Colin Creevy/The basilisk attacks

[cubfanbudwoman]

No: HPFGUIDX 113065

Hannah: 
> It makes me wonder what the actual mechanism of the basilisk attack 
> is. To release the basilisk, presumably possessed!Ginny has to go 
> down into  the Chamber. The basilisk then slithers off through the 
> plumbing. 
> But how does she know where to send it? It takes a long time to 
> get to the chamber, release the snake, and for the basilisk to then 
> travel to the site of attack - so how does she know where the 
> victim will be? All victims were attacked while moving through the 
> castle. This suggests possessed!Ginny released the basilisk and 
> had it lie in wait. But how did it know who to lie in wait for? How 
> did  Ginny communicate with it once it was inside the pipes?
> 
> The only way I can see it working would be for Ginny to go to the 
> chamber and release the basilisk. She tells it who to attack, 
> maybe gives it something with their smell on it, so it can find 
> them. 
> The snake then goes and lies in wait somewhere. When it smells out 
> the person alone, it attacks them. Ginny herself simply returns to 
> her dormitory (no mean feat since it seems quite tricky to get out 
> of the chamber). This would also explain why none of the basilisk 
> victims seem to realise Ginny was there when they were attacked - 
> she wasn't. 
>  
> One more thing - how is the basilisk getting into and out of the 
> pipes? It seems to be getting all around the castle inside them, 
> so  there must be places it can emerge from and return to them. If 
> it 
> could only get in and out in Myrtle's bathroom, why hasn't someone 
> seen it moving from there to the attack sites?


SSSusan:
These questions *are* troublesome.  For one thing, presumably the 
Basilisk no-speaka-de-English.  I thought one had to speak 
Parseltongue for it to respond.  (Or is that movie contam.?)  But 
whether that's a requirement or not, still, the logistics of a giant 
creature like that moving around--getting up from the pipes , quickly 
locating the intended target [bec. I *do* believe there were 
intendended targets--that it wasn't accidental they were all Muggle-
born] without being seen, getting back down into the Chamber, etc.  
How was all this done??  

And how could Ginny have actually been descending into the Chamber 
each time?  Remember how far down it was?  How Harry/Ron/GL got back 
up by being flown by Fawkes?  Wouldn't Ginny be constantly filthy?  
And if it took Harry speaking Parseltongue to get the sink to "step 
aside," then how would Ginny do the same?  It almost seems there must 
be another way in/out than just Myrtle's bathroom's sink.  

I think perhaps Ginny was communicating with Diary!Tom and that he 
either did the calling or gave her instructions (and taught her 
Parseltongue????) in order to actually call & direct the Basilisk.  
But even if the Basilisk isn't smart enough to seek out an intendend 
target - even if it only "knows" to attack the person who's right 
there when it arrives - there's still all this logistical stuff to be 
explained.

Frankly, it's one of the weakest parts of the books for me as a 
reader.  I wonder if JKR will ever even explain?

Siriusly Snapey Susan