"All the copies of have been taken out," she said, barely looking up as he approached. "And there''s a two-week waiting list! I I should''ve packed my copy, but , Lockhart''s books took up too much space."

    Ben blinked. "You mean to tell me you left behind ?" He whistled. "That must''ve been painful."

    She ignored him, flopping down into the chair next to Harry and Ron.

    "Why do you need it?" Harry asked.

    "The same reason wants it," Hermione huffed. "To read up on the legend of the Chamber of Secrets."

    "What''s that?" said Harry quickly.

    "That''s just it—I can''t remember," Hermione admitted, chewing her lip. "And I can''t find the story else."

    "Why didn''t you just ask ?" Ben said, sliding into the seat next to her.

    Hermione gave him a sceptical look. "You know about the Chamber?"

    Ben feigned offence. "Of I do! I know about Hogwarts."

    Ron snorted. "Go on, then. Enlighten us, oh wise and all-knowing one."

    Ben smirked, leaning back in his chair. "Well, legend has it that Salazar Slytherin, one of the four founders, had a of a disagreement with the others over, you know, —"

    Ron winced. "Don''t say ."

    Ben rolled his eyes. "Fine, fine. Point is, old Salazar wanted a stricter admissions policy. The others told him to get stuffed, so he packed his bags built a secret chamber under the school before leaving. . He also left behind a monster that only his true heir could control—because, obviously, no school is complete without a built-in death trap."

    Harry and Ron exchanged nervous glances, but Hermione looked intrigued. "And you the legend is real?"

    Ben shrugged. "Oh, absolutely. This school has , sentient staircases, and a poltergeist whose entire existence revolves around —why there be a secret chamber somewhere?"

    Hermione frowned. "But if the Chamber someone found it by now."

    Ben gave her an approving nod. "Ding ding ding. Fifty points to Gryffindor. Someone open it—fifty years ago. A student died. They caught someone, expelled him, and the attacks stopped."

    "Who?" Harry asked sharply.

    Ben leaned forward, lowering his voice dramatically. "Hagrid."

    Ron choked on air. ""

    Ben smirked. "Oh, relax. He didn''t do it. They just blamed him because he had a giant pet spider—still alive, by the way—named Aragog." He wiggled his fingers ominously. "Very spooky."

    Ron looked horrified. "Hagrid had a —you know what? No. Nope. Not dealing with that. I''ve already seen spider the size of my head this year, and that was ."

    Ben grinned. "Well, good news, Weasley. This one''s bigger."

    Ron paled. "That''s not !"

    Hermione, ignoring Ron''s distress, frowned. "But if the chamber was opened before, that means someone is opening it again now."

    Ben let out a mock gasp. "Oh no! It''s almost like there''s an running around! What a and completely development."

    Ron, still shaken, gave him a flat look. "You know, if you keep acting like a sarcastic git while half the school thinks you''re the Heir, I won''t feel bad when someone hexes you."

    Ben grinned. "Oh, don''t worry, Weasley. I can take it. And besides, between me and Harry, I think there''s no doubt that I''m much more resilient."

    "You know I''m sitting right here, right?" Harry asked, looking slightly offended.

    Hermione shook her head, deciding not to entertain their antics. Instead, she handed Ben the roll of homework parchment and got up to leave the library.

    As they headed out, Ron shook his head. "I always knew Salazar Slytherin was a twisted old loony."

    "But I never knew he started all this pure-blood stuff," he added with a grimace. "I wouldn''t be in his House if you me. Honestly, if the Sorting Hat had tried to put me in Slytherin, I''d''ve got the train straight back home."

    Hermione nodded fervently, but Harry didn''t say anything. His stomach had just dropped unpleasantly. The Sorting Hat''s voice echoed in his head:

    Ben caught the look on Harry''s face and, without warning, grabbed him by the sleeve and pulled him into an empty broom cupboard.

    "Oi—ow! What''s the matter?" Harry protested.

    Ben shut the door behind them. "Potter, listen to me and listen carefully."

    Harry, startled by his serious tone, gave a cautious nod. "Go on."

    "You get involved with this Chamber business. You ," Ben said firmly.

    "Why not?" Harry asked, frowning.

    Ben exhaled through his nose. "Look, right now there are a few stupid people who think you''re the Heir of Slytherin ''cause you''re, you know, —defeated the Dark Lord and all that. But if people find out you''re a Parselmouth—"

    "A ?"

    Ben blinked. "A Parselmouth. You can talk to snakes."

    Harry furrowed his brows. "What''s that got to do with ?"

    Ben gave him a flat look. "Come on, mate. Why do you think Slytherin''s house symbol is a snake? He was a Parselmouth too. And it''s not a coincidence that you''re the only one who could hear the monster—it''s a giant freaking snake."

    Harry''s stomach clenched.

    "So what''s your point? I bet loads of people can talk to snakes," Harry argued. "They can''t all be Slytherin''s descendants, right?"

    Ben sighed. "It''s a common gift, and it''s a good look. The wizarding world is… let''s just say, prejudiced in certain ways."

    Harry stared at him. "Why are you telling me this?" His voice was guarded now.

    Ben raised a brow. "Do you think I''m accusing you of being the Heir?"

    "…Are you?"

    "Oh, , no. You couldn''t hurt a fly, Potter, let alone kill someone," Ben said breezily.

    "Gee, thanks," Harry muttered. "Not sure if that''s a compliment or an insult."

    "Don''t mention it." Ben smirked. "Look, I what''s going through your mind: "

    Harry''s eyes widened. "How''d you know about the Hat?"

    Ben waved him off. "I know . And I know you''re not the Heir, or evil, or some closet Slytherin. So don''t waste time brooding over it, alright? I don''t want you running off trying to solve this mystery yourself. That''s Dumbledore''s job—let do it."

    Harry studied him. "Does that mean know who the real Heir is? Did you something?"

    Ben flashed him a mysterious grin as he pushed open the door. "Maybe. But don''t have to worry about that."

    And with that, he disappeared into the crowd of students coming out of Charms, leaving Harry staring after him.

    -End of Chapter-

    Slytherin left behind a giant monster, and all I''m leaving behind is a desperate plea to check out my Patr!on. One of us clearly had a worse long-term plan. Sear?h the n??el Fire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    Ben: Trust Me, Bro (But Also, Don’t Investigate This Chamber Thing)

    Harry: "You know something, don’t you?"

    Ben: "Nope. Bye."