Chapter 11
Jan 4th
He cursed the impulsive nature of Lord Thomas Slytherin. The impulsive and irrational nature of Lord Thomas Slytherin. Back when he had been Tom Riddle, or later, when he was some unnamed dark wizard, he had never been illogical or driven by brash, unexplainable emotions like pining for a seventeen-year-old halfblood, much less letting said seventeen-year-old halfblood know so much about his past, and his plans, whatever tenuous, irrational, insane plans they may be. . .
And now he was trapped, unable to interact, to warn, advise, or eliminate threats. How was he supposed to prevent Lord Thomas-bloody-Slytherin from making so many mistakes if he was wrapped in somus paper and shoved in the back of a vault like some forgotten relic?!
He paced within his frame, hand pushing off from edge before launching himself in the other direction. He had raged, he had screamed, and he had attempted to use the protective magics he had been granted but he had been ignored.
How many hours, how many days had he spent trapped within this wretched painting? Confined in this infernal library with nothing to do; the books were decoration; there was no point in creating runes, or developing arithmancy equations because of the somnus paper blocking any outbound magic, as well as his ability to wander through the other paintings in Riddle Manor.
He could curse himself for not allowing another painting to be made and stored elsewhere; he had nowhere he could escape to.
He did not understand why his counterpart had grown fond of the Potter boy; why he had introduced him to the inner circle, why he had allowed the boy to keep the knowledge of their past, why he had lain with him.
Sex was gratifying and he had enjoyed in the past before he was trapped within the painting. . . back when he was still part of Lord Slytherin, but he had never felt a continued desire to have it with a particular person. He had seen them exchanging fluids once, but who knows what they had been up to since he had been locked inside the vault.
Yes, maybe he had attempted to kill the Potter boy by taking advantage of the protective enchantments that were built into the painting, and it had upset the clearly unbalanced Lord Slytherin into locking his best advisor away, but what was he supposed to do? Let his counterpart run around obeying the whim of a soft halfblood who was unprepared for the realities of a takeover.
He leant against the edge of the painting and crossed his arms, contemplating the problem that was Harry Potter. Lord Slytherin would not tolerate him attempting to kill his paramour again, and he could not tolerate being trapped within this infernal frame for much longer!
As he contemplated using a curse to damage the painting, and force Lord Slytherin to pull him from the somnus paper, the vault opened, and he heard his counterpart speak.
"I imagine it will be fine to publish this in the paper. He is above the age of majority after all. Now, this is where you—"
The vault closed again and he didn't hear the rest of what Lord Slytherin had to say, and frankly, he didn't care.
There was a gap, he could see the vault door; and hidden off in the dimensional painting space only he could see, there was an exit to another portrait within the house. Slytherin had brushed against the somnus paper while pulling something out.
He slipped into the landscape in the dining room and began to plot his next meeting with Harry Potter.
OoOoO
Jan 5th
Harry made his way into the Charms classroom, stuffing his invisibility cloak into his bag and tossing his holiday homework on Flitwick's desk before heading to the back and hiding in the furthest corner of the classroom near the windows and he began to wait for the rest of the class to filter in.
Tom had not gotten back to him with the transcript of the interview and the Prophet had oddly failed to show up during breakfast. Harry was forced to assume that the printing process had been held up by Tom's meeting with Skeeter. Tom had left Hogwarts rather late in the evening yesterday after all.
But for now, the gossip machine at Hogwarts was churning violently with him as the prime target with his attack on Nott, the Prophet article, and his running out of the Great Hall on Sunday morning.
Pansy had worn the biggest shit eating grin when she had seen him last night. She was enjoying his discomfort far too much.
The gossip was horrible at the moment but hopefully after the article it would be incrementally better. There would be less conjecture at least. Too many people had gawked at him at him in the Great Hall today which is why he had worn his cloak when heading to the classroom.
Maybe the professors would let him attend classes while invisible.
Hermione was the second to enter the classroom. She sat next to him instead of in the front, as was her norm, and gave him a speculative look, "I heard what happened in the library. . . Thank you for standing up against Nott," she reached over and squeezed his arm briefly.
Harry gave her a small smile, "I know where I'm from and even if I'm in a pureblood world I won't let them forget it." He really wouldn't.
"Good," Hermione pulled her textbook from her bag and began to prepare for class. Harry had always been impressed by her notetaking skills, not that he would tell her that. Last time he had complimented her study guide she had made one for him and tried to force him to follow it.
It did not end well.
"And I believe I owe you an apology for being not believing you about your relationship with Lord Slytherin." Hermione stated matter-of-factly as she returned from handing in her homework.
"I believe you do." He tried not to smirk. He really did.
There was a little puff of breathe before she admitted her fault, "I am sorry I doubted your word. . . in this instance."
"You are forgiven, my child." Harry said in a holier-than-thou tone and attempted to do the sign of the cross. He was going to be the bigger person and ignore that little jab at the end. He had been a fan of hyperbole a few times in the past after all.
Hermione snorted at his antics, "You're such an ass."
"That I am, but a delightfully pleasant one." Harry intoned sagely, his hands clasped together in a mock prayer.
"I imagine your ass is the only reason someone like Lord Slytherin would be interested in someone like you." The sneering tone of Zacharias Smith rang through the room as he strode closer to them. Neither of them had noticed him or his small posse coming into the room and eavesdropping on their conversation.
Hermione opened her mouth ready to berate the Hufflepuff but Harry put a hand on her arm to stop her, "Now, Smith. . . I know you are a growing boy and you probably haven't learnt of these things yet," Harry began in a patronizing tone, "but when you reach a certain age and have a certain personality with certain looks, you may gather the attention of the next King of wizarding Britain. Unfortunately for you, I have the right personality and looks and I caught his attention and I can see that you are jealous," Smith reared back like he had been slapped, "but I will see if I can put in a good word with Lord Slytherin and see if he needs someone to fill in for the house elf when it's sick. I'm sure you already look forward to cleaning his boots."
The room was quiet as Smith's rage percolated, his mousy face grew red and his hands shook as he threw his bag to the ground and drew his wand, "I challenge you to a duel right now!" His wand was pointed at the dead center of Harry's forehead, a red spark dropping from the end.
Harry nonchalantly raised an eyebrow at Smith. He had been trained by his father and Sirius on proper dueling and proper defence and could easily beat the other boy, "If you wish." He stood up and drew his wand, "Hermione, you're my second."
Hermione pushed out from her seat, "No! Dueling is not allowed! Smith put your wand away and sit down. Harry, you do the same!" She commanded in her best McGonagall impersonation.
Smith's wand remained pointed at Harry, "And what will you do about it Granger?"
"I'll give you detention for one," she snarled and prepared to draw her own wand. Harry knew she was avoiding it out of fear of escalating the situation further.
"It's alright," Harry said softly, "Smith is just afraid of losing face. He thought he would be able to come in here and humiliate me, but his friends are with him and now he's stuck in this persona of false bravado. He could try to duel me and lose, or he could acquiesce to you but ultimately be beholden to the will of a muggleborn female Gryffindor," he lowered his wand and squeezed Hermione's shoulder softly. Smith was nothing to be afraid of.
"That's not true!" Smith snapped, and once again, a burst of sparks flew from his wand, singeing Harry's robes.
Finch-Fletchey and Macmillan were exchanging looks and Harry knew they were contemplating drawing their wands as well. It was time to stop this before it really started.
"Expelliarmus," Harry lazily incanted and grabbed Smith's wand from the air, "There we go. The duel is done and you lost." He tossed the wand back to Smith, who had grown white with repressed rage. His knuckles were white as he gripped his returned wand.
The door opened and Flitwick entered, holding a stack of papers, "Everyone it's time to find your seats! Class starts in a few minutes!" Flitwick squeaked as he walked into the classroom and sat at his desk. Other students began to filter in behind the short teacher.
Smith shot Harry a glare, grabbed his bag from the floor and stalked off to the opposite end of the class and sat with his friends who were avoiding eye contact with one another and other students.
Hermione shook her head and sat down, "I can't believe he had the gall to challenge you to a duel. . ."
"And in front of a prefect too," Harry said, "He has the darker inclinations of someone from Slytherin but he lacks the cunning and drive."
Hermione gave him a confused look, "Explain Crabbe and Goyle."
"They have goals, and they only appear to be thick," Harry admonished, "It's something their families arranged years ago. Have your children appear to be stupid and people will reveal their secrets to them, thinking they are too thick to use the information to their advantage. Just wait, twenty years from now the ministry and other pureblood families will be under the thumbs of the Crabbes and the Goyles."
Hermione raised an eyebrow in an eerily reminiscent imitation of Tom's opinionated brows, "Will you and Lord Slytherin be under their thumbs?"
"Especially Lord Slytherin and I." Harry nodded his head sadly while maintaining eye contact.
"Of course. . ." Hermione gave him an unimpressed look.
Harry let out a small snort and pulled his textbook out and prepared for note taking.
The stragglers were coming in and Harry had Blaise sitting in front of Hermione which left the spot in front of Harry for Draco. Nott sat in the general radius of the other Slytherin's but was brushing up against the Ravenclaws.
Smith would probably end up talking trash about Harry for a bit but it was unlikely to affect Harry's standing in the other houses. Smith was not well regarded even within Hufflepuff, the nice people house, so there would be little issue caused by their altercation. Zacharias Smith was a good windsock of which way the wind was blowing with the more uninformed general populace.
Within the school there shouldn't be too many issues or altercations in the future but it was slightly worrying. Harry only had six more months of schooling before he would be released onto the world.
Finger's snapped in front of his face and Harry lurched back, coming out of his contemplative state. Draco stood in front of him, a handsome owl perched on his shoulder, talons digging into his robes, "This is yours," Draco drawled and crouched down so the owl could hop off his shoulder and onto Harry's desk, "The bloody thing couldn't find you and decided to devil me," Draco whispered and sat down in front of Harry.
Harry glanced at the owl and then at Flitwick who was writing on the board and had missed Draco bringing the handsome bird into the classroom. Apparently, his invisibility cloak could confuse owls, "You're Toms, aren't you?" He asked and softly stroked the top of its head before taking the package and opening it.
It was the article.
Written at the top, in Tom's precise handwriting, was First Copy. It was still slightly warm to the touch.
He was about to start reading it when Hermione elbowed him lightly and looked pointedly at the owl that was hopping around on his desk impatiently.
Harry got up, sidled to the window and cracked it open enough for the owl to leave and for a cold draft to enter the room.
"Mr. Potter? What are you doing?" Flitwick tittered, standing on his toes, looking at Harry.
"Just needed some air!" Harry said and slammed the window shut before returning to his seat, "Sorry sir."
Flitwick tutted and began the lesson which Harry promptly began to ignore as he read the article.
Lord Slytherin Tells All!
His Shocking Relationship with Harry Potter and How the Hogwarts Student Stole His Heart! A Groundbreaking Revelation!
Before me sits Lord Thomas Slytherin; he cuts a handsome profile with high cheekbones, a strong jaw, perfectly coiffed black hair, and his most distinguishing aspect, red eyes. You surely know how he looks from a photograph, but being in his presence is something else entirely. He exudes an aura of power and control that leaves many breathless.
I have many questions for him about his history, and his plans, but I was summoned here today to conduct this interview to delve into the history of Lord Slytherin's relationship with Hogwarts student, Harry Potter; Hogwarts Student, son of Hogwarts Potion's master Lily Potter, and Head Auror James Potter.
It is slightly scandalous with Lord Slytherin being seven years older than seventh year Hogwarts student. The age difference is not as horribly drastic as when Queen Calliope took 20-year-old Eugene Templeton as her paramour at the age of 111, but that was six centuries ago and we now live in a more enlightened time where it may be frowned upon to date a someone who has just reached the age of majority.
And I must wonder if we, as the public, would have ever found out of their relationship if it was not for my diligent investigation into the life and activities of Lord Slytherin. So, I asked him.
RS: Lord Slytherin, were you and Mister Potter going to come forward with your relationship at some point?
LS: Yes. Many of my friends are aware of our relationship, as is Harry's family. We had not had the opportunity to discuss announcing our relationship as it is a recent development in our lives.
RS: Oh? When I interviewed you several months ago you mentioned Harry Potter as someone you would like to have retinue. Were you involved at that point?
LS: No. Harry and I became involved, as you say, roughly a fortnight ago. At the time of that interview, I was interested in him exclusively as an advisor and strategist.
RS: And what changed?
LS: I am uncertain.
Lord Slytherin had grown distant when I asked him this. I imagine it might be difficult to pinpoint the moment when a political ally evolved into a romantic interest.
RS: In our last interview, you said that you met during a midsummer celebration.
LS: Is that a question? Yes, we met during the midsummer celebration at Versailles. Harry approached me and we spoke briefly.
RS: And did you have contact between your first meeting and this past holiday break?
LS: Through letters. I am not one to go about sneaking onto Hogwarts property.
Harry snorted and glanced up to make sure Flitwick hadn't heard him. Thankfully he was helping Terry Boot on how to perform the charm
RS: I doubt you would. I imagine it would be difficult for just anyone to be able to grab your attention. What was it that Harry Potter did that garnered your favour?
Lord Slytherin went and retrieved several photos at this point and handed them to me. One was a photograph of Harry Potter in a cavernous, roughhewn room; another with him next to a large statue; and the final was in a small library.
LS: I know through family history what this room is, and it has been searched for since Salazar Slytherin left Hogwarts. Harry Potter has been the first to discover the Chamber of Secrets in a millennium.
I will admit my hands shook slightly as I looked at these images, and Lord Slytherin assured me that these were genuine and that Harry Potter had disclosed where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets was.
I was certainly surprised by this turn of events but I wonder what drove Harry Potter to discover the Chamber of Secrets.
When I asked Lord Slytherin about the motives of Harry Potter, he, quite brusquely, requested that I keep any speculation to myself and that it was time to move onto a different subject.
On page 5 are the photographs of the Chamber of Secrets and we discuss the upcoming Conclave, and his potential Chocolate Frog Card.
Skeeter must have been kept on a relatively tight leash regarding the contents of the article, there was nothing overly salacious written. Harry closed the newspaper and slid it over to Hermione who had been eyeing it. There was no way he would be able to focus on class. Once the general public read the Prophet there would be less speculation but there would be people asking him about the Chamber of Secrets.
He hadn't expected Tom to announce that he had found the Chamber to Rita, but then he hadn't expected it when Tom had told his inner circle.
Unfortunately, it was his only real achievement that Tom could tell anyone about. It wasn't like Tom could tell Skeeter or his inner circle that Harry had uncovered that Tom was a descendant of the Gaunts.
Harry would have to do something else now to gain further reputation as a useful partner for Tom. . .
There was the sound of paper being rapidly turned and Harry watched as Hermione turned to page 5 and stared in shock at the pictures and then looked to Harry and then back to the pictures.
He tried not to laugh.
"Miss Granger," Flitwick was standing a few feet away, eyeing Hermione and the paper speculatively, "Now is not the time for reading. Please practice the avis charm and you can have the paper back after class."
She whimpered slightly as he walked away with the newspaper. Hermione wouldn't risk calling further attention to herself again but it was clear she wanted to find out more.
Harry chuckled and began to conjure a small flock of birds.
The Hermione Inquisition could wait.
