A Darker Form of Magic, book one: Dark Affinity

Chapter Twelve

Harry shivered as he left the warmth of the Slytherin common rooms for the chill of the Hogwarts halls, the air so cold in the dungeons that his breath came out in little puffs the deeper that he went. He was the only Slytherin that had chosen to stay for the holidays, so he wasn't all that surprised when the Weasley twins cornered him on his way into the Great Hall and dragged him over to the Gryffindor table for breakfast, grateful for it even.

Basking in their balance.

"Little ickle Harry," Fred said, poking the boy in question lightly in the ribs.

"A lone snake in that castle that now has to be taken in by lions," George lamented dramatically from the Slytherin boy's right.

"Well," Harry said slowly, glancing up at the Head Table to see that most were watching the scene with what appeared to be interet, but all were too far away to hear, "I think that I may have an idea as to how to repay the favor."

"You Slytherins," Fred sighed as the three sat down in a neat line at the Gryffindor table, "always focused on getting even."

"Let's hear it then," George decided.

Harry smirked, looking between the two before reaching for a biscuit to appease the potions master that was sure to be watching to make certain that the boy kept a reasonable weight. "Tell me, do either of you know how to make Howlers?"

The twins only grinned.

—-

Harry drew his clothes close to him as he walked the long corridors of Hogwarts alone, peeking behind portraits and running his hand across the ridges of the cool stone. Hogwarts during the holidays was little more than a child's paradise as - other than the professors that had to stay as well - only a handful of students remained. The Slytherins always stuck with one another between and during classes, knowing that they were the most hated of the four houses and therefore the most likely to be cursed by another. This was the only time of the year that Harry could truly explore the vast castle alone if he wanted to.

There were dozens of little nooks and short descending hallways about the castle, hidden innocently behind the decorations on the stone walls. On the second day of the holidays, Harry found a set of stairs on the fourth floor that seemed to lead to an empty room that wasn't quite on the third or fourth floor but somewhere between the two. Harry grinned as he left and knew that he would find something to use the space for in the future.

There was a painting of the sky on the second floor that opened like a door to reveal a small reading nook with a window that showed off a view of the Black Lake glittering in the sunlight, the snow capped mountains behind it.

Harry didn't spend long exploring the castle each day though. With the other Slytherins gone, the sickness that had plagued the boy since stepping onto school grounds rose up inside of him was a fever, forcing the boy to finally feel the full force of what had become a tolerable ache over the past few months. The Slytherin commons room became something of a prison and a strange sort of salvation as he only left it for two hours at most each day outside of meals.

It was on the sixth day of the holiday that Harry made his way to the seventh floor of the castle not long after dinner. He didn't truly intend to be there, but his mind was drawn to a place that he hadn't thought of in a long time despite seeing its sky every night. To a person that he hadn't thought of. That was how he found himself pacing back and forth in front of a tapestry of a man trying to teach trolls how to do ballet of all things. Back and forth he walked, thinking of a place that he couldn't go, when suddenly the boy heard what sounded like stone moving and shifting in the walls.

When Harry turned around, he was met with the sight of a door that he was sure had not been there only a moment before. Gazing at it for a long moment, he thought of if he should go into it or not, or whether he would be able to leave if he ever did. After all, there was no telling if a door that magically appeared on its own wouldn't disappear in the same sudden way.