Blooming Flowers
"The Chamber of Secrets, what is it?"
Salazar looked away from what he was doing on parchment to Severus who was waiting for an answer.
"Ah," Salazar said as he put down said parchment. "This is about what happened with the wall, and Ms. Norris."
Severus nodded.
"The Chamber," Salazar started, "contrary to Legend, was not in fact made in secret. Alright, a little, but I'll get to that in a bit. And while it was indeed designed to inflict harm should it be opened, that was only if the students were ever in danger."
Severus nodded for the portrait to continue.
"As you well know, the school was founded during the Witch Hunt era. The other Founding Members and I built it so that children had a safe place to practice magic. However, we also knew there was a possibility that the school could still be discovered by Muggles. So we each designed safety measure within the castle. None of us told the others what those designs were as a safety precaution, though we did leave clues for each other, and future generations. Our portraits are actually one of them."
Salazar paused, watching Severus go through the given information and waiting patiently.
"How does one go about opening the Chamber?" Severus asked. "And what's in it?"
"The Chamber is a series of underground tunnels, an escape route if you will, and there are actually several entrances. And the only way to get into them is by speaking Parseltongue."
That was... troublesome, Severus thought. The only Paraselmouths he knew were his lover, and Salazar. Both had never hidden that fact, and because of their reputation, anyone else who could speak it would keep it a secret, including a student.
"Oh, and it doesn't exactly have to be my heir."
Severus blinked, "What do you mean?"
"Despite what people think, Paraselmouth is not strictly hereditary. Of course it's easier if you get it from your bloodline, but it's still a language. Anyone can learn it, or if you're in a hurry, the right spell can do the trick. However, because of the fact that I know it, and Voldemort is a Paraselmouth, the language and the spell to do so is considered Dark, and all information on the spell is either destroyed, or locked up."
"I'm assuming not all of it."
"No, there is a book in the Restricted Section of the library, though you would miss it if you didn't know where to look."
Severus doesn't know, and oddly enough, Salazar doesn't tell him.
~.~
"That's pretty."
Harry looked up from the parchment to find Colin peeking over his shoulder.
"Thanks, a friend drew it."
Colin settled down next Harry, blinking when he was handed a bag. Peeking inside had him discovering that it was food - bars of oats and nuts.
"Fen and his family made them, they're really good. Oh, you're not allergic to honey, oats or nuts, are you? Cause they have those in there."
Colin shook his head, before he took one out and took a bite. "This is good!"
Harry laughed before going back to the picture. Fenrir's response to Harry's letter was a charcoal sketch of a deer family. He had come across them one day and had settled down to draw them, figuring Harry would like it. It had surprised the boy when he got it, he didn't know Fenrir could draw so well.
It was a nice discovery.
"What were you doing, Colin?"
"I was coming back from the library. I saw Ginny there by the way, she was being all weird."
"Weird how?"
"All sneaky-like, I think she was trying to get into the restricted section."
"Mmm, she'd have better luck if she asked her brothers for help." Harry carefully folded the picture up.
"True." Colin giggled. The Twins were a lot of fun, and always had a plan.
"Well, anyway, I was going to Dad's office, and see if I could sneak some sweets, wanna help?"
Colin nodded eagerly. Professor Snape had the best chocolates, not to mention it was fun trying to get a picture of the man, he was really quick, and always seem to know when Colin was about to press the shutter on his camera.
Briefly wondering if the slightly manic and disturbing look on his friend's face was his fault, Harry took Colin's hand and they headed into the castle.
Colin will get his dad's picture one day.
~.~
"Sooo, the Chambers of Secrets."
Luna looked up from the book she was reading, while Draco turned away from watching Ginny. The youngest Weasley was just a table away, writing on some parchment, most likely homework. She looked worried, tired, and pale.
"What about it?" Draco then asked.
"I asked Professor Binns about it after class," Hermione said, "he basically said since there are no true facts, that it's all a myth. Also, that there's some kind of monster that only the Heir of Slytherin can control."
"But myth has to come from some truth," Draco pointed out, his eyes going back to Ginny who was now leaving the library. He wondered if he should tell her brothers that he thought their sister was starting to get sick.
"Myth, legends, and truth are of the same coin," Luna hummed.
"Exactly!" Hermione nodded.
"So we're snooping again?" asked Draco, eyes twinkling.
Hermione grinned.
"Curiosity killed the cat," she said.
"But satisfaction brought it back."
~.~
After Harry told his father about what was happening, Severus sent off a letter.
"Harry's hearing voices."
"….Is this really the best time?"
Considering the fact that Remus had just finished fucking Jacob on the kitchen counter, and both had been enjoying the afterglow, probably not.
Huffing out a low laugh, Jacob pulled Remus's face from the crook of his neck and kissed him. Remus hummed happily, and kissed back, pulling away to nuzzle back into his lover's neck.
"We should get off the counter," Jacob moaned when sharp teeth nipped at a hickey. "That is, I should get off the counter."
"After round two?"
"After round two."
Rumbling, Remus carried Jacob off the counter and turned around to bend him over the island instead.
Later, Remus read the letter from Severus while Jacob finished up in the shower.
"What do you think it could be?" the Wolf asked when his lover came out, and settled down on the bed next to him.
"Don't know, I'm not that kind of Medi-wizard. Not to mention, this could just be Harry's magic. And we know how well we understand that."
Remus nodded, Harry's connection to magic baffled them all. However, judging from the letter, it wasn't magic Harry was hearing.
"Do you want to make a trip?" Remus then asked
"I'll have to request a day off, shame I couldn't do so during the children's first Quidditch match."
"That is going to be a fun day."
Jacob snickered. When they got the letters about not only Draco making his house's Quidditch team, but Harry and Ron for Gryffindor as well, Remus and Jacob had made bets on who would buy the children new brooms first and for which team. Remus won when Voldemort brought the whole Gryffindor team new Nimbus 2000 brooms a week before Lucius did for his son's.
Molly, and Narcissa just rolled their eyes, shook their heads before joining in on the bets for which team would win the first game.
~.~
As they walked out onto the pitch, a roar of noise greeted them; mainly cheers, because Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were anxious to see Slytherin beaten, but the Slytherins in the crowd made their boos and hisses heard, too.
Draco ignored them, more focused on the Gryffindor stands where Hermione, Neville and some of the other students were waving both Slytherin and Gryffindor flags. Glancing behind him at the Slytherins, he saw his friends doing the same. Smiling, he turned his attention to the two captains, Madame Hooch had them shake hands, then they were up in the air!
Harry and Draco flew higher than the others, both Seekers looking for the Snitch. Below, Ron was working on scoring a goal.
"How much you wanna bet, Mione got money on one of us." Draco grinned at his friend.
"Not just Mione." Harry tilted his head in the direction of where their parents were watching.
Draco snickered, before his eyes went wide. "Harry!" he shouted a warning.
Harry avoided the heavy black Bludger pelting toward him, feeling it ruffle his hair as it passed.
"I'm good!" he reassured Draco. "Come on, let's play!"
Then he was off, Draco following after a moment.
Five minutes into the game, it became obvious that something was wrong. No matter where you hit it, the Bludger always stopped and headed back towards Harry, trying its best to knock him off his broom.
Fred and George had taken to flying close to Harry on either side, so close that the boy could see nothing at all except their flailing arms, and had no chance to look for the Snitch, let alone catch it.
In the stands, Lucius's eyes narrowed and he looked over at Severus.
"Sev," he said, the worry in his voice catching Remus's attention.
"I see it too, I will talk to the Headmaster."
Severus stood up and made his way over to Albus. The other two wizards watched as Severus finally got to the Headmaster and exchanged words with him before Severus came back, frowning.
"Bad news, I take it?" Lucius drawled.
"Very bad," Severus grumbled, "he won't stop the game."
"Should we—"
The sound of Hooch's whistle drew their attention, someone had called time-out. They watched as Harry, Fred, and George dodged the rogue Bludger as they landed, and huddled up with the team.
In the huddle, Wood was not happy.
"What's going on?" he demanded, rounding on the twins. "We're being flattened! Fred, George, where were you when the Bludger stopped Angelina from scoring?"
"Harry, you okay?!"
Wood and most of the team stared at Draco who had hurried over the moment he landed. They knew the two of them and the Weaslys were friends, still, it was odd to see the Slytherin looking worried.
"I'm fine, Ray," Harry reassured him and the anxious Ron. His eyes went to the Bludger that was now frozen in mid-air, waiting for the game to start.
"Someone's fixed the Bludger," Fred told Wood, "it's won't leave Harry alone. It's hasn't gone for anyone else all game."
"But the Bludgers have been locked in Madam Hooch's office since our last practice, and there was nothing wrong with them then," said Wood anxiously.
Draco noticed that Madam Hooch was coming toward them. He turned back to Harry only to find him looking at the Bludger, eyes holding that familiar dazed look.
"Harry?"
Harry blinked and looked at the team.
"Fred, George, don't worry about me, just go back to the team, and let me handle the snitch."
Then he turned to Draco and Ron.
"You too, guys."
"No way!" Draco protested.
"We can't!" Ron protested.
"Don't go crazier on us," said Fred, "that thing will—"
"I'll be fine. Hello, Madam Hooch."
Draco and the team turned to the Professor who smiled at Harry before turning her attention to Wood.
"Problem?" she asked, merely glancing at Draco.
Wood stared at Harry, then the Weasleys, then back at Harry who merely gave him a sunny smile.
"No," Wood finally said.
"Then are you ready to resume playing?"
With another look, Wood nodded, and then the game resume.
"You have a plan?" Ron asked Harry once they were up in the air with Draco beside him. The gathering clouds above rumbled with the threat of rain.
"Erm, kind of." Harry admitted with a nervous grin, "I think the Bludger's enchantment will stop when the game ends. Since Slytherin is in the lead; I want Ray to catch the Snitch."
"And what about yo—"
"Malfoy!" called the Slytherin captain, "head in the game!"
"Go on, find the Snitch," Harry urged Draco.
With one last worried look at him, Draco flew off to watch for the Snitch. Harry ducked the oncoming Bludger.
"I'll be fine," Harry reassured the worried Ron.
With one last look of uneasiness, Ron flew off to join the other Chasers.
"Okay Harry, just got to dodge until Draco gets the Snitch." Harry thought as he did a loop de loop to avoid another assault.
The Bludger was coming at him again, and Harry flew off, going high so no one would accidentally get hit. Below him, Lee announced that Gryffindor had scored, putting them in the lead.
Rain started falling, soaking the pitch and everyone with large fat droplets.
"Or maybe until I catch the Snitch?" Harry wondered when his team scored again.
He knew it was a possible option, but he had hoped Draco's quick eyes and quicker hands would be enough to catch the Snitch and end the game. That way, no one except for Harry himself would get hurt.
As he dodged the Bludger again, and the rain came down harder, Harry decided what the heck, especially when the Snitch zoomed by him.
He went after it.
The Snitch was fast and agile, zipping around and making sharp and sudden turns. Draco and Harry both nearly crashed into the Slytherin Captain at one point.
"Harry!"
Harry did a kind of twirl in midair to dodge the Bludger. It wasn't the one that was fixated on him. He took off and the rogue Bludger appeared behind him. He turned back to glare at the laughing Slytherin beater that had hit the first Bludger in his direction and then he saw it.
The Snitch.
Wham!
The Bludger finally hit him, smashing into his elbow. Harry felt a sharp pain, but ignored in in favor of getting his broom to stop spinning.
Dimly, dazed by the searing pain in his arm, he hovered there, right arm dangling useless at his side, but only for a moment. The Bludger was coming back for another attack, Harry swerved, and made his way to the Beater.
The Beater, surprised, swerved out the way, and Harry took his remaining hand off his broom and made a wild snatch, he felt his fingers close on the cold Snitch but was now only gripping the broom with his legs, and there was a yell from the crowd below as he headed straight for the ground, trying hard not to pass out.
With a splattering thud, he hit the mud and rolled off his broom. His arm was hanging at a very strange angle: riddled with pain, he heard, as though from a distance, a good deal of whistling, and shouting. The Snitch fluttered in his good hand.
"Oooow!" he groaned.
Suddenly, glittering teeth was in his somewhat blurry vision.
"Oh, no, not you," he moaned.
"Doesn't know what he's saying," said Lockhart loudly to the anxious crowd of Gryffindors and Draco pressing around them. "Not to worry, Harry. I'm about to fix your arm."
"No!" Harry protested, "I'll—"
He tried to sit up, but the pain was terrible. He heard a familiar clicking noise nearby.
"Colin, where's my Dad?" he asked.
"Trying to get through the crowd, he's almost here."
"Lie back, Harry," Said Lockhart soothingly, with just a hint of sudden excitement, "It's a simple charm, I've used it countless times—"
"I'd rather go to the hospital wing, in fact, can someone help me up and—"
A loud slightly frustrated noise had Harry looking through the thicket of legs around him, and he spotted the twins shoving the rogue Bludger into a box, it was still putting up a terrific fight.
"Stand back," Lockhart said suddenly, rolling up his sleeve, Harry could hear his father's voice.
"Wait—"
Too late, Lockhart was twirling his wand, and a second later had directed it straight at Harry's broken arm, just as Severus finally pushed his way through the crowd.
A strange and unpleasant sensation started at Harry's shoulder and spread all the way down to his fingertips. It felt as though his arm was being deflated.
"Ah," Lockhart murmured, yelping when he was grabbed by the back of his robe, and swung around face to face with a very unhappy Severus.
"What. Did. You. Do?" Severus growled.
Lucius and Remus were kneeling next to Harry, while Hermione stood anxiously by.
"W-Well," Lockhart stuttered, "sometimes that can happen."
Severus's eyes narrowed, and Lockhart hurried his explanation, "B-But the point is, the bones are no longer broken. Something we should all bear in mind. And, erm—"
"Severus, we're taking Harry to the hospital wing." Lucius told him as Remus lifted the boy in his arms.
Nodding, Severus let the man go, "All of you," he then addressed the students, "back inside, the games is over. That goes for you lot as well." He then addressed his daughter and friends.
"But Daddy, Harry's—"
"Being taken to the hospital wing."
Remus had already made his way through the crowd with Lucius, and they were nearly off the field.
"Go on, it'll be fine."
After a moment, they all left with the other students. Finally Lockhart, and Severus were alone.
"I am terribly sorry about this, Severus." Lockhart said.
And Severus…..Severus smiled. "Not a problem, you were only trying to help."
For some reason, a shiver went down Lockhart's spine.
~.~
Kill….destroy…..break….
Harry woke up with a start, his arm felt like was being stabbed by a thousand needles. Groaning, he sat up.
Kill…Kill…break….suffer….
There was a sharp….something, loud, scared, and angry.
Something had just happened again, and Hogwarts was making her displeasure known.
Suddenly, the door opened and Harry quickly lay back down. Dumbledore was backing in, wearing a dressing gown and a nightcap, He was carrying one end of something. Professor McGonagall appeared a moment later, carrying the other end. Together they heaved it onto a bed.
"Get Madam Pomfrey," Dumbledore whispered, and McGonagall hurried, passing the end of Harry's bed. Harry lay quite still, pretending to be asleep.
There were urgent voices then McGonagall was back into view with Poppy, Harry heard an intake of breath.
"What happened?" Poppy whispered to Dumbledore, bending over the statue in the bed.
"Another attack," Dumbledore said, "Minerva found him on the stairs."
"There was a bunch of grapes next to him," said Professor McGonagall. "I think he was trying to sneak up here to visit Mister Snape."
Harry's brow furrowed, even as his heart hammered in worry.
Who was trying to sneak in here to see him? McGonagall said it was a 'he'.
Was it Ray?
Or Ron?
Or one of the Twins?
"What does this mean, Albus?"
"It means that the Chamber is truly opened."
The Professors talk in hushed voices for what felt like forever. But finally everyone shuffled out, Poppy mumbling something about his Dad and needing a potion. Carefully, Harry got out of bed and made his way over to the one.
He gasped and stumbled back.
It was Colin.
Some of the scenes were taken from the book.
Let Me Know What You Think!