"Harry, you need to relax," Nova said a soothing tone not long after they left the pensive. "It's not that big of a deal-"

"Merlin, Nova!" he shouted, wheeling around to look at her. "They didn't even hurt me physically, but I hate them. I hate them more than I can hate anyone. How are you okay with what they did? How are you-"

"I'm not okay with it," Nova cut across. "Harry, what they did, it still affects me. I wish I could go back make it so it never happened. But I can't. Harry, what they did to me partially makes me who I am. I'm still healing from it all, but it doesn't hurt or strike fear as much as it used to."

"How can simply be over it?"

"I'm not," Nova corrected. "I'm healing. You can't wake up one day and suddenly the pain would be over."

"I know that," Harry huffed. "I just hate them more than anything."

"Yes, well, so do I," Nova shrugged. "Well there is no point of joining the memories. We might as wait until they're over."

***

The group watched in anticipation. As they paired off for dueling partners in the Dueling Club. They watched as Hermione moved beside Nova and Harry beside Ron. They watched as Snape broke up what he called, 'the Wonder Team'. Harry and Nova tried switching partners, but Snape stopped them. Ron was pushed to work with Seamus, Hermione with a slytherin named Millicent Bullstrode, and Harry with Malfoy. Nova was the most unfortunate out of the bunch. She was sent off to attempt to disarm Marcus Flint.

"Is he mad?" Regulus exclaimed looking at the size of sixth-year Flint and second-year Nova. "Is he actually mad?"

"Well, he hates Nova," Ron shrugged. "Don't worry, she doesn't lose. It's highly entertaining."

Lockheart began to count. The students were meant to attack on three, but Malfoy had already fired a spell at Harry. He felt as thought he'd been hit over the head with a saucepan. He stumbled forward slightly before firing back.

"Rictusempra!" Harry yelled. Silver light hit Malfoy in the stomach and he doubled over in laughter.

"Attaboy!" James cheered. "I love that spell! No offense, Malfoy."

Meanwhile, Nova had side stepped as Flint tried disarming her. He kept firing the spell over and over again, but Nova had begun to dance. Literally. She spun to the side, quickly dodging his spells. She slid out of the way. She moonwalked backward. She was grinning wildly.

Flint managed to 'disarm' her. He began to smirk, but it soon fell.

Nova was still grinning wildly. She dropped her chest into a bow and reached behind her. She drew her hand out, turning it so Flint could see very clearly, painfully clear.

"Illusion charms are a bitch, aren't they, Flint," she smirked, twirling her dark wand between her fingers.

"Holy shit-!"

"But we didn't learn that until seventh year!"

"How-?"

"Finite Incantatem!" Snape shouted over the chaos.

A haze of greenish smoke was hovering over the scene. Both Neville and Justin were lying on the floor, panting; Ron was holding up an ashen-faced Seamus, apologizing for whatever his broken wand had done; but Hermione and Millicent Bulstrode were still moving; Millicent had Hermione in a headlock and Hermione was whimpering in pain; both their wands lay forgotten on the floor. Harry leapt forward and pulled Millicent off. It was difficult: She was a lot bigger than he was.

Millicent woke up the next morning with millions of blisters aross her body. Nova Black falsly denied all accusations made by her friends she was the one responsible.

The group watched as Snape offered Harry and Draco as volunteers to demonstrate the protection charm.

"Now, Harry," said Lockheart. "When Draco points his wand at you, you do this."

Lockheart dropped his wand.

Harry didn't pay much more attention to Lockheart. He already knew how to preform the shield charm. Nova had taught him upon his request for her to teach him more spells, knowing she had extensive knowledge in defense.

"Scared?" Malfoy smirked.

"You wish," Harry countered.

"Just do what I did, Harry!" Lockheart advised.

"What, drop my wand?"

James, Sirius, Ron, and everyone else had lost it at Harry's remark. Despite no one in the memory hearing him.

The group watched as Draco conjured a snake. They watched as Harry began to speak to it. They watched as it looked almost like he was setting it on Justin, a hufflepuff.

They watched as Ron steered Harry from the hall, Hermione and Nova not far behind. People parted for them in fright.

"We're outrageously attractive! We get it! No need to stare!" Nova shouted to them as they left. "Merlin! The audacity."

When they arrived back at the Common Room, Ron shoved Harry into one of the chairs.

"You're a Parselmouth. Why didn't you tell us?"

"I'm a what?"

"A Parselmouth!" said Ron. "You can talk to snakes!"

"I know," said Harry. "I mean, that's only the second time I've ever done it. I accidentally set a boa constrictor on my cousin Dudley at the zoo once - long story - but it was telling me it had never seen Brazil and I sort of set it free without meaning to that was before I knew I was a wizard -"

"A boa constrictor told you it had never seen Brazil?" Ron repeated faintly.

"So?" said Harry. "I bet loads of people here can do it."

"Oh, no they can't," said Ron. "It's not a very common gift. Harry, this is bad."

"What's bad?" said Harry, starting to feel quite angry. "What's wrong with everyone? Listen, if I hadn't told that snake not to attack Justin -"

"Oh, that's what you said to it?"

"What d'you mean? You were there - you heard me -"

"I heard you speaking Parseltongue," said Ron. "Snake language. You could have been saying anything - no wonder Justin panicked, you sounded like you were egging the snake on or something - it was creepy, you know -"

Harry gaped at him.

"I spoke a different language? But - I didn't realize - how can I speak a language without knowing I can speak it?"

Ron shook his head. Both he and Hermione were looking as though someone had died. Harry couldn't see what was so terrible.

Nova was leaning against the fire place, flipping her wand in her hand. She looked lost in thought.

"D'you want to tell me what's wrong with stopping a massive snake biting off Justin's head?" Harry said. "What does it matter how I did it as long as Justin doesn't have to join the Headless Hunt?"

"Shut up, all three of you," she ordered, and started pacing. She continued to flip her wand over and over again.

"Care to explain why-"

"Simmer down, fireball," Nova shushed Harry. "I've had an epiphony."

"What's an epiphony?" Ron asked Hermione.

"It's an idea or a break though in case," she answered.

"The monster in the Chamber of Secrets is a snake," Nova declared.

"What?"

"Think about it!" she exclaimed excitedly. Her right hand that was holding her wand flew wildly as she spoke. Harry hald expected something to catch on fire or something. "It makes sense."

"Yes, well, most of us are several steps behind," Ron spoke. "If big brain could catch us up to speed-"

"Everything about the Chamber relates back to Slytherin house, more specifically, Salazar Slytherin," Nova said, wearing a hole in the ground. "What's the Slytherin house mascot?"

"A snake," Harry answered.

"Do you know why?" Nova questioned. Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but Nova continued. "Because Salazar Slytherin was famous for his ability to talk to snakes. That's why."

"Here I thought he just had one nasty obsession with the reptiles," Harry remarked cooly.

"If Harold can speak Parselmouth, it would make sense for the monster to be a snake," Nova explained. "He is the only one that can hear it. The only person that knows what it is saying."

"Yes, well, people ought to think Harry is the heir of Slytherin now," Ron remarked.

Harry sunk down into his chair.

"It doesn't matter if he is or not," Nova shook her head. "I don't believe Harry is behind these attacks. It's someone else. Parselmouth doesn't have to be inherited. You can have a mutated strand of DNA, you can be cursed, you can-"

"That totally puts my mind at ease," Harry rolled his eyes.

"Shut it, Wonder Boy," Nova fired. "My point it that the blasted monster is a snake."

"As helpful as that is, which type of snake?" Ron asked. "It's not like there are hundreds of types."

"Actually there are over 3,000 types of snakes," Hermione spoke.

"If we know what type of snake it is-"

"Does it look like I have a PHD in snakeolog-?" Nova said sarcastically.

"Actually the study of snakes is called ophinology," Hermione whispered.

"My bad," Nova rolled her eyes before correcting herself. "Does it look like I have a PHD in ophinology?"

***

"Harold!" Nova called through Potter Manor. "Hurry up! I want to watch the movie!"

"I'm almost done with the popcorn!"

***

The group watched as Harry and Ron took the polyjuice potion to get information from Draco. They watched as Hermione was admitted into the hospital. They watched as Nova attend yet another Slytherin Ball. They watched as she spent time with Blaise and Theo, avoiding dancing with possible suitors at all costs. They watched as the boys took turns dancing with her everytime someone came towards her, saving her from having to dance with them.

They watched as McGonagall quickly made her way across the pitch, telling the team the game as well as the season was cancelled.

This, of course, awarded many protests.

"Potter, Black," Minnie said, her complextion pale. "I think you'd better come with me..."

Harry and Nova both shared a glance. Neither had done anything that would lead to any punishment. At least Harry hasn't.

Ron moved to join them.

"Yes, perhaps you'd better come too, Weasley," Minnie spoke.

"Minnie McGee," Nova began. "We haven't done anything wrong. I know that with our track-record, mine specifically, that's hard to believe-"

"I know you haven't done anything, Black," Minnie said in a shaken voice. "There has been another attack . . .another double attack."

Harry and Ron were confused, wondering what it had to do with them. Nova, however, put the clues together.

"Hermione," she whispered before taking off down the corridors.

"Miss Black!"

Nova threw the doors of the hospital wing open. Her eyes scanned the room for a particular bushy-haired girl. She didn't even regard the other victims before rushing over to Hermione's side.

"They were found near the library," said Professor McGonagall, refering to Penelope Clearwater and Hermione. "I don't suppose either of you can explain this? It was on the floor next to them ......"

She held up a small, circular mirror.

Harry and Ron shook their heads. Nova had collapsed into the chair beside Hermione's bed.

"I will escort you back to Gryffindor Tower," said Professor McGonagall heavily. "I need to address the students in any case."

"All students will return to their House common rooms by six o'clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the bathroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch training and matches are to be postponed. There will be no more evening activities." The Gryffindors packed inside the common room listened to Professor McGonagall in silence. She rolled up the parchment from which she had been reading and said in a somewhat choked voice, "I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. It is likely that the school will be closed unless the culprit behind these attacks is caught. I would urge anyone who thinks they might know anything about them to come forward."

***

The group watched as Dumbledore was removed from his postion as Headmaster and Hagrid was shipped off to Azkaban. They watched as Nova, Harry, and Ron followed the spiders.

"Ew, not spiders," Dorcas groaned. "I hate those things."

"Okay," Ron sighed as though resigned to the worst. He was deathly afraid of spiders. "I'm ready. Let's go."

So, with Fang scampering around them, sniffing tree roots and leaves, they entered the forest. By the glow of Harry's wand, they followed the steady trickle of spiders moving along the path. They walked behind them for about twenty minutes, not speaking, listening hard for noises other than breaking twigs and rustling leaves. Then, when the trees had become thicker than ever, so that the stars overhead were no longer visible, and Harry's wand shone alone in the sea of dark, they saw their spider guides leaving the path.

Harry paused, trying to see where the spiders were going, but everything outside his little sphere of light was pitch-black. He had never been this deep into the forest before. He could vividly remember Hagrid advising him not to leave the forest path last time he'd been in here. But Hagrid was miles away now, probably sitting in a cell in Azkaban, and he had also said to follow the spiders.

Something wet touched Harry's hand and he jumped backward, crushing Rods foot, but it was only Fang's nose.

"What d'you reckon?" Harry said to Ron, whose eyes he could just make out, reflecting the light from his wand.

"We've come this far," said Ron, but Nova was already forging ahead.

"I question sometimes if she has any sort of fear inside of her body," Ron whispered to Harry.

"Me too, mate, me too."

Hermione smacked the back of Ron's head, and made a mental reminder to whack Harry too.

"I agree with them," Remus nodded. "I swear she was born without fear."

They couldn't move very quickly now; there were tree roots and stumps in their way, barely visible in the near blackness. Harry could feel Fang's hot breath on his hand. More than once, they had to stop, so that Harry could crouch down and find the spiders in the wandlight.

They walked for what seemed like at least half an hour, their robes snagging on low-slung branches and brambles. After a while, they noticed that the ground seemed to be sloping downward, though the trees were as thick as ever.

Then Fang suddenly let loose a great, echoing bark, making both Harry and Ron jump out of their skins.

"What?" said Ron loudly, looking around into the pitch-dark, and gripping Harry's elbow very hard.

"There's something moving over there," Harry breathed. "Listen ... sounds like something big ......"

They listened. Some distance to their right, the something big was snapping branches as it carved a path through the trees.

"Oh, no," said Ron. "Oh, no, oh, no, oh -"

"Shut up," said Harry frantically. "It'll hear you."

"Hear me?" said Ron in an unnaturally high voice. "It's already heard Fang!"

"Yes, well, they now know where to find the tasty ginger," Nova sassed.

Ron glared at her.

The darkness seemed to be pressing on their eyeballs as they stood, terrified, waiting. There was a strange rumbling noise and then silence.

"What d'you think it's doing?" said Harry.

"Probably getting ready to pounce," said Ron.

They waited, shivering, hardly daring to move.

"D'you think it's gone?" Harry whispered.

"No," Nova answered. "Now, shut up."

Then, to their right, came a sudden blaze of light, so bright in the darkness that both of them flung up their hands to shield their eyes. Fang yelped and tried to run, but got lodged in a tangle of thorns and yelped even louder.

"Harry!" Ron shouted, his voice breaking with relief "Harry, Nova, it's our car!"

"What?"

"Come on!"

Harry blundered after Ron toward the light, stumbling and tripping, and a moment later they had emerged into a clearing.

"Idiots," Nova rolled her eyes before chasing after them. "Harry, you owe me new boots and converses after this, ya little prat!"

"You aren't even wearing your converses," Harry shouted. "Those are your combat boots!"

"Yes, well, something tells me you'll cause damange to those too!"

"Will you too stop bickering?" Ron fired at them.

"Oh like you and 'Mione are any better!"

"Ah, yes," Draco remarked in a lofty voice. "In a life or death situation start arguing about shoes."

"I dunno what you're on, Malfoy," Sirius furrowed his brows. "But that's the perfect thing to do in those situations."

"Honestly, Malfoy," Marlene rolled her eyes. "Get with the program."

"As you can see," Lily joked. "Nova got her brain from Remus."

Mr. Weasley's car was standing, empty, in the middle of a circle of thick trees under a roof of dense branches, its headlights ablaze. As Ron walked, open-mouthed, toward it, it moved slowly toward him, exactly like a large, turquoise dog greeting its owner.

"It's been here all the time!" said Ron delightedly, walking around the car. "Look at it. The forest's turned it wild . . . ."

The sides of the car were scratched and smeared with mud. Apparently it had taken to trundling around the forest on its own. Fang didn't seem at all keen on it; he kept close to Harry, who could feel him quivering. His breathing slowing down again, Harry stuffed his wand back into his robes.

"And we thought it was going to attack us!" said Ron, leaning against the car and patting it. "I wondered where it had gone!"

Harry squinted around on the floodlit ground for signs of more spiders, but they had all scuttled away from the glare of the headlights.

"We've lost the trail," he said. "C'mon, let's go and find them."

Ron didn't speak. He didn't move. His eyes were fixed on a point some ten feet above the forest floor, right behind Harry. His face was livid with terror. Harry didn't even have time to turn around. There was a loud clicking noise and suddenly he felt something long and hairy seize him around the middle and lift him off the ground, so that he was hanging facedown. Struggling, terrified, he heard more clicking, and saw Ron's legs leave the ground, too, heard Fang whimpering and howling - next moment, he was being swept away into the dark trees.

Head hanging, Harry saw that what had hold of him was marching on six immensely long, hairy legs, the front two clutching him tightly below a pair of shining black pincers. Behind him, he could hear another of the creatures, no doubt carrying Ron. They were moving into the very heart of the forest. Harry could hear Fang fighting to free himself from a third monster, whining loudly, but Harry couldn't have yelled even if he had wanted to; he seemed to have left his voice back with the car in the clearing.

"Ew," Nova groaned, thrashing to free herself. "This was my new jacket! Put me down you ugly arse, eight-legged, psychopath!"

Harry never knew how long he was in the creature's clutches; he only knew that the darkness suddenly lifted enough for him to see that the leaf-strewn ground was now swarming with spiders. Craning his neck sideways, he realized that they had reached the ridge of a vast hollow, a hollow that had been cleared of trees, so that the stars shone brightly onto the worst scene he had ever laid eyes on.

Spiders. Not tiny spiders like those surging over the leaves below. Spiders the size of carthorses, eight-eyed, eight-legged, black, hairy, gigantic. The massive specimen that was carrying Harry made its way down the steep slope toward a misty, domed web in the very center of the hollow, while its fellows closed in all around it, clicking their pincers excitedly at the sight of its load.

Harry fell to the ground on all fours as the spider released him. Ron and Fang thudded down next to him. Nova landed gracefully on her feet. Fang wasn't howling anymore, but cowering silently on the spot. Ron looked exactly like Harry felt. His mouth was stretched wide in a kind of silent scream and his eyes were popping.

"Now would be a wonderful chance to transform," Nova growled under her breath.

"I still can't believe she got it faster than I did!" James grumbled.

Harry suddenly realized that the spider that had dropped him was saying something. It had been hard to tell, because he clicked his pincers with every word he spoke.

"Aragog!" it called. "Aragog!"

"Oh great," Nova groaned. "It fucking talks."

And from the middle of the misty, domed web, a spider the size of a small elephant emerged, very slowly. There was gray in the black of his body and legs, and each of the eyes on his ugly, pincered head was milky white. He was blind.

"What is it?" he said, clicking his pincers rapidly.

"Men," clicked the spider who had caught Harry.

"And woman," Nova added. "Fucking hell. What's a girl gotta do to get some recognition?"

"She's got a point," Tonks nodded. "Perhaps not the best time, but she's got a point."

"Is it Hagrid?" said Aragog, moving closer, his eight milky eyes wandering vaguely.

"Strangers," clicked the spider who had brought Ron.

"Kill them," clicked Aragog fretfully. "I was sleeping ...... "

"Well, I hope the Morgensterns don't get my money," Nova remarked.

"We're friends of Hagrid's," Harry shouted. His heart seemed to have left his chest to pound in his throat.

Click, click, click went the pincers of the spiders all around the hollow.

Aragog paused.

"Hagrid has never sent men into our hollow before," he said slowly.

"Hagrid's in trouble," said Harry, breathing very fast. "That's why we've come."

"In trouble?" said the aged spider, and Harry thought he heard concern beneath the clicking pincers. "But why has he sent you?"

"They think, up at the school, that Hagrid's been setting a a - something on students. They've taken him to Azkaban," Nova answered, getting to her feet.

"But that was years ago," said Aragog fretfully. "Years and years ago. I remember it well. That's why they made him leave the school. They believed that I was the monster that dwells in what they call the Chamber of Secrets. They thought that Hagrid had opened the Chamber and set me free."

"And you ... you didn't come from the Chamber of Secrets?" said Harry, who could feel cold sweat on his forehead.

"I!" said Aragog, clicking angrily. "I was not born in the castle. I come from a distant land. A traveler gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg. Hagrid was only a boy, but he cared for me, hidden in a cupboard in the castle, feeding me on scraps from the table. Hagrid is my good friend, and a good man. When I was discovered, and blamed for the death of a girl, he protected me. I have lived here in the forest ever since, where Hagrid still visits me. He even found me a wife, Mosag, and you see how our family has grown, all through Hagrid's goodness ......"

"Calm your pincers, mate," Nova said. "My very idiotic teammate didn't mean anything against you. He is simply an oblivious prick at times."

Harry wanted to throw a rock at her.

Arogog turned to her...sort of.

"Just clarification for our fans in the back," Nova spoke. "You never attacked anyone?"

"Never," croaked the old spider. "It would have been my instinct, but out of respect for Hagrid, I never harmed a human. The body of the girl who was killed was discovered in a bathroom. I never saw any part of the castle but the cupboard in which I grew up. Our kind like the dark and the quiet ......"

"But then ... Do you know what did kill that girl?" said Harry. "Because whatever it is, it's back and attacking people again -"

His words were drowned by a loud outbreak of clicking and the rustling of many long legs shifting angrily; large black shapes shifted all around him.

"The thing that lives in the castle," said Aragog, "is an ancient creature we spiders fear above all others. Well do I remember how I pleaded with Hagrid to let me go, when I sensed the beast moving about the school."

"What is it?" said Harry urgently. More loud clicking, more rustling; the spiders seemed to be closing in.

"We do not speak of it!" said Aragog fiercely. "We do not name it! I never even told Hagrid the name of that dread creature, though he asked me, many times."

Harry didn't want to press the subject, not with the spiders pressing closer on all sides. Aragog seemed to be tired of tamng. He was backing slowly into his domed web, but his fellow spiders continued to inch slowly toward Harry and Ron.

"We'll just go, then," Harry called desperately to Aragog, hearing leaves rustling behind him.

"Go?" said Aragog slowly. "I think not ...... "

"But - but -"

"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. Good-bye, friend of Hagrid."

"Wait!" Nova shouted, holding her hands up in a desperate attempt to stop the spiders from attacking. "You said you didn't attack anyone at the castle out of respect for Hagrid, correct?"

"Yes."

"Then why attack us now?" she spoke desperately. "Hagrid is a dear friend of ours, as we are his. If you kill us, think of the pain he will be in. Hagrid might not be too fond of you and your prosperity after."

"My children are hungry."

"And my best friend was petrified," she countered. "We can't always get what we want."

"Ours is about survival."

"So is mine," Nova stated. "Give us a ten minute head start."

"Five minutes."

"Ten."

"Five."

"Nine minutes," Nova said. "That's the final offer before I rip your legs from your body."

"You don't scare me, mortal."

"You should," she said simply. "I know how to control the animal you fear so much. All it takes is one little-"

"Go," Arogog demanded. "You have seven minutes."

"Thank you kind, sir!" Nova bowed. She ran towards Harry and Ron, dragging them along as she ran. "We really must be going!"

"Follow the spiders," Ron shivered once they were out of the woods. "I'll never forgive Hagrid for that."

The group watched as Harry, Ron, and Nova went to visit Hermione. They watched as they finally gathered what it was Hermione had discovered.

The snake was a basilisk and it was traveling through the pips.

They watched as the trio learned of the next attack.

Ginny Weasley had left the pensive just as the trio learned it was she who had been taken.