Chapter 3
I used the Harry Potter Wiki as my primary source of information while writing this fic.
Harry woke up early the next day, quickly changing into his school robes, which now had a silver and green trim on them. Navigating his way through the shifting maze that was the Slytherin dormitories, he entered the common room, which was already occupied by multiple students, including several first years, namely Blaise Zabini and Tracey Davis, who were looking over a sheet of parchment. Walking up to them, Harry saw that the parchment was a sheet that called for first-year students to sign up for electives. Beside it lay a few packets containing information on the various electives available to first-year students.
While most of the worthwhile electives at Hogwarts did not start until third year, there were several more mundane subjects that first and second years could sign up for. While the list had once been just as diverse as the elective choices available to third years and up, it had been substantially diminished during the course gutting that took place after Voldemort's defeat. Where the first years could once take subjects such as Fencing, Physical Education, and Dueling, those courses had all been removed from the Hogwarts curriculum, while other electives that were once available for first years, like Care of Magical Creatures and Muggle Studies had been moved up to third year to compensate for the loss of subjects like Mind Arts and Alchemy, the latter of which having been moved up to Sixth year, while the former was removed entirely.
Thus, there were very few activities that Harry could actually sign up for, and most of those were either totally mundane, useless, or both. An example was Xylomancy, which was a simple form of divination utilizing sticks. It was created after Voldemort's fall, having been split from the original Divination curriculum. Harry quickly skimmed through the course description and dismissed it as rubbish. Other subjects, like Art and Music did not even require magic, and were, to Harry's mind at least, completely useless. However, first years were required to take at least one elective, so he continued to look through the electives packet. Finally, after discarding the whole lot of them as useless, Harry came across a final option that, if he could pull it off, would provide a perfect solution to his problem.
The option was simply labeled "Supervised Study", and the name was self explanatory. If selected, a first or second year student would need to persuade a teacher to supervise them while they self-studied or worked on schoolwork. However, it could only be accepted with permission from a teacher, without which a student would need to pick a different elective. This choice was only available to first and second years, with unsupervised self-study being available to third years and up.
A low groan brought Harry out of his thoughts, causing him to look around just in time for Daphne Greengrass to collapse into the spot beside him. Her hair, which had been perfectly combed the day before, was now a mess, flying in all directions, while her eyes were barely open. Evidently, she was not a morning person, a fact that was reinforced by the blonde girl's complete collapse onto Harry's side, to the annoyance of the boy in question. Jabbing his fingers into her side, he shot off a quick stinging hex, which caused Daphne to bolt awake, startling the nearby Tracey and Blaise.
"Good morning." Harry said blandly as Daphne fixed him with a glare that could melt steel.
"That was uncalled for." Daphne replied indignantly as she nursed the spot where the hex had struck.
"Really? I thought it was quite necessary given the circumstances." Harry said as he began to think about which professor to persuade. The most likely choice was Snape, as the man already knew that Harry possessed some form of talent, as well as the fact that Snape was the head of Slytherin House.
"May I see that packet please?" Daphne asked, and Harry nodded distractedly, handing the packet to the blonde as he thought of ways to persuade the greasy haired man to allow him to study under his supervision. Meanwhile, Daphne skimmed through the packet, her eyes quickly coming to rest on the Supervised Study option.
"So, which elective are you taking?" Daphne asked after a few minutes.
"I'm going to try to persuade Snape to take me in for Supervised Study. All the other electives are complete rubbish, and that would allow me to keep reading the Encyclopedia." Harry replied.
"Really? I was thinking the same thing. Snape would probably accept, we are in Slytherin after all, and it would allow us to get ahead in our studies as well, rather than increase our workload like the other choices would." Daphne said.
"I'd wager most of the Slytherins would do the same thing." Harry remarked.
"You'd be surprised by how many people just pick Xylomancy because it sounds magical." Daphne replied, and put the packet down. At that moment, Tracey and Blaise walked over, sitting down beside the pair.
"Are you two trying for Supervised Study as well?" Blaise asked as soon as he sat down.
"Good morning Blaise, and yes, we are." Daphne said, emphasizing Blaise's breach of ettiquette with her reply.
"Good morning Daphne, Harry." Blaise replied, before continuing, "It's pretty obvious that supervised study is the only worthwhile option of the lot, and as we're in Slytherin, we should be able to get Snape to agree without a problem."
"I've heard from some of the upper years that Snape makes us take some sort of test to prove that we're worth his time, but otherwise it shouldn't be an issue." Tracey chipped in.
"That's good to know, Tracey." Harry replied, "Now, do you know when Breakfast starts, by any chance?"
"It starts in a couple minutes. We'll ask Snape immediately afterward. Since classes don't start until tomorrow, we should have plenty of time to do so."
"Do you know when do we get our class schedules?" Daphne asked.
"Tomorrow at Breakfast. Either Snape or the Prefects will pass them out." Blaise replied.
"Thank you." Harry said, before standing up and starting to walk towards the dormitories. When his three acquaintances looked up at him, asking what he was doing, he replied that he had forgotten his wand, and left.
He came back several minutes later with a lightened bag in one hand, and his wand in the other. He didn't particularly like using his wand for magic due to the strange feeling it gave him whenever he attempted to use it, but it would be necessary to keep up appearances. Meanwhile, the lightened and expanded bag contained both his school books and supplies, while in a second, hidden compartment, it held the Encyclopedia Arcanum in its entirety.
In the five years that Harry had lived in the magical world, the Encyclopedia had been his go-to guide for magic, although Harry had not yet finished the whole series. In fact, he had only finished the Magical Theory volume, the rest being either partially read or, in the cases of the more advanced subjects, completely unopened.
Walking into the Slythein common room once more, Harry walked over to where Blaise was instructing Tracey and Daphne in more advanced usage of the levitation charm. He sat down between the two girls, and opened the bag, briefly debating over which book he would take out, before finally deciding on the Potions volume, which he took out and opened to page 1034, which contained detailed information on the interactions of a Bezoar with various soporific substances, such as Asphodel. Potions that were correctly brewed with those two substances tended to have healing effects, such as the potion used in the example, which put the drinker into a trance-like state that accelerated a body's natural healing factor.
A few minutes later, he was distracted from his reading by Blaise tapping him on the shoulder.
"Come on. Breakfast starts soon." The boy said, and Harry put the book away and followed Blaise out of the common room, joining up with Tracey and Daphne, who were waiting outside.
"So, what were you reading about?" Blaise asked as they walked to the great hall.
"Potions. Specifically, the interactions of a Bezoar with various soporific reagents. It's quite interesting, actually, when you use Godwin's formula to predict the results of the Bezoar's reaction, as the result almost always carries an amalgam of both ingredients' effects as well as a third, completely new effect present in the potion. In fact, Bezoars are one of the few ingredients whose result in a reaction cannot be predicted by the more commonly taught Egbertian system, hence the lack of bezoars in advanced potion brewing..." Harry continued to ramble on about Bezoars and various formulas, some of which Blaise, Tracey, and Daphne had heard of, while others were completely new to them.
"... so as a result, when soaked in a suspension of powdered jade and rattlesnake oil, a Bezoar becomes a much more stable ingredient, and it will become inert rather than explode if it is inserted into the wrong substance." Harry finished his lecture on the stability of Bezoars as he and his group of acquaintances entered the great hall, only to find a certain professor standing in their way.
"Mr. Potter, since you seem so knowledgeable on the subject of Bezoars, tell me, what would you get if you added one to an infusion of Wormwood?" Professor Snape asked, a look of mild curiosity on his face.
"If it were a normal, uncut bezoar, the result would be unpredictable, although it usually comes in the form of an explosion. However, were you to add a precise measurement of powdered bezoar that I believe would be equal to... one twentieth of the liquid's mass," Harry began, running some rudimentary calculations in his head, "...then the result would be a potion that protects the drinker from most poisons while asleep for exactly twenty days after drinking, meaning that it would be impossible to poison them while they are unconscious and under the potion's influence." Harry finished, before looking up to see Snape's face assuming an impassive facade, only briefly catching the shock that had been there several seconds before.
"I will test your theory later today, Mr. Potter. Twenty points to Slytherin if it succeeds." Snape said, before turning to leave, only for Daphne to hold up her hand, causing the greasy haired professor to shift his attention to her.
"Yes, Miss Greengrass?"
"Sir, the four of us have been wondering if you would be willing to be our supervisor for supervised study this year, as we wish to select it for our elective." Daphne asked.
"If that is your wish, you four are to report directly to my office after breakfast, so I can ensure you will be worth my time. Pray that you do not waste it." With those parting words, Snape turned around and walked to the head table, sitting down on Dumbledore's left.
"That went just about as well as expected." Daphne sighed, before she sat down at the Slytherin table, the rest of the group sitting down around her, Blaise at her right, Harry at her left, and Tracey on Harry's right.
"You seem quite knowledgeable on the subject of potions, Harry." Daphne said after looking thoughtful for a moment.
"Yeah, especially about Bezoars. I think I've heard enough about them to last me a lifetime!" Tracey piped up.
"It's nothing, really. I just read about it is all." Harry replied.
"In the Encyclopedia Arcanum, perhaps?" Daphne asked, and Harry realized what she was trying to do.
"Perhaps." Harry replied, an enigmatic smile forming on his face.
"You know, I started to read the introductory volume on the train..." Daphne began, and Harry finished her sentence.
"... And you want to have access to the rest of the series?" Harry asked.
"Exactly." Daphne said, determination clear in her voice. After all, while she wasn't spoiled rotten like Malfoy or Pansy, she was still from a wealthy, pureblood family and thus, used to getting what she wanted, usually through manipulation on her part.
"Hmm... I might be persuaded to temporarily part with a volume or two..." Harry began.
"Name your price so that we may negotiate." Daphne said.
"It's not so much that I want something as it is the books' contents. After all, knowledge is power, and I wouldn't want to give power to a potential rival, now would I? To put it bluntly, Daphne, I want an alliance." Harry said.
"You know, if you wanted to be friends, Harry, you could have just asked." Daphne said, a smile on her face.
"Slytherins don't have friends. We have allies. Friends, after all, are just friends. Allies, meanwhile, are friends bound together by a mutual materialistic and emotional relationship." Harry said, a smile on his own face.
"Materialistic and emotional relationship? Are you... proposing to me?" Daphne asked, a coy smirk briefly visible on her face before she schooled her features into a more serious visage. "On a more serious note, I am willing to enter an alliance with you in exchange for access to the books."
"Excellent. Now, let us negotiate the terms for this alliance." Harry said, and pulled out a sheet of parchment and a quill. He then quickly wrote down a short paragraph, and handed it to Daphne.
"Is this acceptable?" He asked, and Daphne took the paper and read it over.
"Let's see... should an activity in class require a partner I am to oblige... mutual exchange of school supplies... delivery of gifts necessary on July 31st and a mutual exchange of gifts December 23rd... Promised assistance with any and all homework assignments... This is mostly acceptable, but I would like you to add in something to make you give me gifts on my birthday, which is April 18th, by the way, as well as making the homework assistance clause and partner clause mutual." She said, and handed the parchment back to Harry, who quickly scratched out and added in the appropriate alterations.
"I find those terms acceptable." Harry said, and Daphne took the parchment again, quickly reading it over to make sure everything was satisfactory. Then, she took the quill from Harry's hand and signed her name at the bottom of the contract. Harry did the same when she handed the contract back to him. They then set the contract down and shook hands, smirks on both their faces, each thinking that they had gotten the good end of the deal.
"Whoa... That's a... unique way of making friends." Tracey said as she looked at the two as if they had gone insane.
"We are not friends, Miss Davis. We are allies." Daphne said, an aloof look on her face that held for a few seconds before she started to laugh.
"You are free to enter alliance negotiations with one or both of us, Miss Davis." Harry said.
"Really, Harry? Just call me your friend." Tracey said.
"Are those your only terms for an alliance?" Harry asked.
"On second thought, the contract sounds like a good idea." Tracey said as she got a crafty look on her face.
"Hmph. Typical snakes. Need a contract just to make friends!" A familiar voice caused the group to turn around. Behind them stood Ron Weasley, as well as the Weasley twins.
"You better watch your back ickle firsties..." One twin began.
"... because we've got an extra special surprise in store for you!" The other twin finished. That was when Snape walked over to the trio.
"Threatening a student, are we? That's ten points from Gryffindor. Ten more for being out of your seat, and ten more for not taking care of your appearance." Snape said, a sadistic smile on his face as he docked 30 points from his least favorite house.
"But-" Ron began.
"Ten more for talking back, Weasley. I suggest you go back to your table before you cost your house even more than you already have." At that, the three Weasleys ran back to their table, barely hearing Snape's voice saying, "Another ten for running in the Great Hall." With that, Snape left, disappearing back to his own table just as fast as he had appeared.
"How nice of the twins to actually announce their plans to us." Blaise said offhandedly.
"What do you expect? They're Gryffindors." Daphne said with a disdainful sniff.
"Plenty of opportunities for a little accident now. Perhaps one of their little childish pranks will backfire at the wrong moment now." Harry commented.
"One of the older Slytherins claims he heard the Twins talking to each other one night." Tracey began. "He claims that they can get into the Slytherin common room thanks to some idiots named Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs. Whoever they were, they must have given the twins some way of guessing the password."
"Did you just say Prongs?" Harry turned to the brown haired girl. He had, after all, read through the diary his father kept while at school.
"Yeah. What about him?" Tracey asked, putting some food on her plate.
"I think I might have a solution." Harry said, before getting up and walking over to where the Twins were sitting.
"Oh, is the ickle firstie back for more?" One of the twins asked.
"Yes, in fact, I am here to get something. I believe you have a certain map in your possession. Hand it over, now." Harry said imperiously.
"We have no such thing!" A twin said, although the panicked look on their faces gave them away.
"As the son of Prongs, I demand that you hand over that which is rightfully mine." Harry said, still smiling.
"Really?" One twin asked skeptically.
"Make me." The other twin declared.
"Very well then. Accio Marauder's Map!" Harry waved his hand dramatically, and a piece of parchment came soaring out of the Twins' belongings.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Harry said, and touched the paper. Just like that, what was once blank parchment became a full map of Hogwarts, with the positions of everyone in the school marked as well.
Satisfied, Harry deactivated the map with a quick "Mischief Managed," and tucked the map into his pockets before walking away, reveling in the enraged glares the twins were giving him.
"Wow, if looks could kill, your corpse would have died twice over by now." Tracey said as Harry sat down. "What did you do anyway?"
"Nothing. Just regained some stolen property." Harry said with a smirk, and finished his breakfast.
As the quartet were leaving the Great Hall, intending to head straight down to Snape's office, they were stopped by Dumbledore, the old man looking down upon them with a grandfatherly smile and twinkling eyes.
"Good morning young ladies and gentlemen." Dumbledore greeted, "I do not mean to impose, but may I borrow young Mr. Potter for a moment?"
"Good morning headmaster. I do not mean to offend, but I already have an appointment scheduled with Professor Snape. Is it alright if our meeting is delayed until then?" Harry asked.
"Certainly. I know how Severus is a stickler for appointments, so it is best not to keep him waiting! Meet me in my office when you are done, Mr. Potter. I have something to discuss with you."
"I'll be there." Harry said, forcing a smile onto his face despite his internal panic. Had the Sorting Hat lied about not being able to disclose secrets? Had his murder of his aunt and uncle been discovered?
"I will look forward to it." Dumbledore said before walking away.
"What was that all about?" Blaise asked.
"I don't know, but he did get one thing right. Let's get to Snape's office, the sooner the better." Daphne replied, and set off at a quick walk, the rest of the group soon matching her pace. They quickly re-entered the dungeons and made their way towards the Slytherin Head of House's office.
"You may come in." Snape said as Blaise knocked on the door.
The four students entered and sat down.
"So. Greengrass, Davis, Zabini, and Potter. All of you are the scions of old and powerful wizarding families, so you all should know how to perform some rudimentary magic by now. Thus, this test should be easy for you, if you are at all competent, that is. Greengrass, explain to me, the process by which the Summoning charm works." Snape asked.
"The summoning charm operates by sending out a magical tracer keyed to the object that the caster has specified. Once it has found its target, it will utilize a variant of the common levitation charm to bring the object to its owner via the path of least resistance, breaking through obstacles if necessary. The range of the summoning charm is theoretically infinite, although the power of the summoner limits the range at which an object can be summoned."
"Adequate, Miss Greengrass. You are accepted. Next, Mr. Zabini, tell me, where would you find a bezoar?"
"You can find a bezoar in the stomach of a goat that has lived in a magically saturated area." Blaise replied, and Snape nodded his acceptance.
"Miss Davis, explain to me the difference between a dementor and a lethifold."
"Lethifolds and Dementors are created in a similar manner, but are not identical. A dementor is a creature that can best be described as congealed despair, which feeds off of emotions. Contrary to popular belief, a dementor does not feed on positive memories, rather, it feeds off despair, thus it brings negative memories to the forefront of a person's mind. A lethifold, meanwhile, is the result of a dementor's kiss, and can be described as the remnants of a soul devoured by a dementor, unable to feel any emotion but hatred. Both creatures can be repelled by the use of a patronus charm."
"You are accepted, Miss Davis. Now for you, Mr. Potter. Miss Davis here has just described possible uses of a Patronus charm. Could you, perhaps, perform a practical demonstration of said charm for us?" Snape asked.
"I am afraid not, Professor." Harry began after some frantic thinking on his part. "One must choose their battles, and the one you have set before me is un-winnable. I freely admit that I do not know how to perform the Patronus charm." Harry said.
"Well said, Mr. Potter. At first I thought you would have arrogantly attempted the charm despite not knowing it. It seems that you have more of your mother in you than your father despite inheriting his looks. You are accepted." Snape said, an impassive look on his face.
"Thank you, sir." Harry replied.
"You may leave now." Snape said as he returned to his work. The four students left, Harry heading for Dumbledore's office.
"Move." Harry ordered the Gargoyle.
"No." The statue responded.
"Move." Harry said, a bit more forcefully.
"No. Please say the password first."
"You are going to move right now, or Merlin help me I will blast you to rubble."
"Better students have tried and failed, my boy." The voice of Dumbledore cut into the argument. "I apologize for not giving you the password beforehand. Licorice Wands."
"No thank you, si-" Harry started to deny the offered candy, only to stop as the statue swung aside. Was Licorice Wands actually the password?
"Come on now, Harry, I don't bite!" Dumbledore said as he walked up the revealed staircase. Harry followed, and entered a rather large office. A large stone basin sat in a corner, and against the wall was a shelf covered in various instruments. Most of the instruments were silent and still, but a few continued to flash and whirl.
"Lemon drop?" The headmaster asked as he sat down on one side of the desk and conjured up a simple chair on the other.
"No thank you, sir." Harry replied as he sat in the offered seat.
"Alas, nobody seems to appreciate them anymore." Dumbledore said, popping one of the yellow candies into his mouth.
"Sorry, sir. I just don't like lemons." Harry replied, his eyes wandering across the instrument array.
"Something catch your fancy, my boy?" Dumbledore asked, noticing where Harry was looking.
"Forgive me, sir, but may I ask what are those instruments?" Harry asked.
"Ah, yes. Those instruments are part of what we will be discussing today. You see, when your parents died, I was tasked with becoming your magical guardian. However, due to my position, I was unable to take care of you personally, so I left you with your mother's only remaining relatives. After making sure you were safe, I erected a series of blood wards around the house, which should have kept you safe. These instruments were created to monitor not only the wards, but you as well." Dumbledore began.
"Why me, sir?" Harry asked.
"Harry, do you know why your parents died?"
"I know how, but I do not know why." Harry replied.
"It is good to see that you are not entirely uninformed. You must know your enemy to defeat them, after all. Regardless, Lord Voldemort was a truly brilliant man. Terrible, yes, but also brilliant. However, that brilliance lent itself to a certain paranoia, and when news of a supposed 'Chosen One' who could defeat him being born, he was quick to act. Now, these rumors may or may not have contained truth, but Voldemort soon narrowed down the list to two children. Neville Longbottom, and you, Harry Potter. Seeking to eliminate any possible threat, he sent his chief lieutenant, Bellatrix Lestrange, to the Longbottom household, while he personally went after your parents. Now, your parents realized this, and allowed me to hide them under the Fidelius charm. They would have been able to hide forever, but in the end they were betrayed. Sirius Black, upon whose shoulders the protection lay, gave away the Potters' location to the Dark Lord, allowing him to bypass the protections and kill your parents. However, your mother was a truly gifted witch, and with an unknown spell, she used her own sacrifice to save your life, allowing the killing curse to rebound off you and give you that scar." Dumbledore said, pointing at the now faded scar on Harry's forehead.
"Your mother's love and sacrifice protected you that night, and your survival of the killing curse has made some believe that you truly are the chosen one who will defeat Lord Voldemort once and for all."
"I don't understand, sir. Isn't Voldemort already dead?"
"In life, Voldemort's only true fear was death itself, and there are several truly foul rituals he may have performed to ensure his survival beyond death. Even now, I believe he still lives, if only as a shade of his former self. How he anchored his soul to the mortal plane, I know not, but I do believe he still lives on. Unfortunately, very few people share that point of view, most preferring to live carefree lives, believing the man who terrorized them is truly dead."
"I see. May I ask why you called me here, headmaster? I doubt it is to discuss the man who killed my parents."
"Very astute, my boy. It has to do with the instruments you asked me about. See how most of them are silent?" Dumbledore asked.
"Yes..." Harry said, dreading where the conversation was going.
"Harry, do you remember any strange people visiting your house on August thirteenth, 1987?"
Harry did not remember anything of the sort, as he himself had killed his foster family, but he realized what the headmaster was getting at. He immediately cast his eyes down to the floor and attempted to give off the impression of fear.
"I... I don't want to talk about it." He quickly blurted out.
"It's alright my boy, you do not have to if you are uncomfortable with remembering such a thing. I simply wanted to ask how you were doing, after all, it is a terrible thing to lose one's family once, let alone twice over, both times at the hands of dark wizards." Dumbledore soothed.
"Thank you for your concern, sir, but you said that you put up some form of blood wards to protect me. How could that... that man get past them?"
"Alas, I do not know. The only way the wards could have been penetrated was if someone possessed your mother's blood, but that is impossible as your mother had no living relatives aside from poor Petunia Dursley. I am still trying to determine how the deed was done."
"Thank you, Headmaster." Harry said, expertly hiding his internal concern. What if Dumbledore's investigation leads to discovery of his role in the Dursley murder? Dumbledore had to be eliminated before he found out too much.
"It truly has been a pleasure speaking with you, my boy. Now, off you go! Classes start up tomorrow, and you do want to be fully prepared for them." Dumbledore said. Harry stood, thanking the professor one last time, and took his leave, Dumbledore's concerned eyes following him out the door.
The first week of classes went by fairly quickly, Harry using the time to analyze his teachers and their methods. Potions was by far the best lesson for the Slytherins, especially on fridays, when the Slytherins had double potions with the Gryffindors. It was there that Snape made his pro-Slytherin bias abundantly clear, giving points to Slytherins for something as simple as correct posture, whilst simultaneously taking away points from Gryffindor for the same reasons. It seemed that the greasy haired professor took a sadistic pleasure in tormenting the house of the brave, as was evidenced by his humiliation of Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Neville Longbottom. Weasley and Longbottom couldn't brew a potion to save their lives, the former due to sheer stupidity, while the latter was extremely intimidated by Snape, which prevented him from doing well.
"How that boy ended up in Gryffindor I'll never know." Daphne once remarked as she watched Neville have a panic attack and explode his cauldron by dropping in three times as many beetle eyes as was necessary.
"Probably the same way that Drakey Poo ended up in Slytherin." Harry replied, causing Daphne to laugh.
Hermione Granger, meanwhile, was a much better student than Longbottom or Weasley, and brewed almost every potion in the class perfectly. However, she seemed to have a constant string of bad luck while in the classroom, with her cauldron constantly tipping over, spilling its half-finished contents, or the vials of potion she was turning in being 'accidentally' knocked off the table and shattering. Of course, the vials of Slytherin students would also fall, but the older students had charmed them to be unbreakable beforehand, allowing them to stay intact. This drove Hermione to tears multiple times, causing her to run crying out of the room, much to the amusement of the Slytherins and even a few Gryffindors.
Transfiguration, meanwhile, came with a noticeable pro-Gryffindor bias, as Professor McGonnagall was prone to coddling her lions, awarding them points for succeeding first. She gave Slytherins points for succeeding as well, but it wasn't nearly as much, and it usually was followed by a larger point award going to a Gryffindor. She obviously favored Hermione, as the girl was, in fact, a natural at transfiguration. Harry might even have ended up befriending her if it weren't for her insufferable, know-it-all attitude and behavior as a teacher's pet. Then, there came McGonnagall's attitude towards Harry.
The elderly Transfiguration teacher seemed to take it as a personal insult that Harry had not gone into her house as expected, and thus took quite a bit of points off for 'Not doing the spell properly' or 'showing off' whenever he wandlessly completed the assigned transfiguration. Thus, despite his ability in the field, Harry soon developed a dislike of Tranfiguration.
The other classes, meanwhile, gave Harry more than enough opportunities to regain the points lost in Transfiguration, as he would always be the first to succeed in Charms and Defense, although he was closely rivaled in Herbology by Neville Longbottom of all people, creating an even point split in that class.
Of course, there were other classes, like Magical Theory, which Harry dismissed as outdated, false information, and History of Magic, in which he simply read the Encyclopedia along with Daphne, Tracey, and Blaise, who had all come to an agreement regarding the precious volumes. Their performance in class had already begun to improve by leaps and bounds, and the three had all cast their first pieces of wandless magic by the end of the week.
It was after one such session in History of Magic that Harry's group was confronted by Hermione as they were leaving History of Magic.
"I saw what you were doing in there." The bushy haired girl said as Harry was leaving.
"And what was I doing, Miss Granger?" Harry replied coolly.
"You were reading a book on the dark arts!" Hermione accused, causing several eyes to look his way.
"You mean this?" Harry asked, pulling out the Magical Theory volume of the Encyclopedia from his bag. He had been reading the Blood Magic volume in class, but the books looked almost identical, making it hard to distinguish between volumes without reading the titles.
"No, that's not the book you were reading!" Hermione declared. Apparently, she had read the title.
"What I read is none of your concern, Miss Granger. Besides, Magic is all about intent. I can behead someone with a simple severing charm, or I could use a deadly blood boiling curse to warm up a cup of tea. The magic you see as 'Light' are simply the basic, ministry approved spells that the fools in the ministry have decided are weak enough to allow control. However, the fact remains that each and every one of us is carrying a potentially lethal weapon, Miss Granger." Harry said, taking out and twirling his wand between his fingers. "You might as well learn how to use it."
"But it's still dark magic! It wouldn't be regulated if it weren't for your own good and the good of society!" Hermione insisted.
"Did you know, Miss Granger, that Hogwarts used to offer a lot more classes than the ones available today? It was only after the rise of Voldemort that they were removed from the school curriculum."
"Then they must have been dark."
"Really now? How is Fencing or Physical Education dark magic? Face it, Miss Granger, just because the ministry regulates it doesn't mean it's dark."
"There must have been some reason for it!" Hermione insisted, much to Harry's annoyance.
"Miss Granger, if you are just going to stand there and berate me for my choice in reading, you are simply wasting your time, as well as mine. I do not enjoy my time being wasted, Granger." Harry said, attempting to channel the disdainful aura that Snape always seem to exude. It seemed to work, as Hermione took the hint and backed off.
"How rude of her." Tracey, who had watched the exchange, commented.
"Not my fault that all those books she has memorized don't include anything on proper manners." Harry responded as they walked to their next class, which happened to be herbology.
Harry's first flying lesson was rather eventful, as Malfoy chose that moment to make a move against the Gryffindors.
Earlier during the lesson, Neville Longbottom had fallen off his broom and broke his wrist, forcing Madame Hooch to take him to the hospital wing. As soon as she had left, however, Draco went over to where Neville had fallen and picked up a small glass sphere, a rememberall, if Harry remembered correctly. The blonde haired boy had promptly gotten into a confrontation with Ron Weasley, which ended in both the boys flying into the air and attempting to knock the other off their brooms. That was when Madame Hooch returned, and she promptly docked a hundred points from both houses, causing Malfoy to land immediately, while Ron attempted to throw one last punch, costing Gryffindor another twenty points. As the flying teacher berated the red haired boy, Harry walked over to Draco Malfoy, and after ensuring that his classmates were hiding the two of them from the teacher's view, slapped the blonde across the face.
"Are you a Slytherin or not, Malfoy?" Harry asked as the boy in question rubbed his cheek.
"Of course I am! Are you blind, Potter?" Malfoy said in outrage.
"I am most assuredly not blind. However, that behavior of yours was totally unsuitable for a Slytherin! You charged blindly into a brutish, physical confrontation rather than bide your time and wait for an accident like a true snake. Now, thanks to you, Slytherin has fallen behind Ravenclaw in terms of points! It will take us a month to overtake them again."
"And how would you have done it?" Malfoy challenged. In response, Harry looked at Ron, who was no longer being shouted at by Madame Hooch and was now standing alone, his housemates having deserted him. The flying teacher was currently working with a pair of girls, so her attention was diverted. Thus, Harry walked over to Ron, quickly conjuring a glove, and promptly used said glove to slap the redhead across the face.
"What was that for?" Ron shouted, indignantly.
"Weasley, for staining the honor of Slytherin House, I challenge you to a wizard's duel in the Trophy room tonight at midnight. Daphne Greengrass shall be my second. Do you accept these terms?" Harry asked.
"Wha- Of course I do! Seamus will be my second." Ron said pompously, while Seamus Finnegan looked surprised.
"I'll arrange things with the professors then. The winner earns his house a hundred points. Be there, or else I'll tell Snape you forfeited." Harry said.
"I'll be there! Just you wait, Potter, you'll get yours!" Ron said, and Harry turned to leave. As soon as he rejoined the Slytherins, he walked over to Daphne.
"Daphne, after class, can you tell Snape that there may be a pair of students out of bed in the trophy room at midnight. I'll tell Filch." Harry said, and Daphne nodded. Harry looked over to where the Gryffindors were gathered, Seamus and Ron shooting Harry dark looks. Harry smirked back, and turned back to Daphne, with whom he quickly outlined his plan. Then, he turned to Malfoy.
"Tomorrow morning, Gryffindor will be out of the running for the house cup." Harry said with a smile.
The next morning, Ron and Seamus sat alone at their house table, their housemates wanting nothing to do with them. After all, they had been caught by both Snape and Filch right outside the trophy room, and had promptly ran into the forbidden third floor corridor, earning them both detention and two hundred points lost. For the first time since 1978, Gryffindor was in the negatives, and this was before even the first month of school had ended.
Ron and the Weasley twins had swore revenge, but without their primary method of getting around unnoticed, the Weasley twins were now having a much harder time pranking Slytherin house. With several of their attempts being foiled by a strategically placed Snape, the twins were also getting ostracized by their fellow Gryffindors, although some of the lions had sided with them, demanding revenge against the Slytherins. Over the course of the following week, Gryffindor house began to fragment, with duels between upper year lions erupting in the hallways between classes.
As Halloween approached, Gryffindor had split itself into two distinct factions, which called themselves the Lions and the Griffins respectively. The Lions called for a state of house warfare between themselves and Slytherin, while the Griffins wanted to ignore the Slytherins in favor of the house cup. Harry watched it all with a smile on his face. His potential rivals outside his house were too busy fighting among themselves to notice him and the rest of Slytherin pulling the strings, after all, so there were plenty of reasons for the snakes to smile.
By the time Halloween came, the Gryffindor table had been cut in half. No matter how many times McGonnagall tried to repair the bisected table, it would always end up broken by the end of the day. This division forced even the Gryffindors who wanted to stay neutral, such as Hermione and Neville, to inadvertently pick a side.
It was on Halloween, or Samhain, as the Slytherins referred to it, that Harry found himself walking to Charms from History of Magic when he heard Ron Weasley screaming just outside the Charms classroom.
"Bloody mental she is! 'It's Levi-o-sah, not Levio-sah!', Stupid Gryffin, no wonder she's got no friends!" The redhead said, and a few seconds later, a sobbing Hermione turned the corner and ran into him.
"Is something the matter, Miss Granger?" Harry asked, formulating a plan in his head. If he could pull it off correctly, then Ron would be dead by the end of November.
"Why do you care?" Hermione shouted.
"I happen to enjoy our occasional debates on the various subjects of magic, so I am simply concerned." Harry lied. Those arguments were annoying wastes of his time, but he needed to play the part of the concerned friend for his plan to work.
"Really?"
"Really." Harry forced a smile on his face.
"Alright then. It's Ron. He... Even after I helped him get his levitation charm correctly, he turns around and says that I am a stupid, friendless..." Hermione trailed off into sobs as she spoke something that, to Harry at least, sounded like the perfect truth.
"So Ron insulted you? Well, lucky for you, I might just have a solution."
"Hexing him won't do anything."
"I'm not talking about something crude like that. I'm talking about something much more... permanent."
"What is it?" Hermione's voice carried a snatch of desperation. Perfect.
"Do you remember how you saved Ron's life during the Opening Feast? You stopped him from choking to death on his food, I believe." Hermione nodded.
"My solution is simple. As you saved his life, Ron now owes you a life debt. Do you know what a life debt is?" Harry asked, and Hermione, surprisingly, shook her head.
"When a witch or a wizard save another witch or wizard's life, the savior can call in a life debt at any time, unless the saved person saves his life in return. If not called in, the life debt will eventually repay itself through compulsion. The life debt, when called in, takes the form of an absolute command that Ron must obey. As he currently owes you a life debt, you may call one in at any time." Harry then took out a piece of parchment and quickly wrote down the words that Hermione needed to speak. After all, were he to call in a life debt that was not owed, he could end up losing his magic.
"Walk up to Ron and read this, and your problem will go away." Harry said, and handed the parchment to Hermione.
"Will this work?"
"I'm certain of it. Oh, and if anyone asks you how you know of this, tell them that you read about it in a book on wizarding customs. You wouldn't want it to get out that you got help from a slimy snake like me!" Harry replied, a warm smile on his face. Hermione returned the smile, and walked off to where Ron was leaning against the wall outside the Charms classroom, talking to his friends.
"Yeah? What do you want, Granger?" Ron asked as he noticed the girl approaching. In response, Hermione looked him in the eye, took a deep breath, and began to speak, while Harry watched from a short distance away.
"I, Hermione Jean Granger hereby invoke the life debt that I hold over Ronald Arthur Weasley. I hereby proclaim that Ronald Weasley is not to insult one Hermione Jean Granger, with or without her knowledge. In accordance with the life debt that he owes me, and on penalty of his own life and magic, so mote it be!" As Hermione finished her declaration, a bright blue flash of light encompassed both her and Ron. That was when Professor Flitwick ran up to the two.
"Hermione Jean Granger! Do you have any idea of what you have just done?" Professor Flitwick demanded, outrage clear on his face.
"I invoked a life debt. I read about them, and I realized that I held one over Ron and-" Hermione began, but Flitwick cut her off.
"Are you aware of what happens if someone violates the debt? If Ronald Weasley were to insult you now, with or without your knowledge, he would be stripped of his magic and die a slow and painful death!" At that, Hermione's face shifted from concern to utter horror.
"Wha... I didn't know..."
"What have you done you bloody-AARRGGHH!" Ron began to speak, only to be cut off as his magic sent an agonizing warning through his body, sending him to the ground.
"No... No!" Hermione screamed, and ran off, crying, leaving behind a tortured Ron, two confused Gryffindors, an aghast Flitwick, and a broadly smiling Harry.
During the Halloween feast later that day, Harry sat between Daphne and Tracey, looking particularly smug.
"I heard that someone in Gryffindor called in a life debt over Ron Weasley." Tracey was saying. How she knew was anyone's guess, as she was somehow able to know almost everything that happened in the school, Harry's hypothesis being a spy network of some kind.
"It's true. Granger called in Weasley's debts." Harry said.
"Really? How do you know?" Tracey asked.
"Who do you think tricked Hermione into doing it?" Harry asked, smirking. Tracey laughed at that.
"That explains why Hermione's crying up in the girl's bathroom." Tracey commented.
"Really? Well, maybe I should go up there and have a little... chat with her." Harry said.
"Damn you're cruel." Daphne said from the other side of him. "Don't you think that's a little too much?"
"When victorious, you must ensure your victory is absolute." Blaise chimed in.
"Thank you, Blaise." Harry said, and stood to leave, telling Snape that he was going to the bathroom. He slowly walked to the bathroom, thinking over exactly what he was going to say. Should he try and twist the knife a little more? Or maybe he should try and use Hermione some more. All those thoughts ended when a terrible stench entered his nose. Looking up from his thoughts, he saw a full grown Mountain Troll barely ten feet ahead of him, entering the room up ahead.
After the troll entered, Harry quickly shut and locked the door, sighing in relief. He really didn't have the time to tangle with a troll. As he completed the thought, a high pitched scream came from the bathroom, causing Harry to immediately reevaluate his decision. A smile covered his face as he opened the door and ran inside.
The troll in question had just smashed open the stall inside which Hermione had been crying, and was just raising its club to deliver the killing blow when Harry put himself between the club and the girl, a shield of magic springing up and blocking the weapon less than a second before it would have killed both Harry and Hermione. As the troll attempted to crush the shield, Harry turned to Hermione, and watched her hopeful yet tear streaked face morph into an expression of horror.
"Your life is mine, Granger." Harry smiled cruelly as he said those words, before he forced his shield to explode outward, knocking the troll off balance. As the giant creature attempted to regain its bearings, Harry fired a set of blasting curses at its head, the first three missing, while the last curse struck the troll directly between the eyes, stunning it temporarily. Levitating a piece of debris off the ground, Harry drove the remains of the toilet bowl around the troll's body and slammed it into the back of the creature's head. Then, immediately after the troll turned its back, looking for the source of the attack, Harry summoned the troll's club, the weapon breaking several of the creature's bones as it was wrenched out of its hands. As the creature looked stupidly down at where its weapon once lay, Harry levitated the club, lining it up, then fired a pulse of magic and sent the weapon flying quickly towards its former owner. Slamming into the creature's exposed back, the club broke the troll's spine and sent the creature to the ground, dead.
Then, Harry turned to Hermione, who was paralyzed with fear as she looked upon the boy who now held her life in her hands.
"I, Harry James Potter hereby invoke the life debt that I hold over Hermione Jean Granger. I hereby proclaim that whenever I say 'Hermione Granger, attend to me', that Hermione Jane Granger is to obey any and all commands coming from my person, until I say 'Hermione Granger, your services are no longer required'. In accordance with the life debt that she owes me, and on penalty of his own life and magic, so mote it be!" Harry said with a cruel smile. The flash of blue came, and the debt was called in.
"Hermione Granger, attend to me." Harry said immediately after the flash faded, and Hermione began to thrash in pain until she mentally accepted the fact that she had to obey any and all commands from Harry Potter.
"You are not to speak of this life debt to anyone, and you are to act completely normally while not under the influence of my commands. In addition, when the professors come to investigate, you are to support the story I tell them." Harry said.
"Yes. I will." Hermione choked out through stabs of agony.
"Good. Hermione Granger, your services are no longer required." Harry said, and Hermione sighed as the command was released and the agony ended.
About twenty seconds later, several professors entered the room and found Harry standing over a dead troll, while Hermione sat crying against a wall.
"Mr. Potter! What happened here?" Professor McGonnagall demanded.
"Professor, I was making my way to the bathroom when I heard a scream coming from the girls' restroom down the hall. I ran inside, and saw the troll standing over Hermione, about to attack her. To make a long story short, I summoned the club out of its hands and levitated it until it struck the troll in the back." Harry said.
"That was very irresponsible of you, Mr. Potter. Ten points from Slytherin for such reckless behavior." The professor then turned to Hermione.
"Do you have anything to say, Miss Granger?"
In response, Hermione gave a brief gasp of pain before she started to speak.
"I'm sorry. After what happened outside the Charms classroom, I just wanted to be alone where I didn't hurt anyone. If it weren't for Harry saving me, I would probably be dead." Hermione said, tears still flowing freely.
"Ah, the life debt you called in on Mr. Weasley. That was very irresponsible of you, Miss Granger." The professor scolded.
"Please, Professor, is there any way to undo the life debt?" Hermione asked.
"To the best of my knowledge, there is no way of doing so. If you hadn't called in the debt, then Ron would have had to save your life to remove the debt, but not that the debt has been called in, the command you have given is absolute." This caused a fresh wave of tears to start flowing while the professor tried to comfort the girl to no effect. Harry turned to leave, only for a hand to land on his shoulder.
"Fifty points for true Slytherin behavior." Snape said, before turning and walking away with a slight limp.
A/N: I hope my deviations from source material were acceptable and that the chapter didn't seem too rushed. Other than that, I apologize for the late update. Please post any questions in the form of reviews, and post them in such a way that I can answer them. Nothing frustrates me more than a review that poses an amazing question that I can't reply to.
