Chapter 39: First Day Continues

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Luna Lovegood became the darling of the house, next to Ivy. She was a waif of a girl with blonde hair that was almost white. She was so cute and innocent that the residents feared for their pocketbooks with two such adorable girls in the house. Her eyes alone would pull you under her spell without effort on her part.

She spent a month at the house before lessons started. She was as sweet as can be. She loved everyone there, even the shy and grouchy ones. Steve was her favorite person, even though their personalities were completely different. She took to running with him in the mornings, but her jogs turned into expeditions. She would come home with the most bizarre shells and items.

Her quirks were obvious to see and hear. She would talk about things that no one had heard of or could find in any book. Her mother had told those that lived there that it was something her father did too. They went on trips every year looking for these animals and although they never found them, they had fun trying.

"She took the potion," Sirius said as he watched Luna skip away. She literally skipped. That was not something you saw many people do. Well, maybe Deadpool, but he was crazy. "I'd bet my life on it. She's too smart for her own good and quirks like that don't happen naturally. At least I hope not."

"I don't think it worked as well on that family as it did yours. Her quirks are far more prominent," Tony pointed out. While Luna was scary smart, she wasn't the genius level that Ivy was. That, and she would never fit in with general society. There were just too many strange things about her. Not that she couldn't pull them off, but… "I think we should throw some non-magical lessons into her curriculum," he added, thinking the girl could use some science in her life. There was just something there.

"I think their brain is wired differently. Judging from her dad, it runs in the family," Sirius conceded. It was the first day of teaching the girl and while she got everything on the first go, she had to have things explained to her differently. "You and Bruce will have to handle the muggle studies," he said, thinking that he and Remus were ill equipped to teach those subjects.

"I'll have Loki loop Saturdays for her lessons on basic non-magical studies," Tony said, mentally thinking on what to say to Bruce. Banner loved the quirky girl, but he could only handle her in short spurts. He said that the Other Guy got confused too easily, but Tony thought it was the other way around.

"I can help her study up at night," Ivy said, perking up at that. She never liked that the magicals neglected 'muggle' studies. "I have all my books from when I was younger," she said. "We can do that instead of story time," she stated, going over in her head what to start with. She had a few ideas that would make it fun.

"You do that, little bug," her daddy said, tweaking her nose. With enough help, Luna would be up there with a fifth grader by the time they were done with her. She would be able to run circles around anyone in the Britain magical community, which is what they were going for. Perhaps even more so if they could swing her entire magical education here in Malibu. That shouldn't be too hard. Her parents were all for it.

"Look at it this way, Uncle Sirius," Ivy said as she gathered all her books from her session with Remus, "all that first-year magical stuff you wanted to teach me and Gandr, you can now teach Luna."

"I guess you're right," the dogman said, happy that all his research hadn't gone to waste. He had put a ton of thought on what to teach when he first learned he was going to teach Ivy, but she was just too smart for him. That, and Loki had taught her and Gandr too much. He had been so disappointed that all his hard work was for nothing. Now he was going to be able to use it.

"Well, I'd say from second-year and up," Remus corrected, picking up his briefcase. "She's already got the first-year Charms down," he added, remembering how the girl flew through his instructions.

"She's lagging at Transfiguration then," Sirius said, straightening up some papers. "She can turn a match into a needle, but not back," he explained at the inquiring looks. He shrugged his shoulders, not many first-years could do even that on the first day.

"Maybe it's just not her strong suit," Tony said, shooing Ivy to go find Luna before she got into trouble with a 'muggle' thing. "You said that it was a first-year spell, but she got it on her first day, so she's still ahead of the game," he added. He gave Ivy a pointed look and looked to the ceiling like it was going to fall on their heads any minute.

"Bye, Daddy, Uncle Sirius, Uncle Remus," Ivy said, getting the point and running off to find her friend, who was too curious for her own good. She ran from the room, leaving the men to discuss the education of the two girls.

The last time Ivy had left Luna alone, Luna had found the brains to Jarvis, and almost shut him down. That was not a good thing. If Jarvis had not set out a full house alert, they might not have caught it in time. They still didn't know how she bypassed all the security. Sirius thought it might have been accidental apparation, but Ivy just thought the girl was just that good at wandering where she wasn't supposed to go.

"Miss Luna is on the observation deck," Jarvis said, keeping a very close eye on that one. He would never let her out of his sight again. He didn't want to die. Or at the very least, be disconnected until Mr. Stark could bring him back online. It was completely disconcerting.

"Thanks, Jarvis," Ivy said, slowing her pace. There wasn't anything to get into trouble with there. Only some telescopes and chairs. Well, there was a bar too, but Luna wouldn't drink anything, right?

She picked up her pace again.

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Gandr followed the other Slytherins to the common room. He wondered how he was going to play this out. He far outclassed the children here. He was hundreds of years older than them. Even if he was about as mature as they were. Ivy had taught him that cuteness and kindness had their place, but he didn't think that it would be here.

They made it to the common room without incident. However, Gandr got a lot of looks as they walked, like the other students didn't know how they wanted to play it out either. He could tell that those his supposed age wanted to test the waters, so to speak. But those older then them wanted to see what was going to happen. The first years were just confused at the tension.

The common room was luxurious in its own right. It was green and silver in color but tastefully done. There were couches, chairs, tables, carpets, and tapestries in those colors, but in toned down shade, as to not be overpowering. There was a large portrait of a man hanging above the fireplace.

Gandr saw the portrait first thing. It was of a man who looked evil incarnate. He was bald with only a pointed goatee. There was a large rectangular necklace hanging from his neck, which had a diamond S on it. He was wearing rich dark green robes, and he had an aura about him that just screamed Dark Lord. His sinister appearance could only make him one person.

"Hello, Salazar Slytherin," Gandr hissed to the man.

"A speaker," Salazar said, looking at him with a shocked expression. Then he narrowed his eyes. "You are not of my line," he accused. "How can you speak parseltongue if you are not of my line?" he asked.

The rest of the students stood around in shock. No one in decades had talked to the portrait. And no one since the Dark Lord had spoken in parseltongue. They had no idea what to do with this change of events. Was this new kid related to the Dark Lord? If so, how did they react to that?

"I am not. I am the World Snake. Jormungandr Lokison. I am here to investigate the news of a basilisk," Gandr said, knowing the man would know more about the snake than anyone. He figured the man in the portrait would know about him. It was rumored that Salazar knew all about snakes. Therefore, he would know about the World Snake.

"That is Isobel, my familiar. She is still alive?" Salazar asked, wonder in his tone. "Jormungandr Lokison, you say? You are the son of the god Loki? Well, doesn't that stir the cauldron." There was amusement in the man's eyes at that. He looked around the room and could see the rest of his House had no clue as to who walked among them.

"You didn't know your familiar was still alive?" was the question. He ignored the rambling about who he was for now. It was obvious to those that knew. Anyone who cracked a book on Scandinavian Mythology would understand the naming process. His father's name had been Loki Odinson, for all he was adopted. Sure, he had changed it to Laufeyson when he found out who his real father was. He wasn't even sure that the Frost Giants named their children the same way.

"I did not," the portrait answered. "I have not heard news of her for ages. I used to have my descendants go and check on her, but they started following a path that I did not, and they stopped talking to me about important things."

"What path was that?" Gandr wanted to know. He had always thought the stories about the man were blown out of proportion.

"They wanted to murder all the non-magicals, or muggles as they call them now. I don't think that that is the correct course of action," was the answer. "I feel we should take magical children away from their non-magical parents and raise them with magical ones. But not kill the original parents. They disagreed," Salazar explained. He seemed earnest and sincere.

Gandr could see where others would disagree with this logic, and why they would judge him to be a Dark Lord for it. He wasn't sure where he stood on that debate, he was pragmatic like that, so he changed the subject back to the basilisk.

"What would you have me do with her when I confront her?" he asked. He was loath to kill her, but if needs must.

"If she is not insane, free her. If she is insane, put her out of her misery," Slytherin stated, his tone sad. "It has been over a thousand years, who knows how my descendants have abused her," he added.He looked concerned for his pet/companion. "I loved that snake once upon a time, but my time has passed. I need to make sure the school is safe," he added, looking at the students that were watching them talk. He narrowed his eyes at the dumb look on a few of them.

"Stop talking to the portrait," Malfoy demanded, grabbing Gandr by the shoulders and twirling him around. "Quit trying to impress people with your fake hissing," he stated, sure that the boy was playing a game and trying to make people think that he was a parselmouth. If he was, then that would put him at the top of the totem pole.

"Who the hell do you think you are accusing one such as me of such a deception?" Salazar exclaimed, indignant that anyone would accuse him of going along with such a ruse. "I am Salazar Slytherin, I do not play games," he stated, glaring at the blond.

"You mean he was truly talking to you?" one of the older students asked, coming to the front of the group. "He was truly speaking parseltongue?" she inquired, looking at Gandr in awe.

"Of course, he was. Do you not know who this is?" Salazar asked, pointing at the smug teen, surprised they were so obtuse. "His name is a dead giveaway," he stated, looking at the blank faces in shock. Had the school fallen so low that they didn't even teach the history of the gods anymore?

"What kind of name is Lokison? It's not even a pureblood name," Parkinson stated, lifting her nose in the air. She wasn't going to be fooled by some old portrait and some foreign kid. "He's American," she pointed out.

"Fools, all of you," Slytherin said, spitting off to the side. It was undignified, but he felt the need to do so. He was from common roots, and it was the greatest sign of disrespect that he knew.

"They will learn in time," Gandr said, not at all concerned they didn't know him. "I am who I am, and they will know me when it is time for them to know me," he said ominously.

"Who is he then?" Draco asked, wary of who he might be messing with. Not that he was too worried. His father was the top dog in Britain. Well, Black was the richest, but he had naffed off to America. He left his money here though and if he ever came back, then the Malfoys would be second in riches. However, right now, only his cousin was here, and she was a woman, so she didn't count. Oh, she tried, but she didn't have the pull that Black did.

"If he does not want you to know, then I will not inform you," the portrait said, folding his arms in defiance. "I had been trying to talk sense into this House for generations. I gave up when that fool Riddle would not listen to me," he said, sniffing imperiously.

"Riddle?" Gandr asked, wondering if that was the last Dark Lord they had come through this community.

"The last of my descendants," Salazar confirmed, as if it were common knowledge. It had been at the time, so he figured that information had passed down. Judging from the looks on their faces, it had not.

"I thought that was the Dark Lord," Crabbe said, looking at Goyle, confusion on his face.

"He was the last Dark Lord," snapped Slytherin, his face darkening, making himself look even more sinister. It was like the shadows of the portrait got darker.

"I thought his name was Voldemort," Goyle stated, looking just as confused as Crabbe, and making everyone shiver at the mention of the Dark Lord's name. "I mean You-Know-Who," he said, quickly.

"Idiots, that was his made-up name," the painting said, getting frustrated with the intelligence level of the room.

"What was his real name then?" Flint asked, wondering if the Dark Lord was from one of the upper-class families.

"Tom Marvolo Riddle," was the answer in a smug tone.

"That is not a pureblood name," Parkinson stated, a quiver in her voice. "Well, the middle name might be," she said thoughtfully. It was something she'd name one of her children.

"He was not a pureblood," came the retort. "He was the son of a muggle and squib," he explained, having gotten the full story from Tom the year after he killed his parents in 1943. Tom told him, thinking that Salazar would be impressed with what he had done. He informed him that he was not. It was the last time they talked. It was the year after Tom had opened his Chamber.

"That's impossible," a lot of people said, disbelieving. There was some confusion among the students as they started talking among themselves over this bit of information. "The Dark Lord was a pureblood," many stated, in a firm state of denial.

"Did he talk about the basilisk?" Gandr asked in English. He wanted them off the topic of the Dark Lord for now.

"Once," Salazar said, narrowing his eyes in remembrance. "I thought he might have found her. He never mentioned her again. Then again, when I called him a fool a year later for something else he had done, he stopped talking to me," he said, rubbing his hand down his pointy goatee.

From what he could piece together, Tom was scared that Salazar would make him kill Isobel. She was his familiar after all and not Tom's. Or make him leave her alone. There had to be a reason Tom didn't confide in him why he was using the basilisk to petrify the students. He knew who it was, but Tom denied it until he stopped talking to him.

"Can you tell me where to find her?" the World Snake asked, coming closer to the painting. The room seemed to lean in with him as if to hear the answer too.

"Go to the girl's bathroom on the second floor and find the tap that doesn't work. The phrase to open it is simply 'open'. Call for stairs in parseltongue. Lights too. She will be at the end of the corridor, behind another set of doors, which open to the command 'open'. If she slumbers, she will be behind a statue that looks like this painting. The phrase to open it, also in parseltongue, is 'Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of Hogwarts Four'. She will come and you can evaluate her," the man in the painting explained, hissing so the ramble didn't understand.

"I will go tomorrow," Gandr said, hoping the snake could be set free. He didn't acknowledge the hubris of the opening command. "I might stick around for the year to see how the school operates. I hear that it has fallen in standards over the years," he said, wondering if the man knew how far his school was ranked in the world. "Your own Head of House is said to be one of the reasons for said downfall."

"Yes, I had heard that," Salazar said, switching back to English, his tone was sad. "We were the only one of our kind at one time, but we have fallen far these last few decades. I blame Dumbledore as well," he lamented.

"Do you think you could have done better?" the teen asked, looking at him with a cocked head.

"I am unsure. I don't know the political climate. However, I know I couldn't have done worse," the man stated, then waved Gandr to leave him be. He settled back in his thronelike chair and closed his eyes as if to sleep.

Gandr turned and started towards the stairs that were marked Boys'. He figured that the dorms were there. He could suss out for himself where the second-year boys' rooms were. Well, if not, one of the upper years could tell him.

"I am not done with you, Lokison," Draco said, once more laying his hand on Gandr's shoulder.

"If you do not remove your hand from my person, I will remove it from your body," Gandr stated, frowning at the boy's tenacity. "I might not look it, but I can do as I say," he warned.

"You would fight like a muggle," Malfoy said, nevertheless he removed his hand. "I will not have you strutting in here like you own the place," he stated, puffing up his chest. His cronies gathered around him. There were three that did not crowd around him. Two girls and one boy. "I am the leader of our year," he stated importantly.

"You seem to be under the impression that I care one whit what you think," Gandr said, looking around the room without care. "I am far superior to you, and care little about what you think," he said, moving to examine a statue of a snake that looked remarkably like his snake form.

"Don't walk away from me," Draco shrieked, pulling his wand to curse the upstart. "Don't you know who my father is?" he asked like it mattered.

Gandr waved his wand, which was just to cover up the fact that he didn't need it, and Draco was trussed up like a pig and hung from the chandelier within moments. No one even saw him pull his wand, it was just in his hand. Then Crabbe and Goyle were tied to each other in a mock lover's hold. Parkinson and Nott were similarly bound together.

The upper years let this all play out. They wanted to see Malfoy either fly or fall. He fell. They did wonder what his father would do about it. Then again, Lokison said his father was royalty. Maybe there would be a powerplay in the outside world as well. That would be something to see.

In the painting Salazar Slytherin was laughing his arse off.