Disclaimer: Harry Potter and friends belong to J.K. Rowling. I make no money from this story.
A/N: Any italics in the story are either flashback/thoughts or quoted directly from the books.
Also, this fic is listed as 'M' rating, mainly for later chapters/books, so I am assuming that anyone reading this story is 'of age' and has no objection to sometimes adult oriented material. If you do object, please find something else to read.
Also – bold lettering is Parseltongue.
A big thank you to all of my followers, you make this story worth writing. Any feedback is always appreciated.
HLP 2 – Slytherin Secrets
Chapter 3:
The crack of apparition had Rhonda running out the door, Mrs. Weasley's scolding about un-lady-like behavior going unheeded as the door slammed shut behind her.
Harriet had barely gotten her balance back from the apparition when she was bowled over by a hyper red-head. She winced and rubbed her bum, grimacing as her hand came away covered in mud. "OY! Did you have to knock me into the mud first thing?"
Rhonda blushed and pulled her to her feet. Harriet could see Dora snickering beside her. She shot her a glare. Dora's hair was pink with mirth. She just laughed and hugged Harriet.
"Happy birthday, Harriet," she whispered, pressing a package into her hands. Harriet looked down at the package and then back up at Dora. Dora winked at her, "wait until you are alone to open it." She spun on one foot and disapparated, leaving Harriet and Rhonda staring after her.
"What is it?" Rhonda asked, eyeing the package with curiosity.
"I don't know. I haven't opened it yet. I'll wait until tonight and then I'll show you. I can't imagine what she could have gotten me that she doesn't think I'd want everyone to see," Harriet mumbled as she tucked the present into her pocket.
"Harriet, dear, it is so lovely to see you again," Mrs. Weasley gushed, rushing out the door to greet her daughter's guest.
"Thank you for allowing me to visit, Mrs. Weasley," she half curtseyed.
"Nonsense," Mrs. Weasley waved off the thanks, "we love to have you visit. Rhonda can't stop talking about you. You must call me Molly. Mrs. Weasley makes me sound so old," she laughed.
"I'll try, but my uncle raised me to always be respectful to adults, so pardon me if it takes me time to remember," Harriet apologized in advance.
"Well, come in child, supper will be ready in an hour and a half. You can put your things away in Rhonda's room; I've set up the spare cot for you there." She pulled out her wand and gestured to Harriet's trunk and Hedwig's cage, both of which began to float toward the house.
The two girls followed, arms wrapped around each other's waists.
Rhonda fairly bubbled with excitement. "We've been baking all day. Mum has made the perfect cake; you do like chocolate, right?"
Harriet knew the question was rhetorical, she could feel herself starting to drool. "I'm sure it will be perfect."
"What did you do today?" Mrs. Weasley asked as they walked into the house.
"My uncle took me to the zoo and then we went to see my parent's graves and then had tea with Dora before coming here," Harriet catalogued her day.
"Was it a magical zoo?" Rhonda asked.
"Harriet's uncle is a muggle, dear," Mrs. Weasley reminded her.
"Oh, yeah. So a muggle zoo then, what's that like?"
"It's the greatest; I really love visiting all of the animals. My favorite exhibit is the herpetarium, it gives Uncle Toby the willies," Harriet giggled.
"What's a herpet – herpet – a whatever?" Rhonda asked, intrigued.
"A herpetarium? It's a snake exhibit," Harriet replied casually.
Rhonda drew back. "You like snakes?"
Harriet could tell she was thinking of Slytherin house.
"Well, I like them when they are animals, but if you are referring to blonde-haired snakes, no," Harriet laughed.
Both girls giggled. Mrs. Weasley watched them, surprised that Harriet would like snakes given her house affiliations. She shrugged it off. Muggle snakes were harmless. It was some of the magical ones you had to worry about.
HLPHLPHLP
Harriet sat down to the table between Rhonda and Gryffin. The smells emanating from the kettle over the fireplace caused her stomach to rumble. She giggled nervously, blushing as Gryffin chuckled next to her. "Mum, you'd better hurry up with that stew or Harriet's going to perish of hunger," he teased.
Molly smiled benevolently over at the three of them. "Why don't you go up and tell your sisters that supper is ready," she instructed Gryf.
He bolted up the stairs, bellowing that dinner was ready. There was a loud bang, followed by an angry string of curses which had Molly yelling up the stairs.
"Gryffin! Language! Frederica Gilda Weasley, Georgia Frances Weasley, get your tails down here now!"
The three trudged down the stairs, Gryffin glaring at his sisters. If looks could kill, Harriet thought, the twins would be dead by now. A giggle escaped her lips as she noticed what he was wearing. She promptly clamped her hands over her mouth, knowing he wasn't amused.
Gryffin stood at the foot of the stairs, face coated in make-up, wearing a muggle ballerina outfit in shocking hot pink. His face was red with anger, a glowing shade that almost blended with the tutu. Patricia came down the stairs behind the three of them and made her way to the table silently, her face set in a grimace of disapproval.
"Freddie, Georgie, change your brother back, NOW!" Mrs. Weasley demanded, just as a *whoosh* resounded from the floo. Mr. Weasley stepped from the floo and looked over at his family. He took in Gryffin, fists clenched, red with rage. He raised his wand. "FINITE."
He glanced over at his wife. "I think they need to scrub the floors without magic for a week, and de-gnome the garden."
She looked over at the twins, "that sounds fair; Gryffin has to help me in the kitchen this week." When Gryffin attempted to open his mouth and object she cut in, "that language is never acceptable in my house." Gryffin hung his head and nodded, shuffling back to the table and flopping heavily into the seat beside Harriet.
Harriet took a deep breath and practiced a meditation exercise for a moment to ensure she had control of herself. Hot pink was definitely not Gryff's color, she thought.
The remainder of the meal passed uneventfully, though Harriet swore she would have to ask Mrs. Weasley for her recipe. This was the best stew she'd ever eaten. Uncle Toby was a decent cook, but Mrs. Weasley certainly had him beat.
As soon as the plates were cleared away, Mrs. Weasley summoned desert plates and then gestured with her wand. The pantry door opened, and out floated the largest cake Harriet had ever seen. It was probably two feet tall and shaped into a snitch. She groaned in appreciation when she noticed the golden coloring came not from magic but from the sweet, coconut-laced, German Chocolate frosting. Her green eyes glowed with appreciation. Mrs. Weasley had just won her undying loyalty. She LOVED German Chocolate cake.
She sat back half an hour later, her stomach uncomfortably full. She'd had three helpings of the cake as well as two of the stew. Everyone retreated to the den and with a gesture from Mr. Weasley's wand, a pile of presents floated to Harriet's feet.
The first gift she opened was from Patricia. It was a book titled Perfectly Proper, a handbook of Etiquette for Witches by Stenora Straitlace. Harriet sighed inwardly, but smiled politely and thanked Patricia. She knew Patricia was trying to be thoughtful, but she couldn't imagine a more boring book.
The next gift was from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. She opened it and gasped. Inside was a lovely jumper in a shade of forest green that matched her eyes. The material was made from the softest cotton she'd ever felt. It would be perfect for summer. It was short sleeved with a square neckline and little gold buttons to the waist before flaring out in the skirt.
"When you are ready to wear it, call me and I will make whatever minor adjustments are needed to make it a perfect fit. I figured if you were raised by your uncle, you might like to have something pretty to wear on occasion. Men don't always think of these things," Mrs. Weasley said, smiling at the girl's obvious joy.
"I love it. I usually wear jeans or shorts. Uncle Toby hates shopping and the only dresses I have I've gotten when I'm with Cousin Dora or Cousin Andi," Harriet's happiness was effusive.
"Open mine," Rhonda said, thrusting a large package at her.
Harriet laid the dress to the side and opened Rhonda's package, gasping when she saw its contents. Inside was a selection of Honeyduke's finest chocolates. There was one of just about every type of chocolate imaginable. Her mouth watered at the sight even as her stomach reminded her she was still over full. "Thank you," she hugged Rhonda.
There were two more presents still to open and Harriet reluctantly set aside the chocolates and opened the gift from Herman. He hadn't been able to come as his parents had planned a trip to the United States that year and they'd insisted he come along.
Inside the plain brown wrapping paper was a new broomstick servicing kit. Harriet eyed it reverently. She would have to remember to send him a thank you letter. She might even part with a few chocolates by way of thanks; she knew his sweet tooth was as great as hers.
"A broomstick servicing kit?" Mr. Weasley asked, "I didn't know first years were allowed brooms.
"Da-ad, I told you Harriet made the Quidditch team last year. She has a Nimbus 2000. She is the youngest seeker in a century," Rhonda explained.
"Oh, well, congratulations young lady. I suppose that kit will come in right handy then," Mr. Weasley said, embarrassed.
"That's okay, Mr. Weasley," Harriet replied.
"You must call me Arthur, my dear."
"I'll try. It may take me a while to remember," Harriet responded, picking up the final package. It was from Frederica and Georgia. Inside was a variety of candies, including a bag of jelly beans. Harriet reached in and immediately pulled out a blue one.
"Wa—"Frederica watched in horror as Harriet popped the blue bean into her mouth.
"Mmm, this is good," Harriet looked at the others who were staring at her in horror. "What's wrong?" She lifted her hand to scratch her nose and screamed.
"What is happening to me?" Her hands were covered in large blue scales that glittered iridescently in the candle light.
"You weren't supposed to eat them," Georgia whispered, "they are prank candies, to use on your enemies."
"Get her the antidote," Mrs. Weasley commanded.
"We don't have one completed. It wears off naturally after a week. You can't use Finite either, it makes things worse," Frederica explained.
Harriet shrank back as Mrs. Weasley's color increased, she could almost feel the anger rolling off the woman. Arthur, worried about his wife's temper placed a hand on her arm. "Mollywobbles…"
She shrugged him off, "don't Mollywobbles me, Arthur," she turned to look at the contrite twins, "to your room. I will let you know when I have decided on a punishment, until then, no experimenting. I expect to find that you've completed your summer homework before you will get any more activities this summer." The twins blanched and raced off to their rooms. Molly turned to Harriet, "I'm so sorry, my dear."
Harriet shook her head, "don't worry about it, Mrs. Wea – I mean, Molly. The twins didn't really mean any harm. I can survive looking like this for a week." Molly calmed visibly when she realized the twins hadn't alienated Rhonda's best friend.
Later that evening, in the privacy of Rhonda's room, Harriet opened her gift from Dora. Inside the package were three tiny books and a note.
Harriet, just tap the books with your wand and they will expand. Thought these might be useful. Love, Dora
Harriet drew her wand and tapped the books. When they were full size, she picked them up and looked at the covers. The first two were muggle titles. The first was a black book with colorful designs on the cover, titled: Puberty Survival Guide for Girls by Eve Anne Ashby, the second, also a muggle book, was titled: Girl Stuff: A Survival Guide to Growing Up by Margaret Blackstone. The third book was written by a witch by the name of Slendah Silhouette, titled: Suddenly Witchy, A Guide for Adolescent Witches. They goggled at the books for a moment and then collapsed together on Rhonda's bed, giggling.
"Why'd she get you those?" Rhonda asked a few minutes later once she'd managed to get control of herself long enough to breathe.
"I got the scarlet visitor for the first time last month. Cousin Andi had to explain things to me, Uncle Toby was too embarrassed," Harriet explained, remembering the look on her Uncle's face. It had taken him a week to look her in the eyes after that incident.
"Oh. I can't wait for mine," Rhonda breathed with excitement.
"I know. The cramps are killer, but Cousin Andi and Cousin Dora took me shopping for underthings the weekend after since Cousin Andi says I'm growing up now."
The two girls giggled as they paged through the books Dora had sent, laughing quietly at various points of the book. Harriet's skin was still covered in bright blue scales which stood out loudly against the plain white nightgown she wore, but she was too hyped to notice. It was the wee hours before both girls fell into an exhausted sleep on Rhonda's bed.
A/N: Well, I had intended to get the Diagon Alley/Flourish & Blotts scene in this chapter, but it is long enough as is. We will get our first introduction to Lockhart in the next chapter. Be afraid, be very very afraid.