The snake who lived
Book 1: The philosopher's stone
"I heard he's some kind of brute. He lives in his hut, in Hogwarts' park and gets drunk every once in a while. And then he tries to make magic tricks but ends up putting his bed on fire."
Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter à l'école des sorciers, page 82
Author's note: Keep in mind that I'm using the French version of Harry Potter, as I don't have the American or British version. Wish I did though! The quote above is translated from Philosopher's stone.
While the French version gives an evidence that Blaise is a boy, I needed a girl, point one. Point two, the English version probably doesn't give the same information. It's probably
"[…]sorting ended when Zabini, Blaise was sent in Slytherin"
Which doesn't give ONE SINGLE clue about Zabini's sex. I rest my case.
ANSWERS TO THE REVIEWERS:
Ergonyc: Congrats, ur my first Reviewer! Thanks!
Tima: I was hoping people would like it, too! Sure I'll write moer fast ^_- (Typos are a b*tch, eh?)
Starlight: unfortunarely, I just can't write it anymore, it won't work. Every time I write a line, I re-read it and…. Ugh. It doesn't go anywhere. Should have planned it more tightly and it would have never happened.
Only 3? Aww man… oh well. But next time, I want 10 reviews!!! -_-
Lol, JK peeps.
Chapter 1: Diagon Alley
That morning, Harry Potter was quite happy to be woken up not by Aunt Petunia's shrill screaming for him to hurry his arse up, but by Mr Zabini's friendly voice, asking him to get up.
"Slept well?" He asked.
"Better than ever." Harry admitted with a smile, taking a peek out the window.
The sun was apparently already quite high up and it's rays oozed through the thin curtains. He was surprised it hadn't been what had woke him up. The electric alarm clock showed it was nearly nine in the morning. No wonder he felt very rested.
Mr Zabini walked out of the door, throwing a set of black robes behind him. "Those used to be my wife's." He told Harry. "You'll look less suspicious with those on than with the clothes you're wearing now."
"They're mrs Zabini's? Aren't they woman clothes?"
"Can you honestly tell me if there's any difference between the eleven years old body of a girl and a boy? There's just as much difference on the robes." He said good naturedly, before leaving out of the door.
Harry nodded and smiled, putting on the robes. He decided it felt too odd not to wear anything under them, so he wore his cousin's baggy clothes as well. He walked down the stairs into the kitchen, where a magically enlarged chair was holding Hagrid's imposing figure as he ate a monumental breakfast. Blaise looked a bit scared of him, but tried not to show it.
"Harry! There yeh are!" He said, beaming. "'been waitin' fer yeh!"
"Sorry if I'm late…" He began, but Hagrid wouldn't hear it.
"Nonsense! Sleep as long as yeh want, yer not with those bloody pigs yeh have as relatives. Anyway, we're not late yet!"
Breakfast was delicious, much better than anything Aunt Petunia could get. Eggs, bacon, toasts, ham and a bucket of fruits covered the table. He took a bit of everything. Blaise handed everyone a bag of Bertie Blott's every flavor beans to finish it all and they spent half an hour enjoying (or being disgusted) by the flavors. Harry hit an incredible lucky streak, having strawberry, chocolate and caramel before hitting troll snot.
Soon, it was time to go. The family got in their car, since "Hagrid is too big for the fireplace". Harry didn't quite understand about that, yet fully understood how large the man was when he tried to sit on the back seat, taking more than half of it by himself and practically having to roll himself up so he'd fit. Harry sat in front and Blaise at the back, though he had tried to do it otherwise. It was good thing Mr Zabini decided to stay home; the car looked like it was about to be crushed, or throw them out in protest.
He risked a peek behind as they rolled away, smirking at the Dursley's faces peeking out of the window. He couldn't stop himself from opening the window and waving at them mockingly, then settled down in a satisfied manner as everyone burst out laughing.
It took about half an hour of laughs and fun for them to reach their destination on Charing Cross Road: an apparently disused, tiny pub called the leaky cauldron, looking very poor compared to the disk store and the large library it was stuck between. It was quite hard to spot, probably impossible if you didn't know it was there.
"That's… it?" He asked, a little disappointed.
"Not quite." Mrs Zabini replied, walking in and leading the kids through.
The inside looked just as dark and miserable as the outside, if not more. The only features of this room were wooden tables, wooden chairs and a bar, all of it dimly lit by the pale flickering flames on half-burned through chandeliers hanging from the roof. It was almost empty, with only a barman, few old women giving them odd looks and two men, one of which bore a large purple turban.
"Hagrid! Elmira! What a surprise!" The barman said, jumping over the bar and walking up to them. "Will you be staying or is it straight to Diagon alley?"
"No thanks, Tom." Mrs Zabini, her face strict. "I have to get my daughter and Harry's things for Hogwarts…"
"Oh yeah, the little lady… and… by gosh, is that who I think it is? Harry Potter?!"
Harry gave him and odd look and noticed the man was staring at his scar. The other occupants of the bar also became very quiet, while the only young woman openly gasped and got up.
"uh… yeah? What's up with that?" He asked, puzzled.
Immediately, he was surrounded by people, trying to shake his hand, asking him questions, praising him for no reason. He gave a pleading look at Mrs Zabini, who understood and took out her wand, pointing it at the slightly more nervous crowd.
"Listen here. I'm under orders from Dumbledore to protect this boy. We have no time for this, so clear the way and let us through." She snapped. Harry gave her a thankful and slightly impressed look. She could be VERY imposing when she wanted.
The group moved aside, letting them go through. Harry gave one final look at the crowd, before hitting on Hagrid's leg. The gigantic man had stopped.
"Professor Quirrel! What a surprise!" He said, beaming at the man with a turban.
'Professor?' Harry thought, looking at the man. He looked nervous, as if afraid Hagrid would turn into some kind of demon and attack him. He probably taught something calm and steady, like Potions.
Hagrid turned to Harry and smiled. "This's professor Quirrel. He'll be yer DADA teacher fer the year."
"DADA?"
"Defense against the dark arts." Mrs Zabini clarified, standing in the doorway.
"P…P…leasure to m…meet you, H…Harry Potter…" The man stuttered. Harry was surprised he was going to teach something like defense; he looked like the kind of man who was afraid of his shadow. "It will be an H….Honor to teach you t…this y…year… though I d…don't think y…you need it m...much…"
Before Harry could ask, Mrs Zabini grabbed him by the arm and pulled him out through the back door.
Once outside, Harry turned to the adults.
"Ok. Just what happened back there?" He snapped, blocking the way.
"I guess it's no use hiding it." Mrs Zabini sighed. "Let's go somewhere more comfortable though. Anyone up for ice cream?"
Harry looked around. The only things objects there were trash boxes. There was something odd about this back alley, and he quickly guessed what; the only entrance or exit was through the door they had taken. It was completely closed.
Hagrid took out an… umbrella…? And tapped on the brick wall.
"Three up, two across…" He counted, tapping one of them twice. For a second, nothing happened, but then the bricks started moving, creating an archway through the wall. Behind it was the most breathtaking sight Harry had ever seen.
Witches and wizards, everywhere, looking inside shops and restaurants that were obviously not normal. The air was reeking with magic, Harry could almost smell it.
"Welcome to Diagon Alley, Harry!" Hagrid said with a smile.
The boy was looking around, eyes wide, at everything around him. The shop in front of them announced: "Cauldrons, every size: copper, pewter, silver – Self-stirring – Foldable models". An small and slightly overweight lady was looking through the window of the apothecary, just in front of the cauldron shop, muttering:
"seventeen sickles for an ounce of Dragon Liver… They're mad…"
They passed in front of the "magical menagerie" out of which loud hoots could be heard, from various owls staring out the window with their large yellow eyes. A large group of kids his age were assembled in front of "Quality Quidditch supplies", looking at something through the window.
"Look at that… the new Nimbus 2000… the fastest broom yet…"
They stopped at a restaurant directly in front of a robe shop and sat down at one of the tables outside. A very odd man walked up to them. He was grey, completely grey, like someone had filmed him with a black and white camera and it had accidentally affected him. That, and the fact that he could see through him.
"Mrs Zabini! Hagrid! What a pleasant surprise! Anything I can do for you?" He asked.
"I'll have a strawberry sundae, please." Mrs Zabini replied with a smile.
"Same here!" Blaise shouted.
"Ahh, figures… the usual craving, given from mother to daughter." The man said, flashing them a wink. Mrs Zabini blushed bright red.
"Nuthin' fer me, thanks." Hagrid said. "Have to go teh Gringotts after. Never got used teh those carts."
He gave him a sympathetic look before turning to Harry.
"Vanilla ice cream." Harry said. "And… how come you're transparent?"
"I'm dead, that's why." The man replied cheerfully, like he was talking about his shirt.
As he moved away, Harry noticed he wasn't walking; he floated about two inches above the ground. His leg passed right through a chair and he didn't even notice.
"Wicked… a real ghost!" Harry said, in awe.
"So? First time you see one? My great-great-grandmother is a ghost." Blaise said with a sly smile. "'course, she favors haunting her own house near the Mediterranean sea, even through it's about to fall around her. Salt air isn't good for wood."
Harry gave her a surprised look, but their orders came before he could speak. They ate in silence for a while, until Mrs Zabini took one final bite out of her sundae and started talking.
"You wanted to know why everyone recognized you, Harry?" She asked.
He nodded, dropping the spoon in his bowl. Blaise looked like she knew the story as she continued happily munching on the large pink sundae.
"Ten years ago, the wizarding world was living in a time of terror and fear." Mrs Zabini began, already taking all of Harry's attention. "The forces of light and of darkness were in war. On one side, Albus Dumbledore and the ministry's aurors. On the other, a powerful and evil dark wizard by the name of Voldemort (Hagrid flinched, almost knocking his chair over) and his death eaters. For thirteen years, the war took place. Every day, there was another death, another disappearance. Families were broken, killed, betrayed… it was a time of uncertainty: How can you be sure your neighbor isn't a death eater? Maybe your wife or husband is one and you didn't notice… or maybe your brother?"
Harry frowned. It sure didn't look that way now.
"On Halloween 1981, when you were just one year old, Voldemort (Hagrid flinched again) came to Godric's hollow in hope of killing James and Lily Potter. He killed them both, then when he tried to kill you… the same curse that killed hundreds didn't work; it backfired on him, ripping him of his power. Weakened, almost dead, Voldemort (Hagrid flinched and glared at Mrs Zabini) fled to somewhere in the west, leaving you well alive with only a scar… a lightning-shaped scar on your forehead."
Harry unknowingly pulled his bangs over it, hiding it. "How come it didn't work?"
"No one really knows… The spell was powerful enough to blast your parents' house in bits, but you survived; something in you defeated him, Harry. That's why you're famous. You're the boy-who-lived. The one who defeated Voldemort…"
"Please don't say his name anymore…" Hagrid whined.
She shot him a look and told him to "Grow up", which he certainly didn't need to, and got up. "I think we should gather your things now… I'll help you get your money, then I have something to do in Knockturn alley. An old 'friend' to visit." She said glumly, finishing the melted sundae in one, undignified gulp.
"I'll help 'em get their stuff, 'lmira." Hagrid said. "All I gotta do is get the s-…sumthin' at Gringott', then I'm free."
"Good, just remember to keep the you-know-what a secret." She said, giving him a concentrated-of-warning look. He nodded a big nervously.
"uh, sure… did I ever give away secrets?" He asked, trying to look assuring.
"Yes you did. Now off you go, I'll pay." She pushed them out of the restaurant. "Oh, and Blaise, here. Take this." She threw her a small key.
Feeling a bit bold, Harry walked up to Hagrid, almost running because of the gigantic steps the man was doing.
"What's the you-know-what?" He asked.
"Oh, it's the…. Nice try, Harry." Hagrid shot him a glare, and the boy just shrugged.
"Just asking." He said with an innocent smile. Blaise was already being a bad influence.
They walked about a minute, ending up in front of a large building bearing the name "GRINGOTTS" in large, carved letters that shone in gold. Huge bronze doors pierced the walls up a flight of marble stairs. Two odd-looking, crimson and gold-clad creatures were standing guard there, nodding a bit as the trio passed by them.
"What are they?" Harry whispered, as if afraid they would take offense to his lack of knowledge.
"They're goblins." Blaise answered, whispering just as much. "They guard this bank."
Another problem suddenly arose to Harry. In all his life with the Dursleys, he had amassed barely enough money to buy himself a newspaper. He didn't nearly have enough money to buy all of those things!
"Uh, Hagrid, I don't have enough money to buy anything…"
"Why do yeh think we're here fer, eh?" He asked, an amused look on his face.
"…I know, but I don't have anything to start an account with…"
"No need teh worry 'bout that, Harry! Yeh already have one here." At his surprised face, Hagrid continued "What, yeh didn't think yer parents left yeh nuthin', righ'?"
They walked up to a pair of giant silver doors, the last ones. A poem was written on it.
Enter,
stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of
greed
For those who take, but do not earn,
Must pay most dearly in their turn.
So if you seek beneath our floors
A treasure that was never
yours,
Thief, you have been warned, beware
Of finding more than treasure there.
"'em Goblins never do sumthin' in half." Hagrid commented. "Gringotts is the safest place in the world fer anyhtin' yeh want to keep safe… 'cept maybe Hogwarts."
"I'll bet…" Harry said, a bit nervous. What did it mean, 'finding more than treasure there'? He had a distinct impression he didn't want to find out.
Hagrid led them trough the slippery main chamber of Gringotts' bank. On both sides, Goblins were working on checks, stamping periodically with the Gringotts seal, weighing coins or examining precious stones. The giant man stopped in front of the only one on the farthest wall of the bank's main hall.
"Hello, I'd like teh withdraw in Mr Potter an' Mrs Zabini's vaults.
"You got the keys?"
"Yeah, sure, jus' a sec…" He dug his large hands in the many pockets of his coat and noises could be heard; a metallic clang, a high-pitched squeak, an indignant hoot, a plastic bag's ruffling…
Finally, he pulled out a tiny key and handed it to the Goblin as Blaise gave him hers.
"Then, there's a letter from Professor Dumbledore. It's about the yeh-know-what in vault 713."
The Goblin read it and nodded. "All right. Griphook will take you to the vaults." He motioned to the single Goblin guarding one of the many metal doors in the back. After being handed the keys, Griphook led them through the door, down to what looked like a traditional mine passage with a rail and metal carts that looked EXACTLY like the ones shown in cartoons.
Griphook got on and motioned for them to do the same. As soon as everyone was settled in the car – not without difficulty in Hagrid's case – , it sped forward by itself at an infernal speed. The path separated in many different tunnels, each exactly alike. Blaise was cheering, arms high like it was some kind of rollercoaster, her long brown hair whipping behind her. Hagrid didn't seem to be enjoying himself one bit, however.
They veered left and Harry caught sight of a gigantic lizard, glaring at them angrily. Blaise saw it too and gasped "COOL!"
"What WAS that thing?!"
"That was a dragon!" She said, beaming. "I thought it was just rumors that they had dragons down here, but they do!"
"Blimey! I missed it!" Hagrid cursed. "Oh, I wish I had a drag'n, I dream 'bout it since I'm a little kid…" He started looking longingly at the path they had just taken, before the cart shook violently and he quickly remembered where he was.
The cart screeched to a stop in front of vault 566 and Griphook got off, motioning for Blaise to get up. She did and took out a leather pouch that fit in her palm.
"Remember, not more than 35 galleons." The Goblin said as he opened the door, revealing a reasonable amount of gold, silver and brown coins Mrs Zabini had told him were Galleons, Sickles and Knuts. That and the most odd number that made each; twenty-nine Knuts for a sickle, seventeen Sickles for a Galleon. She claimed it was easy, but Harry was in the opinion of her husband; who the heck had decided such odd and uneven numbers!?
"Fine.." Blaise sighed, filling her pouch with coins, her cheeks a bit pink. When it was full, she went back in the cart as Griphook closed the vault and followed her.
"Why was there a limit on your vault?" Harry asked, a little puzzled.
"It's our family vault and mom has a bit of a spending problem… and stop being nosy!" She huffed, her cheeks bright crimson. Harry chuckled.
They made another stop at vault 713. It was much different than the Zabini's vault. There was no lock, nothing that would betray it wasn't a huge metal plate on the wall.
"Stand back!" Griphook warned, walking toward the vault and touching it with his finger. There was a flash and the door disappeared, revealing an almost empty vault behind. He turned around, facing to the humans.
"If anyone but a goblin tried to open this door, they'd be sucked in and would be trapped inside the vault."
"Do you check if there's people inside?"
"About every ten years." He commented with a smirk that could only be qualified as sadistic. Harry gulped. Now he knew what the poem meant.
Hagrid stepped up to the vault; the only thing there was a small package, which he took and hid in one of the inside pockets of his large coat. Neither Harry or Blaise bother to ask; it would have been futile anyway.
Once again, they were on the 'infernal rollercoaster', veering sharp angled turns, almost getting thrown off once or twice – It was like he was glued to the seat; he felt like he was gonna get thrown off, but his body refused to obey the laws of physics. They stopped pretty soon in front of vault 687. Harry and Griphook got off, the goblin opening the door for the boy to access whatever riches his parents had left him.
Ok. Pause here.
Harry Potter had lived all his youth constantly hearing he was costing too much to the Dursley household, even though they didn't even pay him new clothes, nor did they ever give him gift or anything costly. It was like the oxygen demands of his breathing was too much for them to afford, even though they gave a mountain of presents to Dudley twice a year, and whatever he wanted anytime during the year.
Given this background, imagine Harry's surprise when he saw the mountain of gold, bronze and silver coins piled up in his vault. He was rich. Very rich. Beyond even his wildest dreams. Unpause, please.
He filled up his pouch with coins and walked back to the cart who's occupants were just as stunned as him.
As the cart took them away from the vault and back to the surface, the first words Harry said were "I wonder what uncle Vernon's reaction would be if he knew?", sending Blaise in a fit of laughter. Hagrid would have laughed if he didn't suddenly feel sick and Griphook didn't even move.
Once out of Gringotts, Hagrid left, claiming his stomach was protesting too much for him to move and that he was gonna sit down a bit, not before asking them to go to Madam Malkin's robes for all occasion.
"You got your list, right?" Blaise asked him.
Harry nodded and pulled his book list from his pocket.
Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry
Uniform
List of clothes the first year students have to wear
1) three black work robes, normal model
2) a pointed hat (black)
3) A pair of protective gloves (in dragon skin)
4) A winter cape (Black with silver fastenings)
Each clothing will have to have a badge with the student's name
Books and manuals
The students are required to get the following books.
Standard Book of Spells, The, grade 1 by Miranda Goshawk
History of magic, A by Bathilda Bagshott
Magical theory by Aldabert Waffling
Begginer's guide to Transfiguration, A by Emeric Switch
One thousand magical herb and fungi by Phyllida Spore
Magical drafts and potions by Arsenius Jigger
Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection, The by Quentin Trimble
Fantastic Beasts and Where toFind Them by Newt Scamander
Material
1 magic wand
1 cauldron (Standard pewter model, size 2)
1 box of vials in glass or crystal
1 telescope
1 copper balance
The students can also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad OR a rat
(A/N: Corrected JK's error here, my beta is forcing me to say she's the one who found it)
PLEASE TAKE NOTE THAT FIRST YEAR STUDENTS AREN'T ALLOWED TO HAVE THEIR OWN BROOM.
"Aww… we can't have a broom yet…" Blaise whined, pouting slightly. "I wanted to bring my Cleansweep 7…"
They found themselves inside the robe shop within the next minute. Madam Malkin was as squat witch wearing mauve robes. She smiled at them as they entered.
"Hogwarts too?" She asked. "The boy's side is that way…" She pointed right. "…and I'll start with the little missy here."
She led Blaise away to a set of stools in the much more colorful section of the robe shop. Harry went to the other side, which was much duller in colors.
Standing on one of the stools, wearing a bored air, another boy was waiting. He turned to Harry, his ice-blue eyes betraying no emotion but boredom.
"Hey. You're going to Hogwarts too?" He asked.
The boy looked like he was as old as him, probably another first year. Might as well make more friends before school starts, he reasoned.
"Yeah, although it's a surprise. Just two weeks ago, I was sure I was a muggle." Harry said with a smile.
The boy gave him a frowning look. "You're muggle-born?"
"Na." He shook his head. "My mom and dad are magical, but they died. I got raised by my relatives and they're the most unsupportable muggles ever."
The boy had a satisfied smile and nodded. "The school should only be allowed to us pure bloods. Those from other families aren't like us, they didn't get the same education—"
"I don't think that's true." Harry interrupted. "I mean… imagine the chaos if muggle-borns stayed all their life doing accidental magic, not knowing why all that stuff is happening around them. Then there's the half-bloods who know as much of the muggle world as the magical world… really, I don't think it's important."
"Suit yourself." The boy shrugged. "'got your wand yet?"
"No, Blaise and I are getting them last."
"Blaise, eh? Your sister?"
"No, my best friend." He corrected.
"Oh. Come to think about it, I have no idea what your name is… my name is Malfoy. Draco Malfoy. Yours?"
"Har—" "Mr. Malfoy? Your robes are ready." Madam Malkin interrupted him, her head peeking out.
"Well, it's been fun. See you at Hogwarts." Draco said, flashing him a smile and walked out after taking his black robes and pointed hat.
After Harry and Blaise acquired theirs, they went next door, in Flourish & Blotts, to get their books. Hagrid met them at it's exit and led them through the apothecary where they bought odd things like powdered unicorn horns, dragon scales, beetle eyes and Armadillo bile. Then, after buying themselves pewter cauldrons – Harry wanted a nice, silver one, but Hagrid had insisted on pewter – they went to Ollivander's wand-making shop (Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.).
A magic wand.
Harry was smiling and Blaise beaming widely as they entered the small, elongated and dusty shop. The wand shop. He was getting his VERY OWN MAGIC WAND. He couldn't believe it. Just two weeks ago, if you have told him he would be getting his magic wand soon, he would have probably pointed out the direction to the nearest asylum for you. But now…
"Rubeus! Rubeus Hagrid! What a pleasant surprise!" an old man said, walking out from the shelves of small boxes. "Oak, sixteen inches, rather bendy, wasn't it?"
"That's righ'."
"A good wand… It was broken when you got expelled, though, wasn't it?"
Hagrid nodded. "Yes it was, but I kept the pieces, 'f course."
"Yes… and you don't use them, right?" The man shot him a piercing look. Hagrid's hands clenched around his umbrella, which Harry suspected Hagrid had put the pieces in.
"'f course not!" He said quickly, a little nervously. "I'm here to get a wand for miss Zabini and Mr Potter here."
"Ah, miss Zabini, I knew you would come soon… just twenty years ago, your mother came here and picked a 10½', maple wood, dragon heartstring wand… rather springy and a bit too fickle for my liking… it matched with her perfectly…" He mused, before turning to Harry.
"I've been expecting you, mister Potter. I clearly remember the day your mother and father came to get their first wands… She picked a 10¼', willow, rather swishy wand, excellent for charm work."
He was getting closer and closer to Harry, who was getting nervous. The man's piercing silver eyes were a bit unnerving.
"As for your father, he preferred a mahogany, 11' and pliable wand. A bit more powerful and excellent for transfiguration. Then again, when I say preferred… in truth, it's the wand who chooses it's master."
They were so close that their noses were almost touching. Harry could see his reflection in the man's eyes.
"Hmm… so this is where it happened…" He mumbled, tracing Harry's scar with his long finger.
"I'm sorry, I'm the one who sold the wand who did this to you… thirteen inches, yew with a single phoenix feather… a powerful wand, very powerful… and in evil hands… if I had known what this wand would do after coming out of here…" He sighed and clapped his hands, startling everyone. Only now did Harry notice he had barely been whispering. That man was unnerving him.
"Ok, let's begin with miss Zabini here… Your wand arm please…" For about a minute, he and an enchanted tape took the necessary measures (Which kept getting odder and odder, up to the distance between her nostrils) while Blaise patiently waited, her left hand forward. "Try this. Nine inches, dragon heartstring, a bit whippy."
Blaise took it and gave it a wave. Nothing happened. Ollivander immediately took the wand from her hand and gave her another one.
"Ten and a half inches, oak, dragon heartstring. Straight."
Nothing.
It took nearly five minutes, but finally…
"Eleven and a quarter inches, mahogany, dragon heartstring, extremely whippy."
She whipped it; indeed it was, I nearly bent in half. But the important part was the flood of silver sparks that shot out.
"Excellent! A bit fickle and unstable… but considering your family history, it's not a surprise."
Blaise blushed a bit and sat down
"Now, mister Potter…" Ollivander's piercing silver eyes were on him again, and Harry couldn't help but shudder. He was scary. "Your wand arm."
He stretched out his right hand. The process repeated, with the enchanted ruler measuring everything that could be measured, from the length of his arm to the wideness of his ears. After a minute, the man stopped the tape, satisfied. He pulled out a box and started giving wands, taking them after nothing happened.
Half an hour later, the chair was overfilled with discarded wands, yet none of them matched with him, while Hagrid patiently read the "Daily Prophet". Blaise, on the other hand, kept waving her new wand, enjoying the showers of magical sparks.
Finally, Ollivander picked the right one. Eleven inches, phoenix feather, holly wood, supple and easy to handle, or so he said. As soon as Harry grabbed it, he felt like it as his, like a part of him had just been found. In a shower of crimson and gold sparks, the wand proved him right.
"Good! Very good… yes, we have a match… strange though… very strange…"
The man packed the wand away like he had done for Blaise's, muttering "strange"s as he did so. Finally, Harry gathered enough guts to ask.
"What's so strange?" He asked.
Ollivander looked at him and frowned.
"I remember every single wand that came out of here, and who it came to. See, the phoenix who's feather resides in your wand gave only another feather. And that feather is located in the wand that gave you that scar."
Blaise and Hagrid were both staring wide-eyed. Harry gulped. There was already too much going on around him and Voldemort for his liking.
After paying (a rather handsome amount) for the wands, Hagrid guided them to Magical Menagerie, the pet shop.
"Now, fer yer birthday present." He said to Harry.
"Uh… it's quite all right, Hagrid. Being free from the Dursleys is quite a present already."
"That's the Zabinis, they're the ones housin' yeh. No, I've got sumthin' in mind fer yeh. Not a toad, they've been unpopular fer months. I'm allergic teh cats, but owls are jus' perfect… everyone wants one. Useful 'cause they can carry mail, an' they're very smart teh."
Hagrid led them inside, guiding them between the cages of puffy, orange creatures, long-legged rats that squeaked loudly as they passed by, and toads. An orange, flat-faced cat glared at them from it's cage over the cashier's counter. Blaise squealed and ran toward what looked like a snake with wings, while Hagrid grinned as he found a baby Occamy, a kind of flying snake he knew would measure way to much to put in a cage once adult. He heard the giant moan that it looked like a little dragon. Harry was left alone and, with nothing to do, he wandered.
"Hey look! Sssomeone'sss coming!" He heard a voice say, coming from a rather secluded spot between two shelves of various kinds of owl treats for every specie.
Puzzled, Harry followed his ears to a open-top glass cage, well lit by powerful and warm floating spheres, in which lived a good dozen snakes of all kinds, some brightly colored, some barely visible against the grey leafy ground they crawled on.
"Do you think he'll take one of ussss?" One of them, a rather small, green one asked.
"No idea… he looks too wimpy to be the ssssnake-loving type." A much larger, grey one said.
"Hey!" Harry protested, frowning. "I'm not a wimp."
The snakes looked at each other in surprise.
"He talksss our language!"
"Unbelievable!"
"Ok, maybe he will take one of ussss." The grey one admitted.
"Hey, hold on… I can't, I can only take a cat, and owl or a toad."
"Booo-ring! The rule-loving type, eh?" A medium size black and green snake said in a higher-pitched voice than the others, breaking away from the crowd that had amassed in front of the glass.
"No I'm not… it's just…"
"If you want, you can take one of usss away and no one will notissse… there'sss too many of usss here anyway… Not many people want to take usss with them…" It continued. Harry could have sworn it's eyes were twinkling. "'courssse, a sssmall one would just be boring, and a bigger one wouldn't be able to come with you unssseen. My ssscales are black, which hides me jussst fine in many sssituationss."
The other snakes had, by now, caught on his plan and were glaring at him angrily. Harry looked around. No one was looking .
"Ok. Just you. Slide up my arm."
"Thankiesss, my friend… You won't regret it…"
Harry felt the reptile slide up under his shirt, settling comfortably for both around his hips, just above his belt. It barely showed, and you really had to know it was there to find it. Satisfied, Harry walked away from the cage, out of which outraged hissing could be heard.
"Harry! There yeh are!" Hagrid's voice boomed from the owl section. "We found an owl fer yeh!"
After buying for the snowy white owl Harry would later call Hedwig, Hagrid led them back to the leaky cauldron, where Mrs Zabini was waiting, looking a bit peeved.
"Now, if only he explained to me what they were for… oh, hi kids!" she said, her face going straight from 'wondering, caution' to 'Friendly, safe for most' in half a second. "Do you have everything?"
"Yeah!" The kids chorused.
"Well, I'll be off then…" Hagrid said, smiling. "see y'all at Hogwarts!" and he walked out of the front door.
Mrs Zabini led them back to their house through the fireplace and something she called 'Floo powder', which he decided was NOT his favorite way of travel, nor was it his two new pets'. Too bumpy, and the soot stains probably took hours to clean. At least he didn't end up in the wrong fireplace.
As soon as he arrived in his room, he let his books down on his bed and shook the robes with enough strength to force the snake out of there.
"Aww, I was jussst having a nice nap…" It whined.
"Sorry 'bout that, mister snake… uh… maybe I should give you a name…"
"Yesss, that would be a pretty good idea." The snake replied, the tone of it's voice rather teasing.
"Now… what to I call a female snake…"
The snake huffed and, if it had arms, it would have probably crossed them in annoyance. "My voissse may be a little high-pitched, but that doesssn't mean I'm a girl." He pouted a bit.
"Umm… ok… a boy snake then… How about Charm?"
"Oh, and you'll call your owl 'Transssfiguration', I bet?" He taunted.
"Oh shush, I'm trying to find something here… hmm…"
"I guessed that much," He interrupted. "unless you often and randomly state the name of one of your classes…"
Annoyed, Harry glared at the snake, who smirked a bit. "Shut up if you don't want to be called Fluffy."
The snake's eyes shot wide and he kept silent as Harry picked a name for him, finally settling on Nemesis, thinking it sounded cool. The snake agreed, too, which was a relief.
The rest of the summer went very well for Harry. Nemesis was a bit odd at times and rather infuriating when he wanted, but he was fun to talk to. Blaise and him looked up at their books, the girl rather reluctantly, the boy excitedly.
"Oh great, Harry Potter, the nerd." She teased.
"Hilarious, Blaise." He replied flatly. "I just wanna look up if there's some way I can turn Dudley into a pig."
"Don't need magic for that, his parents did that very nicely."
And a second later, both were laughing, imagining more animals to transform Harry's cousin into. At the end, when they were dealing with the possible risk he had of suddenly turning into an hippopotamus, Mrs Zabini decided to come in… and add her own (and very creative) ideas.
Let's all hope Dudley likes pink gorillas with throbbing electric blue spots on their bodies.
*****
Final words: The foundations for Slytherin Harry's rise is there. Sorry for the HIGH number of quotes, for the length of the chapter… for breathing… for existing… *bursts out crying and jumps out the front door, crashing on the stairs*, *Gets back up, cleans himself and grins sheepishly* Sorry 'bout that, just a bit tired. It's deep night right now… *sigh*
FanQuote (Sirius Black):"[…]Your Mum wanted to call you Septimus, because you were born in the seventh month, so count yourself lucky ... if you had been born a day later, you might have been called Octopus Potter. As for your Father ... well, he liked the sound of Ringo,"
Sorry, couldn't help myself. That quote makes me laugh my head off every time I read it. "The boy-who-lived, Octopus Potter!" LOL!
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