Chapter Four

Author's Note: Thank you everyone for the encouraging response and I hope you will continue enjoying the story. Special thanks to MeltingLove and Emthereble for reviewing. All of your support is invaluable.

So sorry for the long wait. I have several chapters lined up but I had not edited and then a lot of things happened at once and I could not find a moment to edit. I will edit the next chapter ahead of time. Please review and see you for chapter five on Friday. I promise that the next chapter will be longer.

Chapter Four-Help

Harry was glad that the first class was history of magic with professor Binns because he could not concentrate even when he tried. The conversation he had had with Malfoy the previous night kept replaying in his head and every time, he could not help the revulsion that overtook him. He had known that Voldemort transferred some of his powers to him when he had tried to kill him as a baby, but he had never realised that power was not all that he transferred. Off course Dumbledore had told Harry about horcruxes, but he had not pegged himself to be one, and he hated Dumbledore even more for keeping this particular secret. He didn't know how to feel about himself now and sighing, he let himself sink in remembrance.

'How do you know about horcruxes?' He had asked Malfoy the moment the other boy had broached the subject. Dumbledore had said that only very dark wizards could know about them, and when Harry and his friends had tried to research the subject in the library, they had only found a single entry that did not even provide much information.

'Father told me.' Harry wanted to snort. It was obvious that Lucius Malfoy would know such dark forbidden arts but the look on Malfoy's face told him that the dig would not be taken kindly, and Harry was in no mood to start a fight especially when they had managed to remain civil for so long. 'He said that the dark lord had been creating them before his death, and when he heard that you are a parsel mouth, and all those visions you had last year, he started thinking that Voldemort had unintentionally transferred part of his soul to you when he tried to kill you.'

Harry felt angry. There is no way that Dumbledore had not come up with the same hypothesis and like always, he had hidden that information from him. He was also angry because he knew that the only person who could have told Lucius Malfoy about the visions was professor Snape. The old doubt that he had always harboured for the potion's master reared its head again, and Malfoy who seemed to sense that in him smirked before he told Harry that his father had no intention of informing the dark lord about what he knew. Harry did not believe Malfoy for a second, he knew better than that. He didn't doubt that Lucius Malfoy would trade that information if he found it beneficial for his course, but Harry really didn't know what to do. He could go to Dumbledore and tell him that Snape was giving information to death eaters, but then Dumbledore would want to know how Harry had found out and that was a conversation he was not ready to have yet. It was too unbelievable to say that Malfoy had slipped during an argument; Malfoy was not a fool and they all knew it, so that story would not fly.

For a while, the two boys did not speak as they sunk in their own thoughts. Both were grateful for the tentative truce that allowed the few moments of peace that each needed to sort out their heads. Harry tried to recall every moment of his life, trying to isolate instances that his behaviour had been questionable. Instances that could prove his mind was not all his own, that he was tainted by something evil. He could not recall any particular moments of wickedness, but that did not comfort him. Harry felt tainted and he had no idea how he would cleanse himself of the taint that he now knew existed in himself. Draco on the other hand watched the play of emotions on Potter's face, and stilled the hands that wanted to embrace the Gryffindor. He could have said that Potter was nothing like the dark lord, but he knew his opinion would not be appreciated so he kept it to himself. Potter would not be ready to listen to an opinion, until he formed one for himself. Draco decided he would wait for that day and did not question why he wanted to comfort Potter in the first place.

They stayed like that for a long time until a voice broke through their thoughts making them stand up in shock, wands raised, and eyes scanning the room furiously. Unknowingly, they had moved to stand back to back.

'Good reaction.' The voice said again and they turned at once to where the sculpture of Salazar Slytherin had previously been. In its place, was a life size portrait of the man. It must have been done in his early adulthood because the person in the image was in his early thirties, long black hair braided in a queue fell over his left shoulder and his piercing silver eyes made the two boys almost flinch under his stare. Although his features were classically handsome, Harry did not have a hard time imagining the man commanding a basilisk to attack muggleborns.

'Where did you come from?' Harry asked stupidly.

Salazar ignored him and turned to Malfoy. 'It has been many years since a member of my house came here.'

'I am honoured to be here.' Malfoy said and gave the man a small formal bow.

'I have been listening to you talk.' Harry tensed slightly. Salazar Slytherin was one of the four founders of Hogwarts and if Harry was not wrong, his loyalty was bound to the headmaster and Hogwarts in every era. 'Don't worry, my loyalty to Albus Dumbledore is secondary.' He spat the name as if even saying it, gave him a bad taste in his mouth. 'I will offer aid to any child of mine and since your destiny is intertwined, I will also extend aid to Gryffindor's child.' Slytherin said grudgingly, clearly hating that he also had to help his enemy's child, especially one who had killed his pet.

Harry stared in shock, but Malfoy masked his feelings well.

'I will gladly accept any help the founder has to offer.' Malfoy said and after a quick jab in the ribs, Harry also accepted although he was a bit worried about accepting help from the founder of a house that had produced more dark lords in history than all the other houses combined. For him to be a founder, Slytherin had to be insanely powerful even in death, and turning down such an ally would be foolhardy and Harry wasn't that foolish.

Slytherin nodded. 'First things first.' The painted arm pointed to somewhere behind them and they turned to see that a niche had opened on the pillar directly behind them. Harry and Draco both walked to it and found two neck chains which seemed to be woven from crystal. They each took one and for a moment stood there admiring the way light seemed to be absorbed into the crystal-like substance.

Harry was removed from his thoughts by Hermione who was urgently poking him in the ribs asking him to concentrate in class. He sighed in resignation and pretended to care about how the war of 1232 between vampires and werewolves had led to a great decline in both their numbers. Without thought, he fingered the crystal around his neck, now he could enter the chamber of secrets without having to go to Myrtle's bathroom and Slytherin had also said the necklace had other properties that they would discover in time.

Please review…