10 Chapter 10
At the beginning of his return to Hogwarts, he was burdened.
He did his assigned work, separate as he was from his year group, he continued to help his class mates, he continued to spend time in the Time Room, reading over tomes he had collected over the years, tomes that he restored from the Room of Hidden things but he was distracted while he did all those things.
It was all because of what Pyrites had informed him off, as if it was standard, something to accept, news that wasn't news and never shared through media.
'Did you hear this scandal over the break Atticus? My father informed me about that a week before the end of break, the Egyptian ministry found a site that had burnt corpses of twenty eight people of which there were signs of six witches and four children who were burnt alive in some place in Sudan. They investigated and found that one of the women of the clan had elected to help some elder muggles with illness and in return the surrounding villages had sentenced them all to death for witchcraft. No good deed goes unpunished huh?'
Pyrites had returned to his meal as he hadn't shared a story that should have meant more.
He was well aware of the callousness of humanity.
He had lived through it.
He never felt a kinship with people.
Not until this life.
Not until he was gifted with the ability of magic, the one thing that Atticus found true joy in.
Not until he had been given a family.
To hear such fates of people like him at the hands of those fearful people...it gnawed at him. That they would be burnt for what nature and life bestowed on them. Their act of good hadn't mattered...that they were and always would be abomination in their eyes.
He was aware of it, in an abstract way. That magicals were vilified and hunted.
But he never really grasped it that it was an actual reality until then. Atticus wondered how many magicals had been killed throughout the last two thousand years.
10% of the current population?
30%? More?
He hadn't cared for the average person.
But he hated lost potential.
He had hated the wealthy people he mingled among in his old life, to see them so free in ways he was not, all that potential they had, the wealth and stature to do anything, wasted in their hands.
For the first time in his life, he connected the idea of lost potential with those witches and wizards stuck in lands that were hostile to them.
Dying before they could mean something, do something.
All because of fear and hate.
It wasn't anything different at the most basic level in his old life.
But he shared with these people something so utterly wonderful, so beautiful and that was the first time he begun to care about the people he wanted in his land, his world.
He loved magic more than anything else. For people to be persecuted for it...it sparked something in him.
It shook him into reality.
He had always known in some form or another that muggles and magicals could never live in coexistence. The gap between the two worlds, between the peoples was too much. But to hear such a thing, even if it may not be true, it jolted him free.
He needed to know more, do more, to bring his dream into reality.
A home for him, his family and his people with magic free and unbound, unafraid of the world around them.
Atticus shifted his attentions away from the rest of the student population and doubled down on his work.
He remained the polite, puzzling individual that he was known at Hogwarts but he would cut the time he spent socialising, the time that he forced himself through to build up relationships with people.
He continued to put in time with Rowle, Pyrites, Nymera and Eden as he used the room that he was allowed to spent time with them but he wasn't always there with them in mind, even if he was there physically.
He continuously thought of new ideas, things to look up, things that he need to know and so on.
His time in the Time Room increased substantially. Mixed in his learning, he added two projects to his schedule; one to recreate the mirror phone and begin creating a prototype that is capable of reaching beyond the atmosphere.
He had checked years ago if there such a thing as mirror phones, asking his parents and checking Diagon Alley for any information and he had found nothing.
It would have saved him time but he had plenty of it regardless. He had a basis in the Protean charm and sympathetic magic. The Protean charm links objects to each other. Granger had used it link galleon coins to communicate with the DA.
The Protean charm was a variant of the Kriophorus charm which was used in Ancient times to communicate through bodies of water that fell out of practice when the floo had been created.
Sympathetic magic was the basis of there being a bond between identical objects, or even magical twins. There was a magical aspect to how the Weasley twins were, they were bonded at a magical level that was only apparent in twins. Of course it required nurturing for it develop into the level it was with the twins as people were complex and completely on a different level to simplistic objects.
With those three, Atticus began to replicate the mirror. He began simplistically. He intended to link only two mirrors, identical down to the molecular level before moving onto adding runic schemes.
He managed to link the two mirrors relatively easily and he had used Tweenie to check that it continued to work even when hundreds of miles away and it had.
Once he had determined that the charms worked in the way he intended, he moved on to add runic schemes. The first runic scheme fixes the charms to the mirrors and protects the mirror from tampering or damage. The second runic scheme was far more difficult.
He needed to create uniqueness to each mirror in a way that didn't interfere with the charms, to have each mirror signify a separate code, a serial number similar to phone numbers. He had found that the Protean charm was insufficient for these purposes.
It had taken him weeks in the Time Room to come up with a method that worked.
He was sat in the Time Room, having conjured up a large wooden desk and with numerous tools laying around it.
He gripped his wand and weaved numerous charms on the mirror. The root, on top of which all the other charms would be layered on top of, was a modified Protean charm.
The second charm was Aparecium.
Each mirror when sold would leave with the individual's name on the mirror and would display the unique serial number which becomes its identifying number.
The modified Protean charm he casted was the second modification. He named it Protea Ramus. The charm was dependent on the first modification and would always link to it, he had designed it as such.
He had decomposed the arithmancy that made up the charm and found the components that were responsible of linking objects. He modified the components in such a way that it was linked to the master charm regardless of how many other objects were linked to the master.
He based it on the telephone exchange hub. The Protean charm linked individual objects with each other. It meant than creating a linking system of more than two would be impossible as you could not layer an object with more than one Protean charm and it would continue to limit the usability of the device.
He managed to circumvent this disadvantage by creating a unique master version of the Protean charm that was capable of holding thousands of links.
He named it Proteanus Multae.
The second runic scheme on each mirror gave it a unique serial number that would combine with the user's name and would display the same way phones did in his old life. The other thing the scheme did was allow for 'phonebook' to be added which would display both the serial number and the person's name.
The master charm he had layered on a small wardstone he had found in the room of Hidden Things.
The number of links depended on the capacity of the wardstone. He thoroughly tested the master charm to ensure that it break down when he didn't want it to and found that it was very stable thankfully.
He etched the standard protection runes on the stone as he wanted to maximise the use of the magic the stone could hold for the charm. He had further modified the master charm to allow him to identify the number of links the charm could hold.
He had used base three instead of seven because it was the stronger magical number even if seven was the more magical one. He found that the number of links was 37, almost 2200 links it could hold. Atticus would have find a way to link multiple master charms later on.
Atticus completed weaving and he began to test it out. He had given the one he completed to Tweenie.
He held up the mirror to his face "Tweenie" he called out and it showed that it was connecting. Tweenie picked up and Atticus was given a full view of huge bulbous eyes looked at him in admiration. "Master Atty, it worked!" he exclaimed. Atticus chuckled "Yes it did. Thank you for help Tweenie" Atticus said fondly.
"Master thanks Tweenie for no reason. I'm happy to help such a great master!" he professed.
He chuckled and after a goodbye he disconnected. He got up and finalised his notes in his workbook that he named Project Interconnected.
He had two other workbooks in the pile, Project Sail and Project Grid.
He had begun working on and off on Project grid, which was the Marauder map but he hadn't had a need for it yet.
He would begin working on Sail in a few weeks.
He didn't expect to complete it until next year as it would probably eat up a lot of his time and he would need to be outdoors for it when he was testing it. That meant the summer would preferable instead of during Hogwarts.
Atticus sighed and made his way back to his dorm.
The mirrors wouldn't go on sale until after Grindelwald was captured or killed. He didn't want to hand over an advantage to them during the war. Everything he invented would be on hold until after the war.
After the marauder map, everything he would now be working on would have its basis as an advantage for his dream. He knew he would be away for years when he volunteered for the war and that would eat up in his time.
He needed to begin construction of his island while he was still underage. Or at the very least prepare the materials. Atticus shook his head and let the thoughts go.
He cast Tempus and found he had missed dinner. He had spent 143 hours in the room, missing the end dinner by just over ten minutes. Atticus sighed and continued to his dorm. He had sandwiches in stasis in his dorm.
He completed the riddle and walked through towards the common room.
He found Rowle sitting around a desk with Nymera. Atticus went up to them.
In his perspective, he hasn't talked with them for almost 6 days.
"Hey Atticus." They both said and he returned the greeting as he took the seat next to them.
He looked over at the homework they were doing "Ah Herbology" he commented.
Theodore sighed "She requested six feet long piece of work on the Flitterbloom plant and the connection to Devil's Snare. I have written three and I can barely think of anything else to say" He exclaimed dramatically. Nymera hummed in agreement "It's a lot of work for such a irrelevant plant" she said dejectedly.
"When you're in the library next, or maybe they have a copy in the Ravenclaw library, look up Mischel's Compendium of Dorseraceae in Herbology. She goes through a whole list of plants similar to Flitterbloom" he suggested.
They both light up and Nymera gets up to go to the library. "Thanks Atticus!" she calls out.
He chuckled.
"Mr Sayre, Professor Dumbledore asked after you after dinner" He hears and Atticus casts his gaze at the voice. It was one of the prefects. Atticus raised his eyebrow "Did he say why?" The prefect looked annoyed "No, he didn't. He is expecting you to come visit him before curfew" he stated and walked off.
"What did you do?" Theodore asks teasingly at which Atticus looks at him offended
"Why would you think that? It would more likely be that he would seek me out to compliment me on my work if nothing else." He says cockily though he was worried in truth.
When he had returned, he had felt as if he was under an unseen field of scrutiny. He hadn't been able to shake the feeling. Atticus had learnt to trust his gut feelings long ago, before he was reborn and he wasn't going to ignore it.
He had taken to observe his fellow students, in the Great Hall, in class and wherever else they were around him but he hadn't been able to pinpoint what he felt was wrong.
Not until he had cast his eyes towards the staff table on one unremarkable evening in the Great Hall during dinner. He had understood then. Dumbledore was watching him. He was incredibly discreet and had it not been for his distrust of the man and his senses, he wouldn't have been able to pick it up.
He never cast his eyes directly in his direction that evening...no...it was always indirect. He'd talk with his fellow staff members or gaze towards his House's table but it was always in a way that would allow you to see in the corner of your eyes.
That had raised the hairs on his neck. Dumbledore paying him such attention had unsettled him deeply.
He had chosen to remain careful as he continued to work on his own projects and studies. Evidently, it seems as if he may well be more direct.
"If that was the case, he would have asked you to remain behind just after class" he shrugged.
He sighed and got up "Well, I'll go see what he wants." He said as he waved him off.
He knocked on the door and he was bid to come in. Dumbledore's office was far more personalised than the other professors offices he had gone to.
"Ah Mr Sayre." Dumbledore greeted from behind his desk. He waved his wand, bringing a chair opposite him. He wore the same standard grey robes he always wore.
He had wondered about his choice of robes. It had none of the flamboyancy that he would be known for in the future. 'Was it a carefully orchestrated weapon of his that he constructed after his defeat of Grindelwald? Maybe after he was elevated to Headmaster?' he mused quietly to himself.
Dumbledore seated himself and Atticus did the same.
"You must be wondering why you are here" he said smoothing his robes "I wanted to say that I'm impressed with your work so far" he commented. Atticus had been given homework in accordance to his skill level. He was set the same work fourth years were in Charms, Transfiguration, DADA and Potions. While he attended first year classes, he only did so to help in class. It had been a waste of time in truth but all things considered it wasn't too bad.
Atticus inclined his head "Thank you for the compliment" Atticus said in a slight deferential tone. It wouldn't do to antagonise the man.
"It is not the only reason why I have asked you come here" he said intertwining his hands and setting them on the desk.
"I'm concerned that you have overloaded your schedule" he said, with clear, understandable concern in his tone.
"You have appeared more ragged than usual though and there is absentmindedness about you during lessons and even out of it. I know that these lessons are well below your skill level as based on your work, skipping to fifth year wouldn't be problematic for you but there is a clear difference in your behaviour since then. I'm concerned for your wellbeing" He said.
Atticus pursed his lips slightly. 'So he was watching him' he mused quietly.
He wondered however why he seemed to care. In truth he was a little sceptical he cared but he would give him a half truth. If he was lucky, he would be able to discern more about what Dumbledore is like.
Atticus looked up and met his gaze "I was informed of something that distressed me." Atticus said softly and looked away "My friend a few weeks ago, just at the start of the new term informed me of some witch burnings that happened in Sudan" Atticus returned his gaze at Professor Dumbledore "I was merely stricken that our kind can never rest easy in the world, for it is shared with people who would never accept us" he said while looking at Dumbledore's eyes.
Dumbledore's eyes widened before it closed them and he let out an audible sigh and reopened them and looked at Atticus with his brilliant blue eyes that hid usually so much but he saw a flash of pain in those eyes of his.
Albus' mind flashbacked to what happened with his sister at the hands of those muggle children.
He felt a wave of grief and pain wash over him "My boy, the world is filled with much harshness, but it does not do to lose hope." He said with deep sadness "Life is rarely kind, more so to those who understand it. What happened to those people is a tragedy but that is all that it is. A tragedy" he paused returning to firmness.
"The muggles are not the enemy. We can coexist in peace with them, separate in our world. What happened to those people is a tragedy and should not be forgotten but what happened to them is not what happens often. Hatred against muggles is the beginning towards a dark path." He finished firmly.
"I do not hate muggles. To hate something is to feel strongly about that particular thing." Atticus responded strongly meeting Professor Dumbledore's eyes.
"I agree with you that hatred against muggles leads to a dark path. But I disagree with you that we can coexist in peace with them. The statute of secrecy is for our protection. It was created because we cannot live in peace with them." Atticus stressed out.
"I think what happens to those people is what happens all over the world but we will never know completely how many of us are lost" Atticus closed his eyes.
"People fear what they do not understand Professor, and with our kind, they will never understand what it means to have magic beyond it being an ability, a power that is threatening to them." he opened his eyes and saw blue eyes peering down at him.
"Parents of muggleborns accept their child's magic. It falls to reason that muggles are capable of accepting magicals." Professor Dumbledore commented to him.
"Professor, it is easy to accept your child when they have something that in other circumstances they would have been wary off" Atticus retorted.
"But even then, the chances of a break in relationship between parent and child are high. Professor, I have asked some of the older students, in Ravenclaw and in Hufflepuff how their relationship with their parents is and they all confirmed that things are different, their relationships are different. Some even no longer live at home, so high is the gap between the family members" he closed his eyes.
"I'm not denying that there are those amongst them that will accept magic that can see the wonder that it is. But there were many more that will feel strongly against us and history is very clear on that point. After all, we had to hide, removing the presence and knowledge worldwide to save our people from persecution."
He reopened his eyes though he looked away "The muggles have advanced in 100, 150 years more than they have advanced in the last two thousand years whilst we have remained stagnant for double, triple that length. Our world is built on top of theirs, a remnant of a shared past and as they grow in technology and in population, the danger of exposure increases as space for our people shrinks. Not only that, people like Grindelwald further endanger our kind by seeking to dominate the muggles, breaking the Statute that has protected our people, even if it has helped stagnate our world."
He was speaking a lot of truth in this meeting with Dumbledore which he was balking slightly at internally but he wanted, needed to know what kind of man he was.
Whether he was someone he needed to be more than just a little wary of.
Albus hadn't expected the conversation to peer down this road. He hadn't expected his concerns of workload to divert towards this path of conversation.
He had heard of the witches and children who were killed, along with muggles. Tragedies like those validated Gellert's actions and vision, and those who followed him.
He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
He had misjudged the young Sayre.
He had expected the typical dark pureblood but he is far more conscientious than he had thought. He had feared a boy of his power who was so brilliant in magic would hold the same views so many of his peers did.
The boy's vocabulary and knowledge were far above what a first year's ought to be and for the first time, he understood truly why Amanda was practically jumping out of excitement when she had stormed in his office exalting the boy's capabilities.
Beyond being exceptionally gifted, he held a rare intelligence.
He felt a pang of sorrow at that thought as it reminded him of those times, the very best times when he explored the nature of the world with his friend.
There was also something about the boy that was more than there should be. He know more of the muggle world, far more than a scion his age and position ought to know. He was respectful when he spoke of the muggleborns so unlike purebloods of the grey and darker factions.
The boy's concerns were eerily similar to those he had with Gellert, once upon a time though it had heartened him that he seemed to advocate seclusion as opposed to domination he and his friend intended. Albus has made many mistakes in his life but he had vowed to never walk on that path and to steer the wizarding world away from such actions.
The boy held views that could be warped if he falls unwittingly to the wrong ideals. He would strive to ensure that it would not come to pass.
He opened his eyes "Mr Sayre, may I call you Atticus?" he asked gently.
Atticus acceded to it and Albus continued "I understand your fears. Your concerns. Ultimately the concerns that you have are, while not unnecessary, but highly charged" he said gently.
"The ministries around the world all work together with the ICW to ensure the safety of wizardkind. The muggles remain ignorant of our world because we are very capable of ensuring it to be so." He paused.
"Cases as those people in Sudan are rare as Sudan is one of the regions that is largely ungoverned by any wizarding government. Settlements such as theirs, in undeveloped countries are rare as most mages have congregated in larger purely magical settlements far away from muggle settlements. European magical societies are a rarity in comparison to the rest of the world." He finished.
"Do not dishearten. It bodes you well to care for your fellow magical but do not let it consume you. There have been many who have started out with the best of intentions but have lost sight and in the end, barely remembering the original noble intention" Albus said gently in a way that was meant to be reassuring.
He smiled at Dumbledore.
He smiled because he began to see Dumbledore a little better.
He had focused completely on deciphering Dumbledore, looking at his expressions as he spoke, focusing on his eyes, twitching of facial muscles, body posture and he came to an initial conclusion.
Dumbledore isn't a monster.
He is a man who is used to, or will be used to doing this his way. He had no doubt that he wouldn't have had the opportunity to move up if Dumbledore had been Headmaster.
He doesn't see things the way normal people do, Atticus was certain of that.
He will justify things, telling himself that it is for the greater good.
He also believed that Dumbledore would relax further in regards to his observation of himself now that he understood Atticus better.
He had no doubt that Dumbledore will strive towards influencing him now that there is a possibility of a relationship.
He was unsure if he was willing to put up with it.
Would Dumbledore take him on as a Protege? Dumbledore is undoubtedly an insanely well learned man.
But would he teach Atticus all that he knew?
Or would it he teach him just enough to keep him happy?
Dumbledore is a manipulator but someone who is, probably, a decent man who makes many mistakes.
"Thank you professor" he got up. "This has been helpful" he says politely.
Dumbledore smiles "My office is always open to those who need to talk things through. Do not hesitate to come and visit me" he says.
He nods and makes way towards the door but he stills.
This catches Albus' attention "Mr Sayre, is there anything else?" he inquires curiously.
He turns and faces Dumbledore. He purses his lips.
Now that he has the impression that Dumbledore isn't a delusional madman, he wonders if he should give a hint to him to change his approach to Riddle.
Their first meeting was a disaster and it set the tone for the rest of both their lives.
He could significantly change both futures if he can influence Dumbledore not to be so heavy handed, affirming Riddle's notions of power and igniting that black ember in her heart.
"Professor..." he pauses. He looks directly in those intense blue eyes
"When you meet the Riddle, do not approach it with heavy hands. The Riddle is something that is not nurtured, is unknowing what is care and love. The Riddle does not know the strength that lies in love, for the Riddle sees it as weak when it is a strength. The Riddle hides that it yearns for it, would fight and deny it, but it yearns for it all the same. The Riddle is afraid of it. The Riddle seeks approval. The Riddle seeks what it is."
At Professor Dumbledore's confusion Atticus simply ignores it "The Riddle is entwined with you, professor. It is up to you to define it." He says softly.
"I hope that you answer wisdom, understanding and kindness to The Riddle. Show the answer to The Riddle lies not in power only" Atticus says without wanting to be foreboding though he feels he failed in that respect.
"My boy..." Atticus cut him off "Perhaps you should with your friend Newt Scamander on how to deal with dangerous aggressive malnourished creatures. Perhaps you should take him with you when you understand what I speak of, what The Riddle is." He says. He opens the door "Goodnight Professor" And walks off.
----------------------------------------------Break----------------------------------------------
Soon enough, it was fast approaching the end of April and Atticus prepared to venture into the Chamber of Secrets.
He had finished the glasses a few weeks ago and had Tweenie find three roosters for him to take down to the chamber.
He had Imperio'd the roosters to become familiar with the curse and to ensure that they would crow when he wanted them too.
He woke up and did his daily exercises and soon enough finished up before the break of dawn and went towards the second floor where the chamber entrance resided. He'd transfigured the roosters into little figurines for ease of transport yesterday night.
He silently walked towards the bathroom door and made his way towards the sink. He searched for anything that stood out and found a barely discernible serpent on one of the taps where it was engraved.
`Open` Atticus hissed out. He stepped away as a series of banging and clanging rang out. The sink began to sink into the floor which revealed a large hole.
Atticus pursed his lips slightly. He would concede that this was by far the riskiest and probably most reckless action he had so far taken. His self preservation instincts were crying out and but he crushed it down. He had no need for any debilitating emotions.
Not right now.
Atticus sunk closer to the floor so he could peer down the hole. Atticus cast Lumos and saw that the pipe led down a very long distance.
Atticus hissed out `Stairs` optimistically but he was out of luck. He sighed and pushed himself down into the darkness.
He occluded completely to limit the adrenaline that threatened to course through his veins, pumping his heart faster than he wanted.
After half a minute or so of sliding down, Atticus saw the end approaching and flicked out his wand and cast a cushioning charm on the ground as he would have otherwise hit the ground hard. Atticus breathed out in respite and inspected his surroundings. There was a huge snakeskin lying in front of him along with countless bones, both large and small.
He would collect the shed skin along with the corpse.
Atticus pulled himself up and cast a cleaning charm on himself. Even with his mind occluded at maximum, he was feeling trepidation but also some excitement even if they were excessively dimmed.
He was certain that his hands would be trembling though he did not know if it was from excitement or fear. Likely a combination of both. Atticus shook his head. He was certain that his hands would be trembling,
He moved closer to the snakeskin and caressed the skin. It was smooth but though. Atticus cast a dark cutting curse on the skin and it barely made a groove. Atticus smirked to himself. It would suffice he thought to himself. He brought himself back to reality, back to the task at hand.
The snakeskin was huge and looked old. He wasn't able to date it but considering the state of the bones, it likely has been decades if not centuries.
Atticus walked through the passageway and found himself facing a door with intertwined snakes acting like locks. He once again hissed out `Open` and the door began to move, rotating away as the door unlocked and Atticus had his wand prepared.
He walked through the door and found himself facing a length cavern with statutes of snakes lining the walls and it led towards a larger, circular room with what appeared to be some kind of waterway bordering it all.
Atticus took out the balls out of his pocket and levitated them down on the ground and untransfigured them. As soon as they were untransfigured, he put them all under the imperious curse. Atticus took in a deep breath and steeled himself. He took out the glasses and put them on.
`Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts four` Atticus loudly hissed out. Atticus quickly hid behind a pillar and forced the roosters to spread out on either side of him facing away from where the Basilisk was coming from.
Grinding of stone reverberated all around the room as he imagined the mouth of the face that was carved in the wall began to open.
`Who dares wake me?` the snake hissed out. Atticus was shocked, the snake was far more coherent than he expected.
`I dare, noble serpent, Queen of the snakes.` Atticus replied. He had practice hearing and speaking parseltongue and the language was flexible enough that feminine or masculine undertones could be discerned.
`A speaker!` she hissed out excitedly `I have not met another speaker in over many years. You speak yet I cannot see you. I can smell you, you are in this room but you hide.` she stated and after a little pause she asked with a weariness and anger he didn't truly expect
`Are you descendant of my master or are you false? Speak quickly before I devour you!` She hissed out agitated
Atticus quickly processed and thought over what his options were. The encouraging thing was that she seemed more coherent than he expected. That boded well for several reasons. His chances of convincing the Basilisk and keeping her to himself were pretty good and a lonely old serpent that was used to humans in her youth certainly made her more malleable. Having a Basilisk as a pet was a useful and pretty unconventional weapon to have.
He pursed his lips.
Did the positives outweigh the negatives?
There was a pretty big one.
He needed capital as he only had his trust vault and it was one that was monitored. He needed capital independent from his family's coffers that he could use as he pleased without it being traced.
He would potentially losing out on hundreds of thousands of galleons that was relatively easy to gain by killing a thousand year old Basilisk.
No, the novelty of having a thousand year old Basilisk was not worth his plans. He would kill her but it wasn't necessary to kill her immediately.
`I'm Atticus Sayre, Heir to the Most Ancient and Most Noble house of Sayre. I am descended from House Slytherin after the eldest daughter of the Lord Gaunt married into the family. I am an heir of Slytherin. My family is the last noble family that still carries the blood of your master.` Atticus finished.
After a few seconds of silence, she finally responded `Welcome Atticus Sayre to my master's chamber. I am Seraya and I protect my master's chamber and his school if I am called upon. Come forth so I can see you.` she asked.
Her tone was...not cold but not warm in particular. Atticus was truly not willing to expose himself to such danger.
He had a vial of Phoenix tears with him which he had taken from the stores at the Manor. It was one of the last ones they still had.
`Hello Seraya, it's an honour to speak with you. I am worried however. I know those of your species have a killer gaze and I do not wish to die of course. How do I know that you will not kill me?` Atticus inquired.
She hissed in a laughing manner `Those who speak the tongue are safe from my gaze. You will not die from meeting my gaze, I can promise you that so come and meet me` she coaxed.
Atticus narrowed his eyes. He stilled and thought it over.
`Do you not have a second eyelid that renders your gaze ineffective?` Atticus inquired.
`No, my kind has never had it. Will you come and meet me directly or not?`
Atticus mulled it over. He could simply force the Roosters to cry out.
It was the easiest and safest option but...he would be given up a source of information that he would never gain again. She was the only thing that knew Salazar and the only one who would know of any further hidden chambers if he had any.
Riddle didn't die in all the time he had met the serpent. He shook his head. He couldn't rely on Rowling's series.
There were already key differences.
A missing membrane was but a minor detail.
In the end he decided to meet her face to face. But not without transfiguring a pair of glasses that had prisms for lenses. He would be meeting the gaze indirectly whilst he wore the glasses.
He whispered "Tweenie". He figured that there was a high chance Tweenie would be able to pop in this far below Hogwarts.
*pop* "Master Atty?" Tweenie asked confused.
Atticus silenced him and put his finger on his mouth.
Tweenie looked confused until he understood "If I fall down, come and rescue me" Atticus then handed him the echolocation glasses.
"Wear this. It will protect you from the gaze of the Basilisk" Tweenie jumped up in fright and Atticus was glad he had silenced him. Tweenie calmed down and nodded in understanding.
"Remain here and watch through the glasses. If I am bitten, I have phoenix tears on me. Make sure you apply it." Atticus ordered.
Atticus then returned to the matter at hand.
`Very well. I am trusting you. There aren't any other speakers other than my family or of the blood of Slytherin so if I die, you will most likely never meet another speaker for a long time` Atticus said seeking to entice the old serpent away from her predatory instinct and to increase her reluctance of facing an age without another speaker.
Atticus sighed and closed his eyes for a brief moment. He had intended to kill the Basilisk straight away but the chance of leeching out more information from a seemingly intelligent and coherent serpent proved to be too alluring. He shook his head, opened his eyes and adjusted the glasses.
He moved away from the pillar he was hiding behind made his way towards the serpent. He still had control over the roosters though he put a mental command on them to crow if the connection was lost. This was only possible on simple minded animals.
Atticus looked through the glasses and came to face the Basilisk. It was ridiculous that he was willing to do this only on the word of a serpent, even if he was taking precautions.
His self preservation bells were ringing loudly. Through the prism glasses, he was still able to gauge her size and she was huge. The fact that Atticus was still standing despite having met her gaze verified her story. Atticus moved his hands towards his glasses and took them off and pocketed them.
He let out a shuddering breath as he stared at those large yellow eyes that were assessing him. 'So it seems like it is true, the gaze doesn't kill speakers or petrify' Atticus internally thought to himself continued to walk forward and he could not help but shiver at the sight of her.
She could swallow him whole without a problem.
Atticus was not only a few metres away from her. She brought her nose closely to him `You're just a young one aren't you` she asked in wonder but continued before Atticus could respond.
`You smell a little like my former master. Not much but it is there` She stated with more than a little excitement.
Atticus let a wave of relief wash over him. `So you are able to smell the connection to Slytherin?` he asked for confirmation.
She hissed nondescriptly, shifting her massive head `Yes, my master helped me identify those who carry his blood. Over the years, I have been introduced only to two other speakers of his blood but they were never as strong as my master's or his son. You smell closer to them than you to my master but it is there` she explained
Atticus wondered at that. In only a thousand years, she had only met two others excepting her master and his son. `You must have been lonely` Atticus half states.
This got quite a bit of response from her `Yes, I have been lonely for some time now. I sleep mostly unless it is time to eat and go into the forest eat a few animals every so often.` she said with some sadness creeping in her voice.
Atticus blanked his face as he listened.
She was incredibly lonely.
It would be so easy to enthral her into a loyal pet.
He had no doubt that that had been what Riddle had done. It was child's play really and in the end he gained a murdering machine that only by the grace of plot armour had prevented mass death of an entire generation.
To kill such a magnificent magical creature was a waste in truth. He could see himself bonding with her closely. She would be loyal to a fault, eager to please and in the end would be yearning for his attention.
Unfortunately, she presented a wealth that was difficult to obtain otherwise. He had many plans and all of them would need capital.
He needed to purchase lands in the muggle world, lands that he knew would be lucrative in either raw material or commercially. He wouldn't be able to do this without capital.
He wouldn't gain control over his family's wealth for a long time and he would be questioned if he dipped into it as much as he expected to. Not only that, he fully expected disapproval from his family if they were aware what he intended to do.
His own trust vault was so much more than the average magical but the hundreds of thousands of galleons that were in it were monitored and would remain monitored until he was of age at which point it would transition into a personal vault. It was far too long as he intended to initiate quite a few things in the near future.
No, he needed capital that was separate from the Sayre family name. He resolved himself completely. He had time remaining this year so he wouldn't need to kill her immediately. He would spend as much time with her as he could, both to make her final months as pleasant as possible, he supposed he owed her that much at least, and also to extract as much information from her as he could.
The other reason of course was to deny Riddle a weapon. He couldn't allow Riddle to obtain such a potent weapon in the form of a Basilisk. Not only that, her Slytherin blood probably was stronger than his. He couldn't allow her to subsume control over Seraya from him.
Atticus moved forward and placed his hand on her nose and began rubbing it which had elicited a trembling hiss which could be adequately described as the snake version of a purr.
`My master used to rub my snout.` she said contently as she continued to enjoy the action.
Atticus cast Tempus and saw that it was 6.23AM, only half an hour before most people began to wake.
`I will have to leave soon but I can come regularly to come visit you? You could tell me about your master and about this chamber the next time I come to visit?' Atticus asked.
`You are leaving so soon?` she said sadly. Atticus rubbed her nose again, attempting to calm her `Yes but I will be back tonight so we will have more time together' he soothed her.
She purred happily at that and Atticus spend the remaining time with her touching her. Her scales were hard but smooth. Each of the scales were larger than his hands.
Atticus after bidding Seraya goodbye he transfigured the roosters and made his way back up the pipe. He cleaned himself off and Atticus made his way back towards the Ravenclaw common room and dropped the disillusionment charm and walked through the door where a number of students were already sitting around.
Atticus found Pyrites seated on of the couches and made his way towards him. "Hello Theo" Atticus greeted him which had Pyrites snap up "Hello Atticus. I knocked on your door but I got no response. Where were you?" he inquired.
"I was just walking around the castle. As you know, I'm an early riser" Atticus shrugged "Why were you asking?"
Pyrites shrugged "Just asking."
He had already from the start avoided the portraits during his excursions but he was far more careful these days. He thought he'd give Mad Eye Moody a run for his money.
Atticus shook his head and changed the subject "I take it we're waiting on Marcus?" he asked at which Pyrites nodded.
The day went as it usually did and before long it had been time to visit Seraya again. He talked with her well into the night regarding her former master.
While she didn't know too much about how Salazar left Hogwarts, she did state that her principal role was protecting the school against muggles and denied that Salazar wanted to kill all muggleborns though he did hate their muggleness.
She said that he used to rant to her about the idiocy of Gryffindor and about the security risk muggleborns posed as they often returned to their families and their villages during the summers which made them easy targets or easily influenced in traitorous actions that would endanger the school and the Hogsmeade population.
Atticus visited her for the next few days each evening and on one of them she showed him where the Slytherin's work room was. It was located within the mouth of the stone statue where Seraya came out from on the right hand side. After Atticus uttered the passphrase Seraya informed him off, a door materialised.
It seemed that the door was under a heavy notice-me-not charm. Atticus traced his fingers on the door until he got to the door handle which ended up drawing blood from him.
Almost immediately, the door swung open slowly and Atticus extended his magic as he attempted to feel for any traps but he found nothing and walked through the door. It was dark but he was able to discern a few things.
He came across a wide hallway with a door at the end and a door on the left hand side of the hallway. The room began to illuminate as he walked through the hallway and reached the door at the end of the hallway and held down the handle and pushed the door open.
Atticus was met with a room that was spacious. There was a wide bed at one side of the room, a small fireplace and a desk with a leather chair at the other end of the room.
Atticus cast his eye at the entrance that was the far side of the room and walked towards it. He was met with a staircase that winded down and Atticus proceeded to go down.
What greeted him once he reached the bottom was a decently stacked library on one side and a potions lab with ingredients that were clearly under stasis. Atticus made his way towards the ingredients section and found an entire shelf of ingredients had been destroyed as the stasis charms they were under had clearly failed.
He looked at the other shelves and found some surprising ingredients such as Erumpent Horn shavings, Ashwinder and Occamy eggs amongst other things and some that he did not recognise.
Atticus made his way back out of the lab and went towards the library. He carefully looked at the books that were arranged and cast a few detection spells to determine if any had any nasty curses laid into them.
With darker families, there were often cursed books in their libraries. The one that Atticus scanned showed no such curses and so Atticus picked it up.
The book was titled in Old English and Atticus grimaced as he opened the book. It was written in Old English but he was able to generally understand what the gist of the book was about. It was a runes book. If he wished to understand, he'd have to learn the language.
The books in Sayre Manor were updated a few centuries ago to fit the modern language but he was sure that there was a Old English translation book that he could use. Atticus spend a few hours exploring the library and had found numerous books in various branches of magic, including just under two dozen that were centred in Soul magic and Alchemy which Atticus had been very pleased about.
But the most useful and rarest of books were the ones on parselmagic, handwritten by Salazar and his ancestors themselves.
They were in Parselscript so he was able to understand it all. He had created numerous wards and spells that were cast in parselmagic. The wards themselves wouldn't be able to be dismantled unless there was another parselmouth and would have to be brute forced which was good news.
Atticus took a number of books with him after he exited the chamber. He was growing appreciative that he let Seraya live. He doubted he would have been able to access the room without the passphrase she had given him. It made him all the more remorseful for planning on killing her later.
