I couldn't find much on the immobulus charm, so I'm sorry if it's inaccurate. I had to make up how long the charm might last.

Lily and Vivian found themselves in a staring contest with one of Hagrid's roosters.

"Now what?" Lily asked. Vivian shrugged. They had been standing there for several minutes trying to decide on the best way to get close enough to the rooster. Lily wasn't the biggest fan of birds after her cousin's parrot had bit her hard enough to bleed. There was no way she was going to be the one to pick it up.

"Just go for it I guess?" Vivian swung her legs over the fence and quickly bent down and haphazardly scooped up the rooster. He squawked loudly and wiggled to get free. Vivian held him at arms length as he squawked louder, feathers flying as he tried to peck her. Lily pulled out her wand and after some hesitation cast "Immobulus". The rooster froze. Vivian quickly glanced around. Hagrid's hut was still dark and the grounds still quiet and empty.

"Brilliant!" Vivian grinned, "We'd better get out of here though." Lily nodded and led the way up the steep steps. They stayed quiet focusing on avoiding the ice that coated many of the stones.

"I saw it in a book over break." Lily said once they finally reached the top. "Thank goodness I did. That thing is the most obnoxious creature. No wonder it's crow can kill a Basilisk. Reminds me of my cousin's parrot. Another dreadful thing. She treated it like a baby, but it would bit anyone it could get close to…Do you think it'll fit under your cloak?" Vivian looked at the rooster, her nose scrunching at the smell coming off of it. Adjusting her hold on it she tucked it up under her arm. Lily frowned. If someone looked at Vivian directly they'd see the rooster's head. Tugging on her cloak didn't help matters much.

Vivian didn't mind animals, but her owl was the only one she enjoyed being around. There were a couple snacks in her pocket. Did rooster's even like the same snacks as owls? The library had books on almost any animal, but they barely contained more than a sentence on chickens. The snacks would have to do. The musty chicken smell was starting to make her nose itch. The dungeon they were about to go into wouldn't smell much better, she assumed. The smells from her last dream seemed to fill her nose even as she fought the urge to sneeze. With the smells came his ghostly face.

Voldemort. He was one of the wizards fighting for power. The main cause behind the pure blood riots. If he was truly the one in her dreams…the one who killed Myrtle, then the wizarding world was in more peril than she'd thought. Someone who could kill so easily without remorse could never be allowed to take power. If defeating the Basilisk allowed her to destroy his book, or whatever it was, then it was worth doing. By the time they'd gotten to the second floor hallway Vivian could feel the rooster starting to move again.

"We need to hurry the roo-" She turned the corner to run right into someone. The rooster fell and started to flap its wings. Still unable to stand, it moved in a circle on the floor.

"What in the bloody…Lily? Vivian?" Severus looked at them with wide eyes before watching the rooster. Another, much older voice had the three of them grimacing. Out of all the teachers to find them Vivian wasn't sure if McGonagall was the best or worst option to find them.

"What is this! Lily, Vivian, and Severus? I'd expect this from James and Sirius. Not from the three of you!" She looked at them, her eyebrows so high they almost disappeared into her hat. It was almost too much for her. James, Sirius, Lupin, and Peter had pulled so many pranks the past few days she had lost count. Just now she'd been urgently summed to the third floor where someone had charmed the toilet to spout water as if they were fountains. The whole floor would soon be flooded if it wasn't correct. She took a deep breath in shaking slightly as she did so.

"Immobulus" Her wand shone as it charmed the rooster back into silence. "Clean this up. I didn't see anything. You didn't see anything. I have enough gray hairs as it is. But so help me if I see any of you into some mischief I'll send you to the Forbidden Forest for detention myself! " With that she turned around sharply and headed for the stairs.

Vivian picked up the rooster once again. Her heart felt like it was about to jump out of her chest. Lily felt a bit faint. Her dream was to be Head Girl one day, but that had definitely just been thrown out the window. What if her parents found out! Professor McGonagall would surely tell their parents!

"If flooding the bathrooms was a diversion, then you both failed miserably. I can't think of any potions that require a…chicken." Severus said. His arms were folded tightly across his chest. He had felt Lily and him drifting apart as the year progressed. Until now she'd never kept anything from him though. His jaw clenched together as he watched her look away guiltily.

"It wasn't her secret. It was mine. Do you have any potions on you, oh gracious potion master." Vivian smiled. He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Tell me everything first. Then I'll decide."

"Going to destroy a giant snake with this chicken. We are headed to the girl's bathroom down the hall right now. It's where the snake lives."

"…How big of a snake?"

"Basilisk size…one that's about 900 years old give or take."

"We are going to need more potions. I can meet you there in 15 minutes. Don't you dare leave me behind or I will tell the professors."

"Deal."

Severus stared at her, judging whether she would hold true to her word. He didn't take her for a liar, but they'd already kept in the dark about this snake ordeal. Vivian rolled her eyes slightly exasperated. "I PROMISE! Now we are in a bit of a hurry. 15 minutes no more." He started off hastily towards the potions room.

Once in the bathroom Lily walked up one of the sinks.

"You really think this is the entrance to the chamber? I mean whose bright idea was it to put it in the girl's bathroom? There's almost always a student in one..well except this one, so maybe it wasn't a bad idea after all," Lily looked over to the stall where Myrtle was whimpering. Vivian was too focused on the sinks to pay much head even as the whimpering got louder.

"There…"she whispered softly, placing her hand on a snake carved above one of the mirrors. The strong sense of dread filled her stomach. It was real. They were going to fight a freaking Basilisk. There was no phoenix to help them as the boy had. She shouldn't have brought Lily into this.

"Sev has 5 more minutes." Lily said. She had come to stand behind Vivian squinting to get a better look at the snake carving. "So how are we going to open it? I thought only the heir of Slytherin could," Lily said in a snooty tone mocking the racist pureblood Hogwarts Founder.

"That's because the heir can speak snake, parseltongue."

"Wait? You're a descendant of Salazar Slytherin?" Lily looked at her doubtfully. If there was anyone related to that prick she'd have guessed one of Severus's current groupies.

"No…but I know the phrase or word used to open it. I've heard it so often in my dreams I have it memorized… I just hope I can get the pronunciation right. If I can't then this," she motioned to the rooster who was beginning to move once again, "has all been for nothing, but a good laugh."

"Are you scared?"

"Terrified."

"Me too."