The Huge Magical Snake Problem

Family

Harry was sitting on his new bed, scribbling down the list of the spells he had experimented with. It was amazing how his magic now seemed to have a mind of its own. He petted Nagini's head with gentle strokes. Just think - if the serpent hadn't been so curious of how magic worked, he would probably not have learned about this ability. Maybe this could be the 'power the Dark Lord knows not.' But, Harry shook his head at himself. Voldemort could speak parseltongue just as well as he could, if not better.

Sighing, he put his pencil down. He wondered if he would be able to visit Hogwarts over the summer. He knew Severus would be frequently going back to the castle, thanks to Dumbledore's condition. He wondered who the figurehead and leader of the Light would be after... he passed. With any luck, it wouldn't be Harry.

But, he did tend to have the worst of fortune.

Shrugging this depressing thought off, he stood to speak with Severus about what the plans for the week were. He relayed these thoughts to a languid Nagini, who was basking in the summer sun filtering down from his large window. She had a slight bulge in her stomach where her unfortunate prey now rested.

"Ooookaaaay," she replied, obviously enjoying the change in temperature. "I'll be here."

Harry walked a ridiculous distance to get to the lounge, where Severus said he'd be. When he finally got to his destination, Severus was poring through a book that looked older than both of them combined.

"What are you reading?" Harry asked as a greeting.

Severus gave a small sigh, setting the tome down on a small side table. "A book that I thought would shed light on why Parselmagic takes the form of animals. However, I am not having much success."

"Hmm." Harry crossed his arms over his body, thinking. Where on earth would information on this form of magic be?

Suddenly, Severus clicked his tongue and raised a finger. This was so unlike him that Harry couldn't help but stare a bit.

Looking slightly embarrassed, he lowered the finger. "Recall your second year," he said. Harry nodded, wondering where he was going with this. "Remember the Chamber of Secrets?"

"How could I forget?" Yes, Harry was painfully cognizant of his encounter with Voldemort in the dank, disgusting chamber. How Ginny had seemed so lifeless and pallid... how she had almost died. How he had almost died. In fact, Harry still had the scar where the basilisk's fang had punctured him.

"There is a possibility that some of Salazar Slytherin's old spellbooks are in there."

Harry blinked. "Yes, that's very true!" Then, his eyebrows furrowed. "Wait. I'm not really sure how to put this, but it's something that has been weighing on my mind recently." Severus nodded his head slightly. "You see, when I met Slytherin's portrait, he seemed really nice - not the kind of wizard to discriminate against anyone. And... the deal with his basilisk... he doesn't seem the type to bend a creature's free will like that. Especially to a snake!" He remembered how reverent Salazar had been of Nagini when he had seen her.

Severus leaned back in his chair. He remained silent for a few seconds, pondering his words. "Harry, you have to understand that people can change." When Harry nodded his head, he continued. "He was opposed to letting muggleborns attend Hogwarts early on in his life. However, when he got to know a few of these witches and wizards, his views slowly began to shift. At the end of his life, he was friends with quite a few muggleborns."

"Why isn't this common knowledge if it's true?" Harry asked. He'd heard almost everyone he knew talk badly about Salazar - even Professor Mcgonagall!