Odd Thought... was...Chamber of Secrets in a girl's bathroom?

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 88401

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "artcase" <artcase at y...> wrote:
> Why was Tom Riddle in the girl's bathroom in the first place????
> 
> Art


bboy_mn:

First, to the effectiveness and logic of putting the entrance to the
Chamber of Secrets in a girl's bathroom. It worked didn't it? Nearly a
thousand years time and a long succession of Hogwart's headmasters
were unable to find it.

If I were searching for a secret chamber in a large castle, I think it
would be a long time before it occurred to me to look in the girl's
bathroom. So, in the end, it was a pretty wise choice.

Regarding the bathroom itself, others have speculated the the entrance
to the Chamber of Secrets has something like an 'adaptive' charm on
it. Regardless of how the room was changed, the entrance would equally
change to conform to the new room, and adapt the gateway to the
entrance to blend into the room. 

If the room were just a bare room used for storage, then maybe one
stone along one wall would have a small snake scratched on it to mark
the entrance. When it was converted to a bathroom, then a wall sink
with a marked water tap became more appopriate.

Bathrooms in general; bathrooms aren't a new invention, they have been
around in many cultures for many many centuries. Ancient Rome and
Greece had pumbing that provided running water for personal use as
well as public fountains, and yes indeed, for toilets. 

Some key components of bathrooms like porcelain and running water are
ancient technologies. The one thing we see (or don't see, but hear
about) in the HP series that is a relatively modern invention, is the
'U' bend (or 'S' bend). Early toilets in the USA didn't have this, as
a result the 'cupboard under the staisr' frequently blew up when
methane gas leaked into the house. Explosions usually triggered by gas
lights, candles, or cigarettes. The 'U' or 'S' bend under your sink
(and toilet) prevents this methane gas from entering your home.

That could be a conversion problem for modern plumbers, but for magic
folk, a quick wave of your wand and the pipe suddenly has a 'U' bend;
not a problem.

Tom Riddle????

Yes, a very interesting question, 'How did Tom manage to find the
entrance to the Chamber when a long succession of Hogwarts headmasters
couldn't?'.

It seems that Tom Riddle did a great deal of detailed research on the
Chamber and Salazar Slytherin (this is clear from the books), it's
possible that is was in this detailed research that he discovered, or
possibly imagined, that he was related to Slytherin. An event which
would only serve to increase his interest in finding the Chamber. At
some point, one could speculate, Tom reasoned that since Slytherin had
the unique characteristic of being able to talk to snakes, that
Parseltongue might be the key. 

Language, words, phrases, incantations, as well as secret passwords
seem to be the mainstay of the wizard world; Tom Riddle could
logically reason that Slytherin would use a password that only he with
his specific talent could produce. A password that no other wizard
past, present, or future could concieve, except a wizard who shared
Slytherin's special gift.

And just by chance, as the lone outcast oddball Tom Riddle wandered
the woods alone, in his days as a child, Tom came across a snake that
by some unimaginable process could talk to him, and even more amazing,
that he, Tom Riddle, could talk back.

Putting all the pieces together, the oddball Tom Riddle would wander
the halls of Hogwarts softly hissing and spitting, or at least, that's
what it seemed to the outside observer. In reality he was wandering
the halls speaking Parsletongue saying, 'Chamber of Secrets of Salazar
Slythering reveal yourself to me!'. One day while wandering past the
girls bathroom, he heard a noise inside in response to his call for
the Chamber to reveal itself. Bada-Bing Bada-Boom... he found the Chamber.

Of course, none of this can ever be more than speculation since the
books don't give us enough information to draw reasonable conclusions.

Just a thought.

bboy_mn