockhart: [slightly stunned] My... moment?

Snape: Weren't you saying just last night you've known all along where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is? [Lockhart looks bewildered]

Professor McGonagall: That's settled. We'll leave you to deal with the monster, Gilderoy. Your skills, after all, are legend.

Everybody saddened. 

"The poor girl. Who was it?" Lily asked. 

"Well, at least Lockhart will be on the case!" Sirius joked, trying for a cheerful voice. The joke just fell flat.

Lockhart: Very well. I'll just be in my office, getting, uh... getting ready. [turns and walks away; Filch watches him, then glances at Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall]

Madam Pomfrey: Who is it that the monster's taken, Minerva?

Professor McGonagall: [glances at her] Ginny Weasley. [Harry and Ron straighten up in shock; Ron quavers slightly]

"Ginny?!" Andromeda cried.

"Oh, no." Frank said. 

"She's not a mud...muggle born though?" Regulus asked. Sirius rounded on him.

"Does it matter?!" Sirius asked, pissed.

"Of course it does." Regulus answered snippily. "So far, only muggle borns have been taken. The taking of a pureblood is a deviation from its usual pattern." Sirius frowned.

"Maybe the monster doesn't see whether its victims are muggle borns or purebloods?" Andromeda suggested.

"That's an ignorant idea. The victims until now have all been mudbloods." Narcissa stated. Various people glared their eyes against her. "Oh, stop it. I'm not going to stop calling a mudblood a mudblood just because they're in the room."

"You don't see how calling someone 'dirty blood' could be taken offensively?" Alice asked.

"I do. But...it's different than that." Narcissa answered.

"How so?"

[Professor McGonagall sadly walks away, along with the other staff; a second later, Snape follows them, revealing the newly written message, which reads "Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever".]

Ron: [reads the message with dread in his voice] "Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever." [Harry looks at Ron as he's becoming all the more devastated by his sister's abduction] Ginny...

"That's awful." Remus stated. "Poor Ron."

"Poor Ron? Poor Ginny! She's the one abducted." James declared.

Harry: [as he and Ron race into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom and up the stairs to Lockhart’s office] Lockhart may be useless, but he’s going to try to get into the Chamber. At least we can tell him what we know! [opening the door to the office and stepping inside] Professor, we have some information for you. [Lockhart stuffs some clothes into his trunk, which he closes as he turns toward them; Ron scowls at him] Are you going somewhere?

Lockhart: Um... well, yes. Urgent call. Unavoidable. Uh, got to go.

"What a coward." Peter sneered.

Ron: [outraged] What about my sister?!

Lockhart: Uh, well, um... As to that, most unfortunate. No one regrets more than I.

Ron: [in disbelief] You’re the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. You can’t go now!

Lockhart: [as he stuffs his things in his handbag then moves around his desk] Well, I must say, when I took the job, there was nothing in the job description about--

Harry: [blocking his path] You're running away? After all that stuff you did in your books?!

Lockhart: Books can be misleading.

Harry: You wrote them!

"Damn, he made himself a fraud." Sirius scowled.

Lockhart: [placing his bag on his desk] My dear boy, do use your common sense! My books wouldn't have sold half as well if people didn't think I'd done all those things!

Harry: [staring at Lockhart] You're a fraud. You've just been taking credit for what other wizards have done!

Ron: [as Lockhart directs his attention to him] Is there anything you can do?

Lockhart: Yes. Now you mention it. I'm rather gifted with memory charms. Otherwise, you see, all those wizards would've gone blabbing, and I'd never have sold another book. [Harry and Ron look at each other as Lockhart walks toward his suitcase] In fact, uh... I'm uh... [Ron nods at Harry, and they both reach into their robes to pull out their wands] going to have to do the same to you. [he collects his wand from the suitcase, but Harry and Ron already have their wands trained on him]

Harry: Don't even think about it. [points downward, gesturing for Lockhart to drop his wand; Lockhart reluctantly does so]

[In her bathroom, Moaning Myrtle is floating around crying as Harry, Ron, and Lockhart enter.]

Myrtle: Oh? Who's there? [seeing Harry, she smiles warmly at him] Oh, hello, Harry. What do you want?

"Aww, she likes him." Regulus smiles. "She does need a friend."

Harry: To ask you how you died.

Myrtle: [smiles slightly] Oh... [her smile fades] ...it was dreadful. It happened right here in this very cubicle. I'd hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. I was crying, and then... I heard somebody come in.

Harry: Who was it, Myrtle?

Myrtle: [choked up] I don't know. I was distraught! [floats towards the three] But they said something funny, a kind of made-up language, and I realized it was a boy speaking, so I unlocked the door to tell him to go away, and... I died.

Harry: Just like that? How?

Myrtle: I just remember seeing a pair of great big yellow eyes, over there, by that sink. [points at the circle of sinks in the center of the bathroom]

[As Myrtle floats off to the stalls, Harry steps forward to examine the sinks. Reaching up to the circular stone above the sinks, he moves his hand downward to the sink in front of him; he turns the tap, but no water comes out. At that second, something else catches his eye; looking more closely at the tap, he sees a snake carved on it.]

Harry: This is it. [taking a step back] This is it, Ron. I think this is the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. [Lockhart glances at the sink in surprise]

"Go Harry!" Ted cheered. Frank smiled.

"He's a great investigator."

Ron: Say something. Harry, say something in Parseltongue.

Harry: [after a few seconds] Hesha- Hassah. (Open up.)

[The circular stone above the sinks rises, then all the sinks begin to move outwards. Harry, Ron, and Lockhart back away slowly as the sinks move; the sink with the snake carved on its tap descends into the floor, then a grating slides over it. Lockhart steps towards the opening that the sinks concealed and looks down into a very wide black hole]

Lockhart: [inhales then turns to Harry with a grin] Excellent, Harry. Ah, good work. Well, then, I'll just be, uh... there's no need for me to stay. [he tries to run, but Harry and Ron grab hold of him]

Harry: Oh, yes there is! [with all their might, they push Lockhart backwards toward the passage before drawing their wands] You first.

Lockhart: Now, boys, what good will it do?

Ron: Better you than us. [Harry nods]

Lockhart: Um, but... obviously, yes. [he nervously turns around and grips the sinks as he looks down into the passage before glancing over his shoulder at the boys again] Sure you don't want to test it first? [annoyed, Ron pokes Lockhart with his wand, sending him into the passage, screaming as he disappears into the darkness; a second later, a crash is heard as Harry and Ron walk up to the opening] It's really quite filthy down here.

James grinned. "My son can still be a Marauder yet." Sirius laughed.

"I think we're past that point, Prongs. He's a better Marauder than Wormtail here." 

"Oi!"

Harry: All right. [turns to Ron] Let's go. [Ron nods in agreement]

Myrtle: Oh, Harry? [the two boys look up at her] If you die down there, you're welcome to share my toilet. [she giggles; making Ron uneasy]

Harry: Uh... thanks, Myrtle. [smiles at her, then turns to the opening, and jumps into it; Ron immediately jumps in after him]

[Harry and Ron scream as they go down a slide, which leads to a small pit filled with animal bones, most likely the Basilisk's feeding area, as Lockhart brushes the dirt off his robes when the boys land. They immediately get to feet and point their wands at him.]

Ron: [glancing at the muck around them] Ugh.

Harry: [stepping on the bones] Now, remember: any sign of movement, close your eyes straight away. [he turns and goes into the passageway behind him]

Ron: Go on. [Lockhart reluctantly follows Harry into the passage with Ron right behind him]

"Ughhhh...I'm so worried." Marlene sighed. 

"It'll be fine." Lily assured. "Hopefully."