I am really glad you all are enjoying the story so far. Now with Ron out of the way, we can focus on Voldemort and how things will be handled then. Yay! Then maybe we'll get back to the One Piece world and see how Evelyn's presence could change things. Not spoiling. I have ideas, but not spoiling.
Disclaimer: Atticus is mine, but everyone else belongs to their respected owners. So sorry to tell you folks, Harry Potter and One Piece are not mine.
Here the Chapter Starts
"So this Voldemort guy is immortal?" Diamante asked after Doflamingo and Evelyn explained the situation to the family.
"While those things are around, yes," Doflamingo replied with a nod.
"I recall he had a snake with him the last time I saw him," Evelyn mused, reaching over to stop Atticus from throwing broccoli at Dellinger after receiving a few peas to his face. "Boys, don't throw food and don't waste any."
"Yes, Mama," Atticus replied, putting his broccoli back on his plate.
"Okay, Mama Rose," Dellinger accepted, putting down his handful of squished peas.
"Nyeh, is the snake important in any way?" Trebol inquired.
"If it is possible to turn a living creature into one of these soul holders, then it is possible his snake has a piece as well," she explained calmly. "If that is the case, then we know what one is. And if we can ever get a hold of her, maybe Aster could get her to tell him where or what the others are. And if not, we could still use her if she does have a piece should we find anything we can use to find them."
"I doubt he would let his snake get far from him," Doflamingo commented before taking a bite of the sweet meat he removed from the lobster. Swallowing the bite, he continued. "If this snake and Voldemort are anything like you and Aster, getting one of them would be difficult. Unless we capture Voldemort as well and just have some fun while the objects are being looked for."
Evelyn scoffed. "We would just have to make sure to take his wand away," she stated. "Just like Tonks, he'll be more bark than bite. I'm not sure about his wandless capabilities, though. Speaking of the woman, any new information?"
"The location of their headquarters is Number 12 Grimmauld Place, which is the family home of Black Sirius," Gladius answered. "It is currently in a state of necessary repair. The only Members she listed, and I did switch the names as you suggested, Evelyn, are: Snape Severus, Lupin Remus, Black Sirius, Weasley Bill, Charlie, Molly, and Arthur, Moody "Mad-Eye" Alastor, Shacklebolt Kingsley, Diggle Dedalus, Vance Emmeline, Doges Elphias, Hagrid Rubeus, Fletcher Mundungus, Podmore Sturgis, Jones Hestia, Maxime Olympe, McGonagall Minerva, and Figg Arabella. There are also assumed members by the names of Granger Hermione, Weasley Fred and George, and Delacour Fleur. Weasley Ronald was also an assumed member, but he is dead now and not important."
"You said Figg Arabella, correct?" Evelyn asked with narrowed eyes.
"Yes," the dark-skinned man replied with a sharp nod.
The woman's fist slammed onto the table. "Damn that old man!" the woman suddenly snarled, her grip on her fork tightening.
"Is something wrong, Evelyn?" Jora hesitantly spoke.
"Figg Arabella was the next door neighbor to the people who raised me," she grounded out. "They would leave me with her when they went on trips and left me behind my entire childhood. The damn woman works for Dumbledore, meaning he knew of my abuse and still did nothing!" Her fist banged on the table, rattling the plates and silverware. "Even after school started, she never gave me any sign that she was involved with the magical community!"
A hand was on her shoulder in an instant, gently squeezing. Inhaling deeply, she looked up to her somber husband. "Every pain you suffered from their hands will be repaid in full," he promised.
"It was long before you and I ever met," she informed him. "There's no reason for you to get involved with past dealings."
"Fufufu, except that we're here now and these people are hurting you all over again," he chuckled. "I think it's time they all paid the price. Every betrayal, every scar on your back, every nightmare you suffer…It's time they feel all the consequences of harming you or anyone in this family."
Evelyn let out a soft laugh, feeling her rage settle. Only her husband could really bring her down when she's in the middle of an anger fit. "I won't get in the way," she assured him. "Though I still think it pointless. I made sure before I left that their lives would be completely ruined."
Here is a line!
A week had gone by with no problems. Aurors had investigated the suicide, but after finding no tampering, potion or spell wise, they did not asked anyone beyond witnesses what happened, leaving the Donquixote Family alone despite Dumbledore's insistence that Doflamingo, at the least, had something to do with it. He apparently told them what he did know, but when asked if Doflamingo was around at the time of death, he had no choice but to answer truthfully that the blonde was on his ship at the time. Though he continuously insisted the man has some kind of magic that they aren't able to pick up on.
The crew did notice a few other people sticking close to the ship, as well as a large black dog Evelyn said was Sirius in his animal form. Other than that, nothing of much note.
Which crawled under Evelyn's skin and irritated her. They dragged her back here to deal with Voldemort and no one came to her with any information she needed. Aster had provided the most, and he only interacted with Voldemort for a year when he was still in school roughly fifty years ago.
A heavy sigh escaped her as she placed her cup of tea on the table. "I'm going to the Chamber," she announced.
"Will you be alright going to the castle?" Doflamingo asked her, trying to make sense of he newspaper in his hands. The wizards can't even write a newspaper correctly since very few articles were not written in winding circles or vertically.
"A lot of the students may point and stare, and some teachers may try to stop me, but Aster and I need any information we can find down there," she explained. "I think I'll take the kids, too. Dellinger would love it down there, plenty of water. Baby 5 and Buffalo will have plenty to explore. Law would be interested in a lot of stuff down there. And I want to see if the hissing I hear from Atticus sometimes is actual Parseltongue or him mimicking me. Kind of hard to tell sometimes."
"You think he speaks snake?" he inquired, putting the paper down once he saw that it did not hold much information beyond sites where Voldemort attacked and casualty counts.
"He's doing something," she pointed out. "It's amazing how well developed his language is at his age, and don't say it is Donquixote blood."
"Fufufu, but it is!" the blonde chuckled with a wide grin.
"If that makes you feel better," Evelyn sighed playfully. "Anyway, I was talking to garden snakes when I was five and locked outside in the rain. It would not surprise me if Atticus can speak it, too. It's supposed to be hereditary, from what I understand."
"Very well," Doflamingo accepted with a nod. "I was thinking of letting the girl go now that we have all the information we can get out of her."
"Letting her go, or letting her go?"
"Just letting her go," he answered with a shrug and a grin. "Maybe she can let them know that we mean business here and will only tolerate so much of this foolishness. Perhaps we'll finally get a move on and thus, more information. This may be a fun game of war that they aren't taking seriously, even if the fear is real. But this is just a simple business transaction for us."
"Did we get any information from her concerning the enemy?" the raven asked curiously.
"They do have a spy, a Snape Severus, in Voldemort's ranks," he answered calmly. "As far as they know, Voldemort is just helping his army grow while this Order does nothing but try to pick up the pieces or fight to protect. Instead of stopping him, they should be more worried about their own ranks. From what we got out of the woman, they're severely outnumbered."
"Do we know anything about what kind of alliances Voldemort made? Or did she not know?"
"Werewolves and giants are the only ones she actually listed." The blonde's grin grew even more. "Tell me of the giants here. Are they like back home?"
"Not even," she scoffed. "If you've seen a large man around with lots of hair, that Hagrid and he's half-giant. The giants here would be nothing more that dumb overgrown humans compared to the giants back home."
"How…disappointing," her husband sighed with a shake of his head. "Here I was hoping for some actual fun. Anyway, I was thinking our next volunteer for interrogation could be that man Snape. If he is a double agent, then he would have the most information for both sides."
"Snape is a stubborn and hateful man, he won't talk easy," Evelyn pointed out as she got to her feet.
"When has that ever stopped us?" Doflamingo chuckled ruefully. "If at all possible, on your way back, try to draw him out or at least to the ship. It would make things easier. Either that, or as soon as you get him out of the castle, I can always send one of the others for extraction."
"I can make no promises, but I will try," his wife replied with a small smile. "Snape hates my guts due to his history with my father and he does not like children. Don't worry, though. We'll think of something. Now if you will excuse me, I have five little devils to find."
"Fufufu, if I recall correctly, one of those little devils is yours," the blonde playfully pointed out, earning a swat to his shoulder.
"He's yours, too, asshole!"
"Well, yes, but he's an angel with me."
Here is a line!
"Jora, I am so sorry that asshole made you come along with us," Evelyn giggled, leading the unusual group of five children, two women, and a very excited six-foot serpent hanging off her shoulders.
"Nonsense," Jora reassured with a flick of her hand. "The Young Master just wants to make sure you're well looked after. And with you watching five children on your own, it would be difficult for you to watch your own back."
"Where are we going?" Law asked from his spot between the two women, ignoring Dellinger and Atticus trying to snatch his hat. His sister never tried it, but he was used to the antics of younger children.
"Where Aster spent most of his life," she answered with a small smile. "The Chamber of Secrets."
"Chamber of Secrets?" he repeated, wide eyes showing his curiosity.
"What's that place, Mama Rose?" Baby 5 chirped, skipping over any lines she saw on the floor.
"This castle was built by four individuals known as the Founders," she explained. "Gryffindor Godric, Slytherin Salazar, Hufflepuff Helga, and Ravenclaw Rowena. Each had their own ideas of what kind of student they would like to teach, and each had their own House for these students they preferred. Gryffindor taught the brave and noble, Hufflepuff the loyal and hardworking, Ravenclaw the wise and careful, and Slytherin the sly and cunning.
"But the story goes that Slytherin had different ideas for who should attend. While the other three would welcome everyone with magic, no matter their blood, Slytherin only wanted the purebloods to attend. Outvoted, he built a Chamber of Secrets and hid inside it a terrible monster that would listen only to him and his bloodline. This monster would be used to clean the school of the 'filthy blood' that Slytherin detested. And that monster was a basilisk."
"You mean it was Aster," Law pointed out lowly, figuring out that Aster's existence was being kept secret from the people in the school for a good reason.
"Exactly," she chuckled, patting his back gently. "But the story told by the populace is much different than the real story."
"What's the real story, dasuyan?" Buffalo asked, paying as much attention to her as he possibly could.
"Tell us, Mama Rose! Tell us!" Baby 5 cheered happily, scooping Atticus up into her arms.
"Mama tell!" her child encouraged.
"Tell story, Mama Rose!" Dellinger pressed as well, managing to climb onto Law's back and hold on, thankfully without choking the boy. Law did not look amused by it, but he was allowing it.
Aster looked to her almost smugly. "You might as well now," he stated.
"Now, now, children, don't pressure the Rose," Jora tried to calm them down.
"It's alright, Jora," the raven reassured the other woman. "I started it. I should finish it." She inhaled deeply then looked along the bare walls with a soft smile. No portraits meant this won't get back to Dumbledore or be spread around. And the halls were clear due to classes being in session right now. Less people that knew Aster is the basilisk, the better. At least for now. "People painted Slytherin in a bad light for generations, thinking he was a evil man because of what his House stood for. And since Gryffindor is the House of bravery and he and Slytherin were rivals, most assume that Slytherin was evil and Gryffindor was trying to stop him before he went too far.
"But according to Aster, Slytherin was actually very protective of this school and its students, no matter the blood line. He and Gryffindor were even good friends. Rivals, yes, but still good friends. The Chamber of Secrets was originally built so that Aster could stay close in case of attacks. He's not a monster to cleanse the school of impure blood, but a guardian to protect the children from any threat to them. In order to keep the children safe from accidentally dying from his gaze, he stayed in the Chamber unless he was called to defend. He was the last resort. He hid the Chamber if only to stop wayward children from accidentally stumbling upon him.
"As time went on, Aster's home also became Slytherin's study and personal library where he gathered and hid all his Parseltongue books, his specialized potions lab, and even a bedroom in case he ever needed to get away from the others. When he died, the knowledge of the Chamber passed on to his sons, who passed it to their children. It was passed down one after another until no more.
"Because of the wards soon created to repel those with evil intent, threats all but vanished and the Chamber soon became a legend. It was twisted around until it was nothing more than a horror story. A child of the bloodline he was bound to eventually used the guardian of the school as a tool. The Slytherin descendant believed the false story and used Aster to terrorize the school. Bound to the bloodline like he was, Aster could not fight back. Argue, yes, but not defy. That's a dangerous part of having such a bond.
"It wasn't until a girl died in a bathroom because of his eyes that the boy stopped using him. Not because he felt remorse or feared that he would be discovered. It was because the school was a home to him. And with Aster roaming around, it was under threat of closure. So the boy summoned him one more time, which resulted in the girl's death, and sealed him back down into the Chamber to await his return."
"Yet you have him now," Law pointed out. "Are you the boy's daughter or something?"
"No, I won Aster," she giggled. "When the boy grew up, he became known as Voldemort. For some reason I have yet to understand, Voldemort targeted my parents and I. Somehow, I rebound the Killing Curse he shot at me, the same curse that he used to murder my parents. He was destroyed. I did not know until I first met Aster that my surviving and Voldemort dying proved I have the stronger bloodline, thus by Right of Conquest, I am worth protecting and obeying more so than the Slytherin bloodline. We've been stuck together since."
"Such a shame history was twisted so horribly," Jora sighed sadly. "Poor Aster must have been so lonely for all those years."
"He actually slept through most of them," Evelyn stated as they approached the door to the bathroom. "It hurt more that he was being used for harm rather than protection."
"Sal's so ashamed of Tommy boy being of his blood," Aster hissed angrily, slithering off his mistress and to the door. "That boy knows nothing but hate!"
"At least you stopped beating yourself up over it," the raven commented, pushing the door open to reveal the bathroom.
Four entered the bathroom without much worry, one being carried, but three others did not step in. "That's a girls' bathroom!" Law exclaimed, still carrying Dellinger. "We can't go in there!"
"It's basically abandoned because of a ghost named Moaning Myrtle," she explained. "You boys can come in here. It's okay."
"A ghost, dasuyan?" Buffalo repeated, looking into the bathroom with scared eyes.
"Ghosts are harmless, honey," Evelyn reassured him. "Come on. This is the only passage safe for us to enter. The other way is underwater. Don't worry about Myrtle. If she hasn't popped up by now, she's probably spying on some boys." Turning to the circle of sinks as the two boys tentatively stepped into the bathroom, she hissed, "Open."
The sink circle spread to reveal a large hole under them, then one dropped down and was covered by a grate to allow them passage. Aster closed his eyes as he grew to suitable length, about forty feet long, still large enough to carry the group with his gaze just as deadly.
"Alright, everyone, get on Aster so we can get to the Chamber safely," she ordered, taking Atticus from Baby 5 while Jora took Dellinger off Law's back.
Here is a line!
He grinned down at the glaring woman who sat in a corner of her cell curled into a ball. "Aw, don't be like that," he taunted lightly. "Here I was ready to play nice and let you go."
"Just like that?!" she spat, her arms tightening around her legs. Her eyes kept switching between the two tall blondes, unsure which one was more of a threat. The smoking one with black feathers or the grinning madman with pink feathers.
"Well, yeah," Doflamingo answered almost sarcastically. "You have provided us with some useful information, but you are lacking what we need. There is no point in keeping you any longer. And since you could provide them the perfect message of our hospitality, I decided that letting you go was better than killing you. You still know nothing of us, so you're not much of a threat."
He turned to his younger brother, who met his gaze and nodded slightly. With his usual grin, Doflamingo looked back to the woman. "Corazon will make sure you get back to your castle without collapsing halfway there. Just pass this along when you get to your leader. This is simply business and we will not tolerate his games anymore. Either he gives us the information we require, or more of his people will be our 'guests'." Giving his younger brother a nod, he turned and left as Corazon unlocked the cell.
Tonks unsteadily got to her feet, watching the remaining blonde warily. He waved his hand for her to follow him impatiently. Slowly, she stepped towards him, following the man as he led her out. The sun was bright and nearly burned her eyes when they made it outside, but the smell of fresh air was almost heavenly. Her arm was grabbed before she was dragged off the ship and down onto the dock, almost falling over when the man dragging her tripped. Straightening himself out, he pushed her to stand in front of him, voicelessly ordering her to lead and he would follow.
Swallowing thickly to the idea of her back being exposed to a man that she should consider deadly, she headed towards the castle. Her steps were slow with a barely noticed limp. As soon as she is safe, she plans on visiting Poppy to at least dig out any shrapnel that could be buried in her. She wasn't sure how that man made various items around the room explode so easily without a wand or saying anything, but whenever he had them around her, the pieces dug in painfully.
Two-thirds of the way, a voice reached her ears. "Don't react," it said almost quietly, coming from behind her and causing a slight jump of surprise. The black-feathered blonde? "I said don't react. Don't turn around, either. Just listen. Doffy was not kidding about what he said. Being here is upsetting Evelyn, which in turn upsets Doffy. Tell your leader that it would be best to get down to business as fast as possible otherwise there would be dire consequences."
"What do you mean?" she asked, not turning to look at him.
"Let me put it this way," he sighed heavily before a plume of smoke drifted over her shoulder. "What you have seen so far is just them playing. The longer they're here, the more serious they will get. If you were the third, maybe even the second, person that we caught, Doffy would not have just simply released you. This is only a warning. Next time is the real thing. His next target may not be let go alive. If you want to save your people, if you want to stop anymore unnecessary death, do as he says."
"How can we trust him?" Tonks pressed with a snarl. "After what his man did to me, how can we even begin to trust him?"
"Doffy's a businessman, he'll respect his deals until they turn on him or bite him in the ass first. Some he makes for fun, but the useful ones are the ones he takes seriously. Your group is the one with the information we need to end this and let us get back home. Doffy knows that, and so does your boss. Please, tell him to stop with his ridiculous plots. One boy is already dead because of your leader not listening."
"What?!" she gasped, turning to his sharply.
A blade was suddenly at her throat, pressing against the skin of her neck. "Don't take this personally," he told her. "They can still see us. Just go inside and tell your boss what you're suppose to."
Slowly, she backed away, keeping her eyes on the tall blonde as he put his blade back into the hidden sheathe under his coat. Once safely within the castle walls, she swiftly turned and ran to Dumbledore's office.
Here is a line!
"Wow, it's huge!" Baby 5 exclaimed, spinning around on the wet path.
"And filthy," Law added on, shivering slightly.
"Who's that a statue of, dasuyan?" Buffalo asked, pointing to the large statue at the other side of the cavern.
"Slytherin," Evelyn replied, still carrying Atticus while Dellinger remained in Jora's arms.
"Mama, I want down!" Atticus said, kicking his legs and wiggling to get free.
"Not right now, honey," she told him.
"Down, Jora! Down!" Dellinger giggled, using his superior strength to break free. He landed on his feet then trotted off, following after Buffalo and Baby 5.
"Kind of into a snake theme, wasn't he?" Jora commented as she took in the appearance of the Chamber. "It's also pretty filthy here."
"You try keeping this place clean with no hands," Aster hissed in offense. "I am not exactly built for cleaning. Stupid house elves even forgot this place over time."
"Did I offend him?" the dual-color-haired woman asked, her finely manicured finger pointing to Aster who was slithering to the statue.
"Just a bit," Evelyn giggled, shifting Atticus on her hip due to his squirming. "Just one second, sweetie. Careful, kids, not to fall into that pool. It's deeper than it looks." Getting the affirmative from the children, and a negative from the one who jumped right into the water, she approached the towering statue. While the chamber where Aster generally slept was at the base of the statue, the entrance between the feet, most of the other rooms were located via passage behind the feet. "This way, everyone," she called, waving them over.
"Dellinger won't get out of the water, Mama Rose!" Baby 5 informed her.
"Aster, would you?" she giggled, looking to her basilisk.
"It may take a bit, I can kill with a gaze even at this size," he replied as he shrunk to a twenty-foot length before slipping into the water smoothly, barely causing a ripple. Six feet just won't do it to catch the little hybrid boy. Even ten feet probably won't.
"Jora, do you mind waiting for Aster to get Dellinger while I get the kids settled somewhere dry?" she suggested, looking to the other woman. "Just follow him wherever he leads. He knows where we're going."
"Of course," Jora replied with a wave of her hand.
Offering the woman a small smile, she turned down the hall, leading the three children following after her. The hall was dark until torches lit as they passed them, causing the children to jump the first couple times. Law was wondering how the torches lit themselves like that. Buffalo and Baby 5 started running ahead to get more to light up.
The first room they came upon lit up with a blazing fire in the fireplace, warmth spreading quickly over the room. With a soft sigh, she set Atticus down onto the rug-covered marble floor. "Welcome to Slytherin's very own study," she said, looking around the room fondly.
"Look at all these books," Law whispered, gently taking one from the shelf and opening it. His eyes furrowed upon looking at the pages. "I can't read any of this."
"A good thing since that one would not be of any interest to you," Evelyn said, taking the book from his hands and placing it back in its original spot. "Most of these books were translated to human tongue and appropriate copies remade and sent out to share. This one…let's just say it's best to never be read and is down here just to keep it out of power-hungry hands. If you're interested, Law, the shelves with the translated copies are right over there." She indicated to a bookshelf opposite of the one they stood in front of. "Some are medical texts with old remedies and such."
"Really? And its okay for me to read them?" the ten-year-old hesitantly asked, looking up at her with wide golden eyes.
"If they're translated, they're safe. It's okay. Go on," she encouraged, patting his turned back a little.
With a small smile, he ran towards the shelf, browsing over the books. Grabbing one labeled 'Complex Ailments and Herbal Treatments', he sat on a nearby chair and opened the book, his eyes devouring any information he could get.
"Baby 5, Buffalo, if you two see anything you want to read, go ahead," she informed the other two.
"Can we play with Atticus?" Baby 5 asked, running up to the woman.
"Only if you include Dellinger when Jora gets here with him," she replied, brushing a stray bang from Baby 5's face.
"Can we explore, dasuyan?" Buffalo threw in happily, smile bright on his face.
"I'd rather you stayed close to where Jora and I can watch you guys," she informed him. "Most of this place is harmless, but there are a few things that need to be watched out for."
"Big sister, big brother," Atticus called, tugging on their clothes. "Look! Picture man talking."
Confused, the two children looked to the portrait of a man with pulled back black hair watching them with a narrowed gaze of sapphire eyes. They could not hear him speaking, but he was hissing.
"Sorry to disturb you, Sal," Evelyn spoke to the portrait, earning a blink in surprise before recognition passed over the painted gaze.
"Evelyn Potter," he greeted. "You've grown much since last I saw you."
"It's Donquixote now," she gently corrected with a small chirp over her shoulder. "I got married while I was away."
"I am glad you found happiness," he stated. "After everything my dreadful descendant put you through, you deserve it. But why have you returned?"
"Long story," she sighed, her shoulders dropping slightly in exasperation.
"Oh my, is that picture talking?" Jora inquired upon entering the room.
"Sal, long time no see," Aster greeted as he shrunk back to his six-foot length, safely able to open his eyes now.
"Aster, you're looking well. Keeping your new mistress out of trouble?" Slytherin hissed back.
"You're kidding, right? I turned around and she married a crazy guy with an obsession for pink feathers and had his kid," the basilisk informed his former master. "Now I'm a babysitter."
"Admit it, you enjoy babysitting the kids," Evelyn giggled, pausing her shelf browsing to turn to the portrait. "Sal, meet a few members of my new family. The reading child over there is Law, this is Buffalo and Baby 5, the woman who just walked in is Jora and she is holding Dellinger, and this little angel is my son, Atticus. Everyone, this is Slytherin Salazar."
"Pleased to meet you, sir!" Baby 5 greeted politely.
"You're a picture, dasuyan? I thought you were a real person, dasuyan!" Buffalo commented.
"The portraits can speak and even move in their frames, or others if any are around," Evelyn explained. "He was once alive. Now all that's left of him are this Chamber, Aster, and his portrait. Be polite, Buffalo."
"I am pleased to meet all of you," Salazar returned with a nod of his head.
"Mama, Daddy crazy?" Atticus asked, tugging on her coat. "Aster call Daddy crazy."
"Everyone's a little crazy, sweetie," she chuckled, sitting on the floor to in order to allow Atticus to climb onto her lap. "You hear Aster talk?"
"He does?" Aster said in surprise.
"You should know better than that, Aster. Parseltongue is hereditary," Salazar pointed out to the basilisk.
"Then how does Evelyn have it? I'm fairly certain she is a descendant of Godric, not you," the serpent pointed out in confusion.
"I'm what?" Evelyn asked, looking back and forth between the two.
"What's wrong, Evelyn?" Jora inquired, her attention going straight to her young master's wife.
"They just said I'm a descendant of Gryffindor!" she exclaimed in surprise. "Mind explaining that a bit?"
Salazar sighed gently, seeming to lean back into his painted throne. "Godric had two sons and three daughters," he explained to the raven. "His sons, unfortunately, died in two different battles, resulting in the death of his family name. One daughter fell ill and passed within a month when she was only thirteen. Poor Godric suffered as each child of his died. His last two daughters married into separate families. One moved far away to another country while the other stayed close to home but away from the castle.
"I only had my two children, both of which were good friends to Godric's children. My second son, however, not many know, married one of Godric's daughters, the one who moved away from the castle but not the country. My first son had his own family here, and that is the line Voldemort came from. My second son had both a son and a daughter with his bride."
"So she is a descendant of you and Godric," Aster murmured in realization. "That explains how you speak so easily, mistress."
"But Evelyn explained the Right of Conquest," Law pointed out, lowering his book slightly. "She beat Voldemort when she was little, proving her bloodline stronger and worth protecting more than Voldemort. If they're of the same bloodline, how does that explain the Right?"
"Yes, and she does have a stronger bloodline," the portrait stated. "Tom came from my bloodline mainly. Evelyn from mine and Godric's. Her magic is stronger than his, her blood cleaner as well. Even if she is considered a half-blood by the people here, there is less tampering. New blood is not always a bad thing."
"But the purebloods think it is," Evelyn sighed heavily. "I think they marry their own cousins or something just to keep their magic 'pure'."
"Gross!" the three older children shouted.
"Incest opens all kinds of doors for diseases and deformities," Law pointed out. "It probably affected their magic, too."
"What 'incest', Mama?" Atticus asked, earning a slight shush from his mother. To Evelyn, Atticus does not need that information, at least not now.
"It did," Salazar admitted sadly. "I heard such from Aster when my descendant used him against this school. Most purebloods are magically weak because of their incestuous marriages. They try to keep their blood and magic pure, yet more and more are being born without magic in their lines. The women have a harder time conceiving as well, some lucky to have more than one child, if they even have one."
"They're slowly killing their entire community with this war and their superiority complex," Evelyn spat disdainfully. "Law, seeing as you have the most medical knowledge, can you explain why their idiotic ideals are killing them for everyone else, please?"
"Like I said, incest leads to deformities and sicknesses," the ten-year-old started. "And if a family has a hereditary disease and marries another member of that family, no matter how distant they are, who has the same hereditary disease, the child has an increased chance of contracting the sickness. Not to mention what the generations worth of incest could do to the body, such of skeletal, muscle, or mental damage. Even if they're distant cousins, they'll eventually run out of branches, which result in closer relations marrying, so more problems pop up."
"Remind me to inform Doffy just how smart you really are," she praised with a bright smile. "You do your parents proud. I know it."
Law blushed, ducking his head down and fiddling with the book in his lap. "Thanks," he whispered.
"I have a question!" Baby 5 announced. "Is Mama Rose stronger than Voldemort because she has your blood and that other guy's?"
"Mine and Godric verses mine alone?" Salazar chuckled. "Not at all. We were both magically powerful, almost on the same level. We each had our own strength and weakness. No, Evelyn is stronger because she has cleaner, newer blood than Tom. The Potter family had few relations to other families, generally marrying outside of any family they had any relation to. When Evelyn's father married her mother, he introduced new blood to his bloodline, which introduced new magic to add to his own. Just like Evelyn marrying her husband introduced even newer blood. And adding in newer blood lessened the chances of anything being wrong with her magic. It would not surprise me if young Atticus is as magically powerful as his mother, perhaps more so even."
"I show picture man?" Atticus asked with a smile.
"Go ahead, sweetheart," Evelyn chuckled, nuzzling his head. "Show him what you can do."
"Yay!" Atticus cheered, throwing his hands into the air before scrunching his face up in concentration. To Salazar's amazement, a orb of light formed between the two small hands.
"He accidentally turned Dellinger's hair pink one day during a fit and I suspected he had a lot of magic he needed some help learning how to control," Evelyn explained. "Dell did not mind the new hair, though. Matched his clothes."
"Pink hair, pink!" Dell exclaimed happily. "Jora, down!"
"Pink Dell?" Atticus asked, looking to the hybrid boy that was being gently set on the ground.
"Pink!" Dell cheered seconds before the orb flew to him. Once the bright light vanished, all of Dellinger was pink, including his skin, horns and fin. "Jora! I pink now!"
Atticus giggled, looking up to his mother. "Dell pink," he pointed out with a wide grin.
Evelyn only looked at the grin and rolled her eyes fondly. Atticus did get a lot more from Doflamingo than he got from her.
Here the Chapter Ends
It's close to ten pages now, guys. I'm ending it here. I just had to turn Dellinger pink for a minute. It seemed like a good idea! XD
I know that a lot of people have used the 'Potter is a Gryffindor and/or Slytherin descendant' thing, but I didn't mean to add it in. It snuck in on me! Like I said before, this story is writing itself.
Just let me know what you guys think! ^^ Okay? Ja ne, minna-san!
Now a new favorite part of the chapters. Review Replies! : D
frankieu: He can't. That's the beauty of it. ^^
salsas100: The Death List will grow eventually. But Ron was in the way and they haven't even touched the Dark Side yet. So yeah, this gonna be fun. Hope you still think this is a fun read as the chapters continue. ^^ I'm glad you're enjoying it so far.
Kami no Kage-sama: … … …Okay, entirely possible. But it had to have been a bathroom of sorts anyway. I doubt they could construct a bathroom with all kinds of plumbing one required, build sinks (one with a snake on the facet, the only one!), and other such bathroom necessitates and not find the entrance. It's a giant freaking hole! I don't think remodeling a room means skipping over the huge hole and leaving a sink with a snake printed on it. That's just what I think.
Sakura Lisel: That is exactly what he did. He got them from that first meeting, figuring that they would be the main trouble makers, and kept them 'tagged', though Evelyn refers to it as 'samples'. I thought it was already explained in the previous chapter, but I guess it wasn't explained well enough. Oops. To be honest, I hardly understand his powers at all. During Dressrosa, it looked like he was controlling several people without being near them, so I figured this was an ability he had been developing for a while.
Sakura Lisel (As Guest): You are the only one who actually came up with such a valid argument. And you do provide very good points. I just think it's way too coincidental that there is still a sink with a snake etched into it and that, despite plumbing developing through the centuries, no one found the giant hole in the floor. Not to mention that, when opened, the sinks spread apart and the cover on top of them lifts up. Like it's always been there or something. Then the marked sink just slides into the floor and gets covered back up with a grate. So either descendants of Salazar's handled the whole 'converting this room into a bathroom' thing and knew about the Chamber, or those sinks, at least, have been there a lot longer than anyone thinks. I'm probably going to keep having this argument with everyone. XD
AnimeA55Kicker: True. True. But like I told Kami no Kage-sama, it's just too coincidental that everything (especially the snake-marked sink) was all there and the chamber entrance was not found. Say 'magic' all you want, if it was originally something else and got remodeled, then the people who did it were blind as hell to not see the giant hole in the floor.
Almonda: I quite enjoyed that last scene myself. It was just too cute to pass up. And I almost did.
LunaSunFlowerLily: Hermione gonna have to do something that makes Doffy want to kill her while he's there. Ron was a potential threat only because of the contract. Thanks for the review!
greenespeon1995: Not just yet. He'll get what's coming to him, don't doubt it. It will be a while, though.
Arawn D. Draven: XD I had a similar image in mind. I think I'll make a side story of when he meets one. That would be hilarious!
LeafeKnight7: I'm glad you liked the chapter. I wasn't sure how the whole thing would go, so thank you.
sirensoundwave: Yep. He's just that freaking dumb. Thought process of Dumbledore, she must be under his thumb even though she hates to be controlled. Maybe if he throws out the idea that she is being controlled by her husband, then she will leave Doflamingo and be back under his thumb. Even Corazon knows this is a dumb as hell thought process. It could have been. Dang, I could have made it better.
sirensoundwave (Review for ch 9): O_O Oh my gosh, you're right! Corazon alone can render any wizard harmless…even Voldemort! Wait…can he do wordless? I know some can do wordless, but very few. Still, you're freaking right! Mind is blown!
Blackholelord: Naturally, she is over 17. But as far as the wizarding community is concerned, she is supposed to be 16 right now. They could pass off her current age as her tampering with aging potions or spells and try to revert her back to sixteen. I would like to see them get past Doffy to try it.
Zaralaan: Softballing? I really try not to. You wanna see some hard crap that I can write, go read Engineering Doll Making. I get pretty detailed with sex scenes and torture scenes. I am 'softballing' compared to that. And yes, eventually they will.
DoctorKnight: Exactly. And the Donquixote family do not make empty threats either.
She is the Bird of Hermes: Nope. Only one was ever created and at least they were smart enough to not add anymore names after Ron. And I am sure Doffy will be tempted many more times. Many more.
silentstrixe: Doffy, not Evelyn, defined a pervert. And I can totally see that now. I should try that. I really should.
Mordalfus Grea: He could try that, but he stupidly does other things. As much fun as it would be to include more Harry Potter characters into the One Piece world, I think Evelyn will be all that I can handle. Especially when more One Piece characters come in.
AstalEldu: Yeah, basically. He doesn't give a single damn. XD
Trafalgar Thunderbird Law: That is the bloodiest pancake I ever did see. Sucks about your main comp.
Naruto x hinata: Can't go wrong with the classics. Crap, now I got Nightmare on Elm Street going through my head. Thanks. I just watched season premier of The Walking Dead when I got your review. Freddy is not high on the list of calm downs right now! XD
The Aluminum Thumb: Admit it. You laughed about the goof. And thank you for the added information about cone snails. I have no clue where it came from, but thanks. It's very interesting.
Elfin69: And pensive memories will show such! If he isn't careful, he may end up showing that he did receive such a warning and chose to ignore it. He'll try more stupid stuff. At this point, that's all he can do.
Silvermane1: You're the first to say that.
Guest: There's an interesting idea. That would be one badly mangled ghost, though.
Guest (number 2): Nope, he had a quick, terrifying, and bloody death. Sorry.
Axel Fones: Well they don't need to worry about her anymore! ^^ I'm glad you enjoyed that last part. It seemed like something Doffy would tell his own child.
XxSunnaxX: You poor thing. The new chapters will still be here when you have time. Please don't stay up so late when you have to work. Thank you for the review, though. But please, go get some sleep.
Helixical: Huh? Say what now?
animagirl: Well, I'm glad you're enjoying it so much. I didn't realize that I was making those transitions so well. I'm glad that they are. Thanks for the review! ^^
Thank you to the reviewers that had no questions, but shall be acknowledged anyway: harlequin320, Ender the multiverse Detective, buterflypuss, god of all, Venus914, Rin-s666, and sousie.