After settling Dobby in, Douglas made his way back to the girls' bathroom.
As soon as he stepped inside, he saw that Fudge had already arrived, while Hagrid and Professor Kettleburn had taken their leave. Everyone who had ventured into the Chamber had emerged—gathered around a cluster of battered, dust-streaked figures. Apart from Newt, nearly everyone bore some kind of injury.
Douglas raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"That was quick!"
Snape, who was dabbing a potion onto a gash on his arm, shot Douglas a disdainful look.
"Just a mindless serpent king..."
Newt interjected gently,
"Not entirely mindless, Severus. This basilisk's intelligence was roughly on par with a four-year-old child.
Sadly, it was already very old. None of us speak Parseltongue, or we could have coaxed it into hibernation—it might have lived for decades yet."
Douglas's eyes lit up. He turned eagerly to Snape.
"Professor—"
Snape gave a crooked smile, then tossed a small sack at Douglas.
Douglas caught it and looked inside—only to find a large patch of shed snake skin.
He stared at Snape, utterly bewildered.
"Is that it?"
Newt watched the exchange with curiosity.
"Douglas, can snake skin be made into a delicacy too? I don't recall any recipes for that in the book you gave me..."
Douglas's mouth twitched. That enormous serpent, and all he got was a piece of shed skin—who knew how many years old, at that.
"Professor Snape, isn't this a little stingy?"
Nearby, Professor McGonagall whispered to Professor Sprout,
"See? I told you Douglas would be anxious."
Sprout shrugged helplessly.
"I'd be anxious too if a thousand-year-old snake roast slipped through my fingers. I've never tasted anything like that..."
Snape arched an eyebrow, mocking.
"Weren't you the one who claimed you could turn anything into a feast? What's a little snake skin to you? I've even got a pair of basilisk fangs—care to give those a try?"
Before Douglas could retort, Fudge stepped in with a diplomatic laugh.
"Professor Holmes, I think there's been a misunderstanding. The basilisk isn't dead. Since Professor Scamander needed a live specimen for his research, we only destroyed its fangs and eyes...
Otherwise, with Professor Snape and our elite Aurors on the job, how could anyone have gotten hurt by a mere basilisk?"
Newt nodded in agreement.
"Professor Dumbledore helped me relocate the basilisk. Breeding basilisks is exceptionally rare, so I asked everyone to capture it alive for further study..."
Douglas rubbed his nose sheepishly, then smiled at Newt.
"Professor, I'm free over the summer—surely you wouldn't mind if I paid you a visit?"
Newt replied without hesitation,
"I mind! My little creatures can't survive your brand of 'research'..."
Just then, a phoenix's cry echoed through the chamber. Dumbledore appeared at the entrance, clinging to Fawkes's talons, a suitcase in hand.
"Newt, the basilisk is inside this..."
Seeing Dumbledore arrive, Fudge quickly gathered the Aurors and the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures and led them away. After all, with Newt's request and Dumbledore's guarantee, there was no further insistence on destroying the basilisk.
It seemed they'd already forgotten that Lucius Malfoy had come down with them...
Upon hearing that Newt had taken the basilisk, Tonks looked a little disappointed.
But Douglas gifted her a newly updated recipe book, and she left beaming—completely forgetting about that dinner she'd promised him.
As Scrimgeour was leaving, he suddenly called out to Douglas,
"Ever thought of becoming an Auror?"
Douglas declined with a grin.
Once the Ministry wizards had departed, a new problem emerged—the Chamber's door wouldn't close.
Snape played the entire Parseltongue recording, but the entrance didn't budge.
Everyone turned to Dumbledore, who simply patted Newt on the shoulder.
"The Portkey's nearly ready. I'd better get you home, Newt, or Tina will start to worry."
(Tina Goldstein)
(A Portkey is a magically enchanted object that transports whoever touches it to a designated location. Creating a Portkey usually requires authorization from the Portkey Office under the Department of Magical Transportation.)
Newt's mind was entirely on his suitcase. At the mention of his wife, he panicked—he'd forgotten to tell her he was bringing home a giant snake...
Before leaving, Dumbledore turned to the group and Douglas.
"Oh, by the way, I'll leave this matter in Douglas's hands.
Douglas, come to my office later—I have a few things to discuss with you."
Everyone's attention shifted to Douglas. Snape smirked.
"Douglas, you can invite that Parselmouth out now, can't you?"
The Bloody Baron hovered behind Snape, rattling his chains menacingly, as if to say that if Douglas didn't cooperate, there would be trouble.
The other professors took a few steps back, eager to watch the show.
No one was surprised by the constant bickering between these two. As long as they didn't come to blows, all was well.
Douglas asked with genuine curiosity,
"I didn't want to ask too much with the Ministry folks here, but Professor, did you find any treasures left by Salazar Slytherin down there?"
Snape snorted.
"Hmph. And what business is that of yours?"
Douglas narrowed his eyes, probing,
"Well, since the basilisk is gone, there's no need to keep the Chamber entrance hidden.
If there aren't any treasures, maybe we could turn it into a practical training ground.
Each professor could set up their own challenges—let the students learn by doing..."
Professor McGonagall frowned,
"The basilisk is gone, but who knows what other traps might remain.
As for treasure, Albus went down alone just now. Since he didn't mention anything, I suppose nothing was found.
Still, Douglas, your idea has merit. When we have time, perhaps the professors could go down together and clear out any lingering dangers. What do you think, Severus?"
She turned to Snape.
Snape's face remained impassive.
"Slytherin's Chamber is Hogwarts property. If he has no objections, neither do I. But we can't just leave the door open like this forever, Professor Holmes—wouldn't you agree?"
Douglas understood. The reason Dumbledore had gone down alone to capture the basilisk was because Snape and the others had found nothing of value—so they'd used it as an excuse to give Dumbledore a turn. He grinned.
"That's easy enough. We just need to replace the magic here.
I doubt any of us think ourselves weaker than Salazar Slytherin—especially since this is probably the work of his descendants, not the man himself..."
The Bloody Baron roared,
"Slytherin was the greatest wizard! No one after him could ever compare!"
No one, not even Snape, paid him any mind.
After all, every professor present was a master in their field—none would admit to being lesser than those who came before.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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