Hey there people! So here's the next chapter ;) Let me know what you think so far.
Also, big, big, big thanks and hugs to Souseiki no Tasogare for becoming my beta! ;) Give a round of applause people! ;D
"abc" - takling
abc - thinking
"abc" - parseltongue
Withouth further ado, please enjoy another chapter!
Previously in Deathly Seven:
"Don't get in any trouble!" Hermione added while her friend started to disappear.
"C'mon 'Mione, you know thatis not possible," Harry answered and all three of them smiled before his vision blurred into a mass of colors.
Even if it was for the sake of the whole world, there was one thing he refused to become.
A murderer.
He will go back.
Go back and save Tom Riddle's soul.
~~o~~
Entrance Bridge, Date unknown,
As soon as the world stopped spinning, Harry leaned on one of the pillars and emptied his stomach of its content, trying very hard to stop the dizziness that overcame him. As stupid as it sounded, he really couldn't look forward to going back to his own time using the same means of transportation.
When his vision stilled, he sat down on the ground a few meters away and sighed.
Now that his head cooled down and his internal organs weren't doing the mambo dance, he really had no idea what to do.
'Saving' someone's soul required skills and knowledge he knew he wasn't capable of. Well, at least not in his current state.
Besides, exactly what day is it today? He thought, while getting up. That's when he noticed a few of the other students looking at him oddly.
"Excuse me, sir, are you alright?" One of the group of onlookers who was brave enough to ask, took a slow, careful step in his direction.
Harry blinked. And blinked again.
The small, round and fatty face of a boy with dark hair and bucket teeth was unmistakable.
Neville.
The urge to laugh was too strong and before Harry could bit his lip, quite a few loud chuckles passed them.
"No, um… sorry about that. I'm just…" The Boy Who Lived paused, looking intently at the piece of paper under the kid's arm. Neville, noticing the great interest this stranger had toward his copy of Daily Prophet, pulled it out and toward him.
"Do you want to read it?"
Now, for any normal person, this kind of scene would be either very suspicious or very hilarious, depending on one's sense of humor. It's not every day that an eleven year old child offers a newspaper to a complete stranger.
However, as Harry was far from normal, in more ways than one and kid-Neville was known for forgetting things, the raven time-traveler couldn't help but smile at the still pure and naïve look in the child's eyes, not yet tainted by the darkness and evil that was about to engulf them in a couple of years.
"Yeah, I'd like that very much. Thank you," Harry murmured and took the offered paper with a smile.
Neville nodded, before running off towards the castle. Tripping at least twice on the way.
Chuckling to himself, this time quietly, Harry opened the newspaper and focused on the upper left corner.
May 17th, 1992
Right, if I remember that's a few days after the confrontation with Quirell. Well, damn.Harry frowned, realizing he spun the time-turner too many times. Walking down the bridge, he sat at a nearby rock,conveniently covered by bushes, and pondered his options.
As far as he knew, there were two:
One, fast forward in time again, landing right about the time for the Diary-Tom to appear.
Or two- and here, he couldn't believe for even thinking it- find a place to hide and use the remaining time to studyin the library, maybe even find a way on how to save Tom's soul.
With it mapped up like that, there wasn't an option to pick really. It was quite obvious what he would, or rather should, do.
He will use the summer holidays, a time where no students were wandering the school, to pound in as much knowledge as his brain would allow him and then wait in hiding until Ginny arrives with the diary.
Still, was there a convenient place he could use as a hideout inside the castle, outside of Dumbledore's watchful twinkling eyes, where he could freely practice his magic?
It took him a moment to realize his own stupidity.
Of course,he mused with a smirk, The Chamber itself.
~~o~~
Inside the castle
Walking along the corridors, Harry cursed the weather outside. How was he supposed to get inside Myrtle's Bathroom with so many kids and teens running happily around? He couldn't very well use a glamour, his only option of camouflage. Again, he cursed himself for being so hot-headed in his decision and forgetting the Invisibility Cloak. Sure, he could just go to the Gryffindor Common room, grab said cloak and leave- turning about a dozen of students mental in the process.
Not likely. So camouflage it is.
Despite the risks, Harry looked around before slipping inside the empty classroom.
"Incanto," he whispered, focusing on changing his appearance. Slowly, but surely, he felt his height diminishing, clothes getting too loose and shoes too big. Blinking open his eyes and looking at the glass cabinet, he noticed they were brown, instead of green, just as his hair was.
But the most prominent thing, in Harry's opinion, was the lack of the ever annoying scar on his forehead.
Letting out a sigh of relief, he quickly left the classroom upon realizing that he shouldn't stay too long in the same place after letting out his magic. After all, an eleven-year old Harry Potter couldn't possibly use the Glamour Charm, now could he? Watching from a corner he frowned when he saw a very nervous-looking McGonnagal rushing inside the classroom he himself was occupying just seconds ago.
Why were they so freaked-out over it, though?
Deciding to leave these thoughts for later, Harry walked the rest of the way to the girl's bathroom with a light bounce in his steps.
Seems like Lady Luck was with him even the second time around.
~~o~~
Peering up and down the corridor leading to the girl's bathroom, Harry thanked mentally to whatever deity there was and run inside, making sure to lock the door behind him. Stupid move, really, but it gave him a false sense of security.
With a few, good measured steps he was in front of the 'supposedly broken sink'.
"Open,"he hissed, not really looking at the snake engraved on the side of the faucet. After all those years and encounters, parseltongue came to him as naturally as breathing.
The next second the sink began to move, until they disappeared under the floor, leaving exposed a wide pipe. Without a second thought he jumped inside, rushing down the slimy slide, turning right and left occasionally.
Finally he landed on the bone covered ground with a loud 'thud'.
Getting to his feet, Harry dusted himself off, putting in the back of his mind a thought of finding a more suitable entrance if he was going to spend the next couple of months going in and out of here.
Speaking of which, the raven mused, looking around. So many memories welled up inside him, the good ones as well as the bad. Lockhart and his back fired Obliviate, dying Ginny, Tom, the basilisk…
"Oh bollocks," Harry groaned, turning around and realizing one fatal flaw in his otherwise perfectly made-up-on-the-spot plan.
A flaw that was currently slithering out from the main chamber.
~~o~~
Don't panic, Harry. Do not panic!The Boy Who Lived chanted in his head like a mantra, while listening to the bone chilling sound of the fifty feet large serpent coming closer and closer to him. When it stopped, Harry dared not to move a muscle, particularly his eyes, which were glued to the ground beneath his feet.
"Who dares to invade my Master's chamber?"Basilisk hissed with a clear warning 'answer or else' written all over the question.
"I will tell you my intent if you promise not to kill me with your eyes,"Harry answered, feeling well damn proud of himself and the ability to stay calm and composed.
He felt the flick of the air around him, and knew by instinct that the beast was not pleased by his statement.
"A speaker? How very intriguing,"There was a bit of a pause and then Basilisk spoke again, "Very well, I will allow you to live,"Harry gulped, feeling the silent 'for now' pressing on his throat like a sharp blade. Slowly, he raised his eyes and was surprised to see a pair of huge silver eyes looking straight at him, face to face.
"I came to seek your assistance,"he hissed out quietly, eyes not betraying the tremors going inside.
"What do you wish to have of me?"
Harry pondered about that one. Really, what didhe want to do here?
"A place to spend the next couple of months and a little peace and quiet to study,"
"Is that so? What is it that you need to immense yourself so deeply to come as far as here?"The Basilisk asked, eyeing him suspiciously.
Harry sighed, his shoulders slouching slightly. There was no way around it, was there?
"There is this person… Tom, and I want to save him,"there was a bit of a pause, "I want to save his soul,"the raven clarified, looking away from the serpent.
"You wish to taint the holy place of Salazar for the sake of a mere mortal?"The beast hissed angrily, his eyes turning slightly gold.
"No!"Harry quickly interjected, before there was any more bodily harm done, "I mean yes, but you see… Tom is the Heir of Slytherin! I'm sure you've met him before! Like… forty one years ago?"He supplied, doing a quick math in his head. It must have struck a chord inside the Basilisk because the creature stopped its hissing and the eyes regained their liquid silver color.
"Tom Riddle, you remember him, don't you? Either by that or his other name, Voldemort,"
"Yes, there was once an heir to the Cadmus by that name,"the serpent paused, as if struck by a sudden inspiration and leaned closer to the boy. Harry's breath hitched when he felt a sudden flick and a wet tongue sliding up his cheek.
"You…what is your name, boy?"
"H-Harry Potter,"the raven muttered, suddenly feeling like a dessert on a plate. The only thing stopping him from running away was his stubbornness and obligation.
Damn Gryffindor traits,he thought, focusing his attention once more on the serpent.
"Potter…yes, the humble heir,"
"Pardon?"
"Ignotus, the one who successfully cheated death and passed his talent to his offspring. The humble one, the wisest…"
"W-What are you saying? I… I don't understand…"Harry whispered wide eyed. Of course, he knew who those two people mentioned earlier were. The brothers from the seemingly innocent book 'Tales of Beedle the Bart'. So then what was the creature before him trying to communicate through? That Tom and he were…
"Relations, very distant, old blood relations. It is by no coincidence that you appeared before me, o hair to the Ignotus,"
"So, that means…"
"In the name of the Greatest Salazar, I give thy the permission to use the sacred grounds as he pleases,"Basilisk hissed and Harry hummed at the pleasant note he detected in the voice. Smiling brightly he patted the snake on, what he assumed to be, the creature's cheek.
"Thank you. Really, thank you,"
The only answer he got was a positive hiss and a flick on the nose.
~~o~~
Chamber of Secrets, Main chamber, May 18th1992
Harry groaned and sat up, feeling and hearing how his bones snapped back to their proper places.
"That won't do," he mused to himself, "I need to set up a small space with a bed or something more comfortable to sleep on,"
There was just one tiny problem about that statement. He didn't really know any kind of practical spells that he could use in this situation.
"Basil?"He hissed to the seemingly empty hall.
"I told you not to call me that, boy,"The serpent hissed back, its head poking from one of the wide pipe holes.
"I'll stop when you stop. Anyway, I have a favor to ask,"
"A favor you say? What's in exchange?"
Harry blinked.
So being an heir to the all humble and wise wasn't enough, huh?
"I need to acquire something from one of the students. Or rather, I need something from my younger self,"
"Oh?"The Basilisk, now seemingly interested, slithered closer to him, "Do tell?"
"I need the Invisibility Cloak,"
There,he thought, Simple and straight to the point.
"Very well. However… I will require a payment,"
"W-what kind of payment?"Harry muttered and cursed himself silently for stuttering.
"A sacrifice,"the serpent hissed with a strange glint in its eyes.
"A w-what?"The teen was confused and scared. At least until he paused long enough to feel the amusement rolling out of the creature.
"You…!"
"Relax. However it is true that I shall be needing the nutrition to sustain my change in appearance for an extended period of time,"
"Change?"
"You cannot possibly expect me to slither between people in this form, are you?"
"Okay, so… what kind of 'nutrition' are we talking about here?"Harry asked warily, having a vague idea of what the answer would be.
"Why, humans, of course,"
Yep, dead on the mark,The Boy Who Lived thought and apparated away, in search of food for both him and his new 'companion'.
~~o~~
Hogsmade, later that day
Harry walked around, enjoying a breath of fresh air. After being cramped up in a slimy cave under the lake for a day, one really does appreciate the simplest things a lot more.
Putting the last piece of the sandwich in his mouth, he took a large mouthful of pumpkin juice and looked around. How was he supposed to choose someone as a sacrifice for his selfish reasons? Not only wasn't it right or improper, but for Harry it was like betraying his own beliefs.
Putting the empty bottle away, he got up and, letting out a long audible sigh left the main street.
While wandering aimlessly around for an unknown amount of time, battling with his reason and heart, he stopped when he heard a couple of voices whispering among themselves.
The three men looked like a bunch of shady characters plotting something illegal. In Harry's standards at least. And those were pretty high ones.
He stood there and watched them from behind a tree a little longer, waging his options and just as he was about to reach a decent conclusion, the group began walking away deeper into the woods.
Grabbing his wand tightly in his hand, Harry dashed after them, his decision made.
~~o~~
The Basilisk slithered out of the pipe, feeling quite accomplished. It found a quick and safe way in and out of the boy's dormitory. Bathrooms were truly one of the man's finest creations.
Looking around it noticed that the other, recent occupant of the Chamber was not around.
Speaking of which,the Basilisk thought with a hint of amusement. The boy was…interesting? No, that wasn't the word.
Unique.
The serpent, of course, remembered the other, quite similar boy from years ago. Yet even though there were visual and descendant similarities, both of them were different.
For example, the young heir to the Cadmus was so full of evil intents and feelings it sent shivers down its spine. The embodiment of arrogance as his heirloom and the devotion to prove himself, two of the most prominent traits of his ancestor.
It couldn't fathom then, what pushed the boy to a long and lonely journey to try and save his life. From what the boy, Harry, told it, he already killed 'Tom', but for unknown to him reasons decided to go back and save his soul.
The Basilisk knew, however, what saving ones being could lead to. It wasn't a straight road paved with flowers. The path was long, dark, twisted and filled with lies. A kingdom ruled by-
Its musings were cut short when the 'crack' resounded inside the hall. Turning left, the Basilisk spotted the boy of its musing walking calmly.
"Hey there, Basil,"Harry muttered, his head hung low.
Ah, so it seems I wasn't mistaken, the serpent thought, watching the raven carefully.
"Were you out hunting?"
"Y-yeah…"Harry paused and let out a long, defeated sound, "I'm sorry, I couldn't-"
"Do not apologize, boy. It was merely but a test,"The Basilisk hissed quietly, feeling put out. For some reason the raven's behavior bothered it.
"A test?"
"Indeed. One cannot save the other without a pure intent,"
"What do you mean?"
"You cannot save other soul by tarnishing your own in the process. Remember, Harry, because the road you're about to step on is a path dark and dangerous, where temptation and deceit lurks around every corner,"
There was a bit of silence, and then…
"You called me Harry,"The Boy Who Lived whispered, feeling a bubble of happiness swelling.
"Indeed. Now then, allow me to retreat in search of nourishment,"with that said, the serpent slithered away.
Harry could have sworn he saw its tail waggling slightly.
So, what do you think? I'll try to post the next chap as soon as possible, but due to work and school don't expect it at least until the end of the week :/
Anyway, see you! ;)