章 1056: You’re talking again?! Ⅱ

After dinner, Rowan and Severus heard the youngest Slytherins back to the common room area. It wasn't their turn to be on patrol duty and they were not about to make it their problem. Let someone else handle the situation for a change.

The younger Slytherins pass through the unobtrusive Slytherin entrance, a bare stone wall with only a tiny serpent engraved on the bottom of the stone wall. The now-open wall reveals an inner stone passageway. Rowan and Severus are the last to pass through the tunnel.

The younger years disperse in the Slytherin common room. Some of them approach the tables to play wizard chess or gobstones, while others remove enchanted muggle board games from cupboards to play. A few others merely sit down in luxury leather chairs and sofas to quietly chat. Not too loudly lest the 5th and 7th years remove them from the common room for interrupting their studies.

The elaborately carved mantelpiece and large serpent skulls decorate the mantelpiece. The largest of skulls is fondly named, "Dragon," and the light of the fireplace causes orange flames to reflect in its hollow eyes. The skulls had been rubbed for good luck by countless hopeful 5th and 7th years for centuries. However, the skulls are fastidious in their selection to whom luck is bestowed upon. And for this same reason, the Whispers of the Meow had gained a larger following. The power of the meow is omnipotent!

Centuries-old grand tapestries hang in the common room demonstrating valiant Medieval Slytherins. The window-like areas that reveal the lake are covered by thick velvet curtains to keep the lingering chill of the lake at bay. Even then, there is an underwater feeling emitted in the common room as the rough stone walls and ceiling hang glowing elegant green lanterns that eerily glow with a greenish tint.

Seeing most of the younger years remain in the common room, Rowan strides to a corner of the common room and pulls back a portion of the thick, velvet curtains. Immediately, the common room becomes cooler causing the younger years to glance up. The older Slytherins ignore Rowan having far more things to pay attention to.

Severus remains standing watching his twin sister with curious eyes. He didn't know what Rowan is up to. However, it should be interesting, to say the least.

Setting her bookbag down, Rowan pulls out a cream-colored shell with a pinkish tint. She gazes out into the murky lake waiting. Some of the Slytherins become bored and turned away until an excited murmur is heard from those still watching. Curious, the bored Slytherins glance up before openly gaping in awe at the unbelievable sight.

There leisurely swimming in front of the windows is gray-skinned merfolk with long, wild, dark hair from green to murky brown and even black. Most of the merfolk have yellowish eyes with a few exceptions. Their powerful, silver tails stir the water behind them. A few of them even clutch spears in their hand's, powerful warriors that wear decorations made from the fangs of fierce creatures.

A high-pitched screech breaks the silence in the common room as Rowan speaks Mermish into the enchanted conch. The 5th year and 7th year glance up in annoyance from their studies but freeze at seeing merfolk swimming outside of their windows. Just as much as the younger Slytherins they openly stare at the merfolk. Most of them had rarely ever encountered magical beings beyond the goblins of Gringotts. And though they all knew of the existence of merfolk, it is a completely different experience seeing one with their own eyes.

Severus arches his brow at seeing Rowan chat on friendly terms with the merfolk. He knew there is a merfolk colony in the depths of the lake, but he had never actually spoken to one. Although, it certainly explained why Rowan speaks better Mermish than him. She must have snuck out at some point into the lake and made friends with the denizens of the lake.

Just because he was busy with studies didn't mean, Severus didn't like an adventure or two. He is a marauder after all. He privately grumbles to himself about the unfairness of it all.

Having gained the rapt attention of the younger Slytherins, Rowan removes a small velvet pouch from her robes. She opens the pouch to remove seashells with carved runes. They are a version of the knucklebones, an ancient Greek game played with the astragalus of a sheep. (Though there are variants throughout the world using stones, seashells, seeds, and even cubes).

Holding up the bag, Rowan speaks into the magic couch guessing whether there will be an odd or even number of seashells in total. She guessed odd. She expectantly glances at the merfolk to respond.

A younger mermaid with murky brown hair and brown-yellow eyes holds up a pouch made of seaweed full of rune-gabling seashells. The mermaid approaches closer trying to hide her fascination at the dry chamber full of humans. She had never seen so many magical humans up close. She had only heard fearful tales of warning from the elders, but the humans gazing at her appeared to be young even younger than her youngest brother.

A seven-foot-tall merman with a long green beard and a choker of shark fangs loudly grunts reminding the younger mermaid of her duty. The mermaid flushes a lighter green, before speaking into the conch held up by a warrior of their tribe. The younger mermaid says, "Even."

Rowan tosses up the velvet bag and catches it. The mermaid does the same before the two of them open the bag. Holding out a handful of seashells, Rowan sighs at seeing more even rune-marked seashells. The younger mermaid smiles revealing pointy, yellowish teeth. The younger mermaid reveals her hand is also mostly full of even rune-marked seashells.

"Your win," Rowan acknowledged into the conch.

The younger mermaid grins. "Fair game, witch."

Nodding her head at the younger mermaid, Rowan turns around. "Would anyone like to try their luck?"

"Me!" A group of younger Slytherins squealed scrambling over to her nearly tripping in her haste.

"Please line up," Rowan sternly instructed as the younger years obediently did as they asked. While she explained the simple game, a few of the younger Slytherins scramble to the dorm rooms to retrieve friends.

The older Slytherins sense that there is no point in them trying to study under these conditions. The 5th and 7th years put their things away and take a rare break moving closer to get a closer look at the merfolk. Admittedly, they did a far better job of hiding their curiosity, but they are just as curious as the younger members of their house.

"Severus, if you would be willing to teach them how to say odd or even that would be great," Rowan said gesturing to the first Slytherin in line to approach. A light-haired first year with dark eyes and square spectacles, Frederick Baddock.

"Fine," Slytherin huffed moving closer for a closer look.

Gazing down at the younger years, Severus carefully begins to pronounce odd or even. The Slytherins open and close their mouths trying to emulate the sounds. Quite a number of the younger Slytherins are quite successful as the older Slytherins pretend to be above such things despite memorizing the phrases in their minds.

Frederick Baddock triumphantly guesses odd and turns around to share the news with his friends. "I won! Did you see that!" He excitedly said rushing over to share the news with his best friend, Jeremy Heskel, who is also standing in line.

The rest of the evening passes in a similar fashion. By the end of the evening, the younger Slytherins are excitedly chattering about the Merfolks in the lake. Quite a few of them beg for another similar evening. After a brief discussion with the warrior merfolk, Rowan confirms they will return on the weekend.

The younger Slytherins happily head off to bed eagerly waiting for the weekend to come. By the next morning, the news would be all over Hogwarts about how the Slytherins played with the merfolk. The news spread even further via owl by Slytherins recounting the events and requesting their parents to find a mermish tutor for them. The rest of the school murmured at the unfairness of it all and requested that they too be an offered a chance to speak to the merfolk of the lake. A small ripple that would create an extraordinary change in wizarding society and the future to arrive.