Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
"Come on, we have to go to the entrance of the common room." I sighed. The trio had wanted to see the Chamber of Secrets, and as the only Parseltongue speaker, they ended up dragging me there.
"I can't believe the Chamber was always so close to the common room," Lucius said incredulously. I shrugged.
"More or less? There is also Salazar's scriptorium in another nearby room, but it is also empty; someone has already taken all the important books."
"Salazar had a Scriptorium here at Hogwarts!? That wasn't in the movies." Lucius gasped. This time, Bellatrix looked shocked too, and I stopped stiffly before groaning.
"It's... from the extended universe, Hogwarts Legacy, in fact, they mention everything about ancient magic there." The trio looks surprised, "We have to see that, and also The Cursed Child and Fantastic Beasts."
"And what are those about?" Narcissa asked curiously.
"The Cursed Child is after the epilogue you saw at the end of the last movie, about Voldemort's daughter. Fantastic Beasts, it's about Newt Scamander, Dumbledore, Grindelwald, and the Global Wizarding War." The trio stopped and looked at me in disbelief.
"And why didn't we see it before?" Bellatrix asked incredulously, I shrugged.
"I forgot, really, none of those are relevant. Fantastic Beasts and Hogwarts Legacy are long gone, while The Cursed Child doesn't really have anything too important. Harry Potter was about you, about us, about... the core of the story, so to speak." I said honestly, Bellatrix snorted, but didn't say anything.
"Okay, tonight we'll watch more of these... movies. For now, can you tell us something about the Scriptorium?" Lucius asked calmly. I made a face.
"It's hidden just like the Chamber. That bastard Salazar was a sadist. It takes two people to open the entrance. There's a door that requires using the cruciatus curse on another person to open." I saw the trio over my shoulder shudder slightly as they grimaced.
"Yeah, we'd better not go there right now," Narcissa said with a shaky smile as she held onto Lucius' arm. I shrugged.
"Wait, you went in?" Lucius asked, and I shook my head.
"It's not necessary, there's really nothing in there, at least not now, Salazar's diary and spellbook have already been looted." I sighed in pity; that spellbook might have been useful to me.
"A pity," Bellatrix said, and I nodded.
"By the way, why the bathroom?" Lucius asked with a nervous smile. I hummed lightly.
"Around the 18th century, I think, there was a proposal to install the present plumbing system in the castle, a descendant of Gaunt, or descendant of Salazar, I can't remember his name at the moment, and it's not really important. He was a student, he was put in charge of guarding the entrance, but when the renovations were finished, the entrance was hidden right in this bathroom." I poked my head into the bathroom to see if it was empty. "Come in, Myrtle's not here."
"Good, I can't stand that ghost." Bellatrix huffed as she scanned the bathroom and headed to the sink while looking for the snake symbol. "Here it is," she said quickly. I walked over to the sink and hissed.
open "Look, the entrance to the chamber, ta-dan." I said grandiloquently as the wash began to move and disappear, revealing a large enough pipe.
"We... do we have to go down there?" Narcissa asked nervously.
"Unlike what you saw in the movie, there are stairs. Now who wants to go first?" I asked as I approached the well.
"I'll go." Bellatrix stepped to the edge of the well, perfect.
"Fine, let me just do a-" I pushed Bellatrix from behind "-go." Bellatrix's scream made my smile grow wider. Oh, our relationship had improved significantly, but that didn't mean I didn't like to tease her when I was given the chance.
"I'LL KILL YOOOOOOOUUU!!!!!!"
"You pushed her?!" Narcissa shrieked in disbelief. I smiled at her with all my teeth.
"Don't worry, she'll be okay." And to prove my point, Bellatrix's voice came out of the well once again; this time, it was just pure rudeness.
"I really, really don't understand her relationship with Bellatrix," Lucius muttered to himself.
"That's fine." I chuckled. "Who's next?" I asked them both.
"Do we have to jump?!" Narcissa turned slightly pale. "Didn't you say there were stairs?!" I shrugged.
"Maybe, but it's a long way down. I really recommend taking the jump, much faster and less tiring."
"I-" Narcissa looked hesitant as she looked at me before looking back at Lucius.
"Let's go together." He smiled softly at her. "I'll hold you all the way." Narcissa looked faint.
"Oh, Lucius." Okay, this was annoying, you're going to make me throw up, I moved my hand and pushed them both into the well.
"Ah," "ah" was the only thing they managed to say before they began to fall.
"I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY!!!!!!!!" I smiled at Lucius's roar of hatred, with a hiss in Parseltongue, and I closed the entrance. I wasn't so stupid as to throw myself down the well and wait for Bellatrix's retaliation, who was surely waiting for me below, so I created a portal to the cavern where the well ended, a little ahead of where the trio should be waiting for me. Once I left the portal, I saw the three of them pointing their wands at the exit of the slide. I silently approached behind them.
"WHAT are you waiting for?" I saw the trio flinch in place before quickly spinning around. I promptly dodged Bellatrix's spell with ease.
"Sweet Morgana! Serena!"
"What!? How did you get down here?!"
"I'll kill you, Snape." Of course, this last one was from Bellatrix. I just smiled at them mockingly.
"I used my portals." The trio's glare was exquisite. I chuckled once more, "Come on, come on, we're almost at the entrance." I turned around, but still kept an eye on them. I was sure Bellatrix was more than capable of cursing me from behind.
"That wasn't funny, Sera!" Narcissa pouted, and I looked over my shoulder at her with a wide grin to show her that, yes, it really was funny. She just glared at me. "I knew I was walking on all these skeletons, but it still feels gross," I grimaced, looking down.
We all nodded, but walked in silence the remaining distance to the entrance to the chamber, ignoring the basilisk skin, until we reached the snake-adorned door.
open I hissed quickly before turning around and spreading both my arms out dramatically, "Welcome to the Chamber of Secrets." I said grandly before looking at the door once more. I could hear the trio holding their breath as the door unlocked and swung fully open, leaving the entrance in view. I walked in without hesitation. I could hear the others quickly following me. "You can search around at your leisure. It should be completely safe. I searched the entire Chamber a little while ago, but if you find anything suspicious, don't touch it; who knows what nasty things Salazar put there." With that said, I conjured a nice armchair and plopped myself down on it lazily. The trio practically ignored me as they searched around the room, utterly fascinated. I rolled my eyes. Nothing was exciting in the Chamber, so I just got lost in my thoughts as they explored.
"Ser-ena!?" Lucius' voice near the statue of Salazar caught my attention. I saw him looking at me, slightly panicked. I sighed tiredly. I moved my wrist and changed my comfortable chair to put wheels on the bottom, making it crawl towards Lucius. Sue me, I'm comfortable.
"What?" I yawned lazily.
"You killed the basilisk?!" Bellatrix looked horrified.
"Of course, it was a nuisance." That seemed to horrify her even more. I rolled my eyes. "If it makes you feel any better, it couldn't be controlled. Tom really screwed it up." I lied blatantly; I didn't even try to talk to the annoying snake.
"Too bad, where's the rest of the basilisk? And how did you kill this thing? They're very magically resistant, and I don't think you can summon the stupid sword of Gryffindor." Now Bellatrix's gaze was fixed as she inspected the skeleton until she reached the hole on the sides of its skull. "What the hell, she muttered.
"I pushed metal through his skull." I shrugged; the trio looked at me in disbelief. "I never said my skills were weak; I can push very hard if necessary."
"That's an understatement," Narcissa muttered under her breath.
"And the remains are stored, the organs are kept in my Pocket Space until I decide what to do with them, the meat and skin are over there." I pointed to the other side of the room, where there were large, translucent glass boxes containing a lot of meat.
"How the hell did we not see that?" Lucius asked incredulously as he approached the remains of the basilisk. I snorted in amusement. "This is incredible, you did a good job removing this skin, they're in perfect condition."
"Let me see, let me see!" Narcissa insisted as she approached his side, "Oohh, that feels so good, can I keep some?" she asked excitedly. I hummed lightly as I considered it.
"Ah, what the hell, why not?" I shrugged, agreeing to her request. Narcissa squealed in happiness and came running to hug me against her chest. "Tch, lucky Lucius," she said. "You can keep it all, you'll put it to better use than I will."
"So there's really nothing else down here since you killed the only interesting thing?" Bellatrix asked as she pulled a fang out of the basilisk's skull, looking at it carefully for a few seconds. "I'm keeping it." I snorted.
"Just try not to stab yourself. I removed all of the fangs that were filled with the basilisk's venom, but you never know." Bellatrix seemed more excited now. "And I found nothing more than this, the nest was inside the statue's mouth-" I pointed at Salazar's head with his mouth open. "-besides that, the only thing I found are the exits to the pipes, nothing important. I guess with the scriptorium somewhere else in the castle, he saw no reason to keep anything in here. You can wander around if you don't believe me." They seemed to believe me, but still began to search the entire chamber in fascination. I rolled my eyes but said nothing. I still sat lazily in my chair, now on wheels, and began to rock myself back and forth around the chamber out of boredom.
"We're ready to go," Lucius said.
"Finally!" I groaned in relief. It only took them an hour and a half.
"You know, your bad attitude is ruining the whole experience of visiting the Chamber, something very few in history have done." Narcissa huffed, and I rolled my eyes as I stood up from my comfortable chair before stretching lazily.
"I'm sorry for not being excited about an empty room."
"There are actually stairs this time, or are you going to throw us down another hole?" Bellatrix huffed as she walked over and put her arm through mine.
"Neither, we can use my portals." I snorted playfully, trying to ignore the proximity of Bellatrix, Lucius, and Narcissa. I created a portal to Myrtle's bathroom; the trio stared at the miasma portal. I rolled my eyes and dragged Bellatrix, still in my arms, through the portal. A few seconds later, Lucius and Narcissa followed me.
---
November 24, 1976 – Serena Pov
It had been three days since I stamped Lestrange; I'm sure he hadn't even noticed the change in his feelings. I had placed a timer on his hand when I sealed him away, just so he could see it. It was fun watching him despair, the crazed, hopeless look that grew worse and worse with each passing day filled me with sadistic pleasure. I couldn't help but smile widely at him every time I saw him in the common room, he would just shudder and look away.
He spent his time buried in one book after another, searching for a solution that didn't exist. Since no professor or Auror actually came looking for me, it was evident that Lestrange still hadn't opened his mouth. Still, he was running out of time, there were only a few minutes left until the 72 hours were up, I had used a time bubble next to him while he slept to calculate exactly the right time where there would still be people in the common room, I must say I was surprised that he didn't come begging after the first day, I have to give him some credit.
Or not.
I grimaced as I watched him approach, all alone. He was completely pale, disheveled, and his clothes were a mess. The dark circles under his eyes were an indication that he hadn't slept comfortably in the past few days. He looked restlessly at his hand every few seconds.
"Snape." His voice was shaky and weak, but it still caught the attention of everyone in the common room, which was abnormally crowded, possibly to watch the drama. I ignored everyone and continued reading the book I had in my hand, "Snape!" Lestrange said louder.
"Lestrange, I'm busy. Come back in an hour," I said without looking up, but I could see him shudder out of the corner of my eye.
"Snape, please!" I could hear the pleading and fear in his voice; I suppressed a smile and sighed.
"What do you want, Lestrange?" He bit his lip.
"I-I'm sorry, Snape! You win! You can do whatever you want! You can keep Black! Please take this mark off me!" Lestrange pleaded, almost on the verge of tears. I closed my book and smiled widely at him.
"Now, why would I do that?" I drawled in amusement. "Don't you want to know what happens when time runs out?" I tilted my head in mock confusion.
"NO! I'll... give you whatever you want! Just ask!" I was freaking out now, humming as if I was considering it.
"No thanks." I shrugged. I could see Lestrange practically breaking down. "Besides-" I pulled out my pocket watch. "You're running out of time, in...3...2...-" Lestrange squeezed his eyes shut as he trembled. I could hear everyone holding their breath. "...1." I slammed my pocket watch shut, causing a loud clang. Lestrange shuddered violently and began to breathe heavily; my grin was feral.
"I-I-I, I'm still alive!" Lestrange sighed in relief as he patted his body with tears still in his eyes. He stopped stiffly when he remembered my existence. He quickly took out his wand and pointed it at me, "YOU!" he growled, full of hatred. "I'LL KILL YOU, SNAPE! I'LL KILL YOU-" Lestrange disappeared.
One moment he was there, and the next he was gone. I had discreetly put my hand in my pocket and was waiting for the right moment to sell him. I could see that everyone who was watching had turned completely pale.
"Funny, my watch is a few seconds ahead, I'll make sure to correct it." My completely indifferent comment made more than one person shudder. I ignored them and stood up, smoothing out my wrinkled uniform with my free hand, taking my time. The others in the common room didn't make any noise; in fact, it seemed like they were trying hard not to move. As if staying still would suddenly make them invisible, I simply didn't pay them any attention. I calmly walked out of the common room, the bustle starting as soon as I began to climb the stairs.
Well, that was fun, now I would definitely be even more of an outcast than before. Even before this whole thing with Lestrange, I would talk to very few people. After I broke his rib, that was considerably reduced. Now, I doubt anyone would speak to me outside of my circle, which consists of the impressive number of 2 friends and a girlfriend. It's not like it really bothered me; I just shrugged.
Companions captured +12; sold +4 [82]
Rabastan Lestrange(T5) from Harry Potter --SOLD