Parselmight
AN: I don't anything. I don't own Harry Potter.
"Speech"
"Parseltongue Speech"
'Thoughts'
-
It was an angry Harry Potter that made his way to the chamber of secrets in the aftermath of his confrontation with Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew. He had opened his mouth and tried to convince the Minister of Magic of Sirius' innocence, but his pleas had fallen on deaf ears.
Fudge had claimed Harry had been confunded, claiming that Black was a criminal, and still at large. All the while Dumbledore watched on, not helping Harry in his attempt to free an innocent man.
Afterwards Harry had wanted to get away from it all, to be alone and undisturbed. And so he made his way to the chamber of secrets, and made his way into the room from which the Basilisk originally resided in. It was there he found a large study with its own library, and on the desk he assumed was used by none other than Salazar Slytherin a long time ago, he found a book.
It was titled "A Serpentine Guide by Salazar Slytherin", depicted with a witch and wizard on the cover standing with snakes on their shoulders. Harry opened it, curious about what it contained.
A Serpentine Guide Contents
Chapter 1: Travel
Chapter 2: Associating with Others
Chapter 3: Fighting
Chapter 4: Manipulations
Chapter 5: Building One's Character
Shrugging at the book's contents, Harry flipped to a random page in the start of the book.
Travel
The ability to travel the world with ease is one of the greatest powers a magical has within their grasp. The ability to fly on a broom allows a witch or wizard to travel in a day what would take a normal non-magical a month. And this is the most basic way for a magical to travel long distances, meaning that every magical should be well travelled by the time they reach the apex of their career.
Port keys and apparition are essential for every magical to learn, not just so we can travel with ease, but for safety. When caught in a perilous situation a magical will be able to use these tools to quickly get to safety, avoiding the danger entirely. As for travel, the ability to instantly travel a huge distance is very useful.
Let it be noted that wards can be constructed that stop these methods of transportation. No magical other than the ward-master of Hogwarts can use a port-key or apparate within Hogwarts grounds. This is due to the powerful wards myself and Lady Ravenclaw constructed around Hogwarts grounds which are controlled directly by the Headmaster. Luckily, my heirs will find that they can apparate to and from my chamber within the school.
Harry blinked, he was pretty sure he had apparated at some point before he went to Hogwarts. He remembered his cousin and his gang chasing him and himself somehow appearing on the roof of their school. He wasn't entirely sure how it happened, but it sounded like apparition to him.
A thought came to him. If he could supposedly apparate then, what was stopping him from using it in the future? Why would he need to even stay with the Dursleys anymore if he could simply leave Privet Drive? Hell, he could leave England entirely and even visit Sirius whenever he wanted with this ability!
He flipped further into the book and began reading more. It seemed that Salazar Slytherin had indeed traveled the known world many times over in fact, often visiting Greece and Northern Africa on occasion, and even going as far as Asia. The man enjoyed learning about obscure magic that simply was not avalible in England for him to research on occasion.
It seemed Slytherin often used used his parseltongue ability heavily on these trips, speaking to snakes which he stated had more knowledge than one would think about the regions they resided in. But above all that he stressed the importance of his basilisk during these trips. Frequently stating how intelligent the king of serpents was, and that it was very knowledgeable when it came to travelling.
The basilisk is the apex predator. It's hide is resistant to every piece of magic known, its bones and teeth are so strong that they are near unbreakable. It's eye can kill with a simple glance, not even requiring direct eye contact to kill its prey. Basilisk venom is the most destructive substance that I have ever encountered, where not even the killing curse can match it. But above all is the beasts intelligence.
The genius of a basilisk cannot be understated. A magical possessing the ability to speak parseltongue will know that regular snakes are fairly unintelligent compared to humans, but still possess the ability to hold normal conversations to a certain extent. A Basilisk goes beyond this, able to magically possess knowledge it otherwise should not.
A basilisk will know its exact location at all times. This is not impeded by apparition or other forms of wizard travel. It is able to completely control itself, its death stare, and venom production at all times.
Harry found that passage as unsettling as it was exciting. How was it even possible for such a beast to exist? He found himself shaking his head at the memories of killing the beast last year, he was lucky to still be breathing!
Flipping to another random page in the book, Harry continued to read.
Associating with Others
A heir of mine should be in a relationship as befitting their station. My descendant is a wolf, and shouldn't associate themselves with sheep, only other wolves to form their pack. It is my belief that like snakes, any heir of mine will mix well with others that share similarities.
My heir should form a group of likeminded individuals that surrounds them, whether they be acquaintances or lovers is irrelevant. These individuals must interact with my heir in a way that is trustful and caring, and my heir must reciprocate this.
Powerful wizards often have covens of their own, being groups of women dedicated to the love of their wizard. The truth behind this is that magicals of ambition and character such as ourselves often find themselves lonely due to the lack of likeminded wizards or witches. As such, partners that are similar in station are difficult to find, but often willing to share in ambition.
Potential partners like ourselves are hard to find in truth, but there are signs. The most prevalent is the difference in personality compared to others around them. These magicals typically act very differently from those they associate themselves with while at the same time being more powerful. They typically never conform to peer pressure and have their own social norms that only they follow. As discussed, this is the most evident sign of a potential partner for a powerful wizard.
Also, they are likely to have been sorted into my house.
Harry couldn't help the strange feeling he had as he read Salazar Slytherin's advice when it came to finding a mate. The man was so robotic, talking about women like they were sheep while describing how one should form a harem. Harry shuddered.
But he couldn't deny the part of his heart that desperately wanted to find a similar partner to himself who shared his talent and mindset who he could love and cherish. His dream had always been to form a large loving family, and it seemed that everyday that dream became more distant.
Harry immediately thought of Hermoine based upon the book's description but quickly shot it down. She was a book smart teacher's pet if he was being honest, and had few other traits that were valuable to him. And while he could deal with it, he recently started to heavily dislike how bossy she was.
He took Salazar's advice and thought of the women in Slytherin. All the girls he thought of in Slytherin seemed to fit into a similar mold until he thought of a few of them.
Daphne Greengrass was the coldest girl in the school and one of the best when it came to academics. He had seen how well she did in class, especially since he began taking his own academics seriously earlier in the year, and guessed she was exactly what Salazar described. A potential partner who is magically powerful and who's personality is extremely different to those around her. He figured part of the reason she was so cold was because she couldn't find anyone like herself.
One only had to look at Tracey Davis' clingyness and contrast it with Daphne's ice cold personality. They were seemingly good friends but complete opposites.
Strangely, she seemed to treat him differently than everyone else around her. She was his partner in Ancient Runes, and never seemed to care about his status as the Boy-Who-Lived. He would even go as far as to say she was nice to him, even though she was all of these things on top of being in Slytherin.
The only other girls that came up were the Carrow twins, Hestia and Flora. They seemed nice enough to Harry, but every other boy in the school seemed deathly afraid of them. They were like the opposite of Fred and George, both being twins like the two older Weasleys but damn near unapproachable.
Harry sighed, he might as well give it a shot. He was never going to make new friends who were like him if he sat on his arse.
-
"Greengrass, a second of your time?"
Daphne Greengrass turned, giving Harry a cold look that would have sent even his Gryffindor housemates running for the hills. It hit against him like water upon rock. He gave a polite smile, showing he is friendly but not a flirt.
It was the end of their ancient runes class, and he had spoken to her as everyone else was leaving the classroom. They were always partners in class, and he continued to wonder why she still tolerated him for some reason.
Might as well get to the point.
"I was hoping you would be amicable to spending time with me at some point, as you seem like someone similar to one such as myself." Harry said, trying to imitate the way purebloods seemed to speak. Salazar must have been wearing off on him.
She raised a perfectly manicured blonde eyebrow. "You think we are alike Potter?"
"Cut from similar cloths." Explained Harry, "I can't help but notice your lack of similar-minded friends, like I lack as well. I can tell you are a strong Witch, one of the best in our generation, and you are suffering because of that. People seem to look through you as well, no?"
She seemed to shuffle in place before looking at him plainly. "I…Yes, I admit I am quite lonely. Alright Potter, I'll play your game, meet me in the kitchen for dinner Thursday."
She turned and made to walk away before stopping herself. "Oh, and no need to be so damn formal Potter."
Harry did a mental dance in his mind. It seemed Daphne would be amicable to being friendly with him. But he did agree with her, and he didn't need to be so formal. He found it very tiring to talk in such a way.
He didn't know how to really interact with purebloods, thus resorted to talking like Salazar did in his journals. He just didn't want to make a poor impression on a pureblood queen like Daphne Greengrass.
-
Fighting
There is no battle. What is there instead is a mental construct conjured by the mind that one must overcome without falling victim to despair.
The mind of a wizard must be strong. The magical spirit will endure anything should one have the mental capacity for it. All that remains is to overcome the negative emotions relating to a task.
Armed with this a witch or wizard will find nothing is out of their reach. Even if their opponent is strong, their nose can be bloodied, their pride wounded. One only has to have an unshakeable belief in themselves and they will succeed.
When entering any confrontation regardless of the danger associated with it, this is my belief, my mindset. One must first master this obstacle first, before entering the fray. When it comes to battle itself, you will find more than half my library is dedicated to dueling and magic to use in battle.
Clear of mind and pure of purpose is key when entering a battle. One must make all necessary preparations and analyze the battlefield before joining the fray. Despite this, situations will often become unpredictable and one must improvise despite making preparations. To do this without losing one's confidence is what I find to be the hardest part of any battle or duel.
My fellow founders seem to have different mindsets entirely when it comes to such a topic. Godric would prefer to immediately rush into the fray, relying on his own abilities to win. Rowena would never start any engagement, being completely reactionary and pragmatic to any situation. Helga hates fighting, but prefers to merely assist in such situations.
I have been in hundreds of duels and battles throughout my life, and while charging head-long into the fray is something I frown upon, it is sometimes unavoidable. Do not become complacent and always use the same strategy, have confidence in your abilities while preying upon your enemy's weakness and you will succeed. Use every advantage you have while being pragmatic in your attack.
He couldn't help but agree at what Salazar wrote, finding that it applied to the situations he had been in during his time at Hogwarts.
In all three confrontations at the end of his years he had entered them with a steeled heart and mind, and succeeded. He had defeated Quirell, killed the Basilisk and the shade of Tom Riddle, and faced off against hundreds of Dementors along with a Werewolf just recently. Despite being definitely weaker than his opponents, he had succeeded because his mindset at the time was similar to what Salazar described.
Although he could of been more careful in his approach, but in the end everything worked out. He was sorted into Gryffindor after all, meaning he wouldn't be careful at every turn. He turned to the next chapter in the book.
Manipulations
I have found there to be two types of people in this life when one is engaged in a conflict. Those who would make you feel as if you are falling down, and those who make you feel as if you are falling forward.
Either one has the ability to change how you are falling, and can change your circumstances if they so wish. This said, my heir should do the best to endure the fall no matter what, and try not to rely on others to provide assistance.
Analyze interactions you have with others after the fact. If you are still falling after meeting them yet they act as if they have your best interests in mind then they are manipulating you.
There are other ways to tell, I have always disliked those who use a mask to act like someone they are not. A mask can mean many things, everyone has one, but if they use it while purposely withholding information that would benefit you while lying to your face then they are a manipulator.
Often you will meet people with a cold, steely exterior, but a warm and loving interior. These are the best people to associate with, as while they will withhold information from you, they will make it known they are doing so. Associating oneself with magicals of character and ability is the best way to overcoming the games and webs manipulators create.
Harry slammed his hands on the table before gritting his teeth in rage, a bad habit he had picked up recently.
This book perfectly described Dumbledore, the damn Headmaster had always acted like he had Harry's best interests in mind while doing literally nothing to improve Harry's situation. He was the one who sent Harry to the Dursleys to live, and continued doing so despite Harry's acceptance letter for Hogwarts literally being addressed to the cupboard under the stairs.
He hadn't done anything to disprove Harry being behind the attacks in his second year despite telling Harry to his face he knew that he wasn't behind the attacks. And most recently, he hadn't lifted a finger to prove Sirius Black's innocence, despite Harry nearly begging the man for help.
Harry let out an angry scream of rage before settling himself. He knew what he had to do now. He would gather allies, work himself to the bone to get more powerful, and take control of his life.
Harry walked over to one of the many bookshelves in the library and began grabbing books on what he needed. He first picked up a copy of Mastering Wizard Travel, before grabbing Hatching the Foul and Defensive Curse Magic on the next shelf. He walked to another section in the back of Salazar's library and grabbed Mind Magic: Defense of Mind along with Parselmagic Ritualcraft.
He sat back down at the large desk that was probably used by Salazar Slytherin himself before opening one of the books that would likely cause even Dumbledore to pale. Harry grimaced as he began reading the words written by Herpo the Foul on the process to hatch a basilisk.
-
If Daphne Greengrass was surprised Harry knew where the kitchens were she didn't show it. Harry guessed it was a test of hers, to see if he was able to find, or already knew, where the kitchens were hidden in the castle. Luckily he had been visiting the kitchens since the whole heir of Slytherin business in his second year.
"Potter." She greeted plainly, and Harry noticed that she had made herself more presentable for their meeting. He believed she was the most beautiful girl in their year, but he wasn't one to fall for such things.
"Greengrass." Harry greeted, "Any plans for the summer?"
She frowned, and Harry noticed she probably hated small talk as well. "Mother talks of visiting Italy at some point, and Father will probably stay cooped up at the Ministry as usual. He's always busy with the Wizengamot."
Daphne looked at him curiously, "But I doubt you wanted to meet me to talk about summer plans, so what is it Potter?"
"I'd like to escape England this summer." Said Harry, "I need a break from all this, to get away from it all."
"I doubt Dumbledore would like his golden boy running away." Said Daphne coldly. "Whatever family he placed you with probably wouldn't let you get far."
Harry snorted, if only she knew. "You'd be surprised. But I know escaping to France won't be enough to stop Dumbledore from finding me, or anyone else for that matter."
"America." Said Daphne suddenly.
Harry looked at her, and noticed she had a very interested expression on her face. "America is your best option. MACUSA, their magical government, is the complete opposite of the British Ministry. Very libertarian, they don't care about any magic you use, they only care about maintaining the statute of secrecy."
Harry nodded, "Any idea how I could get there?"
"You weren't raised in the magical world were you?" Asked Daphne with raised eyebrows.
"Muggle raised." Said Harry, "I didn't know about anything magical till I got my Hogwarts letter."
A conflicted expression appeared on Daphne's face. "My sister tried send you letters when she was younger, she was always upset that you never wrote back. My father told me Dumbledore had taken responsibility for raising you, he was infuriated when he said so, and now I guess I know why."
She sighed before straightening up and looking at him. "I'll help you, but I want some things in return."
"Such as?" Asked Harry.
"I go with you to America if that's where you're headed. The Greengrasses have some sort of property they own all the way out in Nevada so we can stay there." She blushed, "And since we'll be spending plenty of time together I'd like you to take me on a date."
Harry tried to maintain his composure but failed spectacularly. "A…date?"
She nodded, looking unusually timid for the Slytherin Ice Queen.
Harry nodded uneasily. "Um, sure, it's the least I can do. So how exactly can we get there?"
"I'll have one of my family's House Elves acquire international port keys for us to use. We can go to my family Manor from the platform. Besides, my family would love to meet you. My sister has always been a big fan, and my parents were at Hogwarts with yours."
Harry blinked, somewhat unsettled by the drastic change in the Slytherin Ice Queen. It seemed what Salazar had written was somewhat true, in that those with a cold exterior had a warm interior once you got through to them. Daphne seemed to notice this as she blushed in embarrassment before composing themselves.
A thought came to him then. "Wait, if your sister sent me a letter, then how come I didn't get it? Come to think of it, I really only get Hogwarts letters and letters from Ron and Hermoine."
Daphne's brows shot up, "Your mail has to be tampered with Potter-"
"-Harry." He corrected.
"-Harry." Continued Daphne. "It's the only way I think such a thing can happen. Those letters are obviously going somewhere, just not to you."
"Dumbledore." Growled Harry.
Daphne watched him quietly. "He's interfering with your life, isn't he?"
Harry nodded, swallowing his anger as he imagined all the mail he likely hadn't received over the last decade, probably because of Albus Dumbledore. He imagined all the letters people had sent him only to not get a reply, probably because Dumbledore stole them. Many of his classmates might be like Daphne's sister, having sent him a letter only to never hear back. He must seem like worse than dirt in their eyes.
It fueled his desire to get stronger and take back his life. No doubt Dumbledore would never tell Harry everything like he should have already. It only strengthened his resolve to escape Britain.
One thing at a time, he reminded himself. He would deal with the whole mail problem later, but he needed to sort things out as they came.
"Any ideas for how I can get around him, other than getting out of here?" Asked Harry.
Daphne nodded, "The goblins would help, just show up at Gringotts and they should give you control over most of your assets. Just make sure to tell them what you told me about Dumbledore and they'll make his life hell. Intercepting owl mail is a serious offense, and I doubt the goblins would be happy if they found out you haven't received any owls from them."
Harry nodded, "Thank you Daphne, I appreciate your help. Although going on a date with you doesn't seem like a fair payment for all the help you've given me."
She snorted, before looking startled at her own unladylike action. "You're Harry Potter, probably the most famous wizard in the world. You should of seen how amusing it was to see Lockhart beg for your attention last year, and only able to get it by giving you detention. Not to mention how you're probably the most popular quidditch player in the world right now, you should see how many Potter Quidditch Jerseys my sister has."
He groaned, he had always hated his fame.
Daphne looked somewhat apprehensive suddenly, "Although I have to admit that you were right earlier Harry, when saying people look through me. I know I'm the smartest and most powerful witch in my year, only being beat by Granger academically because she spends all her time studying. I guess its the same with you Harry, as everyone just sees the boy-who-lived that supposedly lives in a magical castle and not the real Harry Potter."
The two eventually went their separate ways after dinner, but not before a blushing Daphne gave him a hug before walking off towards the dungeons. Harry shook his head before heading towards the second floor girls bathroom, all the while trying to keep the silly smile off his face.
-
Harry's heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest as he watched the egg finally crack. The room was dense with magic, so much so that he almost found it hard to breathe. He was sweating, and had loosened his robes hours ago.
It turned out that creating a basilisk was not nearly as simple as Newt Scamander described, as he had to undergo hours of strenuous preparations and procedures to ready the egg, along with all the new parselmagic he had to learn in order to even perform the task.
He watched as the scaled egg slowly cracked, and a small slimy gray basilisk made its way out. Other than its small size and slime-covered body, the newborn basilisk looked similar to the one he had killed.
Harry knelt, not daring to look the baby snake in its eye.
"Oh great serpent." Hissed Harry in parseltongue, "I have hatched you into this world and ask for your mercy in friendship."
He knelt there for a second before the snake hissed back. "I sssseeeee. You are my new massster. Very well, friendsss we sshall be, and many enemiesss we shall ssslay."
Harry felt the blood roaring towards his ears as he stood and looked the basilisk in the eye. He nearly screamed in relief when he didn't die.
"My name is Asmodai." Hissed the snake, "And you Harry Potter shall be my master and friend."
Harry gaped, it looked like Salazar was right, and basilisks were smart. He didn't even tell the basilisk his name and he knew it!
The snake quickly adjusted to the fact Harry was its master, seemingly knowing everything Harry thought to bring up. The basilisk was quick to tell Harry it wouldn't go around using its killing gaze on everything, and told him he would only use it when Harry allowed.
It was early in the morning when Harry finally left the chamber, leaving his new snake to feast on any rats that happened to be scurrying around the chamber.
-
Building One's Character
To build ones character means to play to ones strength. Integrity and Ambition are what I put above all in a person's character, as demonstrated by my House's traits.
This said, your own traits and character shall be developed as you grow and travel. Take what you are good at, the hardships you have endured, and streamline them to form your character. Carry yourself with pride, do not be manipulated, and become the basilisk in the snake pit.
In my chamber you may have found many books on Ritualcraft, which I advise you begin to read. To be a great magical one must have their body and magic and mind at their finest, which rituals are meant for.
Harry forced his unease down and replaced it with a cold determination. It was well known that rituals were banned in magical Britain, and he had heard of the supposed dark rituals Voldemort had undergone to become powerful. He shuddered and swallowed his doubts as he opened one of the ritual books he had picked up.
Some of the drawings and inscriptions in the book male him pale but he instead looked past them to read on the "normal" rituals.
He eventually picked one out that would make him faster, quicker in his movements without causing any harm to his muscles.
"Massster should not do that one!" Came a loud hiss.
Harry nearly jumped and turned to face Asmodai, who had slithered up the back of his chair and was reading the book over his shoulder.
"Then which one should I do?" Asked Harry.
The basilisk slithered over to the book, and in a move unbecoming of its nature, turned the pages in the book to a certain ritual.
"The body and magic ritual?" Hissed Harry questionably, and the basilisk nodded.
A ritual to closer match one's body and magic, he read. It was a ritual designed to strengthen one's body in accordance with one's magic. The benefits seemed to go on and on, but it was heavily advised that one with weak magic should avoid the ritual entirely.
Harry nearly threw up when he read about how a squib had attempted the ritual and it had turned him into a disformed child that had to be killed as the pain was too much for him to bear. It was a clear example of how dangerous rituals were.
"It says that one must make a significant sacrifice for the ritual to succeed." Hissed Harry.
"Just use the body of the dead basilisk you slew." Replied Asmodai.
"Wouldn't it be too volatile and kill me? You know, basilisk venom being so dangerous and all."
Asmodai reared back, and his small formed lunged at Harry's hand, his tiny fangs biting into his hand.
"WHAT THE HELL!" Harry roared, shaking the snake off desperately.
"You're not dead." Said Asmodai plainly, "You are immune to basilisk venom, so you have nothing to worry about."
"Bloody snake." Muttered Harry along with a few curses in parseltongue.
He soon headed out into the large chamber that was attached to Salazar's library. As Asmodai instructed he decided to use the remains of the basilisk, but collected all of the snake's teeth, much of its skin, and its venom sack for later use. The rest of the basilisk would be more than enough to power the ritual.
He soon began drawing out the ritual, using parseltongue runes in a complicated fashion with Asmodai looking over his shoulder. All the while knelt over the chamber floor with his wand in hand.
"You slew my ancestor with a sword." Hissed Asmodai as he sat wrapped around Harry's shoulder while he traced out a large circle in the ritual. "So why don't you use one?"
"Nobody uses swords." Replied Harry with a frown, "At least I don't think so."
"Nonsenssse." Hissed Asmodai irratibly. "I saw a few books in the corner of the library on swordcraft. It seems like a great weapon for disposing of annoyances, not to mention someone with a wand won't know what to do if you attack them with a sword."
Harry paused, thinking over what his familiar had said. As usual Asmodai was right, and there were quite a few books on swordcraft with even a few rituals for him to perform. He planned to perform the body and magic ritual the night before he left on the express, but he guessed it wouldn't hurt to test out a ritual beforehand.
A sudden thought struck Harry, and he looked over at where the leftover parts of the basilisk had been stored. He would likely never be able to use the sword of Gryffindor ever again, so he would have to either buy a sword… or make one. He just needed some skelegrow to do what he had in mind.
-
Harry rubbed his face, trying to squash his irritation at Hermoine's questioning. It seemed that his disappearances weren't going unnoticed by her, and her questioning on the subject was starting to get on his nerves. They were in the final few days of the semester, eating lunch in the great hall.
"You weren't in Gryffindor tower last night Harry, so where were you?" She demanded.
"I was up late studying Hermoine." Lied Harry through his teeth. Well, it wasn't a complete lie.
"And where were you studying exactly?"
"That's none of your concern." Bristled Harry, starting to lose his patience with the arguement.
Ever since Sirius had left, Harry had thrown himself into his studies with a vengeance. He was already doing well academically this year, but it paled in comparison to how he was performing now.
Harry had never entirely cared about his grades till this point, always fooling around with Ron and focusing on the dangerous situations that seemed to happen at the castle every year. That said, his new interest in his studies had thrown his friends for a loop, and incensed Ron while irritating Hermoine.
It was strange how hostile she became to him, as if by doing well in his classes he was stepping on her territory. He no longer did his class work with her in the library anymore, instead slinking off to the chamber where he did everything these days.
"Did you order a new broom Harry?" Came Seamus question from next to him.
He looked up to see a large owl carrying a broom-shaped package headed straight for him. It seemed to have caught the attention of most of the great hall, as everyone watched as the owl dropped the broom in front of him before flying off.
Harry unwrapped the package, noticing that there was no note attached to it that indicated who it was from. He subtly glanced at Dumbledore, remembering the conversation he had with Daphne about the Headmaster controlling his mail. The man watched Harry with a calm smile, and Harry figured that he allowed the package to get through to Harry.
That meant whoever sent the broom was close to Dumbledore.
"It's a firebolt!" Yelled Ron excitedly when the broom was finally unpackaged, causing more ruckus in the great hall as more students rushed over to see it.
"Let me see Harry!"
"Wow! That's the fastest broom in the world!"
Harry subtly cast detection charms over the package while everyone was distracted, trying to ascertain who had sent him the broom. It would be a boon to learn the name of someone so close to the headmaster that the man would allow them to interact with Harry in such a way.
"Mr. Potter, I have been informed that this broom was sent to you by an unknown person and as such might be cursed, meaning it is dangerous for a student such as yourself to have in your possession."
The exciting chatter stopped as everyone watched McGonagall approach with Hermoine at her side. Hermoine seemed almost smug, likely having told McGonagall some crap story about the broom being too dangerous for Harry to have. The two had completely killed the mood.
Harry threw Hermoine filthy look, taking some pleasure as she took a stunned step back.
"You are mistaken Professor." Said Harry calmly, looking down his nose at the two. "You see, I ordered this broom to replace my old one after it was destroyed by the dementors. I can assure you it is completely safe and not cursed."
He had completely taken the wind out of their sails, and he could tell McGonagall was doubting the ridiculous tale Hermoine probably told her.
"I see." Said McGonagall hesitantly, "I still need to examine the broom before I allow you to use it.
"No." Said Harry coldly, not at all oblivious to the shocked expressions all the nearby students were giving him. It was well known that nobody dared argue with McGonagall. "I don't see you inspecting the brooms used by the Slytherin quidditch team, despite the fact Lucius Malfoy, a former death eater I might add, purchased them. Meanwhile I can assure you I personally purchased this broom, and it is completely safe."
Harry was entirely aware of the mess he had created with that statement. Shocked whispers broke out in the great hall as students gossiped over this new piece of information. He had to shove down a grin as he caught Malfoy's reddening face on the other side of the great hall.
"Very well Potter." Sighed McGonagall, realizing when she was defeated. She turned and gave Hermoine a look before walking off.
"Harry-" Started Hermoine, but stopped as Harry grabbed his new broom and stormed out of the great hall.
He had too much to do before he left Hogwarts for the summer. Last night he had tried out a swordcraft ritual, designed to make the user more connected through their magic to a sword when wielding one. In essence the ritual made the user feel as if the sword was an extension of their body.
He continued walking, entering the chamber before walking through Salazar's mouth and into his study. He walked with his new broom in hand before stopping at the work table where his latest project lay.
Using runes, Harry had shaped a simple sword with magic, then used a couple of the basilisk fangs left over as the material to form it. A lot of skelegrow that he brewed overnight, and the fangs had melted and combined to form a simple sword that he could wield.
Picking it up, he felt his own magic flow through the weapon. It was now an extension of himself, and he could tell this was all the work of the ritual he had undergone. Waving it around and giving it a few quick swings, he got a better feel for the sword.
This was probably the most dangerous sword on the planet next to the Sword of Gryffindor, Harry figured. It was made from the fangs of a basilisk, covered in the snake's venom, making it just as dangerous as the killing curse. Luckily he was immune, but he figured it was too dangerous for anyone other than himself to use safely.
"Massster you need to finish your studying before you leave the ssschool." Hissed Asmodai, dragging Harry out of his thoughts.
He nodded, putting the sword away and vowing to make a scabbard for it at some point. Only his books on mind magic and defensive curses remained, and he would have to pack a few more books for himself to read over the summer.