After a considerable amount of thought, Vaibhav Marwah arranged his next sentence, "Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four." A loud cracking is heard as stairs pop out of the wall leading all the way up to the mouth of the gigantic Salazar Slytherin which opened wide.
A hiss of excitement escapes from Shesha, who keenly slithers from stair to stair and begins to climb. A sense of relief can be visibly seen on Vaibhav Marwah's elderly face. He had hoped his guess would be correct and it was in appeasing the vanity of Salazar Slytherin.
With great care, Vaibhav Marwah began to ascend the narrow stone stairs. Once or twice, he had to pause and catch his breath. He was limber and spry for his age, but not as he once was. His knees and backs moaning, he arrived safely at the opening of the tunnel.
Muttering spells, Vaibhav Marwah cautiously stepped into the tunnel casting several spells to disarm deadly traps or snares. He can hear the voice of Sesha hissing up ahead and loudly chattering to herself. The dryness in his mouth eases at finding no traps or deadly snares to catch the unwary.
Three-fourths near the end of the tunnel, Vaibhav Marwah halts before a bare stone wall. Sesha is happily curled on the wall and hisses, "It is warm, safe nest." She happily hummed to herself comfortably coiled as if sunning in the sun.
Closing his eyes, Vaibhav Marwah raises his tanned calloused hand. He presses his palm against the stone wall. The stone wall feels almost warm as if charged with energy. It feels of serpents and sands of the south, and of the cold electrifying magic of the far north. There was no feeling of hidden suppression or malice but only rather of comforting solace.
Withdrawing his hand, Vaibhav Marwah opens his eyes to gaze at the wall. His intuition told them there was a hidden door before him. Yet in all his years, he had never felt such warmth. The intent of the chamber was to hide and offer sanctuary, he could instinctively sense it.
Regardless of the purpose, Vaibhav Marwah saw no reason to report the existence of the chamber to the Board of Hogwarts. He had been hired to make the Chamber of Secrets safe and that is exactly what he would do. No more and no less.
"Come Shesha," Vaibhav Marwah called out to the content cobra, who let out a whining hiss but reluctantly followed after his heels.
Thankfully, the climb was much easier on Vaibhav Marwah's old bones. He continued to chant searching for secret pathways as he wandered back the way he came. He was able to discover a large underground lagoon which had been previously mentioned by Master Linnaeus.
Pulling out a blank piece of parchment from his satchel, Vaibhav Marwah, using a charcoal stick sketched out a rough map of the Chamber of Secrets and the various paths he had so far found. Finished, he wiped his hands clean before allowing Seshea to lead the way.
They did not discover any other passageways except for a single one that led outside into the Forbidden Forest. Without waiting for permission, Vaibhav Marwah began to chant in an old mother tongue older than Bengali, Sanskrit, or even Tamil. The words flow smoothly off his tongue like butter.
The hard ground begins to glow a golden vermilion and bursts like lava. The ground spews upward effectively blocking the entrance. The ground continues to glow as it cools and hardens.
Seshea lets out a disappointed hiss and slithers up the leg and upward before coming to rest on Vaibhav Marwah's shoulders. She rests her head on top of her master's head. Her dark tongue flicked out now and again tasting the air.
Vaibhav Marwah spits out several more spells to ward the door hidden and ensure that it cannot easily be broken down by a curious mind (student or professor). Wiping the sweat from his face, he finally begins to feel the exhaustion set in. He was tired, hungry, and cold. A hot bath and a warm meal would do him much good.
"Food?" Shesha hissed from her perch.
"Yes, dinner does sound good now," Vaibhav Marwah replied in parseltongue.
A squeal of delight escapes from Shesha, who tightens her coils in excitement causing Vaibhav Marwah to let out a pained "oof," before slithering down and darting forward to lead the way.
Trudging back the way they came, Vaibhav Marwah and Shesha returned to the pipe. He lets out a tired sigh recalling the way they came. He was in no mood to climb up the way he came.
Peering up into the dark pipe, Shesha excitably says, "Me first!" Without further ado, the serpent shoots up the pipe like a dark arrow and vanishes out of sight.
Not to be outmaneuvered, Vaibhav opens his satchel and calls out to his magical carpet. The magical carpet leaps out excitably and unfurls. Its golden tassels excitably twitching ready to go.
"A narrow flightpath," Vaibhav Marwah clearly instructs the magic carpet. "Slow and steady."
The magical carpet seems to become more solemn and still. Weary and worn, Vaibhav Marwah lays flat on his stomach and holds on to the front tassels. The magical carpet begins to float and rises slowly in front of the pipe, before diving in. With expert care, the magical carpet navigates the winding narrow tunnel that treacherously bends and curves at the last second.
After a dizzying flight, Vaibhav Marwah emerges at the top of the pipe in the desolate, gloomy girls' bathroom. Shesha is peering intently at her reflection her hood fully out. She sways in front of the mirror admiring her bright scales and fierce gaze.
"Come Shesha, you can admire yourself later," Vaibhav Marwah called out as the magical carpet folded itself neatly away back into the satchel.
"Shehsa is a great beauty," Shesha proudly declared.
"I am certain that is the case," Vaibhav Marwah drily responded hearing his back loudly pop as he bent down to stretch his arm to the cobra. A loud pop startles Shesha who raises her body up with her hood flared out ready to attack.
A diminutive creature with bat-like ears wears a neat French maid uniform and a matching cap. Toppy's blue watery eyes are startled and grasps her white apron tightly in dread causing the letter H engraved on the corner of her apron to wrinkle. Her delicate feet in tiny black slippers and black stockings fidget uncertainly.
"Toppy was instructed to wait for Master Marwah's return by the Headmaster," the female house tremblingly squeaked. "Toppy is to show Master Marwah to the guest quarters to rest and enjoy a relaxing bath. A hot meal has been prepared and is waiting to be served. "
In Bhārata (India), there are house elves primarily brought over by the European wizards, and are used in the wealthier households. House elves are not a native species to their homeland. Vaibhav Marwah in his many years of existence had never truly seen a house elf so up close.
After studying the diminutive creature, Vaibhav Marwah in an accented voice says, "Please lead the way."
"Yes," Toppy gulped staring at the serpent who was hungrily eyeing her.
"Shehsa," Vaibhav Marwah warningly said to the fickle serpent, who snorted and darted up his arm to rest up on his shoulders and head.
Feeling slightly better, Toppy leads the guest up the stairs as instructed all the while privately vowing to have someone else serve the honored guest dinner. Somehow, she managed to lead the wizard to his quarters, before fleeing to the kitchen. Panting, she describes the honored guest and his very large serpent.
Some of the house elves loudly gulp, but others do not react. They had all seen Nadira, and Nadira was by far the largest serpent they had ever seen. And a cobra was far tinier in comparison. The house elves busy themselves and return to their duties leaving Toppy to catch her breath.