A/N: Sorry for the longer-than-average wait. It wasn't because I wasn't writing, I just didn't have access to my laptop to upload because I haven't been home all week. To try and balance, this chapter is slightly longer than average. Note continued at the end.

Things got really scary when Muggleborns began to be found petrified. A first-year named Colin Creevey who always had a camera in his hand.

"What petrifies people?" Hermione was muttering to herself, flipping through books upon books of monsters. She was alone, because she hadn't told Hyacinth she would be in the library tonight. Hyacinth had been begging her to just lay low until they figured out who was doing this, but Hermione knew she could find the answer if she looked hard enough.

It was late, though, and the library would be closing soon. Madam Pince was already looking at her sideways, as if to shoo her nonverbally, so Hermione told herself just one more page.

On the next page was a basilisk. "Deadly upon direct eye contact, but petrifies if contact is indirect."

She quietly squealed in triumph as she hid from Madam Pince and ripped the page out of the book; she had to show McGonagall. Thinking quickly, she Transfigured a mirror to peek around corners with, and gathered her things.

. . .

It was Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil who found her, lying there petrified with a piece of paper crumpled in one hand, a mirror in the other. Her brown eyes were wide open, hair splayed behind her. It was past curfew and Hermione still wasn't in the Tower, so they'd gone looking for her, fearing the worst.

"Lavender," said Parvati in an urgent tone.

"Parvati," she returned.

"Stay here, Lav. I'm going to go get Professor McGonagall."

Just as Parvati was nearing the next corner, Lavender said "Parvati."

"What?"

"Somebody has to tell Hyacinth."

. . .

It was nearly ten forty-five when Astoria came into the dorm inhabited by the second-year Slytherin girls, saying "Hyacinth, there's someone for you outside. A Gryffindor girl."

She was just getting ready for bed, she had on her Slytherin t-shirt and some old gray sweatpants, and her first thought was that it must be Hermione.

"But what in God's name would she be doing out at this hour?" she muttered to herself, prepared to chastise Hermione for being out alone late at night with monster on the loose that targeted Muggleborns.

But when she got out of the common room, it wasn't Hermione.

"Hyacinth, you have to come with me, it's Her-"

Hyacinth was already running towards the Hospital Wing as Parvati, who had done quite a bit of running around at this point, tried to keep up.

When she got there, skidding into the doorway, Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore were already there. Hermione was in a bed, completely still, a paper crushed in one hand.

"Ah, Miss Potter," said Dumbledore.

"Miss Potter, it's very late, you should not have left the Slytherin dorms," reprimanded McGonagall, narrowing her eyes at Parvati.

"Leave the children, Minerva. You didn't really think Miss Patil was going straight back to Gryffindor Tower, did you? After all, she's a Gryffindor through and through."

"And," said Snape as he stepped into the infirmary, "Miss Potter is a Slytherin through and through, and would not have been likely to take attempts to keep her from Miss Granger very well."

He had placed a hand on Hyacinth's shoulder in reassurance, a gesture she knew came purely from the fact that Slytherins took care of their own.

But Hyacinth was more consumed by the sight of Hermione lying there, by the rage that the monster had gotten this far and no one had stopped it or even identified it, and really maybe Drisana was right when she said that Dumbledore was a fool, and -

"Well, Severus, then I expect you can wait with Miss Potter until she is ready to return to the Slytherin dungeon," said the Headmaster.

"Of course, Headmaster," replied Snape smoothly.

McGonagall herded Parvati out of the room, and Dumbledore followed. Snape stood a few feet back, and Hyacinth sat next to Hermione's bed.

She watched her, feeling bubbling hatred for whomever was responsible.

What if Hermione had been killed? The possibility was unforgivable. Against her will, tears began to spill down her cheeks.

"I'll kill whoever did it," she whispered, "and whatever did it."

"It is nothing less than I would expect from one such as yourself. Your loyalty to that girl is fierce. But it would serve you well not to say such things in the company of those that are not possessed of the same nature as you and I."

The Head of Slytherin gave her maybe ten more minutes, before saying that it would be best for everyone for her to get some sleep.

Hyacinth nodded, and tried to steel herself. She took a slow breath, and let Snape escort her back to the dungeon.

. . .

Weeks passed until they were midway through December. Hyacinth worked by herself in Advanced Potions, she barely spoke, all the Slytherin charm she was known for drained away into someone reserved and dark.

The Mandrakes wouldn't be ready until spring, no one had a clue who was behind the monster, and her friends were getting worried.

"All this over bloody Granger," whined Pansy one night in the common room. Hyacinth, as usual, was in the dorm with her curtains closed around her bed. Tracey had gone to try to console her; she was one of the few people Hyacinth might speak more than a few words to in this state.

"It makes sense," said Athena pragmatically, "You know how much time they spend together."

"But I miss Hyacinth," protested Drisana. Daphne nodded her agreement.

Blaise, meanwhile, had his head in his hands. "Well, then we've got to figure out who did it, don't we? It's simple. We figure it out, tell Hyacinth, she can enact her vengeance, and then we get her back."

"But how?" asked Pansy.

"Can't be that hard," reasoned Theo.

"They've got to be in Slytherin, to be the Heir of Slytherin," added Blaise.

"But that means they're one of ours," said Pansy.

"No," argued Drisana, "They may be Slytherin, but Hyacinth is one of ours more than whoever this is, and I'll hand them to her wrath happily if it means getting her normal again."

Resolved, they formed a tighter huddle and placed a quieting charm around them before beginning to theorize on who it might be.

In a corner, unnoticed, Ginny Weasley watched with slitted eyes.

. . .

It was Christmas break, and Hyacinth had decided to stay at the school. Professor Snape had agreed to tell Aunt Petunia she was sick with dragon pox and couldn't leave the school until she recovered.

She was by Hermione's bedside again. There was no one but a few loners left in the castle to bother her, and so she'd been here all day. The twins had stopped by before they left, but that was the last she'd seen of any of her friends in a few days.

Ginny Weasley had stayed behind too, maybe felt too awkward to go home to her Gryffindor family for break, but Hyacinth wasn't particularly interested in the first-year's life right about now. She spent most of the break by Hermione's side, pausing briefly to mail her friends half-hearted presents. She hadn't even opened what they'd sent her, and when break was over, she still spent most of her time in the Hospital Wing.

A few weeks into January, a thought struck her, and she didn't know how it could have escaped her until now. She gently pried open Hermione's hand and removed the paper that it had been holding for weeks now.

When she opened it, she wanted to slap herself for being so slow.

The monster was a basilisk. Of course Hermione would have found out.

"You stupid, silly, genius," Hyacinth murmured, running a thumb across Hermione's cheek.

With reckless abandon that the Slytherin girl wasn't often partial to, she raced towards Snape's office. She was out of breath when she got there, but her urgency was all-consuming. She banged on the door, to be greeted with a Potions Master that was not at all pleased by this ruckus Miss Potter what in Merlin's name could have possessed you to -

"It's -a -basilisk," she wheezed out, doubled over. It was then that she realized she was ridiculously out of shape. She offered the crinkled and ripped page.

"Where did you find this?" Snape asked as his eyes scanned the page.

"Her -mione, Professor. It was the - paper she had." Her breath was coming back to her now.

"I shall inform the Headmaster at once. You will come with me, it would be unwise for you to walk the halls alone now that you know this."

They walked briskly to Dumbledore's office, where he was quite surprised to learn what the monster was.

"It should be quite simple to stop it," said the Headmaster. "A rooster crow is fatal to a basilisk. We shall have as many sent in as it takes and set a trap."

"But, Headmaster," interrupted Hyacinth, "How will we know who unleashed the monster."

That was when Professor McGonagall walked in.

"Headmaster, there are several Slytherin students outside who claim they have something very urgent to tell you and Professor Snape."

Dumbledore looked from Snape to McGonagall and back again.

"Very well, Minerva, send them in at once."

Blaise, Tracey, Daphne, and Pansy came careening up the stairwell.

"Headmaster, it's Ginny Weasley," blurted out Pansy, "She's the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets and let loose the monster."

"That is a very serious accusation to make of your Housemate," said Snape, mindful of the fact that Hyacinth had just tensed her entire body and looked ready to spring.

"Professor Snape, we have proof," said Tracey, "She's got this little diary she carries around, only it's not her diary, there's some kind of dark spirit inside of it, we think it might've possessed her."

"A diary?" asked the Headmaster, suddenly very serious.

"Is there anything else?" asked Snape.

Suddenly all four of the other Slytherins in the room looked at their feet. Hyacinth had yet to say a word, but every atom of her was focused, thinking, putting pieces together.

"What is it?" hissed Snape.

"Well, uh, Athena, Drisana, and Theo might kind of have followed her down into the Chamber, and they might be there right now," admitted Daphne as Blaise scratched his neck.

"They what?" shrieked four voices at once. It was the first time Hyacinth had spoken since their arrival.

. . .

Meanwhile, something very sinister indeed was transpiring in the Chamber of Secrets.

The basilisk stood poised and ready to strike. Ginny Weasley was passed out on the floor, and Athena Rosier, Theodore Nott, and Drisana Malfoy stood face-to-face with a fragment of Tom Riddle's soul, although they didn't fully understand that or what it meant at the time.

"Ah, such precious Slytherins, the lot of you," began the image of the boy, "Ginevra tells me how you took her in. Such loyal Housemates. She tells me other things, too. She tells me of the one called Hyacinth Potter, who defeated the Dark Lord in infancy."

Drisana narrowed her silver eyes. "Hyacinth Potter is much more than whatever she did to the Dark Lord," she declared.

The boy chuckled. "I imagine it seems that way to you. She's also much more to our dear Ginevra, however loathe she might be to admit it to anyone else. I suspect your good friend Miss Potter never even noticed, so consumed is she by that mudblood girl."

"Hyacinth is a good friend," argued Drisana, "And she would behave the same if it were any of us petrified. In fact, she would probably be even more grieved."

"Admirable, Miss Malfoy -yes, you look quite unmistakably like your grandfather -but I wonder if that's true. Haven't you ever questioned her loyalty? Wondered why she spends more time with the mudblood than you?"

"Listen," said Drisana, growing even bolder, "I don't claim to understand her fondness for Granger. She's insufferable as far as I'm concerned, her blood status only adding insult to injury, but when someone is a good friend to you, you forgive them for being friends with Muggleborns."

His eyes slanted to Athena and Theo. "And you? Miss Rosier, Mister Nott, neither of you have ever questioned the Potter girl? Look how fast she abandoned you when the mudblood was petrified. Do you too believe she would do the same for you? That's a lot of credit to give her."

Athena's expression remained blank; she had mastered the art of nonreaction at a very early age, even if her heart was hammering at the shadow of the basilisk that stood behind the boy. To speak would be to encourage him further, so she didn't, but Theo did.

"I don't ever doubt her. You're trying to use Slytherin suspicion against us, but to be honest, it wouldn't even matter if you were right, because Hyacinth isn't the one who unleashed a deadly monster on schoolchildren, so."

The boy frowned. "How very . . . Gryffindor of all of you. I had expected better from my own House. Very well, you may have it your way."

The boy whispered something in Parseltongue to the serpent which the three students were very determined not to look at, because they quite liked being alive thank you very much. And then the boy swirled back into the diary and they could see the shadow of the beast moving forward.

Athena began firing every dark curse Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy had taught her that summer, with the strength of a focused girl that wanted to survive, while Theo and Drisana did their best to attack as well. It was no use, however, and the creature had snapped forward and bitten Theo before any of them knew what had happened.

With a renewed passion, Athena drove it back with curse upon curse while Drisana attempted to tend to Theo's wound.

"Drisana," shouted Athena in between spells, "The venom is fatal, you need to get him out of here now and take him to Dumbledore, because -"

There was the sudden crowing of a rooster, and the beast fell dead before them. Athena whirled around. A few feet to the left of her, Theo was on the ground, and she could already see the poison making its way through his veins as Drisana held him. Behind them, though, was a single rooster, Headmaster Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and Fawkes the Phoenix, who emitted a piercing call and proceeded to cry over the body of the bitten boy.

"That will not be necessary, Miss Rosier, although I admire your quick thinking. Mister Nott will be quite alright." The old man stepped forward and retrieved the diary from its place on the floor, tucking it into a pocket without a word about it.

"So, is the monster dead?" asked Drisana.

"Yes, Miss Malfoy. The crowing of a rooster is immediately fatal to a basilisk. I fear you were quite correct in your conclusion that Miss Weasley had been possessed, and I do hope you won't hold it against her."

"Oh. Will she be alright?" Drisana followed.

"In due time, I expect so. For now, we shall take her to the Hospital Wing and alert her parents. Come now, the monster is slain and it would perhaps be best for all of us to never step foot in this chamber again." He levitated Ginny's body and corralled the Slytherin students out of the chamber, McGonagall leading them back to Snape's office, where Snape, Hyacinth, and the others already were.

Reunited into a whole again, the group of friends stood before their Head of House, awaiting whatever reprimand they might receive.

Snape looked at them all for a long moment, his eyes flicking to each of them in turn.

"What you have done today," the Potions Master began, "Was incredibly dangerous, foolish, and irresponsible. It is behavior I would expect from Gryffindors at their most reckless. You realize three of you could have very easily died, Mister Nott nearly did die, and while it might serve as a helpful cautionary tale to the rest of you, any of your parents would be quite distressed if you were to die under my care."

Snape took a breath, and exhaled in a disgusted sigh. "When I told you your first year to look after each other, that Slytherin looks out for their own, this is not exactly what I had in mind." He scoffed, muttering "I have half a mind to transfer the lot of you into Gryffindor, since you seem so taken with their brand of absolute buffoonery."

"Can you do that?" Pansy asked in horror. Snape glared at her.

"I can bloody well find a way, because I imagine if I were to put that blasted Hat on any of you right now that is exactly where it would put you! If you were the smart Slytherin students I thought I had been teaching you to be, you would have come straight to Dumbledore or I the very moment you suspected Miss Weasley was being possessed rather than tail her and nearly get yourself murdered -by a giant snake, by the way, can you imagine how embarrassing it would be to the House of Slytherin if three of its students were killed by a giant snake? Dear Merlin, Miss Potter is the only one of you who had the sense to come to an authority upon learning relevant information about the monster, rather than trying to chase it. And rest assured, if I ever catch any of you doing this sort of foolhardy death-mission again, you will be serving detention until the day you all die, which may come sooner than you like. Am I perfectly clear?"

The eight of them nodded in unison, feeling properly taken to task.

"That being said," drawled Snape, "What you all have done today was admirable, and instrumental in the defeat of Slytherin's monster. If we are lucky, it may counteract the fact that it was a Slytherin who awoke the damned thing in the first place, but Slytherins are rarely so lucky. Even so, I will be most willing to look the other way if you should decide to rub the lions' noses in it just a bit."

Snape didn't smile, or give any indication that he had just bestowed what was, from him, glowing praise upon the students. He waved them away, and just before Daphne went to open the door, he said

"Oh, and 100 points to Slytherin. I'd like to see Minerva steal it from me this year."

When they left, Hyacinth was the first to speak. "So, you all have been investigating this for . . . how long, exactly?"

"About a month," answered Blaise.

"It only took you a month? I've been trying to work it out since September!"

"Yeah, well, you tried to do it on your own. It was a lot easier with all of us keeping our eyes peeled," retorted Pansy.

"And then you decided you would go and try to take on the monster?"

"Actually, no, we didn't know what the monster was or what the inside of the chamber looked like. We were just going to follow her, you know, catch her in the act or catch the diary in the act or whatever, but when we got there, there wasn't exactly anywhere to hide," explained Athena.

"Why? Why go to all the trouble?"

It was Tracey who answered. "We missed you."

"And the only way to get you back," added Drisana, "Was to find out what the hell happened to Granger, so we did."

Hyacinth looked at her friends, really looked at them. She had seven Slytherin friends, who had collectively organized and gone to all this trouble because they missed her.

She felt incredibly grateful and incredibly guilty at the same time. "You -you shouldn't have, Snape was right. Athena, Drisana, and Theo could have died."

Drisana, who had yet to say anything at all, merely launched herself forward and enveloped Hyacinth in a bone-crushing hug, which she returned after a moment of surprise.

"It was worth it if you're normal again. Plus, now we can rub it in to the Gryffindors like Snape said."

. . .

Ginny Weasley was sufficiently traumatized from the whole experience. Subsequently, Hyacinth decided she wouldn't kill the girl for what she'd done to Hermione. It didn't hurt that it turned out to be a piece of Voldemort's soul from when he was seventeen that had possessed her.

Even without being murdered for her actions, Ginny missed classes for nearly three weeks, so overcome was her mind and body by the strain the ordeal had put on her. Most of her classmates were unsympathetic at best, but the Slytherins didn't treat her any differently outside of the dungeon.

Weeks passed, and finally, the Mandrakes were ready.

When Hermione Granger woke up, it was to the sight of her best friend in the world, as well as Professor McGonagall. Hyacinth was holding her hand and squeezing tight.

"Welcome back."

"How -how long have been petrified for?"

Hyacinth bit her lip, her eyes sliding to the side.

"Since early October, Miss Granger. It is now March."

"What? I've missed so much class!" she cried out in horror.

"Now now, Miss Granger, exceptions are being made for those students who have been petrified, so I daresay you have nothing to worry about."

Hermione still seemed stress, but before she could ask McGonagall anything else the Head of Gryffindor quickly made her escape.

Hermione groaned. "Hyacinth, I missed so much material. I don't care if the grades are excused, there's so many things I didn't learn."

Hyacinth gently rubbed her shoulder. "It's alright, 'Mione. I can help you catch up. I mean, I owe you for all the nights you helped me study anyway, so it's only right."

Hermione smiled with gratitude. "Thanks, Hya. Did they ever figure out who was behind it?"

Hyacinth scratched her neck. "Actually . . . yeah. Drisana and the rest of them did some sleuthing while you were out and, well, it turns out it was Ginny, but not really Ginny, she got possessed by a diary that used to belong to Voldemort. I guess a piece of him lived in it and was trying to revive itself through her. I don't know how the diary ended up in her hands, though."

Hermione appeared thoughtful. "Well, there's no way it was an accident, someone must have given it to her on purpose before the school year started."

"Yeah, but who would've had it?"

"Obviously a Death Eater. The problem is that we don't necessarily know who all of the Death Eaters were."

Hyacinth shrugged. "A mystery. I'm sure we'll figure it out eventually, we just need more information."

Hermione nodded. A new riddle to solve was more comforting to her than anything.

Hyacinth stayed with her that whole day, but she wasn't the only one who came to see the brightest witch of their age. Tracey stopped by early in the afternoon, followed by Parvati and Lavender. Last of all came the Weasley twins, bearing hugs for Hermione and (nonpranked) chocolate.

"Y'know, for a band of sneaking Slytherins," began Fred.

"You and your pals sure did something pretty noble," finished George. Hyacinth smiled, rolling her eyes.

"Thanks," she said, "But I actually did very little."

"Oh, we know," they said in time, "but you still helped."

George leaned towards Hermione conspiratorially. "Hyacinth barely did anything all year while you were down."

"It was touching, but we kind of missed her too," added Fred.

Hyacinth felt further guilt. She had kind of dropped out of everything for a while.

"It was driving me mad," she explained after a moment, "Trying to figure out what happened, what was going on, and considering the fact that you were lying defenseless in the Hospital Wing with a Muggleborn-hungry monster on the loose that no one knew anything about, I couldn't help worrying that it might come back to finish the job."

Fred and George had grown very serious, which was almost unheard of.

"I'm alright, Hya."

"Thank Merlin for that. Because if you weren't . . ."

The twins looked to the ground, knowing that if the basilisk had actually harmed Hermione, they would've had a hard time protecting their baby sister from Hyacinth's fury.

But fate had smiled on everyone, it seemed, for the year wrapped up with much less drama than it began.

. . .

On the final morning before they were to leave Hogwarts again, Drisana dragged Hyacinth up to the Astronomy Tower for another sunrise.

"Don't you ever use this thing for like, actual astronomy?"

"Oh please," Drisana retorted, "Astronomy is for centaurs and fools."

Hyacinth pursed her lips, knowing that astronomy had a lot of importance to scientists, but that wasn't the sort of thing she could explain to Drisana without about six hours and some picture books, so she dropped it.

"Anyway, how do you feel? Second year down," prompted Hyacinth.

"It's strange. Despite all the horror and whatnot, the time really flew by."

Hyacinth didn't feel the same. Most of the fall and winter had been maddening.

"Hyacinth, did you ever notice that Ginny Weasley had a little crush on you this year?"

"No." Hyacinth was shocked. "She did?"

"According to Riddle she did. Riddle said you never noticed because you were so focused on Granger. Is -was that true?"

"It's true that I didn't notice, and it's true that it may have been because I was so concerned with Hermione, but not in the way you're implying. Truthfully, I haven't had much interest for things of that nature. At least, not yet anyway."

Drisana stared out ot the rising sun for a few seconds, and then turned her eyes to Hyacinth. "Good, because I have to share enough of my time with you as it is. The last thing I need is for you to go gallivanting around with romances willy-nilly."

Hyacinth laughed a booming laugh. "And I suppose you're still determined to woo Professor McGonagall."

Drisana leaned back and sighed satirically. "There's just something about the constant detentions and point deductions that really won me over."

Hyacinth was tempted to push her off the Astronomy Tower just then, but knew it would be useless with the wards, so settled for a shoulder-shove.

"Actually," said Drisana, "It's more than likely I'll get married off to some loser just to produce the next Malfoy heir."

"That sounds sad."

"I guess. I've got time before that, though. At least until I graduate. And even then, I'll be the Lady of the House and as the heir, I'll be the one in charge."

"Still, you don't get a choice?"

Drisana shrugged. "Maybe. I can present Mother and Father with options, but ultimately, if they say no there's very little I can do, short of getting disowned. Regardless, all they really care about is that it's someone pureblood, from a good family. There's no shortage of purebloods with manners, so it'll probably work out."

The sun hoisted itself above the skyline.

"Hyacinth?"

"Yeah?"

"I still don't really understand why you care so much for that Muggleborn girl, but at this point I trust your judgment. I mean, the rest of your friends are pretty cool, in my very humble opinion," here she pulled a cheeky grin, "So I'll leave you alone about it now, if you're really sure you must be her friend."

"Thank you," said Hyacinth. Drisana had come a long way -she hadn't even called Hermione a mudblood since she'd been petrified. It was by no means perfect, but it was progress.

Hyacinth was moved to believe that Drisana would progress even further by the time she was done.

"Oh," said Drisana, "We're having everyone over again this summer -Mother's dying to get her hands on you, as I'm sure you can imagine. She wants to take you shopping again."

Hyacinth suppressed a groan.

"I know, I know, but she found a new shop and she's already taken me through it. Between you and me, I think you're her favorite out of my friends."

"Well, she's my favorite out of my friends' mothers, so."

"Good, she ought to be."

Here they giggled together.

Drisana stretched, flexing like a cat as she did so. "We should probably head to breakfast. We'll have to finish packing after."

Hyacinth stood, and held out her hand to help Drisana up. The blonde took it, and they walked like that all the way down to the Great Hall.

A/N Part Two: Alright so that's pretty much most of second-year. I'm already writing third year, but due to my personal situation I can't guarantee update consistency for several days -this is not to say I am not writing, I still have a lot of inspiration and motivation for this story. Thank you for reading, and reviews are generally appreciated. Also, sorry if it seems rushed or there were too many time-skips -once I finished first year, I'm pretty much trying to power through to when things get real intense, which isn't til the later years, so second and third year won't really be as long as first.