WARNING, PLEASE READ! THIS CHAPTER DOES CONTAIN AN ADULT BEHAVING INAPPROPRIATELY WITH A CHILD. IT IS NOT TOO GRAPIC BUT IT CAN STILL BE TRIGGERING/UNCOMFORTABLE TO READ
PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE MARKED SECTION WHEN READING
As always a special thank you to my Beta, Emerald Ashes
Breakfast the next morning was horrible. The story of the attack on Mrs. Norris, the message on the wall and Harry being discovered at the scene of the crime spread like wildfire through the school.
"Hey, Potter? Attack anyone today?"
"Watch out, Potter, Filch's got it out for you."
Even worse than the catcalls were those who actively avoided him with frightened faces, whispering behind his back. It was enough to nearly make him skip breakfast, but Ron and Hermione refused to let him.
"It'll die down," encouraged Ron as he guided Harry over to the Gryffindor table. "Once they catch the real culprit, everyone will know you didn't do it."
"Ron's right, Harry," added Hermione, "come and eat breakfast"
Reluctantly, Harry sat and loaded a few pieces of toast on his plate.
"So, what do you reckon the Chamber of Secrets is?" asked Ron once they were settled.
"I don't know. I remember reading something about it in Hogwarts a History, but, when I went to the library, they'd all been check out, and the waiting list is ridiculous!" said Hermione.
"Oh! So that's where you were this morning!" cried Ron. "But, don't you, you know, already own Hogwarts a History?"
Hermione sighed. "Yes, but I had to leave it behind to make room for all of Professor Lockhart's books."
Ron opened his mouth, probably to say something about Hermione's book habits, but Harry broke in.
"Snape told me about the Chamber," he muttered, grateful for the potion in his goblet, which allowed him to eat even when he'd normally be a wreck. Ron and Hermione stared at him in shock.
"No way, are you serious, mate? Snape? Snape told you about the Chamber of Secrets?" gasped Ron in astonishment.
Harry nodded.
"When? What did he tell you?" asked Hermione, breathless with excitement.
"I asked him about it when he was walking me back up to the Gryffindor Tower, last night," Harry admitted, dropping his voice to prevent eavesdroppers. The other two leaned in closer, straining to hear him over the babble of the Great Hall.
"And?" asked Ron impatiently.
"Apparently, it's some hidden chamber Salazar Slytherin left behind when he left the school. I guess it can only be opened by his "true Heir," and it has some kind of monster in it," Harry told them.
Ron frowned. "Why'd he leave, and what kind of monster?"
"Salazar Slytherin was notorious for his dislike of Muggleborns. I suspect he didn't take too kindly to the other Founders' belief that all children born with magic should be educated," said Hermione distastefully.
"Yeah, I bet he didn't" – Ron scowled before he turned back to Harry – "Well, that answers that question, but not the most important one, like what monster is in the Chamber."
Harry shook his head. "Snape said he didn't know what the monster was or who the Heir was."
"I bet I know who the Heir is," said Ron.
"Who?" asked a skeptical Hermione. Ron gave the Slytherin table a significant glance, and Harry and Hermione followed his gaze.
"No," laughed Hermione, "you can't be serious, Ronald!"
"It fits though, doesn't it? You heard him after the feast, "you'll be next Mudbloods." Who else do we know that hates Muggleborns?" Ron justified.
"Yes, but really, Draco Malfoy?" Hermione shook her head.
"What do you think, Harry?" asked Ron, searching for support.
Harry bit his lip and looked back at the blond boy surrounded by his usually cronies. Snape's comment that the attack on Mrs. Norris would need powerful and advanced dark magic came floating back to him. Sure, Malfoy had the motive, but Harry wasn't sure he had the capability to control a monster like that.
"I don't know, maybe." Unease curled his stomach.
"If only we could get into the Slytherin common room. I bet Malfoy's just lapping it up to his cronies," sighed Ron as if Harry had agreed with him. Harry didn't bother to correct him.
"Even if we could, it's not like Malfoy would just tell us," Harry pointed out instead. A pensive expression came over Hermione's face, like she was trying to answer a difficult homework question.
"What?" Ron asked her.
"Well," she began slowly, "what we need is something that would allow us to gain entrance into the Slytherin common room, to question Malfoy without him knowing it us."
"Yeah, and?" Ron pressed impatiently.
"Oh, Ronald, don't you pay attention in class? Snape mentioned it weeks ago, when we were brewing the hair color changing potion."
Harry frowned. He vividly remembered that class since he'd spent it trying to prevent Malfoy from sabotaging his potion. Needless to say, he didn't recall his teacher saying anything about a potion that would allow them to question Malfoy undetected.
"Not everyone hangs on the teacher's word like you do, Hermione, so why don't you tell us?" groused Ron.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Polyjuice Potion, Ron, Snape said it allows the drinker to take on the appearance of another person."
"A potion that allows you to become another person?" said Harry, wide-eyed.
Hermione nodded. "The problem is that Snape said it's in a book called Moste Potente Potions, which is almost certainly in the restricted section, so we'd need teacher permission to get it."
At this, Ron turned excitedly to Harry.
"Harry, you and Snape have been getting along. Why don't you . . ."
"No," Harry cut him off, "if I ask Professor Snape, he'll be suspicious, and I'm sure this potion isn't the kind they want students to brew."
Unease twisted Harry's belly and he pushed away his mostly eaten breakfast. He wasn't sure what his relationship with Snape was, but it had become too important to risk, even over finding out who was behind the attack.
"Harry's right Ron," Said Hermione. She gave Harry a knowing look.
"Alright then –What about Lockhart?"
Harry stomach clenched even tighter.
"Lockhart?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
"Yeah, he'd give you the moon, if you asked you him, mate," laughed Ron. "Just say you need it to 'expand your understanding of his books' and shove a piece of paper under his hands. He'll sign anything that holds still long enough."
"I-why can't Hermione do it? She'd be more convincing," asked Harry desperately.
"Me?" squeaked Hermione. "Ask Professor Lockheart?" she looked both terrified and awestruck. Ron just rolled his eyes.
"Because she's liable to faint by just being near the git . . ."
"He's not a git Ronald-"
"So it'll have to be you."
Mouth dry, Harry nodded, wishing he hadn't eaten the last bit of toast. He tried to remind himself that Ron and Hermione would be there, and what did it matter if Lockhart gave him weird looks. It was completely harmless, right?
Severus resisted the urge to groan and massage the massive headache building right between his eyes. They were planning something; he could tell just by the way they leaned in close to each other and the pale, nervous expression on Harry's face. If he was lucky, they were plotting something along the lines of the Weasley twins, but he doubted it.
The Golden Trio rarely played pranks. No, whatever scheme they had would be dangerous, break hundreds of school rule and involved Mrs. Norris's petrification.
Again, he cursed McGongall's dismissal of their concerns, last year. Severus knew the kind of effect that must have had on Harry. After all, when Severus's head of house dismissed his confession about abuse at home, he'd turned to the much more sympathetic Death Eaters in training.
At least Harry wasn't likely to fall to the same temptation. Severus drummed his fingers on the table; the best he could really do was speak to Harry after class, hope the child would listen to his warning and continue to keep an eye on them.
He bit back a sigh. Forget the Dark Lord; these children would be the death of him! Finishing off his breakfast, Severus took his leave of the staff table and made his way down to the dungeons to prepare for his first class.
As Severus passed students in the hall, he caught unmistakable whispers of speculation about the attack. A disturbing number laid the blame on Harry's shoulders.
It didn't surprise him, really. Quite a few people feared that Harry possessed some dark power that he used to vanquish the Dark Lord. Severus thought the lot of them were simpleminded fools scared of anything that didn't fit into their perfect world.
Unfortunately, the world was made up of such idiots. Severus just had to suffer through them and the children they sent him to teach. He stepped into his classroom and flicked his wand to gather the notes he needed for the days lessons.
The bell rang, signaling the end of breakfast, and, soon after, students began trickling through the door. Harry and his friends were among the first to arrive. For a moment, the dark haired child hesitated, glancing up at the table nearest Severus's desk.
"Harry? Are you all right?" called Granger. Harry looked around at her before going to join them in the back, but not without sending him an apologetic look over his shoulder.
Severus just nodded his head. It wasn't as if his feeling were hurt. He could careless where the child sat in his classroom. Actually, since the back was farther from the Slytherins, it might be for the best.
Speaking of Slytherins, Severus glanced at Draco Malfoy. Draco didn't have quite the cunning of his father, but he certainty had all the airs of a Malfoy. Spoiled almost to the point of ruin, Draco was under the misguided impression that his name and wealth entitled him to the world.
Draco was just lucky that his father had a bit of real power within the ministry; otherwise, several of the older Slytherins would show less . . . tolerance towards Draco's ego.
Even so, there was still hope for Draco, for all that he parroted the Dark Lords teaching. Even now Severus could tell Draco would make a poor Death Eater. He lacked the stomach for it.
The last bell rang, pulling Severus out of his musings. He schooled his expression to a glare.
"Those of you who completed last night's reading are award that, today, we will be brewing the Hair-Raising Potion." Severus drawled, taking in the students' expressions. He didn't need Legilimency to tell who had completed the reading.
"Mr. Finnigan, what is the main ingredient in a Hair-Raising potion?"
Finnigan and Thomas stopped snickering immediately, their faces blank and terrified.
In the back of the room, Granger's hand snapped to attention.
The silence stretched on, and Severus took some pleasure in letting them sweat. Potions were no joking matter. Plenty of brews were deadly if made incorrectly, though perhaps not at this level. Finally, he decided he had let the boys sweat for long enough.
"No idea? Five points, each, from Gryffindor for failing to do the assignment."
He deliberately turned away from the Gryffindors. Severus knew that Granger or Harry could answer the question, but he preferred for his Slytherins not to notice any differences in his behavior.
Instead, he called on Draco, who managed the correct answer: rat tails.
The rest of the lesson went as well as could be expected in a Gryffindor-Slytherin class. Longbottom managed to explode his cauldron, covering himself and those foolish enough to set near him and causing their hair to grow exponentially. Crab and Goyle were only marginally better since Draco prevented them from doing anything truly stupid. Finnigan, Thomas and Weasley managed better than he expected, but their potions still amounted to nothing more than sludge.
Granger's potion was, of course, perfect, followed closely by Draco's and surprisingly Harry's. It was amazing the change that a decent pair of glasses and a tiny bit of encouragement could make. If Longbottom weren't such a blubbering idiot, Severus would be tempted to try the same technique on him, for no other reason than to save his cauldrons.
The lesson came to an end, and the students bottled up their potions and packed their bags, all the while chatting noisily.
"Potter!" Severus called over the racket. Harry looked up, startled, and made eye contact.
"Remain behind. I wish to have a word about your potion."
The Slytherins snickered and Severus distinctly heard Draco hiss, "You've done it now, Potter. He probably wants to know how you cheated," as he pushed past the trio.
For all that Harry glared at his rival and muttered back, "Shut up, Malfoy," Severus could see that he looked worried.
Once Harry managed to shoo his friends out of the classroom he tentatively stepped up to the desk.
"Sir?" he murmured, "Sir, I swear I wouldn't . . ."
"I am aware that you did not cheat on your potion, which was a far more adequate potion than your previous attempts," Severus soothed. He knew the compliment was weak, but it was the best he could do.
Harry flushed with pride and bounced on his heels in nervous excitement, clearly over the moon about his teacher's clumsy praise.
"Thank you, sir!"
Severus nodded, eager to move on so that he could avoid analyzing the child's reaction and what it said about his home life.
"As I said, Mr. Potter, you are not in trouble, at least not yet. I simply wished to impart a warning and reiterate what I told you last night." He paused for a moment to let his words sink in then continued.
"I realized you have little reason to trust adults, so I will not ask you to trust me now. However, I do ask that you use your head."
Severus saw confusion in Harry's eyes.
"What do you mean, sir?"
"What I mean, Harry, is that I want you to think before you go gallivanting into danger, but, most of all, I want you to understand that I will not dismiss your concerns," said Severus, making sure to not break eye contact.
Harry shifted uncomfortably under his gaze and looked away before he nodded. Severus wasn't surprised the boy failed to spill whatever mischief he and his cohorts planned. The few times Harry had admitted to something, he'd been vulnerable, willing to trust anyone who appear to care even a little. Right now, though, Harry's guard was firmly in place, but all wasn't lost. The seed Severus had so carefully fostered had sunk a little deeper, and that would have to be enough, for now.
Seeing that Harry had reached his limit, Severus scribbled a note for the child's next teacher, sneering when he realized it was Lockhart.
"Thank you, sir," said Harry politely as he accepted the note. Severus inclined his head in acknowledgement and sent him on his way. All he could do now was hope that Harry thought things through, or that he caught the trio before they were injured.
Harry's heart pounded in his chest as he made his way to Lockhart's classroom. He barely noticed the flamboyant teacher's excited, "Harry! So lovely of you to join us. Ah! I see you have a note."
Quickly, Harry shook him off and went to join Ron and Hermione at the back of the room.
"Wha' happened, mate?" whispered Ron as Harry slid into the seat they'd left open between them.
Hermione leaned in closer, and Harry stalled for time by pulling out his books, ink, and parchment.
"He knows," he told them finally.
"Knows? You mean about . . . but how?" hissed Hermione.
Harry shook his head. "Not specifically, but he knows we're planning something, and he wanted to . . ."
He stopped, unsure of what exactly Snape had wanted to do.
"Did he lay into you?" assumed Ron with sympathy.
"Not . . . not really, it was more like he wanted to warn me not to do it, that, if I had concerns, he'd listen."
Ron and Hermione shared looks before Hermione said, "Well that's . . ."
"Weird," interjected Ron.
"Maybe," said Harry to prevent Hermione from scolding the redhead, "either way, it's kinda risky to go through with the potion now. I mean this is Snape."
Hermione seemed to agree with him.
Ron, however, said, "Can't hurt to get the book though, right? Maybe it won't be anything tricky."
Harry doubted that a potion in a book in the restricted section would be anything other than tricky. Still, Ron had a point; it didn't hurt to at least look at the potion.
So, at the end of class, he, Ron and Hermione waited until everyone hurried out on their way to lunch, before approaching Lockhart's desk. Harry clutched a piece of parchment with the name of the book written on it for Lockhart to sign.
"Harry! I see you've finally decided to take advantage of my wisdom!" crooned the self-absorbed teacher. Harry felt a sick shiver run down his spine.
"Um, yeah, I uh . . . wanted to ask you something, Professor," said Harry and Lockhart beamed at him.
"Well, we hardly need an audience for that Harry, plenty of time for that when you're older. Why don't your friends just head on to lunch."
The last thing Harry wanted was to be left alone with Lockhart, but it was clear they weren't going to get the book unless Ron and Hermione left.
"We'll see you at lunch, Harry," called Ron over his shoulder as he pulled the door closed behind them.
Now, Harry was alone with Lockhart.
-WARNING-
"Professor, I just wanted to ask-"
"Harry, Harry, Harry," chanted Lockhart as he circled out from his desk to stand behind Harry. "There's no need to rush."
There were hands now on Harry's shoulders, kneading the taunt muscles even as he guided Harry over to the nearest desk and pushed him into the chair.
"We can take it slow, Harry. It's obvious why you're here."
Now, the hands slid lower down his front to loosen his tie and undo the top most buttons on his shirt. Lockheart's hot breath was in his ear. The parchment shook violently in Harry's hand.
"You-you do?" Harry squeaked, frozen with fear.
"Of course I do, Harry. You've been playing hard to get, avoiding me, even sending Severus to warn me away from you!" laughed Lockhart.
"H-he did?"
Lockhart nodded. "You've been a very naughty boy, Harry"
The hands were pulling back his shirt collar, exposing his neck and leaving Harry vulnerable.
"But, I knew you'd come round. They always do," whispered Lockhart.
He pressed his lips to the shell of Harry's ear, trailing down to his neck. Harry was utterly numb and lost in his fear until Lockhart bit down sharply. The paralyzing fear gave way to flight as Harry tore away so violently he toppled over the desk, bring both the desk and himself toppling to the ground. Even though Harry ached from fall, it didn't slow his momentum as he surged up, scrambling for the door. Yanking it open, Harry burst in to the hallway, ignoring Lockhart's cry for him to stop.
-WARNING END -
Harry simply ran, half blinded by tears, hands clamped over his mouth trying to shove down the bile rising in his throat. Somehow he made it to a bathroom and the toilet before he vomited. When there was nothing left and his stomach stopped heaving, Harry slid in between the toilet and the stall wall.
It was a while before he felt safe enough to unclench his tightly curled body. He finally managed to stand and stumble to the sink, yet he nearly vomited again when he saw his reflection in the mirror. At the juncture between his neck and his shoulders was a distinct bite mark, bleeding sluggishly. Slowly, Harry raised a hand to touch the awful mark but quickly jerked it back down before he actually could.
Quickly, he wetted a strip of toilet paper and wiped away the blood. He then dug around in his bag for the Muggle Band-Aids he'd swiped from the Dursleys, and stuck the largest one he could find on it. Taking a few deep breaths, forcing himself not to think about what just happened, Harry buttoned his shirt and redid the tie with trembling fingers.
Only after he'd rinsed out his mouth and splashed his face did Harry dare to leave the bathroom.
With trepidation, Harry decided to go ahead and catch the last few minutes of lunch. He didn't want to go, but he knew, if he didn't, Ron and Hermione would notice and ask questions. Bad enough the Dursleys knew he was a freak, but, he didn't think he could bear his friends discovering he was such a weirdo that Lockhart thought he wanted that…
Harry felt sick all over again. No, he would keep this quiet. No one had to know. Besides, Lockhart was famous and an adult; no one would believe Harry over him.
So he left the bathroom and made his way to the noisy, laughter-filled Great Hall, feeling like he would never laugh again. When Harry sat next to his best friends, they both looked at him expectantly.
"So, how'd it go? You were gone a long time, mate," said Ron excitedly.
"Yeah, um he talked a lot and then I had to go to the bathroom, but he didn't sign it," Harry muttered.
"Really? I'd have thought he'd sign anything."
"He probably just didn't want us getting into trouble, Ronald. He's looking out for our safety," said Hermione, awe in her voice.
Harry felt sick again.
"Yeah, I'm sure that it." The words felt like poison on his lips, and he repressed a shudder. Unbidden, Harry's eyes were drawn to the staff table where Professor Gildroy Lockheart had just entered. The flashy man smiled at Harry, but it didn't reach his eyes. Harry's stomach dropped, and he hastily looked away.
"Guess we'll have to try something else," said Ron, oblivious to Harry's distress.
"Yeah, I guess so," said Harry, feverishly thinking that, the farther away from Lockhart it took him, the better.
Author's note
Sooo, that was an action packed chapter. I just want to say that I do not condone child molestation/rape in any way, shape, or form. Its evil, sick, twisted and just plain wrong. That being said, why have I written a fan fiction that has child molestation in it? Because I firmly believe that issues such as this have to be talked and written about.
Ignoring sensitive issues such as abuse doesn't mean it goes away, it just means it been swept under the rug where it will become even more of an issue.
I don't pretend to know what I'm talking about, like I said, I'm not a therapist, or physiologist, and I've never been abused. But that doesn't mean I don't want to speak out against it, even if it is in just a fan fiction.
On another note, I also promise that this is as graphic as this story is going to get and I still believe it fits under a T rating. If you think I'm wrong and I need a higher rating or something, I ask that you either send me a review or a PM with your concerns, be warned though, if it's a flame I am going to ignore it.
Finally, college is starting back up for me soon and I will be working two jobs at the same time, my updates might be very few and far between but I will be writing and posting when I can.
Thank you all so much for your reviews and support, I hope I haven't disappoint too many.
Until next time,
Zx14ninja