"You see, I don't think a Memory Charm would be in order," Stormy finished.
Her form blurred slightly and twisted downwards.
And right in front of them was the Basiliskqueen.
Zephyr looked a little less smug, and Sharpclaw began thought-muttering.
< I could kick myself! How could I have missed it? She's unmistakably Slytherin. The hair, the eyes, the power, the temperament... most definitely of Slytherin descent. Why? Why? Why? Why.... >
"That's right." The Basiliskqueen spoke with a slight lisp. "It's me. You knew there is currently a Queen of Serpents. Why didn't you connect it with me? I overestimated you two, then. I would have thought you would have figured it out by now.
"And yet, you made my plans easy. Played right into my hands, in fact. Zephyr, you showed up to show off at the perfect time. Sharpclaw, you too played straight into the trap by following her lead."
I lead. >
"You followed this time. You told me more than I could have counted on. Your Griffin Name, your history, your job. Yes, I could most definitely eliminate you right now. If I wanted to.
"Because I don't know if I do want to." The Basiliskqueen was playing with them now. "The Three Queens, united once more? We would be powerful, all right. Not to mention it would be good from a diplomatic point of view. We'd all be friends... not enemies. It would be good for political relations between our clans.
"Yes, I could see every reason not to kill you. I'll probably just make it a warning: never underestimate a Slytherin."
"Yes, but don't you remember? I could kill you just by looking at you."
"Not if we didn't look back," argued Zephyr.
"Do you think I couldn't catch you unaware? You're not as hard to get by as you think, you know."
This met only with defiant stares.
The Basiliskqueen Nefariana stared back. In fact, she was staring a bit too intensely. She was slowly unleashing the power of her eyes, which, unlike other basilisks, she had control of.
Sharpclaw began to hurt dully all over. To retaliate, she gathered her psychic energy and focused it toward the Queen of Serpents.
"Arrggg!" The Basiliskqueen could not help crying out as a very sharp pain erupted on the inside of her head.
asked Sharpclaw, instantly releasing the pressure. She preened one of her wings with a distinctly superior look on her face.
"Well, if we're trying for peace we're getting nowhere," remarked Zephyr.
"Well, I'M not the one who practically paralyzed YOU with a Bludger!" yelled Nefariana.
accused Sharpclaw.
"Deliberately? I was going for the Snitch! She was in the way; I couldn't stop in time!" protested Stormy indignantly.
"And so now it's MY fault that Slytherin is better than Ravenclaw?"
"WILL YOU TWO STOP IT?!" Zephyr burst out. "I don't even PLAY Quidditch!"
This silenced them. Neither Morgana nor Stormy could imagine a life without the game they loved.
"If you ask me, you should forget that petty feud. You're too powerful for things like that! Wasn't that what Dumbledore tried to tell you all along?"
interrupted Sharpclaw.
Zephyr ignored her. "If I were you - well, I would have never got into this mess in the first place, but that's beside the point - anyway, I'd call a truce, because there's a lot to lose by staying enemies, but a whole lot to gain by becoming friends."
< I guess... > Sharpclaw was reluctant.
"Say it," prompted Zephyr.
Sharpclaw transformed back into her human form. "Truce?"
"Truce," agreed Stormy, also back in human form.
They shook on it, but as Morgana's fierce brown eyes met Stormy's purple ones, it was plain that just because they were no longer worst enemies didn't mean they were best friends, either.
