Disclaimer: See Chapter 1, please.
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Author's Note: Alright, to my confused readers, I explained what each stanza meant. Whee! *hollers*15 chappies! I ended Hermione Is Mine at 12, and I thought that even 12 was too much! Oh, and if you're wondering why Tom didn't know that Hermione was muggle-born although Johnson was allegedly passing messages to him through Valar, Remember this: DO NOT BELIEVE EVERYTHING THAT JOHNSON SAYS. Now, for the ever important notes to my reviewers:
Dear Mrs.shigwa.cobain: Did you read what I left for you at the reviews section? If you did, and you're still lost, feel free to bombard me with queries, okay? *huddles fearfully* I'm kinda used to flames, if you know what I mean. And I'll take this opportunity to apologise for my creepy SSHG tale, okay? I didn't know that…well….it'd disturb you or anything. *kneels and cries for forgiveness* =P
Dear Dragonbrat: OMG! You love it to pieces? I love YOUR reviews to bits! =) *shrieks happily*
Dear Miss Mina Murray: Ooooh! Don't bite your nails! I really can't thank you enough for your sugar-coated reviews! Ouch! My tooth hurts! But don't stop, please.
Dear Warriorangel15: Thank goodness you are.
Dear Lady Nessa Fefalas: You're still reading? I thought that I scared you off with this plain story! One thing: Would you rather if I named the Basilisk Buttercup?
Dear Lady Tigress: Likewise, Lady Tigress.
Dear Maraudertimes: Of course I missed you! You didn't have to ask! *bear hug* Hey, do you get what they mean now? *wide-eyed* Happy New Year!
Dear Phoenix Lumen: *smiles*
Dear Dragoness Kaei: Oh, Christmas was great but EXHAUSTING! Anyway, my gram doesn't have a PC too. Cheers, Milady Dragon! (Yeah, I'm into Tamora Pierce right now)
Dear Sallymander: Good to see you again! Happy New Year, Sally! Or Mander. =P
Dear Autoexec: Cool name….kind of familiar too. Where did I see it…..
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THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF SALAZAR SLYTHERIN (PART 2)
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First, thou must understand,
The commandments, and the banes;
That comes with thy force,
So that thine gift shalt never be lost.
Second, thou must then seek,
Magic pure, potent, but weak;
The essence of soul, ripped,
Shalt take thee further, to thy keep.
Third, thou wilt hunt Hogwarts,
For the minion, that guards;
The door, the entrance and the rules,
That holds peril for errant fools.
"Fourth, thou wilt stand as one;
And say thy first command;
To thy minion, and I shall see,
If none is as worthy as thee.
Fifth, thou shalt remain passive,
Unspeaking, and submissive;
And behold, if he lets thee in willingly,
To power arcane, to my legacy.
Sixth, thou must knowest,
Before delving into my secrets;
That thou shalt be tested once again,
Fail, and thy breath shalt never remain.
Seventh, thou wilt now proceed,
Into the clandestine, my innermost deed;
But beware, seeker, of the Eighth,
For it is treachery, that She hates.
Eighth 'twas the virgin encounter,
Between a servant and Her master;
If thine self still remains,
Thou must complete thy destiny and my pains.
Thou haft now arrived at the Ninth,
Thus proving thyself as one of mine;
But dost thou possess the strength,
For what awaits thee at the Tenth?
Tenth is the purging of the filth,
Use your servant, and use only her,
Only when the Mudblood's blood is spilt;
Wilt thou gain the respect of I, Salazar.
Hermione wrote the last words down, her forehead crinkled in a deep frown. She hated the verses more than ever, now that she knew what it truly said.
"So," she said to the Bloody Baron. "First verse means that I'm to listen to you. Second, I'm to look for pure but weak magic, whatever that is. Third……third I've already done! The minion who guards the door is the carving of the snake, right? Harry spoke to it, then the Chamber opened."
The wraith smiled at her. "You are smart, for a mortal," he said.
Hermione grinned, and she glanced at the verses. "Fourth," her face fell. "Fourth, I supposed to speak to it. But I can't talk snake. Anyway, fifth wants me to wait and see if the Chamber's doors will open for me. Fat chance."
"Oh, but all is not what it seems," the Bloody Baron reminded her, his mouth unmoving. Hermione suppressed a snort by pretending to cough.
"Sixth is very clear. There'll be a second test, and if I fail, I'll die. Seventh, I'm to enter the Chamber, and meet the servant. The basilisk, I suppose," she said matter-of-factly.
"Eight is about meeting the basilisk for the first time. Well, I've met it once, and I was Petrified. Ninth basically warns about the tenth, which bluntly states what the Heir of Slytherin is supposed to do. Kill his first victim using his Basilisk. Nice intentions,' she commented sarcastically. "Thank you for sharing this poetry with me, Sir, but I don't think that I can enter that Chamber, hourglass or no hourglass."
The gaunt ghost slowly raised his compelling orbs and met her own brown ones. Hermione felt as though her blood had turned to frost, as a flush of mild anger crept into his visage. "Do as you please, mortal," he rasped, his voice laced with hostility. "I have given you the Sacred. I thought that you believed in miracles." With that, he turned away, gliding gracefully down the corridor.
Hermione said a curse word, and mentally kicked herself. A drop of water fell at her feet, but she did not think much of it. It's probably faulty plumbing, she told herself absently. But as her mind registered finally registered that plumbing involves pipes, she started to shake. Pipes means basilisk.
The Bloody Baron's words echoed in her head continuously. "Either way, your journey begins in the Chamber." Hermione wiped a drop of sweat from her brow, and hardened her heart. "Bloody Baron! Sir!" she shouted. A few passing students gave her a long, calculative look that suggested derangement, but Hermione didn't mind. What mattered was that he stopped. She caught up with him, and together, they headed for her doom.
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Tom shoved his chair back, and stood up so abruptly that the chair lost its balance and fell with a thud. He ran so fast, to Professor Dippet's office that for a while, his surrounding was only a blur. What if she tells someone about the Chamber, he thought. It is Sacred…….What if they opened it up?
He was about to turn into the office grounds, when the Basilisk spoke to him. "Masster," said the piercing, needle-like hiss. "I hunger."
Tom stopped in his tracks, and took a deep breath. "Have you……killed?"
"No. But she knowsss. She knows the way, although she is of tainted blood. They are coming to the Chamber."
A very pregnant paused ensued. Tom's inhalation was halted. They? So she has told, I see. Very well. I will give you a welcome that you will never forget.
"To the Chamber, Valar," he commanded. "We will be having visitors."
With the same burst of lightning speed, he sprinted down flights of stairs, knocking a titan girl flat on her feet as he passed. Finally, when he reached the lightless corridor where puddles of water hinted that Valar had been bolder, he arrived at the bathroom.
The sounds of a girl sobbing echoed, and Tom gritted his teeth. Stay where you are, you miserable toad, and perhaps I'll let you live. With great apprehension, he stepped into the damp toilet, his shoes splashing stealthily. No one was to be seen, but he knew that Myrtle was in her cubicle, bawling over her pathetic life. Tom was already tired, worn out from the match, and he wasn't sure if he could intervene, if Valar decided to kill her.
The Basilisk was nowhere to be seen, and Tom clicked his tongue, irritated. "Valar!" he hissed furiously. I hope she hasn't gone after Hermione already. What if Valar led me on a wild goose chase, so that she can salvage Hermione for herself? His darting eyes fell on the carving of the snake. "Open up, and show yourself!" he instructed in Parseltongue. As the tap glowed, and the sink dissolved out of sight, he felt the ground tremble a little, signalling the arrival of a gargantuan creature. The Basilisk would not come unless it was called, but Tom had summoned it. Please, he thought desperately. Don't let her be the monster's first kill. In fact, don't let her be killed at all! He wasn't thinking about Myrtle.
The Basilisk's head emerged at about the same time as Myrtle's. The bespectacled girl, sniffling sulkily, threw the door of her cubicle open with mock authority. "What is a BOY-" she began when she saw Tom's dark head turned towards her. But she got no further, when the Basilisk struck.
"Stop!" shouted Tom, panic rising in him. He could not allow Valar to sink her fangs into Myrtle, as such carelessness would result in their detection. No other creature in the realm produced the Basilisk's venom, no other, save for Valar. If anyone found out that a Basilisk was on the prowl, Hogwarts would be closed, and he would return to the muggle orphanage.
Valar dutifully jerked to a stop, spitting like an enraged beast. Tom could not blame her, but when he looked, Myrtle was already drained of her life, murdered by Valar's gaze of death. Tom swallowed.
He backed away, praying that no one would enter the bathroom, and catch him red-handed. "Go now!" he all but shouted at the Basilisk. Leaving the still-warm body of Myrtle on the wet floor, he turned to leave.
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Hermione's heart froze, when she finally reached the dreaded toilet. "Oh, well," she said to the Bloody Baron, "Better die trying, right?"
She allowed one foot to tread inside, when someone grabbed her arm. Hermione daren't turn to face her attacker, as she knew that it couldn't be the Bloody Baron. At least it was fingers that grabbed her, not snapping, vicious teeth. She squinted at the robed figure at the corner of her eyes. The grip on her hand was familiar……
"Tom……….!"