The next day, I've defrosted a bench for me and am wrapped in the heaviest two quilts that I have with a heat charm on both. James stopped by before practice to tuck the top one snug around my shoulders before I swatted him away. I think Sirius is a little too worried about how I feel with him and the substitute beater. Especially given our conversation last night.

"Arell!" A sweet voice drifts over to me and I smile as I turn to find Lily heading my way.

"Hey! You didn't have to come." I tell her and open my burrito of blankets to let her in. Cold air whooshes in and I shiver before she settles beside me.

"Wanted to see this for myself, but please feel free to be extra thankful for me since I swore Potter would never catch me here unless I was dead." She sighs as the aforementioned chaser spots her and his face lights up with a bright smile before he tries to tame it into something sexy. Lily smiles a little but hides it with the blankets. Green eyes meet my brown and she shrugs. "Plus I had to come back you up."

"Well, I appreciate it no matter the reason." I sway into her playfully and she grins before we hear Connelly yelling. We look up to find practice has started and we're on the side of the field Sirius and the new beater, Monica Greene, will be doing drills. I settle in for the duration with my fingers idly playing with the necklace Sirius gave me of the two beater bats.

It starts off rocky. Whether because Monica hasn't played in a while, Sirius is used to me, she's pissed at him, or a combination of all, I don't know. Their skill evens out eventually though and they aren't half bad. Although not nearly to the level of Sirius and I, they still have to shout at one another instead of just reading body language, but with them, we still have a chance at the cup. The fact sits strangely in my heart. On one hand, I'm glad because I want to win. On the other, I don't want Sirius spending any time at all with a girl whose face apparently used to be glued to his.

"They did well!" Lily says with excitement I know is just for me as we descend the tower.

"Yeah, they did," I say and she sighs, seeing right through my clear lack of excitement.

"Is this a...Sirius thing?" She asks and smirks a little at the clear pun. My eyes roll.

"Yeah. Quidditch, being beaters together, it's our thing. Maybe I'm being too possessive."

"If you're having questions about Sirius, ask him. He's had far too much of people assuming things about his life." Lily says as we come to a stop outside the tower and wait at the top of the path for the boys. "Come to think of it, so have you." She raises her brows at me as if daring me to disagree. I look up at the sky and huff.

"I did ask. He says he needs time which I get, but it doesn't make it any easier." I tell her and she hums in agreement just as the boys come bounding up to us. James seems like he's about to run over and pick Lily up in an embrace, but stops himself short. Lily seems to have expected it too and their wide eyes meet before the both of them turn pink and look away from one another.

"And you said you'd never watch me practice." He says with a hefty layer of bravado and Lily seems to deflate as whatever she'd hoped for vanishes in one sentence. She looks to me.

"See you in the dorm." I nod before her red hair starts swaying as she heads back to the castle. James deflates as I fall into step beside them.

"You might want to try less bravado and more sincerity if she's ever going to give you a chance." I chance giving him advice and he groans, staring up at the blue sky.

"I'm trying to win her over but she just-"

"That's exactly your problem, Prongs." I interrupt him as his hazel eyes flick to me. "Lily doesn't want to be won, no one does, we just want a good person who treats us well. Without treating us like a prize or putting us on a pedestal." At this, James is silent and he stares at the ground as we walk. My eyes drift to Sirius and his to mine.

"You and Greene played well," I comment with only a slightly disgruntled tone and a half-smile lights up his face.

"Not too bad. Still not like you and I though, love." I hum at that.

"Better not be." I murmur and he chuckles.

"You getting a little green yourself there, Mane?" James comes to just in time to tease me and make a bad pun. Of course.

"Don't see why I should be! Sirius nearly just said he prefers me."

"Did I say that?" Sirius says, seemingly enjoying dancing on the line between appeasing me and egging me on.

"Sorry, would you rather I quit and you stay with Greene?" He chuckles and sidles close to me, pressing a kiss to my cheek.

"You'd never quit, love. You love it too much." I shove him off with an irritated sigh, but he pulls me back before I can run myself into the castle wall. "Ah, don't worry. I like it when you get jealous." My lip curls unhappily at his attitude.

"Ugh, you know what? Fuck off." I shove him again and mean it this time as we split. I head down the hall to where I know there's a secret passage while they head towards the stairs. I'm fuming a bit and my wand is out as I round each and every corner. The fact creates a rather awkward situation when I turn the corner and raise my wand to Albus' amused crystal eyes.

"A greeting I'm afraid I've seen many times, although a surprising one all the same." He posits before I hurriedly pocket my wand.

"Sorry, Albus! I didn't know I'd be running into you." I apologize and he chuckles.

"No, it seems you were awaiting a more threatening opponent?" Those bushy eyebrows pop up as his blue eyes examine me, but I say nothing. "All the same, I happen to have been meaning to speak with you. Will you walk with me a while?" He asks and begins walking anyway so I've no choice if I want to hear him, I've got to walk with him. Curiously, I follow the old professor down the hall.

"Professor Grubblyplank tells me tales of your exploits in class. You've got all the professors impressed; it seems." He says smoothly and there's a calm to be found here walking with him. Shockingly, I feel safe with the old man. At least from Severus and his cronies.

"It's not like that, Professor," I say and purposefully avoid his gaze as we continue to walk.

"Humble too. I wish it was a quality I had more of throughout my life, but especially at your age." He sighs and now my eyes are drawn back to him.

"Rowdy in your youth?" I pry a little and see his beard twitch with a smile.

"You could say that." He allows as we turn a corner and stop in front of his office. "Purple Gumdrops." The bird starts turning and we both hop on the steps as they rise towards his office. "Anyway, back to your recent talent for magical creatures. I'm afraid Professor Grubblyplank was a bit overzealous and wrote an old student about you. He also had quite the propensity for magical creatures and has made quite a name for himself in the subject. Although even he has slowed a bit with age." Dumbledore goes on as we enter his office.

"What exactly did Grubblyplank say about me?" I ask as the professor walks nimbly up the few steps and settles at one of the chairs facing his desk. Hesitantly, I join him in the chair opposite him. Glittering eyes meet mine as I notice a letter that seems to have suddenly appeared in his hands.

"Only your propensity towards creatures and their obvious affection for you. The man wrote back rather promptly and wants to meet you." His eyes shine now as he looks at me and it makes me think there's a little more going on than he's letting on.

"Why?" I ask and the old man shrugs.

"That would be best gauged by meeting him, I suppose." He leaves it to me and my lips press together as I think.

"What did you think of him when he went here?" I ask another question and that beard twitches again as he fights another smile.

"He was quite troublesome, although not in the same manner as you and your friends, and it would not be incorrect to say I was terribly fond of him even though he was regrettably expelled."

"Expelled?" My curiosity piques and now Dumbledore's smile is unstoppable.

"Take your time deciding. He's in Asia now hunting down some magical creature or other while ending poaching for a few normal animals as well. He may not even be available until after the spring holidays-"

"Yes." I agree, cutting off the professor in mid-sentence. Those bushy eyebrows pop up once again at my quick answer.

"I'll send an owl then. For now, you should hurry off to your common room before it gets too late. Take a right at the end of the stairs and tap the frog's eye twice." He winks at me as he escorts me to the door and I slip out. I follow his advice and tap the stone frog that's carved into a column on the corner. The column shivers then slides down to the floor to reveal a doorway. I hop in and cast lumos as it shuts behind me. Silvery white light fills the space around me as I walk forward into the dark.

There's a strange feeling to this hall. It's quiet the way nowhere else in Hogwarts is quiet, yet there's a creeping feeling of not being alone. Briefly, my hand skims the walkie-talkie replacement in the form of a dragon ear cuff that Lily gave me. Should I call her? A moment later I decide against it and continue on. This is Hogwarts, after all. Nothing unsafe should be within the walls.

"We can sssenssse the power within you." Voices seem to leak out of the very walls and I stop dead in my tracks. "The sssecret animal inssside. The blood in your veinsss." The voice itself is rough and scratchy as if its owner had become hoarse from screaming. It also seems female and draws out every single s triple what it should.

"Who are you? Where are you?" I ask, turning this way and that with my wand held out.

"Calm yourssself, child." Something long and black catches my eye but wriggles back into the cracks of the wall before I can identify it. "We mean you no harm. Your blood hasss been good to usss."

"Then show yourself as a sign of past loyalty," I demand and there's a long sigh before there's movement on the path in front of me. My wand is held out in my slightly shaking hand as a few dozen snakes emerge from the walls, floor, and ceiling around me. I shiver before one, the biggest that's about the size of my arm, raises itself up from the floor.

"It isss ssso rare to find one with whom we may have conversssation." She says and her voice is much less frightening now that I know where it's coming from.

"What did you mean about my blood being good to you?" I ask and crouch slightly so I'm a bit closer. Also away from the snakes hanging from the ceiling. She sways back and forth with what I hope is pleasure.

"Parssseltongue is hereditary and a rare trait at that. It isssn't a sssurprise that sssomeone else from your line hasss passssed through thessse hallsss. Sssomeone with great power." My brows furrow as I shake my head.

"I'm a muggle-born. My parents didn't have anything to do with magic."

"Really? Fassscinating." The other snakes around her hiss with interest as I glance around uneasily. "But the ssskill isssn't to do with just parentage. Jussst asss with magic, sssometimesss it ssskipsss a generation only to be found in another."

"It's ancestry," I say and she nods. I never knew anything about anyone beyond my parents. Never wanted to meet anyone who raised them and obviously their relatives are shit as well. Perhaps I should have looked into it. "I'm nothing like the rest of my family," I state, relatively sure that the statement will extend to whatever ancestor they're talking about.

"We can sssee that from the red in your robesss. You're different. Yesss, very different." They hiss the last sentence in unison and it's hard not to be slightly frightened by it.

"Listen, this has been lovely, but I do need to go back to my dorm," I say and gesture down the hall they're currently blocking. All the snakes seem to deflate slightly at my leaving and I actually feel a little bad. "I'll try to stop by again soon. And if I'm alone somewhere, you're welcome to join me, just not if people are around. They'd more than likely be a bit afraid." They perk up a bit and my conscience is soothed.

"We would like that very much." The head snake approves.

"Uh, I'm Arell." I introduce myself even though it seems a bit redundant at this point. A shaky hiss falls from many of the snakes' mouths in what I take is a laugh.

"I think there are too many of usss for you to know our namesss, but mine is Sssian." She says and I nod before all the snakes slither to the side so I can pass. "Be ssseeing you." Sian bids and I wave weirdly before walking on. The passage leads me just outside the common room and it's a good thing because I have no doubt its past curfew. I slip in unnoticed and immediately start shaking Lily awake.

"Lily!" I whisper loudly as her green eyes open and her lips pull down.

"Better be...a 'mergency." She mutters sleepily.

"I can talk to snakes," I tell her and then those jade eyes snap open and are on me in a second.

"What?" She groans and sits up while I slide onto the foot of her bed. As she wakes slowly, I tell her what happened in the hall including all the things the snakes said. "They could sense your ancestry? Wow. Well, it would have to have been a well-known witch or wizard, wouldn't it? It's such a rare trait. Records, almost certainly. Unless..." She perks up as something pops into her mind, then wilts as she meets my eyes.

"Tell me." I plead and she grimaces.

"A well-known parseltongue, perhaps the most well-known parseltongue, would be...Salazar Slytherin." She says hesitantly and holds my hand as I lean back and blanch at the fact.

"So, you're saying I could be related to one of the biggest champions of pure-blood mania to ever live?" I ask airily, trying to wrap my head around the chance. Lily shrugs with eyes focused on mine.

"I mean, it's actually a pretty good possibility. Parseltongue is an incredibly rare trait, even among witches and wizards." My hand ruffles through my curls as I gulp in air. "And just because he was a bit of a dick, doesn't mean you inherited that." A little smile is tempted onto my face by her words and she smiles a little too. I sigh and let my hand fall.

"Well. A muggle-born descendent of Salazar Slytherin. That's got to be the biggest fuck you that I will ever give to anyone." Lily and I giggle softly in the dark of our dorm as our friends sleep around us while making light of my crazy ass life.

*A/N*

SURPRISE! :D