RJStephenson: Over 500 followers! Let's go for 600!
Deadpool: Hail Hydra!
RJStephenson: Woah! Where did that come from Wade?
Deadpool: I don't know. Apparently that's a trend. Also, I apparently help the Hydra!
RJStephenson: The Secret empire issue? Yeah, I think I read that. Why did you do it?
Deadpool: How the fuck do I know? Besides, that's another me. This is earth Ch1m1cH NGA.
RJStephenson: Earth what? Wait… I see what you did there!
Deadpool: Ha! Nothing get past you.
RJStephenson: Of course not. My reflexes are too fast so I catch anything before it goes past me. (Wink wink Guardians of the Galaxy) To the story! Harry Potter series belongs to JK Rowling. The X Men belongs to Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and the Marvel company.
eXtra power twin
Chapter 21: Dueling club incident
When the news about Colin's attack spread, everyone became more paranoid. The rumor mill was up and all kinds of rumors started going around.
Unlike last year, Harry signed up to stay in Hogwarts. He was going to stay and search for more clues. The book he requested for information from Madam Pince was a very old book and thus needed quite a long time for Madam Pince to find..
Harry and his friends were walking down the entrance hall when they saw a notice on the notice board.
"A dueling club?" said Neville.
"Today 8 PM in the great hall." said Hermione.
"That's sounds nice. I haven't dueled anyone for a long time." said Harry.
"And especially in times like this, learning to duel can be helpful." said Hermione.
"So, we're all going?" asked Neville. Harry and Hermione nodded and that's exactly where the trio went 8 PM that day. The great hall had a flashy stage in the middle and was packed with people and everyone looked excited.
Then, Lockhart came to the middle of the stage.
"Oh no." groaned Harry.
"Alright, everyone can hear me? Good! Welcome to dueling club! Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this dueling club so you can defend yourself during crisis. Now I know many of you are shocked that I can duel as well. Many of you are probably thinking Gilderoy Lockhart can duel as well? What can't he do? Well I assure you there are things I can't do. Like, I'm no good at knitting!" laughed Lockhart while no one else did.
"Well, you may not be good at knitting, but you are a fucking nitwit." muttered Harry. To his dismay, the door was closed and he didn't want to attract attention by leaving the hall alone.
"Now let me introduce you to my assistant Professor Snape!" said Lockhart while Snape glared at him murderously for calling him his assistant. "We start with a demonstration! Don't be alarmed! I will go as easy as I can to Professor Snape."
"Instead of chit chatting, why don't we get to actual dueling?" Snape said coldly. Snape and Lockhart faced each other and bowed.
"Now, we will show you the disarming charm. It's nothing lethal, it just disarms the opponent." said Lockhart.
"So far, not too bad." thought Harry. Disarming was very important because real combats sometimes end as soon as the opponents have been disarmed.
"One, two three!" called out Lockhart and Snape quickly said "Expelliarmus!" and not only did Lockhart's wand came to Snape, he was also blasted to the wall.
Almost all non Slytherin for the first time cheered for Snape.
Lockhart got up on his feet and said "That was disarming charm! Only reason I didn't deflect it was because I thought it will be polite to give Professor Snape a chance to properly show how the charm works. Now! Why don't we start practicing? Professor Snape and I will be placing all of you in pairs!"
Hermione was placed with a Slytherin girl who looked like a female Crabbe while Neville was placed with Seamus. Harry was placed with Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hufflepuff boy he talked to couple of times at potion class.
"Let's see… Who shall I put Aiden Potter with?" said Lockhart.
"Allow me to make a suggestion Gilderoy." said Snape. "Why don't we put Mr Potter with Mr Malfoy here?"
"Fabulous idea!" said Lockhart. "Mr Potter? Come and partner up with Mr Malfoy! Actually, why don't the two of you duel on the stage?"
Malfoy and Aiden climbed up the stage, both sneering at each other. Harry rolled his eyes. A battle between dumb and dumber.
"On the count of three, disarm only! One, two-"
Both Malfoy and Aiden must have had the same idea because they sent out a hex before Lockhart got to three. Now, Malfoy was lying on the ground laughing uncontrollably while Aiden was moving his feet uncontrollably.
"Stop! I said disarm only!" yelled Lockhart. Snape used Finite Incantatem on both of them and both of them stopped laughing and moving.
"Now why don't we try this again? And remember, disarm only!" said Lockhart.
Harry frowned when he saw Snape whispering something to Malfoy and both grinning. What were they up to?
"Now, one, two, three!" called out Lockhart and Malfoy yelled "Serpensortia!" A large black snake came out of his wand.
The crowd screamed and Aiden back away from the snake. Because Malfoy was laughing at Aiden, he didn't realize he was no longer controlling the snake and thus the snake began to slither towards the crowd.
The snake began to move around and started to come towards Harry. "Stop right there!" said Harry automatically. And the snake did stop. And the snake stared at him. Harry looked around and saw everyone was looking in shock.
"Go somewhere else. There's a forest outside the school." said Harry. Harry felt weird talking to a snake but for some reason, he felt like that snake could understand him. The snake begin to slither away and then turned to Justin. The snake opened its mouth widely and hissed at him.
"What are you doing?" said Harry. "I said go to the forest. Don't torment innocent people."
The snake slithered away into a hole in a wall. When the snake was gone, Harry looked at Justin. Harry thought Justin would thank him or just look relieved. He didn't expect he will look angry or scared.
"What are you playing at?" shouted Justin and he ran away from the hall.
"Hey you're welcome!" said Harry.
Harry felt someone tugging on his robe and turned to see it was Neville and Hermione.
"Harry. Come on, let's go." said Neville quietly and he led Harry out of the hall.
When Neville looked around to see no one was around, he asked "You're a parselmouth?"
"A what?" asked Harry.
"A parselmouth! You can talk to snakes!" said Neville.
"Well yeah. I think I once went to a zoo and talk to a snake few times. I mean, what's the big deal? I have a friend who can talk to wolves." said Harry. He remembered having quite a good time at a zoo field trip where he talked to snakes and Rahne talked to the wolves. He still remembered a tree boa complaining about some stupid fat kid drumming on his glass.
"It is a big deal. Harry! Only dark wizards have been known to speak Parseltongue Harry." said Hermione.
"Especially since the most known wizards who spoke Parseltongue were Salazar Slytherin and You-know-who." said Neville seriously.
"That's ludicrous. How does having an ability mark someone as dark? Besides, I saved Justin! Would a dark wizard do that?" said Harry.
"It looked as if you were urging the snake to attack Justin." said Neville.
"Slytherin was a parseltongue and people are going to sat you are his descendant or come up with all kinds of rumors!" said Hermione.
"I don't care about rumors as long as I know I'm not dark and my friends know I'm not dark. How about this, I'll go and talk to Justin tomorrow." said Harry.
Next day, Harry went down to find Justin. He ignored the people in Ravenclaw common room staring at him and left the common room.
Harry decided to go to the library to see if Justin was there. On his way, he went past various people, who all were either pointing at him or whispering.
When Harry arrived, he did see group of Hufflepuff's sitting around a table, but didn't see Justin.
"So, I told Justin to stay low. If Potter marked him as the next target, it will be unimaginable." said Ernie Macmillan.
"I'm not sure Ernie. He always seemed like a nice guy. He doesn't seem to be the type to do something like this." said Hannah.
"Hannah, he's a parselmouth! A trait of evil wizard! Isn't that enough? But that's not the only proof. Apparently, before Halloween, some Gryffindor saw him arguing with Filch. And what happens in Halloween? Filch's cat gets attacked. And that's not all. Someone saw him and Creevy in library and Potter looked like he was annoyed by that kid. What if Potter attacked the Creevy kid for pestering him?" said Ernie.
"But… is that really good reason to attack someone like that? I mean, just like Hannah said, he really doesn't seem to be the type of person." said Susan Bones.
Ernie leaned forward. "Haven't you ever wondered why Harry Potter didn't live with Aiden Potter and his parents? What if they knew he was a evil wizard? Maybe that's why Harry Potter don't live with them. He also seems to hate Aiden Potter and Professor Potter. Maybe he's back for revenge and some fun!"
Harry decided he heard enough bullshit and decided to intervene. Harry cleared his throat and all the Hufflepuffs jumped and froze when they saw Harry.
"Hello. I was looking for Justin but I guess he's not here right now." said Harry.
Hufflepuffs looked horrified when Harry said Justin's name. "What do you want Justin for?" stammered Ernie.
"To clear few things up. Like how saved his life from that snake." said Harry.
The Hufflepuffs looked at each other. "No. You mean how you were telling the snake to attack Justin?" said Ernie.
"That's how it looked like? Damn. Well, you can tell him that I was telling the snake to back off." said Harry.
"No, it clearly looked like you were urging the snake to attack Justin." said Ernie.
"Then tell me one thing I could benefit by attacking him." said Harry clearly getting frustrated.
"You can speak Parseltongue, a trait descended from Salazar Slytherin. Maybe you want to finish what your ancestor was trying to do, get rid of muggles!" said Ernie.
"First of all, I didn't even know about Salazar Slytherin before I came to this school. Second of all, my family, not the Potters but my real family, are what you call a muggle. They raised me to pity people who have prejudice towards another." Harry said coldly.
"I'm not going to waste my time here arguing with an idiot. I'll just tell Justin myself when I see him." said Harry as he turned his back to leave. "And another thing, if I really was going around attacking people, do you really think it's wise to go behind me and talk bullshit? Maybe Hufflepuff is really a house full of imbeciles. No offense to you Hannah."
Since Justin was "laying low" Harry decided to talk to Justin later. "Well, then might as well as look for more clues about the chamber."
A secret chamber no one has found. Only Slytherin's heir can open the chamber. The horror within the chamber is some kind of monster only the heir can control…
"Monster? Hmm... Might as well as go visit Hagrid. He might know something about monsters. Even if he doesn't, having a cup of tea with him will improve my mood for sure." thought Harry.
Harry walked outside and knocked on the door of Hagrid's hut.
"Who is it? Oh, 'ello Harry!" greeted Hagrid, and so did his enormous dog Fang. Fang barked and jumped on to Harry.
"Back Fang! Let Harry go!" said Hagrid as he grabbed Fang by his collar and dragged him away.
"Hello Hagrid. How have you been? Are you busy or are you free right now?" asked Harry.
"Come on in! I've made tea!" said Hagrid.
Harry went inside the hut. The hut wasn't very big, but it always had the cosy feeling.
"You know Harry. Yeh really shouldn't be wonderin around alone. Especially with the attacks going on." said Hagrid.
"Yeah, the attacks. Wonder what's causing them?" said Harry.
Hagrid poured the tea and offered him his homemade rock cakes that was so hard Harry wondered if even Logan's claws could go through it.
"Hagrid. What kind of monster do you think petrifies its victim?" asked Harry.
Hagrid scratched his beard. "I really don't know Harry. There are plenty of creatures that can just kill people: dragons, manticores, nundus. But I'm really not sure if there are creatures that petrify its victim. Of course there are acromantulas." said Hagrid.
"Acromantulas?" asked Harry.
"Yeh. They're large spiders. Very large. They have poison on their fangs and they bite their victims firs' and paralyze them. And then they eat them. But not all of them are like that! Some are very friendly creatures! Very misunderstood." said Hagrid.
"Really? Have you met an acromantula before?" asked Harry.
"Of course! Why there's Aragog in the forest-" and Hagrid quickly gasped. "Should not have said that. Should not have said that."
"Don't worry Hagrid. I won't tell anyone about this." said Harry.
When Hagrid looked at Harry worriedly, Harry smiled. "I always keep a friend's secret. As long as that creature is contained and it doesn't attack anyone."
"Thank you Harry." said Hagrid.
"So, who's Aragog again?" asked Harry.
So Hagrid went on to explain about how he got him from egg, raised it, eventually released it into the forbidden forest and how he even found him a wife.
"But somethins wrong with Aragog and his family lately." said Hagrid. "They are trembling and scared. I asked them what was wrong but they didn't tell me. Aragog said it was something his kin feared but couldn't tell anyone, even me."
"What could possibly scare a giant man eating spider? A giant frog?" joked Harry and Hagrid laughed.
Harry took another swig of the tea. Talking with Hagrid was always fun. He was very friendly and compassionate man, who knew how to give good comforting word once in a while.
Harry put down the mug on the table and noticed for the first time that there were two dead roosters lying on the table.
"Hey Hagrid? What's that? Fang's dinner?" asked Harry.
"Oh that? No. Somethins bin killin the roosters." said Hagrid.
"Really? What do you think killed it?"
"I dunno. Could be foxes or blood sucking bugbear." said Hagrid. "This is not the firs time. About month after school started, I found two roosters dead. This is the fourth rooster."
Harry went up and inspected the roosters. The rooster's feathers were clean and when Harry picked up the roosters by their legs, the rooster's heads dangled down weakly. Harry touched the rooster's neck and felt like there were two broken parts inside.
"I don't think animals caused this Hagrid." said Harry. "Look at this. The feather is too clean. If it was an animal like fox, there should be blood plus the feather should have been ruffled."
Hagrid looked at the roosters closely. "Yer right Harry."
"Also, touch the rooster's neck. It feels like it's been snapped. I think it was a person who did this." said Harry.
"A person! Who would do such thing!" growled Hagrid.
"I don't know. Maybe someone like Malfoy who thinks it's fun to torment others like this." said Harry.
"Well, then I'm going to ask Professor Dumbledore to allow me to put protection charms on the chicken coop." said Hagrid. Hagrid then looked out the window. "It's gettin dark Harry. It's nearly dinner time. I'll go with yeh. It's dangerous to go round alone. "
When Harry entered the great hall, everyone in the hall went silent and stared at him. "What is it this time?" groaned Harry.
Harry walked to the Ravenclaw table and sat next to Luna, who was sitting alone. "Hey Luna, did something happen when I was out."
Luna's face wasn't dreamy like usual, but forlorn. "Yes Harry. Something did happen."
Then someone yelled "Aurors! He's here! Arrest him quickly!"
Harry turned and saw that there were two aurors in the front of a hall and those two aurors were no one other than James Potter and Sirius Black.
"Ok, what the hell did I do this time." said Harry.
James Potter approached Harry. "Mr Potter." his voice was pained. "We're going to have to question you."
"Really? And what for?" said Harry.
"Mr Finch Fletchley was attacked. This afternoon." said Sirius. "And you've been missing during the afternoons."
"I was with Hagrid." said Harry. "Ask him yourself. He's coming through the door now."
James Potter and Sirius Black went to Hagrid and questioned him. When Hagrid confirmed that Harry was with him the entire time, the aurors went to Dumbledore.
"Headmaster, the so called "culprit" has a solid alibi. We already investigated the scene and there seem to be no evidence there. I'm not sure if there is anything else we can do right now." said Sirius.
"Alright. We'll give you a floo call if something like this happens again." sighed Dumbledore. James Potter and Sirius Black left the hall.
"Attention everyone! This is the third attack! When you return from your breaks, I strongly encourage you not to wander the halls alone and always travel with a friend. Also, if anyone knows any information about the chamber or the attack, please tell any of the staff about it. That is all." said Dumbledore.
Everyone, except for Harry's friends were staring at Harry. But Harry didn't notice because he was too deep in thought. Then, Harry's transmitter beeped.
It was from Professor Xavier. Update on the X Men. Some are expected to return within a month, some will still be in mission.
After dinner, Harry went to his dormitory and opened up his computer.
"Professor, how many will be going on extended mission?" typed Harry.
"3. Ororo, Scott and Jean are still on mission, Logan and Hank will be back soon." replied Professor X.
"Thank you. I'll send you a message tomorrow." typed Harry.
Then Harry jotted down new information he had gathered.
Only known creature that petrifies its victims are acromantulas, but that's because they paralyze their victims with their poison before they eat. But all of the current victims are alive, so acromantulas are probably not the monster.
Acromantulas are fearing right now? (Could be related, could be irrelevant)
Dead roosters? (Also may be irrelevant)
Next day, after eating breakfast, Harry went to the hospital wing.
He could see Madam Pomfrey walking around busily, tending the petrified victims.
"Mr Potterm I'm sorry but visiting hour is in the afternoons. You'll have to come back later." said Madame Pomfrey.
"No, I'm not here to see these guys. I'm here to ask you some question." said Harry.
"Question? What kind of question?" asked Madame Pomfrey.
"First, how much authority do you have in the hospital wing?" asked Harry.
"I'm sorry?" said Madame Pomfrey, clearly not expecting a question like this.
"I mean, how much power do you have when it comes to controlling the hospital wing?" asked Harry.
"An absolute power Mr Potter." said Madame Pomfrey. "When Albus wanted to hire me from St Mungos, one of the requirements I had was that I had the absolute authority within the hospital wing. No one, not even the board of governors, have the right to interfere with my decisions here."
Harry was relieved. "Madame Pomfrey, not to be rude or anything but how far are you from curing these patients?"
"Not so far I'm afraid." Madame Pomfrey sighed. "In all my career as a healer, I have never saw symptom like this. I think the best thing we can do for now is to wait for Pomona to grow those mandrakes."
"Well, what if I know a specialist that might be of help?" asked Harry.
"Really? You do?" asked Madame Pomfrey.
"He's one of my guardians and he's one of the smartest people I know. He also has great knowledge regarding human body." said Harry.
"Well Mr Potter. I need all the help I can get and if he can be of help, I will truly appreciate it." said Madame Pomfrey.
"Thank you. He's currently on a task right now but he will be able to come around after break if I give him a call. Is that ok?" asked Harry
"Of course Mr Potter." said Madame Pomfrey.
Harry picked up his transmitter and sent a message Send Dr McCoy as soon as he's back Professor.
A/N: Again, sorry with bit of lousy Hagrid accent.
Constructive criticism and suggestions are always welcomed!
Red Dragon: As a matter of fact, I have. I think I read it about two years ago and I found it to be very enjoyable.
Guest: No flames, constructive criticism please. I explicitly stated, ever since the day I started this story that this was a HG story. Again, don't like it? Don't read it.
Star1X: No. They might get mentioned once in awhile but will not appear in the story themselves. Only non X Men characters that might appear is Dr Strange.