Kyugan: Bit early but I figured I'd make up for two cliffhangers in a row.

Spy: How generous of you.

Kyugan: I'm all heart, really I am.

Chapter 15: Fatal Reflections.

The loss, or rather, the theft of Riddle's diary had been a dastardly blow to Herwald, one that needled at him incessantly as the days went on.

How could he have been so stupid as to forget his belongings? Even if he HAD been caught up in the realisation that Myrtle was the fatality from the last time the Chamber had been opened? It was a sloppy, inexperienced thing to do, and Herwald liked to think he'd grown past such failings.

Apparently he hadn't, and so the adopted Einzbern was inconsolable for the next few days, refusing to speak to anyone if he didn't have to, though he was at least civil about it. The others tried to console him, tried to assure him that it wasn't such a big deal, but even THEY didn't truly believe their halfhearted words, as in all honesty it WAS a tremendous miscalculation on his part.

True, the contents of Riddle's diary wouldn't go a long way towards exonerating Hagrid, it proved he hadn't released Slytherin's monster, true, but it also proved he'd brought an Acromantula into the school, which was almost as bad, if not worse, for while the beast hadn't killed anyone, that they knew of, it was still a highly dangerous magical beast that by all rights shouldn't have existed. If anything, bringing Riddle's diary to the attention of the proper authorities would more than likely get the groundskeeper in even hotter water than he was at the moment.

However, what REALLY got Herwald's goat was that he'd let the damn thing out of his sight even for a moment. He'd been so caught up in trying to solve the mystery he'd completely lost his common sense and gone dashing after the first clue they'd had in weeks.

'If Snape ever caught wind of it, he'd probably chastise me for acting like a Gryffindor…' the adopted Einzbern muttered blithely, shaking his head in wry amusement as he stepped out of his Transfiguration class, where McGonagall had just informed them that, attacks or not, they would all still be sitting Exams come the first of June, something that caused mixed feelings amongst the student body.

The Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors, with the exception of Hermione naturally, were completely thrown and distressed to learn they were still being forced to prove they'd been paying attention during class for the past year. A fair few Slytherin first years were of the same frame of mind, though the rest of the house were pretty much of the same frame of mind as the Ravenclaws, who had been quietly prepping for said exams for some time now.

"Professor Dumbledore's instructions were to keep the school running as normally as possible." McGonagall had informed them as she escorted the Slytherin's to their next class three days ago "And that, I need hardly point out, means finding out how much you have learned this year."

'I have to applaud their commitment.' Herwald noted, nodding his head as he slipped into the main hall along with Draco, Crabbe and Goyle, the quartet taking up their usual seats at the Slytherin table for breakfast along with the rest of their year 'To maintain the status-quot with a monster on the loose…perhaps there's something to be said for the hiring standards after all.'

Any self-respecting Magus knew that, in the pursuit of knowledge, their life was forfeit. Many took calculated risks KNOWING that, if it backfired, they'd be putting their lives, and the lives of anyone caught in the blast radius, in danger. Even the Flamels had faced failure after failure before finally managing to craft the True Philosopher's Stone. Nicholas had called it trial by error; Perenelle had called it a 'learning experience'.

'I wonder what they'd call running a school when a giant serpent is running around murdering people using the plumbing?' he wondered idly, shaking his head as he prepared to leave the table, only to look up as Professor McGonagall got to her feet, before proceeding to make another announcement.

"I have good news." The Deputy-Headmistress called out, the Great Hall, instead of falling silent as was traditional, immediately erupted into cheers as several people started trying to guess what she was going to say, only to be silenced when she let off several firecrackers with her wand. "Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes are ready for cutting at last." She revealed, earning looks of relief from the students "Tonight, we will be able to revive those people who have been Petrified. I need hardly remind you all that one of them may well be able to tell us who, or what, attacked them. I am hopeful that this dreadful year will end with our catching the culprit."

Following McGonagall's Announcement...

"Glad that's sorted…" Draco muttered, looking a tad relieved as he tried to blot out the resulting explosion of noise that erupted from the surrounding students "Looks like we were worried for nothing."

"Perhaps…" Herwald muttered, the Einzbern's emerald eyes sharp as he glanced around the hall, trying to spot anyone acting out of place amongst the revelers The theft of Riddle's diary had left the Einzbern paranoid, even more so than usual, as it struck him as too convenient to be something as petty as a school prank, and the only people who would DARE prank him were the Weasley Twins, and they were still trying to get even with him for the time he'd somehow managed to glue them to their brooms during Quidditch practice.

A flicker of movement drew his attention to Ginny Weasley, who unlike the rest of the Gryffindors was looking decidedly tense and nervous, twisting her hands in her lap, a look of apprehension on her face that was eerily familiar for some reason. "What's wrong?" Draco wondered, looking at his friend in confusion, following his gaze only to blink at the sight of the youngest Weasley "Merlin she looks horrible, haven't seen anyone that nervous since Dobby burnt dinner…"

"Dobby?" Herwald repeated, the adopted Einzbern tensing at the familiar name, turning his head slightly to regard the heir of Malfoy with his trademark calculating emerald stare "Is that a servant?"

"Hmm? Oh no, just one of our house elves." Draco countered, shaking his head dismissively as he turned back to his breakfast "Nervous little thing, never seems to do anything right, I've lost track of the times Father's lost his temper with it."

"You don't say…" Herwald noted, keeping his features neutral, though on the inside his mind was reeling with the implications. True, the name Dobby wasn't THAT unique, house elves seemed to gravitate towards odd names like bees to pollen, but Draco's own revelation that 'their' Dobby was clumsy, prone to invoking his father's ire, and had apparently burned the elder Malfoy's supper on one occasion made it clear that their Dobby and the Dobby who'd been trying to helpfully murder him over the year were one and the same.

However, what held his primary concern was that Dobby's master, by the elf's own, unwitting admission, knew something of what was going on at Hogwarts at the moment, and was probably the CAUSE of the current situation. While Herwald knew for a fact that Draco was innocent, well, at the very least innocent of any involvement with the current crisis, the same could not be said for the elder Malfoy, who had made his disdain for those he considered 'inferior' or 'blood traitors' abundantly clear in their brief meeting oh so long ago.

'And the Weasley's are a Pureblood family.' He muttered, casting another look towards the Gryffindor table, where Ginny seemed to be trying to talk to Ron 'I'd hate to see what his stance is on Muggleborns.'

"I wonder what's gotten into her?" Draco muttered, looking on with detached interest as Ginny jump out of her seat as if it had been electrified, sending a fleeting, frightened look towards her elder brother Percy, who was looking rather haggard at the moment, before scampering away, allowing the elder Weasley to claim her seat "She looks like she's about to fall apart."

"Who knows?" Herwald shrugged, though his eyes were calculating as he glanced from the doors to the hall, which the youngest Weasley had just raced through, to Percy, who was looking rather harangued, even BEFORE Ron started pestering him for apparently frightening Ginny "Seems she caught her brother doing something he doesn't want her talking about…"

"Probably caught him making out with that Clearwater girl…" a voice noted, Herwald looking up to see Daphne Greengrass, a Slytherin Girl who he occasionally met in the library, smirking wryly as she turned the page of her textbook "Parkinson was going on about it with Bulstrode the other day. Apparently they saw Weasley and Clearwater, one of the Ravenclaw prefects, making out in a classroom when they were supposed to be on duty."

"Now that's blackmail material…" Draco snickered, shaking his head in amusement at the idea of 'perfect' Percy Weasley acting like an ordinary teen, hormones and all "No wonder she's so nervous, he probably threatened to jinx her if she talked."

"No self-respecting Magus would harm a family member, Draco." Herwald countered, though he had his fingers crossed as he said it, as the Einzberns raised WORSE than hands against one another in their bid to come out on top "No, I think it might be something else that has the little Fraulein spooked…"

Before he could elaborate on the subject any further, a large owl swooped into the hall, different from the usually messenger owls in its size, and the fact that, despite its appearance, it wasn't a living thing.

'One of Rin's familiars?' the adopted Einzbern wondered, looking at the living, disguised jewel in surprise as it swooped in low and alighted atop the Slytherin table, ignoring the hiss of suspicion from Draco's Eagle Owl, which had brought the usual box of sweets from his mother, as it dropped a letter into his lap before flying off again 'Took her long enough.'

Rin, being the tightfisted tsundere that she was, was naturally reluctant to use her jewel craft if she could avoid it, ESPECIALLY on something that could be done better, and less expensively, like calling someone. However, despite a crash course in computer studies, which she'd REALLY taken to after learning it was more efficient and cheaper than her other sources, the only way to get a message in and out of Hogwarts was via owl post, and considering Rider's dislike of the birds due to their ties to Athena, that was pushing it.

'Looks like she finally managed to get some information on whatever the hell is stalking the corridors…' he noted, recalling sending off the missive not long after Riddle's little memory show 'Let's see here…'

'Herwald-kun, sorry it took so long getting back to you but things have been getting rather hectic, what with Ilya and Fujimura-sensei's bickering, Shirou's training and that old bloodsucker FINALLY getting round to processing my application.'

'So Zelretch finally decided she'd had enough…' he snorted, smiling at the elder Tohsaka's predicament. Every Magus worth their circuits knew of Zelretch of the gemstone, undisputed master of the 2nd True Magic, the killer of Crimson Moon Brunstud, and one of the oldest living Magi to date. It was also well known that Zelretch had a rather twisted sense of humour, and that anyone unfortunate enough to catch his eye was to commit themselves to being the old vampire's plaything until he either grew bored or they passed away, whichever came first.

'Knowing Rin's temper, it's more likely to be the latter…' Herwald muttered, grimacing as he recalled how the elder magus reacted when pushed too far. To a sadist like Zelretch, that was like having Christmas come early.

'In any case…' Rin's message continued, 'I came across a passage in one of my Father's old journals, apparently he used a fossilized piece of skin shed from a snake to summon his Servant during the last war. Normally I wouldn't bother with such things, but he'd apparently kept it for research purposes, a good thing too, as it managed to point me in the right direction.'

'She just can't admit she was curious to see what her father was working on…' Herwald snorted, shaking his head at the elder Tohsaka's stubbornness. No matter how much Rin might deny the fact, she'd never truly gotten over her father's death. She's made some headway when she'd killed Kirei during the Grail War, but it was still a slow going process.

'In any case,' he continued to read 'it turns out while researching the 'Oldest Snake' he did some research on other magical Serpents as a side project. One of the Serpents he documented was the Basilisk, otherwise known as the King of Serpents. According to my father's copy of 'Fantastic Beasts' by Newt Scamander, it's a magical Serpent born from hatching a chicken's egg under a toad. They're pretty durable, can survive for hundreds of years, even in places with little to no prey.'

'Well that certainly explains how it's managed to survive for fifty years locked in the chamber…' Herwald muttered grimly, shuddering at the idea of having to face something so long-lived on it's home turf 'never mind the centuries since Slytherin's banishment.'

'You mentioned that the Spider's were all fleeing the castle right? Well according to Rider, Spiders of all types, magical and otherwise, flee before the Basilisk, apparently they're its main prey, the bigger the better, though older Basilisks will eat just about anything.'

'I suppose she'd know them better than anyone.' Herwald muttered, recalling the conversation with Draco's summoned snake during the Dueling club 'She's technically a patron goddess of snakes after all.'

'According to Rider, the only thing a Basilisk fears is the crowing of a Rooster, which is fatal to it. Rider says it was an intentional, built in flaw designed to ensure the beast could be controlled.'

'It would certainly explain why Hagrid's Roosters have been dying off.' Herwald muttered recalling the Half-giant's complaints on the matter with a scowl 'Whoever the hell is opening the chamber wouldn't want their pet being killed off just because they lost track of time…and Rooster's don't just call at first light.'

'The only problem with the theory is that a Basilisk doesn't petrify their enemies before eating them. Venom aside, what makes them so incredibly dangerous is their Mystic Eyes of Death, which can kill anything that looks the snake in the eyes even for an instant.'

'Of course it couldn't be that easy…' Herwald muttered, grimacing at the one flaw in the otherwise perfect case. Even if the string of events surrounding the case matched up, namely the spiders fleeing the castle, Hagrid's roosters being slaughtered and the fact he himself had been hearing a God-damned SERPENT slithering around the halls, the fact remained that all the 'Heir's' victims had been petrified but, with the obvious exception of Sir Nicholas, left very much alive, with no signs of physical injury. Then again, a creature that could kill with its eyes alone more than likely didn't NEED to resort to its venom.

'Normally I'd suggest getting the hell out of there as soon as you can, or at least letting the faculty know so they can take proper measures.' Rin continued 'Then again, if you're anything like Shirou, you'd probably wind up challenging the damned thing head on out of principle.'

'I'm not THAT reckless…' Herwald muttered, sweat-dropping at the reminder of his step-brother's hero complex, as the elder son of Kiritsugu WOULD try to tackle a Basilisk head on if it meant saving people's lives 'Seriously, give me some credit…'

'As to the matter of your 'living diary', I have to admit that's a first for me.' The message went on, Rin's interest clear in how hurriedly she was writing 'While there have been numerous occasions of a Magus recording their memories in a more literal sense, I've yet to come across a case where one enchanted their Diary to such an extent it could converse as if it WERE the Magus themselves in my father's journals. The best thing I can suggest is to hang onto it until you come home, and I'll take it with me when Shirou and I go to the Clock Tower.'

Herwald grimaced, already imagining the look on Rin's face when the elder Tohsaka learned he'd left the diary out of his sight for even a second, never mind the fact he'd allowed it to be stolen in the first place. While he suspected Riddle hadn't been entirely forthcoming, and rightfully so, the teen had been a Slytherin after all, his Diary had nonetheless been a tremendous discovery, a valuable research tool that any Magus would've killed to get their hands on for the sake of being the first to dissect its secrets.

'She won't stop at cutting remarks…' the Einzbern muttered, shivering as he recalled that pretty, yet undoubtedly intimidating smile the elder Tohsaka liked to employ when someone, usually Shirou, did something she considered completely idiotic 'She'll probably even use sarcasm…hmm?'

He paused, all thoughts of Rin's sure-to-come admonishments vanishing as his eyes noticed something in the corner of the letter, something that had been scrawled in a hand that was different from Rin's, apparent in the fact it wasn't written in Japanese, but rather in Greek.

'Περσεύς?' he wondered, frowning at the characters written in an unfamiliar script, though he could immediately tell who had put it there, as truth be told, there was really only one person in the house who knew the language fluently enough to be able to write it ' Isn't that the Greek pronunciation of Perseus?'

"Something the matter, Herwald?" Draco asked, not even bothering to hide his interest in the boy's letter, though he knew better than to try reading over his shoulder. The last time someone tried to, they'd gotten a face-full of pumpkin juice.

"A member of the family got into the Clock Tower." Herwald replied swiftly, grateful that Draco hadn't learned kanji or hiragana as he tucked the letter out of sight, it would've made keeping the secret all the harder, and he didn't want to drag his friends any deeper down the rabbit hole, or snake hole rather, than they'd already come "Come on, we need to get to class."

DADA...

Herwald put off trying to interpret Rider's missive until DADA, ignoring Lockhart as was the norm and instead trying to interpret Rider's scrawl, which was a good word for it, as the Servant's handwriting was deplorable.

'Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen her use a pen before…' he muttered, frowning at the notion 'I know she's always reading, but then the translation spells worked into the summoning ritual probably helps in that regard...it's not like they had ball-point pens back in Ancient Greece.'

Shaking his head at the brief image of Agrippa or Ptolemy playing with a lead pencil, he turned his attention back to Rider's hint, screwing up his eyes as he peered at the Greek letters. 'What are you trying to tell me Rider?' he wondered, as if the letters were wont to answer him as Riddle's diary had 'What does Perseus have to do with this?'

The legendary founder of Mycenae and the Perseid Dynasty, Perseus was arguably the first of the mythic heroes of Greek mythology, predating even Heracles, whose exploits in defeating the various archaic monsters provided the founding myths of the Twelve Olympians. He was most famous for killing the Gorgon Medusa, using her severed head to rescue Princess Andromeda from a sea monster sent by Poseidon in retribution for Queen Cassiopeia declaring herself more beautiful than the sea nymphs.

'Or at least that's the OFFICIAL version…' Herwald noted wryly, shaking his head as he recalled Rider's description of the Hero. 'A more successful Shinji' she'd called him, which just about said it all really, especially when you considered precisely HOW Perseus had gone about claiming the Gorgon's head.

Any other Hero would've charged right in or devised some cunning trap to place Medusa at a disadvantage. Perseus had snuck in while Medusa had been asleep, using a reflective shield to avoid being petrified, and then lopped off her head before skulking off before her sisters could…!'

He trailed off, emerald eyes widening as realization struck him like one of Zeus' infamous thunderbolts, sending jolts up and down his spine.

'Gott im Himmel…' he breathed, staring at nothing as all the pieces FINALLY began locking into place 'So that's it…nobody's died yet because no-one's looked the damned thing right in the eye…'

Meeting a basilisk's gaze was an assured kill, Moaning Myrtle was verification enough of that, but up until Myrtle, and indeed for the most part afterwards, no-one had died the two times the beast had been released over the past fifty years. It could simply be that the Heir back then hadn't been expecting Myrtle and had panicked, but if that were the case, why stop after the kill? For that matter, why was the 'New' Heir following their predecessor's example so flawlessly? More than likely it's because they haven't gotten it to look anyone in the eye directly.

'Colin saw it through his camera,' Herwald deduced, features grim as Lockhart's ramblings faded into the distance 'As for Justin, he probably had the good fortune of being right behind Sir Nicholas when the beast struck, so the effect would've been filtered.'

It certainly explained how a GHOST could be affected, Mystic Eyes were an unpredictable form of Magic, some had a limited effect, such as Ilyasviel's Eyes of binding, whereas others, like Rider's Eyes of Petrification, were more permanent, requiring they be restrained by extraneous means.

'I imagine Magical Eyes of Death would affect ANYTHING that met them…' the Einzbern mused as he chewed his thumbnail 'Sir Nicholas was simply lucky to have already been dead at the time.'

It was all making sense now, all the pieces finally fitting together like peas in a pod. Even Mrs. Norris, the detestable old feline, was explainable; the malignant moggy most likely saw the Basilisk's reflection in the water coming out of Myrtle's bathroom. The Heir probably knew the Ghost wouldn't be there with the Deathday Party going on and had let the beast loose for a little all-hallows hunt.

'And it's been using the damned Plumbing to move around the campus…' he swore, impressed despite himself with the heir's resourcefulness, even as the bell rang, signalling the end of Lockhart's posturing 'Whoever they were, they had the entire school right where they wanted it, and no-one was any wiser.'

He was just about to get up from his desk, all but ignoring Lockhart as the fool tried to usher them out, only to look up as Professor McGonagall's magically magnified voice stilled them in their places.

"All students to return to their House dormitories at once." She declared, her voice echoing throughout the otherwise silent halls of the castle "All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please."

"What, now?" Lockhart exclaimed, the fop looking most put out, as he escorted them out into the hall towards the dungeon "Honestly, first she has me standing guard all night and now this? I've quite enough to be getting on with without having to escort children to their own dormitory's…"

"Quite right, Sir…" Herwald agreed, the Slytherin's halting in their glaring at Lockhart in favour of gaping at the Einzbern, Draco even going so far as drop his book-bag on Goyle's foot "Especially considering Slytherin Dormitory is located at the bottom of the castle, so it's not likely we'd get lost."

"Too true Harry, too true!" Lockhart agreed, beaming at his fellow 'celebrity', apparently glad to see someone else that shared his (lack of) common sense "I'm sure you can take care of yourselves, I'll just nip back to my office to freshen up quickly, can't keep a lady waiting!"

"As you will sir." Herwald offered, watching the ponce prance off to powder his nose, only to turn to find Draco, Crabbe and Goyle standing in the hallway, the Malfoy Heir looking at him in annoyance "Yes?"

"Don't 'yes' me Herwald." Draco snapped, standing before his friend with his hands on his hips "Buttering up to Lack-brain aside, I was watching you during class." his glare relented in the face of Herwald's quirked brow " You've been moping for days remember? Then you get that letter from your family and now you're suddenly back to your usual devious self." He smirked at the Einzbern " You've figured something out, haven't you?"

"Heaven spare me from perceptive friends…" Herwald snorted, shaking his head with a wry smile even as Crabbe and Goyle snickered, the quartet moving to rejoin the rest of their year as they made their way back to the dorms "I think I've figured out what's attacking the students." He revealed as they walked, earning looks of surprise from his friend "I was actually planning on telling Potion's Master Snape during Potion's Class but now…"

"We'll cover for you." Draco assured the teen, raising a hand to halt Herwald's protests with a determined frown "Don't argue, the minute we get to the dorms, let Flint see you and then do that vanishing trick of yours to get to the Staff Room, if Flint asks, I'll just say you're taking a nap."

"Staff Room's on the fourth Floor." Crabbe grunted in what must have been an attempt to be quiet, bless the brute "Fifth door on the right."

"Danke…" Herwald offered, the quartet sharing a silent nod as they crossed the threshold into the Slytherin Dungeon, Herwald making a point to stop to speak to Marcus Flint before slipping out of sight, activating the Potter ring and making his escape out the door just before it shut behind the last of the first years, literally running up the stairs, heedless of the noise he was making, mentally counting down the doors as he reached the fourth floor, slipping in scant seconds behind a worried looking Flitwick, the already excitable Charms Master clearly on edge as he jumped as Herwald brushed past him, whipping out his wand and firing off a stunner.

"Fillius! What on earth's the matter?" Pomona Sprout called out, the Herbology Mistress eyeing her fellow Head of House in concern, along with the rest of the staff, with the exception of Binns, who seemed to be staring off into space.

"Nothing," Flitwick assured them, though Herwald swore he saw a scowl on the diminutive magus' features as he glanced out the doorway "Just nerves I suppose, been jumping at shadows all day..."

"I imagine everyone's nerves are rather frayed at the moment, Fillius." Snape assured the man, covertly slipping his wand back up his sleeve with a practiced movement "Perhaps Minerva can set our minds to rest when she gets here."

As if the words were a summons, the door to the staff room opened, admitting the Deputy Headmistress and Head of Gryffindor house herself. However, if her peers were expecting Dumbledore's second to be the bearer of good news, they were to be sorely disappointed, for the look on the Transfiguration Mistress' face was one of absolute loss and defeat.

"It has happened." She told the silent staff room, and Herwald was surprised to note her voice, usually so controlled save for when her temper was stoked, sounded as fragile as fine crystal "A student has been taken by the monster, right into the Chamber itself."

Spy: So, your 'making up' for two cliff'angers with anozer cliff'anger?

Kyugan: Maybe, at least this chapter proves Rin and co. aren't just sitting on the sidelines. They actually have their own studies to worry about.