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Unity
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Summary: "Salazar! Sal! Look what I can do!" Godric exclaimed. That was the last thing that Salazar remembered before being ripped through time. Set in OOTP. Friendship Godric/Salazar
Beta: None. I tried my best without one.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A/N: By popular demand, I will make this a multi chapter fic. How many chapters? I don't know. Whenever I'm done, I suppose.
Oh, yes, and Umbridge Bashing. Because I dislike her with passion.
I'm not going to do Salazar mentoring Harry. For one thing, Salazar doesn't really strike me as the kind of person to pick favorites for students; he teaches all who want to learn. For another, Salazar is from a thousand years ago. Half the spells he knows are illegal or lost by today's date.
As for Salazar not associating with his own house, he does, but remember that this is mostly told from Harry's POV.
-0-
Salazar got the pleasure of meeting the Minister of Magic the next day.
And by pleasure, Salazar really meant his own pleasure. Not Cornelius Fudge's.
He had just walked into the Defense Against Dark Art's Classroom when he spotted Umbridge sitting at the desk. She gave him a wide smile that reminded Salazar of a bullfrog and said, sweetly, "You are under arrest for the assault of a Ministry official."
Salazar conjured another snake and gave Umbridge a pointed look. The snake coiled around his shoulders as Salazar faced the Ministry employees and Cornelius Fudge.
"Assault of a Ministry official? I did no such thing. I simply suggested it would be not in your favor to remain at Hogwarts," Salazar said. "Didn't I, lovely?" He hissed to the snake, the snake raising its head in pleasure.
Several officers took a step back in alarm.
"Seize him!" Fudge said, pointing a finger at Salazar, his bowler hat falling sideways.
"It would be in your best interest if you didn't attack me," Salazar said calmly as the officers took a step forward. Dumbledore swept into the room, his blue eyes blazing.
"What is the meaning of this?" he asked, though his words could not have been more threatening if he had shouted them.
"This man assaulted a Professor, Dumbledore!" Fudge said, pointing a finger at Salazar, but withdrew it quickly as the snake snapped at it. "I demand for him to be thrown out of Hogwarts!"
"I will not throw out one of the Founders out of his own school!" Dumbledore said, his wand appearing like magic in his hand, but his hand remaining limp on his side. "Cornelius, I warned you not to do this. Salazar Slytherin knows magic that was long lost. To threaten him would be to risk your own life. And the purebloods that have given you your power would take his side over yours."
Fudge blanched to Salazar's delight. Salazar hissed to the snake around his shoulders, "Lovely, will you bite that woman for me? She's an eyesore."
Dumbledore shot Salazar a look that clearly said "behave" and Salazar snorted.
"On the second thought, I will transfigure her into a toad and you can play with her for a while," Salazar amended. The snake let out a hissy laugh.
"What will it be, Cornelius?" Dumbledore asked. Salazar enjoyed the flush that blossomed over Fudge's face, followed by a deep purple. Then the Minister of Magic stomped out of the room in a huff, the officers and Umbridge following.
-0-
"So, tell me about Salazar Slytherin. What is he like? Is he another Snape?" Sirius Black asked, his head bobbing in the Gryffindor Common Room fireplace. Harry smiled at his godfather, wondering what to say.
"He's… different than what I thought he would be," Harry admitted.
"Bloody hell, he made it so Malfoy said 'Thank you' to Neville," Ron sputtered. "To Neville! I would have never imagined… Not in all my life…!"
"Well, he is the Founder of Slytherin House. It would make sense that Malfoy respects him," Hermione reasoned. "Harry mentioned that Salazar hated muggles, but it was for a good reason. They branded and murdered his baby sister. She was four when she died."
"Merlin… I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't hate muggles if they did that to their family," Sirius said, his face falling in sympathy. "What about muggleborns?"
"Has no objections against them," Harry answered. "He specifically asked who was muggleborn and mentioned that he had no intention of murdering anyone."
Sirius nodded. "Maybe he could come visit for Christmas and tell my mum to shut up? She'd probably listen to him."
Harry winced at the thought of the disruptive, screaming portrait of Mrs. Black. "I wouldn't wish that upon anyone. Not even Salazar Slytherin. I'll ask though."
"Great. Then I'll get to meet a Founder of Hogwarts!" Sirius said cheerfully.
"You know, he hasn't actually built Hogwarts yet," Hermione said, sheepishly. "He has in our past, but it's in his future. Probably."
"Hey, you think Godric will show up soon? I want to meet him too," Ron said, brightening up.
"Godric is apparently a good friend of Salazar," Harry said to Sirius. "Salazar also kicked Umbridge out of the school."
"Seriously? The Ministry won't be very happy at that," Sirius said, shaking his head.
"I said the same thing to Salazar yesterday evening," Hermione said. "His response was 'then they can go roll in the mud like the pigs they are'."
Sirius laughed, but then his expression became serious. "What about You-Know-Who? Is he planning on joining him?"
"If by 'joining him' you mean 'putting him over his knee and whipping him for getting his precious basilisk killed'," Harry said evenly, "then, yes. He's planning on joining him."
Giving a bark of laughter, Sirius shook his head. "I think I'll actually like the guy. How about that? A Slytherin I actually like."
"Well, I'll ask him to come for Christmas," Harry said cheerfully. "That way, he can meet everyone."
"Good idea," Sirius said. "I was getting dreadfully bored here alone anyway. Maybe he'll be good company."
"Is that safe though?" Hermione whispered. "He's a stranger…"
"Dumbledore trusts him," Harry reasoned. "And you've seen him. He's not a bad guy and the Order would definitely have an advantage with him in it." He smiled, thinking about the young man. Actually, he quite liked the man with his grey eyes and rather lax attitude. Salazar had gotten the more skilled students to teach the class several spells.
He was having a hard time seeing the man as Salazar Slytherin though. The man didn't seem to possess the cunning attitude most of the Slytherin house possessed. In fact, Harry wasn't even sure if Salazar liked his own house, as he made almost no effort to communicate with them.
Harry picked up the conversation with Sirius again, smiling widely.
-0-
"What is this, "Christmas" you speak of?" Salazar asked, looking at the trio. Despite being in the dungeons, Salazar had turned his rooms into a warm and inviting place. Harry wasn't the only one to think so.
Fred and George Weasley were plotting in the corner of Salazar's sitting room. Luna Lovegood was looking at all the books, humming to herself. Neville had brought a Herbology book down to read. Salazar, for the most part, wouldn't turn his students away, so many people found it a comfortable place to relax. More private than a classroom, but less than their own dorms.
Salazar seemed to have found Fred and George's idea for a joke store extremely funny. In fact, he had personally added his own ideas to their list, including Howling Powder and Eye-Popping candies. He would give them ideas on how to prank others, giving mischievous grins when they worked. Dumbledore had spent the last week with his normally white hair changing colors to suit his mood. Harry had asked Salazar why he helping the Weasley twin's pranks and Salazar had replied, with a smirk, "It's their own fault if they fall for it, knowing that the Weasley twins are pranksters. Besides, they are quite good pranks and relatively harmless. Well, unless you have pride to carry."
Harry hadn't bothered asking Salazar anymore after that. He had witnessed Malfoy walk up to Salazar and had stuck around to listen. Salazar had been quite impressed with the long line of purebloods in Malfoy's family, but had been completely nonplussed by Malfoy's lack of ambition. He had told Malfoy "If you want to be a member of my house that I am proud of then stop walking in the shadows of others."
"Well," Harry said. "It's a muggle holiday where people exchange gifts and spend time together. Oh, but magicals call it Yule, don't they?"
"Ah, Yule," Salazar said. "And you would like me to join your family?" He gave a curious little tilt of his head, glancing at the fireplace. It sprung to life, startling Neville. Salazar grimaced. "Apologies, Longbottom."
"Well, you won't have anywhere else to go, right?" Harry asked, smiling a little.
"Truthfully, I was planning on staying in Hogwarts," Salazar admitted. "But I suppose it would not hurt to spend Yule with your family."
"Well, they aren't really my family. More like my friends," Harry said sheepishly.
"Hmmm, well, alright then," Salazar said, nodding. "Let me know where we are going to meet up."
"Salazar Slytherin is going to spend Yule with us?! Sweet! Mum'll have a fit," Fred said, his eyes sparkling.
"Dad'll be impressed!" George said, grinning. "We should tell them."
"No. I wish for it to be a surprise," Salazar said smoothly. "After all, the host would be Mr. Potter. If there is truly an issue, then I'll just leave."
Fred and George cackled and bent back over their parchment to plot some more.
"That being said, I believe for our next class, we will cover Dementors. I have been told that you have had some… unsavory experiences with them," Salazar said. "I will not fault you if you do not wish to come."
Harry winced, but shook his head. "I can produce a corporeal Patronus. I'll be fine."
"Really?" Salazar asked, looking very interested. "So young too." He smiled and waved his wand. "Expecto Patronum!"
A silver snake coiled out of Salazar's wand and fell onto the floor, hissing. Harry smiled a little, bringing up his wand and repeating the incantation, the large stag leaping out of Harry's wand happily to join the snake.
"I should have expected that," Harry said, looking at the snake. "Was Godric's a lion?"
"Yes, and Helga a badger and Rowena an eagle. I figured that the house symbols reflected our Patronuses as building this school was likely a happy memory for all of us," Salazar said, "I always thought that Godric's should have been a dragon though. He's wild and unruly."
Harry laughed.
-0-
Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place was more gloomy than usual. After Harry's terrifying nightmare, he had gone straight to Salazar, who instantly told Dumbledore. Dumbledore had ran off somewhere with Salazar, and they were taken to Sirius' house via portkey. Neither Dumbledore nor Salazar had returned just yet with news.
The Weasley children were unusually quiet and subdued. They had gotten into an argument with Sirius but had fallen silent when Sirius had won. Harry was just taking a sip of butterbeer when three figures dropped into the living room. Harry instantly stood, his eyes wide.
Arthur Weasley was very, very pale. He looked quite drained, but his eyes were open and he was smiling gently. He was being supported on his left by Salazar, who looked concerned, and Molly Weasley, who was fussing over her husband's state.
"Rest," Salazar said firmly. "The poison may be neutralized, but your body has taken quite a toll."
"Dad!" The Weasleys burst out. They all ran to him, asking questions and worrying over him. Salazar looked like he was going to protest, but then sighed in defeat and allowed Arthur to rest in one of the living room couches.
"What happened?" Harry asked, looking at Salazar.
Salazar looked distinctly uncomfortable as Molly burst out, "Ohhh, he was just wonderful! So skilled! He just walked over to Arthur and placed his hand on the wound and it just started to close. Then he fed him some kind of potion and Arthur was awake."
"Er… Yes, well… I've had practice with Godric," Salazar said, moving to a chair and sitting down on his, his pale cheeks tinged pink.
Harry looked at Salazar in amazement. "Practice?"
"If it's not 'Sal! Look at this! It's a massive, ten foot snake' it's 'Sal, I got bit by a dragon yesterday. Do you think you can still fix that?' I've learned not to be surprised with anything that could happen," Salazar said, mimicking Godric's rough, low voice.
Harry remembered Ron's bite from Norbert in their first year and winced a little. "Ah. I see."
"You're Slytherin?" Sirius asked, marching up to Salazar.
Salazar gave Sirius a rather lazy look, a frown on his face. "I am. And you are?"
"Sirius Black," Sirius said, apparently approving of Salazar's looks and his stance. Molly made a little choking noise near Arthur, and their conversation died off, with both the older Weasleys staring at Salazar. "Harry tells me you've kicked Umbridge out of office. Good job!"
"She was lacking," Salazar said simply. "Well, Black, do you, per chance, have a house elf? I haven't had anything to eat this morning and I am rather hungry."
"Sure do. KREACHER!" Sirius bellowed.
A grumbling house elf answered Sirius' summons a few minutes later, muttering "…sullying my Mistress's home. Oh, what would she say… And now a new one appears… Blood Traitor or mudblood… Kreacher does not know."
Salazar, quite appropriately, recoiled in disgust. He gave Kreacher a look that clearly said "Not even worthy at being in the same planet as me. Get out" but verbally remained quiet.
"Kreacher, this is our new guest. His name is Salazar Slytherin," Sirius said, unable to hide the glee in his voice. Salazar collected himself quite suddenly, clearing his throat and looking at the elf.
Kreacher's face morphed into one of pure awe as he turned back to Salazar. "Is it true? My Mistress' house is being home to Lord Slytherin? How happy she would be…"
"Elf, clean yourself, and this…" Salazar looked around, noting the dust, "house. I expect lunch to be served at noon, sharp. Do not disappoint me." Salazar stood up and beckoned Sirius and Harry. "We can speak more without intruding on the Weasley family's reunion." He turned to the door and opened it, walking briskly into the kitchen.
"Wow," Sirius said, looking at Salazar with some level of admiration. "That was amazing. I have never seen Kreacher hop so fast."
"Judging by his mutters and the state of the house, it appears he does not like the guests or his current Master," Salazar said, looking at Sirius. "Godric has three elves and I have two. We know how to deal with them. A little kindness goes a long way with elves."
Sirius frowned and led the way to the drawing room. "The Black Family has been purebloods for many years," he said, changing the subject, not wanting to talk about Kreacher. "We can trace our roots back to the original Slytherin family."
Harry glanced up at the Black Family Tapestry. Salazar looked at it as well, scanning it.
"You've been burned off, I see," Salazar noted, pointing to a charred corner.
Sirius winced. "Yeah. My mum was insane. Blood Purity and all that. Harry tells me that you don't support that."
"I support power," Salazar said simply. "It just so happened that the more powerful ones in my time were purebloods. Godric, Helga, Rowena, and I are all from nobility. The quality has fallen, it seems." He was glancing at Harry and smiled lightly. "Pure blood does not breed pure power. Harry has proven that."
Harry flushed a little. Sirius looked approvingly at Salazar.
"So, what about Arthur. Is he alright?" Sirius asked.
"Weasley will be fine," Salazar said, nodding. "The potion I gave him was designed for snake venom bites. In short of a basilisk, which requires a regiment of potions, three months rest, and regrowing the bones in the infected area, it will suffice."
"Awesome," Harry said, grinning. "You haven't really celebrated Yule, have you?"
"Godric and I do not. Not really," Salazar said, looking at all the Black Family heirlooms. "The one thing about Yule is that I do not have to worry about someone barging in when wakes me up."
"What's so bad about that?" Harry asked, confused.
"He jumps on my bed to wake me up and I whip out my wand to hex him." Salazar waved a hand. "A child, he is." He suddenly took interest in a small golden locket and pointed to it. "What is this?"
Sirius had a very wide grin, apparently pleased with Salazar's openness. "Oh? I don't know what that is. It's not mine or anything. If you want it, you can have it."
Salazar reached into his robe and pulled out an identical, golden locket. "I believe it's mine. Godric gave it to me as a gift." He reached for it and curled his fingers around it. Then his brow furrowed and he said, "Someone has cursed it."
"What?!" Sirius asked, alarmed.
Before Harry could react, Salazar had hissed out a low, seductive, "Open, my pretty."
It exploded. Black mist flew out of the open locket, Salazar whipping out his wand and chanting something at the locket. The mist laughed and swirled red eyes laughing at Salazar. Salazar gave a grim smile.
"My poor, insane heir," he purred out in parseltongue. Harry felt a dark chill run up his spine, but was rooted to the spot, unable to move or shout at Salazar to get out of the way. The mist descended on Salazar and Salazar spoke again, "I will put your soul to rest."
Something screamed in pain, and the mist evaporated. Salazar glanced at the ruined locket and sighed deeply, picking it up. The locket had shattered in the course of the spell.
"Don't ever do that again," Sirius said, his eyes wide. Salazar turned to him.
"I am known as a Dark Wizard," Salazar said, nodding. "I have control over my abilities. Don't you worry." He placed the locket on the table and beckoned them closer. "My present from Godric is ruined because of my supposed heir. I'll need to keep a tally over how many times he's wronged me so I can give him a suitable punishment."
"Is it gone?" Sirius asked, looking at the locket warily.
"Destroyed," Salazar said, nodding. "Who had this locket last? Besides my heir."
"I wouldn't know," Sirius said. "But Kreacher might."
"Elf," Salazar spoke in a rather bored, but polite tone. Kreacher answered his summons immediately, snapping to attention.
"Kreacher be helping Lord Slytherin?" the elf asked. Salazar held up the shattered locket.
"Who had this last?" he asked.
No one expected the elf to burst into tears and throw his arms around Salazar crying about how "great and powerful Lord Slytherin completed Master Regulus' final wish". Salazar staggered, a little shocked at the new revelation.
"Oi! Kreacher! Off!" Sirius barked. Salazar held up a hand and knelt in front of the elf, placing the broken locket over the elf's head and spoke.
"Tell me everything."
-0-
There was a notable improvement after that incident. The house was cleaned, from top to bottom by Kreacher alone, who seemed all too happy to be hosting "Lord Slytherin". The portrait of Mrs. Black had screamed for the first two days, but once Salazar had told her, quite rudely in Harry's opinion, to "shove it" in parseltongue, she had remained silent. Instead, she had decided that Salazar was worthy of being in her house and spent days trying to catch his eye and brag about her genealogy.
Salazar had spent all of an afternoon listening before he got fed up and pulled the curtains shut. Then he went back to his room to read or to teach the children dueling spells, refining their magic. Mrs. Weasley protested this, as Harry, Ron, and Ginny were not legal to use magic, but Salazar simply refuted her by saying that his heir wasn't going to wait until they were legal to do magic to attack.
She had given up after that, simply shooting Salazar suspicious looks while they ate meals or passed each other in the hallway. Harry wasn't sure if Salazar was bothered by this, as he didn't say anything.
In fact, now that Harry thought about it, Salazar never seemed to get angry at anything. Most of the time, he would simply sigh in dejection or correct the problem. He had never raised his voice against the children, despite Fred and George's mischief.
Harry supposed that was a good thing. Salazar Slytherin probably wasn't a very good person to anger and his wrath would no doubt shake Hogwarts to the castle's core.
On the other hand, Salazar spoke of Godric both fondly and as a nuisance. Harry wasn't really sure what to think about Salazar's relationship with Godric, but then he remembered that Salazar was from a world a thousand years in the past. Customs then were different than they were here. Perhaps, it was normal for friends to share a bed?
It was hard to picture the calm and collected Salazar Slytherin angry. He glanced at the other male. Salazar was reading one of the books in the Black Library, his eyes running through each word. Sirius had decided to celebrate by singing "God Rest You, Merrye Hippogriffs" on the top of his lungs while tramping past Buckbeak's room so Salazar had placed a silencing ward on the door.
Harry didn't know when he had fallen asleep, but when he woke, there was a black cloak draped over him and Salazar was sitting on the ground, meditating. He snuggled into the cloak, inhaling the deep scent of pine and something sweet.
"If you're awake, you can go back to your room. I believe that you have received presents," Salazar said calmly.
That snapped Harry up and sent him bolting out of the room. Salazar smiled a little, opening his eyes as he summoned the cloak back to himself. The child really needed to learn how to wake without alerting people he was awake.
Christmas was quite cheerful in Sirius' home. Kreacher served them fat turkeys, ham, and a wide variety of side dishes. Sirius had toasted a cheer to Salazar, who seemed quite embarrassed to be there. He seemed awkward, not quite fitting in with the rest of the friends.
Lupin had joined them asking about Arthur's health and speaking to Salazar about snakes. To Harry's surprise, Salazar didn't actually know much about the different breeds of snakes. He could speak to them, sure, but snakes didn't really know what humans called them, so Salazar would simply recognize patterns and colors. He knew very little about the breeds names.
He knew about their poisons though, so they spent a while chatting about snake venom.
Parseltongue was something that intrigued Lupin, as it did Sirius. Molly and Arthur cringed from the conversation, but Salazar didn't seem to mind sharing his knowledge about the subject.
"I was born in an area with quite a lot of swamps. It was home to hundreds of different snakes," Salazar said. "I guess the language was passed down because we still had a use for it. I've always been able to understand them and they tend to warn me if things happen. Perhaps they feel as if I was one of them. Even in this time, the snake I conjured recognized me and calls me by name."
"I see," Lupin said. "So what about your supposed heir?"
"As far as I am concerned, he's no heir of mine. I have sired no children," Salazar said. "Then again, I am known as a muggle born hater. Perhaps these things in my future have not happened yet." He gave a shrug and added, "It is quite possible that Godric sending me here will change that though."
"Say something in Parseltongue," Sirius encouraged, leaning forwards.
"Harry, you have gravy on your chin," Salazar hissed to him. Harry jumped and took his napkin, wiping his chin and looked at Salazar.
"Is it gone?" Harry asked. Salazar smiled, nodding.
"Wow, what did you say?" Sirius asked, looking between Harry and Salazar.
"Harry, you have gravy on your chin," Salazar repeated. "I've never really been opposed to the ability. It's helped us out a fair few times." He smiled, taking a bite out of his ham. "It's not something you can just learn though. You can learn to understand it, as the hisses are all different, but I was pretty much born knowing it. I was hissing at snakes before speaking."
"How interesting," Lupin said, his eyes wide. Arthur was giving Salazar a wary look, but said nothing. "Are you aware of how many snakes are nearby too? Like we would be aware of people in the house by their speech?"
"Yes. I know that there is an adder that lives in the guest room I'm borrowing that eats rats that climb in the walls," Salazar said, nodding. "It isn't causing any trouble so I told Kreacher to leave him. Snakes aren't very good conversationalists though. They talk about food and mating most of the time. The more intelligent ones will actually tell you what you want to know."
"There's a snake in the guest room?" Sirius asked, surprised.
"Well, there's a reason this house isn't infested with rats," Salazar shrugged. "Especially in the ten years that no one has lived in it."
"Oh, okay," Sirius seemed strangely pleased with this fact and gleefully rubbed his hands together. Harry had the impression that Sirius was imagining feeding Pettigrew to the snake.
Salazar smiled, as if he knew exactly what Sirius was thinking, but remained silent.
-0-
"Hogwarts High Inquisitor," Salazar read out loud. "Hmmm," he glanced at Snape sitting next to him and passed back the article. "Teacher inspections? It sounds like she's just sticking her nose into everything. I hope she gets it cut off."
Snape snorted with amusement, taking the paper back. "It's another way for the Ministry to try to control Hogwarts."
"Why would they want to do that?" Salazar asked, taking a piece of bread and some cheese.
"Because they think we're building up an army," Snape said, "They think the Headmaster is trying to usurp the Minister's position and become Minister himself."
"The Headmaster doesn't need an army of students to do that," Salazar said blankly. "They're doing that pretty well themselves. The usurping part, anyway. Imagine what kind of fools they would look like if Dumbledore ended up right."
McGonagall choked into her oatmeal.
"Besides, it's not as if my heir was the only danger out there," Salazar continued, taking a bite out of bread. "Werewolves and vampires aren't exactly extinct, and if the current news is correct, they must not be very happy with the Ministry. All they'd have to do is storm the Ministry, bite everyone to turn them into werewolves and vampires, and run out. Their own laws would backfire on themselves."
"Too right," Snape said, folding the paper and putting it on the side. "Then there ae Death Eaters to consider." Snape slowly rubbed his arm and Salazar shrugged.
"Rouge wizards aren't uncommon. Even in my time," Salazar said. "Then again, in my time, muggles were still burning us at the stake and turning us into slaves to create miracles."
Flitwick squeaked and toppled off his chair.
"So, does anyone have a class that's being inspected?" Salazar asked, blinking.
"Divination," Snape said.
Which was why Salazar followed the students up to Divination. Since he didn't have class until later, and his class mainly consisted of students teaching other students, with him supervising, he basically had a free period.
Dream diaries were boring. Salazar wholeheartedly agreed with some of the student's statements and knew that some of them had made up their dreams. Salazar could understand why.
"What about you, Salazar?" Harry asked, turning to him. Trelawney had not even noticed the new addition to her classroom and Salazar had no intention of bringing it up.
"Me?" he asked, pointing to himself. "Well… I dreamed I was sleeping in a field of grass with Godric turning into a giant squid."
Both Ron and Harry stared at him. Salazar shrugged.
"You asked," he said simply. "Dreams are only important if they are defined and sharp. If you can remember them when you wake. Most people can't. I'm better with tarot myself rather than dreams. Dreams are too varied and can symbolize too many meanings."
"Isn't it the same for tarot?" Ron asked.
"Individually, yes," Salazar said. "But put it together and it can only mean one thing."
"Hmmm," Harry didn't seem to be listening anymore, straining to hear Umbridge and Trelawney. Salazar shrugged and took out his wand, pointing it discreetly at Umbridge. Then he tucked it away, but not before Harry and Ron stared at him in alarm.
"What did you do?" Harry whispered.
"Just a little spell," Salazar said calmly. "Nothing too bad." He then swooped out of the door before they could fully question him on what he had done.
Harry and Ron met up with Hermione after the class. Hermione looked a little scandalized at the thought of Salazar cursing Umbridge.
"I hope it doesn't get anyone into trouble," Hermione said as they filed in for Defense Against Dark Arts. To their disappointment, Umbridge was standing in the back of the line. Salazar slammed the door shut just before she could enter and she yelped loudly.
"So sorry, I didn't see you there," Salazar said, opening the door again. "It would help if you were just a bit taller. Then maybe I wouldn't think you were a late student."
She flushed and furiously scribbled at her clipboard. "I trust you got my message for inspection."
"Nope," Salazar said, shrugging. "But you're welcome to inspect anyway. I have nothing to hide from the likes of you."
Umbridge 'harrumphed' and conjured a chair. Salazar turned to the class.
"I'm sure you all know of Dementors—" Salazar was cut off with a sharp yelp. "Mrs. Umbridge, if you cannot stop disrupting my class… I am going to have to ask you to leave."
Umbridge had broken the chair she had sat in. The legs had completely collapsed under her and the seat was on the floor.
Harry turned to hide his giggles. Umbridge's eyes narrowed.
"Mr. Potter! Deten—" she started, but was cut off by Salazar.
"I wouldn't blame him for laughing, as you're plainly making a fool of yourself," Salazar snapped. "Sit down and shut up. Or leave. I care not. But stop disrupting my class."
Umbridge flushed purple and repaired the chair, climbing to her feet.
"As I was saying, Dementors guard the Wizard Prison, Azkaban. Supposedly, anyway, though my sources prove differently," Salazar said calmly. "I was told they—Mrs. Umbridge!"
With a CRACK and a yelp, the chair had broken again. This time, the entire class burst into giggles, pointing and laughing at the unfortunate woman. Salazar was looking none too pleased.
"I would suggest you lose some weight," he said coolly, his grey eyes like ice. "This is the second time you've disrupted my class. One more time and I'm permanently throwing you out, your evaluation and Ministry be damned."
Umbridge repaired the chair a second time and clambered to her feet. "You can't!" she said smugly. "The Ministry—"
"The Ministry sent dementors to guard a school full of potential victims!" Salazar snapped. "They nearly Kissed three teenagers. I don't give a flying dragon about your Ministry." He turned to the class again.
"The only way to repel them, would be the Patronus Charm," he continued. "Expecto—UMBRIDGE!"
A third CRACK and yelp echoed through the room. Umbridge was sitting on the seat of the broken chair, bewildered. Salazar brandished his wand.
"OUT! OUT!" He snarled, waving his wand. The pieces of the chair came alive and started beating Umbridge over the head, the entire class laughing at her wake. Harry's eyes sparkled with delight, his hand over his mouth, stifling his laughter.
Umbridge bolted out with a "The Minister will hear of this!" before Salazar slammed the door shut again. He turned to the class.
"Now that that's over with," Salazar said pleasantly, as if he had never gotten angry at all, "we can continue."
Harry got the impression it was all an act and, from the looks that Ron and Hermione gave him, they shared his thought.
-0-
Salazar's second visit from the Minister of Magic turned out much differently than the first. Fudge had brought a reporter, of all things, into his office where he was grading papers. Salazar's eyes narrowed as he looked at the beetle like woman.
"Rita Skeeter, Mr. Slytherin," the woman said, a quill floating in midair, scribbling something down. "Are you truly Salazar Slytherin?"
"My dear woman, why would you doubt such a thing?" Salazar asked smoothly. "Surely you know of my reputation. I fail to see why you're here if the Minister wanted to speak with me."
"Oh, well, we wanted to make sure we had someone to report it," Rita said, giggling. Salazar smiled, conjured up a chair, and offered it to Rita.
"Oh? Really? Then please, sit. The Minister and I don't see eye to eye, you see," Salazar said smoothly, his eyes flickering to the quill.
Handsome young gentleman, Salazar Slytherin's voice is deep and sensual. Known to be a Dark Wizard in the past, one would expect his teaching methods to be quite effective in defending against Dark Arts. He sits in front of me today, speaking with the Minister about the way he runs his class.
Salazar gave a smile that promised pain to Fudge and slid into his seat. "So, Minister. Why are you here? I thought we had agreed that you would not interfere with my teaching. I gave Umbridge three chances to behave and, like an unruly child, she did not. So I threw her out, as I would any other child not behaving. Do you have a problem with this?"
Salazar was really enjoying the colors that Fudge's face could turn. He glanced at the quill again as the quill picked up speed.
Pureblood and powerful, Slytherin far outstrips the current Minister of Magic in magical abilities. Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, seems to be lost for words in front of the Legend known as Slytherin.
Giving a charming smile to Rita, Salazar slid to his feet.
"I am very busy, Minister. Unlike you, it seems. I have classes to teach and papers to grade. It's a shame that you have so much free time," Salazar said softly. "Perhaps too much. Isn't that right, Madam Skeeter?"
"Perhaps," Rita said, her eyes glinting.
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Harry unfolded his newspaper the next morning to see a blown up photograph of Fudge's purple face in front of a smirking Salazar Slytherin. The enlarged title read Cornelius Fudge Baffled by a Legend?! He gave a snort of laughter as he read the article, noting Skeeter as the author.
A slow, wide smile bloomed on Harry's face. It was nice seeing Fudge at the end of Skeeter's quill. Salazar had evidently impressed Skeeter somehow.
Umbridge's face was a mask of pure fury. Clearly, she had been expecting Skeeter to discredit Salazar in some way. To add salt to the wound, Salazar had also stated in his article, "Whether the one they call 'You-Know-Who' has returned or not, the students must be prepared to do battle at any time. Whether it is an ambush or simple ramblings of a madman, there are threats in the world that will not be pacified with speech. I'm just glad that I was able to help the students before the unsavory woman before me had done serious damage to these children's morals."
Hermione's eyes were very wide. "Oh, I hope he doesn't get into trouble for this," she whispered, half in awe, half in delight. "Well, I suppose, according to the legend, Slytherin is sly and cunning. He could probably get blackmail material on Skeeter if she ever tried anything. Oh, but this gives me an idea!"
Ron looked up from his pancakes to see Hermione bolt from her seat and rush out the door.
Three days later, Harry was sitting in front of Rita Skeeter's Quick Quote Quills for an interview.
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A/N: Well, there you have it folks! I have yet to actually set anything in stone, but… eh.
