1st of September, 1992

Once again, Yvanna offered to help him to Platform 9¾, and he thanked her for it. Despite the various enchantments on his trunk, which was starting to show a bit of wear on it, and how light it could be, he had no wish to experience the muggle way of getting to the platform. When Yvanna told him of two alternate methods, he quickly opted out of them, choosing side-along Apparition instead.

One of the mentioned methods involved stepping into a fireplace, then using a soot-like substance called Floo Powder, calling out the name of your destination and then throwing the powder at your feet, only to be engulfed by green flames before you vanished. He had seen this in the hostel when Yvanna allowed some of the guests and passers-by to use her hostel's fireplace.

Aside from the obvious uncomfortable feeling of going into a fireplace and doing so, once Yvanna told him that she disliked that method of travel herself, mostly because of the dirt that one would accumulate upon themselves, that idea for traveling was scrapped.

The other was the entrance from the muggle-side of King's Cross, which involved walking or running into a brick wall that stood between platforms nine and ten. He considered the idea idiotic, and told as much to Yvanna, her response being laughter, before agreeing. It was foolish to place an entrance there rather than somewhere where muggles didn't come by. But it was a necessity, as the muggleborn and muggle-raised children would know of no other way to reach the platform.

The trunk now shrunk down, in his robe's pockets, and he was prepared as much as he could when Yvanna took his hand in hers, and with a soft pop both vanished from the "Night Bird".

The feeling was still unpleasant to Hadrian, like a squeezed tube of toothpaste, though he noted the feeling was slightly less disorienting than the last two times he had experienced it, once when Yvanna brought him here the first time, and second when she and Vlad brought him directly from it to "Night Bird" that summer before he had to return to the muggle house where the foolish Headmaster wanted him confined to.

The words that the old man spoke still grated on his nerves. But thanks to Yvanna and Vlad's help, and their gift, the brief time he spent at the Dursleys was almost bearable. Though it was uncertain what his Head of House had reported to Dumbledore, once he finished with his visit. Time would tell.

Now, there was only a brief goodbye to be exchanged with the one adult that had shown some kindness to him, despite having no gain in it for herself. Again, the tug in his heart appeared, but this time it had not gone unnoticed, merely shunted away for introspection at a later opportunity, as now was neither the time or the place for such matters.

There was still a train to catch, figuratively speaking since he arrived so early, just like last year. So he did the best he could, and slowly eased himself into a familiar position, falling into the embrace that she was always willing to provide... and the cost? Her fingers in his hair, tangled up.

"I will miss you, little one," she spoke softly before untangling herself from his hair, pleased that he was growing it out and his strands became longer in comparison to last year. Turning him around, face-front, she tucked a few of the errand strands behind his ears, carefully so as to not upset the glasses he wore. "Be safe, and write to me this year, if you have the time."

Not trusting his voice to not betray him, he nodded and the ache in his chest increased slightly. With one faint smile, she vanished with a silent pop from sight, and he turned towards the crimson train, his thoughts swirling in a maelstrom of confusion.


It was in this state, of him pondering the actions, the gentle touches, the feeling of comfort, that Daphne had found him. So intense were his thoughts on contemplating the rather unfamiliar emotions that woke up in him, that he never noticed the platform outside filling out with more people, or the students that had passed his compartment without even entering.

Daphne herself was unsure what to think of. Again, he had changed. In some small way, one that she didn't witness, and the flame within her hungered. She had fed the hunger a steady diet of advanced knowledge over the summer break, her family's library was quite extensive, even more advanced than that which Hadrian indulged in the book that she sent him, for her studies had began in earnest before he even knew of the world of witches and wizards.

Still, she was not one to ignore how quickly he learned, how fast he adapted. Adapted to the school, to the House they shared, to the knowledge it provided. It was a question she pondered sometimes when her thoughts wandered about the subject of Hadrian Potter; how he adapted to everything else in his life that he could not distance himself away from?

So she fed the flame, fed it so it would remain in her control when she was near him, so that her curiousity about him did not get the better of her and expose her too soon.

It was something completely unplanned, the way it started out, her interest in him. She had plans, schemes would be the more appropriate word for it, about pursuing certain individuals once she got into Hogwarts, about subverting their influence into her interests, until the persons whom she subverted thought they were doing it on their own. If her mother taught her anything, it was that.

However, she doubted she could subvert one Hadrian Potter the way her mother did to her father. He was far too cold, far too collected about social interaction with his and hers age-peers. She didn't doubt that his continued thriving depended on several factors outside of her reach, and it didn't sit well with her not knowing what those factors were.

Watching him here, now, and with hunger completely undisguised in her eyes, she conjectured that something of enormous importance must have happened to him to send him into such a deep state of thinking. He did not show this part of himself in the common room, it was most likely kept safe in his and Zabini's room, behind the bed-curtains.

Perhaps... perhaps becoming somewhat closer with Zabini would prove beneficial. He was similar to Potter in a way, though far more sociable, and often she saw her own roommate, Davis, chatting with him about some thing or another. It would at least provide one additional path into becoming slightly closer to Potter. Or not.

Zabini was not close to his roommate, no more than she was with Davis, though she let the girl enjoy the delusion that she was. Everyone had their uses, after all.

Deciding she wanted to break apart his train of thoughts, whatever it might have been, and wanting to keep the sight of this to her, and her alone, she masked the emotions that were quite visible in her eyes, schooling her facial features into the well known mask that the other Slytherins were acquainted with. Then she spoke.


"Potter," a voice broke through and for a moment Hadrian was unsure if the voice came from a memory or outside of his head. His eyes provided the evidence for the latter. And he cursed himself inwardly for allowing such a horrendous slip of control, he had indulged himself far too much in an unsafe environment.

His face was then reasserted into the same polite mask that he wore for everyone, even the ones that he had no positive thoughts about, it was never a good idea to reveal what you truly feel for someone, or it would be seen as a possibly entry point, and then exploited as the weakness that it was.

"Greengrass," he replied back in a neutral tone, tipping his head slightly towards her, and waited for whatever she wanted to say.

Her face showed nothing, but on the inside, she smiled, enjoying the sight of patience displayed before her. He would not speak first, he would not try to engage in small talk, he would wait until the stars burnt themselves out before initiating things he didn't plan for. So she made it easier for him. This time.

"Have you finished your summer assignments from Snape?"

Hadrian was puzzled about this venue of approach. Greengrass never talked with him, aside from the occasional greeting, and the odd short conversation after the All Hallows Eve feast, and their train chatter, which he barely thought of anything significant.

"Yes," he said, half-answering, half-questioning.

"Could you perhaps give me your essays to look them over? I'll give you my History of Magic in exchange."

His response was a single raised eyebrow for a moment, before he reached into the left pocket of his robe, pulled out his trunk and placed it on the seat next to him, before enlarging it and fishing out the essay she was talking about. He handed it over and in exchange she handed her History of Magic essay over.

Frankly, Hadrian wondered why they bothered with keeping that class at Hogwarts. All they ever heard from the teacher were tales of the Goblin Rebellions. Yes, there was some other lesson thrown in occasionally, but he had an odd fixation with Goblins. So even he started taking short naps during that particular class, thus leading to his not so very well written summer homework.

Looking over the essay that Greengrass wrote, he noted in his head where to add corrections to the misplaced battles, the dates for certain events and so on.

Though Daphne had asked him about his Potions homework, she didn't really need it. She was more than adequate, what with her mother being a Potion Mistress of her own, though of lesser renown than their Head of House. Still, it was a way into seeing how Potter fared in the subject.

It was quite an astonishment to her, kept safely on the inside, once she saw how well written it was. It wasn't the mindless repetition one might copy straight from the books with some minor alteration. These were his words, sometimes in fumbled up sentences, yet still making perfect sense. He had written a few passages beyond the required length, but nothing for which their Head of House would chide him for, it was merely him citing from what sources he had quoted certain parts of the essay.

It pleased Daphne that he was quite versatile in Potions, even though he outstripped her, but then again, her talents lay somewhere else that he would not be able to see for quite some time, if she had a say in the matter. No, that particular revelation would happen only when the right circumstances were brought about.


This time it was Zabini who arrived first, and saw the two of his House-mates comparing homework, talking in amicable tone with each other and adding their thoughts on the matter. He was greeted by both in a neutral tone, but a smirk had crept upon his lips while observing how similar they were in behavior. Apparently Greengrass had noticed his smirk and asked, cold tone replacing the previous neutral one, what was the cause of it.

"Oh nothing, just remembered something," he lied smoothly, and Greengrass buying none of it, while Potter ignored him completely. As usual. The boy that he shared his room with was still an enigma for Blaise. And Hadrian was happy to keep it that way. He felt no need for interacting with his roommate any more than what was the required norm for coexistence during the school year.

Other than the Bloody Baron he felt no need for company. And now he had a new addition to it as well. Which brought his mind to how he would handle it when in school. Looking at Greengrass and Zabini, he thought about inquiring for their knowledge on a particular school rule or two, but opted for waiting until Davis arrived. Unlikely as it seemed, the girl might know something that the other two don't.

It didn't take long before she found the compartment and settled herself into a small, unimportant, chatter with Greengrass. It was interesting to watch how Greengrass warmed up to the girl, just slightly, allowing a softness, a cheerfulness one might say, to insert itself into her words, while her face relaxed just the tiniest amount, but apparently sufficient for the other girl. So they talked, and Hadrian was willing to let them talk it out, before springing his question on his compartment companions.

"How much do you know about the rules on pets at Hogwarts?"

Zabini raised his eyebrow at the question, as it was the furthest thing from his guess what Potter might have talked to them about. Davis merely cocked her head slightly to the side, while Greengrass remained the same and impassive self she presented to the world.

"Why do you ask, Potter?" Daphne couldn't help but ask. Another tidbit to feed the flame.

"If you answer my question and any that I might ask about it after, I'll tell you," he spoke in a subtle teasing tone, and allowing a tug on his lips to appear as if involuntary, as if he was relaxed enough to trust them with such an expression.

"Well," the Davis girl began without any semblance of a form, "You read the acceptance letter from Hogwarts, right?" Hadrian nodded in reply before she continued, "Well, you know that it says you can bring a cat, an owl or a toad, ugh who would be stupid enough to bring tha— oh never mind, Longbottom, anyway, you can bring either of the three and nothing more."

"Hmm...," was his reply for a few minutes while he pondered about the next question, "Yes, but that's the acceptance letter. Is there some more rules about the matter or is it evaluated per person if something falls outside of those three categories?"

"Nothing that I can think of right now," Davis righted her head back up and just stared at Hadrian, expecting him to elaborate.

But it was Blaise who spoke next, "From what I remember reading about it in "Hogwarts, A History", you could bring something else into the castle, but you have to prove it's not dangerous to other students, or if it is it must not exceed the XXX classification provided by the Ministry. If it falls into the latter category, you have to sign a waiver at the school, with whomever is your Head of House and the Headmaster, that you accept all responsibility for whatever the 'pet' in question might do. Now, will you tell us the purpose for your question?"

"How about I show you instead?" Hadrian asked, allowing the tug on his lips to turn into a faint smile, "You can come out now," he said the words, while lowering his head towards his robes, while pulling them slightly away from his neckline.

The three of his House-mates looked at him oddly at first but once the head of the creature popped itself out, they all reacted differently to it. Tracey let out a very girly, though not loud, shriek. Blaise moved away from Potter as far as he could without exiting the compartment, while still managing to keep his own clothes prim and proper. And Daphne... she never changed her mask at all, but on the inside, the flame was fed and a wicked smile was etched into the glacier that surrounded the hunger.

"Everyone, this is Eagala, my familiar," he said while petting the serpent's head absently, though not without care, "I've bonded with her over the summer and decided I'd rather bring her to Hogwarts than leave her behind. Thanks to you," he nodded towards Blaise, "I now know for certain that I'll be able to keep her. Though I presume they'll want her kept out of sight most of the time."

By now Blaise had calmed down his nerves and took hold of his reflexes, allowing to move slightly closer to Hadrian, though not as close as they were before, "You have.. a very unusual familiar, Potter. I don't suppose you're gonna spring on us that you're a Parselmouth too?"

"Afraid not," he replied, allowing some mirth to flow into his voice, "She's just my familiar and the only reason why she responds to my words is because she can understand me. I understand her... it's not words, I don't understand the hissing at all, I just understand her through our connection. I'm not quite sure how it works, but it works."

"She's a boomslang, albeit a magical one. I'm not sure about her history, but she was apparently exposed to enough ambient magic, before or after she was born, and spent an unusual amount of her time among humans where she started to understand them. A... friend gave her to me and I gladly accepted once she also seemed to be in agreement with the arrangement."

"She who?" Davis now asked, her fingers pressing into the the surface of her seat, still somewhat uncomfortable with the presence of the snake in the now suddenly very, very small compartment.

"She," Hadrian replied and pointed at the serpent, still petting her, "Come now, Davis, don't tell me you're wary of snakes?" he teased the auburn-haired witch for her obvious discomfort, "And to think you're in a House full of them, it must make you awfully twitchy. Next thing you're going to tell us is you don't shed scales."

"Eagala," he turned his head towards the snake, "if you will, please move back inside of my robes, you can keep warmer that way and take a small nap. And it would be far more beneficial if Davis could start breathing regularly again. Just make sure you hold on tight."

The three were rather surprised by how the serpent almost seemed to nod at his words, hissing something in reply that none of them understood, and then retreated beneath the clothing from which she emerged before. Tracey's response to his parting jab was to blow a raspberry in his general direction.

What Daphne was more surprised about was how Potter faked sharing confidence in the three of them, how he shifted his face at the right moments, to make them feel at ease. Oh how she wanted to laugh at the very notion of it. If he knew but a fraction of her true intentions, making her feel at ease would be the last thing on his mind. At least, for now. Later, with the passage of time, it might change into a more favorable outcome.

She realized he did want the answer to his question, that the question itself wasn't faked or presented to them for some false sense of companionship. There was just a tiny bit of regret in her that she wasn't the one to provide him with the answer, but it was quashed quickly and efficiently. There will be more opportunities to slither her way into his confidence.

This was merely the first chance, and she was confident there would be others. Not to mention how he would react once she unveiled herself as the sender of the book. But not before the third sacrifice. Not before he uncovered the rest of the book. Not before sensing the change in him.


They arrived in the evening at Hogsmeade station, then settled into the same horseless carriages that made their way to the castle itself, though this time they weren't uncovered as they were back in June. It was only the beginning of September but a slight chill in the air was easily felt by all.

It was an unusual experience, to witness the Sorting Feast from a different perspective. Hadrian noted that the Hat sang a different song this year, perhaps it did that every time, before feeling a familiar chill settle besides him at the Slytherin table.

"Good evening, your Bloodiness, I hope the castle wasn't too dull during the summer," he spoke the words with genuine warmth.

"Good evening to you too, little snake. The castle is never too dull, Peeves makes sure of it. Tell me something, I have heard whispers from a few students that you have acquired a pet of sorts. May I see it?"

Hadrian nodded in reply and asked his new companion if she would greet someone that he trusted at in the school. A beautiful serpent, with large black pupils, surrounded by a small amount of red and yellow colors, making it look more like the eclipse of a sun rather than regular eyes, made its way, extending more than just its head, from beneath the school robes that Hadrian now wore.

Her scales were divided into two separate colors though it intermingled with each other. The upper part of her body was of a dark forest, black-green coloration, while the lower part of her body had a more bright green to it, like that of the grass in the full splendor of a summer sun.

"A truly beautiful specimen, little snake. Though I suppose I might resort to calling you something else, lest the two of you be confused," the shade chuckled with rich tones, making the other students that sat near pay attention to what was going on.

As the shade and student continued their talk, filling in each other with small bits of irrelevant talk, they kept an eye on the Sorting, if for nothing else, then for the novelty of it for Hadrian. It was similar as the one from last year. Most students seemed to unconsciously, or not, avoid being sorted into Slytherin. With Gryffindor this year being in the lead, Slytherin ending up with only eight new students, and with a brand new Weasley addition to the Lion's Den, the Sorting was nearing its end.

Hadrian couldn't help himself and observed the small redheaded girl, wondering if she would be like one of her brothers. Would she be a staunch idiotic representation of Gryffindor, like her brother Ronald? Or would she be a mischievous little addition to the twins?

Or worst of all, would she be a female Percival? Strangely enough, Hadrian thought she might even strike out on her own, rather than follow in the footsteps of any of them. Well, as long as they didn't cross paths in a bad way, his interest would be ended with the girl on this night.

There was a slight interruption in his thought process as he noticed that her brother, the one in his year, wasn't even there at the table. Nor was Longbottom. Their absence was noted and filed away for further examination, because as of now, the sorting was done and the feast began.

The feast didn't last long, as tomorrow was a work day, rather than a Sunday like it was last time, and it didn't end with ominous and vague warnings about painful deaths, from the Headmaster, if you wandered about in the wrong part of the castle.

Merely more of his nonsense, presenting a grandfatherly appearance to the new students and reaffirming it with the old ones. The only thing of interest he said was when he introduced a new teacher. Hadrian's stomach felt unsettled.

Gilderoy Lockhart was their new Defense against the Dark Arts teacher. A man about whom Yvanna told him quite a number of stories, of the amount of lies he tried to spew even in his first year at Hogwarts, so much that it even reached past the Ravenclaw common room and seeped into the other Houses.

Who knew what the man did later on in the years? And now he was here. And Quirrell had retired, which sounded very odd. After an inquiry with the Baron, and even some other students that sat nearby, listening in on the conversation, he was told that the teacher for that post changed regularly, on a yearly basis.

By now, it was a school myth that the position itself was cursed and that no one could go for two years in a row to teach the subject without retiring, dying or some third kind of excuse that always seemed to pop around.

Which was at least some good news, as it meant that Lockhart, dressed in those bright sunny robes, sticking out like a sore thumb at the staff table, where most of the professors, other than the Headmaster himself, were dressed in more subdued colors, if not outright black like their Head of House, would not make it past this year.

Each of the Houses left, each in their own recognizable fashion. Tonight, Hadrian didn't need to stay in the common room, but did it nonetheless as there was a matter to discuss with his Head of House. A few students that passed him along the way to the boy's dormitory looked at him oddly for a moment before proceeding past the door.

When Snape had arrived, he had delivered a similar speech to the last one, perhaps even the same one down to the letter, but Hadrian hadn't been paying much attention to the words so much as to the first years that looked at the man, some with trepidation, some with caution, and some already with masks of their own in place.

For the first time he wondered how many of his Housemates, new and old, had learned the masks the way he did. But the thought was quickly shunted away, as he had no wish to ponder such depressive things right now when the crowd of first years was dispersing.

Severus had noticed the brat standing off to the side, illuminated by the blue-green luminosity of the lake's waters, watching as the first years were delivered his usual speech of welcome. It was a necessary thing, the sooner they were disillusioned about certain aspects of Hogwarts, the better.

He always knew that more than just a few... innocents, if one could call them that, made their way into Slytherin. Perhaps they had met someone on the Hogwarts Express, talked with a few of the other children, promising nonsenses about friendships that will outlive whatever Houses they're sorted into. Childish notions.

Maybe, a long time ago, this was a possibility, but now, after centuries of animosity and rivalry... and even more in the last twenty years or so, with the most memorable and powerful Dark Lord in recent history coming out of Slytherin... It was a most perplexing matter for Severus. How had any outside source known that the Dark Lord was a Slytherin? That made any friendship, if such a thing was possible for his students, outside of the House rather improbable.

Not completely impossible though, he had seen a few of the Ravenclaws partake in some small form of companionship with a Slytherin, but the other two Houses? Severus would sooner proclaim the Longbottom brat a Potions prodigy and a better brewer than him, before that would happen.

And he tried telling his Slytherins that they need not follow such a path, as he did in the past, telling them that these individuals that came out of their House did not shape their futures.

But as was all, it all came down to a personal choice. A student would choose what to do, what not to do, and the best he could try is to show them all that was offered on every side of the coin, so to speak. For some, the coin didn't even exist, so set they were in their ways.

The speech was done and the children sent to their beds. All but one.

"Potter, I presume there is a reason why you have not gone to your room?" Severus asked with a stern voice.

Moving away from the wall, Hadrian approached the Professor, "I wished to inform you of something, Professor. It concerns the rule for pets that are allowed at Hogwarts."

Snape raised a single eyebrow, "Continue."

"I have been recently gifted a boomslang. A magical boomslang at that, and we have, quite by accident, bonded. She became my familiar and I her bonded human. I've been told that I would need to sign a waiver for her with you and the Headmaster, due to the fact that she's poisonous, and that she would be considered a XXX class creature, which could potentially harm someone. However, I am completely confident in her and can assure you, by any means necessary, that she will do no such thing unless in self-defense, or in defense of me."

Severus listened to the boy's words with the same expression on his face, while his mind turned the cogs ever so faster. 'So that's how he had improved his living conditions over the summer. Albus will be surprised, and more than that. It is better this way, the brat has found a way to bypass the laws for underage magic and guarantee his safety.'

"I presume that your snake can understand English?"

"Yes, Professor. She can understand us talking, and I understand her through our connection."

"Hmm, and where do you suggest keeping such a specimen if you were allowed to keep it?"

"Mostly on myself, just like now."

"Potter?" Snape inquired, his eyebrow raising up once more and then the other nearly joining it once the brat called out to the snake, and it proceeded to slither outside of his robes, draping itself on his shoulders, the rest of her length coiling itself around the brat's chest. It took a few minutes for Severus to consider the probability of this blowing up on the boy and him as well should the snake act in defense, self or otherwise.

It wouldn't matter what the intent behind the attack might be, they would only see a Slytherin student who had used a snake to injure someone else.

"We will see the Headmaster, together, before breakfast is served in the Great Hall. You will sign that waiver, and you will keep her out of sight. Who else knows that you have her on yourself?"

"Davis, Zabini and Greengrass, sir. Oh and the Bloody Baron. And possibly the rest of our House, since some did saw her poking out of my robes at the feast for the Baron's pleasure. And knowing the way the Hogwart's rumour mill work—"

"— the entire school will know by tomorrow afternoon. What's done is done, Potter. Though I advise you to be far more careful in your... ventures around the school, whether you have the Baron at your side or not."

"Understood, Professor. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Eight o' clock, Potter, in front of my office," the Potions Master commanded and left the common room.