The Snake's Secret

Found

On the train back Harry was sitting in a compartment waiting for the students to board. He had been sat there for a substantial amount of time before he felt a small tug in the center of his being, nothing that he could specifically name just part of him. It was small and the more he tried to concentrate on it the more it would slip from him. He felt it only for a moment before it dissipated.

The other four joined him in the carriage not that he paid them any mind. Instead he chose to sit quietly by himself and as the train left the station, he looked out the window to see the Malfoys waving them off. The smooth rocking of the train as it ran along the tracks was calming but not enough to take his mind off what he had just felt. His companions noticed his temper of course and chose not to try and involve Harry against his wishes.

He spent the journey trying to relax and let himself feel the pull. At one point he felt a strong tug but when he left the compartment it petered out. He couldn't seem to find the source of the energy, but it was still on the train with him, so he began roaming the corridor stopping every now and then to see if he could feel it. If his eyes were tinted red, no one commented.

The others weren't helping much but he couldn't really get mad, they were headed back, and Hermione was going to be revived so he had that to look forward to and now he knew it was somewhere close. He felt a spike in the connection every now and then, but it disappeared before he could track it down. Draco was trying to calm him down so the twitching in his eye wouldn't turn into a murderous rage.

The voyage was a long one and Ouro was wrapped around his neck the entire time, getting absently petted by Harry and nuzzled into his neck whenever he could, Ouro was also able to sense what Harry was but in the short time Harry let him explore he couldn't find the source either.

It was dark and cold when the pulled up the station, not that that is unexpected in the winter, but it perfectly matched Harry's demeanour, he was practically emanating death to those around him. Some Hufflepuffs offered him their ride to the school and for a moment he seemed to pick up in mood.

When he climbed into his ride he almost stumbled from the sudden tug at his core, turning he spotted a Gryffindor getting through a window opening her bag and pulling out the diary. He only caught a glimpse of her face before they moved off and he wasn't able to recognise her.

Asking his friends, they couldn't work out who she is from their description but soon enough he knew he would be able to point her out to them, they had a feast to get to.

---

As he sat at his table, he kept mostly silent, hunting through the sea of faces looking for the girl. Dumbledore gave his usual nonsense speech about the goings on at the school and reminded the students to be more careful.

Once the food had been set out, he finally caught sight of her; sitting at her table and he had to admit looking a little queasy.

"Draco, her." He pointed none to subtly at her.

"Her name is Susan Bones. Form a pure blood family if I remember correctly. Her mother works at the ministry"

"Do you want us to go and get her?" Ron asked, looking over at her and shifting to give easier access to his wand.

"What are you talking about, in plain sight? In front of everyone? That's an idiotic move."

"I wasn't asking you."

"That doesn't matter, it's a bad idea!"

"Well then why don't we grab her at the end of the feast?"

"Well.....yeah that could actually work." Draco conceded before turning to Harry. "So what are we going to do?"