Here's the next chapter. I'm suffering through finals all next week. Please read the author note after the chapter.
ShadeDancer
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and can't get money for this, but I can make him into a Mafia Prince.
Warning: Some chapters (the ones including pranks) might not be appropriate to read at work. Laughter may ensue leading your co-workers to see you as even more insane than they previously thought.
Chapter 12: A Serpentine Duel
"Welcome to the first meeting of the Hogwarts Dueling Club" Trevor announced from his place on the dueling platform "we are here to teach you the proper art of dueling and to help you to better defend yourself. There will be no foolishness permitted, you will follow instructions or you will be asked to leave. Professor Snape is my co-instructor and dueling partner."
Harry exchanged smirks with Blaise at Trevor's speech—this was going to be interesting, they had wanted to see Trevor and Severus duel for quite some time now. Unforunately it appeared that their wishes weren't going to be granted just yet.
"You will be divided up into pairs and not necessarily with someone within your house" Severus took over "you will practice disarming and shielding only!"
Severus' patented glare kept any audible protests from rising, but Harry would bet anything that many students were grumbling mentally. Swiftly Trevor and Severus moved through the gathered students to partner them up. It was amusing to see the pale faces of any second and third years that found themselves working with fifth years or older. A few even dared to protests at the unfairness of this, causing Harry to scoff to himself. If you ever found yourself in a real duel or battle for your life you could not expect your opponent to be of the same magical skills as you were. You needed to be able to take down a person who was stronger and more powerful than yourself if you wished to survive in this world. Harry had learned early on under his tutelage from Sensei that the same applied in hand-to-hand combat.
"Potter" Severus grabbed his attention "pair up with Zabini."
Harry smirked, as if there had been any doubt on his partner. With the dueling training he and Blaise had undergone with Severus and their lessons with Trevor they could probably wipe the floor with anyone here, except for their teachers.
"Begin" Trevor announced moments later and the air was filled with shouted spells—many of them not the assigned ones.
"Enough" Trevor roared, casting a few immobulous charms at students unwilling to stop cursing their partners "if you have been badly hexed go to Madam Pomfrey. The rest of you will be shown a proper duel, one that isn't consumed by your childish house rivalries."
Harry tossed Blaise back her wand as Severus and Trevor took their positions upon the dueling platform, watching on in excitement as their teachers bowed to each other before stalking with predatory grace to opposite ends of the platform. At a look from Severus, Harry climbed up onto the platform and raised three fingers.
"Three" down went one finger—"Two" there went the next—"One!"
Harry dropped his last finger and was already leaping off the platform, twisting his body so that he didn't miss any of the action; he knew how quickly both men could shoot off spells and didn't fancy being caught in the middle of their duel. Trevor and Severus had immediately started casting hexes and curses at each other, dodging and shielding against the colorful spells hurtling towards them.
"Serpensorita" Severus yelled, setting a snake on Trevor.
"Vipera Evanesca" Trevor intoned back, but instead of hitting the snake, Trevor's curse was intercepted by another one Severus had sent out.
The two spells collided over the serpents head and sent the spitting and confused creature slithering for cover—directly towards Harry and Blaise. The other students around the two friends drew back, but Harry and Blaise kept themselves still so as not to entice the snake to strike. Severus and Trevor had frozen in mid-duel and trained their wands on the snake, minds working furiously to find a spell they could use to subdue the writing serpent without it still having a chance to attack or risk the spell hitting the students. A simple stupefy would not stop the magically created snake and a vipera evanesca would still give the snake a few seconds in which to attack—they had no clue if the magically conjured snake was poisonous or not. Harry on the other hand continued to stare calmly at the serpent before slowly reaching out. No one was quite sure how it happened, but suddenly the snake was coiled peacefully around Harry's arm and he was raising his eyes to Trevor's face.
"Can I keep him Uncle Trevor" Harry deadpanned "I promise to take care of him and train him to only attack Gryffindors."
"Oi" insulted cries could be heard from the twins and Lee.
"Talk your father into getting you a snake this summer" Trevor scowled at Harry for him having dared call him Uncle in front of the rest of the students "but you're going to lay that one down so we can get rid of it."
Harry sighed, but did as he was told with a shrug "you already know dad will let me get a snake."
"I know" Trevor rolled his eyes, muttering something that sounded like an affectionate "spoiled brat."
"You're dismissed" Trevor turned to address the rest of the students as Severus incinerated the snake "the next meeting will be held in a week. Screw up next week as bad as you did today and you will be banned from returning."
… … … … …
"Find anything yet" Harry asked Blaise softly as he closed yet another book after adding its information to their list.
"No" Blaise shook her head "I guess it isn't know as the Chamber of Secrets for nothing."
Harry sighed, they had been searching through any historical and lineage books they could find in hopes of discovering either reference to the Chamber of Secrets or to trace who could be Slytherin's heir. They hadn't had any luck with either so far. The only real thing of interest they had come up with from their time in the library was to overhear Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley forming a tentative friendship in order to brew a polyjuice potion to prove that Draco Malfoy was the heir of Slytherin. Blaise had debated on telling them not to bother, that Draco was just as much in the dark as everyone else and too inept anyhow, but Harry had stopped her.
"Let them try" he said "I want to see if they can actually pull it off. I'm almost tempted to stay behind at Christmas to see what happens, but I want to go home too bad. I think Trevor does too."
Blaise slammed yet another book closed "this is no use. We're not finding anything here. Let's go find the twins, we haven't pulled any pranks yet this week and I'm suffering through laughter withdraw."
… … … … …
"That was too easy" Blaise sighed as they sat down to dinner, once again their prank was going to debut during the evening meal "it's a bit of a let down."
"But the effects will be great" Harry smirked, sending a side long glance at the twins who looked prepared to start laughing at any moment "you did warn your dad and Professor Snape, didn't you?"
Blaise paled, her voice coming out in a squeak "no."
Harry sighed "I'll signal Trevor and have him pass the warning along, let's just hope neither have drank any of their pumpkin juice yet."
With discreet gestures, Harry caught Trevor's eye and passed along a warning not to drink from his goblet. Then with a bit more difficulty he got it across that Trevor should warn Severus as well, they really needed to come up with a signal to stand for Severus since he was working with them so often. Trevor gave them a slight nod, but the look in his eyes also promised that he would get an explanation once dinner was over. Harry grimaced but acquiesced; it wasn't like he could refuse to answer Trevor, the man would get it out of him somehow.
Slowly dinner came to an end, and the twins looked a bit disappointed that none of the other students seemed to be showing any effects of the prank just then. Harry and Blaise merely winked at the twins and mouthed to them to give it time before heading out to meet up with an impatiently waiting Trevor.
"Well" he said, nothing more was needed.
"We spiked the pumpkin juice with exlax" Blaise informed her father "and a lot of it after we found a handy duplication spell."
Trevor sighed "what have I told you about pranks?"
"Ummm…not to get caught" Harry hazarded a guess.
Trevor shook his head in defeat as Blaise added in another tidbit of information.
"I was going to dump in a sleeping potion as well, but we didn't know how well muggle medicine would mix with a magical potion. We also remembered that we have to share a dorm with the people who drank the spiked juice."
"I should have never let you near Manuel" Trevor groaned "not only has he corrupted his own son, but my daughter as well."
Blaise grinned "at least I learned from the best. 'Night dad!"
"Yeah" Harry called, already halfway down the hall "Night Uncle Trev!"
A/N: Not much of a prank at the end, but I didn't want to go onto the next part of the story and skip around too much into this one chapter.
Now I need your help! I've decided that in year three (yes, I know I'm not done year two yet. I'm planning ahead) that someone is going to die. The person must be close to the duo or affect someone close to them. I already have an idea on who, but who you do think should and shouldn't die. Why?
Thanks to everyone who reviewed!
Skuld's Sentaro4: oh, if that spell was real! I'd be in heaven!
Shion20: Dumbledore knows Manuel is Harry's father but he has yet to discover where they actually live; Knowing Trevor as we all do, it's a safe bet he has the Darkov lands well warded. (grins)
Bella Snape: if you genetically engineer my children, do I have to help take care of them?
Black Wolfress: I am immune. The Darkov clan is the least of my protection...well, not least as that seems demeaning, but I do have more powerful allies and subordinates.
May 6, 2005