(Tom's P.O.V)
The common room wasn't how I imagined. Hearing the Slytherin's private area was in the dungeons, underneath the Black Lake, I'd assumed it would be cold and dark. It was a popular opinion among the public that Slytherin's held a chill to them that would be nurtured in a similarly chilly place. But the common room was the opposite. The walls were grey stone, with tapestry and furniture in accenting slivers and greens. There was a huge fireplace emitting a warm glow that kept everything dim but still well-lit, as well as fighting off the cold.
"Boys, head up the staircase to the right for your dorms. Girls, your dorms are on the left," the prefect instructed. "Treat your dormmates and the rest of your house like your family. Not many in the other houses feel inclined to treat us as such, so this is the best option available."
His words of warning carried weight among the other first years, and I caught the solemn nods of older students. But this meant nothing to me. I wasn't coming from a warm home and leaving a treasured family, I'd brought my family with me. As long as Harry remained beside me, I had all I needed. Allies and connections were a reason to socialise, but I didn't care enough to try and make a family away from home.
"Can we go straight to the rooms? I want to make sure we're not separated." My Harry frowned.
Nodding, I took his wrist and pulled him to the right. There'd be five names on every door, but the history book said they'd be alphabetical. So locating 'Potter' was easier than reading every name. My Harry was sharing his room with three other boys. Avery, Lestrange and Malfoy. With relief, I spotted my name etched underneath his, providing me with the peace of mind to keep Abraxas away from him. While the pressure was off that the useless blonde wouldn't persist with the annoying flirting, the mere idea of him wanting to 'pick up the slack' kept me on edge. He couldn't be trusted.
"Do you think Cordy and Oliver had a hand in keeping us together?" My sweet snake smiled.
"If they did, we must be sure to thank them."
There was a small heater in the middle of the large room, with five four-poster beds circling it. With a sense of unease, I was reminded of the room we'd shared with other boys at the orphanage. It would be important to instil fear or unease in our roommates to maintain some distance from them. Respect would be preferable, building allies meant strength and support, but it wasn't likely they'd respect anyone with a muggle last name. Perhaps I should seek out a snake to hide under the bedsheets, see how well the other boys fit into the house of the snake.
Harry walked to his trunk, rummaging through his things. Relief rushed through his breath and my chest tightened. He'd been given so little in life that everything held such importance to him that he needed to keep it. I hoped I was perhaps the most precious to him. He looked around pointing out my trunk at the end of the bed opposite his. That wouldn't do. I took my wand from the pocket in my robes, using the charm I'd read about on the train and levitated my things to the bed next to his, swapping with whoever owned the other trunk. I caught Harry's smile before he turned away.
We'd just changed into a set of new pyjamas Miss Cordelia packed for us when the door opened. Abraxas waltzed in, flanked by two other boys. A shorter boy, Harry's size almost, with styled black hair and hazel eyes that shifted from Harry to me nervously. The other was taller and stockier, towering the others like he could do some serious damage if instructed. Malfoy had picked up a bodyguard it seemed.
"Boys, meet Tom Riddle and Harry Potter," Abraxas smiled, eyes flicking to Harry briefly. "My little friend here is Gemini Lestrange, not as imposing as the other, but his intellect is something to boast of. And the mountain is Markus Avery. Both purebloods, like myself."
The two boys eyed Harry with interest. Potters didn't become Slytherins, he was a curiosity to them that they wanted to investigate and use for there own advantage. Not that they'd get close enough with me around. Almost like they heard the thought, I became their focus. Avery didn't even try to hide his disgust at having a Riddle in their dorm because of course, I had to be muggle-born to them. Lestrange didn't look so disgusted, but he didn't look comfortable or friendly. Abraxas didn't shift his attention from Harry, smiling at him with a solid flirty edge.
"Pleasure, I'm sure," I drawled, earning an even deeper glare from Avery. "Would you like to read with me, Harry?"
His green eyes glowed with a smile as he nodded. I retrieved the Slytherin book from the top of my trunk and headed to his bed. We settled against the headboard together as I opened to the page I'd stopped on the night before. He rested his head on my shoulder to get a better view and I wanted so desperately to smirk at Abraxas. He was right about fighting for Harry's affection being a losing battle.
"I've seen squiggles like that before," Gemini gaped. "On an old Slytherin heirloom in your house, Abraxas."
The blonde stared at the front of the book, squinting to recognise the words that my Harry and I could read so clearly. He must have recognised one or two because he reached out to take it from my hands. Before his fingers touched the paper, a hand lashed out to slap his away.
"I bought that for him, so don't think you can just take it." Harry glared.
Abraxas sneered at Harry, an almost welcome change from the flirty smirking. He asked what I was reading and I divulged that it was a history book written by our house's founder. An interesting read, that Harry and I were sharing because he understood the words too. It was a topic that confused my little love. When he read the words, they looked like messy English, so he just thought he was reading a normal book. But neither Oliver nor Miss Cordelia could read our book, and it made him uncomfortable for some reason. I supposed it was because he hated the attention.
"That book is written in Parslescript, the written form of the snake language. You shouldn't be able to understand it, it's a magic language only Parseltongues can understand."
"Then I guess we're parseltongue or whatever because we've been reading it together for weeks. Now bugger off, cos it's not yours." Harry frowned.
Lestrange stepped around Abraxas, "He's sorry, it's just a shock. The last Parseltounges were all direct descendants from Salazar Slytherin himself, and they disappeared a few years ago. For a muggle-born and a Potter to share in his gift, it's almost impossible."
I didn't even try to contain the self-satisfied smirk as I informed him the Potters had me tested in Gringotts. I was a half-blood, my mother had been a pureblood and my father was a muggle. I knew my mother had died during childbirth because of how starved she'd been when she arrived at the orphanage, not that they needed to know that. Malfoy seemed interested in finding my father in the hopes of learning about my mother.
"If she really was a descendant of Salazar Slytherin, you could be his last remaining heir." The boy grinned, "I can only imagine the wealth of power and knowledge in the Slytherin family vaults. And that means you'd own all the properties and possessions. There isn't much, the newest branch of the family wasted their money on extravagant parties. You might have another family too, like an uncle or-."
"Harry is my family," I interrupted, earning a surprised look from all angles, including Harry. "My family matters are nothing to do with you, and I'd appreciate it if you respected that boundary without me having to hurt you."
Lestrange and Malfoy moved away, Avery standing his ground to apologise for Abraxas' overexcitement. So that's why he needed them around, to keep apologising when he puts his foot in his mouth. "My older brother told me that Slytherin runs under a hierarchy of the top students in each year. That means the richest and most influential, like Abraxas. Or the powerful smart ones, like Gemini. For you to be a descendant of Slytherin gives you a say in how the first years work, if you tell people about it."
"He doesn't have to," Malfoy corrected. "The three of us will run the first years, nobody will speak against me and the older students will accept it ones I give them our names. We can keep the parseltongue a secret, at least for now."
I agreed but looked at Harry. They didn't mention getting him involved. He'd be upset if I let him get left out for 'new friends'. But he was smiling at me.
"I'm not a leader, Tom. You'll do a better job. I can stay with Avery when you three go off to meetings or whatever. Right?"
The mountainous boy smiled, not in Abraxas' flirty way but like he was happy he wasn't getting completely left behind. My sweet snake was thoughtful to everyone. He'd made a point that I'd be better at being in charge, and while the other boys agreed that I was the one in charge I'd be happy to join the leadership team in my house. Gemini looked excited to have me in charge, Abraxas begrudgingly agreed. Looked like I was getting everything I wanted thanks to that book. A book Harry had given me. My loving good-luck charm.