This chapter happens at the same time as the previous chapter. Lily learns of the new attacks.
LILY XI
"Are you really sure about that?"
Lily was perambulating within the living room of her apartment. It was larger than the one she had before, but still seemed far too little for the questions that fused within her brain. The Professor McGonagall was sitting in a chair, looking at her, a sorry expression on her face.
"There were over a hundred students there, Lily, along with two professors. Even Severus Snape seemed shaken after that. I don't remember seeing him in a similar state," McGonagall explained.
Snape had to be there, of course. However, for now, it was a secondary concern for Lily. "So Harry can really speak to snakes?" she asked her former professor.
"I didn't want to believe it either when I first heard, but it seems to be the case." The Transfiguration teacher looked as powerless as Lily felt right now. "You really had no idea about this?"
Lily stopped walking around her living room for a short time. "Last year, before he went to Hogwarts, I brought him to a zoo for his birthday. He accidentally made a glass disappear, and a gigantic serpent escaped. He told me later in the evening that he discussed with the animal."
Her former teacher stood up. "Why didn't you tell us? You should have come to Dumbledore right away."
"That's what I did," Lily replied. "But Harry was tired when he said that. He was half-asleep. And I didn't see or hear him talk in Parseltongue. I was in another section of the zoo. It's only when the snake escaped that I saw him looking at Harry. He said you're welcome, but he said it very normally. He wasn't hissing or spitting or making any strange sound. I went to see Dumbledore right away after Harry got asleep, and he told me to not worry, that Harry probably just imagined that he talked to the snake. He's just a child, come on. Sometimes, they can imagine things."
"Well, in this case, he didn't. I'll need to have a little conversation with Albus when I return to Hogwarts. Which I should do right away. My first class of the day is about to begin. I'm sorry to have bothered you at this hour, Lily, but I thought you deserved to learn what happened from me in person," McGonagall said as she stood up and approached the fireplace.
"Wait, what's going to happen with Harry?"
"We will have to keep a close eye on him."
"You don't believe that..."
"Of course not!" McGonagall cut short to Lily's insinuation that she might believe her son had tried to attack this student from Hufflepuff yesterday in the evening. "But we must expect his fellow students to suspect him of something. That's why we must keep watching him."
Lily nodded, silently asking for forgiveness. "What about Draco Malfoy?"
"For now, nothing that comes out of the ordinary. Believe me, if we had a single proof that he had something to do with the opening of the Chamber, we would already have him in custody."
On that, McGonagall made green flames appear, and the instant after she was gone. Lily remained alone in her apartment. She was supposed to study for an important exam on stealth techniques that would take place next week, but right now, all she wanted to do was run to Hogwarts and take her son into her arms.
How was it possible? Harry, a Parselmouth? That aptitude was transmitted through heredity, and neither she nor James was a Parselmouth. And no one in their respective families was a Parselmouth either. Lily decided to verify again. She opened a box which she didn't care to open after she moved, and took an old and dusty big book, with gold letters on the front. The Ancient House of Potter. Always Brave.
Lily tended to hate that book. James inherited it from his father, who also inherited it from his own father. It had gone from father to son for centuries, and traced the origins of the Potter family back to the Middle Ages. Lily saw it as arrogance. James was pure-blood, and so were his parents, and though they never approved the ideas of pure-blood superiority, they were proud to be Potters. For Lily, Potter was just a family name. When she and James were wed, it wasn't his family that she married, but James and only James. That was one of the reasons why she insisted on being called with her family name which she grew up with. She didn't go as far as giving it to Harry, despite the advantages it would have had to protect him from his fame. But she let Harry keep his father's name because James was his father. It was a way for Lily to honour her late husband. She couldn't bring herself to deny Harry such a link with father, even if her son couldn't remember him.
However, today, that book might be useful. Lily opened it. The last page showed Lily and James' portraits and names, along with Harry's at the very bottom. James had brought that last change after Harry's birth. James' parents, Fleamont and Euphemia, were right over his portrait. They had died not long after she and James got married. Lily had liked her mother-in-law and her father-in-law. Unlike James when they first met on the Hogwarts Express, his parents were very kind, without a hint of arrogance or selfishness she could see. Lily wished she had gotten more time to know them, but they both died of the Dragon Pox shortly after she and James got married. They couldn't even be there for the birth of their only grandson.
Lily turned the pages. For each member of the Potter family, there was a portrait or a drawing with the name, the years of birth and death, and the deeds accomplished by the wizard or the witch. Most of these deeds were not much relevant to history, like many other pure-blood families would say. The Potters always seemed to play a background role in the world of wizardry. The family was rich, and lived comfortably, but they never entangled themselves deeply into the world of politics. James' ancestors included businessmen, wandmakers, creators of spells, adventurers, explorers, Quidditch players, Aurors, middle-rank officials for the Ministry of Magic, even professors who taught at Hogwarts, and a branch that emigrated to the United States in the 17th century. From time to time, a politician would appear there and there, but mostly the Potter family never placed itself in a position of great power or influence.
Among the deeds detailed by the book, sometimes they would indicate special talents and capacities the Potter in question would have. She saw one who was a Metamorphmagus, like Nymphadora. Some were inventors of potions, spells, magical items. One was even considered to have saved the life of Queen Victoria during the 19th century. But there was no Parselmouth. Lily went through the whole genealogy, going as far as the 9th century where she found an ancestor by the name of Eivor who was able to communicate with ravens, but there was nothing linking any of James' ancestors to snakes.
She threw unceremoniously the book on her desk. Fine particles of dusk flew a few inches over it. It was as useless as she always considered it to be. How could Harry be a Parselmouth? She didn't get it. She had been afraid last year that it might be the case, but Dumbledore reassured her, saying that it was probably nothing and that Harry probably just imagined it. But yesterday, according to McGonagall, Harry spoke to a serpent in front of dozens of his comrades and professors. How could that be?
Lily couldn't work or study of the whole morning. She tried to write a letter to Harry. She wanted to comfort him, to tell him that everything would be fine, that she was there for him. However, she couldn't find the right words for him. Crumpled papers built up next to her desk. She ended up giving up and walking around her apartment, thoughts circling all over her mind. She was so agitated that she barely noticed the green flames from which a head emerged.
"Lily!"
She finally turned to see the face of Albus Dumbledore emerging from the flames. Before she could say anything, Hogwarts' headmaster spoke.
"There has been another assault at Hogwarts. Another student and a ghost are Petrified. We need you here, right away. Harry is involved. Use your fireplace. It will lead you directly to my office."
And the head disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. The green flames faded away. Lily remained stunned for a moment, then she took some Floo powder and shouted Hogwarts! barely before she walked through the flames.
She indeed arrived in Dumbledore's office. The headmaster was alone there. "Thank you for coming so quickly, Lily," he said as welcome.
"You said Harry was involved. What happened? Is he hurt?"
"No. No. Nothing of the sort, Lily." She sighed a breath of relief. "I'm sorry. I know you must have feared the worst. No, it just happens that Harry was one of the first students to find the victims."
Lily tried to put some order in her mind after the hellish morning she spent. "You said that a student and a... ghost were Petrified?" She said the last few words as she realized what Dumbledore had actually told her.
"Yes. Nearly Headless Nick is Petrified."
"Nick?" She remembered him very well. He was the ghost of the House of Gryffindor. Lily remembered how she was amused and terrified the first time he showed her his head almost detaching from his body, during the feast at the start of her first year. Nick was always very kind with every student, though a little sensitive when it came to his personal honour. Harry had told her how Nick was angry about the Headless Hunt refusing him again. He had gotten Harry out of a delicate situation with Filch and invited him to come to his Deathday Party. Harry had refused because Nick's death happened the day of Halloween, the same day James died. Nick accepted his excuse, understanding that celebrating his father's death was so important.
"Yes. It seems that even ghosts are not out of danger. The Fat Friar, the Bloody Baron, and even the Grey Lady who is normally not talkative at all, came to see me and asked what I would do to ensure their safety. They're also worried about Nick, of course. Even the Bloody Baron is, although he will never admit it."
"How can someone Petrify a ghost?" Lily asked.
"I don't know. But we will be able to bring Nick and Justin back once the Mandrakes are ready."
"Justin?"
"The student who was Petrified. Justin Finch-Fletchley. Another Muggle-born."
Things were worse than ever. "Do we have any idea who might be behind this?" she asked. "What about Draco Malfoy? You said you would watch him the last time we spoke. Did you get..."
"Draco is not involved," Dumbledore said. "We have indeed kept a close watch on him, and he never approached any place that could be the Chamber of Secrets. As for this morning, he spent it entirely in the Charms Class, far away from the place where Justin and Nick were found. He didn't approach the place of the whole day, and he went directly from Slytherin's common room to the Great Hall then to his classroom this morning. He cannot have set the monster or whatever the Chamber contains upon Justin and Nick."
"So, the Dobby track was just another dead-end," Lily concluded.
"Perhaps not. Lucius Malfoy may still be involved. He knows something for sure, or his elf heard something in his house from someone who knew something. Only, his son doesn't seem to be involved at all in all this. Being happy that Muggle-born students get Petrified is horrible, but this is not a crime."
"It should be," she replied sharply.
Dumbledore seemed to ignore what she just said. "Listen, Lily. I believe Harry is in for a very hard time. The reason why I wanted you to come is because I'm going to talk to him, and I want you to be there."
She looked suspiciously at Dumbledore. "Is Harry in any kind of trouble?"
"I'm afraid he is, Lily. Minerva already visited you this morning. She told you what happened yesterday?" Lily nodded. "Then you must suspect how students are going to react. Harry was one of the first on the scene after Nick and Justin were Petrified. And Justin Finch-Fletchley just happens to be the student on which he is suspected to have released a snake."
"Wait! Don't tell me that you believe this nonsense. McGonagall told me about the rumours. That Harry would be the heir of Slytherin. That he would have opened the Chamber of Secrets. Someone must be crazy to believe those things! And don't tell me that because Harry is a Parselmouth..."
"Lily!" Dumbledore cut her off before she could add another word. "I do not think that Harry attacked any of these people. But he was one of the first to see Justin and Nick after their attack. I need to know if he might have seen or heard something, or even know something that we don't. That's why I must talk with Harry. And this is why I wanted you to be here for our interview."
"Why is he the only one you bring to your office then? Surely, there were other students who found this boy and Nick not long after they were assaulted."
"Yes, there is another one. And McGonagall is escorting her..." He was interrupted by a loud knock on the door. "Wait a moment, Professor McGonagall," he said loudly again before he turned to Lily and spoke lower. "Hide behind that veil, Lily. I'm going to talk with the other student first. I don't want her to see you. She could be intimidated. You can come out when Harry enters the room."
Lily wanted to protest, but she couldn't argue against the logic. She went behind a veil that was probably conjured a few instants before she arrived. It wasn't there the last time she came into this office.
"You may come in," Dumbledore loudly said once Lily was well hidden behind the veil. She heard the door open. The veil was too thick for her to see anything through it. She heard footsteps against the floor after the door closed.
"Professor Dumbledore," McGonagall's voice said. "You remember Miss Bones, I suppose?"
"Of course, I do. Susan Bones. You arrived last year, didn't you? You were the second one to be called for the Sorting, and you were sent to Hufflepuff."
"Yes, Professor," a weak voice answered.
Susan Bones. Bones. Lily knew that name only too well. The Bones were a prominent family of wizards with strong ties to the Ministry of Magic. Amelia Bones was currently the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. The Auror Office was under her direct authority, and all other departments in the Ministry of Magic had to answer to this department, with the exception of the Department of Mysteries. Amelia had come to see Lily and wish her good luck in her training a few days after it began. Lily had known her brother, Edgar, when he was a member of the Order of the Phoenix, before he was murdered along with his wife, his children and his parents.
"Susan, I want you to understand. You are not suspected of anything here. And no matter what you tell us, nothing will leave this office. You don't have to fear any retaliation or consequences for what you're going to tell us. We're trying to understand how today's assaults happened," Dumbledore explained to her on a very soft tone.
"I didn't see Justin and the ghost being attacked, Professor," Susan said. "I just found them."
"I know, but perhaps you have seen something that might help us to find the culprit. First, tell us how you arrived on the scene of the crime?"
The girl started to explain that Justin Finch-Fletchley was distraught this morning, shaken by yesterday's events when a snake tried to attack him. Susan had convinced him to find Harry in order to ask him what he had said to the snake. However, Susan and Justin got separated on their way to the Gryffindor Tower, and Susan lost Justin's track. She found him about fifteen minutes later, lying on the floor, unmoving, Petrified, with the ghost of Gryffindor above him. Susan didn't know what to do, so she approached Justin and tried to feel his pulse. Harry arrived not long after, looking just as surprised as Susan was at the sight of Justin Petrified. Then Peeves emerged from an empty classroom and began to scream. All classes around emptied, and the corridor was filled with students within seconds. Then Professor McGonagall arrived and had both Justin and Nick moved to the hospital wing of the castle.
Susan had just finished her story when the door burst open in a big crash, which made even Lily jump. "It wasn't Harry, Professor Dumbledore!" Lily could recognize Hagrid's voice no matter the circumstances. "I was talking to him seconds before that kid was found, he never had time, sir..."
"Hagrid..." Dumbledore tried to say.
"It can't have been him. I'll swear it in front of the Ministry of Magic if I have to."
"Hagrid, I..."
"You've got the wrong boy, sir. I know Harry never..."
"Hagrid!" Dumbledore had spoken loudly this time. "I do not think that Harry attacked those people."
"Oh." Hagrid stammered the rest of his words as Lily guessed he was leaving the office, according to the strong footsteps that made the floor shake under her feet. "Right. I'll wait outside then, Headmaster."
The oak door closed again, much more softly though this time. Dumbledore returned to his questioning. "I'm sorry, Susan. Now, I would ask you to think very strong before you answer, because this is very important. Did you see anything unusual or out of the ordinary before or after you found Justin."
"No, Professor. I'm sorry."
"Okay. Thank you, Susan. I'm not holding you any longer. I suggest you go back to Hufflepuff's common room right away. Professor McGonagall, please escort her. And tell Harry to come in."
New footsteps. The door opened again. "The Professor Dumbledore is ready to receive you," she heard McGonagall say. There were other footsteps, and the door closed.
"Harry, come please." New footsteps. Lily was holding herself to not run at her son. She didn't have to refrain herself much longer though, for Dumbledore addressed her next. "Lily, you can come as well."
She left her hiding place. Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, and Harry stood in front of it. Her son showed complete surprise when she appeared.
"Mom?"
"I asked her to come when we learned of Mr Finch-Fletchley's fate," Dumbledore explained.
"Harry, how are you?" she asked him.
"Fine, I guess. Considering..." He looked at Dumbledore. "Professor, I swear I didn't..."
Dumbledore raised a hand. "Harry, you don't need to convince us. We already are. I don't believe a single second that you have anything to do with those attacks. I just want to know how you came upon the scene of the crime. Perhaps there's a detail you noticed that will help us find the real culprit."
Harry explained how he arrived in the corridor, just like Susan Bones did before. Their Herbology class with the Hufflepuffs had been cancelled this morning. As a result, Harry had finally left Gryffindor's common to find Justin and explain himself on what had happened during the Duelling Club, when he called the snake off him. Harry went to look for him in the library, but only found some of his Hufflepuff's comrades. He asked them where Justin was, but they refused to tell him, and Harry left the library. He then came upon Hagrid, who was coming to see Dumbledore because his roosters kept getting killed. Harry had continued his path, and turned a corner when he came upon Susan, Justin and Nick. He first noticed Nick who was dark instead of his usual white shade, and stood motionless in the air, then Susan who was kneeling on the floor and seemed to be kissing Justin. When she straightened up though, Harry realized that Justin had been Petrified and that Susan was trying to see how he was. Then Peeves arrived from nowhere and began to scream, which brought half the school to the scene.
"And you haven't noticed anything unusual, Harry?" Dumbledore asked him at the end of his story.
"No, Professor. Nothing."
"Okay. I thank you, Harry. I'll let you go back to your common room. Lily, would you mind accompanying him?"
"Not at all," she answered.
"You remember where Gryffindor's common room is, don't you?"
"Of course, I do. I lived here for seven years, remember. Harry, you're coming?"
"One last thing. Harry. I must ask you, whether there is anything you'd like to tell us, to me or to your mother. Anything at all."
Dumbledore had talked on an even gentler tone than usual. Lily looked at her son. He looked at Dumbledore, then at her. She tried to encourage him to talk with a gaze. Harry returned his attention on the headmaster.
"No, there isn't anything, Professor."
Lily knew her son very well. As such, she always knew when he was lying. And he just lied. However, she said nothing.
"If you say so. You may go," Dumbledore said. And the interview was over.
Lily waited to be down the staircase before she asked her son. "So, what is going on, my dear?"
Harry didn't reply for a very long time. Looking at him as they walked through the corridors, Lily realized how her son looked miserable. When he finally answered, it was with an angry voice.
"Everyone believes I'm the heir of Slytherin. How come I can talk to snakes?"
He was looking at her, waiting for answers. But Lily had none to provide. "I don't know, Harry. I don't know why or how you can talk to snakes. Neither me nor your father could speak to them, and neither of us have any ancestor who had this ability."
"Then how can I speak to them?"
"I don't know. But there's one thing I can assure you. You are not the descendant of Slytherin. He's not your ancestor. That I can guarantee you." How could she guarantee that? How could she bring the irrefutable proof that somewhere in his family tree, James didn't have some ancestor who happened to be a descendant of Salazar Slytherin?
"If only the others believed it," Harry commented darkly. "Even Hermione and Ron believe he might be my ancestor. They told me so."
Probably for the first time, Lily was angry at Hermione. From Ronald Weasley, she wasn't surprised that he believed so, but Hermione usually seemed more sensible. How could she tell Harry that Salazar Slytherin could very well be his ancestor?
On their way back to the common room, Lily realized how Harry didn't want to talk at all. He really looked miserable. She tried to cheer him up by bringing up happier subjects.
"You're still coming home for Christmas?"
"Yes, of course, Mom. It will do me some good to be away from the school," he said, still rueful. "If only we could prove that Malfoy was Slytherin's heir," he added.
Lily snapped to attention. "What?"
"Ron, Hermione and I, we're wondering if it's not Malfoy who is the heir of Slytherin. They told me that when Mrs Norris was Petrified, he yelled that Muggle-born students would be next. And he didn't say it the polite way."
She had no trouble imagining how this boy said the word. Knowing her son's proclivity to look into things that didn't concern him, Lily took a decision to protect him. She spotted a deserted classroom, seized Harry by the arm and almost pushed him inside, then closed the door behind them.
"Mom..." he began to complain, but she stopped.
"Listen to me, Harry. Draco Malfoy is not the heir of Slytherin, and he's not the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets either. He might enjoy what's happening, but he's not the one behind these atrocities."
Harry looked at her quizzically. "How can you be sure about that?"
She looked down before she answered. "Because Dumbledore had Draco followed and watched. It's been like that for quite some time now. Draco was in a classroom the whole morning, and before that he was either in the Great Hall, in Slytherin's common room, or travelling between them. And he's not the one who opened the Chamber. He can't have orchestrated today's attack, or the others. It's someone else's doing."
Harry looked at her. "That's why you told me to stay away from Malfoy?"
"Yes. He was suspected, but that's not him. We know that for a fact now."
"How can Dumbledore be sure that Malfoy never..."
"He has his ways," Lily explained. "You would be surprised how it is easy to follow some students across Hogwarts. Dumbledore has more eyes than you can believe."
Harry seemed to be proceeding what she just told him. "So, it's certain, Mom? Malfoy didn't make all these attacks."
"He didn't. Though I would still recommend you to stay away from him."
"I'll do as usual," Harry said after a moment, shrugging. "Only, if it's not Malfoy, then who opened the Chamber of Secrets?"
"We still don't know."
Harry sat on a desk. Lily imitated him and sat right next to him, causing the desk to lean a little. "Look, my dear. I understand that you're not having things easy these times. And I'm not going to lie to you, it will not get better soon. But with time, things will get easier. People will realize that they are wrong about you."
"Why do people think that talking with snakes is the mark of a dark wizard? Why is it so wrong?"
If only he knew who else could talk to snakes. "It's not. You see that wand?" She produced her own wand in front of his eyes. "I can kill someone as much as I can save a life with it. It's a tool, just like Parseltongue. It's not the fact that we use it that is wrong. It's how we use it that makes it good or evil. And from what I understand, if you hadn't been able to speak to that serpent yesterday, Justin Finch-Fletchley would not be Petrified. He would be dead."
Lily was surprised by her own words. She would have viewed as dangerous anyone who was able to speak to snakes before, especially in light of who was the most powerful Parselmouth in the world. However, her son now had this ability as well, and she couldn't believe that it made him an evil person like Lord Voldemort. And she needed to reassure Harry, to make him understand that he wasn't an evil person just because he could speak to certain animals.
Harry seemed to feel a little better afterwards when she led him back to his common room. They could discuss a little of what they would do during his Christmas holidays. She even managed to get him to smile before she left him before the portrait of the Fat Lady.
"It's been a long time, Lily," the portrait told her. Sadly, Lily couldn't accompany her son when he walked into Gryffindor's common room. Her time at Hogwarts as a Gryffindor student had been over for a very long time. She looked at her son disappearing behind the portrait who closed itself behind him. Then she headed back to Dumbledore's office and went back home through his fireplace.
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Next chapter: Harry