"Do you think the rumours are true?"
"What rumours would those be?"
"Well, You know. About Potter."
"What about Potter?"
"Do you think he really is the Heir of Slytherin?"
"Why would I think that the-boy-who-unfortunately-lived-POTTER would be the Slytherin Heir? That is just absurd!"
"But you heard what the Gryffindors were saying the other day…."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Harry was feeling restless. He couldn't understand why everyone thought that he the-boy-who-lived-Harry-Potter could ever harm a living soul let a lone do so with cool calculated intent. How could anyone who knew him even consider that he could be the Heir of Salazar Slytherin? All the whispering and pointing was driving him crazy.
Try as he might sitting in the common room with nothing to do was not helping him as all the other Gryffindors seemed to be absolutely certain that he was the culprit in this case. He could hear them whispering all around them. No doubt wondering who would be his next victim. He even knew that there was a betting going on of the next victim and that almost all were certain that it would be Justin for none had forgotten the happenings of the duelling club.
You remember last year there was a rumour going on that You-Know-Who had attacked Harry. I don't know about you but I doubt that now… What if they are working together??
That was the last straw for Harry. He stood up and turned to face the rest of his house in the common room. Glaring angrily at everyone he shouted,
"Working with VOLDERMORT am I now? Last week you would have said I was your saviour FROM him. I guess I now see how loyal you Gryffindors really are!"
A gasp of horror went through the other occupants of the room with the mention of the present dark lords name. Harry was so angry that he didn't care any more if he shocked someone by using his name like any other.
"I thought I knew you people, I guess I was mistaken. I don't know you. Gryffindors are supposed to be brave and loyal. You're just brave… Oh sorry, no you are not. After all, if you were, you would have said everything I've heard accidentally, to my face and asked me if it were true. But no you did nothing like that."
Harry was really loosing it and he couldn't stop the words coming from somewhere deep inside him. This was how he felt and he was going to tell these bastards just how low they were in his scale of people he liked or trusted.
"Why should we have asked you anything!?" someone yelled from the crowd.
Harry stood in front of the growing mass of Gryffindors and smiled.
"Why indeed? Maybe because I was your friend? Maybe because you trusted me? I don't know why you shouldn't have told me…. When we were sorted a little over a year ago, I asked the hat to place me in to Gryffindor. Yes I ASKED to be here. I didn't want to go to Slytherin even though the hat did say I would have done WELL in that particular house… I guess I now know why!"
The silence was deafening and Harry who was fuming with anger made his way towards the door. There was a hand on his shoulder trying to stop him but he just shook it off. That did not stop the person trying to stop him though as the same hand grabbed his arm. Turning around Harry blindly struck out with his fist. A shocked gasp went through the room.
Harry just turned back towards the door not realizing that the person that had tried to stop him had been Ron and that he now lay on the floor thoroughly stunned and holding his bleeding nose with Hermione kneeling next to him.
The room was dead silent until the door closed behind Harry.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Sitting in the Great Hall Harry thought about all the things that had happened during the past few days. The Duelling Club, The writings on the walls, the accusations… Without thinking of what he was doing he repeated the spell Draco had used on the duelling club only days before.
"Serpensortia"
A snake just like in the duelling club appeared next to him on the bench. Looking around a bit disoriented it finally turned to face Harry. The Snake and boy looked at each other for a while as if sizing each other up and then finding the other worthy of their trust.
The snake slowly made his way towards Harry and hissed at him. To any one looking at the spectacle it might have seemed threatening but in fact it was just simple introduction to one another.
"Why did you summon me?"
"I wanted someone to talk to. Do you mind terribly that I summoned you here? I can send you back if you want me to."
To Harry it seemed as if the snake was laughing. Frowning he waited what the snake would answer.
"No need to send me back. You saved my life as my nest was being invaded with something hard and I was just about to be dragged outside by that thing."
Harry was surprised by this but pleasantly so. He could do with a friend just about now, as it seemed that his old friends had deserted him in favour of rumours they didn't even know were true in the first place. And what better friend than a snake that only he could talk to.
"I don't know much about snakes really. What do you do all day?"
Again it seemed as if the snake was laughing, at Harry's question this time though.
"What do snakes do? What do you do? You eat, then you sleep and then you eat again. Sometimes you do other things but what else is there? You humans can be so funny sometimes."
Harry was slightly baffled. He had thought that there would be more to being a snake but then again maybe there wasn't. The basic needs and thoughts of most mammals seemed to be the thing for snakes too. This snake didn't seem stupid though not at all. He seemed wise and thrust worthy to Harry. Realising that he didn't know the snakes name and that he was being rude for not telling the snake his own name he decided to fix this oversight of his.
"I'm sorry you must think I'm terribly rude for not introducing myself. I'm Harry. Harry Potter. What is your name?"
Coming closer still the snake took a long look of Harry and then slid to the hand extended towards him. Climbing up the arm until he was face to face with Harry and then coiling its tail around his hand the snake stared Harry for a while. Then to Harry's astonishment it seemed almost as if the Snake had smiled.
"Pleased to meat you Harry. My name is …"
He never got to finish the sentence as a group of angry students surrounded Harry and his new hissing friend. Angry stares from every direction were aimed at the snake that was wrapped around Harry's left arm, and ultimately at Harry as a result.
"Well if it isn't the Prince of Snakes. I always suspected you were up to no good Potter!"
Harry turns to see who was talking to him and found himself surrounded by various members of all 4 houses. That in itself was something unusual and in a way a bit frightening. As it were it seemed that now was the only time that Slytherin and Gryffindor students could be found in a group and not fighting each other but ganging up on someone else together.
"See I told you he was the one! What with talking to snakes in his free time. There's no doubt about it," said another boy from the group.
Harry could not say who they were. Just some random people he'd seen on the hallway after classes or in the great hall at dinner. He didn't know them and they most likely didn't know him personally just by rumours and from his reputation as the 'boy-who-lived'.
"Most rude…" hissed his new friend.
Harry could not agree more. They were ganging up on him as though he would hurt them if they came alone. The group was obviously afraid of him and drew strength from numbers. /Cowards/ was the only thing he could think about the group of students around him.
"What's the matter, Potter? Snake got your tongue? Or are you just silent because you know that we're right?" said the first boy.
"I think we better leave before things get ugly, my friend" Harry said to the snake.
It was obvious that the group was not happy with him right now, even less so because he was talking to a snake in Parseltongue right now. Slowly standing up Harry tried to make his way trough the barrier of people.
"What's the hurry, Potter? Afraid that few mudbloods will tarnish your perfect reputation?"
Not looking at the person speaking Harry tries to walk through the circle surrounding him only to be roughly pushed backwards by the nearest person. His legs hit the bench he had been sitting on just few moments ago. Holding his balance he steadies himself and the snake entwined around his hand. When Harry stands steadily again he once more tries to leave the circle of student around him only to be pushed back once again even more roughly than before. This time he loses his balance and falls against the table. Holding his hand up to protect his new reptilian friend his side is vulnerable and hits the edge of the table with a bruising force.
Hissing in pain he hold his ribs with his other arm. Regain his balance again Harry tries to walk away from the circle only to fall back against the table as he's once again pushed against the table. Hissing again in pain, this time from his back hitting the table he falls down on the bench stunned slightly from the impact.
"Oh look how the mighty fall."
He hears laughter around himself as the mockers enjoy tormenting the new Heir of Slytherin. Sitting there leaning against the table Harry tries to steady his breathing and collect his thoughts into forming a plan how to get out of this situation.
"What's the matter? Too tired to get off your pedestal of glory? Maybe we should help you."
Before Harry had anytime to wonder what the boy had meant with that he was lifted off the bench by several hands and thrown on the floor. Once again Harry lifted his hand above his body instead of pushing it in front of himself instinctively to brace himself for the impact. It seemed to be an instinct for Harry to protect the snake still wrapped around it.
"Crawling with the worms now are we? It suites you so well since you talk with the snakes already!"
"I will not stand this anymore!" the snake hissed at Harry while uncoiling from around Harry's arm.
"No, don't!" Harry hissed back at it but it was too late.
The snake was moving towards the main speaker. Poised to strike. Harry didn't know how he knew but the snake he had been making friends with was very poisonous and even one bite from it would kill the boy very quickly.
Hissing and spitting obscenities at the people around it the snake rose to its full height showing off its fangs. It was angry at the people for the only human who had ever been nice to it was being pushed around by these worthless cowards. It was going to make them pay and pay dearly. In the few minutes of talking with the boy Harry it had grown to like him very much and these humans were not going to antagonise him anymore. They had hurt Harry and that was unforgivable!
"What? Sending your lackeys on us now? How sweet. You know, I'm not afraid of snakes. I used to kill them off at my family farm in Australia. It was fun. Lets see if I can still handle them, shall we?"
Before Harry could react the boy had somehow managed to step on the snakes neck and was holding it still on the ground. Next thing Harry heard was the sickening crunch of its skull braking is the boy stood on it.
Harry was in shock. He'd only known the snake for a very short time but it felt so right to talk with it and it had understood him better than anyone he knew. And now watching there bastards kill his new friend. It was unforgivable. It was….
Something snapped in Harry's head and heart. Emotions were moving unstopped and rage was building inside Harry's heart. Unknown to even him a dark spot was forming inside Harry's soul. Nothing mattered to him right now but revenge. Utter and black revenge.
Turning to look at the laughing boy who had just killed his friend with no care to the animal or Harry for that matter. His eyes were locked on the boy who had just destroyed a precious life that he Harry had saved from the very same fate only minutes ago. Standing up with determination and rage in his heart he faced the murderer.
Taking out his wand he stood there just looking at the boy with cold eyes. Calculating his next move. The next move the boy made would be a wrong one no matter what. Harry couldn't stand the sight of him. Couldn't stand the fact that he was still standing on the dead snake that had just minutes ago thanked Harry for saving its life from the same fate that had been laid to him by the boy in front of him. He would pay and pay dearly for that mistake.
Never piss off Harry Potter.
Students were gathering inside the Great hall for it was time for dinner. The student didn't go to their seats though. There was something going on in the Gryffindor table and everyone with even slight curiosity wanted to know what was going on. The student gathered around the group of laughing boys trying to see what was going on.
Harry didn't care who was watching as he started whispering in Parseltongue. He summoned more snakes to surround himself. The snakes were slightly puzzled as to what hey were all doing there but as they saw the dead snake under the foot of the human in front of them they were enraged. Harry quickly explained what had happened and asked for their help and friendship that they freely gave. Starting to hiss at the people around them.
Harry wasn't sure what he as doing but he didn't care really. He just wanted… He just wanted… He didn't know what he wanted. He was blinded by hate and rage. It was one thing to target him but to let others get hurt in the process. That was unforgivable.
Ron and Hermione had arrived just to see snakes appear all around the great hall. Wondering what was happening they made their way to the gathering of people. Making their way through the people to see what was going on they go to the edge just in time to see…
Raising his wand in a fit of rage Harry spoke forth the only spell that he could remember. The only spell that he had only year ago sworn would never leave his lips.
"AVADA KEDAV…!"
He never got to finish the spell as he was hit by a stunning spell. The snakes around Harry moved over his body to protect him from whoever might hurt him. The last thing Harry heard was the alarmed shouts of the students and the soothing hissing nest to his ear.
TBC….