Chapter 9: Loyal Neville, Kind Luna
Thanks for all the reviews.
For all the flirting, I don't think there will be any romance. He's 38, they're under 18. That's just icky. Right now, it's just harmless flattery.
Hphphp
There was silence in the compartment for a second until it was broken by the small blonde.
"It's lovely to meet you, Lady Isobel," said Luna, nodding her head back. To her the snake was beautiful.
"She's not going to bite me as she?" asked Neville, trying to crawl up the back wall. He'd read about her in the paper, but to see her in person was daunting. She was huge, even wrapped around Harry.
"No, she's a Boa constrictor. They don't bite. Well, they do, but they're not venomous," said Harry, going with the cover story. Maybe if they got to be better friends, he'd tell the two teens the truth, but that would be much further down the road.
"Oh," said Neville, not the least bit less scared, though he did stop trying to crawl up the wall. He was making sure he stayed as far away from the snake as possible.
"I promise you, I have her in complete control. I can talk to her, remember? She is my friend. She promised not to hurt any of my friends, and I consider you one of my friends," the time traveler stated, holding out his hands in a placating manner. He really didn't want to go and look for another compartment. That and he liked Neville and Luna. They both had good heads on their shoulders.
"We're friends?" said Neville, a bit of doubt in his tone, like that was news to him. He'd known Harry for almost 5 years now, and they had never talked as friends. At least he didn't think so. They never communicated over the summer like friends did. But then again, who knew what Harry considered a friend.
"Of course, we're friends," said Harry. "We've been mates since 1st year." He was shocked the other boy didn't think so.
"Oh," said Neville, realization dawning in his eyes. Perhaps Harry's definition of friendship was different. "I didn't know that."
"Don't be silly, Neville, of course we're mates." He waved the boy's confusion away.
"Not according to Ron. According to Ron, he's your only friend," the blondish teen explained. "That's what he tells everyone anyway."
"Well, he was wrong. I consider everybody in our dorm one of my friends. Except for maybe Weasley, now. He doesn't like Isobel, and anybody who doesn't like my familiar is no friend of mine," Harry stated, firmly. He was going to stick to that. Isobel came first.
"I can see where that would put a damper on a friendship," said Luna. She was petting Isobel, who had her body stretched from Harry's to hers. It was like a long rope ladder stretched the entire length of the compartment.
"I see where you can see that," said Harry, moving closer so Isobel didn't have to stretch so far. Luna always had deeper insight than others. He was sure she was a seer of some type. He wasn't sure what type though. She was keeping that close to chest. Smart girl. Seers were very much sought after, and not always for good reasons.
"So, are you sure she's not going to bite me?" asked Neville far less timidly than the last time. It was less daunting now that Luna was petting the snake like one would a dog. It made it look like any other pet and not a deadly animal. Then again, he was scared of dogs too.
"For the last time, Neville, I promise you; she's not going to bite you," Harry said, a bit of exasperation in his tone.
"Is she going to leave Trevor alone?" the shy boy asked. It was his familiar, after all. He might not love the toad like Harry seemed to love his snake, but he was fond of it. He'd had it for so long, he was beginning to wonder if it was a magical toad. Then again, they do live up to 12 years, so he still had a few years left with his familiar.
"Let me ask her," Harry said, gently bringing the snake's head back to him. "Isobel, will you leave Neville's toad alone? It's his familiar," he asked her.
"I don't like eating fucking toads, or frogs," said Isobel, miffed that her petting was interrupted. "They are slimy," she added with disgust in her tone. Who knew she had such a refined palate.
"They are no more slimy than you are," Harry protested, with a chuckle. It had been one of the arguments he had had with Ron. He kept calling Isobel a slimy snake. Harry had proved him wrong by forcing his hand on her, which Isobel had hated, but prevailed for a brief second. Before she snapped at him, making him scream and run away. However, Ron never called her slimy again. Just other names.
"I still don't like them," she hissed, sticking her nose in the air.
"She says she doesn't like eating toads," Harry said with a laugh. He released her head, and she went back to Luna for more petting.
"That's so creepy," said Neville with a full body shudder.
"Something you're definitely going to have to get used to," said Harry with a shrug. It was something everyone around him was going to have to endure. "But she said she doesn't like toads and she's not going to bite you."
"Very well then," said Neville, relaxing in his seat more. "I'm going to take you at your word."
"Great," said Harry with a huge smile. "Now we can get down to talking like normal people." And he took his seat next to Luna so as not to freak Neville out any more than he already was. Luna started petting Isobel again, which the snake loved. In Neville's lap was a plant that looked like it was bulging out at the seams. He must have picked it up when they settled back down. "What's that?" he asked.
"It's a Mimbulus Mimbletonia," said Neville, showing off the cactus proudly. It was an ugly pale green thing that had spikes on it, and it pulsated and shimmered a bit. Like it was about to explode at the slightest provocation.
Harry could tell it was a magical plant. "What does it do?" he asked. There was something niggling at the back of his mind about that plant.
"Well, it's got a defense mechanism," said Neville, scratching his nose as if to remember what it was. He was about to prod it but pulled his hand back like it was a bad idea. He looked at Harry and Luna and shrugged.
"Can you show us?" asked Luna, leaning forward excitedly. She loved watching nature defend itself.
"Wait, wait," said Harry, vaguely remembering this scenario. Something about sap and stink. He remembered a keen sense of embarrassment. "Maybe you should wait until we get to school when there is more room," he suggested.
"Probably a good idea," said Neville, knowing some plants made quite a mess when they defended themselves. He had done enough of them in the greenhouses at the manor, which is why he wore protective gear in there.
It was about then that Cho Chang decided to pay a visit to them. She looked like she had been crying, but Harry couldn't remember why. She looked at Harry with such soulful eyes that he flinched. Then he remembered Cedric Diggory, and how the teen had died not so long ago to these people, but oh so long ago to him. How had he forgotten about that? He had been so riddled with guilt at the time.
"Hello, Harry," Cho said with a watery smile. "How was your summer?"
"I'm sure you've read about most of it in the Daily Prophet," said Harry, trying not to come off as a prat, but failing badly.
Isobel was still wrapped around his shoulders and Cho was looking at her with great fear in her eyes. That was something Harry was going to have to get used to again. Everyone was going to fear his snake. They were going to take days, if not weeks, to get used to Isobel.
Isobel's beady eyes were latched firmly onto hers. Like she was being territorial and marking Harry as hers.
"Yes, I did read about it. I just didn't know how much to believe," said the Chinese girl, her eyes darting back and forth between him and his snake. "They didn't have anything nice to say about you in the beginning, and now they are spouting your praises. I don't know what to think," she added.
"In the beginning it was political bullshit. Now most of it is true," said Harry, smiling brightly as if he was proud of what it said. "Though I don't like being called the Chosen One." He grimaced at the thought of that. Anyone who knew him knew he hated that kind of attention.
"You don't want to be a hero?" she questioned with a wrinkled brow. Who wouldn't want to be known as the Chosen One? She would die for that chance.
"I hate being the Boy-Who-Lived, I certainly don't want to be the Chosen One," he stated with a bite to his voice. It perhaps came off rougher than he wanted, but he was bitter about it.
"Oh," said the depressed girl. "Well then, I'll, uh, just be going then." Her eyes resting on Isobel, who hissed at her, making her recoil.
"See you later, then," said Harry, grabbing his familiar and hauling her back so she didn't scare the girl anymore.
Cho hurried away with a wary look.
The three in the compartment looked at each other uncomfortably, not sure how to react to that interaction. Harry was upset that it went the way that it did, yet glad that he shot down the crush before it latched on. He remembered his first kiss and how wet it was. It wasn't a fond memory.
"She seems very depressed," said Luna thoughtfully, tapping a finger on her chin.
"Well, her boyfriend did just die," said Neville with surprising insight.
"That's very true," said Harry, trying to be supportive.
"Maybe we should give her a bit more time," said Luna, though there was a distinct lack of support in her tone.
"That's probably a good idea," said Harry, giving her a quizzical look.
She just shook her head and looked away.
And the three of them got to talking about mundane things. They had been talking quite a while when Neville asked, "Harry, aren't Hermione and Ron going to be joining us?" He looked at the door like the two would appear any minute.
"No, they're prefects now. They've got other duties that they need to attend to. Besides, we're not as close as we used to be," the man/teen said as if he were discussing the weather.
"Oh, has the Golden Trio broken up then?" asked Neville, shocked to the core. He didn't think anything could break that group up. Then again, Harry did say Ron wasn't his friend anymore because of the snake. He just figured that Hermione would stick to Harry's side no matter what. She was his only supporter all last year, not to mention the years prior.
"I guess you could say that we had a… difference of opinion," Harry said, unashamedly. He really didn't care one way or the other. "Mostly about Isobel," he muttered.
"We had a difference of opinion," mocked Isobel, still being petted by Luna. "They're fucking idiots," is what she said.
"Hush, Isobel," Harry hissed, chuckling. He reached over and scratched her head where he knew her crest was. She liked to be scratched there.
"Fuck off," she stated, snapping at his hand.
"Don't you mean Dumbledore had a difference of opinion for you?" said Luna with great perception. She was rubbing under Isobel's chin and wondering about the necklace the snake wore on her back.
"And you have great intuition, my dear," said Harry, shamelessly flirting with the younger girl. He did feel a bit weird about it, she was so young. But it was so easy to do. He was sure it would not be taken seriously, so he continued to do it.
"What's Dumbledore got to do with it?" asked Neville perplexed. He was only the headmaster. What did he have to do with Harry's friendship?
"Let's just say he likes to throw his weight around where it doesn't belong and leave it at that," Harry said, waving the question away as one he didn't want to answer.
"Alright then, I'll not push it," the shy boy said. There were all the things in the newspaper that Dumbledore was barmy. Now Neville wondered if half of them were true. His gran never liked the old man. She said he had too much power. Neville was inclined to agree. No one should hold that many offices at one time.
And they went back to talking about their summer. Harry told his story about Isobel coming to the Dursleys, the Dementors and his trial. Luna talked about looking for strange creatures. Neville waxed poetic about his greenhouses. It was a great conversation that didn't have anything to do with Ron, Hermione, or Dumbledore.
Then Draco Malfoy came to call. "Potter, I see you've dumped the dead weight and picked up even deader weights. At least they're purebloods," the blond teen sneered. He was flanked by his two thugs, Crabbe and Goyle.
"Malfoy, what can I do for you today?" Harry asked, not looking away from his ministrations of his familiar.
Isobel was ignoring the boy. He was not a threat. If he became one, she would let him know not to fuck with her or hers.
"I've made prefect. I wanted to let you know that," said Draco, pointing to his badge on his chest.
Crabbe and Goyle were cracking their knuckles like they were about to start a fight.
Isobel looked at them, and they stopped and paled. She was a large snake.
"Bully for you, mate," said Harry, still not looking at him. He soothed Isobel into leaving the two bruisers alone. They were just kids and didn't know any better. There wasn't a brain cell to share between them.
"Nobody really cares, Malfoy," said Neville, glaring at the blond. He wondered why Harry wasn't getting angry. The other teen usually was in Draco's face by now. Or was that Ron? It was hard to tell sometimes.
"You better watch yourself, Longbottom. I'll take points for you for making fun of me," the prefect said, like that was a thing.
"Nobody cares about that either, Malfoy," said Harry with a negligent wave. Like it truly didn't matter to him.
"I rather care," said Neville, shocked at Harry's carelessness. Points were important.
"Why would you care about points? They don't really mean anything," said Harry, looking at his friend and shrugging. "I mean, all they do is give a trophy that sits in the Head of the House's office. We don't see anything for it." He went back to paying attention to Isobel. He didn't want her to petrify Malfoy on the train. At school, sure, but here would be troublesome.
"Well, when you put it like that, I guess you make sense," said Neville thoughtfully. He then turned to Draco and said, "Bugger off, Malfoy."
"Watch yourself, Longbottom. I'll have you in detention before you know it," Draco stated, pointing a finger at the normally shy boy.
"You don't have the power to put people in detention, Malfoy. You're all bluster," Neville stated, waving his hand at him in a dismissive manner.
"Wait till my father hears about this," Malfoy said, stamping his foot. One would have thought he'd have grown out of that by now.
"What does your father have to do with it? This is school," Harry said, turning to look at the boy for the first time.
"My father is on the Board of Governors," the blond said, sticking his nose in the air.
"No, he isn't. He was kicked off in our 2nd year," Harry said, in a questioning tone. He was sure he remembered that. He could be wrong, but he was sure he wasn't.
"They put him back on, you moron," Draco said with some bite to his words.
"Well, they shouldn't have done that, that's for sure," the man/teen said, shaking his head in disappointment. The Board of Governors were pansies in his book. They were led around by their noses by those with the most money or power. They could care less about the school.
"What do you know? Anyway, you had best watch yourself, I'm a prefect now," Malfoy stated again as if they had not heard him the first time.
"Whatever, Malfoy. You're repeating yourself. Go away," Harry said, turning his back on him again. Dismissing him as unimportant.
Isobel took that moment to lunge at Malfoy and snapped at his nose. "You fucken idiot, no one cares how important you think you are. You are just a fucking pussy in big boy pants," she hissed, coiling around, and weaving back and forth in front of him.
Malfoy screamed like a little girl and jumped out of the compartment door. "I'll get you for this, Potter," he yelled as he and his two thugs ran down the corridor.
"Isobel, I didn't want you to do that," Harry reprimanded in parseltongue, picking her up and putting her on his shoulders.
"Fuck off," she stated. "I will tell off whomever I want to. He's a fucken prick," she said, coiling around his neck and settling down on his shoulders. The rest of her draped down his body, hanging like a living scarf.
"Yeah, but now you're gonna get me in trouble," Harry whinged, sitting back on the bench, while Luna and Neville watch the two of them argue.
"What are they going to do? Yell at you?" she asked, like he was whinging too much.
"You never know, they might just," he said with a sigh.
"You're a big boy, you fucken baby," she said, flicking his nose with her tongue.
"Whatever."
"What are you two talking about?" Neville asked with curiosity. It still creeped him out, but he did wonder.
"I'm yelling at her for scaring Malfoy, and she's telling me to bugger off," Harry said, narrowing it down to a few words.
"Your snake tells you to bugger off?" Luna asked with a laugh. That was just too funny in her books.
"In more colorful language, yeah," Harry said, joining her in laughter.
"Your snake cusses?" Neville asked, not sure whether to laugh or not.
"Like a sailor," Harry said, laughing harder.
The three of them chuckled and settled down to talk again.
"I wonder how she's going to handle Snape," Neville said, a dreamy expression on his face.
"We have plans for Snape," Harry said, rubbing his hands together like an evil overlord.
"Oh, do tell," said Luna.
"No, I don't think I will. You're just going to have to be surprised with everybody else," said the time traveler, with a knowing grin.
I think I've got the gist," Luna said, imagining a frozen Snape. She remembered the article stating that Isobel could do that.
"Ah, but not the details," Harry said, chuckling under his breath.
The rest of the trip was spent talking about school and what they were going to be learning and how the rest of their summer went. It was uneventful. Nobody else came into their compartment and soon enough they were pulling up into Hogsmeade.
All three of them got out of the compartment and went to the carriages. Both Luna and Harry could see the Thestrals. Harry was going to go up and pet them, but Isobel spooked them.
They got into the carriage and rode up to the school and were soon at their tables, ready for the welcoming feast. Ron and Hermione made sure not to sit anywhere near Harry when everybody was sitting at the tables. This caused much discussion amongst the Gryffindors. Everybody was whispering how the Golden Trio had broken up. Harry didn't care.
The other thing that caused much discussion in the Great Hall was the fact that Harry was carrying his humongous snake around his shoulders. Everybody except Neville gave him plenty of room. There were at least two body spaces between him and everybody else, bar Neville, who was seated next to him.
This made Neville very self-conscious, but he stuck by his side anyway. Soon the sorting was over, and Dumbledore stood up and introduced the new teachers and gave the beginning of the year announcements.
That's when Harry noticed that the pink monstrosity known as Umbridge was there. He glared at her. She glared at him. He smiled at her. She glared at him harder. He waved at her. Her glare got evil. She had missed her opportunity to give her great speech because she was too busy glaring at him. And if it was possible her glare got even harsher.
Then Dumbledore announced the beginning of the feast.
"I really hate that bitch," said Isobel, staring at the woman in pink. "Are you going to let me kill her?" her tone was almost pleading.
"I really want you to," said Harry as he petted her under the chin, "but I really don't want you to be taken away from me and killed either." He was still smiling at Umbridge, just to piss her off. He was ignoring the food for now and enjoying the conversation with his companion.
"I'm your registered familiar now," the snake reminded him. "I could legally kill her if she tries to harm you."
"What do you say we have a little bit of fun with her first and do like we're going to do with Snape, and you could just petrify her for a while?" the man/teen said, cutting his look to the man in question and grinning at him.
Snape sneered and then frowned at the snake. Dumbledore told him the true nature of the snake and he really didn't want to tangle with it. He thought of starting a rumor, like he had with Lupin, but the headmaster had warned him off that course of action. There would be dire consequences if he did. Up to and including his being fired.
"We can only have so much fun with that before it gets old and boring," she said. She flicked her tongue at the Potions Master like she was trying to get his scent.
Snape frowned harder and then pointedly went back to his meal and ignored them.
"Oh, I don't know. It depends on where, when, why, and how," Harry said with a chuckle, looking at the other teachers, who were all looking at him and his snake as he talked to it so openly. He didn't flinch away from their stares. He just kept on talking to Isobel.
"There is that," she sighed.
"We'll do our best to make it as fun as possible until it does get boring," he promised.
"She puts one toe out of line and I'm going to eat her," Isobel stated, turning her gaze once more to Umbridge who was still glaring at Harry. Her face matched her cardigan again.
"Well, you are legally able to do that. I guess I can't stop you," Harry said, with a sigh. He looked around at the students who were all looking at him with fear or awe. It depended on what House they were in. His own House was a mixed bag.
"Damned right. You just watch me. That bitch touches one hair on your head and she's fucking snake food," the snake said, moving her head in an agitated manner.
"Anyway, let's not talk about Umbridge anymore. When was the last time you ate?" the time traveler asked, giving her his full attention. He was tired of the stares.
"That Kreacher fellow gave me a ferret just last night," she said, putting her head on his shoulder and letting it rest there.
"Okay, that's good. Then I don't have to feed you for another couple days," he said, doing some calculations on how he was going to get her some food here. Hagrid? He looked up at the table and didn't see the man. Where was he? Something about a brother? Well, that wasn't going to work. He'd have to ask the house elves.
"Right."
"Was there anything else you needed while we're here in the castle?" he asked, rubbing her back, she seemed tense.
"It's fucking cold. I need a sun lamp or something," she bitched, pressing her body tighter into his for the warmth.
"I'll see what I can do," he promised.
"Harry, are you gonna talk to your snake all night?" asked Neville, getting very uncomfortable with all the looks and the sound of hissing next to him.
"Oh, sorry about that Neville," said the man/teen. He usually didn't do that too long in mixed company. "I'm just making sure that she's alright. It's cold in the castle and she's a cold-blooded creature."
"Oh. I wonder if Trevor's too cold in the castle too. He's cold-blooded too. Maybe that's why he keeps running away," the shy boy said thoughtfully.
"You might wanna… Well, I suppose you can't ask him. Uh, you might wanna see if you can find him someplace warm to settle. Like a warm puddle of mud or something. Have someone magically heat it for you, or look up how to do it yourself," suggested Harry, thinking of what at toad might find comfortable.
"I'll see what I can do," Neville said, rubbing his chin in thought. "I know he's always running towards the greenhouses."
"Well, there you go then. I'm sure he just wants some warm mud and possibly more bugs," Harry said, clapping him on the back. There, problem solved.
"What do you think of the new teacher?" asked Neville, looking at Umbridge, who was finally looking elsewhere.