Albus sank into his chair, eyes closed, and his spectacles were placed on the table. He was in his office at Hogwarts, a place where he could think properly. The sheer abundance of items here would overwhelm most people, but his knickknacks only gave him a feeling of pride.
Many of these things were obtained by him. Or bought to be part of his collection. His most valuable possession was certainly Fawkes, though right now, she was about to turn into ash and be reborn once more.
His robes were bright green with orange polka dots. Albus had always loved to dress in outrageous clothes, especially as he grew older and had less shame. His pure white beard made him feel wise, and he loved to stroke it when thinking.
The chair supported his aching back well. Albus wasn't the spry young man he once was. There was a distinct lemon smell in the air, the scent of the lemon drops in his mouth. Albus would never tire of these delicious candies. Muggles discovered something quite genius with them.
But Albus was pondering what occurred last school year. Nothing had gone according to plan, and that made him anxious. You could say he was a control freak, but he couldn't help it. If you wanted something done, you had to do it yourself.
Harry wasn't sorted into Gryffindor; Harry hadn't made friends with any children that Albus could trust. The only friend Harry had was that Montenoose girl. Albus didn't like any of it, not at all. The stone had disappeared as well, along with Voldemort.
Surely Albus would know if Voldemort had gotten his hands on it. Of course, he would. But if he didn't have it, who did? Harry? This Harry hadn't been the Harry he'd expected. No. Not at all. Hadn't Albus specifically tailored him to be the way he needed him to be?
Yet Harry wasn't how he was supposed to be. He was a Slytherin. He was cautious and had wisdom to him. Albus knew that Harry wouldn't do the foolishly heroic acts needed. What if he didn't complete his destiny? The world would be doomed.
The boy didn't like him, and Albus didn't know why. He should've attached himself to the new people in his life after being neglected for so long. He's only talked to that girl. Albus would have to speak to her, maybe ask her some things about Harry. She seemed in awe every time she saw him.
That should work in his favor. If you can't get to the boy, get to his friends. Albus had to make sure the boy followed his plans exactly after this point. There would be no more going off-trail. In the end, it would be worth it.
As much as Albus wanted to save the life of Harry, his destiny was set in stone. Albus figured it out very quickly. Harry was a Horcrux, and Voldemort would have to destroy him after Harry destroyed all the other Horcruxes. It was all for the greater good. One life for millions. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
That's what Albus had to say to himself to shake off the guilt. Maybe he was a crazy old man, but he was a crazy old man with power, determination, and motive. There's a lot anybody can do with just one of those things, but he had all three.
Sasha seemed to dislike the Dursley's home, and Harry didn't blame her. Harry could feel how dead it was now that he had Hogwarts to compare it to. The snakes were less lively, and Harry now knew why. Sasha had told him that creatures reacted to magic, so obviously, the lack of magic would affect them.
The summer was uneventful as always, but now Harry knew to expect a special house guest soon. Vernon's hissed threats to be quiet up in his room didn't faze him. Harry knew that wouldn't happen, even if he tried pretty hard.
And while waiting for Dobby, Harry was twiddling his thumbs and talking to Rio. They weren't discussing anything important. Rio listened to and agreed with Harry's wishes to be anywhere but here. The viper's needle eyes fixed on Harry.
All of Harry's stuff had been safely tucked away under a floorboard. Ehno was currently out, probably catching mice or enjoying the ability to stretch his wings. Harry had honestly been surprised that the Dursleys let Ehno leave his room.
They grumbled about wanting that bird out of their house as much as possible. And Harry happily obliged; at nighttime, he let the owl out. It was better than being stuck in this bland room in this drab house in this boring neighborhood.
Harry had noticed that Rio's scales had been peeling, and he'd explained that he was shedding. Like taking off an old pair of clothes to put on a more comfortable, cleaner, and prettier outfit. It made sense to Harry, but right now, the viper looked dull and covered in a white layer of peeled scales.
Sasha was asleep, bright green as always. The mamba hadn't taught Harry much else about speakers. It's probably because Harry hadn't found the time to ask. He wants to, but he has trouble remembering. Rio and Harry's conversation had gone stale a few minutes ago because Harry stopped talking.
He was listening to the hearty chuckle of Vernon and the tittering of Petunia from downstairs. Rio interrupted with a question.
"What are we waiting for again?" Harry snickered; Rio sounded impatient. He'd be tapping his feet if he had them. Instead, he rolled his eyes. Harry never really appreciated how animated a snake's face could be if they chose; Harry could read expressions on Rio and Sasha easily, though they were animals.
"We're waiting for an elf. He'll probably feel like magic, and we should be able to detect him easily." Sasha lazily raised her head from her place on Harry's bed. Harry himself was on the floor, up against the wall opposite the bed, knees to his chest.
It was his comfort pose. He was used to being uncomfortable so much he was comfortable while uncomfortable. Harry had adapted to it from being stuck in a cupboard for ten years and from being on the run and only able to sleep in tents.
Rio and Sasha much preferred the bed, and Harry understood why. Rio was a spoiled snake, and Sasha had spent years only surviving. They both desired what was soft and dreamy, but Harry didn't. He knew he should, but he didn't.
His pale skin had become white as milk from lack of sun. Maybe they let Ehno out, but they didn't let Harry out. He felt caged, honestly. His hair had grown messy as always, and he needed a haircut badly. He felt like he had lost weight instead of gained weight, and it seemed he'd shrunk in the height department.
"Elf?" Sasha asked curiously. She had missed Harry's explanation of what was about to happen. Harry had explained everything before Vernon even had a chance to tell him to shut up for the night. Harry sighed and made eye contact with her from across the room.
Honestly, she had an intimidating stare, but Harry knew deep down she was just a good soul hardened by harsh nature.
"A house-elf is coming into my room tonight to try and get me to never go back to Hogwarts..." Harry said calmly. The mamba immediately looked alarmed; she was probably looking forward to going back to Harry's school.
"Why?" Sasha snapped back; Harry had barely finished his sentence.
"He thinks I'll be safer here," Harry said. He really didn't want to spell this all out again, it was tiring, and he was already anxious. Sasha laughed sarcastically.
"Here? Here where you can't even defend yourself?" She scoffed, shaking her green head. Harry felt an urge to protect Dobby. The goofy house-elf was important to him even if he often did more harm than good.
"There's a threat at Hogwarts, Sasha. He's trying to keep me safe from that threat." Harry knew right then he'd have to explain more to Sasha than to Rio. She wanted to know a lot more facts, and she trusted Harry's judgement a lot less.
"What threat, Speaker? Surely no threat is enough to keep you from Hogwarts where you get your education." Sasha was a lot less disapproving now; she was more curious. Harry massaged his aching head; he wished Dobby would just appear to distract Sasha.
"There's a big snake in the pipes this year. It's called a basilisk. It's dangerous, but I'm still going to school this year." Sasha, strange enough, started laughing. Hissy chuckles, making Harry annoyed. She sounded like an old crone cackling to herself.
"A snake? A snake? This little elf is dumber than I thought." What was she talking about?
"What?" Harry asked bluntly, a bit of something sharp in his tone. To him, Sasha was rambling about things he didn't understand, and it was making him frustrated.
"Speaker, I haven't had a chance to say this, but I suppose telling you now will do just fine..." Harry met her eyes; even Rio was obviously staring at her, waiting for her words. Rio looked like an eager puppy; he didn't even try to conceal his curiosity.
"Tell me what?" Sasha grinned, but Harry was far from amused. Can't she just spit it out? He didn't know when Dobby was going to show up, but he had a feeling it would be soon.
"Snakes can't hurt you if you tell them not to, Speaker. It's a power all Speakers have over their beast." Harry, in a way, discovered that. If he told a snake not to do something with force, they wouldn't do it, but the basilisk didn't listen to Harry. The basilisk listened to young Tom Riddle.
"This snake won't listen," Harry mumbled to Sasha; she raised an eyebrow at that.
"That's impossible, Speaker," Sasha said with confidence like he didn't see what he saw. But that massive snake with the killing stare had only wanted to end him. She was a crazed monster, and Harry had no control over her.
"The only thing that can challenge your control is another Speaker..." Sasha finally said when Harry didn't respond. And that piqued his interest. Voldemort was a Speaker.
"There is another Speaker." Sasha's face lit up with two conflicting emotions. Fear and delight warred for their place.
"Another Speaker?" She asked in a hushed tone of voice, her tongue had stopped flicking lazily, and even Rio mimed her body language.
"Another Speaker," Harry confirmed, extending his legs, so they were flat on the wooden floor. His body had started to cramp.
"Well, that changes things. If they are stronger than you in this skill, that is why they had power over the snake. Or maybe the snake had previous loyalty to them and is more likely to follow their wants." Sasha sounded like she was talking to herself instead of Harry.
The old snake was muttering so fast Harry couldn't hear her, but what he did hear was even more new information. Could one improve one's ability to talk to snakes? Harry decided to interrupt her, rambling with his question.
"Sasha, does that mean I can get better at controlling snakes?" Sasha stopped talking and then hesitated. It was strange to see her hesitate in any way; she was usually a snake that seemed to have wisdom in just about everything.
"I am hesitant to give you that answer, Speaker. I'm a snake, and this sort of power has often been used to abuse us in terrible ways. I have seen what Speakers can make us do, and it is disheartening. But I'll be honest. You can improve this skill, but I won't tell you how." Sasha seemed upset.
Harry didn't blame her; he could imagine the sort of things a person could do if they had control over an entire species of animal. Harry guessed these people never asked what the snake wanted or if this would hurt the snake. These Speakers probably thought of snakes as less than them.
Rio looked blue, probably picturing just how bad it could be to make even the tough Sasha crack. The room was stuffy with emotions now, thick and overpowering. Harry didn't press Sasha for anything else; that's probably all he would get from her for now.
"What did the Speakers do?" Rio was the one who broke the silence, which surprised both Harry and Sasha. He had sympathy shining in his slitted eyes. He wanted to acknowledge and understand her pain.
"They-" Her voice cracked. It obviously wasn't like a human; Harry couldn't describe it if he tried. It was a hiss of coherent Parseltongue that broke off into nonsense hissing. Rio had a patient expression while Harry sat against the wall watching the exchange.
Sasha moved her head around, reminding Harry of a person getting rid of the kinks in their neck. He saw the glassy look of her eyes; some tears threatened to drip down her face.
"Go on." Rio urged gently, respectfully. He didn't try to comfort her physically, snakes weren't very social, and Rio struck Harry as somewhat awkward. But Rio's words gave Sasha strength to continue despite everything.
"The Speakers would make the snakes do things against their will. They'd take what they wanted. And if the snakes refused, they would be punished. Their young would be killed. And you understand we usually don't care much for our offspring, but once magic touches us, we become..." Sasha scrambled for the right word.
"More?" Rio suggested, and Sasha nodded. Harry had the feeling that Rio spoke from personal experience. Like he knew just what Sasha was talking about.
"We become more. We feel things that only humans should feel, yet we are still treated like nothing. And Speakers would burn snakes with their magic and laugh like their pain is a joke-" Her breath caught, she had to force down tears. Harry and Rio stayed silent out of respect and sympathy.
"I wasn't even there. I didn't even have to go through those things. Yet even my heart breaks when I think of their scars, sad eyes, and stories. If the elder snakes didn't say how important Speakers were, I would hate them with all my heart." Sasha said grimly, her eyes hard.
"I'm sorry, Sasha," Rio said with great pity. Harry could tell he meant it entirely. Harry wanted to say something, but he felt out of place. He unconsciously curled back into his little ball. He knew in his heart he'd never abuse his power over any snake, not before and never after hearing Sasha's tale.
"I only went with you because you're young, young enough to still be shaped, and so naïve in the ways of your kind. But know this, Speaker. The minute you try and use that power to hurt me, Rio, or any other snake, you're dead." Sasha said coldly, staring straight into Harry's soul.
And he felt exposed; his mouth flopped open like a fish. He wanted to blurt out that he'd never do such a thing. But he was held back by something that disgusted him. Something slimy and cruel. A thing that he couldn't escape because it was within him. It threatened to control him. Harry hated being controlled.
It was the thing that most people had. The thing that makes them hate and the thing that made people hurt others. Having some of it was only normal, but Harry felt like he had too much. The things that happened in his life fueled it, and now it was bigger than it should be.
So big it could fight against the good in him. If that took over, what kind of person would he be? Bad as Voldemort? Worse? No, Harry told himself. He would never be as bad as Voldemort. He wasn't like that psychopathic madman.
"I won't ever abuse my power, Sasha," Harry said firmly, his jaw clenched, meeting her eyes evenly. She nodded, accepting his answer, but Harry felt she didn't truly trust it. Rio, though looked at him with a smile, the loyalty of a brother in his eyes.
Rio trusted him, and he had to have faith in himself. Harry smiled back softly. It felt like hours had passed, but it had only been twenty minutes. He could still hear discussion from downstairs. Harry felt even more impatient for Dobby to arrive.
So yay omg we're back! Missed this so much...So I've decided to put two years each book (if I do end up going past year two of course lol). This year I think I'll rely less on the books and more on my own plot. Thanks so much to all who read this chapter and who have patiently awaited this!
-Lemon Nugget
