Harry Potter and the Order Of the Phoenix [76]
“Great job Harry,” said Ron, rubbing his face with his now back-to-normal-size arms. “Great story. I can’t believe you came up with another good one!” Harry grinned and looked at his watch.
“Oh no!” he said, realizing the time. “we only have a half an hour until the Halloween Feast starts! We really have got to get going!” The three of them stood up, and ran to the Gryffindor common room, which was now filled with students returning from Hogsmeade. Harry and Ron tried to avoid as many people as they could as they ran to their dorm to get the map to Azkaban and Harry’s Firebolt. As soon as they found it, they bolted back to the common room, met up with Hermione, and ran out to Hagrid’s hut by the Forbidden Forest.
“Are you ready for this?” asked Harry. Ron and Hermione gave him nervous smiles and nods before they entered the forest.
“All we have to do is find a spider, and then follow it,” said Harry, remembering how he and Ron found Aragog before. They walked deeper and deeper into the forest, with only small beams from their wands to guide them in their search. After several minutes of searching, Harry saw something move.
“I see something!” he yelled quietly to Ron and Hermione. They crept up to him, and shone their beams in the direction he was pointing. Their beams landed on a small, dark green bush that was shaking.
“Ah!” said a voice. Harry turned around to see if it was Ron or Hermione, but they were still fixated on the bush.
“Did you hear that?” Harry asked them. They shook their heads.
“Ah! Bright!” said the voice again.
“Did you hear that?” Harry asked them again. Rona and Hermione shook their heads again. How could they not hear it? Then, it came to Harry.
“Show yourself,” said Harry. Only, it didn’t come out in those words, it came out in a long hiss, exactly like a snake. Ron and Hermione looked at Harry, afraid, but he knew what he was doing. Harry was a Parselmouth, he could talk to snakes.
That night, when Voldemort attacked Harry and his parents, and Voldemort used the Killing Curse on Harry, Voldemort did not only lose his powers, he transferred some of them into Harry. The scar on Harry’s forehead was where some of Voldemort’s powers flowed into him. One of the powers that Harry had received was Voldemort’s ability to converse with snakes, something that very few wizards could do.
The snake popped his head of the bush, and stared at Harry with unblinking eyes.
“You speak my language,” it hissed at Harry. “If you understand me, please remove your light sticks.” Harry assumed he meant their wands, so he put his wand down, and signaled to Ron and Hermione to do the same.
“Yes, I speak your language,” hissed Harry back. “I need to know, have you seen any spiders around here?” The snake started at him for a moment. Harry knew that spiders feared snakes, so the snake should know if it had seen any spiders running from it.
“Yes,” it crackled at him.
“Where?” asked Harry.
“Where they always are at this time,” it said. “In the Moon Patch.”
“What is the Moon Patch?” asked Harry.
“It is in the middle of this place, this… forest. It is where the illumination from the ball of light in the sky is the brightest.”
“Thank you,” said Harry.
“You are welcome Harry Potter,” said the snake.
“How do you know my name?” asked Harry.
“Everyone in this place knows your name. You are the one who defeated the Dark Lord, you are the one who defeated his master, and you are the one who will defeat the master of him as well.”
“What do you mean, the Dark Lord’s master?” asked Harry. He didn’t think Voldemort had a master, and even if he did, he didn’t think he defeated him.
“You defeated him, the one your people refer to as ‘Voldemort’” said the snake. Now Harry was really confused.
“If Voldemort is the Dark Lord’s master, who is the Dark Lord?”
“The master snake, the basilisk,