A deal with the Snake

Harry turned around and came face to face with an old bald man with a long white beard that could have rivaled Dumbledore's one. However, this beard was very well groomed and neatly trimmed. In fact, everything about this man seemed orderly and his clothes looked expensive however unvarnished. The only visible adornment was a fine silver jewelry that looked like a snake meandering around his beard. His green eyes were fixed on Harry, a brief smile on his lips.

Harry looked at the man and at the statue. Could it be…? No, it wasn't possible.

'It's also very ill-mannered to stare at someone,' continued peacefully the man who looked very amused.

'Excuse me, Sir,' started Harry. 'It's just that I didn't expect anyone to come here tonight.'

'Well, I wouldn't have revealed myself if it hadn't been for reminding you that you are a host here, and as such I would like to show some respect to this place.'

'Right…,' said Harry after a stunned silence. 'You are right, I am sorry Sir. It wasn't my intention to break the statue.'

'I can tell it wasn't,' said the old man while inspecting Harry. The boy had a strange aura, but beyond it was laying powers that the boys seemed to ignore. Power he possessed and power that seemed of a alien source.

'Excuse me, Sir,' said Harry not able to hold his question anymore. 'But… are you… Salazar Slytherin?'

'A mere projection,' answered Salazar. 'A memory I left behind me.'

The words weren't foreign to Harry who was transported in his second year for a brief instant. He pointed toward the basilisk.

'Are you the same kind of memory as the one Tom Riddle left?'

'The principle is the same,' nodded Salazar. 'The details, however, differ.' The old man narrowed his eyes on the intriguing boy. He had witnessed the events in this Chamber three years ago and had seen his descendant fail. He should have despised the boy standing before him, but he could not bring himself to see him as an enemy. The boy was a Parseltongue and this was Slytherin heritage. His heritage.

'Tell me, Harry Potter, are you from Gryffindor's house?'

'I am,' answered the boy trying to gain some composure back.

Salazar tilted his head. That was surprising and interesting.

'Had no one ever told you would have been great in Slytherin?'

'Well, I should have gone to Slytherin,' said Harry surprised by his honesty. 'But I asked to be placed in Gryffindor.'

'Is that so?' Replied Salazar with an intense gleam in his eyes. 'Well, I must say you surprise me young man. But if you'll allow me, I would like to go back at the subject at hand.' He nodded toward the broken statue. 'I hate disorder. Would you be so kind to repair the chaos you have caused?'

Harry pulled out his wand, suddenly quite ashamed of the shattered statue. Salazar was right. The Chamber was a sanctuary and he had disturbed the peace in it.

'Reparo!' He shouted while pointing the wand at the scattered stone shards.

But nothing happened. He tried again, but the shards remained motionless. This was very embarrassing. He wasn't a very good wizard, he knew that. But he wasn't that bad… come on!

'Reparo!' He shouted again. The result didn't differ.

He turned toward Salazar, avoiding the amused look of the older man.

'Maybe I should have warned you first,' said Salazar. 'See? I built this place using a very special kind of magic. A kind of magic that has grow scarcer by the ages, I am afraid. If you don't use this magic, the Chamber will never obey you.'

'Do you mean I have to cast the spell in Parseltongue?'

'No, young man. It is not about the language, it is about the magic. I built this place without a wand using my imagination. No spells were involved.'

Harry was still clueless about what Salazar was meaning.

'I used what you call wandless nonverbal magic. And this that you will need to repair the statue.'

'But I don't know how!' Blurted Harry.

Salazar's eyes glimmered.

'I could teach you,' whispered the old man.

Harry looked at Salazar in disbelief. He thought first he had heard wrongly. Why would the founder of Slytherin want to train him, Harry Potter?

'I don't understand,' replied Harry. 'You know who I am, and you know I am an enemy of your Heir. Training me is not in your interest.'

'This is up to me to decide.' Said Salazar firmly. He tilted his head again. The boy was not only surprised by his offer, but he was also suspicious. 'Let's say that I am trying to even the game,' he finished with a sly smile.

'If I accept,' answered Harry, 'what will happen then?'

'You will come here every night until I say you are ready. And when I say so, you will have one try to repair the statue. Should you fail the trial, we will be done but I will forbid you to ever come back here. I will bar you access to the Chamber forever.' Salazar's look hardened. 'Should you miss one night, there will be no point to come the next one.'

Harry considered the old man. He still had a hard time believing if what was happening was true.

'What do you expect of me in return?' He asked.

'A Gryffindor who think before leaping into action,' smiled Salazar. 'How interesting.' He took a few seconds before answering, savouring the nervousness of the boy. 'There is indeed one task I would like to entrust you with. I want you to save Tom Riddle.'

Harry heard the words but didn't understand them. Save Tom Riddle? Tom Riddle was in no danger! If anyone needed saving it was Harry himself. He was the one hunted down.

'Excuse me Sir,' he said with an acid tone. 'I am not sure I am following you there.'

Salazar's smile was gone, and his look was grave.

'I suppose you know the history behind this Chamber,' he said while waving his hand around, showing off the giant room. 'And I know you are aware of the purpose of the basilisk you slain two years ago.'

Harry nodded.

'This was a mistake,' continued Salazar detaching each word. 'I had this disagreement with the other founders, and I can now tell that I made a rather rash decision concerning this disagreement.' He marked a pause, his eyes became cloudy. 'There are a few things I took the time to understand. One of them is that murder isn't the correct answer.'

'You will learn in time that magic is more than just a way to interact with your surrounding. It is way more mysterious than we think. But what I am sure of is that action have consequences and that curses are not always the result of hexes. Magic has a way to keep balance.'

He looked at Harry, burying his gaze into the green eyes of the boy supposed to be his enemy.

'My anger and my resentment led me to build this Chamber and serve my ideal. But at the same time, I bounded my descendants to pursue it. I cursed my own lineage. When I ask you to help me save Tom Riddle, I am asking to help me save this lineage.'

'Say I accept the deal,' answered Harry. 'How am I supposed to save this lineage of yours?'

'Well, I heard that you were quite resourceful, I am sure you will be able to think of something in time.' The glimmer was back in Salazar's eyes. 'What I am asking of you might be frightening even for a Gryffindor. Therefore, I will give you this night to think about the offer. If I see you here tomorrow, I will consider we have a deal.'

'And if I don't come back?'

'Then don't bother to even try to open this Chamber again.'