Parselmight Chapter 9

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Harry swore violently, sprinting across the room and dodging curses from every which way as desks, chairs, and splinters filled the air. He dove, skidding harshly as a nasty tan curse missed him by a mere hair, and found himself behind an overturned desk with others.

“Hi Harry!” Hestia Carrow smiled brightly from her spot, kneeling on the floor behind the same table she was using as cover. Flora knelt next to her, and was enchanting the table to be spell-resistant.

“Hey.” Harry nodded back with a slight smile, finding it strange how much the twins seemed to enjoy this. “Have you err… done this before?”

“Oh, this happens all the time in Slytherin.” Hestia answered easily, causing Flora to give her a slight glare. “And at home, too, when aunt and uncle get in fights.”

“I, erm, see.” He replied lamely, looking across the room to a bunch of second years who were being chased by conjured pixies.

“You’re not just going to stand there, are you, Potter?” Flora asked suddenly. “Draco and his goons aren’t going to go away by themselves.”

“Right.” Harry nodded, readying his wand. “Whenever you’re ready.”

They suddenly looked over the table, wands at the ready, and began casting.

Draco and his gang seemed to have prepared for the fight ahead of time, with their group organized to fight. Half of them seemed to be shielding, while the other half stood behind them, casting away at anyone unlucky enough to poke their heads up.

Harry immediately began casting, going through one of his less powerful but fast spell chains. A shield breaker, bombardment curse, blasting hex, followed by an explosion curse hit the middle of their formation, blowing through one of the shields that was up.

He made to launch even more spells, only for a massive amount of spellfire to take off from his side. Hestia and Flora each went through spell-chains faster than he could could reasonably count, casting through the opening he had caused and hitting six of Draco’s goons.

They soon dove back behind the table, taking cover as Draco’s group retaliated. Harry wasn’t dumb enough to think the twins were using simple stunners, and they had probably hit those six with nasty curses.

“You two cast faster than anyone I’ve seen.” Harry remarked without thinking when they had a lull in the fighting.

“Thanks Harry! And you did a good job bringing their shield down. We should bring you to every fight we get in!” Hestia smiled, pushing a hair behind her ear which he followed with his eye. He couldn’t help but appreciate how attractive the two sisters were, each-

‘Get your mind out the gutter Harry!’ He shook his head, knowing those thoughts weren’t important now.

“Stop flirting, sister.” Flora chastised, taking a quick peek over the enchanted table which was being blasted by Draco’s group on the other side. “We need to take down some more of them, otherwise we’re buggered!”

“Alright, fine.” Hestia sighed. “Harry, can you help us take down their shield? And then shield for us, please.”

“How can I say no?” Harry asked rhetorically, causing the twins to smile. “Ready when you are.”

He moved up, launching several spells that were much more powerful than the last ones he used. He was still holding back, but that didn’t mean he had mercy for these bullies. They had attack them without warning, caring not if they were first years or allies of his, instead opting to cause as much harm as possible. In his mind they were better off dead, or more reasonably, injured.

His wand moved fast, launching spells that lit up the room across towards the shields, and watched at they brutally impacted them. He did so for a little longer, getting as many shields down as he could, or at least weakening them. After he was done with that he switched to shielding for Hestia and Flora.

The twins were already casting, doing so at a rate that made his brows raise. Harry might have been able to utilize powerful spells in his casting, but Flora and Hestia could cast at a speed he had never seen before.

There were two main pathways when it came to magical combat, relying one’s superior magical reserves for more intense and powerful spells, or relying on less intense spells that can be cast quickly. That said, those like him relied on tougher but stronger spells which were harder to cast, while others like the Carrows could cast weaker spells but at a much higher rate.

It was a choice that most wizards and witches that delved into magical combat had to make, and was something that Daphne had lectured him on for hours. Salazar’s library was little different, with an odd twist as Slytherin’s time seemed to have a much greater emphasis on magical items and weapons in combat compared to today. It was one of the reasons he had made his sword, knowing that no one would expect him to bring a sword to a wand fight.

“That’s the last of them.” Flora stated once she finished casting, as the last of Draco’s gang fell.

The fight had devolved into absolute anarchy from the beginning, with first years running around, older years casting whatever spells they wanted, and many students just plain trying to escape. Many of the walls to the abandoned rooms around their own had been blown out in the fight, with the hallways around them turned into corridors strewn with debris and spellfire from the fight.

He and Daphne had been separated in the madness, and he knew instinctively that she could handle herself. The same could not be said for the younger years, and he worried about them getting injured.

“Did you see which way Malfoy went?” Harry asked the twins suddenly, as several other younger Ravenclaws took the opportunity to flee the room and escape down a nearby stairwell.

“He was with Montague and Flint last I saw them.” Flora answered, pointing one way. “Headed towards the Grand staircase.”

“Thanks.” Harry nodded. “I appreciate the help.”

“Anytime, Potter.” Flora smiled, while Hestia beamed from behind her. The twins then turned and headed down a nearby stairwell.

He couldn’t help but fondly smile at the twins behavior before turning and heading the opposite direction. He could hear spellfire as he got closer, and turned a corner to find himself in the middle of a all out brawl.

Columns overturned, walls and statues torn down, and paintings laying in ruins on the cracked stone floor. It was as if a hurricane had swept through the fourth floor, and yet the fighting still continued, older students fighting against one another violently as Malfoy’s group did its best to cause as much havoc as possible.

He spotted Daphne on the other side of the room, her black dress still somehow unmarked, and appearence including hair still immaculate, despite the fighting she had done. Clearly she had placed many preservation charms on herself beforehand.

She wasn’t alone, as a group of older students that wanted to fight seemed to have rallied around Eileen Selwyn, who was fighting Montague in a duel.

“What a mess.” Harry muttered under his breath, bearing his wand and getting ready to join.

Suddenly his instincts kicked in, and he flung himself to the side and down to the floor, feeling a cut form on his cheek. He touched it with his hand, feeling blood, then felt it dissapear and heal through his regeneration.

‘Thank Merlin I did that regeneration ritual last year.’ Harry mentally sighed in relief, turning to the side to face his attacker.

One of the many medieval stone knight statues in the castle had been animated, and had clearly tried to behead him with its sword. An older Slytherin stood behind the knight, looking on with boredom at him with his wand in hand.

“I’m afraid I don’t know your name.” Harry spoke, standing up and wiping him bloody hand on his robes.

“It’s Rookwood.” The older Slytherin spoke. “You should get out of here while you still have the chance, Potter. Otherwise I’ll be sure to obliviate you.”

“Yeah, that’s not happening.” Harry replied, raising his wand. “Confringo.”

The spell blasted against the knight, staggering it, before it charged forwards towards him. Harry growled under his breath, wishing he had his sword, and took to dodging the knight’s blows as he hammered it down with spells.

He noticed Rookwood didn’t attack, instead keeping an intense look of focus on his face as he stared at him and the knight. It dawned on Harry that Rookwood was no doubt using his concentration to control the knight, not allowing him to cast any spells and leaving him practically defenseless.

That also implied the stone knight had been heavily bespelled and enchanted, meaning that Rookwood would need more concentration than he otherwise would to control it. It meant that if Harry wanted this over quickly, it would be faster to take care of Rookwood.

He managed to maneuver around the knight and get a few feet away, giving him some breathing room. His wand pointed at Rookwood, “Serpensortia. Serpensortia.”

Rookwood’s eyes widened, sidestepping the first conjured snake launched from his wand before the second who caught him. It clung around his neck, grasping his windpipe.

Rookwood’s knight swung at him, and Harry didn’t bother moving as it’s sword came to a stop before it touched him. The older Slytherin’s concentration was broken, and as such the animated knight could no longer function.

“Depulso.” He whispered, the spell hitting into Rookwood and slamming him off his feet and violently into a nearby wall.

“Shit! You fucking bitch!” A nasty voice yelled out in pain from across the room, and Harry looked over.

Montague held a bleeding hand, standing across from Selwyn who had a smug smile on her lips. She opened her mouth to speak, but a dark curse suddenly slammed into her shoulder, splitting it open bloodily and violently.

Harry traced it back to Flint, the troll-face looking Slytherin who had a cruel smirk on his lips. “Bet you didn’t see that coming, traitor.”

“Gah!” Selwyn cried out in pain, her wand falling out of her limp arm as she struggled. “I-”

“Hah! Confringo! Reducto!” Montague took advantage of her weak state, launching two verbal curses at her before anyone could react.

The spells collided with Eileen Selwyn and exploded, her bones all over her body being ripped apart and disintegrated as her skin burned. She fell to the ground looking bloody and burned, as the group following her yelled out in rage. Montague laughed like a lunatic, the sound burning into Harry’s ears.

He had met people at Montague and Flint before, those who prayed on the weak and defenseless for their own pleasure. His cousin, and by extension the Dursleys were like that, along with their group of friends and bullies who used to make his childhood hell. He remembered back to those times at Privet Drive, when he used to get chased by Dudley’s gang, when he was beaten for burning the food, and when he wasn’t allowed to have friends in school. But above all he remembered who it was that Montague and Flint served, being Voldemort, the man who had murdered his family and destroyed so much of his life.

His vision blurred, a red haze of fury enveloping it as his wand moved without his consent. “Diffindo!”

The parseltongue-power curse sailed across the hall towards Montague. The older-year saw it coming, diving to the side early on, but it was too late. The normal version of the dark cutting curse sent three cutting blades at their target, while Harry’s sent five. It was one of his most powerful spells at the moment, one he had learned last year and modified it accordingly since he found Slytherin’s chamber to suit his needs.

Not only did the parseltongue-powered curse produce more blades, but he had modified it to track where his magic wanted it to travel. Meaning, he had been subtlety learning how to make spells curve through the air, something almost unheard of in this day and age.

Montague’s eyes widened in horror, and in desperation he tried to cast a counter to it with his wand. But it was too late, as two of the five blades found their target. A large portion of his abdomen was cut by one of the blades, part of his intestines becoming visible. The other blade cut a small chunk out of his thigh, cutting through the muscle and maybe even the bone itself.

Harry turned to face Flint, who was busy trying to protect himself from the rest of the group. It seemed the other students wanted revenge as much as he did, and he didn’t have to worry about fighting Flint as well.

He turned then to face the rest of the Slytherins, who all just happened to have fled by now or were standing behind Malfoy. Draco faced him with horror in his eyes, an expression on his face that would of made the old Harry reconsider what he was about to do to him. But Harry didn’t care anymore.

“You’re going to regret coming here Draco.” Harry hissed out, his speech having hints of parseltongue in it because of his anger.

Draco moved his wand, a sudden lick of courage lining his features as he went to attack him. Harry didn’t give him the opportunity. Pushing his magic into the air behind Malfoy and slamming violently into the ground.

Harry’s eyes widened again, his instincts screaming at him to move. He threw himself back, a dark black cutting curse barely missing him, so close that it cut off a few of his hairs. He heard people yelling his name as he fell to the ground, along with the impact of the cutting curse against the wall.

‘That wasn’t a normal cutting curse.’ He realized as he looked at where the curse had made a massive gash in the wall. ‘It was obviously dark.’

Snape headed their way, a nasty sneer on his face with his wand gripped tightly. The students around Harry formed up defensively, staring at the angry Potions Professor.

Snape, for his part, grabbed Malfoy and pulled him off the ground, a furious look on this face as he glared at Harry. “Potter! What have you done?!”

He felt his features slacken in pure disbelief, and could tell he wasn’t the only one. Everyone around him seemed as surprised as him, staring at the obviously unhinged Potions Professor.

“Snape! What’s going on here?!” A voice barked from down the hall.

Harry felt himself sigh with relief, as Professor Moody marched towards them. He wasn’t alone, as McGonagall and Sprout followed, along with Hermoine. The girl had clearly gone and gotten a Professor as soon as she could. As much as he was upset with her, Harry still couldn’t help but feel grateful.

McGonagall looked around at the destruction and wounded students with horror. “Merlin, what on earth happened here?”

-

“Thirteen students hospitalized, three of them in critical condition! An abandoned classroom on the fourth floor destroyed! And that’s not mentioning the worst of it.” His Headmistress ranted with her harsh brittle Scottish tongue, glaring at the Potions Professor. “The first Professor on the scene chose to join in on the violence rather than put an end to it!”

Severus sneered, a growl escaping his lips as his face contorted in rage. “They attacked my godson! Along with several members of my House!”

“Are you delusional, Snape?” Sprout asked, her anger clear. “Or do I need to remind you that it was your students who attacked Mr. Potter and Ms. Greengrass’s party?”

Severus’ face only became more red at that reminder. The insinuation, or rather truth, that he could no longer control his own House cut deep. There was a strange need within every Head of House, in Dumbledore’s opinion, that they needed to control their respective House’s member. The implication that Severus could not do this, was clearly a grave insult.

The other members of the faculty in his office continued arguing back and forth, all of which adding to Dumbledore’s mounting headache. This disaster was one in a list of things that were weighing him down at the moment, and he was sure the next few weeks of his schedule would be dominated by this mess. But even that fact didn’t compare to his biggest problem.

A single fact that had dominated his mind for months at this point. The reason that the Triwizard Tournament had yet to be officially announced or even organized. And it was why he had been blindsided by the attack at the World Cup.

Harry Potter. The boy was growing outside of his control.

Albus should have seen the signs last year, when dealing with the whole mess related to Sirius. He had to admit, the entire affair had been terribly mismanaged, and now he was paying the price down the line. Harry had left Britain, no doubt a result of Sirius Black whisking him away(even if he continued to lie about it). And now Harry was in even more perilous waters as a result of his Godfather’s influence.

And that was not even mentioning the Greengrass family, and whatever deal Black had struck with them to ensure Harry’s safety. Harry Potter would be safe, but insulated, by allying with them. And even more importantly, the boy would be nearly unreachable behind the infamous wards of Greengrass manor should he choose to be.

Dumbledore felt he was presented with a choice now, being whether he should continue to keep Snape on as a Professor, meaning Albus would continue to maintain his spy among Voldemort’s inner circle. It would upset the students and faculty, but he could get around this as he always had. But doing this would no doubt sour his relationship with Harry more so than it already was, no doubt damaging it to the point it could possibly end.

But it still could be mended, and he could still influence Harry’s future. Albeit with a slight of hand and through underhanded tactics more so than before. It would make things significantly harder, yes, but he would be able to manage.

He shifted in his seat, coughing slightly to get the room’s attention. “It is with great weight that I must tell you all that I cannot fire Severus.” He raised a hand, forestalling the interruptions. “I find his statement about the care for the wellbeing for his Godson to be true, and as such I do believe that his emotions were disturbed in such a situation that he was placed in. I do believe the two of you also care for students in your House? Similarly to how Severus does now?”

The Head of Gryffindor House bristled. “That is completely different and you know it! This man has violently attacked students on Hogwarts grounds! He deserves punishment and to be reprimanded!”

“I assure you Severus will be sufficiently punished for his actions.” He assured her. “There are rules on the books for Professors who attack students, and I will act accordingly. If that is all, I believe there are students in your care who need to be looked after?”

The door to the office opened wandlessly as he finished, leaving McGonagall looking flustered and unsure. She wanted retribution for Severus’ actions, yes, but her students always came first.

“I, well, now that you mention it… I might as well take a trip to the infirmary to make sure everyone is alright.” His Headmistress left, followed by Sprout.

The door slammed violently behind them, making Severus flinch.

“Tell me, you know occulmency, do you not, Severus?”

His Potion’s Professor turned red. “If there is nothing else, I see it prudent to leave.”

“Do you really believe that things can go back to how they were, Severus?” Dumbledore asked, a certain hint of steel in his voice that made the Potions master pause on his way out.

“What do you mean?” He drawled.

“We will be lucky if this disaster isn’t mentioned in tomorrow’s paper.” Dumbledore continued on. “Especially if your violent attack isn’t mentioned in it as well. Parents are going to be outraged over your actions and demand retribution, and the Board will no doubt remove me if I have not taken sufficient action by then.”

“You cannot remove me from this castle!” Severus spat, stomping towards Dumbledore’s desk. “You simply cannot!”

“You attacked students, Severus.” Dumbledore chastised. “Your own actions have consequences, something you seem incapable of understanding. And because of this you have forced my hand. I am forcing you to take a leave of absence. You will return at some point to your post, but only once your mind is sane again.”

Severus stilled, glaring at the Headmaster as he clearly tried to contain his fury. Dumbledore almost thought he would attack in that moment, but Severus finally managed to calm himself with Occulmency.

“Fine.” Severus spat the word like venom, putting as much anger into it as possible.

-

The dungeons of Slytherin were as quiet as the Malfoy catacombs in her opinion. It was a good representation of the events that had taken that day, in that no one really seemed to win, and everybody seemed to lose. That was something she was going to remedy, and make it so that today was her victory.

She just had one small issue to deal with first.

The door opened to reveal a nearly-empty dormitory, the only resident resting on one of the beds. Rookwood looked up from his bedridden position, looking across the room to where she stood at the entrance.

“K-Kassandra.” He said with a cough.

She made her way across the room and sat at the end of his bed. “You look like shit.”

He coughed. “Believe it or not I’m better than the others. They didn’t have enough beds in the Hospital Wing to hold everyone, so they let people like me go.”

“How bad is it?” She asked, not really caring for his answer.

“A few broken ribs and a bad headache. Nothing that potions can’t heal in a week.” He looked at her. “Why are you here?”

“Why do you think I’m here?” She said in an enticing way, arching her back and allowing him to rake his eyes over her form.

“I never really took you as the type to pity others.” He snorted. “Maybe give me a show and I’ll feel better. We are to be wed after all.”

Kassandra Malfoy rolled her eyes at how crass he was. She would indulge his request, knowing it was the best way to get his guard down.

She removed her tie, and then slowly unbuttoned her dress shirt. A blue lace acromantula silk bra was visible underneath, containing her heavy breasts in a big cleavage. Kassandra knew she got most of her body from her mother, with only her eyes and a bit of her hair from the Malfoy side.

Rookwood groaned, his eyes going to his trousers where he was no doubt getting an erection.

“It’s okay, you can take it out.” Kassandra comforted.

He stared at her, before almost mechanically removing the sheets and then his trousers. His pitiful length plopped free, already erect and hard, and his hand grabbed it.

She watched with a frown, almost indifferent. “It’s quite small.”

Rookwood did a full-body wince at her words. His face burned red with humiliation, but his eyes didn’t leave her breasts.

She groped her clothed breasts, feeling their fullness and weight. “They’re big, aren’t they? Big and full, just like my Mother’s. I guess I inherited them from her.”

“Fuck!” Rookwood gasped and groaned, his body shaking as his hand jerked himself harder. A pitiful load of jism left his quivering penis, covering part of his hand as his eyes dilated.

She snorted. “That was pathetic.”

Rookwood whimpered. “Y-You’re a bitch, Kassandra.”

“I know.” She paused. “Did you really think that I would marry you?”

Rookwood looked at her, seemingly struck. “M-Malfoy promised-”

“My brother promised you my hand?” She interrupted with a raised brow, glancing at his now soft cock. She knew her brother and Father had been doing everything they possibly could to gain allies over the years. Bribes, favors, and gifts were given out all the time in order to gain influence. But promising her hand in marriage to a lightweight like Rookwood? Now that was just pathetic.“You really think I would wed a worthless wizard like you?”

She had to wonder about her brother sometimes. His incompetence, the sheer arrogance he held, and how her father could fuck up so badly raising his only son. Their Mother had done her duty raising her, and she often wondered why her father failed so badly in his duty.

Her wand was suddenly in her hand, and she held it against Rookwood’s neck. He stiffened, eyeing the wand and then looking at her worriedly. “What are you doing?”

“It would be so easy, you know.” She spoke, ignoring his question. “I could simply kill you now, throw you in an expanded bag, and dump your corpse in the forbidden forest.”

He inhaled sharply, his expression etched with horror. “Y-You wouldn’t-“

“Would I?” She interrupted. “I wouldn’t have to worry about some unseen marriage contract then. And it’s not like anyone can stop me. All your friends are busy in the Hospital Wing, and Snape is long gone by now. That’s not mentioning the other Professors, too busy worrying about their own students to notice anything missing.”

“W-What do you want?” Rookwood stuttered, clearly terrified.

“You’re going to make an unbreakable vow.” She smiled cruelly. “In it, you will swear by your magic that you will never so much as touch me. After that, hopefully, we can forget about each other and move on with our lives. Or would you rather go with the forest option?”

Rookwood whimpered, and did exactly what she asked.

She exited the dorm room, and continued down the hallway until she eventually stopped and turned. Two twin girls stood behind her.

“Flora, Hestia.” Kassandra greeted. “Do you need anything?”

The two seemed to stare at her for some time, almost as if they were judging her, before Flora spoke. “You’re playing a dangerous game, Kassandra.”

Her eyes narrowed dangerously, and she felt her wand fall into her palm. She wasn’t the only one, as both Carrow twins gripped their own wands.

“You brother is no longer in charge of Slytherin anymore, there is no need for you to act this way on his behalf.” Hestia pleaded. “Greengrass made the decision to at least include you in her latest scheme, the least you could do is not betray her.”

“I am not betraying her.” Kassandra spoke easily, a smug grin on her face. “The only thing I agreed to was to help remove my brother from power. After that our agreement ended. That didn’t mean I had to bend the knee, unlike the two of you.”

Flora’s eyes narrowed. “Do not mistake us confronting you as some sort of overture from Greengrass. We all know that girl has Selwyn under her thumb, and that’s not mentioning the whole shit-show she organized today. We know that your brother didn’t just decide to simply attack today on a whim.”

Kassandra had found out about Greengrass’s plan through sheer coincidence, so it was a suprise to hear the Carrows talk about it as if it was common knowledge. It spoke to how knowledgeable the two of them were, something Kassandra had yet to actually figure out.

Potter’s original plan, as it had been outlined to them, was to provoke her brother gradually over time by having more and more Slytherin students interact with students from other houses. Over time, her brother was likely to become more and more enraged, and would likely strike out and attack those opposing him. This is what Potter and Greengrass wanted to happen, as then other students and Professors would get involved because of Draco’s behavior.

It was actually a good plan, as Draco could be very easily antagonized to the point that the plan was practically guaranteed to work. What no one saw coming was the insane confrontation that happened earlier that day, or that Draco would take such drastic action early on.

No one but her and the Carrow twins apparently, who somehow had found out. Greengrass with the help of Emma had set the entire thing up, using her best friend’s mind magic as a tool to manipulate Draco’s group.

“We actually came here out of friendship.” Hestia continued. “After today, things will be different in Slytherin. And tomorrow, things will only get worse for not just your brother, but the Dark faction as well. If you play this game like you are now, it might ruin you.”

Her brows furrowed in worry, as she had to wonder just what the twins were alluding to. “I appreciate your concern.”

The Carrow twins nodded and left, while Kassandra headed towards her own dormitory.

Daphne Greengrass was a shark, a witch born and raised to be more ambitious than any other. That said, the girl wasn’t a climber, like Parkinson, but instead relied on her pureblood background and power to get ahead, as well as violence if need be.

She was dangerous, likely the most dangerous person in Slytherin, and the chaos she organized today was proof of that. And that wasn’t even mentioning she had somehow managed to get herself betrothed to Harry Potter of all people. It was a feat that actually shocked her when she heard it, and Kassandra had yet to actually figure out if the girl had simply seduced Potter and was using him for her own gain.

She suddenly stopped and sighed, scratching her brow. Who was she kidding, it was obvious those two were head over heels for each other.

-

It was late in the evening at the Ministry when dozens of well dressed men and women flooded into the Ministry. They were all Lords and Ladies of Magical Britain, the wealthiest and most influential people in the country, but above all of that they were parents.

Parents to children who had been attacked. And above that, in the mind of Cyrus Greengrass, they were parents who wanted revenge.

The Wizengamot chambers filled with only a third of its members, being just enough to have a small emergency session, before the doors closed with a thud.

It had been years since a rushed midnight Wizengamot session like this occurred, the last ones occurring right after the war when the Dark faction banned the use of veritaserum as court-admissible evidence.

Tiberius Ogden coughed from his new position, acting as a stand in for the Chief Warlock. Dumbledore conviently could not make it this night, making Ogden the only suitable replacement with sufficient seniority. “We shall now begin this Emergency Session.”

Lord Greengrass stood before anyone could speak. “Lords and Ladies of Britain, we are here due to a matter of severe importance. Evidence has been uncovered recently, evidence that points to the fugitive, Sirius Black, of being innocent of the crimes he has been accused of. It is with heavy heart that I must ask for this court to review his case, and to acquit him of the crimes he has been unjustifiably accused of.”