That morning, you marched into the Great Hall with messy hair and bags under your eyes but you didn't head to Slytherin's table.

A couple for third-years rushed out of your way when they saw your face and you walked right along Ravenclaw's corner, earning several perplexed glances.

You reached the small group of girls having breakfast on the far end of the table and just as Kalifa opened her mouth to comment, you heavily dropped your bag to her feet and shut her up with a glare. Then you turned to Reiju.

«I think we should talk.»

The pinkette briefly closed her eyes as to prepare herself, then stood up to face you.

«You're right, we should. But not here.» she murmured.

«Why not? I'm sick of all this secrecy.»

Someone touched your shoulder from behind and you turned.

Drake dropped his hand and cleared his voice.

«I'm sorry to step in, L/n, but–»

«What the hell do you want? Are you involved in this?» you blurted not even letting him finish.

Yes, maybe you were being a bitch, but you had lost your sleep over this Parseltongue thing, and you were pissed. A person you considered one of your best friends knew something like that about you and didn't say anything? And how would she know something even you had no idea of?

Drake's gaze shifted to the table and met half a dozen of curious eyes following the scene.

«As a matter of fact, he is.» Reiju stated.

You blinked at her.

«What?»

«Y/n.» she muttered, nudging you away «Let's go somewhere to talk.»

You snatched your arm away.

«Does he know about me too?!»

«My, you really do like to make a scene.»

Your head jerked towards the smooth voice that interrupted you, flames darting from your eyes.

Trafalgar Law was watching you with his bored expression, face tilted to the side and arms crossed.

«Oh, look, it's one of my favourite people coming to stick his ass in someone else's business!» you spat.

He smirked and Reiju grabbed your arm again.

«Y/n, please! You've a right to be upset but I promise, we'll tell you everything! Today before dinner. Meet us at six in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.»

Your nose twitched.

«Fine.»

The rest of the day passed by slowly and tediously.

You burnt all the ingredients necessary to prepare your potion, which led to Perona banishing you from the cauldron. At Charms, Prof. Donquixote was a little too nice, even complimenting you when you accidentally made Penguin's hat explode. And during Herbology you were so frustrated you threw your mandrake in Gambia's face and Prof. Nekomamushi sent you out of the greenhouse.

«What the hell is wrong with you today?» Perona asked as your Slytherin group walked back to the castle for lunch.

«What are you talking about? She's on fire today!» Kid laughed.

You groaned and adjusted the bag on your shoulders.

«Nothing, I slept funny.»

«Was it because of Prof. Nico calling you in her office yesterday?»

Your eyes flicked to Killer.

He was waaay too perceptive for his own good. Some day it was going to get him in trouble.

«No, that was fine. What about you guys, instead?» you quickly tried to diverge the topic «Did you come back to our quarters just before dawn today?»

Kid and Killer exchanged a rapid look.

«How do you know?»

«I couldn't sleep so I was downstairs reading.»

Kid shrugged.

«Killer thought he saw a monster nearby Ravenclaw tower the other day, so we went checking.»

«A monster?»

«I never said monster!» the blond protested.

«Right, right, sorry.» Kid wickedly grinned at you and waved his hands mimicking a spastic ghost «An oooominous voice!»

That at least made you chuckle.

«I didn't...! Bah, whatever.» Killer grunted, tilting his head so his hair would hide his face.

«And did you find anything?» Perona asked with bright eyes. Ghost stories were always her favourite.

«Nope.» Kid replied «The voices must be in his head.»

«It wasn't a voice!» the other snapped «It was a hissing, okay? And I didn't imagine it.»

«Well, whatever it was, it was gone when we went back there.»

Perona puffed her cheeks in disappointment and Killer shrugged it off.

«Anyway, Y/n, since we're done with class today, I'm going to help Kid training for tomorrow's duels. Do you want to join us?»

The redhead frowned at his best friend's proposal but you shook your head.

«Thank you but I got plans.»

Perona quirked her eyebrow.

«What kind of plans?»

«I, hum...»

You hesitated as all eyes curiously shifted to you.

You still hadn't mentioned anything about the Parseltongue incident to your friends. Not because you wanted to keep it from them, on the contrary, you really needed their opinion and support on the matter. But every time you tried to bring up the topic, it felt like a heavy burden squeezed to your chest. It was simply hard to talk about it.

«I convinced Reiju to tell me why she's being so weird lately.» you eventually muttered.

Not the whole truth but not a lie either.

«Oh.» Perona blinked «So you're going to hang out with her?»

«I guess.» you nodded.

Kid had already lost interest and started nagging Killer about their upcoming training.

«I won't be long.» you assured the pinkette, who appeared a little upset she was left out «I'll update you asap.»

Moaning Myrtle's bathroom was fairly far from Slytherin's dungeon.

You dropped your school stuff in the dorm and only kept your wand, since it was stupid for any wizard to go anywhere without it.

The corridor leading to the girls' lavatory was desert at the moment, like most of the time.

The ghost of Moaning Myrtle had actually trespassed during the Potter age, but the place still retained its sinister charm.

«Y/n!»

Despite being in a better mood now, you still scowled when you saw both Drake and Law waiting for you with Reiju right outside the lavatory.

Drake had his usual serious expression, while Trafalgar was leaning against the entrance looking like he didn't really want to be there.

Well, that makes the two of us.

«What are they doing here?» you grumbled, stopping in front of Reiju.

«Oh, they have a lot of explaining to do. Don't you, boys?»

Law scoffed, still glowering at the opposite wall like it had done him a terrible wrong. Drake, on the other hand, lowered his face and nodded.

«It's true. Please, Y/n, come inside.»

You observed perplexed as the two guys walked into the bathroom.

«This is not a Ravenclaw ambush, isn't it?»

Reiju smirked.

«Did I lose all the faith you held in me?»

Before you could answer though, she followed her housemates inside.

You stayed still for a few moments before muttering a low "what the hell" and joining them.

Long before, the bathroom had been turned into a memento of the old age. The walls were filled with the names of wizards and muggles that died against the Dark Lords, carved or painted on the tiles. Fresh flowers adorned the ancient sinks and floating candles endlessly navigated the penumbra of the room.

It was quite suggestive for the freshmen to visit but it also felt like a haunted place.

«So, why are we here?» you asked, dodging the small candles slowly levitating around.

«Because of this.» Drake replied, resting his hand on the snake-headed sink.

You frowned.

There was a black writing on top of it, written in bigger letters compared to all the others.

"Here was the entrance of the Chamber of Secrets.

May this door never open again."

You frowned.

Slytherin bullies often dragged younglings from other houses there at night and pretended to hiss Parseltongue words to open the chamber, scaring them to death. Another reason why the place wasn't very popular.

«Is this a sick joke because apparently I'm a Parselmouth now? How did you know about it anyway?» you hissed.

Drake shook his head.

«It's not a joke. The magic that allowed Parseltongue to open these doors has been banished and the entrance it's sealed.»

«Oh yeah? How can you be sure, did you try?» you asked sarcastically.

There was a short silence during which the Ravenclaws briefly glanced at each other, then Drake's gaze returned to you.

«Yes.»

Your eyes widened.

«Wait, what?»

«L/n, I... I'm a Parselmouth. Just like you.»

You noticed something weird in his last words and Reiju shuddered.

«W-Wait, did you just... did you hiss to me?»

«Yes, and I know you understood.»

You blinked and took a step back.

What the hell is going on here?!

«Hold on...»

Suddenly, a flashback cut through your mind. You raised your finger and pointed it at him.

«You... you did it before! At the party!»

Drake nodded again.

«Yes. I'm sorry I tricked you.»

Your face jerked towards Reiju.

«So this is how you knew! He told you and you didn't tell me anything!»

«No!» she immediately blurted «He didn't tell me. Well, not back then at least.»

«He told me.»

Law finally stepped forward.

He stared at you with sharp eyes, almost like he was challenging you.

«I was the one that asked him to test you.»

You stared back at him, trying to make sense of all those information dropping on you in such a short time.

«You? Why? What the hell is your problem with me?!» you then turned to Drake with a growl «And what about you, do you just go around hissing to people? Do all of your bird-mates know about your little secret?!»

Drake remained calm, like he expected you to freak out.

«No, only Law. Well, you and Vinsmoke know too now. And I know it's pretentious to ask, given the circumstances, but I would appreciate for it to remain a secret.»

«You... awofhirbfdiuans!» you groaned in incredulous frustration, hands messing with your hair.

Law looked at Reiju.

«Did we break her?»

She sighed and moved closer.

«Y/n, I'm sorry. When you asked me to keep an eye on Trafalgar, Drake overheard us. This is how he and Law started to keep an eyes on us in return and I got stuck in between.»

«Then why didn't you just tell me?!» you snapped, hands snatching away from your head.

«To be precise, I was watching you since before. Drake only agreed to help after you two started to behave suspiciously.» Law clarified before sending a side-glance to his mate «...he was also hard to convince.»

Drake glared back at him.

«And I regret going along with it.» he mumbled.

«Why, why would you spy on me?» you barked, now fully turning to Law «Again, what the hell is your problem? Did I do anything to you? Or it's just all Slytherin that you hate and I was simply easy to target?»

He rolled his eyes, not at all intimidated by your flaming expression.

«Believe me, L/n, you're not an easy target. Always surrounded by your Slytherin bodyguards, then your Gryffindor bodyguards... you're oblivious as hell so you probably didn't even notice, but I got Kamazo and Monkey breathing on my neck more than once. Not to mention these two.» he gestured to his housemates with a displeased frown.

«I don't hear you explaining your shit, Trafalgar.» you hissed, hand moving to the pocket of the wand.

His golden eyes followed your movement and a smirk curved his lips.

«Oho, turning aggressive, I see. What you think you can do? You're outnumbered, and even if you weren't, you're no match to me.»

His words made your blood boil.

«I'll take my chances.»

«Y/n, please!» Reiju cried, grabbing your arm «This is not why we're here. We'll explain you everything!» she then sent an icy glare to Law «Haven't you already done enough, Trafalgar?»

The ravenette's smirk turned into a grimace and he gritted his teeth.

«Fine. I'll tell you why you, L/n.»

Your fingers had already wrapped around the wand into your uniform but you stopped.

Nobody talked for a few seconds. Then Law finally let out a long breath.

«I believe someone will try to open the Chamber of Secrets again, and I believe it will be you.»

Sengoku scanned the sheet once again before raising his eyes on the two witches in front of him.

«So old Whitebeard wants to stick his nose into the future now? I thought he wasn't interested in such things.»

Nico Robin simply smiled.

«Hogwarts' only interest is keeping the Magic community safe.»

«Oh, of course.» Sengoku smirked, handing her the paper «And yet you don't specify what you're looking for. Only that you want access to the Hall of Prophecy.»

«We periodically review the prophecies to make sure none of our students represent a risk to others or themselves.» Madame Sharley replied.

«As all new prophecies are submitted to the Ministry, it would be desirable to work together.» Robin added «I'm sure you'd already know if there was someone to keep an eye on.»

«Sure, sure.»

The wizard pressed a button on his desk and a little trill echoed in the corridor beyond. Not long after, a tall brunette stepped into the office.

«Mr. Sengoku?»

«Momousagi, please accompany these ladies to the Hall of Prophecy. They are looking for something from...» he glanced at the date on top of his notes «sixteen years ago.»

He then turned to the two professors.

«Momousagi will help you in your query. As you know, many prophecies are protected by our privacy policy, so if you need access to any of those, you'll need to fill a separate request.»

«I'm familiar with the process.» Madame Sharley cut short «Thank you, Mr. Sengoku.»

«The Heir of Slytherin?»

You couldn't believe what you just heard.

Chamber of Secrets? Heir of Slytherin? Were these Ravenclaws nuts in the head?

«It was hard to digest for me too, at first.» Reiju said «Especially because he doesn't have any proof, aside the roosters disappearing short before the year started.»

«Okay, let me get this straight.» you pinched the bridge of your nose «The creep here says someone will open the Chamber of Secrets, buying into a dead-old legend. He starts stalking people for it with NO PROOF, and you guys follow him?!»

«I did my research. I have reasons,» Law growled «I'm just not willing to share them with you at the moment.»

«OH, THAT MAKES IT OKAY THEN!» you blurted.

«Calm down you two.» Reiju sighed, stepping in between «Look, I didn't believe him either, but last week Porche came back to the house terrified, blabbering about an hissing voice chasing her.»

Your eyebrows flicked and Killer's words suddenly replayed in your head.

Drake noticed the change on your face.

«What is it, L/n?»

Your eyes slowly travelled from him to Law.

«Killer said something similar.»

Trafalgar's attention sparked.

«It happened to him? Where?»

«I don't know... but it must've been the night he walked Reiju to your dorm because he mentioned the Ravenclaw tower.»

She frowned, tapping her finger over her chin.

«Porche said it was the bottom of the tower. It's the same place then.»

«Yeah, but he and Kid went back to check and they found nothing!» you protested, shaking your head.

«No surprise.» Drake continued «We went there too, to no avail. I even tried to call the creature and it didn't work.»

«It's not so strange though.» Law reasoned «The serpent of Slytherin is supposed to hunt muggle-borns. We're all pureblood. Same goes for Eustass.»

You stared at him, eyes horrified for a second.

«...but not Killer.»

«Nor Porche.» Reiju added.

«Okay, this is getting too crazy!» you uttered raising your hands «If you had such strong suspicions, why didn't you inform some prof?»

Law shrugged.

«I tried to spoke with Cora-san but he dismissed my concerns. There is no proof, and the Chamber of Secrets has been sealed for ages. It's also flooded, and the basilisk killed. They would never give credit to something like this the year of the Triwizard Tournament.»

«Then how...?»

«It's not so difficult to breed a basilisk.» Drake explained «All you need is a chicken egg and a toad. Most of the eggs incubated this way won't hatch, but you only need one.»

«Obviously it's a forbidden practice and the Ministry carries out inspections. Still it would be far from impossible.» Reiju mumbled.

«Even so, wouldn't it take hundreds of years for a basilisk to reach the adult size?»

«Yes.» Drake nodded «But someone could have sneaked it in in the past. Or it could be a young individual, hopefully.»

«Okay, okay, there's still something I don't get here.» you grumbled, massaging your temples «If you believe that I'm the one starting all this crazy shit, why are you telling me this?»

«Because even if you are, in fact, the Heir of Slytherin, you clearly don't know it.» Law stated.

«You were unaware of being a Parselmouth until yesterday.» Drake added.

You stared at them.

«Are you saying... I'm sleepwalking or something?»

«It wouldn't be impossible.»

You dropped your arms along your sides and fell quiet.

Could they be right? You didn't know you could speak Parseltongue. The craziest thing happened to you all the time. Would it really be so weird for you to be the Heir of Slytherin?

The Ravenclaws noticed the change in your attitude and glanced at each other.

Eventually, Law grunted and clicked his fingers in front of you.

«Oi, L/n. Don't you understand? You may not be the Heir of Slytherin, but even if you are, it would be a good thing.»

Your lip twitched.

«Excuse me?»

«You're not a bloodthirsty prick obsessed with pureblood supremacy.» Drake said, crossing his arms «If you learned how to use the Heir power, nothing bad would happen.»

«Of course there's also the possibility Law is wrong and the Chamber is dead.» Reiju smiled, earning a small scoff from the ravenette.

You took a few seconds to let their words sink.

Everything still sounded so weird it felt like you were stuck in a cloudy dream.

«So... what now?» you lowly asked.

«A few things.» Law started, pointing at the snake sculpted in the marble «First of all, try to open that.»

You frowned.

«Didn't Drake try already?»

«Yes but one more attempt can't hurt.»

«Fine.»

You took a deep breath and positioned yourself in front of the sink.

After a few moments filled with expectation, though, your eyes trailed to Drake.

«What am I supposed to do exactly?» you whispered.

Law groaned and Reiju chuckled. Even Drake smirked at your question.

«Repeat after me, okay? Open.»

«Open.» you hissed, trying to imitate him.

It was still hard to distinguish Parseltongue from regular words.

You all stared at the sink for a solid minute, but nothing happened.

«...so that didn't work.»

«There must be another entrance somewhere else.» Law mumbled.

«Okay, neeeext.» you sighed, turning to him.

He didn't look amused by your attitude.

«You won't like what's next.»

«Because the rest of this was so much fun!» you grinned.

«Y/n, there's still the possibility that the Heir is someone else.» Reiju said before Law decided murdering you was an easier way to settle things.

«Or nobody else.» you grumbled.

«...this is why other Slytherin can't know about this.»

You glared at Law.

«Are you saying I can't tell my friends this nice story?»

«Precisely.»

«Well, not for you to decide.» you shrugged «I trust them. Kid and Killer can help us out with the research, they've been wondering the forbidden areas of the castle since forever. Or you don't trust them either?»

«As much as I hate to admit it, I don't suspect them.» Law seriously said «Kamazo is a muggle-born and Eustass is an idiot, but even I can tell that he wouldn't willingly risk his friends' life. Nevertheless, involving Eustass is suicide. He's subtle like a troll in a conference. The whole school would know in a heartbeat.»

«So what? Then Whitebeard would take over and this shit would end.»

«We should consider the worst-case scenario, Y/n. It could be any pureblood from Slytherin.» Reiju stated softly «It could be Katakuri.»

The sole mention of his name turned the blood in your veins to ice.

«Your friends would be in danger. Everybody would.»

«Anybody who knows is at risk.» Drake agreed «We don't want to involve anyone else. Especially from Slytherin.»

«We should start from our tower.» Law continued «You'll call the basilisk there and we'll see what happens.»

Your let out a breath and your attention slid across the words, to all those names cluttering the tiles, hundreds and hundreds of them.

«Y/n?»

Your eyes didn't leave the wall.

«You drag me here, tell me that I'm probably drenched in Dark Magic, capable of doing horrible things without even knowing, and I should keep it from all my friends. Worst, I should beware all my housemates and try to make sure I don't inadvertently let a bloodthirsty monster free.»

«We know it's a lot to take in.» Reiju murmured, placing her hand on your arm «Look, we're probably wrong. But we have to make sure.»

You sighed.

«Fine. I'll call your monster, Trafalgar. You better be prepared if it actually shows up.»

You headed to the door but Law moved after you.

«Wait, L/n. There's... one more thing I have to say.»

You glanced at him over your shoulder, eyes now tired.

«More? How delightful.»

For the first time that evening, Law seemed to falter. A rapid grimace traversed his features and he clicked his tongue.

«...fine. You should know. I was the one who–»

«He's the one who decided to tell you the truth.» Reiju interrupted.

You all turned to her.

«I forced them to come clean with me but I didn't intend to burden you at the beginning. Law made me realize you should have a say in this.» she explained.

You observed her, then your gaze shift back to Law.

«Okay. I'll let you know how I feel about it when I understand it myself. Bye.»

With a last wave of your hand, you walked away.

After you left, the three Ravenclaw remained silent for a while, not moving among the floating candles.

«I thought you said I should confess all my crimes, and yet you keep me from revealing the worst one.» Law finally spoke, looking at Reiju «I'm the one who enchanted the gargoyles to attack her, after all.»

The witch hummed.

«I know, and I haven't forgiven you yet. But Y/n is actually willing to work with us and we don't need to make it more complicated.»

Drake nodded.

«I agree. She would hate you if she knew.»

«No, that's not what I'm afraid of. She may even forgive you.» Reiju observed «If we really have to fight a monster, we will need to join hands with her whole team.»

The pinkette moved in front of Law, her confident smirk turning cold as she stared at him right in the eyes.

«If your actions come up, have no doubts, Eustass will make dead meat of you. Allies or not.»

A/n. Hey guys! Sorry, once again it's all talking and no action. L

The plan was to have the next round of the Duelling tournament here as well, but it was getting far too long so I'm keeping it for next chapter.

Also, the whole Chamber of Secrets plot point was supposed to come up much later in the story, but... it just happened now. ^^" Things are not quite how they seem though.

Next up: a nocturnal hunt with the Ravenclaws, Duelling tournament round 3, and Y/n's scan (in which Kid plays a little part and we'll finally know who's Y/n's uncle)!

Stay tuned and thank you for all the support!