HI folks! Yes, I have decided to bring in a teensy bit of romance earlier on than I'd planned. I hope you don't mind. This is part 2 of 7, the first chapter ENJOY!

Ch. 1 Best Birthday

It was delightedly sunny in Britain that summer. Just an ordinary summer, nothing special. So it seems. Because I know something is going on.

POV LEXIE JONES:

I walked through the streets of Colchester, Essex. The sun was burning on my pale skin. The only sound to be heard was the singing of the birds and the ticking of my flip-flops on the pavement. I took a left to Margaret Thatcher Road. I stopped in front of house 19A.

I rang the doorbell. Mr. Wilson opened the door. Mr. Wilson was a middle-aged man who had an obsession with the Ancient Greeks. Each year's summer he travelled to Greece, to see Ancient Greek temple, museums…

"Hey, Lexie! You fancy a cup of tea?" he asked.

"No thanks, Mr. Wilson. I'm just here to pick up Hermes," I said quickly.

Hermes was the snake the Wilsons owned. I took care of it every summer holiday, since I was little. I always liked Hermes. I had something with him I didn't have with other animals. He really seemed to understand me.

It has probably something to do with the fact I'm a Slytherin. I suppose all Slytherins can bond quite well with snakes.

I greeted Mrs. Wilson in the living room. Hermes was sleeping in his terrarium. "You want a ride?" Mrs. Wilson asked. "You cannot carry the terrarium on your own, dearie."

I stroked the glass of the terrarium and Hermes woke up. "If it's not too much of an effort, yes please," I said.

I was almost hypnotized by his black eyes staring at me.

After a lot of fussing and help from Mr. Wilson, we got the terrarium in the car. It was not more than a five minute ride to my place. My Dad had to help Mr. Wilson carry the terrarium to my room (Mr. Wilson almost tripped over my trunk, and curiously stared at the empty cauldron inside it) but eventually we'd done it.

Mrs. Wilson kissed me on the cheek. "Thanks very much for always taking care of Hermes, sweetheart," she said.

"Don't mention it," I smiled. "It's a pleasure."

When they were gone I went straight to my room. I carefully lifted Hermes out of his terrarium and placed him on my shoulders. Hermes was a red corn snake, he was small, 1.20 m in total and beautifully orange with orange-brown spots.

"Hello Hermes," I whispered.

"Hello," it whispered back.

I gasped. Hermes had never spoken to me, mostly he had just nodded, or made clear he understood me in any way. "You can talk?" I asked.

Hermes nodded. "Do you also talk to the Wilsons?" I asked.

Hermes shook his head. "I can only speak to you," he answered.

Hermes slit down my arm and I watched him glide over the carpet, toward my trunk. He stopped before my wand. "I knew you were special," he whispered.

"Oh," I said shortly.

I forced myself to speak real sentences. "Are you sure you're not a strange snake who talks to people?"

Hermes turned around. He looked me in the eye. "I am very sure," he said.

I kneeled down next to him. I grabbed my wand. "This is a wand," I explained to him. "and I'm a witch. Can all witches talk to snakes?"

"I don't know," said Hermes.

"Well, seeing you're a snake and all, I don't actually bla-"

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

I looked up. "Oh, er… hi Bella. Had a good holiday?"

Bella was a bit tanned, she had been to France with her family. Her hair was more reddish than usual, but not completely. It was like she'd died it but the colour had faded. She had dropped a huge bag with candy, and the little toffees were spread over the carpet.

"Why didn't you tell me you're a Parselmouth?" she asked, looking petrified.

What? What the hell is a Parselmouth, I thought. But since I was a proper-raised Slytherin, and not some Gryffindor who blurted everything out what they thought (sorry Bella, it's true) I thought about my answer.

Parselmouth.

I'd heard that word before. It was a password last year. It probably had to do something with Salazar Slytherin. "What is a Parselmouth?" I asked calmly.

"Well, you can talk to snakes," she said.

"I noticed," I answered coolly. "I've been able to talk to Hermes since I can remember."

"Why haven't you told us?" she said.

I noticed she was staring at Hermes, who was chewing on a dead rat. Where did he get that? Caught it himself? Clever little snake, he is.

"Before I knew about me being a witch, I thought you would all think I was mad. It's probably not special at all," I said. "I bet loads of wizard's can do it."

Janice also came in. "Lexie's a Parselmouth," Bella blurted out.

Told you so. "What?" said Janice. "That's so cool!"

"It's not cool!" Bella said. "It's creepy!"

"Why?" I asked.

Hermes crawled up my leg, arm and rested on my neck again. Bella flinched. I smirked. "Is little Bella afraid of snakes?" I teased, moving closer to her.

"Hell no!" she said, but I noticed her wincing.

"Sure, then you wouldn't mind holding Hermes for a while, wouldn't you?"

"GET THAT THING OFF ME!"

Bella's face was getting just as red as Ron's hair. I smirked and put Hermes back in his terrarium. "And to what do I owe your pleasant visit?" I asked.

"We're here to pick you up for Claire's birthday," Janice said.

"Of course," I said. "Let me get my present upstairs."

POV BELLA MCLAGGEN:

Another reason to find my best friend creepy. Great. But I had learned from last year, she would be my friend no matter what. I didn't want to lose her again, and I would never forget what she did for me.

We had always been friends. She could be a pain in the ass sometimes, but she's my pain in the ass. But still…

Hermes the snake seemed to be staring at me from his terrarium. I had heard the awful noise coming out of Lexie's mouth and I heard the snake hissing back… I hoped I'd heard it wrong, but I knew I didn't.

This was so impossible. I was starting to doubt whether she was Muggleborn at all. Nothing made sense! But I guess that's what you get when living a wizard's life.

"Doesn't it concern you she's a Parselmouth at all?" I asked.

"No," Janice smiled. "Why should I be concerned?"

I sighed. She was naïve. "Only Dark wizards speak Parseltongue," I explained.

"That's not true," she said. "Just like not all Slytherins are evil."

"Except for Lexie they are," I replied.

"That you don't like them doesn't mean they're evil, Bella."

"Let's say you're right about that," I mocked. "Than there's still the point of her being a Parselmouth. Not many people are Parselmouths, it has to be in your family."

"But Lexie is Muggleborn," Janice said.

"That's the point!" I answered. "I don't get it."

"Me neither," said Lexie, who just entered.

"How much did you hear?" I asked.

"Enough," she said coolly. "Let's go."

Claire's house wasn't far from here, so we just walked. "Has Harry answered any of your letters?" Janice suddenly asked.

"Nothing," I said. "Maybe the Dursleys won't give them to him?"

"I just thought he didn't want to answer them," said Lexie. "Never mind."

"I should sent them a Howler," I said mischievously.

"No," Janice said right away. "You'll only get him in more trouble!"

"Can't we visit him?" Lexie asked.

"I don't think his aunt and uncle will like that. I mean, his uncle was terrible when I met him on the platform before the summer holidays," said Janice.

POV CLAIRE GIBBS:

When I woke up this morning, I found my house covered in decorations. It was my birthday. My mother had given me wizarding fiction. I didn't know there even was such thing, but it was wonderful (a bit like Hogwarts in that aspect) and I was so grateful I'd gotten that.

Lavender and her parents were the first to arrive. My mother and Lavender's mother were sister, so that made me and Lavender cousins. Lavender had given a me pretty bracelet and some nail polish. "Thanks Lav," I said.

"So did you really get past Snape's Potions riddle last year?" she asked.

"Er…" I stammered.

I hadn't exactly told my parents about going through the trapdoor. They were so happy when they saw my marks for the exams. Only Hermione had topped me with her 114 percent, I had 113.

"What are you talking about, Lavender?" my mother asked.

"Don't you know, Emma?" Lavender's mom said. "Claire, together with Harry Potter and some other first years, got past the enchantments and challenges of the teachers to stop You-Know-Who from getting the Sorcerer's Stone!"

"I'm so proud of you," my mother said.

"Can't you discuss this somewhere else?" my father asked.

He shifted uneasily in his chair and was scratching his bald head. He never liked magic. He never wanted to have anything to do with it. "Why aren't you proud, uncle?" Lavender asked.

"It's not like she's skipped a grade, or-"

"She had 113 percent on her exams!" she said indignantly.

"But that is only nonsense…" my father said.

The doorbell rang. I glared at him for a second before I went to open it. It were Bella, Lexie and Janice. "Oh hi," I said quickly. "I'm glad you came."

We went upstairs. "Lexie is a Parselmouth," Bella said suddenly.

She could talk to snakes? "How is that possible?" I wondered out loud.

"Well, I don't know!" Bella snapped. "All I know is that it's bloody creepy all right!"

I looked at Lexie. "Bella is terrified of snakes," she explained.

"Am not!" hissed Bella.

"You were," Lexie replied calmly.

"Am not!"

"Don't fight, it's Claire's birthday!" said Janice.

A brown, fuzzy curl was twisted around my finger. "You don't think you're adopted?" I asked.

"Adopted?" Lexie repeated. "Impossible."

"There's no other way, Lexie."

"But I look like them," said Lexie. "I can't be adopted. I mean, if there's such thing as Muggleborns, why can't there be such thing as Muggleborn Parselmouths?"

"You've got a point there," I said.

"We have to sort this out," Bella said.

"Why?" Lexie asked. "I love being a Parselmouth, I don't care why I'm one."

"We can't ignore this!" Bella replied firmly, smacking her fist on the table.

"Nothing good can come from this," said Janice. "I was hoping to have a quiet year."

"You're no fun at all!" said Bella. "I hope we have to face giants or something!"

"Boohoo, don't be such an adrenaline junkie," Lexie huffed.

"I'd rather be an adrenaline junkie than a Parselmouth!" Bella hissed back.

"You're such a Gryffindor," the blonde girl said. "But I'll always love you for being one."

POV JANICE DIGGORY:

"You weren't serious about the giants, weren't you Bella?" I asked.

"Oh Janice," she sighed and I relaxed. "Of course I was! Not necessarily giants of course, I wouldn't mind a dragon-"

"We've already had a dragon," Lexie laughed.

"But a big one!" said Bella, and her green eyes shone brightly.

"No," said Claire immediately. "Absolutely not."

"Just pull a couple of pranks," Lexie said calmly. "You'll be fine, little junkie."

"There's nothing little about me," said Bella, standing up straight.

"Hogwarts is already enough trouble without things such as Sorcerer's Stones and dragons," I said. "I'll still like school even when it's normal school. Primary school was great."

"But that was when we were little," said Lexie. "We're too old to make up our own adventures now."

"But these ones can actually be lethal," Claire said dryly.

"We're not little anymore," said Bella.

"You're thirteen," I said. "You are still a kid and you have only had one year of magical education. Don't you realize how lucky we were last year? Our biggest quality was cooperation, not talent. I couldn't have done this without you."

"And we couldn't have done it without you, Janice," Bella said. "But we're still together. And I'm up for a new adventure."

"When you say adventure you mean near fatal accident," Claire said.

"I guess they're inevitable whilst you're attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Lexie laughed.

We all laughed along. I'm not sure whether I wanted an adventure, but I we got into one, I didn't want to go through it with any other than my friends. Harry, Ron and Hermione included.

Together.

Together I was up for an adventure.

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Goodday lovelies xx