It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

This chapter is dedicated to Christina Green and the other victims of the Tuscan shooting.

Let them not be forgotten.

The Queen of Serpents

Chapter One

Brothers at the Burrow

"speech"

thoughts

"parseltongue"

/mind speech/

=visions=

"Now boys," Petunia glowered at the four scamps standing before her, "you will listen to Molly Weasley. You will not cause trouble. You will be on your best behavior. Are we clear?" Her voice brooked no argument.

"Yes, Mom." "Yes, Tuney." "Yes, Siassha(1)." "Yes, Auntie dearest."

"Harry..." Petunia frowned, but a small smile tweaked the edge of her mouth. "What have I told you about calling me that?"

"Not to, Auntie dearest." Harry's emerald eyes danced mischievously.

Petunia attempted a glare, before giving up. Laughing, she wrapped her arms about her sons. "Oh boys, I will miss you. Do be careful. Please?"

"it is only for a few weeks," Tom mumbled, as always uncomfortable with such obvious emotional displays. "We will be home soon."

"And it's not like we won't see you," Dudley reasoned. "Your gonna meet us in the Alley."

Sa'zar's silver eyes widened. "They're here!" Swift as a serpent, he slithered from Petunia grip.

Dudley grinned as a blue Ford Angela pulled up to the walk. "Ron," he demanded as his best friend jumped out, "why didn't you tell me you got a car?"

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Tom leaned his suitcase against the cot,then turned to view the rooms other occupant. "I hope that I am not inconveniencing you unduly?"

Percy shook his head. "Not at all. However, I shall be most busy studying and must ask that you endeavor to be as silent as possible while I work."

Tom chuckled slightly. "Not a problem. As my brothers will be glad to inform you, I am my family's book-worm."

"I see." Percy nodded arrogantly, clearly not believing a mere second year could be on par with him. "Would you like some help unpacking?"

Tom smirked slightly. He wondered how long it would take to change the prefect's opinion. "It would not be unwelcome. I did bring a lot of books."

Percy gaped at the titles. "Why is a second year reading 'The Harnessing of Magical Forces'?"

Tom could barely contain his glee. "Also 'The Evolution of Modern Wizardry', 'Magic: Past to Present', and 'What is Magic: The Core of the Matter'."

Percy tried his best not to look too impressed. "And this?" He held up a book entitled 'The Pawn of Prophesy.'

Tom flushed slightly. "A gift from Tuney. Petunia. She thought I might like it."

Percy gave him a considering look. "And what do you intend to do with all this?"

"Read it." Tom allowed himself a grin. "And hopefully learn more about how magic works."

"Really?" Percy smiled, suddenly feeling much better about the sleeping arrangements. "Because I found this book.."

Tom smiled as he debated the issue with the red head. Maybe staying in a house of Gryffindors would not be unbearable after all.

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Harry lounged on his bed watching Dudley and Ron discuss the pros and cons of quiditch. Unsurprisingly, there were more pros then cons.

Harry snorted as Ron extolled the virtues of getting hit by a bludger. "Yeah, unless you're the one getting hurt."

Ron grinned sheepishly. "Er..Right. Sorry."

Dudley just chuckled. "Knew you were listening. C'mon Cuz," he flopped down on the cot beside Harry, "don't be such a cold blooded snake."

"Don't insult Lioness, Round One," Harry hissed cheerfully.

Dudley wrinkled his nose. "The doctor says I'm just late losing my baby fat. And I am not round."

Harry smirked. "Of course you are, my dear cousin. And you may want to tell your friend to shut his mouth. There's no snitch around to fly in."

Dudley looked at Ron in surprise. "What? Are you okay?"

"He...He..He's a parselmouth," the red head gasped.

"Yeah, so?" Dudley shot his friend a confused look.

"Y-y-you knew?"

"Of course he knew." Harry rolled his eyes. "He has three brothers who speak fluently."

Ron's jaw dropped to the floor. "B-b-but parselmouths are evil!"

Harry and Dudley burst into laughter. "Come off it Ron." Dudley wiped his eyes. "It's just a blood magic, same as most wizard gifts."

"And speaking of gifts," Harry smirked as he ducked under the bed, "I don't believe you've met my birthday gift, Lioness?" Harry could barely contain his glee at Ron's expression.

As for the red head, he prayed desperately that he did not drop the boa constrictor.

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The twins hastily ushered Sa'zar into their room.

"Quickly, before"

"Mum decides to"

"Help and find Norberta's"

"Old scales!"

Sa'zar laughed at the twins antics, but that did not stop him from quickening his pace. Fred hurriedly shut and locked the bedroom door behind them.

"Do you"

"Have it?"

Sa'zar nodded, digging into his bag. "One box of dragon scales coming up."

"Excellent." The twins exchanged grins. "This will be perfect"

"For our next experiment!"

"I'm helping too," Sa'zar reminded them.

The twins nodded in sync. "Of course you"

"Are. Couldn't do it"

"Without our potions prodigy!"

Fred shoved a towering heap of laundry to the floor revealing a cauldron. George reached into a slit in the mattress, rising triumphantly, holding a worn notebook high. Sa'zar watched it all with a grin.

Pranks and potions all summer long. What could be better?

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Ginevra Molly Weasley was a sweet, kind, gentle, thoughtful little girl. According to her mother, that is.

Her brothers tended to describe her as a chatterbox, cute and funny, but still just a kid.

Ginny would describe herself as more of an observer. She noticed things, and was good at finding out all sorts of secrets. Like her uncle Fabian's journal. Like Dad's old spell books. Like Uncle Gideon's wand. And it actually worked pretty well.

And if no one knew about her secrets, well, so much the better. Come Hogwarts she would show them how good she was. And maybe Harry Potter too...

Ginny was currently observing the twins door. If what she had 'accidentally' heard about dragon scales was true then something interesting was sure to occur.

Besides, Harry Potter had to pass her if he was going to come downstairs!

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The weeks at the Weasley's passed faster than anyone had expected.

Dudley, naturally, had great fun fooling with Ron. Breakfast first and then quiditch and exploring all day. What could be better?

Tom had found a firm friend in Percy. Side by side the two studied and debated everything they could think of, (and a few things someone else did too.) With his homework done, Tom found himself feeling relaxed and content, something he did not remember ever feeling during summer vacation.

Sa'zar was generally found cloistered with the twins. When he was not he was helping the duo spike drinks, add a little extra to the dinner, or 'fixing' the doorway. And then there was the totally awesome and extremely dangerous potion they were brewing...

Harry, though, was feeling rather left out. He got on with all the Weasleys, but he had no special friends among them. He was really getting tired of having no one to talk to.

He shuddered, remembering the conversation he had had with Ginny. Though conversation was pushing it. The girl had blushed, stuttered, knocked a vase of flowers all over him, and ended up fleeing the scene.

Out of sheer boredom he had attempted to talk with Mr. Weasley. That had gone well. "Tell me again Harry. How does the terra-vision work?" Honestly. Harry snorted. At least he had managed to get information on the ministry and wizarding society out of the fiasco. He was not a Slytherin for nothing.

Harry did not even want to think about Mrs. Weasley. The constant mothering was driving him insane. Did the woman want him to explode? Just because Sa'zar ate a ridiculous amount did not mean he could duplicate the feat.

"Hello."

Harry was jolted out of his musings by the dreamy voice. He gazed blankly about him. Where-

"Up here."

Harry gaped at the girl in the tree. And he thought Val was weird! "Why," he asked, unsure of what he was seeing, "are you covered in glowing yellow circles?"

"Too attract Umbrons," she answered promptly. "They all have glowing rings."

Harry hazarded a guess. "And if you wear the they'll think you're a giant Umbron?"

The girl smiled dreamily. "Of course. It's how they find other Umbrons, you know."

"Er..Right." The dark haired boy decided this discussion had gone on just long enough. "Well I...have to ...go. Ah, now."

"Oh." The girl blinked, seeming slightly sad. "Goodbye then."

"Uh, yeah, goodbye!" Harry raced away, vowing not to complain about the Weasleys again. At least they pretended to be sane!

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AUthor's note: First chapter of QoS! I hope you all enjoyed the brothers visit.

1: Siasha= Sweet spike plant, or flowering cactus in parseltongue. It is Sa'zar's name for Petunia.

Questions:

Chapter 1:

Who is the Queen of Serpents?

Why is Harry's snake named lioness?

Who is the blond girl?

What is the real name of Umbrons, and what are they?

First reviewer gets five points!