Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, anything you recognise as coming from the books, does.

Slytherins secret

AN: Thank you for following and reviewing. This is the first time I've written anything since school coursework so if I'm making mistakes PLEASE let me know. (on that note I can't believe I misspelled Dumbledore, I feel like such a moron) Oh and I reordered the bit at the end of the book where Harry asks about his parseltongue to the conversation in the middle where he first meets Fawkes. Also I agree with one of my reviewers that I stopped the chapter in the wrong place, so here we go chapter 1 and 2 merged.

Prologue

Deep in the Chamber of Secrets, as Harry battled the crazed Heir of Slytherin, Old Magics stirred. An ancient intelligence began to awaken from his slumber, flashes of memory coming in fits and bursts, he saw…

- A twisted man with high cold laughter destroyed by his own curse cast upon a babe –

-A monster loosed in a school and a damsel saved-

- A malignant spirit surviving on unicorn blood curse a child's broom and defeated by accident and its own servant -

- The spirit's return thwarted by a child's determination and selflessness -

And, as if it were happening currently…

Harry knew what he had to do, the sword's weight rested comfortably in his hands, despite his inexperience with the blade, he settled himself knowing that this could go horribly wrong. But Ginny is DYING, and I can't think of a better plan, I've got to stop him. He thought grimly before lunging to stab directly through the roof of the Basilisk's mouth. As he felt the searing pain spreading through his forearm he knew his prediction was accurate. Story of my life, at least now I will be famous for something I bloody well did he grumbled internally. Pity I won't get to enjoy it, but I am DAMN well going to take Tom out with me; after all, the hero always saves the girl. Right? he thought wryly.

As the burning numbness began to spread with each beat off his heart, Harry directed his convulsive collapse and a pathetic flop right next to Riddle's stupid diary. The ghostly boy had yet to stop gloating about the terrible agony Harry was in, which I could really do without the reminder of and was now lovingly describing the effects of the venom on internal organs. That's funny, it seems to have hit a block Harry realised, as he felt the poison reach his heart; never one to question the odd luck the universe had decided to gift him with, Harry yanked the snapped fang from his arm and stabbed it into the diary that he had -oh so conveniently- landed next to.

Just as he was beginning to pass out to the melodic sounds of Riddle's screams, he saw Fawkes leaning over him with tears in his eyes. As he tried desperately to explain to the beautiful bird that he didn't mind dying too terribly as he would be seeing his parents again, he felt the block falter and dissolve allowing the poison to continue unimpeded and oblivion took him.

-The twisted wizard's return foiled again by the child's determination and drive to protect others.-

Now this, this I can work with the intelligence thought to himself, and began the long process of getting up to date.

Chapter one – Strange Awakenings

As Harry's mind swam back to normalcy, thanks to the effects of Fawkes' tears, he heard an echoing sibilant voice "..eir? Young Heir? Can you hear me child?" Surprise reverberated through him, I hurt all over, so I'm not dead. How? Why? Oh dear Merlin why me?

"Wha'?" Harry moaned intelligently, his confusion at surviving evident and the voice chuckled.

"Wonderful! You have the strangest of fortune child, the terrible misfortune to be bitten by a Basilisk; (muttered I am sorry about her) yet the astonishing good fortune to have a Phoenix both available and willing to heal you. Most peculiar..." the voice somehow gave the impression that it was shaking its head in mirth "Thankfully you appear to have survived the experience," the voice changed becoming more serious "I was terribly concerned for a while there, the depths my blood line has sunk to make me ashamed to have even left a legacy. Still," and here the voice became more upbeat, "still; it appears that you might be able to do a little something to redeem me before the line is lost to oblivion. The Old Magics are working in both of our favours right at this moment."

"Sir? What…?" Harry queried confusedly. His whole body still aching and twitching randomly as the Phoenix tears countered stubborn pockets of the poison, it really is too much to expect my brain to still work at this point right? He thought to himself petulantly. "I don't…wait your blood?" Harry attempted to force himself upright and focus on the voice through blurred vision but could see nobody and rapidly slumped back.

"Child calm yourself; your deductive skills, or possibly healthy paranoia, seem in order anyway." It laughed darkly "I mean you no harm, had I meant you harm I would have aided the abomination that held the title of Heir." The voice did not really seem human now that Harry considered it, it reminded him of a cross between a ghost and the Basilisk, he shuddered at the thought, mind you if this is who I think it is then a ghostly Basilisk would suit!

"Since you would appear to have me at a disadvantage and I'm rather in need of aid would you please show yourself…Lord Slytherin." Harry responded deciding to be upfront with his suspicions since there wasn't a lot he could do at this point except talk. Even if he had any energy left and was in full control of his body, both the sword and his wand were beyond his reach.

His 'shock and awe' limit having already been exceeded for the day, Harry barely even flinched as the huge stone statue from the centre of the chamber heaved itself noisily to its feet, took three strides towards him, then hunkered down on its knees to look at him. "Well done my little Heir!" The statue chuckled "well done indeed, a most un-Gryffindorish response if I may say. Now I don't believe I can be of much physical assistance to you since this form is not meant for either fine manipulation or delicacy, however" the statue stood clapping its hands and began pacing the chamber with its hands clasped behind its back; " however I can be of use, I hold much knowledge which will be helpful to you in the coming years."

At Harry's almost automatic squawk of protest it made a dismissing gesture with one hand. "Oh not the dark arts. Other than the fact that I was an Arab and therefore was literally dark and that I had the Beast speech which Europeans considered a sign of the devil, I never did hold with them." The statue shuddered, its stone clothes rippling strangely. "The things those magics do to your body, slowly poisoning the mind until your decisions and emotions are not your own. No!" Again the statue made a dismissive wave "I am still tied into the wards and have a connection to my bloodline, so I know some of what has befallen you and hopefully can advise you, even teach you, should you chose."

"But!" Harry spluttered confused and feeling rather as if somebody had yanked a rug from beneath his feet "But you're supposed to be some pure blood fanatic, and how can I be the Heir, Dumbledore... (Harry paused to considered his rather ambiguous feelings on the absent headmaster).. Dumbledore said my Parseltoungue was from Voldemort or Tom whatever his name is." He continued slowly.

"Well, I can't think of a polite way to say this, but he lied child. If you consider his statements and actions, in light of the few independently verified facts, he appears almost pathologically unable to tell you the full truth. Now…" Again the statue gestured, it seemed to be a personal habit "now whilst you WEREN'T the Heir, you were the next in line. Riddle (the name was said with distaste) was from a VERY inbred line the Gaunts and he is, or was, the last of them. Your mother's line was the secondary, and the only remaining, line having gone dormant in the 1600s, because of the Squib inheritance problems and the fact that the line is patriarchal. You would not have been eligible as Heir until you reached your majority at 16, provided Riddle had not returned to a body before then. However you have now defeated him personally on three occasions, and, as you will learn in arithmancy, three is a very significant number magically. What that means for you is that I have been awoken from my slumber to judge an issue of primacy between warring factions off my line. Riddle's disembodied and fractured state means that, despite his bloodline'scurrent primacy and his own greater age, I may choose to pass my house to a more appropriate Heir whom has proven worthy. That Heir would be you Harry."

The statue was now totally still, looking at down at Harry with an odd hopeful/fearful expression whilst it waited for his response.

"That Heir would be you Harry"

Come on child use the brain I KNOW you have and let me help you, I would not have that filth pollute my name further. Salazar thought remaining outwardly patient; sensing that attempting to influence the boy's choice would not end well.

What have I got to lose? He's right if he wanted me dead, I would already be, if he wanted to bring back Voldemort, all he had to do was move the diary, if ,like Binns said, the records of Hogwarts founding are so incomplete that we don't even know the date, how true are the accounts? After all the 'Boy-Who-Lived' rubbish is wildly inaccurate and it only happened eleven years ago. Harry's thoughts were spinning wildly from one tangent to another. He says he can help me, teach me; if I'd known anything useful about the wizarding world I'd have turned the diary in immediately, if I'd known more we wouldn't have followed those damned spiders, if I hadn't been so ignorant maybe Hermione wouldn't be petrified. Here his thoughts spluttered to a halt "What was the Basilisk about? I can accept that you weren't dark and that you hate Riddle, but why was a thousand year old monster in a school if not to 'cleanse the unworthy'?" Harry questioned looking up at the statue and managing to lever himself into a sitting position.

The statue sighed "She was safe when I was here. She was supposed to be a guard for this place kept in magical hibernation, only to rouse in defence of the school. But I was forced out whilst she was quite young and the spell work incomplete and so she was not fully asleep and grew hungry and alone, and finally she met a speaker and an Heir who was quite mad and the last off her sanity slipped." The statue shook its head sadly my poor pet "You will note that nobody died? She had enough mind left, and my first spells were complete enough, that she could not kill a student even in defence of the school. She could only petrify one under Hogwarts' protection."

Just then Ginny murmured and shifted slightly, her unconscious state lightening. Harry wasn't sure why, but he didn't want anyone to know about this conversation, not yet anyway maybe that has something to do with the way they always judge me. Even my friends act scared when I speak snake and they thought I was going mad; the teachers certainly haven't supported me or listened fully. Regardless of the reasons he wanted this finished before Ginny woke, taking a deep breath and standing upright painfully he made his decision after all, the hat said Slytherin would help me, perhaps this is more literal but it shoudl work. "Alright, I accept your offer. Please will you Salazar Slytherin take me as your Heir and teach me that I might protect myself and my friends redeeming our bloodline." The formal words seemed to flow from some internal well as soon as he made the decision.

"Wonderful!" Salazar clapped his hands, looking disturbingly like a happy puppy for a thousand year old, giant statue, of a middle aged wizard. "Now you need to hold your wand and, since we haven't much time until the young maiden wakes, I will hasten to urgent matters" Slytherin explained glancing nervously at Ginny's stirring form. "Three times have you defeated my unworthy Heir to the loss of his life or chance of rebirth, so, as required of my by the Old Magics, I have stood in judgment of your lives and hearts and find him wanting as my Heir. From this day forth Thomas Marvolo Riddle also known as Lord Voldemort is cast from the line of Slytherin, all rights and magics originating there shall be denied to him. His mantle as Heir shall be taken up by Harry James Potter; by right of conquest and right of blood now Heir of Slytherin, may all of the rights and duties of my bloodline pass to him, So Mote it be." Salazar proclaimed looking to Harry who whispered, prompted by that same instinct "By right of conquest in defence of my life I accept the mantle of Heir of Slytherin and swear to uphold the values of this most noble line, So Mote it Be."

As the magic swirled around them sealing the oath Harry felt a sense of belonging settle softly over him, and sighed in relief that at least some of Slytherin's statements had been true. "Welcome to the bloodline my Heir." Salazar smiled softly, "I think we have 10 to 15 minutes to work with before you need to take the young lady back up to the main castle. Firstly I have to caution you not to do magic if you can help it, or to have any cast upon you; between the venom, tears and oath your core is extremely unstable, but should quiet down within 24 hours. Secondly, could you grab the sword please?"

Harry looked a bit oddly at his new patriarch, and stowed his wand in his jeans thinking absently there has got to be a better way of keeping this safe. With a mumbled "sure" he walked unsteadily towards the huge corpse and bracing himself against the lower jaw, yanked the sword out of the creature's mouth, stepping back hastily to avoid any splatter. As he examined the sword more closely Harry admired the beautiful rippled steel, and gem set guard; looking closely at the intricate embellishments he thought he saw a name and perhaps further writing. Using a piece of his much abused robe he began to clean the sword after all it did save my life, least I can do is clean it he thought whilst rubbing more determinedly at the words. Suddenly the words became clear, seeming to glow slightly and Harry read them curiously, unconsciously reading aloud.

"Through daring, nerve and chivalry, my Gryffindor Thou art.

Godric Gryffindor"

The words seemed to glow brighter as he read and several scenes flashed through his head.

-He was running towards the sound off a scream, jumping on the back of an enraged troll with no thought but to save Hermione, a girl he barely knew and didn't like.-

-Gryffindor house turning against him whilst he refused to explain the rule breaking and betray Hagrid's trust.-

- Fighting through many challenges to protect the stone.-

-Facing a deadly monster with no thought but to save Ginny, a girl he barely knew when the adults responsible had fled.-

In accompaniment to this he vaguely hear Slytherin's explanation "Godric left no Heirs of blood, but his artefacts will pick Heirs of magic; again child I suspected that you had proven your daring, nerve and chivalry 3 times within the school grounds. When you were able to pull the sword it was a test to see if you would wield it with honour. That you can read those words means the sword has chosen you." Harry tuned back in as the scenes stopped flashing before his eyes, there was something he needed to do. "You will find a single sharp point on the guard, prick your finger and allow a drop to fall on the words, the sword will recognise you as a champion of Gryffindor and you may call for it at any time."

As Harry followed the instructions the sword glowed briefly and then disappeared, but Harry barely noticed as he felt the knowledge of how to use the weapon download itself directly into his brain. I can't use most of this yet, but I will practice and be stronger, and the next time the universe decides it has it in for me at least I'll have teeth! He smiled grimly at the thought and then notice the absence of the sword "Where..?"

"It went back to the hat. It wouldn't do to have our meddling Headmaster find out about this now would it?" Salazar questioned softly. "After all he might decide it interferes with his plan for you and try to find a way to stop the summoning, although I do not think that he could."

"But what do I tell him, he always seems to know everything and he's bonded to Fawkes," Harry nodded to Phoenix now perched on the statue beginning to panic "I can never lie to him successfully!"

"Its alright child, Harry calm down, this is the chamber of Secrets and as such, knowledge of it is protected. He can't read it from your mind, you can't be drugged to tell more than you wish and unless one is a speaker they can't ever remember the details well enough to find the entrance. Fawkes would not betray one he considered worthy of healing, and Dumbledore cannot speak to him anyway."

"He can read my mind? And drugs? Oh I'll bet it's in those damn lemon drops. So what am I going to tell them all? I don't think we want it to get out that I AM the heir of Slytherin?" Harry was feeling more than a bit sick that people could rummage about in his head without him even noticing.

"Well one of the skills I intend to teach you is a Slytherin bloodline trait, I'm sure we can teach you the art of fully blocking your mind, known as Occlumency, but my method makes your mind…slippery?...it twists and turns and allow you to push irrelevant thoughts in front of the relevant ones without it being obvious. But for now we must rely on the chamber's magic."

Ginny began to mummer in her sleep and the statue returned to its original position with one last but of hissed advice. ~Remember Harry cunning and resourcefulness mixed with bravery and daring; do not speak of me, question what you can without looking suspicious of your Headmaster. Avoid looking him or Snape in the eyes when you have something to hide, and sneak down here without telling your friends when you can, the portraits may be watching you. Good luck and God bless~

Ginny moaned and began to sit up "Harry, what? Oh no Harry it was me, I'm going mad" and before Harry could think of anything to say she burst into distraught sobs.