Talk"
'Think'
"Parseltongue"
Chapter 5 – Blood and Books
Harry gave a sigh as Petunia pulled into the driveway. Home… that word left a sour taste in his mouth when thought with this hell. He couldn't wait to go to school and Petunia to get a job to get away from here. Harry pushed all those types of thoughts out of his head. Tomorrow Dudley would be home after (summer) school. He only had this afternoon to be productive.
"Aunty I'm going up to the guest room to sort all my things out and put them away. After that can I go to the park to read?" Harry was careful to not joust around his bag in fear of breaking something as he made his way into the house.
Petunia gave him the go ahead. He was up those stairs like he had hellhounds on his heels. He carefully took every shrunken package out of his bag and set it out on to the bed. The trunk was the last thing. He happily pulled out his new wand and just stopped to look at it. It was a creamy marbled brown with a black sheen coating. The handle was comfortable in his grip and perfectly balanced. It was his.
Harry had a large grin on his face when he finally stopped looking at his wand. He touched each shrunken package with it, enlarging them. He set his truck on the ground before touching it too. He sorted out his clothing first, putting them all into the clothing compartment of his trunk. He happily used the password Amara in English. Harry them put the things he needed for potions away into the potion compartment; password becoming Nightshade. He put all his inks, parchments, and quills away neatly into the supplies compartment giving it the password Hedwig.
Harry smiled at the name of the owl his aunt insisted he needed, saying she wanted letters often while he was at school. Hedwig is a snowy owl, all white with sharp golden eyes. Harry gave her the instruction to stay out in the shed. His aunt was going to set the stand/cage out there so Vernon wouldn't find her.
He gave himself a mental shake, he needed to go through his books. He set the books he got that day out of the bag they gave him and set them down on the bed. Harry then got on his knees and reached under the bed, pulling out the hidden bed frame under it. The mattress for the frame was gone and in its place was a homemade bookshelf. It looked just like the ones you could buy just laying on the floor instead of sitting against a wall. His aunt made it for him when he started showing a love of books. It held all the books he has read/will read and won't get rid of after reading.
Harry started pulling out all his psychological books out. The two he got the day before were set aside to read later. The rest were put into the trunk on shelves he just slid side to side. The sociology books followed, then politics, again putting aside the new one, history, religions, anatomy and biology, and then his fiction section. Harry happily put his crime novels, mystery, fairy tales, and classical literary works onto a shelf in his trunk. When he was done he noticed he had one last book left. It was the plain black book. He turned back to his trunk to set the password before turning back to the book.
Harry picked it up. It was black leather with no indication of what was in it. He opened the first page to see a faded mark in the top right corner of the page. He ran his finger over it only to pull his hand away in shock and pain. Blood that dripped from his cut finger onto the page sat there a moment before being absorbed. Harry sat in shock with his finger in his mouth as letter slowly appeared on the page; 'Blood Magic – The Grey Art. Harry looked for an author. He flipped to the back cover to see two words or in this case one name; Merlin, Emrys.
'Wasn't Merlin a practitioner of light magic?' was all Harry could think as he turned back to the title page. He looked at for one more minute before he made his decision. He got up and grabbed one more book from his new pile. He ran down the stairs, yelling he was off to the park.
The park was empty so Harry had no trouble going into a small grove hidden by a group of trees unseen. He sat on the small stone bench that was in the in the middle of the grove left forgotten by the rest of the world. Harry remembered a rumor about how a woman and her child were killed by this bench and anyone who got close was hurt by some unseen force. So many people believed it that they planted the trees around it in hope to stop people from going near the area.
Harry stumbled across it when he was looking for a place to hide from his cousin's gang. He ran in seeing a pretty woman holding a baby in her arms sitting on the bench. He asked her if he could hide there. The woman looked up at him with sorrow filled blue eyes and nodded. Harry hid behind the bench. He heard Dudley and his gang come into the grove only to run off screaming. Harry lifted his head when he felt a soft touch of a hand on his head. The woman had given him a small smile saying, "Your safe little one. No one will ever bother you here. Come here whenever you like."
Harry smiled when he thought he dreamed it all because after the woman pulled her hand back she faded away into nothing. Since that day he had been coming here every chance he got. It was calm and peaceful. He pulled himself from the memory with a shake of his head. He lifted Blood magic to his lap, leaving the other book by his side.
He opened the book to the first page and read. 'Blood Magic is only one of two branches of Grey Magic. It uses blood both given freely and forcibly taken. It is a dangerous field of magic because the practitioner becomes connected to all the blood he uses. The practitioner's most powerful blood though is their own. What many do not understand is that the more you practice Blood Magic the more powerful your own blood becomes and in doing so the more dangerous the blood becomes to other people who spill it or takes it with/without the practitioner's permission. Blood magic can be simple or complicated depending on the situation, spell/ritual, time to do it in, and confidence one has in his/her Blood magic abilities.
Not everyone will be able to use Blood magic because not everyone can control it. It can be the most difficult branch of magic you ever practice or the most natural. The best way to determine if you will be able to use blood magic is to put a drop of blood onto a mirror and use it to show you a family member, be them dead or alive. If you succeed, continue reading and studying all I have written in this book. If you do not succeed, do not continue for all that awaits you is a painful death."
Harry paused to consider what he should do. He glanced down at his shoulder bag. He had a small mirror on a keychain his aunty gave him because it had a lily on the back of it and it caught his eye in the store. He pulled it out. It was only about a 1½ inch sized metal mirror. He squeezed the finger the book cut until blood came to a head. He turned his finger over and watched the blood drop right in the middle of the mirror. He closed his eyes and thought of his mother. He opened his eyes to see a beautiful woman looking back at him with a smile on her face. Her hair was the color of fire and her eyes were only two shades lighter than his own. He had her fair skin and her smile. "Mother" The word slipped out before he could stop it. Lily's smile turned sad as she mouthed four words to him before disappearing from the mirror. 'I love you, Harrison'.
Harry set the mirror keychain on top of the book and shoved them into his bag. He wasn't going to think about this, not right now. He grabbed the book at his side, 'Blood and Tears'. He spent the rest of the afternoon getting lost in the politics of the Dark ages. He made it home after Amara yelled at him for staying outside for so long.
He helped his aunt make dinner. He ate and put the dishes in the sink before he went back up to the guest room. He set Amara and his little one down on the bed so he could pack. He put his school books and new books, including Merlin's book, into one of the bags from the alley and tapped it with his wand to shrink it. He put both of his birthday gifts into his bag, shrunk his trunk, put the trunk into his bag and then put the bag of books into his bag. He ran down to put them in his cupboard when he heard a car pull into the driveway.
Petunia ran to the door to see who was there. She whipped around with fear in her eyes. "Harry hide your bag now. Go to the bathroom and change. Your uncle is home."
Harry ran upstairs where he had a hidden change of clothes under the sink. He changed as quickly as he could into Dudley's hand me downs. He heard the door shut and his uncle ask where he was. He heard his aunt say he was going to the bathroom. Harry hid his own clothing under the sink before flushing the toilet. He walked down the stair to find his uncle waiting.
Vernon grabbed him at the bottom of the steps and shoved him in the direction of the kitchen. "Freak make me some food. I want it on the table in five minutes."
Harry ran into the kitchen where Petunia had started to soak the dishes. He pulled out the leftover beef stew, rolls, and Oreo pudding that he helped Petunia made for dinner. He heated up a large bowl of the stew and four rolls, putting them on the table as he heard his uncle coming down the stairs. He ran back to put three big spoons full of pudding into another bowl and set it down on the table as his uncle entered the room. Harry busied himself by putting the leftovers back into the fridge and washing the dishes under his uncle's watchful eye.
Harry could hear his aunt upstairs walking around. Vernon cleared his throat as Harry finished drying the last of the dishes. "Don't think I don't know that you haven't been doing chores since I left. Your aunt is too soft on you."
Harry heard Vernon get out of his seat. He braced himself as he sensed his uncle's fist come at him. It connected to the side of his head. Harry dropped to the floor dazed. Kicks started raining to his back, sides, and stomach as he tried to curl into a ball. Fire flared through him as he felt something give in his side. His left hand fingers were numb as Vernon stomped on them before rearing back for another kick to his stomach. He never heard his aunt come into the kitchen yelling at Vernon to stop. He never heard his aunt fall to the ground after Vernon hit her to shut her up. He only heard the blood rushing through his veins and a soft lullaby he always heard during a beating. He wasn't sure how long it was until Vernon stopped. He did know he was still awake.
He listened to his blood calm and the lullaby end. He heard his uncle go upstairs and his aunt crying by the door. He felt his aunt try to carefully lift him up. That was when he heard the drips. He looked around to try to find the source. It wasn't the sink, and his aunt's tears were being soaked up by his shirt. He looked down to see red running down his left hand to fall to the floor. Drip… Drip… Drip. He watched his blood fall drop by drop to the floor. He watched as a small puddle was made on the floor, made of his blood.
Harry closed his eyes as his aunt carried him to the kitchen table and sat him in a chair. She left his side for no more than a moment. She came back with a blanket. She wrapped it around him snugly before she ran to get the first aid she kept in the pantry. Harry with his eyes closed listened to his aunt move around and to his own heart beating.
Thoughts were rushing through his mind. How much more of this could he take of this? How much more would his aunt have to put up with? One of these days his uncle was going to kill him. How much of his blood does this house now have? He never noticed his aunt wrapping his hand. He didn't notice his aunt cuddling him up in his cupboard. He never noticed when he finally fell to sleep.
Harry woke to hear Dudley yelling he was home. His head was pounding and his body ached from just breathing. He just lay there in his dark little cupboard listening to the house around him. He never noticed when he fell back asleep. He was in and out for days after. Sometimes he woke to find himself being fed soup by his aunt on the couch, sometimes he was being washed in the tub and other times he was in his cupboard under the stairs.
This time Harry woke to find his aunt sitting beside him on the bed in the guest room. She was feeding his little one and Amara was wrapped around her wrist. Petunia was humming a soft tune Harry remembered from his early childhood.
The humming turned to soft singing. "Now let the day just slip away, so the dark night may watch over you. Velvet blue, silent true, it embraces your heart and your soul, Nocturne. Never cry never sigh. You don't have to wonder why. always be always see. Come and dream the night with me, Nocturne."
Harry listened to his aunt continued singing. He opened his eyes when he felt a hand on his forehead. Petunia's eyes brightened when she noticed her nephew awake. "Harry sweetheart, how are you feeling?"
"I'm okay. How are you and my darlings?" Harry asked looking from Petunia to his little one, who was trying to make it to him, and to Amara, who was gently holding his little one back as best she could.
"We are fine. You start school in two weeks." Petunia answered sadly.
Harry almost shot forward in shock. "I have been out that long!?"
"Yes. Draco sent a letter asking if you wanted to come over for a week and get on the train together. It came today so I haven't replied yet." Petunia pushed his bangs to the side, trying to gauge his reaction.
Harry lay on the bed trying to wrap his head around the fact that his uncle beat him so bad that he has been out for close to 2½ weeks. He processed his aunt saying Draco, letter, and train. "What? Draco sent a letter?"
Petunia gave a small smile, "Yes, he wants you to stay over at his home for a week and get on the train together. I haven't been able to reply to it yet. I got it today."
"I would like to go, but what about you?" Harry knew his uncle would throw a fit.
"Don't worry about it. While taking care of you I went through the papers that we got from Gringotts and found that one of your uncles bought a small little shop in Hogsmeade with the second floor converted to a home. When you go I'm going to get everything of ours moved over there and I have thought about opening a small café. You can help me run it during the summer. How does that sound?"
Harry grinned at his aunt, "I think it sounds great on one condition. You use the money from my account to do it."
Petunia shook her head, "I will take loans out."
Harry's grinning face turned into a glare. "No I have more than I'll ever need in my accounts. Use whatever you need to move us and open the café. You don't need loans. you have done your best to protect me, feed me, clothe me, and you have always loved me. Let me help you get out of here. This is as much your hell as it is mine."
Petunia sighed in defeat knowing her nephew was going to get his way one way or another. "Alright, you win. Now let's get you into the bath and then you can eat. We'll send a reply back to Draco after."
The next week went quickly; Harry recovering quickly thanks to his magic but still hurting if he moved the wrong way, Petunia corresponding with Gringotts about moving and opening the café, Draco giving the okay with meeting at the Leaky Cauldron for lunch before Harry says his goodbyes to his aunt, Harry reading all his books but Merlin's, and Harry finally deciding on a name for his little one.
Harry was in the car with Amara, who had grown to be the length of his fingertips to elbow, wrapped around his neck like a necklace and Nightshade, who was named after the plant also known as Solanaceae for the fact that she looks so sweet and innocent but looks deceive you, curled up in the pocket of the sleeveless hoody he wore to the ally the first time. All his things he needed or wanted to take to school were in his trunk, shrunk in his bag.
Harry was excited at the fact that Petunia was taking them an hour early so he could get a couple more books and that he will be seeing his first friend again. It wasn't long before Petunia parked a block from the Leaky Cauldron. Harry happily dragged his aunt by the hand down the sidewalk to the entrance. He slowed as they walked through the masses of people in the pub to make it to the back. The entrance to the Ally was open from all the people coming and going through it in concession. Harry felt Petunia tighten her grip on his hand as they made their way to Flourish and Blotts. It took 15 minutes to get out of the crowds and into the store, which was packed to the brim.
Petunia let Harry's hand go so he could get the subjects he wanted to read up on. He came back 20 minutes later with four books. They were quick to get in line.
"What did you pick out this time?" Petunia had to ask beside his ear to be heard.
"Proper Pureblood behavior, modern British politics, it's a little more in-depth than my other one, Magical Creatures, and their classifications, and the last one I got was on Merlin, the truth and legend." Harry fumbled through the books showing her which was which. They were all thick books and quite heavy.
They soon had paid and started on the slow journey back the pub. They made it to the pub with five minutes to spare to find Draco and two gentlemen sitting at a table in the back. Harry smiled at Draco when he finally noticed them coming.
"Harrison. You're early." He turned back to both the men, who were now looking at them. "Father, Uncle Severus", Harry felt Petunia tighten her grip on his hand recognizing the name, "This is Harrison Evans and his aunt Petunia Evans."
"Tuny, never thought I would see you here." The man across from Draco spoke. Harry wasn't all that impressed with what he saw. His hair was oily and hung in strands to his shoulders. He was thin and tall, even sitting. His black robes were well cared for but smelled of potions if Harry was to say. His eyes though, black mixed with dark grey. Harry felt like they could read everything about him.
"Severus, still rude as ever I see. I can guarantee, it is not a pleasure to see you again." Petunia's voice was cold and clipped. Harry felt himself being pulled back so his aunt could wrap her arms around his shoulders, holding him close to her. "You would do well to not call me that name. I had told you that numerous times when we were children."
Draco was confused watching the two of them glare at each other like they just wanted to kill. Harry wasn't much better but his confusion turned to anger at seeing Severus's glare "Aunty, I was unaware you knew people from this world."
"I only know who your mother introduced me to and who we met getting your school supplies. Harrison darling, meet the man Lily named as one of your godfathers. This is Potion Master Severus Snape." Harry could tell his aunt just wanted to walk out with him with her from the way she was tensing, hand wrapping and unwrapping from his shoulder. She must hate this guy very much.
Harry looked back to Snape. "I would say pleasure but I was taught not to lie. You didn't make a very good first impression on me when the first thing out of your mouth is a name I, and evidently, you, know my aunt hates with a passion." His tone was cold as he glared at Snape. If this guy didn't respect his aunt's wishes then he would show no more respect than he had to.
Snape looked at Harry with an unreadable expression. "You boy, act too much like your father. Arrogance is not a virtue."
Harry felt his aunt tense in anger but he kept calm on the outside not showing any form of his own anger. He might not have known his parents but he still held them close to his heart and no one had the right to disrespect them. "It's not arrogance, it's a conclusion drawn from observation, yet you show your own arrogance by thinking you know me because you knew my parents."
"Sweetheart that's enough. We are here to eat lunch and spend time before you go. I will not have my limited time with you destroyed by the depressed man your mother and I were once friends with." Petunia cut in before Snape could say anything back to Harry. She turned to the man sitting beside Draco. Draco and this man looked so much alike they could only be father and son. "It is a pleasure to meet you Mr. Malfoy. I apologize for the bad first impression you must have gotten from both my nephew and myself."
Harry turned to observe Mr. Malfoy. He wore a cold, closed off mask. His hair was long and pulled back into a low, loose ponytail. He, like his wife was when they meet, wearing an expensive silk robe of the highest quality. He had a cane sitting beside him at the table. His eyes, the same color as Draco's, pierced Petunia but she held her ground. He then turned his eyes to Harry who had his own mask of indifference, meeting his stare with his own. Harry saw a twitch of his lip.
"Draco told me much about you both along with my wife. It is a pleasure and no apology need madam. I was unaware our boys shared a godfather or you two shared history. Please sit." Mr. Malfoy was being the perfect gentlemen. Harry could see it was all a ploy though as the man didn't trust them.
Draco switched with Snape so he could sit beside Harry. Petunia sat on Harry's other side. "Woah, she's got big."
Harry saw Draco looking at Amara and laughed, "She's only 5 weeks old. She's got a lot of growing to do."
Draco's eyes widened, "Only 5 weeks? What is she?"
All the adults were listening to them. The two men just realizing that the snake around Harry's neck was real. "Amara is a Twilight Viperesk."
Draco looked confused but before he could ask Snape asked his own question. "How, Mr. Potter, did you get your hands on one of the rarest snakes in the world both magical and muggle?"
Harry glared at Snape. Amara not liking how the dark man was treating her master reared up and bared her fangs at him. "Calm yourself, Amara. He is no threat to me, only an annoyance." Harry gave her a gentle rub down her head. He turned back to the people at the table and hid a smirk at how they stiffened at the Parseltongue. "To answer your question Snape, I found her in a Muggle pet shop. The shopkeeper was going to feed her to a king cobra and she asked if I would get her out of that horrid shop. She is so beautiful and intelligent I couldn't say no, even if I wanted to."
"Uh," Draco gained Harry's attention back, along with all the adults, "two questions. One, did my godfather just call you Potter? And two, what is a Twilight Viperesk?"
Harry sent another glare at the Potion Master, "My full name is Harrison James Evans Potter. I prefer to go by my mother's and aunt's maiden name though. I would appreciate it if I was called by it." He turned back to Draco with a small smile, "Don't feel bad about not knowing what a Twilight Viperesk is. I didn't know either. Amara had to tell me."
Mr. Malfoy cleared his throat; Tom was coming over to take orders. "Harry, Petunia glad to see you both." Tom was grinning, before noticing who else was at the table with them. "Lord Malfoy, Master Snape, young Malfoy," He gave them all a nod. "What can I get you all?"
Tom got all their orders. He turned to walk away and paused, "Before I forget again, Harry your mother left her research book last time she was here. I kept it thinking I would see her or you soon. She once told me it was going to be a family book when I asked her why she was always writing in it. " Tom's smile turned sad, "It's in the back. I can get it if you would like."
Harry could only give a nod. Tom mirrored the action before leaving. Harry turned back to Draco. Mr. Malfoy spoke before he could, "If I may Mr. Evans, I have only read of such a snake in books. They are said to be the product of a spell gone wrong on a newly hatched Basilisk. The books also said that they can only breed with their own and that is why they are so rare."
Amara laughed in Harry's ear. Harry grinned at her, giving a chuckle of his own. Everyone at the table watched in fascination at the two of them. Petunia was watching in fascination but also with amusement. She always saw their interactions funny. Harry turned to look at the men across from him. "I am sorry to say that the book you have read is wrong; on both accounts. Amara has told me that some knowledge is passed from generation to generation at birth so the two of her kind that are born every hundred or so years are born able to survive. Her kind came about by the joining of the last Twilight Viper and the first Basilisk. It also doesn't matter what kind of snake a Twilight Viperesk mates with, the hatchling will always be a Twilight Viperesk. Only a handful of them have let themselves be seen and even fewer have ever bonded with a magic user."
Tom came back with all of their orders interrupting the conversation. He also had a simple book. Harry took it and put it straight into his bag with a grateful smile to Tom. The rest of the meal passed with Draco and Harry discussing the pros and cons of the different subject the Ministry allows to be taught while the adults listened.
"They shouldn't be allowed to put restrictions on what potions can be taught in class," Draco complained.
Harry shook his head, swallowing his bite of kidney pie. "Yes because having someone slip me a dose of love potion at lunch is such a great pass time. Draco the reason so many potions are not taught is because of the teacher, if competent, knows what certain potions can do to growing children. They also know what potions can be brewed in manners children and young adults are able to. It is the teacher who decides this." He takes a drink of his butterbeer, "Now combat, on the other hand, is a subject I would like to see back in the curriculum. Spell work is all well and good but if one is in a situation where their wand has been taken, broken, or even forgotten they would need to be able to defend themselves. Hand to hand combat and weaponry are the best defense and offense."
Draco looked shocked, "That is uncivilized."
Harry snorted in amusement at his friend's statement. "Yes and so is being killed, tortured, or taken prisoner. Draco the world can be summed up in four words; Survival of the Fittest. I have also heard, only the strong survive and kill or be killed. All uncivilized, but completely true."
"Harrison darling, I'll pick you up some books on combat and different techniques for hand to hand. I'll even find you a couple about blades. Now please stop complaining about it." Petunia sighed. She had been hearing that same argument since he read that the ministry made it so combat couldn't be taught in Hogwarts.
Harry sighed also knowing he must have been driving his aunt crazy this past week. "I am sorry aunty. I will drop the subject for now."
Before long the lunch was all gone and it was time to go. Petunia gave Harry a long hug before he followed Draco through the fire. Harry landed unsteadily on his feet but he didn't fall on his face, so he was happy. He stepped away from the fireplace to look around the room. Draco didn't want to wait though. He grabbed Harry's wrist and pulled him out of the room. Harry was able to make a map back to the fireplace in his mind as Draco pulled him passed many doors and through many hallways. They found their way into a sitting room where Narcissa was sitting reading a book and drinking tea.
"Hello boys." Narcissa greeted them when she looked up.
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The book wasn't what you thought was it? (evil grin) It will all come together as the story goes on.
Hoped you all enjoyed. I enjoy reading reviews so please give me more.