Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.

Note: This story is a sequel, and won't make a lot of sense without reading the first one, Tears of a Basilisk. Still, it should be a lot of fun regardless.

Journal entry the first.

Before I begin this narrative, let me make something perfectly clear. I, Severus Snape, am completely, utterly in love with one Salazar Slytherin, wizard and prankster extraordinaire. That being said, at the moment I sorely want to hex him into the next century. These statements seem at odds with each other at first, but taking into consideration my current situation I am sure that my reasoning would seem quite logical. At the moment, I am currently in my own recently expanded quarters, and the love of my life is nowhere to be seen, nor his accomplices. Normally, when such a prank has been played on my person, I would be searching high and low with fire in my eyes for the culprits, returning to the fearsome figure I presented back in my Death Eater days. I felt that this effect, dramatic as it is, would have been somewhat ruined by the presence of the oversized pastel pink rabbit ears currently sticking out of my head and the matching, equally oversized rabbit tail. Normally, such things I would simply cover up with a robe, since I learned a bit ago that trying to use my own magic to un-prank myself only makes things worse. Here shines the true twisted genius of Salazar, for no matter how many layers I try to cover myself with, they phase through and stick out just as prominently as if I was naked. Hence, the explanation for not only my stationary habit but my hexing instinct as well, for this prank stems from my opposition to the nickname that Sal thought would be charming to call me nearly all the time, Snuggle Bunny. I will grudgingly admit that such nicknames, when brought up during after-sex or before-sex conversations has a certain charm coming from him, but such pet names, pardon the pun, certainly do not belong in staff meetings. Nor do they belong during mealtimes with a goodly amount of students eavesdropping. I will be the first to admit that I have lost most of my fearsome reputation with events of late, although mentioning the dreaded Journal still makes all but the most stalwart staff members cringe, but I still have to live up to some degree of intimidation in order to make sure my students don't blow themselves up, which is rather difficult to do when you can hear snickered Snuggle Bunny references during lectures. I haven't given out that many detentions in a long time.

I do love him, and to some degree I have grown to appreciate his pranks, but this is war. Oh, who am I kidding, he has me wrapped around his little finger, and he knows it. Despite my fuming fury at the moment, I can predict how exactly this situation is going to resolve itself. First, he will eventually return to our chambers when he senses that the novelty has worn off. Then he will remove it somehow, alerting me to his presence. Rather aggravated still, I will search through the chambers and will find him in a random room, either completely naked or wearing some type of confection that he knows I have a kink for, with a come hither look in his eyes . He will gaze at me and ask for forgiveness as he starts to fondle himself, and since I tend to react like a sex-addled teenager around him I will rush to him and proceed to make him scream loud enough to make the portraits in the nearest hallway blush. By the time we're done, the anger will be gone. It's truly a brilliant setup he has, for he can get away with just about everything. Even the press has become his most stalwart defender, a minor miracle in and of itself. Well, while waiting for Salazar to arrive so I can accept his 'apology', as it were, I might as well recall the events that have happened in the past few weeks since Sal's triumphant return.

Needless to say, his first complete day back was incredibly hectic and monumental, rocking the wizarding world on its axis with one masterful stroke, an impressive feat for a man just risen from a tomb. One thing I have discovered about Sal that, like many of his real character traits, was swept away from public view is that he has impossibly high energy levels, easily rivaling a small child being left in a candy store overnight. If he wasn't in possession of this trait, his public debut would have likely been stalled for a few days at least. As it was, when we woke very late the following day, we found Hogwarts to be surrounded by an army of sorts, creating a din to rival any other invading army. Unlike their predecessors, though, this army was not armed with swords or wands, but Dicta-Quills and cameras. The press had caught wind of Salazar's dramatic address to the entire population of Hogwarts, and were extremely anxious to either debunk this claim, sing his praises, or ask him whether he prefers coffee or tea. Once we actually felt that we could climb out of bed without jumping each other like horny teenagers, I mentioned the press onslaught to Sal, which earned me a sarcastic smirk coupled with a playful twinkle in his eyes. With a resigned shrug, I followed him out of our quarters, where we were almost immediately accosted by a stressed Minerva, twitching Flitwick, and silently snickering Tom, whom I could tell was dragged along by the other two. They were apparently stressed about the press onslaught, but Sal quickly calmed them down and asked them to escort the more orderly members of the press into the Great Hall after breakfast. I think that I must have born a gobsmacked expression on my face when he relayed that bit of information, for the press had really never been his ally in either life. He saw this and gave me a reassuring wink, his eyes shining with untold mischief. I wasn't sure whether to be relieved or apprehensive about his reassurance, but since I figured that I would have no input regarding his already planned-out actions, I decided to just enjoy the ride.

When we entered the Great Hall for breakfast, almost the entire student body was waiting for us. As soon as they saw that Salazar was with us, they all stood as one and burst into thunderous applause, echoing their response to his earlier debut. Grinning from ear to ear, Salazar bowed and waved a hand toward the food, taking a seat next to mine. Taking their cue, the breakfast rook on a more normal tone, and when Salazar had finally finished the massive amounts of food placed before him, he rose and offered me his hand, eyes twinkling. "Well, Sev, our public awaits. But first..." He trailed off and rose a hand in the air, signaling that he had an announcement to make. All the students and staff quieted down faster than I'd ever seen before, a minor miracle in itself.

Satisfied with their attention, Salazar cleared his throat and cast a Sonorus charm. "As you may know, there is a small army of press currently camped outside of the grounds. I do appreciate the discretion that every one has showed so far, and as a return of that good faith I wish to make an announcement, one that I plan to reveal to the press shortly after I enlighten those whom lives it will directly affect. As of the beginning of the next school year, it has been unanimously elected by your faculty that I step up and take the position that I held many ages ago, that of the Headmaster of Hogwarts. After due consideration, I decided to accept the position, not for my own glory but in memory of my dear friends and fellow Founders. Hogwarts has been ill served in the past, true, but with the combined efforts of her students and faculty we can usher in a new golden age, one that would make those that have gone before you proud. I know that every soul in this room, and those that will join us at the beginning of next year, has the ability to realize this dream, this ideal." Amazingly, for once Salazar didn't get to finish his speech, for as soon as the first part of his announcement sunk in the entire room burst into thunderous applause and cheers that actually halted him in his tracks. A wry grin on his face, he leaned forward towards me and whispered, "Hm, I think they like the idea love." A snort was my oh-so-eloquent reply to this statement of the obvious, which made him grin even wider.

After a quick bow to his appreciative audience, Salazar left the Head Table with myself and my ever-present overly-familiar familiar and started heading towards the press army. We were nearly to the front door, passing the still-cheering students when Anubis, somewhat clothed and coming from seemingly nowhere, decided to join our merry party. I cast a curious glance his way, since having all three pranksters in one area for any length of time can be...interesting, to say the least. My fire poker, which is still somewhat sentient and pink, can attest to this. In response to my glance, the god simply winked, grinned his toothy grin, and flanked Salazar, almost as if protecting him. If Salazar noticed the extra company, he didn't show it, for his incredibly sharp mind was focused on the potential menace the press presented. He flung open the gates, surprising some of the press that were camped out nearby. From their expressions, I could tell that they were expecting something Voldemort-esque, or at the very least righteous anger at having his privacy disturbed so shortly after being revived. The look of confusion on almost every face when Salazar instead smiled at them and gave a playful nod was enough to bring the crow to hysterical laughter, almost taking me with him.

Salazar took an authoritative stance and raised his head, signaling that he was about to address the crowd. "Well, it seems that news travels fast. I know that many of you have only heard snippets and rumours regarding my return, and I am here now to answer any reasonable questions you have. There are some topics that I will not delve into yet, such as some of the circumstances of my return, for in truth it is simply too soon." He took a step forward, and looked quite pleased when he observed that everyone listening was completely focused on his every word. "Let me lay some of your concerns to rest, right here and now. I know that many of my writings have come to light, and hopefully they have helped to lighten the stigma that those who bear my surname have unjustly suffered under for far too long. All of the dogma that you have grown up with about the bogeyman Slytherin is simply propaganda that was spread once the living memory of what I, what all the founders were like for that matter passed from the world." An indignant fire began to shine in his features, although a tinge of sadness was present as he reviewed his memories. "I do not profess to be a saint, but nor am I a devil. For those I swear to protect and cherish, I will hold to my word with even my dying breath. Twice now I have died protecting those in my charge, and in the case of the second I sacrificed myself for people who would have gladly hung me from any one of the towers or thrown me in a bonfire to simply be rid of me. My only crime is that I happen to possess a large well of magical power as well as a host of other talents that I have complete control over, which many perceived as a threat regardless of the fact that I would never, then or now, abuse the gifts that I have been given."

He paused here, looking at the ground with a contemplative look. I glanced out at the crowd and was mildly shocked to see a wealth of sympathetic faces, several of which were openly weeping. He began speaking once more, breaking the silence that had enveloped the area. "I know that you wield a great and tremendous power, and that any one of you could damage or even dismantle my efforts to restore Hogwarts to its former glory, that of a haven where the young can learn to control their own gifts and realize their true potential, and I know that I am unable to halt your words. I have been given an unforeseen third chance at life, and my greatest desire runs nowhere near what the stories suggest of me. All that I wish is what my dearest, best friends and I sought long ago, when we were huddled around a campfire deep in the forest, dreaming of the world that we could create and the noble legacies we would leave behind. I have lived and died protecting those that I readily swore to protect over a thousand years ago, and while I would still honour that pact, my greatest wish is to simply live, surrounded by my new friends and the one I love, and to salvage my legacy which was unjustly tarnished not for my own sake, but for my descendants and those that are sorted into my House. This is all that I wish. Simple, these desires may seem, but such peace is a state that I have only rarely encountered throughout my long existence, and is quite precious to me. Now I lay myself in your hands, you have the power to help me achieve that peace or destroy my legacy once and for all." He visibly swayed after this statement, trying unsuccessfully to hide a yawn. "Forgive my fatigue, but it seems that rising from the dead can be quite exhausting. Who knew?", he quipped, a smirk showing on his face despite the fact that he was leaning against me to remain vertical. "I know that I promised to answer your questions, but I graciously ask to do such at a later date, for it's not fair to either party if I am about to fall asleep in the middle of a session."

With this final statement, he made an effort to walk away under his own power, but couldn't hide a stumble that I caught. Even as we walked away, Sal leaning on me and shaking slightly, I could feel the pensive air that enveloped the press army, and despite my love's fatigue I couldn't hide a smirk that was echoed on Sal's own face. We decided not to enter through the main gates, rather we Apparated directly into our chambers. Such was my concern for Salazar at that moment that I failed to notice that the other two members of our motley crew had gone off on their own. Seeing my worried look, Sal chuckled and pulled me into a hug. "I'm alright dear, I'm not really that tired. It's just that talking to the press strained my nerves a tad too much."

Chuckling slightly to myself, I pulled him into a gentle kiss. "Salazar, you were bloody marvelous. You had them wrapped around your little finger the whole time, it was absolutely brilliant. I think that, just maybe, you've gained some powerful allies. Still, I want you to lie down and rest a bit." Ushering him over to the bed, I gave him a playful shove back onto the bed not quite realizing that he had grabbed ahold of my robes, pulling me down with him. After a bit more of mock wrestling, I held him in my arms, nuzzling my head in the crook of his shoulder as he made some very contented sounds. If he had any feline ancestors, I'm sure that he would have been purring even as he fell asleep.

Reminisces aside, the fact remains that as I finish this entry my fuzzy ears and tail have mysteriously vanished, signaling that the hunt is on. Somewhere nearby is a rather horny Sal who likes to pretend that he is sorry for these pranks simply so that I would have my wicked way with him. Who could have guessed that he was into this type of role play. I will continue this tale at a later date, for now the hunt is afoot, and for once it's Sal Season.