{15th July 1991}
{Rigel's POV}
I let her words wash over me. For a second, I just sat there wondering if a simple choice made on a whim during character creation had somehow landed me here. I took a deep breath, trying to soothe my nerves. Panic never helped in getting out of tight situations, information, on the other hand, did.
The candle above guttered just enough to throw Parvati's mom's eyes into the shadows. She was a beautiful woman, I'll admit, but right now my mind was focused on something else. My eyes drifted to the wall that was separating me from everyone. I wasn't stuck alone here, others were in a more desperate situation, so I had to hold the fort down for now.
"I didn't know I was descended from the Gaunt line," I said at last, keeping my voice neutral. The intention was to let her talk. With the amount of emotion she showed, maybe she would slip up, and I needed more information. "So my Parseltongue ability is inherited, passed down from Slytherin's line?"
A small spike of frustration flared in her mana before she smoothed it away.
"Yes," she said. "When my ancestors first reached the locus, the site where the legacy is buried, we encountered the first trial, it measured someone's knowledge of the soul. We were stuck at it for years, studying and researching a way to pass the trial, yet one day it was suddenly cleared." Her temper flared again, and I could guess this was when Slytherin decided there was no honor among thieves.
"By the time we reached the Locus, there was nothing left. The seal yielded nothing tangible we could use or learn from. Only some vague hints of what was contained in the second room..." She tapped the chair arm with her long nails.
"We concluded the 'treasure' was not a book or a journal containing Dhanvantri's insights. But a potion or Ritual, something that allowed Slytherin to acquire Parseltongue after he was gone. After that, heredity carried the ability forward through his lineage. He was not born with the ability but stitched it to his soul."
"Stitched the soul," I mumbled. "What about the second trial?"
Her lips thinned, but she continued. "The second 'trial' is not a trial at all, only a room hidden behind a bloodline lock. According to the repository of his notes we found in the first room. The healing you've already scented in Dhanvantari's diary and the spatial magic that West still treats as a temperamental myth. It is open to the rightful tongue, only to someone who has already passed his first trial and whose bloodline is recognized as worthy..." She inclined her head. "That's you."
I nodded, as a clearer picture of what had happened appeared before me.
'Still, it looks like Slytherin won fair and square, and now they just want some form of benefit from this centuries-long search. I doubt the real stories about what happened are even around anymore.'
"If what you said is true, only someone with the inherited Parseltongue that the sanctum or Locus could recognize could pass through the second room, yes? If the bloodline is the key, how do you expect anyone else to cross that threshold with me?"
'Or will they threaten me with Sirius and the others to gain that knowledge once I have it?'
She did not reply; she simply stared at me for a moment before leaning forward. She finally continued, "Because the ability is now a part of your soul. We just need a way to share some of that magic." Her words were slightly cryptic, but I understood the gist of it.
A ritual, then. My stomach clenched, but relief flooded me. Rituals were tricky business, but intent mattered far more than wanded magic. Leverage bloomed in my chest as I smiled slightly. They needed my complete cooperation for this to work.
Her eyes caught my smile, and she realized I knew a lot more about Ritual than someone my age should. "No need to feel smug, Mr. Gaunt," Mrs. Patil said, her voice growing colder. "There are other ways to ensure cooperation."
I held her gaze. "You've sealed my magic and my movements, but Rituals are tricky. Especially if it is something as intimate as a soul bond. If neither of us is completely committed to it, the ritual will fail and both of us will suffer a backlash or, in worse cases, death."
'I'm betting they are more concerned about the treasure than my life, but if I die, their chance of obtaining the treasure ends, as I'm the last known surviving heir to the Gaunt line.'
"Do not lecture me on the intricacies of rituals," she said, and for the first time, the hardness was not entirely a mask. "This path was paid for in blood and countless sacrifices. Your friends remain alive because I am not a fool, we have a way, a much simpler ritual that would do the trick, one that you have done countless times before."
'The core expansion ritual, that makes sense...' I thought.
"Alive isn't the same as being safe or free," I replied, countering her words to keep the argument going as I thought of a solution.
"True." She folded her hands in her lap. "So let's trade their safety for speed. You give us access to the inner sanctum. I will put you all back on the same mountain road you came from. You can continue your expedition, and we go our separate ways."
"You think I'm foolish enough to believe that promise." I shrugged, indicating my bound hands. I would not trust her with any of this.
"I know," she said. "Even still, you will not resist."
I tilted my head. "How are you going to make that work? Even a hint of displeasure could destabilize the ritual, and everything would just blow up in both of our faces." I pointed out the most obvious fault in her argument.
The faintest twitch at the corner of her mouth. "Yes, but there are ways to bend wills," she said, and stood up. Her wand slid into her hand.
"You are much more intelligent than I gave you credit for, Rigel. You have also been…trained to resist the invasion of your mind." She drew closer, close enough that I could smell the sharp citrus of her perfume. "But Occlumency can save your memories from being read, they can even resist metal erosion, but there still exist some charms that could make you do things that you don't want to"
"The imperious..." I realized as a victorious smirk appeared on her face.
"You'll get more help from me if you show that we can work together," I said a little desperately. "Let my friends go untouched, and I'll stay behind to get you past the bloodline lock."
She let out a slow breath as she contemplated my words, then her mana steeled as I felt it slither up her wand. "It is a good offer, but it leaves us open to vulnerabilities as well. Old he might be, his name still carries enough weight in the international circles, and letting your friends go while keeping you here would only invite him here."
"I can't take that chance, we can't fail this time," she said, and the wand tip aligned between my eyes.
"Imperio~"
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AN- 55+ chapters on P.atreon!