The four of them had been laughing together, but their smiles quickly faded.
Harry had heard that strange, chilling voice again.
He knew instantly—it meant someone was about to be attacked. Without hesitation, he urged the others to follow him as he sprinted toward the sound.
They turned a corner and froze.
Nearly Headless Nick floated eerily in midair, his head hanging at an odd angle, while Justin Finch-Fletchley lay motionless on the ground, clearly petrified.
Harry started forward to check on Justin, but Kevin stopped him with an outstretched arm.
Moments later, Argus Filch emerged, his eyes darting between the scene and Harry.
"You!" Filch pointed accusingly. "Caught in the act again!"
"Filch! Keep your mouth shut!" Kevin's voice was low and dangerous, his stance daring Filch to continue.
"Kevin!" Professor McGonagall's sharp voice cut through the tension as she arrived, putting herself between Kevin and the caretaker.
"Professor," Kevin said evenly, "we were just passing by. We'd run into Hagrid moments before this happened—you can ask him yourself."
"I believe you," she said, though her expression was grave. "But this is beyond my authority. You'll have to come with me to see Professor Dumbledore."
She quickly instructed Filch to take Justin to the hospital wing and have Professor Snape prepare a Mandrake Restorative Draught.
Mrs. Norris and Colin Creevey had already been revived with the potion earlier.
Colin had said only that he'd seen a pair of large yellow eyes through his camera before blacking out. That wasn't much help.
As McGonagall led them away, Harry noticed spiders crawling in orderly lines out of a nearby window.
Kevin noticed too but said nothing—the priority was to follow McGonagall.
They soon stopped before the stone statue of a griffin with spread wings.
McGonagall said clearly, "Iced lemonade." The statue rotated, revealing a spiral staircase that carried them upward to the Headmaster's office.
Dumbledore wasn't inside. A magnificent crimson bird perched on the desk—a phoenix, Fawkes.
Kevin recognized him immediately. In the films, Dumbledore had only mentioned a phoenix's ability to burst into flame and be reborn from the ashes, to carry heavy loads, and to heal with its tears.
But Kevin remembered another scene—Fawkes standing on Dumbledore's head as they vanished in a burst of fire—and suspected there was more to this magical creature.
Ignoring the Sorting Hat, which cheerfully greeted them from its shelf, Kevin approached Fawkes.
Knowing the bird was near the end of his cycle, Kevin swiftly plucked a few of the long, gleaming tail feathers.
Fawkes let out a piercing cry, then burst into flame, collapsing into a pile of ashes.
"Kevin?!" Ron's eyes were wide. "You killed him!"
Harry and Hermione looked equally stunned.
"You're ignorant," Kevin said, holding up the feathers. "This is a phoenix. They die in fire and are reborn from the ashes. And phoenix feathers are… valuable."
"Well said, Kevin," came Dumbledore's voice from the staircase above.
He descended, explaining gently to the others, "Fawkes is a phoenix. When the end of his life approaches, he ignites himself and is reborn from the ashes. His tears can heal the gravest wounds."
His blue eyes settled on Kevin. "However, I can't say I approve of such a rough approach."
Kevin met his gaze. "What a coincidence, Headmaster. I don't quite approve of how coldly you've handled Harry's recent troubles."
He placed the feathers into Harry's hand, ignoring the boy's awkward confusion.
Dumbledore studied Kevin in silence, the room's atmosphere suddenly heavy. Kevin could feel sweat prickling at the back of his neck.
"Professor Dumbledore—" Hermione began, but the door burst open.
"Professor! It's not them!" Hagrid panted, his face flushed. "If yeh need, I'll go ter the Ministry meself and testify for 'em."
Dumbledore lifted a hand. "Calm yourself, Hagrid. I believe them."
Relieved, Hagrid left, giving the children a reassuring wink.
Dumbledore stepped closer to Kevin, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm glad Harry has a friend like you."
The tension broke. Dumbledore smiled warmly at all four.
Harry had thought Kevin might get into trouble for plucking the feathers, but it seemed the Headmaster's interest lay elsewhere.
Turning to Harry, Dumbledore said, "I'm sorry you've been through so much. I'm doing everything I can to discover the truth about the Chamber of Secrets and clear your name. But… is there anything you want to tell me?"
Harry hesitated. The strange voice he'd been hearing—should he tell Dumbledore? Kevin gave him an encouraging nod.
"Professor," Harry said finally, "I've been hearing a voice. It's in the walls, sometimes above me. It keeps saying it wants to kill… wants blood. I follow it, and I find… this."
Dumbledore's brow furrowed. Before he could speak, Kevin said, "It's a basilisk."
The Headmaster's eyes flickered with surprise.
Kevin continued, "Slytherin's monster would have to be a giant serpent. Only his true heir—a Parselmouth—could control it. Harry hears it because he can speak Parseltongue. The basilisk moves through the pipes, striking unseen. And the dead chickens Hagrid found? Chickens are deadly to basilisks—someone's been clearing the way."
The others stared at him. Dumbledore's face betrayed no emotion, but his silence confirmed Kevin's reasoning.
"Yes," Dumbledore said after a pause. "Fifty years ago, when the Chamber was last opened, there was another Parselmouth—Tom Riddle. He became Lord Voldemort."
Ron, Hermione, and Harry gasped. Kevin simply nodded, having suspected as much.
"The student who died back then," Kevin pressed, "who was it?"
"A girl," Dumbledore said quietly. "She died in the girls' bathroom. Moaning Myrtle."
A moment later, his eyes lit with sudden realization. "I think I know where the entrance is."
Without further explanation, he led them to Myrtle's bathroom, dismissing Hagrid from his guard post outside.
Inside, Myrtle recounted how she'd heard an unfamiliar voice, seen a pair of enormous yellow eyes by one of the sinks—and died.
Harry noticed the snake emblem carved into the faucet. At Dumbledore's request, he spoke in Parseltongue.
The sink began to sink and twist, revealing a dark, gaping tunnel.
The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets had been found.
But none of them felt fear. They were standing with the greatest wizard of the age—Albus Dumbledore.