Harry Potter and the Silent Dead: Book 1

Chapter 11: Hard work

Lucius sat at the breakfast table, hand loosely holding a tea cup, his signet ring glistening from the reflections of the morning sun. He looked over at Narcissa, who was calmly putting together a small basket of treats as a reward for Draco, who would surely be in Slytherin. He looked down at the letter they had received that morning from his heir. He lifted the cup to his lips, sipping as he read through his sons words. He froze, slightly at the last sentence, sure he had read it wrong. A slight choking sound escaped him as he read it again, causing his wife to look up in concern. "Lucius, darling what is it?" Father, I've made a new friend! He coughed, tea spraying across the table cloth and dribbling down his chin. Dobby squeaked in alarm and clicked his fingers to vanish the mess, bowing and trembling as he walked out. "Lucius!" He looked up at his wife, regaining his composure and gently placing the letter down on the now clean table. "Our son, has made it into Slytherin." Narcissa was silent for a minute before narrowing her eyes. "Yes....." He frowned, having to check the letter one more time. "And he's friends with Harry Potter."

Harry groaned, stretching, wondering what exactly had woken him. He sat up, only beginning to register the screams from his roommates. Kevin was the only silent one, sitting on his bed with a slightly worried look on his face. Micheal and Anthony were shouting loudly, "Kill it, kill it!" And pointing their wands at him. Terry stood at the side of his bed, trembling. "Harry. You need to stay very still. One of the perfects have gone to fetch the Professor." Rubbing his head he looked down, confused when all he saw was Shesha, hissing grumpily at the boys. "Must these silly humans scream so. Perhaps I should bite them until they hold their tongues? Stupid humans, waking Shesha, how dare they!" Harry laughed slightly as he realised what was happening. "Relax, she's friendly." He stroked her scales, smiling sheepishly at Professor Flitwick, who looked even more startled than usual. "She's your pet, Mr Potter? Snakes can be very dangerous and difficult to train." He nodded, placing his palm in the bed sheets so Shesha could climb up to his shoulders. "From what I've read, she seems to be more like a familiar than a pet. She's fairly docile, and seems to understand what I say, and I seem to just know what she wants." Shesha was his familiar, but the understanding was very much helped by parceltongue. "Well, Mr Potter. I suppose as long as she doesn't cause any trouble, we can't very well take her from you. Now boys, get dressed, you've classes to get to." The five of them nodded, quickly pulling on uniforms and brushing hair as they rushed out from their dorms. "Harry, Terry, what happened? Everyone heard shouting from your room!" Terry laughed and nodded in Harry's direction.  "Our friend is full of surprises," he said as he pointed at the snake around his neck. Lisa froze, eyes wide, as she stared at the black and purple snake. Shesha was staring back, and started hissing as she rose up. "I can taste your fear human. Perhaps you shall really fear me when you taste my poison!" Harry raised an eyebrow, simply putting his hand over her eyes and pushing her head down slightly. "Behave Shesha, Lisa and Terry are my friends." The snake hissed at the fiery words, but fell silent, simply burying her head under his collar. "She's not gonna hurt anyone, don't worry. She's pretty friendly once she's used to you!" The two followed him into the great hall, exchanging incredulous glances.

Draco glanced up, waving when he saw Harry, Lisa and Terry. The trio took a seat, greeting them. He started talking to Terry about the Quidditch try outs, when Daphne and Blaise suddenly leaned forward next to Harry. He looked over and was shocked to see the two stroking a snake, wrapped around Harry's neck. He squeaked, blushing when the whole group looked at him laughing. Well, not the whole group, he was glad to see that Lisa and Theo were both looking a little queasy. "Yeah, apparently Harry likes Snakes. Although we shouldn't be too surprised." The slytherins snickered at Terry's words, grabbing their breakfast as it appeared on the tables. They ignored the blank, curious looks they received from the older Slytherins, used to people being confused by their group. Harry was picking at a plate of ham, feeding Shesha small chunks, who seemed very pleased at the fussing from Daphne and Blaise, only eating his own food when Lisa started poking him. He'd just started eating his fruit salad when the Potions Master walked over to them. "Hello Uncle!" The dour man nodded slightly. "Good morning Draco, I suppose you and your friends will not be sitting at your own tables?" The group ducked their heads, but Draco simply shook his head, used to his uncle. "Good morning professor." His uncle looked over at Harry, nodding. "Good morning Mr Potter, the headmaster has asked me to escort you to his office. He wishes to speak with you." Draco watched, worried as his godfather lead his friend away, Dumbledore tracking their every move. He wasn't sure why he was so worried about Harry ending near Dumbledore. Maybe from what his father had said about the man? Maybe from the worried looks on Terry and Lisa's faces. "What is it?" Lisa and Terry looked at each other, seeming to have an entire conversation in just a few glances. They nodded and turned back to the group. "Where do we start?"