Chapter Text
Shut away in the hollow of his bunk, Harry currently felt a cross between peace and pure restlessness. The peaceful feeling coming from the fact Harry was back in the recesses of Hogwarts, his home. The only home he’s ever really had, the only safe haven he’s ever had in his life. Or well, the safest haven he’s ever had in his life. Harry half-heartedly wanted to leave his bed and explore the halls of Hogwarts, in an attempt to point out differences between now and the future he came from. That was contradictory to the other part of him who wanted the silent, alone, entrapment of his bed never to end. Harry had climbed into his bed long ago, he had shut the curtain and casted a locking and a silencing charm (a one-sided charm, so the Slytherins couldn’t hear him, but he could hear them). Then, after those two spells were casted, he also put on an alarm spell out of pure paranoia. If those two spells were tampered with in the slightest, the alarm spell would go off. If Harry was currently in the Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw dorms, he’d very strongly state his current line of spellwork as overkill, but being in the heart of the Slytherin house sharing a dorm with Tom Fucking Riddle, he would call what he currently had as underkill. Who knew what Riddle and his “friends” were up to. Nothing good.
If his bunk, or his trunk, gets tampered with even once, he would be putting some purely offensive spells in place to ensure no one would dare try again. Harry was going all the way to protect his stuff, which will become even more imperative after he gets the Deathly Hallows, as they all are literally superweapons. The wand is unbeatable, the cloak hides you from everyone-and anything-, and the ring can summon the dead. It would be crippling if any one of these items got stolen by any of the other Slytherins-especially the ones he was sharing his room with. He didn’t want any of the mini-Death Eaters to have even one of the Deathly Hallows. Even if he could summon the Hallows back, a certain amount of damage has already been done with just the Hallows seen, even more so if used.
Huffing he rolled from back to his side and stared at the blank curtain that kept him and Riddle’s Gang separated, he could hear the voices of the Slytherin’s chattering on the other side. If he wasn’t currently in the snake pit, he’d jump into the conversation and see where it led. They were all currently talking about Quidditch, and particularly the Seeker who, in someone’s own words, “Was on his way to being shafted into oblivion, I which I will personal procreate his maximum suffering.” Sounded like a truly darling conversation, he wanted to pipe in and ask if the Seeker could still be swapped out, as Harry would still love to play Quidditch. Yeah, that’s definitely something he’ll do tomorrow, he’d going to borrow a broom and just relax. The wind against his face has been something he’s been craving for a long while but preparing for the Battle of Hogwarts and being pursued by Voldemort they're just wasn’t a time for him to relax and have fun.
That reminds him, Harry caught a glimpse of Voldemort’s diary today. That little black book was so tempting to get rid of, but if he remembered correctly it wasn’t even a Horcrux yet. That diary would become a Horcrux in June, when the serpent would reach Myrtle who was still alive right now, walking around these very halls, only she was being bullied furiously. That may be two things he could work with, befriend Myrtle and open the Chamber of Secrets himself. Maybe he should tell the basilisk to murder Dumbledore for him-nah, obviously not good enough. Harry wouldn’t say he’d want to do it himself, but the thought of watching that cursed twinkle fade from Dumbledore’s eyes made him almost giddy. Harry most likely wouldn’t act on that-but the thought did make him happy. What didn’t make him happy, was the fact Dumbledore still appeared untouchable to him. He wasn’t fully sure if Dumbledore was or wasn’t untouchable, he had no idea if his own perceptions were distorted by the future image or not, but something told him now wasn’t the best time to even try to make an attempt on his life. Harry was also very sure Dumbledore was just as twisted as the future and his death would bring good, he could feel it in his bones-but without proper justification for now, could he bring himself to kill the man? Or get someone else to do it for him? Yes, as even if Dumbledore wasn’t as bad now as he’d be in the future, the future still leered what the man would become.
Unlike Tom Riddle, he was going to make sure he wouldn't even try to give Dumbledore the slightest of chances. Harry wasn’t going to let the little hope of good in Dumbledore stop him. Dumbledore was a bad person, and he only caused harm. He would make sure Dumbledore wouldn’t hurt another person again. Hell, even Riddle was getting a second chance with him, that second chance being not being murdered right now. As Harry wasn't going to start being nice to or dare say friendly with Riddle, he's just currently at the end of his line today. Dumbledore was annoying and even unsettling at some points today, and he did throw a wrench in his good mood, but he simply didn't have enough of a fuse to deal with Riddle right now. One wrong misstep from Riddle and Harry may just decide to duel him tonight.
Mentioning the duel, he may have been a little stupid to agree to that or even talk about his dueling talent at that matter. If Harry wins, Riddle will feel threatened and probably humiliated. Riddle will most likely try to get a leg up over him somehow, and a desperate Riddle trying to exercise control never sounds like something Harry personally wants to deal with. If Harry loses, on the other hand, Riddle will think he's superior and can trample all over him. He might even try to "assert dominance" over him or something utterly ridiculous like that. Harry was never, in his life, going to become a Tom Riddle worshiper, that was the very last thing he wanted to do with his life. The idea to make his own Death Cult sounded better, where he was maybe good to people? Where he supports racial equality, of skin tone and magical species, woman rights, gay rights, and maybe a sprinkle of a no-muggle-mingle policy. Harry was going to be anti-muggle in the sense he wasn't going to support mingling among them or revealing their existence more than they have already.
Another thing Harry really was going to try to support-and maybe instate one day-is a no Magical orphans going to Muffle foster homes or orphanages. Harry himself would put himself up on the chopping block and would fund and run a Magical orphanage to house Magical orphans so they wouldn't ever end up with abusive Muggle parents. He never wanted to see a Magical child left in the Muggle world with a lack of, or an abusive, family. No one needs to go through what he did, and no one will if he can help it. Harry would ensure a policy like this to the best of his abilities, whether it be blackmail, pay-offs, theft, or imprisonment. Harry will make lives better for future generations. For his Mother and Father if they are born again, to Snape, Ron, and Hermione. Everyone will have a better world, no abused Magical children, and no orphans without a home. Ha, maybe Harry will seriously start a Death cult, if Riddle can do it with such shitty policies, so can he.
How would he do such a thing? Better than Riddle of course. Safer for the people and less corrupt. Every organization naturally grows corrupt, only given the fact Harry's literally immortal and he'll stomp out any foreseeable see of corruption he can find, he hopes he'll be more successful with others. Maybe Death can help him find traitors? That would also make things a lot better for everyone. Harry could day dream about a name sometime when there were actually members to decide, but something involving Marauder was definitely on the table. In honor of his Father and his Godfather, but maybe that was too close to his roots. Harry won't know until he has more people to decide, but it won't be something stupid like Death Eaters. That was really such a lame name, surely there could be a more creative name than that? If not, then everyone should really just go home, as that's pretty pathetic. Someone really dropped the ball with that one.
"What are you thinking about?" Kiwi piped up, breaking Harry from thought. Glancing over at her, Harry found Kiwi sprawled out on her basking spot, which seemed to be the second pillow on his bed.
"Oh, it's nothing," Harry shrugged causally, sitting up and stretching his arms up the best he could given the low roof of the bed, "Just thinking about forming a group."
"A group?" Kiwi implored, raising her head in a way that could be seen as curious, "Like what we snakes have?"
Harry blinked, "It depends, what type of groups do you have?"
"Well," Kiwi started, "Our groups are colonies, we work together, feed together, and breed together. I've lived in a few groups, and it was fantastic! We were all friend-or at least civil. I got many jokes from them, like this one, why was the rattlesnake made at the jewelry thief?"
"I'm not sure why?" Harry smiled.
"C'mon! Guess!" Kiwi chirped.
"Uhh, because he wanted silverback?" Harry awkwardly guessed, humoring Kiwi with a smile.
"Close! He wanted his diamondback!" Kiwi laughed at her own joke and Harry laughed along, "Groups are basically a community of snakes that work together in peace."
"It could be viewed as that," Harry nodded, "I want to make a group to create laws to protect children, promote equality, and for human rights in general," Harry summarized.
Kiwi nodded, "Yeah, you should make a group, if it helps your fellow kinfolk, why wouldn't you?"
"I agree," Harry hummed, looking at the curtain and wanting to draw them back, "I just don't know where to start..."
"Where you think is right," Kiwi hissed in reply, "That can be wherever you see fit."
"How do I figure out just where to start?" Harry questioned, sparing the green mamba a glance.
"Think about it," Kiwi hissed, before she peered at the curtains. A brief settling of silence followed before she spoke, "Can I go exploring?"
Harry thought for a second, "I guess, just don't be friendly with anyone else who can talk to you. Another Speaker is in the dorm, his name is Riddle and he isn't a good person. Annoy him if you want, but don't push his buttons too much. I don't want you getting hurt."
"I promise I won't get myself hurt," Kiwi bobbed her head.
"Okay, I also can't talk to you in front of them," Harry told her, she seemed confused for a moment but nodded, "Alright, you ready?"
"Yeah!" The confusion was gone in a second, replaced with excitement. Harry drew the curtains open, the movement caused eyes from all across the dorm to land on him attentively. When Kiwi slithered quickly to the edge of the bed, the eyes then landed on her.
Everyone was silent for a moment, before one of the boys who looked like a member of the black family spoke, "You have a snake Peverell?" He eyed Kiwi with unease as she lingered, with most of her body sitting on his leg, with only her head positioned upward and peering around the room curiously.
"Yep, her name's Kiwi. I think she wants to go out and about, she won't hurt any of you without being provoked so just leave her be," Harry drawled, watching as she looked over some of the boys, a hissy laugh escaping her at the nervousness on their expressions.
"What kind of snake is she?" Riddle asked with interest, from where he was said on his bed. His legs were crossed, and on his lap sat the familiar black diary and a quill was poised in his hand.
Harry tried not to grimace at the sight of it as he replied, "She's green mamba."
Reaching down, he brushed his fingers down her scales and she leaned into his touch. The people watched, and at Kiwi nicely accepting physical contact, people calmed slightly.
"Where did you purchase them at? To my knowledge, a Green Mamba is highly illegal to have," Riddle drawled, not seeming to mean anything malicious by the statement as he eyed Kiwi with fascination.
"Animal Underground," Harry responded, as Kiwi pulled away from his touch and started to lower herself quickly to the ground. Where she soon found she went too fast and gravity took control. Kiwi hit the ground with a slight thump and hissed loudly at the impact.
"Oh-Kiwi are you alright?" Harry quickly asked, being careful not to slip into a hiss as he lowered his arm down to where she only flicked her tongue at his hand and rubbed against it briefly.
"I'm okay," She hissed in reply.
"I would expect an arboreal snake to have more grace," Riddle mused with a chuckle, the sound very odd to hear.
"I don't like him," Kiwi uncontrollably announced, her head snapping towards Riddle to glare at him, "Can we get rid of him? He really reminds me of my parents and I don't like it!"
Riddle seemingly choked on air, as he stared at the snake, looking thoroughly off guard and bewildered at the comment made, his gaze flickered between Harry and Kiwi. A clear sign of wanting to reply but being unable due to the fact he hasn't done some grand reveal telling Harry he could talk to snakes. Harry didn't care much as he boredly watched Kiwi begin a slow slither around the room, he wished he had a pencil and some parchment. Doodling sounded fun right now, he wondered if he should ask someone for a pencil and paper. I could just summon or transfigure some myself, Harry thought, but naturally felt very wary at all the ways he could make a mistake and accidentally end up with a whale or something.
"So," The Black spoke up, sounding somewhat awkward, "My name is Orion Black, how has your day been today?"
"I've had an okay day," Harry shrugged, not sure where to take the small talk further than a, "How about you?"
"Uh, yeah, I've had an okayish day too. The Seeker practically ruined practice today, and it was just practice! It should even be possible," Orion exclaimed, shaking his head in disappointment.
"That bad?" Harry questioned, shaking his head as well.
"Even worse than 'that bad', it was so bad it shouldn't be coming from the Slytherin house. Not even the Hufflepuff Seeker is that bad," Orion mourned, looking very upset.
"Can you still replace the Seeker?" Harry questioned, and at Orion's nod he went on, "I could be the Seeker if you want."
"You hear that guys? We might be saved!" Orion cheered, a bright smile on his face as he jumped to his feet.
"Calm down," Malfoy snapped, looking at Orion with a short glare," We don't even know if he's any good, sit back down, Orion."
"He's a Peverell, of course, he'll be good," Another boy spoke up, this boy had frosty blond hair that Harry couldn't recognize the family of.
"He's probably not even be a Peverell! We literally haven't heard of a Peverell in a century or two," Malfoy huffed, his shifty silver eyes trailing over Harry, "My Father would have heard if there were members of the Peverell line alive, you know how much a crime line-theft is? You'll be in Azkaban for a long time. You're probably just another half-blood scum bandwagoning of good lineages-"
"I advise you to shut up," Harry interrupted, voice sharp and eyes narrowed crossly at Malfoy. Malfoy looked unbothered, he only leered and opened his mouth to continue his tangent, "Hey Malfoy," Harry needed to say something to shut up-he had an idea, "If you don't shut up, I will destroy your bloodline right here, right now."
"Yes! Jesus Christ," Laughed one of the others, they appeared to be another Black due to the mass of black curls that reminded him of Bellatrix, "Yeah, go get'em Peverell! Fucking chop his balls off, he doesn't need them anyway."
"Tiernan," Riddle scolded, "Don't talk so crudely."
"Bu-but Riddle! Aren't you going to tell him," Malfoy pointed over at Harry briefly, "That it isn't okay to quote in quote 'destroy my bloodline!" The Malfoy squawked, sounding much like an angry chicken.
"Abraxas do it yourself," Riddle sighed, shaking his head as he peered back down at his diary, "I shouldn't have to watch you like children."
"Peverell threatened me and my family-"
"You literally told him he couldn't be a Peverell," Tom drawled, turning a short glare up to Malfoy.
"He needs to prove he's a Peverell," Malfoy bickered defiantly, glaring over at Harry who simply stared him down.
"No I don't," Harry coldly stated, "Prove it yourself, and preferably without Daddy's help."
Malfoy spontaneously leaped to his feet, looking royally offended with a wand held in his hand, "Take that back! I don't need my father for anything!"
"So you don't use Daddy's money, just to clarify?" Sneered Harry in return, Malfoy's face continued to distort in anger and offense, and his hand shook slightly around his wand. Harry used the distraction to stealthy reach for his own wand, "I thought so, you do need your Daddy for everything, don't you? You'd be nothing without him."
"Everte Statum!" Immensely unimpressed, Harry was ready to block the spell with a simple Pretego. The Pretego itself deflected the spell, and whacked into Malfoy, sending the unexpecting rich prude flying into the wall behind his bed. No one moved or even breathed as Malfoy slid down said wall and down to the mattress of his bed where he groaned. Riddle had a darker more displeased expression on his face as he glared at the heap of Malfoy that was currently pathetically groaning while cupping the back of his head. Then, slow and quiet at first, Tiernan started to chuckle, and gradually that nickering turned into a laughing fit of peer hysteria.
"I fucking love you Peverell, marry me," Tiernan shouted between laughs as he sunk down to the floor, he held his mouth with his hands as if to muffle his own laugher as Malfoy attempted to shakily sit up. Malfoy wobbled and twitched, clearly having a very difficult time sitting upright, trying to focus his eyes on Harry, he slurred something at him he couldn't understand. Harry blinked at him.
Malfoy looked very perplexed and tried to repeat himself, after saying what he wanted over and over it finally came out right-somewhat-, "You bastard... you bastard, you gave me a concussion."
"That sounds more like a you problem than a me problem," Harry drawled, sounding pleased and sly at the same time.
"WOO! You go Peverell! Team Peverell for life!" Shouted Tiernan, flailing his arms over his head in celebration.
"My... my father will have you get expelled!" Malfoy slurred, sounding absolutely awful as he paused as if just processing his own words. His eyes widened as if coming to a sudden realization, "Nonono, no my father, I gotta do it myself...?"
"Technically, he did nothing wrong," Orion spoke up, a sly grin sneaking across his face, "I mean, it was obviously self-defense."
"Peverell provoked him, but Abraxas also provoked Peverell," a mousy boy quietly said, looking vaguely familiar to Theodore Nott, "Malfoy was the one to cast the first offensive spell.
"Man, I wish Rosier was here to see this shit!" The shrill voice of Tiernan laughed out, and from there loud laughter bubble from him again.
"Language, Lestrange," Riddle sighed at Tiernan-who Harry now knew the last name of-as he slowly capped his bottle of ink. With much leisure, he put his ink well on his bedside table with his quill, leaving the diary sprawled out over the bed. Riddle even stopped to calmly stretch as he stood up, in what seemed to be a content fashion, he strolled over to Malfoy's bunk. The silence following him as he went.
Stopping in front of Malfoy, the heir looked up at him with a semi-terrified gleam in his eyes. Riddle tsked and lowered himself patronizingly to eye level with Malfoy, taking his wand from his pocket as he slowly positioned the wand on Malfoy's forehead. Malfoy himself seemed to be preparing for a crucio, due to how tense the boy was. Riddle didn't torture him, no, instead, he quietly uttered a healing charm. Malfoy gasped when he found his head clear again, and only a slight twitchy aftershock from the spell. Riddle drew himself away from Malfoy and turned away, he walked over to Harry who still held his wand just in case. Riddle walked placidly over to Harry and stood next to him, right next to where he sat anyway. He then spoke, "May this be a lesson to all of you, do not hector Hadrian Peverell," Riddle's voice was a deathly sort of whisper, "Malfoy, that was exceedingly stupid. Please don't do that again, you need to learn how to not snap a reaction or that will be the end of you. I would like to talk with all of you later."
Everyone was silent, as Riddle glanced down to Harry for a single moment, they made a short bout of eye contact and something about it make Harry's breathing still. Riddle broke it within seconds and strutted back to his bed without pause. He threw himself back down onto his bed where he huffed, "Next time someone wants to start something, do the fighting in the common room, please."
"Just tell me first! That was awesome," Lestrange woo'ed before turning his dark crazy eyes onto Harry with a wide grin, "I like you, you have my seal of approval Mate!" That was when Lestrange stumbled to the door and darted out of the room. When the door clicked shut behind him, Harry felt vaguely unsettled to get a seal of approval from Lestrange, but his train of thought was soon interrupted. That interruption being loud uncontrollable laughter and banging on a door in the hall.
"Antonin~!" Lestrange shouted with another loud bang, "Antonin! I got something to share with you!"
Silence was all that greeted his words.
"Oh~! Don't ignore me, you know I won't just go away," Lestrange yelled at the top of his lungs. Still silence. Lestrange then went on to shriek his next words, "Dolohov c'mon! I have to share with someone!"
"Go away you crazy bitch! I don't want to deal with you!" Shouted a voice in return. Harry's lips quirked slightly into a smile for a moment.
"I'll just wait, you know I'll sit here forever!" Lestrange laughed, and that was the last thing said before Harry vaguely heard a door click open. Then there was a silence from the hall that reminded him of the one lingering in his dorm room.
"Well," Malfoy piped up, "I accept you're a Peverell, just..." Malfoy had the decency to hesitate, "Where are your parents?"
"Dead," Was Harry's brisk response, the room got both tense and somber as Malfoy's eyes widened slightly, "I've been an orphan for as long as I remember."
"Is that why no one has heard from your family for so long?" Malfoy quietly asked.
"I'd think," Harry chuckled, "It's hard to talk to someone if they're dead."
"Who raised you?" Malfoy prodded further and as soon as the question was asked everyone in the room felt a physical difference in the air. You shouldn't have done that. Harry froze at the question and it was obvious, his face twitched into an expression of pure unadulterated hatred that everyone could clearly see. A fracture of a second later, the expression was gone. A distant memory.
"No one important," Harry ground out, his voice strained and very opaque, "Just some insignificant nobodies."
"Do you belong to an Orphanage?" Riddle spoke up, his tone an odd mix that Harry couldn't decipher.
"Ha!" Harry harshly laughed, shaking his head, "If only, but anything would have been better."
"It wouldn't of," Riddle refuted without a second thought, "I'm sure wherever you grew up would be considerably better."
Harry was silent, recollecting many memories of abuse flickering hazily in his mind. Starved, beat, emotionally abused to where he thought his name was freak or boy-they nearly killed him. They abused him to the point he thought he was nothing more than an animal. A worthless, fucking animal. High with hatred and everyone could tell, Harry stood to his feet and walked to the door.
"Remember to be back in two and a half hours or you'll be out past the curfew," Riddle called to him, Harry ignored him as he gripped the doorknob and twisted it open.
"Wait! Don't leave me alone with these nut cases," Kiwi shrieked in a shrill hiss, speeding towards him at lightning speed. Harry forced himself not to bolt, he lowered himself down and offered an arm. Kiwi quickly zipped up his sleeve and was around his shoulders in what seemed to be an instant. Harry left the room, pushing the door shut firmly. With a quick pace of steps, he was quick to exit the dorm hallway and down into the common room. People watched him, but he ignored them vehemently. Harry walked to the wall covering the entrance to the Slytherin common room, it slid open and Harry took no time darting into the Slytherin dungeons. As much as he was familiar with most of Hogwarts, the dungeons was never a place for a Gryffindor to linger and explore, even a fake one like himself.
Harry was a ball of raw emotion as he swerved through the halls, trying to stay off the regular beaten path Slytherin's took. Harry stumbled around the halls for about twenty minutes before he found the first floor, in a haze, and around other houses, he kept his eyes on the ground and tried not to capture attention as he pattered up the steps to the second floor. His feet took him somewhere he didn't want to go, he stood out in front of the second-story girl's bathroom. The hall was barren, and the bathroom was eerily silent. Free from Moaning Myrtle's misery. Harry didn't waste time as he plunged into the bathroom, he went to the sink, he hissed, "Open."
The sink slid open soundlessly and Harry stared at the dark hole and slide-like structure beneath, "Stairs," The slide twisted and morphed into what he wanted, only with a slight echo of a sound. Stepping down the darkness by a few paces, cold air licked at his face as he said the last word, "Close."
Harry was then lost in darkness, he couldn't see a thing and the cold tickled at his skin, he drew his wand and spoke again, "Lumos."
A bright light shone from his wand as he started to walk down the stairs, he knew not to run down the stairs, but that didn't stop him from rushing with long strides. When he stumbled upon the dark landing his mind fell on memories of his second year at Hogwarts with Ron. Memories were barbed, stabbing at his mind, and he was half tempted to scream, shout, or break something. Instead, he looked at the corners of the landing, he found one that was free of bones and seemed dry. He walked over to that corner and sat down blankly. Harry held his legs close and hugged them tightly to his chest, he flicked his wand soundlessly and everything went dark, he rested his forehead on his knees as he closed his eyes.
The cold and sad feeling of hopelessness and misery reminded him of the closet under the stairs, his home for the first eleven years of his life. Harry shivered and curled loser to himself, refusing to face reality at this moment, as reality seemed too big, too harsh to handle. Why would Dumbledore leave him with them? If Harry was raised anywhere else his life wouldn't be haunted with as much misery, but no, he had to be moldable. Someone to be sculpted to be perfect. The hero worship fully intact, he must see magic as a luxurious thing, not a birthright, he had to be willing to throw his life away for the greater good. Harry felt his eyes sting, in the dark void, he wondered what Hermione and Ron would really think about him. The real him, not what Dumbledore made him be, and it hurt to think that if he was placed in Slytherin originally, then they would have never looked upon him in a friendly way. At least Ron wouldn't, maybe Hermione would if Harry still saved her from the troll.
Harry felt miserable and so horribly conflicted and lonely. He felt damaged, far too damaged to be truly saved or repaired. Harry had no one to talk to like he usually did, no Hermione to spill everything to and cry it out. No Ron to cheer him up afterward. Only the cold twisted apparition that was himself, sitting in the dark shoveling up at the coldest recesses of his mind. Harry was half-tempted to call out for Death, shout out for him so he'd have someone he could trust and talk to. Have someone to vent and also talk to, only Death sure in hell wouldn't let him cry on his shoulder, and probably would ignore if he cried out. Harry was only a burden, a burden to everyone-
"You really can't be left alone for more than five minutes can you?" The voice of Death sighed, Harry heard shuffling around him and looked around. Finding nothing but the void he created by reversing the Lumos, his lips twitched and he buried his head in his knees. Death huffed loudly, making Harry flinch, with a few echoy steps that spiked Harry's paranoia, Death was sliding down the hall and settled next to Harry, who had a heat he didn't expect coming off of Death, "You were doing perfectly Harry, you did nothing wrong in that whole human social interaction thing. I understand why you fell apart at the mention of your family, and I will soothe your mind on this, yes you would have done better in an orphanage. I'll explain why as well, you know the compulsions?" Harry nodded wordlessly.
Death went on, "Having a compulsion up like that, blocking out the natural response a person should have makes it so they also can't cope in the moments after they break. Once the compulsions broke, people have to deal with everything and cope. And I understand completely, it's hard to cope in regular circumstances, but this... it is understandable you are having troubles."
"How long will it take to cope?" Harry asked, his voice sounding hoarse.
"Oh, Harry," Death rattled sadly, "Maybe forever, there is no time you can pin to it. Just one day, you look back and realize you have. Just remember, they are only memories, they can't hurt you unless you let them deeper into your head. They will never touch you again, you're safe now."
"What about Ron and Hermione? What about them?" Harry's voice sounded hopeless.
"I don't think it would be healthy for you to keep fixating on them," Death bluntly stated, making Harry flinch into himself, "Ron and Hermione are vastly two different people than you'd think if I brought them back they would care for you, of course, but for how long?"
The question hung in the air temporarily, "Until you do one non-light alining thing and they call you a fraud and a monster?"
Harry felt his eyes sting and apart of his world shattered.
"Harry listen to me, keep breathing. This isn't an attack on you, or them, not at all, but they would simply hold you back. I know it seemed harsh now, but I assure you if I did bring them back, you would be in a world of hurt later. I just don't want that for you, besides you have Hedwig and Kiwi, you aren't as alone as you feel," Death concluded gravely.
"When can I make human friends? Or will I only have them forever?" Harry asked, and Death sighed again.
"Can't you see? You've started potential friendships tonight," Death replied, voice mellow, "You just have to let them be your friends, and remember they are not their future selves. They can change."
"But they're Slytherins," Harry mumbled, shaking his head.
"And so are you," Death flatly said, "Nothing is just black and white, you want to know what they're thinking right now? Black is worried, Lestrange just found out and his looking for you, Malfoy fears he scared you off, and Riddle is slightly concerned," Death listed off to Harry, "So you may not think so, but these people could really be real friends to you, not superficial with them groomed to be placed on that pedestal. Just think about it, what were the chances of Ron making friends with you on that train and just by chance his parents being part of Dumbledore's organization? You may have had real friendships, but at first, they were not created by you."
"I don't want to talk about this anymore," Harry said, grabbing his wand and using the corner to stand up, "Thank you for the talk or whatever this was."
"I didn't mean anything malicious from what I said, just think about it. You really think Dumbledore was above manipulating everything down to your friendships?" With that final question, Harry waved his wand and firmly said the light charm. With the light of the Lumos in the room, Death was nowhere to be seen. Looking towards the entry to the real entry of the Chamber of Secrets, he shook his head. For now, he had other things to worry about, like going to bed, he felt exhausted.
Feeling both physically and emotionally drained, he tried not to think about what Death said, as it was most likely true. Death had no real reasons to lie about them, but it hurt him to even think it was true. Harry knew Dumbledore wasn't above any sort of manipulation, just he never wanted to think how that would reflect on his friendships. Walking up the stairs, he frowned as he wondered just how far Dumbledore's wires of manipulation went. Just how they, to his knowledge long too far, but there has to be more and the thought haunted him. Reaching the top, he quietly listened, he heard nothing so he whispered, "Open."
The Chamber silently opened once more, and he stepped back into the girl's bathroom. Turning around he whispered, "Close," It did as told, and Harry watched as it did so. With that, he rushed out of the bathroom and found the empty hall once more. Harry soon strolled down the hall and down the stairs to the first floor.
After about a half an hour he was back in the heart of the dungeons he knew he was close to the common room, but he couldn't quite find it. Rounding another corner, he found a hall with Lestrange at the end of it. Given that Lestrange was walking his way, he couldn't escape Lestrange's gaze even if he wanted to.
"Peverell~!" Lestrange squealed, as he ran full speed down the hall at Harry. Lightly, Harry wondered if he should move out of the way just in case Lestrange decided not to stop. He didn't need to as Lestrange stopped about a foot or so in front of him, "I was so worried when I heard what happened! Tom can be a dick, and I'm sure your homelife was probably as worse as you say. Tommy thinks no one can have it worse than him, so he always immediately assumes they're just being dramatic. It's almost like a dick measuring contest, only with shitty homelives. Tom thinks he has the biggest dick, but I'm sure someone has a bigger dick than him. I wouldn't doubt that you would have the bigger dick, Peverell~."
Harry stared blankly not knowing how to reply, he seeming didn't need to reply as Lestrange threw his head back and laughed hysterically, his frizzy black hair floating around him like a halo. After a few seconds, he calmed down, the whole time he laughed Harry stood awkwardly not knowing exactly how to react or respond. Lestrange looked playfully over at him, a large grin across his face as he looked Harry over.
"I always thought Tom was hot, but not anymore! I got a new man!" Lestrange chirped, making Harry blush. He was being compared to Riddle with how attractive he was? He definitely wasn't as attractive as Riddle- "Or if not a man, at least another friendly friend, you do seem like the friendly type Mate. I'm sure my father you love you over, uhh, if he didn't think it was a date if you know what I mean."
"Homophobic?" Harry said questioningly.
"You know it, you're either gay or homophobic around these parts. Everyone is really, but as long as I just talk and don't start sucking dick I won't get kicked out of the family," Lestrange giggled, "If only he knew how much dick I suck on my free time!"
Oh boy, "Sucks, should he allowed to do what'cha want," Harry hummed, watching as Lestrange's mood dimmed slightly.
"Yeah," Lestrange agreed quietly, looking at the ground in what could be shame, "I wish, the world just doesn't seem to work that way, not a lot of people are open to it. Even less are actually out as gay or bi. I bet you're as straight as a ruler and I'm scaring you off."
"Nah," Harry answered, making Lestrange look up at him in slight confusion.
"Are you gay?" Lestrange asked, seemingly starting to vibrate in excitement.
"Maybe, I might be bi," Harry shrugged, watching as Lestrange smiled broadly and make a 'squeeing' sound.
"I can be your gay best friend, my fellow half-gay! I'm overjoyed! All the other dudes are straight-or that's just what they say, Malfoy's suspicious- or just wanna have fun... oh, I bet you aren't the down to fuck type," Lestrange deflated slightly but held most of his excitement, "Still, wow, even then we will be friends! Yes, we're definitely friends. You can call me Tiernan, I know I usually move way too fast with these things so I won't be hurt if you still want me to call you Peverell."
"Alright, Tiernan," What an odd name, should sue the parents for damages, "You can call me Hadrian."
"Hadrian, Hadrian, Hadrian~! Feels wonderful on the tongue," Tiernan smiled, "Wow, this is like the fastest friendship I've ever made successfully! This is so cool, I bet you're my only friend really. The other's only really like me because of my influence. Oops, probably shouldn't have said that aloud. I did say that aloud didn't I?"
"You did," Harry nodded.
"Welp, ahah, it's been said and I can't take it back. It's the truth anyway. I've never been the best at lying, Tom says that I should at least try but nah, I like people's faces when I tell them what I really think," Tiernan said, smiling dimming slightly, "I don't know, I probably shouldn't be talking about this in the open. Welp, friend, let's go back to the common room, you look dead on your feet."
"I need to go to bed," Harry nodded, yawning trying to keep it short and quiet.
Tiernan yawned after and then started talking again, "You wanna hold hands?"
Harry opened his mouth to reply but Tiernan spoke first.
"Not in a gay way, just in the friend way, I swear!" Tiernan smiled intensely and Harry didn't have the heart to say no even if he wanted to
"You can, I just don't want the other's to know I swing that way," Harry doubted Tiernan can keep a secret, just be this conversation that was clear. He shouldn't even be friends with Lestrange! He's a Lestrange after all. The only reason he's giving him a chance is because of what Death said.
"Alright, I promise to keep that a secret," Tiernan said in the most serious tone Harry had heard from him, "I have a hard time with this stuff, but I will try. And when I try, I never fail."
Harry offered his hand and Tiernan quickly took it with a blinding grin, "You wanna go back to the common room, now?"
"Am I gay?" Tiernan asked, sounding coy.
"Yeah?" Harry replied after a second.
"Hell, yeah! My pillow awaits me!" Tiernan cheered loudly, making Harry crack a small smile. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.