Nagini knocked once, and entered the Headmaster's office late in the night.
Dumbledore took her in with a glance, and rose to greet her with a smile on his face. "Ah, what brings you all the way up here at such a late hour, my dear friend?"
Nagini crossed the room, conjuring a rigid chair to seat herself in at the Headmaster's desk. Only after she'd settled did she answer him. The answer was simple: "Voldemort and Harry."
Dumbledore peered at her, his smile fading. Nagini stared back, examining his every line and feature. "I see...well, whatever is on your mind, feel free to share it with me."
"Voldemort's behavior doesn't match what it was two years ago," Nagini said bluntly. "Two years ago, he wanted nothing more than to find and kill Harry. But now, he seems to be ignoring his existence - and even going out of his way not to kill him."
"Please explain."
"From Harry's account of recent events, and what I saw with my own eyes," Nagini continued. "Voldemort had him entirely at his non-existent mercy in the bathrooms. No power, no wand, no way out. But Voldemort didn't kill him - he used a Stunning Spell, and he left him there alone afterward. And, when Harry first came into that Potions lab to warn us of Voldemort's presence in the castle, Voldemort fired a Killing Curse right past Harry to kill Snape. He ignored him again, when he could have struck Harry in the back and been done with it. Voldemort is outright refusing to kill Harry, even when he has the most golden of opportunities ever presented to him! Why?"
Dumbledore nodded gravely, and bowed his head. His hands came together on his desk, and a great sigh heaved his body. "Of course, you would have noticed...you've always been a very clear-headed and clever woman, you know..."
"Thank you. What are your thoughts on this, Albus?"
"I have...more than thoughts and theories, I'm terribly sorry to admit," Dumbledore murmured. He looked up at her, almost fearfully. He straightened fully and adjusted his spectacles. "I know you're a skilled Occlumens, and I'm relieved to know you've been teaching Harry as well...but I would still ask that you not tell him what I- am about to tell you. It is extremely sensitive, powerful information, and if Voldemort ever discovered we held this knowledge...he would do more than kill one professor and two students."
"Harry's skills have been lacking lately in that area," Nagini admitted quietly. "But if this is information concerning him - his wellbeing - then I'm going to tell him either way, Albus. The risk will have to be taken."
"I understand," Dumbledore nodded. "We will indeed take the risk, then..." He sighed. "Do you recall the cursed diary that Harry's friend, Evelyn Milgrid, was memory charmed into taking possession of?"
"Yes."
"As you know, a mere week after the girl's trial - after the Ministry took possession over that diary, and spirited it into the bowels of the Department of Mysteries - Voldemort carved a warpath through the Ministry to retrieve it. And he succeeded. However, in that week in which the Ministry held it, the Unspeakables allowed me to aid them in studying its properties. What we discovered about it was...far more terrible than previously imagined." Dumbledore drew breath, glancing out the window. "It is not merely an enchanted object, given life of a dark persona to manipulate those who hold it and drain their life force. It is, in fact, a Horcrux."
Nagini couldn't stop the gasp from leaving her lips. "Voldemort made a Horcrux."
"He did. This is how he survived that Halloween night, existing as less than even a ghost. His soul was anchored to this mortal world, kept from moving on as all souls do." Dumbledore peered at her, very critically. "We are both familiar with Horcruxes, aren't we, my dear?"
Nagini breathed, her fist clenching in her lap... "Yes, we are - Tabitha," she forced the name from her throat, tight and strangled.
"I fear, however, that Voldemort has gone farther than any past dark mage in history in this regard - farther than Herpo The Foul himself, farther than Gwendolyn or Tabitha, or Gerald The Great and Terrible. I'm certain...that it is a fact that Voldemort has not only made one, but two Horcruxes. And he has had plans of making still more, over his decades of life. Whether he has or hasn't gone further than two, however, I confess I still don't know."
"You know for a fact that diary is a Horcrux," Nagini said quietly. "What are the facts about the second one?"
Again, Dumbledore hesitated. Again, he looked almost afraid of her. Shying away in his chair. "I...am so terribly sorry...but there is a reason why young Harry can speak Parseltongue, a reason why his scar burns when Voldemort is near, or feeling a strong emotion, a reason why he can see into Voldemort's very mind, through his eyes..."
Nagini stood stock still, gripping the seat of her chair as the world of her vision darkened. Her heart in her own ears. Her occlumency crumbling despite best efforts. Emotion roared, and she knew. She knew without needing to even hear the next part.
But the next part was what made it all crash down in a terrifying reality.
"Harry is one of Voldemort's Horcruxes," Dumbledore said gently. "It is my belief, that when Lily Potter gave her life for him, and the Killing Curse rebounded, it struck Voldemort's unstable soul and cast off a piece into the world. Entirely unintentionally, but it did happen. And that piece of soul sought refuge in the only living thing in the room."
It was all so clear - it all made sense. An awful, terrible, heart wrenching sense.
"Voldemort doesn't want Harry dead anymore...because a living Harry...is one more anchor for his immortal soul," Nagini whispered, bringing hand to mouth. She blinked at tears that blurred her world.
"Precisely. He knows what Harry is, or at least, he has surmised it, and realized it is now to his advantage. Prophecy or not."
Nagini stood, a single thought entering her mind like a lightning bolt. Her hand fell from mouth to chest, and every breath was felt as she brought herself under control again. "We can fix this. We can remove it from him. There is a ritual, and a spell to remove the piece of soul from a person and place it into a vessel, to transfer it and bind it. There has to be a ritual or a spell to remove it - transfer it into something else again. Even the same spell might be able to work, if we reverse-engineered it, altered it to...or we'll come up with one ourselves! No matter what, the spell was invented by Herpo to begin with! So it's possible for anyone to invent a spell to do the opposite! To extract from a vessel, to move it safely to a secondary one! We can do this for Harry, and Voldemort doesn't even need to know."
Dumbledore rose to his feet, coming to her and grasping her arm gently. Comforting. He gazed at her, and nodded. "Rest assured: neither one of us will rest until we've discovered the means of extracting this soul fragment from Harry's body."
Another thought struck Nagini, every bit as terrible as the last. "If Evelyn was being harmed by the diary Horcrux...could Harry be harmed by- by his?"
"Perhaps," Dumbledore allowed. "But I think it is the wholeness, the goodness of Harry's soul, and the love he carries in it, the love that courses through his veins...for you, and for Lily and James...that protects him from any undue influence or negative affects. Were it not for those factors, he surely wouldn't be carrying it as well as he does in life. It would be more than a burning pain and a scar."
Nagini turned on a heel, heading for the door.
"You're not going to tell Harry now, are you?" Dumbledore called, his voice twisting with distress and shock. "To simply put something like this on-"
"No," Nagini acknowledged, stopping with hand on the doorknob. "I'm not going to tell him tonight - I need to think. I need to...process. And so will he."
"My door will always be open to you," Dumbledore offered.
"Thank you, Albus."
Nagini stepped out, closing the door with a shaking hand.
The first week of school flew by for Harry.
Lessons were more difficult and complex, essays were heaped on them, as the professors really got into the swing of things again.
The Triwizard Tournament loomed, and with it, the arrival of the foreign schools' students.
Harry was doing his best to manage it all - and to manage Evelyn, too.
He ended up making a mistake in Potions, tired as he was.
His mother's keen eye caught the mistake a second after he'd even made it, and she was aiming her wand to shroud his cauldron in a barrier in an instant. She strode over to his group, her face set. Firm, but appropriately concerned. "H-Harry - I want you to stay after class."
Harry stared at her. Angry, embarrassed, shocked, even. "What, are you giving me a detention?!"
"Not yet," Nagini responded calmly, but with a hint of real warning in her voice. A tone he'd heard before in life from her, whenever he started to push her. "You're not paying attention - that's dangerous, Harry."
"So what do you want me to even do?"
"Work on your previous essay - let your group handle redoing the potion," Nagini stated. She turned away as her eye was caught by a raised hand across room.
Harry glared at her, then sank into his seat glumly.
What was her problem lately, honestly?
Harry lingered after the lesson, watched Tamara and Evelyn go.
Then he faced his mother alone.
"Did you not sleep well last night?" she asked. "You look awful, and you barely payed attention today. Your potion almost-"
"I know, I'm sorry - I'm fine!" Harry interrupted.
Nagini looked at him. That way she had with it.
Harry squirmed, looking at his feet. "I'm fine."
"If you want to talk again about what happened-"
"No...that's not- I don't-" Harry's throat was tight. "I don't want to talk about that at all anymore."
"Alright. Well..." Nagini fell silent. "Why don't you come back here at eight, after dinner. It's not a detention - but I need to see you redo the potion so I can mark you on it."
"Sure..." Harry nodded at the floor. "Fine."
A sigh. "Is there anything you do want to talk about? You know you can tell me absolutely anything."
"I know that," Harry agreed, a smile tugging at his lips. "But- there's nothing I want to say, okay?"
"Okay. Go on, then. Next lesson. I'll see you at dinner - and after."
"Yeah."
His mother hugged him, told him she loved him, and sent him on his way.
"You're doing very good, Harry. It's almost perfect."
In the potions lab after dinner, Harry paused in the middle of his brewing. He glanced at her. "I wish you could've told me that in class..." he muttered.
His mother looked at him, surprised. "Harry...let's talk about that. I understand how you might be feeling like I'm...neglecting you in class compared to how I usually treat you. But you need to understand that when I'm in the classroom, I need to be acting as your teacher, not your mother. I need to be unbiased, and professional. If I show even a hint of favoritism toward you, simply because you're my child, I would be no better than Snape - than how he was with his House and Draco Malfoy in the past. Now, he- he was going to lose his job because of that inappropriate, unprofessional behavior - and the same would be true for me, Harry. The rest of the staff might decide I'm unfit for my job, because of my relationship with you. And the reverse is also true: I can't just let you behave inappropriately because you're my son - I never have. I'll take points and give detentions to you, just the same as I would any other student. Do you understand?"
Harry looked away. He tried to breathe. To focus. To think. After a long time, he nodded, glancing at her. "I guess? Yeah. I- get it."
"Do you?"
"Yes!"
"All right. There's something else I need you to understand, then: I can't just stop what I'm doing with your classmates whenever you want my attention, Harry. I'm sorry. On your side of things, that needs to stop. I need to be focused - potions can be very dangerous - and there are other students who need actual help during lessons that I need to be there for. Unless you absolutely need it from me - like you did today - you can't keep trying to steal my attention. Please." Nagini looked at him, imploring. "I still spend the usual amount of time with you outside of classes, don't I?" she added.
"Y-yes, but..."
"If you're having trouble adjusting to this new situation of ours, and you feel like you need a little more...I can do that for you," Nagini said slowly. "I can give you more time and attention outside of classes to...balance things out for us. We could go out places in the evenings, or go and see Sirius, or Remus, even? We can spend as much time as you feel you need together. Just ask me and we will. Okay?"
"Okay."
Harry felt a little bit better. And a little bit more ashamed of his behavior toward her. He just felt so tired, and so irritable lately...
On Monday morning Harry dragged himself into his potions class, as he had to every lesson today.
This morning had been a terrible one, when it came to Evelyn. She hadn't wanted to give even a hint of cooperation. He'd had to treat her like a living doll, practically. And that had been after nearly half an hour of pleading and negotiating.
Then, she hadn't even wanted to move herself to breakfast.
Harry had thrown up his hand and just pushed her in her chair, all the way through the castle.
She hadn't eaten anything, and she'd slept in their first lesson completely.
The second one, she'd been flat out sent to the Hospital Wing in the middle of it.
Harry was glad for that.
Not so glad when she showed back up again in middle of potions to join him.
But at least she looked better.
She was moving again, so that was something, too.
She kept her head down, never so much as glancing at him.
But Harry thought he saw a flush to her cheeks, once.
He focused on his potion, doing his best with it despite his own exhaustion and irritation with his friend.
After the lesson, his mother asked him to stay behind again. Twice in less than a week.
This time, his mother was...she looked a lot more concerned than last time.
She conjured up a big, cushioned armchair and sat him down in it, and then she sat down right in front of him in a chair of her own. She leaned forward and touched his leg, caressed his face and stroked at his hair. Her lips were a deep frown, her brown eyes were...
"Harry, we need to talk about Evelyn," she said firmly, sitting back and transforming her features into a smooth mask.
Harry stared. This wasn't what he'd expected today - he'd expected more criticizing of his potions. "We're not having s-sex or anything!" he burst out immediately.
His mother blinked at him. "I'm...glad to hear that - but that isn't what I wanted to talk about."
"Oh. Erm - well, what, then?" Harry asked, flushing and looking at his feet.
A breath drawn. "Harry, I've seen how you've been with her this past week, and it has to stop. She is not your sole, full responsibility."
Harry looked at her, shocked. "What're you talking about?"
Nagini took another breath, looking him in the eye. "You two need to start making some healthy boundaries, for her sake as much as yours. She needs to be allowed to develop and have agency of her own, she needs to not be dependent on you. She had that at the hospital, at least - even with all the Healers there for her. They let her dress herself, they let her choose to stay in or go out. She dressed up for you, she got out of bed for you. She took her own initiative. But she hasn't been doing much on her own now, because she knows she can just get you to do it for her. And that isn't good for her. It's not healthy for her, as much as it's not for you. She was making progress, she had motive, but now she doesn't. Because she has you to do everything for her."
"And you...you're her friend, you care, you love, and that's wonderful - but you have to learn to step back and let her go. Leave her care to the dozens of others whose job it is to take care of her here: the Professors, Madam Pomfrey, the Head Boy and Girl, the Prefects! Myself! We all are the ones with the duty and even the skill to manage her mental wellbeing. Not you. Not you alone. She's not yours to attend to and lug around, Harry! And you never should be."
Harry felt plain furious at his mother. Offended. Outraged! "She's my friend, I'm not going to stop - do you want me to just let her starve because she won't go to dinner, or miss a class because she slept in all day?"
"No, of course not. But if you were to inform the faculty about her mental state, we could have all been doing our best to make sure those things don't happen - for her, and for you. Do you think that I'd just sit back and let her starve, or miss a class of mine? Do you think I like seeing you so tired and irritable like this, either? You're suffering, she's suffering, you're both suffering from this, and it's plain for anyone to see. Something has to be done about it."
"You wouldn't all know how to- I can't just trust- what if they got it wrong, what if she hurts herself again?! Because you don't know her, you didn't see..."
Nagini sighed. "Harry, I understand...that it's still so hard for you to trust an adult. To have it as a first instinct to come to us and rely on us instead of taking things on yourself - and people like Quirrell, and Snape, haven't made that any easier for you. But you...you've gotten so much better about it with me, I thought...something as big as this, you'd have told me sooner. Asked me for help. I don't know why you never did. But you need to. For Evelyn's sake, and for your own. Because I've seen you, and you're tired, and angry, and you're slipping up in lessons, and you're not eating enough at meals. You're too busy, too focused on getting Evelyn through the day that you neglect yourself. And I'm not going to let that happen any longer."
"I-"
"An important part of caring for others - the most important part - is to take care of ourselves first. To manage our own health and wellbeing first. And in your case, you need to drop Evelyn's completely and focus on your own - and yours alone. I'm not saying you can't be her friend, or help her now and again, or anything like that. But you need to put some clear distance between each other, you need to learn and grow and tend to your wellbeing on your own - both of you. You need to establish some boundaries again."
"What if nobody can help her the way I can?"
"Harry, don't get a swollen head, please; you need to accept that you're not the best person to care for her - you're not the most fit for the job. It's good and admirable of you to try so hard for your friend, but there are career professionals who can, have, and were doing right by Evelyn in a million ways you couldn't think to." Nagini paused. "But, all these things you're saying, I thought the same thing, once, about you. Remember when I went on that expedition to America, last year? I left you with Sirius, and you got sick?"
"Yeah..."
"You think I wasn't just as scared as you are right now, to step back and let you go?" Nagini said softly. "To trust your care to someone else, completely and totally? Someone I loved so much, felt so strongly about protecting and caring for. But I did it, I accepted it and I went away for four entire days. I was still worried, still terrified, that whole time, I admit it - of course I was - and even more so when you ended up getting sick! But Sirius knew how to help you on his own. He even took you to the hospital, and the Healer said it was the right move, remember?"
Harry nodded, wanting to argue with her and hating it.
"That...is what you need to do here, Harry. Accept that Evelyn isn't yours to care for, and have the courage to step away and trust her to others. Others who would be more fit for the job, people you can safely hand her over to - or on up to."
"But she-"
"Harry, the bottom line is: she is not your responsibility. Her mental health is not your responsibility. And you shouldn't have been making it yours. Because it's ruining yours as much as hers. You've only been encouraging and - enabling her situation. You're not helping her nearly as much as you think with all of this. But I will help her - as her teacher, and as the mother of her best friend. Can't you trust me to do that? If you won't trust anyone else in this castle?"
Harry sat silently for a long time, staring at the floor. He finally nodded, and he slumped in his chair and put his hands over his head. A cry escaped him, and he shut his eyes tight as the rest spilled out too.