Twisted Fascination

Ginny wasn't in the girls bathroom, but that was to be expected.

There wasn't even that pesky ghost that the girls often complained about - Moaning Myrtle or something similar.

I staggered over to the mirror and saw that I looked as though I had fought a battle to the death, which wasn't exactly wrong. I used a few quick spells to clean myself up a bit before heading over to my bag. I grabbed it, put it over my shoulder, and then headed out to find the Weasley that was possessed by Riddle.

The halls were dark, and not a single soul stirred in the darkness. It was honestly rather eerie as the portraits slept soundly, meaning no noise was filling the corridors beyond my own quiet footfalls.

I had transfigured the broom back into the shedded basilisk skin, and I put it in my pocket for later. Without knowing where the Gryffindor tower was, I made for what was arguably the second-best option, though it was an option I hadn't wanted to consider unless I felt it absolutely necessary. I went to Dumbledore's office, said the password to move the large gargoyle aside, and got onto the moving spiral staircase. As the staircase stopped at Dumbledore's door, I closed my hand into a fist. I brought my fist up before knocking with the side of my hand as hard as I could, a sound that was universally known to muggles as the 'police knock'.

Immediately, there was noise coming from the office beyond the door.

I waited no more than five seconds before the door opened, revealing the three professors I had hoped to gather before bringing Ginny up to the headmaster's office.

Snape looked down at me in surprise before narrowing his eyes sharply. "Where have-"

"The Chamber of Secrets is now free of the Salazar's Monster," I interrupted as I brushed past him.

Snape immediately closed the door and followed after me with a scowl. "Explain yourself, Potter."

I pulled the basilisk's skin from my pocket and laid it on Dumbledore's desk, causing a hush to fall over the three adults. "I know who the Heir of Slytherin is."

"Who?" McGonagall asked at once.

"Tom M. Riddle," I said.

Dumbledore and McGonagall both paled before looking at each other. They then looked back at me, clearly holding back several questions.

Snape, however, didn't have that inhibition. "I've never heard of this boy before."

Dumbledore gave a great sigh before he said, "That is the true name of Voldemort."

Snape flinched a bit at the name of the Dark Lord before pausing. He looked at Dumbledore with wide eyes and said, "That - that can't be…" He looked back at me and said, "He's not revived-"

"Of course he's not," I said with a scoff, "I would have dealt with him accordingly by now if that were the case."

"Then how-"

"As far as I know," I interrupted, "He somehow put a piece of himself in a diary. When a certain student began writing in that diary, he managed to possess them and carry out these Heir of Slytherin attacks."

"Which student?" McGonagall questioned.

"Ginny Weasley," I answered, "I suggest you bring her to this office and get her to bring Riddle's diary, too."

McGonagall pursed her lips. "She's in the hospital wing-"

"Then, I shall go there," I said as I adjusted my bag. "I needed to see if I broke a few ribs anyway."

Snape immediately stood between me and the door. "What do you mean by that?"

"Do you think I look like this for fun?" I asked, causing my Head of House to narrow his eyes at me. I quickly paused before sighing. "I apologize, sir, but I've had a very long night. You see, not only did Riddle trick me down into the Chamber of Secrets, but that ancient basilisk nearly killed me. I just want to finish what Riddle started and then get some good sleep."

"Basilisk?" Snape repeated, looking horrified.

"Yes, basilisk," I confirmed, "That's what Salazar had kept in his little Chamber of Secrets."

"And you escaped it?" He questioned.

"I killed it," I corrected, "Just like how I'm going to kill Riddle."

"My dear boy, perhaps such a rash decision-"

I looked over my shoulder at Dumbledore and said, "I've thought about it very carefully, and I know how to get rid of Riddle without harming Ginny Weasley. All I need to do is get that diary."

The adults all shared concerned glances.

"How will you take care of Riddle?" McGonagall asked despite looking like she'd rather not know.

"Very carefully," I assured her before once again attempting to leave the headmaster's office.

Snape moved in my path once again. "Potter-"

"I am not letting Riddle get away with this," I hissed at the man, who remained defiantly in my path. "That little psychopath is getting his dues."

"I'm coming with you," he declared, "Just as the other two are."

"Fine," I said, knowing it was the only way to get him to move.

He finally got out of my way, but he basically walked on my heels the entire way to the hospital wing.

I walked quietly as I saw Ginny sleeping in a bed along the wall. I felt my eyes narrow as I searched around for the diary, only to see it poking out from under her pillow. I rolled my eyes before easing it from under her head. I stepped back several steps, and the adults looked at me in confusion as I knelt down and put the diary on the floor before me. Their confusion turned to horror as I pulled out my dagger and stabbed the diary as hard as I could.

A long, dreadful, and piercing scream came from the diary, as though I had stabbed a real human being. Ink spurted from the diary in torrents as I wriggled my blade around as if to cause even more pain to the diary. As my arms and floor around me became covered in ink, the screaming reached a crescendo before disappearing as if it had never been there.

Ginny flew up out of her bed with a gasp, and Madam Pomfrey came from her bedroom area while still tying her bathrobe around her nightgown.

"What was that?!" Pomfrey demanded to know as I sat back on my haunches, the dagger still held tightly in hand.

I remained silent as I looked up at Ginny. I observed her for a moment as her color came flushing back as if she had just stepped in from the freezing outside. I stood up and called out the girl's name, causing her to look up to my face. "Please, for the love of Merlin, just vent to a friend the next time you feel overwhelmed."

The girl gave an incredulous laugh, as if she couldn't believe that I had just said that. "You - you seriously got rid of Tom?"

"I said I would," I said as I wiped the blade off on my robes. "I owed your father a debt, and now I consider it paid." I then turned to Madam Pomfrey and said, "I need a potion for pain."

"You look like you've been wrestling a mountain troll!" She exclaimed in horror as she really looked me over.

"Close enough," I said honestly as I pocketed my dagger once more. "Also, I am not volunteering to clean this mess up."

"I believe I can handle the mess," Dumbledore said as Pomfrey ushered me over to a nearby bed.

The woman was quick to run a diagnostic spell, only to look incredibly faint upon seeing the results. "How did you break five ribs?!"

"It won't happen again," I assured her.

"I would certainly hope not!" She exclaimed loudly. She then hurried off, only to return with a large beaker of what I immediately recognized as a potion equivalent of pain medicine.

I eagerly took it and drank it down, not wanting to feel more pain while she fixed my ribs and whatever else was wrong with me.

Pomfrey cast the same spell five times, making sure each of my broken ribs fixed themselves. She then had me take off my socks so she could heal the various small cuts I got on them from walking on those blasted animal bones. Once that was done, she had me peel off my shirt so she could apply dittany to my various scrapes and bruises I got from being slammed into several stone pillars. She had me take off my trousers, causing me great embarrassment, so she could apply dittany to the cuts below my waist. Once that was done, she asked, "Were you hurt anywhere else?"

"I may have a concussion," I admitted hesitantly.

She flicked her wand toward my head, only to sigh at the results she got from her second diagnosis spell. "That's more than a may, Mr. Potter."

I shrugged as if I couldn't help it, which I really couldn't.

The woman rolled her eyes before saying, "Let me get another potion. Change into some pajamas while you wait."

I waited for her to turn her back before quickly changing into the pajamas that had appeared on my bed next to me. I then got comfortable in said bed as she returned with the potion. My nose wrinkled at the smell, but I drank down the frothy potion nonetheless. I handed the beaker back, laid back, and fell unconscious as soon as my head rested against my pillow.

The rays of dawn pierced through the darkness of night, waking up the people living in the castle.

I was no exception. I woke up and glared angrily at the rays of sun that were disturbing the rest I had rightfully deserved.

The sun rays didn't care about my suffering, and they continued to shine brightly.

I grumbled a few choice words under my breath before I sat up in my bed. I saw a fresh pair of Slytherin robes on the table next to me and changed into them quickly. Then, I grabbed my bag and headed off to the Great Hall for breakfast. I arrived early and gladly buttered a bagel and put some fresh strawberries on my plate as a side. As I was eating, the Daily Prophet was brought to me via owl as always. I flipped my paper open, and I gave a wide smirk upon seeing the article that said Lockhart had been arrested with a rather large list of charges filed against him.

"Potter, I haven't seen that smile since you screwed Nott over last year," Davis said as she unceremoniously plopped herself down across from me.

"Well, I did technically screw someone over," I said as I flipped the paper open so I could check my stocks.

Davis leaned over the table and began to read the headline of the front page.

Once I was content with my stocks, I closed the newspaper and handed it over to her. "Here."

She eagerly snatched it up and began to read about how Lockhart was arrested for his crimes and his trial was definitely going to be a lengthy one should the neanderthal not plead guilty.

The second-year Slytherins came shuffling over, all of them looking dead tired for some reason.

As soon as Malfoy realized I was at the table, he came rushing over with a rather cross expression. "And just where did you go last night?" He didn't even give me the chance to open my mouth when he cut me off. "Snape was just about down our throats because you decided to skip curfew."

"I ended up in the hospital wing again," I explained.

"Why?" Zabini asked as he took his usual spot next to me.

"I got into a fight with the Heir of Slytherin," I admitted before taking a bite of my bagel.

The other second-year Slytherins looked surprised at that response before throwing around glances.

After I finished chewing, I asked, "Am I missing something?"

"You got into a fight with the Heir of Slytherin?" Malfoy repeated before asking, "Why would you do that?"

"He would have been fine if he hadn't pissed me off," I grumbled bitterly.

"Before you guys continue," Davis cut in with a gleeful look, "Guess who got arrested?"

"Who?" Parkinson asked as she peaked over the shoulder of Davis. She gasped loudly before exclaiming, "What happened to his leg?!"

"Like it?" I asked as I gave a grin, quite pleased with my handy work.

"You said it was accidental magic," Parkinson accused.

"It was," I said, "That doesn't mean I didn't do it, though."

"Merlin, Potter," Nott said as he looked down at the picture of an arrested Lockhart basically being dragged from St. Mungo's. "I'd say you did more than crush his knee."

"Alright, I crushed the entire segment of leg around and including his knee," I said just to please the boy.

"They should have just cut it off and put a prosthetic on him," Greengrass commented.

"I, for one, am happy that he is suffering," I stated before finishing up my breakfast.

They all looked a bit concerned, but let it slide regardless of their worries.

"Potter, did you do anything to the Heir of Slytherin?" Zabini asked slowly.

"Nothing too serious," I said, figuring that the Dark Lord would survive without his little diary.

"Is he in the hospital wing?" Malfoy asked eagerly, probably ready to find out who the Heir of Slytherin was.

"No," I replied honestly.

The boy immediately started pouting. "You won't tell us who the Heir is, will you?"

"Nope," I said before standing up. I gave a smirk as I said, "I'm heading to class."

"Damn it," Malfoy cursed softly as I retreated, causing Greengrass to scold him for his language. "I just want to know."

I held back a cackle as I continued on with my school life as normal.

During Easter break, the second years were told to pick between various elective subjects to take for the following year.

I immediately signed up for the Study of Ancient Runes and Arithmancy and then spent the rest of my break working on my essays.

The school body relaxed as more time passed without any Heir of Slytherin attacks. The students especially seemed to calm down once Filch finally managed to get that charmed blood off the wall warning about the Chamber of Secrets.

Ginny was perfectly happy again, and it appeared that she was glad to leave her possession a secret until the day she died.

I was content with that outcome, especially since I didn't want to get the Slytherins angry at me for killing off that part of the Dark Lord, who was only proving to be more and more pathetic as time passed.

Speaking of the Slytherins, they all seemed to understand that I had something to do with the lack of attacks, especially after Goyle and Crabbe were caught having a conversation about it. They were a bit wary after I confirmed that I handled the situation, but they didn't do anything more on the subject.

The school year came to a close with the last Quidditch game of the year being Hufflepuff against Gryffindor. The Gryffindors won the match and thus received the Quidditch Cup and a rather unfair amount of points, meaning they managed to push themselves just ahead of Slytherin.

The students and cat that were petrified were revived with the help of the chopped up mandrakes, and even Nearly Headless Nick came back to life. When asked about what happened, they all said something about large yellow eyes before everything went dark. They thankfully had no idea what kind of creature attacked nor who was behind the attacks.

As a reward for finishing the year safely, Dumbledore canceled the final exams. He then irked all the Slytherins by giving the House Cup to Gryffindor for the second year in a row.

All too soon, it was time for the journey back to London on the Hogwarts Express.

I sat with my usual group and found myself quite irked at the thought of going back to the muggles that called themselves my relatives. I knew I had to suck it up however, and I did so by burying my face in the stock market trade, looking to see if I could put my money into something that would pay off a room at the Leaky Cauldron from the entire summer.

As the train was rolling into the station, Zabini turned to me and said, "My mother wants to meet you."

I lowered the newspaper and gave him a narrowed-eye look. "Why is that?"

"I may have off-handedly mentioned you during Yule Break," Zabini admitted.

I just barely held back on the urge to roll my eyes. I folded up my paper and said, "We have to make it quick. I have muggles to terrorize."

Davis snickered as I stood up and got my trunk out from up top with ease. "I still can't believe they haven't realized you can't do magic outside of Hogwarts yet."

"A potato has more intelligence than those three muggles combined," I informed her, "It's really not all that surprising."

Zabini chuckled as he lifted up his own suitcase and led the way out to the platform and over to where his mother was standing at the back.

The woman there was nothing short of beautiful as she stood with her braided hair and sharp features. Her dark purple dress accentuated her curved features, and the gold accessories truly helped that.

"Madre, this is Colton Potter," Zabini said as he motioned to me.

I gave a polite bow to the woman. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I hope I wasn't referred to in a negative light."

The woman chuckled as she curtsied. "My name is Gaia Zabini. I must admit that my son mentioned you in a rather curious fashion."

"Did he now?" I questioned as I glanced over at the boy in question, who pointedly ignored my gaze.

"He said that you were quite loyal," she said, causing me to give Zabini another side-glare.

"I am," I admitted as I looked back at her.

"Eccellente. How would you feel about a marriage contract?" She questioned.

Clearly, Zabini wasn't expecting that by how he began to sputter on his own saliva.

I blinked a few times in surprise before mumbling, "Pardon me?"

"MADRE!" Zabini shrieked, "You said you'd ask him to stay over a few days during summer break!"

"You never would have brought him if I was honest," Madam Zabini retorted as she gave her son a disappointed look.

"As the eldest Potter, I need to confirm that I don't have any marriage contracts first," I explained, causing her to nod.

"Oh, very well," the woman said, sounding like I had just given her the greatest inconvenience possible.

I gave a fake smile, glared at Zabini, and went on my way to the muggle side of London, where Harry was waiting with Vernon.

It was time to switch into my other routine…