SEVENTEEN
Dinner passed quite quickly, but as his friends went to return to the common room, Harry broke off from them.
'I need something from the library, then I have to visit the owlery.'
'Ooh, I'll come. I need to deliver a letter.' Harry was rather pleased that it was Tracey who offered, however right now he wasn't interested in company.
'I can take the letter up for you, if you want. Your owl is called Nelson, yes?'
Tracey looked a bit surprised that Harry remembered, but handed over the letter without fuss, as she could see the benefit in not having to walk all the way to the top of the castle. Harry had expected a little more resistance from the group, however even Blaise just grumbled about not having that much homework on their first night, and they headed off.
Harry headed towards the Library first, as there really were a few books he wanted, but then instead of heading to the owlery, he slipped on his invisibility cloak and headed back down towards the dungeons, going via the kitchens, then slipping into the secret passage that led to the abandoned hall with an entrance to the chamber of secrets. Passing the cupboard in the abandoned hall Harry could still feel his magic on it, and upon checking, confirmed that Peter was still there, and still petrified. Harry let out a frustrated growl. So then why had Sirius broken free!?
…Not that Harry would have been happy if Peter had escaped, but it just didn't make sense.
Harry let out a frustrated sigh and took the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets.
The Chamber was a mess. It was in small part, because he had had to stage it just in case anyone looked at Ron's memories. However the majority of the mess was from his duel with Tom Riddle. Harry could see the outline of where one of Tom's spells had impacted the wall, protected by Belleza creating a weird dappled outline of her shadow.
.:It is odd that the Chamber hasn't healed itself:.
Despite expecting her to be there, Harry nearly jumped out of his skin.
.:Don't do that!:.
.:Greetings to you too, child:.
Harry let out an angry huff, but reached into his pocket and pulled out the sheep he had been given by the elves. He un-shrunk it and levitated it just out of Belleza's reach.
.:You are playing with fire, Harry:. Belleza hissed.
Harry laughed and let the sheep a bit closer. Belleza lunged, causing a wave of water to come crashing towards them. Harry shielded himself using wandless magic, but it caused enough distraction for Belleza to manage to get the lamb.
.:No fair! I was intending to get a better greeting out of you with that:. Harry mock pouted.
Belleza swallowed the sheep whole, but managed to hiss around it.
.:I am very pleased to see you:.
.:Very pleased to see my sheep:. Harry teased.
.:You are in an odd mood today. Is it full moon?:.
.:I am not a werewolf!:.
.:No, but everything is effected by the moon:.
Harry shrugged. .:It's been a weird sort of day:.
.:Coming home is always like that:.
Harry considered what Belleza said for a moment. Was Hogwarts still his home? Home is where the heart is so… .:My home is lost:.
.:This is one of your homes:.
Harry smiled lightly. .:Yes:.
Harry shook himself off and conjured a desk and armchair.
.:Do you mind if I study down here? I'm avoiding the Slytherin common room for a bit:.
.:I never mind. Are you not allowed in again?:.
Harry snorted .:Let them try to keep me out. No, I am playing politics:.
.:Are you winning?:.
Harry smirked.
Belleza and Apep settled in for a conversation while Harry worked. For two snakes they covered a broad range of topics. Harry mostly tuned them out, but would occasionally add a point or two. Harry relaxed as he worked on finishing up his transfiguration essay. He was down to about five foot from seven, but he still needed to cut off another fifth. He had a whole section on Animagi, that was extra to what he needed, but he knew that McGonagall would deduct points, even if he knew Hermione got given extra points for her extra work all the time. He let out a huff, and cut out the extra information and rolled up the essay. Really, it was ridiculous how petty the professors were. It would only get worse once they (or at least Dumbledore) realised that he was heading Slytherin. Of course he still had to win the spot of King yet. For a moment Harry looked down at his perfect essay, and considered forgetting about ruling Slytherin and trying to fit in, but then he scoffed. He would be judged either way.
Harry settled in to work on the essay for Potions. He was about half way through, commenting on the surprisingly interesting effect that adding any acidic substance would have on the potion, when the two snakes got bored. Harry had been completely absorbed in looking at the ingredients to figure out whether it was the heat, or the number of stirs which caused the crystallization effect, but suddenly he had shivers running up and down his spine, and a second later he was facing the other direction, wand in his hand and in a dueling pose.
There was nothing there except Belleza and Apep who…
.:Next time you two decide to play like snakelings, do try not to disturb the Dark Lord:. Harry hissed crossly, leaving his wand out but losing the stance. Harry waved his wand and the desk and chair disappeared and he picked the potions essay out of mid air and pocketed it. Across the room Belleza and Apep were looking guilty next to the knocked over compartment of Voldemort's horcrux.
.:I was not Playing:. Belleza hissed snootily.
.:Sorry Harry:. Apep didn't deny it.
Harry rolled his eyes and reached in to get the diadem and the diary. His hand paused. They were practically fused together. And now that he was so close to them, he became conscious of Tom's ring in the pouch around his neck. He was surprised to realise he had almost entirely forgotten it was there.
There was a sort of silent buzzing, as Harry got closer, which after a moment of confusion Harry recognized. His hand reached up and softly brushed over his scar.
Without thinking it through at all, Harry pulled out the ring, then slowly, as if he were dragging through mud or was underwater, he found himself upending the diary and the diadem onto the Chamber floor.
'Whoa…'
Harry's knees hit the floor.
He felt like the universe was re-aligning itself with the little pile of trinkets at the center. The world spun for a moment, but suddenly it stopped, and everything went back to normal.
Almost.
.:…Harry…. HARRY!:.
Harry shook his head and became aware that Apep and Belleza were both very distressed and had been calling to him for a while. His hearing faded back on, and he felt like there were suddenly more colours in the world.
.:Sorry. I'm fine:. Harry hissed.
And he was. He mentally ran over his senses, and was surprised to find that he wasn't being drained of his soul (his first instinct to the reaction). There wasn't even the slightest pull on his magic, like there usually was when one of the horcrux were near and not in a silk lined bag. Harry narrowed his eyes. Something was different however.
Apep and Belleza had fallen into a wary silence, as Harry glared down at the horcrux. Harry glanced up at them for a moment, then reached forward and scooped the three up. They hadn't fallen apart when he dropped them, but were instead holding together like muggle magnets. Harry reached for the silk bags, but suddenly found that he didn't want to separate them. He shook himself off, however, and wrenched them apart, slipping them into two layers of silk bags each. They still clinked back together them moment he stopped holding them apart. It was almost like…
Harry reeled back in shock.
'You're lonely.'
The moment the words left his lips, Harry knew he was right, even as his brain was scoffing at the ridiculousness. Lonely or not, they were still the Dark Lord's soul, and Harry would not be just putting them in all together. Who knows what might happen?
Harry was highly suspicious of the odd sense of, he guessed, hollowness that he was feeling now the other three horcrux were sheltered away. It was almost an echo of how he had felt after the war. At the time he had mistaken it for relief and being at peace. After a long time, and a fair bit of study, Harry realised it was that his soul had been used to sharing for so long, that it felt odd without Voldemort's horcrux there.
Not necessarily good or bad. Just odd.
.:Are you very mad?:. Apep asked into the silence of Harry's contemplation.
Harry smiled .:No. I should have put up wards:.
.:So it is not really our fault:. Belleza stated.
Harry let out a laugh. .:Perhaps:.
Harry shook himself off, and got up from where he'd fallen to his knees. He cast a few basic wards, and a snake repellent one that had Apep shying away almost instantly.
.:Have you done with your work now?:. Belleza asked.
.:For today. Actually, I have been meaning to ask you about the other subjects you mentioned:.
.:More work:. Apep huffed.
.:It's not like you have to do it:. Harry pointed out.
.:No, but you seem insistent on dragging me back in time to get it all done:.
.:I refuse to suffer alone:. Harry teased.
.:Typical:.
.:What subjects?:. Belleza interrupted their mock argument.
.:Healing, politics, ritual studies, weapons training, dueling, magical traveling, and warding. I think that was all you said?:.
.:Ah, the school subjects. Apep tells me you are still taking Transfiguration and Charms:. Belleza didn't sound impressed.
.:I am an odd exception. I looked up the OWLS for each, and I think I can do most of them:.
.:Owls?:.
Harry frowned. .:The exams. Didn't Tom tell you about them?:.
.:No:. Belleza sounded offended .:We mostly spoke about history. But Tom could take these courses easily, so they wouldn't have been of much interest to disscuss:.
Harry frowned, but nodded. .:Right, well Weapons training is out, as I would need a teacher, as is dueling, for the moment. But if I get the chance I might talk to Flitwick. I can't learn magical traveling, as it is al blocked within the school, but I think I'll do theory. Politics I'm trying to research with Blaise, but Warding, Ritual studies and Healing all seem doable. Only there aren't too many books on Rituals, as they are almost all seen as dark and I was wondering-:.
.:I know many Rituals, but only how to speak them in Parseltongue:.
Harry frowned. .:I was hoping you might. And I might be able to translate them:.
.:Some of them you will need other humans for:.
.:I don't mind dabbling in the Dark, but I am not going to be doing sacrificial rituals:. Harry insisted.
Belleza hissed angrily. .:They are teaching you nothing up at that school. I have a mind to go up there this instant and eat the lot of them!:.
Harry stepped back in shock.
.:Every Dark ritual involves sacrifice. It is what makes them Dark:.
Harry frowned. .:I don't understand:.
Belleza let out a huff that sprayed Harry with a tiny bit of Venom, which quickly eroded through the outer layer of one of his sleeves. Harry took a large step back. .:Sorry:.
Belleza made a movement that Harry took to read as a shrug.
.:It is offensive, as a Dark creature, that our ways are not being taught. There is a very easy distinction between Light and Dark magic. Light magic is free, and is drawn from the earth. Conjuring, Charms or elemental magic are examples. Fiendfire or Lumos. Dark magic is born of sacrifice. Something must be given up to achieve it. Transfiguration is an example, but also things like blood magic and protective shields such as the Patronus and the Vieo:.
.:But the Patronus is a light charm?:.
.:No:. Belleza hissed .:The Patronus is not a charm. It is from our feelings, and behavior, so it has been categorized as a charm, but it is a Ritual Shield, which is why most wizards cannot produce it. You have to give up your emotions to feed it. As soon as you stop, so will it. You cannot shield a Dark creature with a Light charm:.
Belleza was in a foul mood, and Harry finished up the conversation soon after that and made his way back to the common room in a sort of daze. Belleza had been adamant about the classification, and Harry was inclined to believe her, as frankly, it made a whole heap more sense than the ministry's ideals. It put a lot of what he'd learnt out of whack, and he contemplated sitting down and listing every spell he knew then splitting them into Light and Dark with the new classification. He decided it would take too long however. Much to his amusement Belleza had given him homework for Ritual Studies. She seemed quite pleased to be teaching him, and Harry suspected that Tom had gained a lot of information from her that had helped him become Lord Voldemort.
In following with this train of thought she had also suggested three historical books which she knew the Hogwarts Library held which would talk about the history of magical travel. Harry suspected he would find the beginnings of where Tom had learnt to fly and to tag-apperate.
Harry went to sleep that night with a lot to think about. He was exhausted, but realised it was mostly because he hadn't eaten enough. He knew from Hermione that using a time-turner wouldn't affect the amount of sleep a magical body needed, so long as they ate much more than usual. She hadn't known this in third year, and had lost nearly a quarter of her weight. She, of course, also hadn't been sleeping as much as usual, something Harry promised himself not to cut down on. Harry barely gave anyone a glance as he walked quickly through the common room on the way to the dorm. He wouldn't even realise until the next day that the entire room had gone silent and still as he walked through, including Draco (who had taken over the lounge) and Flint, who were mid-battle for the spot.