105: Chapter 105 Duel Club Part 2, Snake-like Voice

As Harry spoke, the crowd retreating in the Great Hall paused for a beat. The black snake held its head high, the motion of its flicking tongue slowing down, while Justin Finch-Fletchley stood in front of it, his face turning pale.

"Don't move, back off."

Hoarse syllables squeezed from Harry's throat. The students closest to him heard them first, and immediately fixed their gazes on his face.

Ron gripped the edge of the stage, his face turning white.

"Harry, what did you just say?"

Harry stared at the black snake and repeated it again.

"Back away, don't touch him."

The black snake lowered its body and recoiled. Justin Finch-Fletchley's back pressed against the Hufflepuff group, a short, sharp gasp escaping his throat.

"He's talking to the snake."

"Parseltongue."

"Only the Heir of Slytherin can speak Parseltongue."

"Don't go near him."

Harry turned his head, saw the faces of those around him, and frowned deeply.

"What's wrong with you all?"

Hermione squeezed out from behind the crowd and grabbed Ron's sleeve.

"Harry, don't say anything else."

Harry looked down at the black snake that had retreated to the edge of the long platform, then looked at Justin Finch-Fletchley.

"I was just telling it not to bite anyone."

Justin Finch-Fletchley's lips trembled.

"You told it not to bite me?"

"Yes, it went for you just now."

Ernie pulled Justin Finch-Fletchley behind him, his voice tight.

"What we saw was you hissing at the snake, and then it obeyed you."

Ron immediately retorted.

"He saved Finch-Fletchley."

Ernie stared at him.

"How can you prove that wasn't a command?"

Hermione spoke up immediately.

"The snake was conjured by Malfoy."

Draco's face darkened.

"Granger, watch your language. I only used Serpensortia."

Ron pointed at him.

"Then make it go away."

Just as Draco raised his wand, Snape had already walked down from the side of the platform.

"Everyone be quiet."

Gilderoy Lockhart stood by the edge of the stage, his cloak askew, still trying to force a smile back onto his face.

"Students, this was just a teaching accident. I had intended to demonstrate a more advanced method of handling it."

Snape didn't look at him; he flicked his wand, and the black snake writhed once on the wooden boards before vanishing, leaving only a small scorch mark.

"Mr. Potter, what did you do just now?"

Harry looked up.

"I told the snake to stop."

"In what language?"

Harry hesitated for a moment.

"English."

Whispers immediately erupted throughout the Great Hall.

"He said English?"

"He has no idea at all."

"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir of Slytherin, beware."

Ron stepped forward anxiously.

"That's enough! Harry is not the Heir of Slytherin."

Someone on the Hufflepuff side sneered.

"How can you prove that?"

Hermione pulled Ron back.

"Arguing now will only hurt him."

Harry looked at her.

"Hermione, I really just said to let it stop moving."

Hermione bit her lip.

"I know you wanted to save someone, but what they heard wasn't English."

Harry's face turned even paler.

"Was I speaking Parseltongue?"

Ron looked around, his voice dropping.

"It sounded like it."

Harry stood on the stage, pinned by everyone's gaze. The people below scattered to both sides, leaving a glaring circle of empty space.

Professor McGonagall pushed through from the Gryffindor side, her expression grim.

"Everyone return to your respective house groups. No pushing, and no raising your wands again."

Sprout shielded Justin Finch-Fletchley, and after asking a low question, she looked at Harry.

"Mr. Potter, come down from the stage first. Don't go near the Hufflepuff group."

Harry gripped his wand tightly in embarrassment.

"I didn't mean to hurt him."

Ernie replied coldly.

"The Heir of Slytherin wouldn't admit it in public either."

Ron rushed over.

"Say that again."

Hermione blocked his path.

"Ron, don't cause more trouble for Harry."

Behind the crowd, Allen's fingers moved away from the wand in his sleeve. In his Portable Space, the Void coiled back beside the ebony box, its silver vertical pupils still fixed toward the long platform.

Nott stepped closer.

"Now the whole school has seen it."

Zabini closed his book.

"They don't need evidence anymore."

Allen looked at the pale Harry on the stage.

"Rumors run faster than evidence."

Nott asked.

"Should we let Draco explain?"

"The more he explains, the more it looks like collusion."

Zabini looked at Draco.

"He released the snake, Harry controlled it with Parseltongue—everyone will be able to connect the dots."

Allen looked away.

"So he has to keep his mouth shut now."

Pansy retreated from the front row, her face tense.

"They'll say Slytherin arranged all of this."

Allen looked at her.

"You wanted Draco to win just a moment ago."

Pansy pressed her lips together.

"I didn't tell him to release a snake."

"Others won't make such fine distinctions."

Nott wrote a line in his small notebook.

"Potter reveals Parseltongue, Malfoy conjures snake, Hufflepuff terrified, Professor interrupts."

Zabini glanced at him.

"Your notes are perfect for an interrogation."

Nott closed the notebook.

"Perhaps they will be."

On the stage, Snape told Draco to get off.

"Mr. Malfoy, return to your group."

Draco paused for a moment as he passed by Harry.

Harry looked at him.

"Are you satisfied?"

Draco gripped his wand tightly.

"I didn't tell you to talk to the snake."

Ron shouted from below the stage.

"You did it on purpose."

Draco turned his head.

"Weasley, watch your mouth."

Professor McGonagall warned them immediately.

"Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Weasley, one more word and I will deduct points from both houses."

Gilderoy Lockhart clapped his hands, trying to wrap things up.

"Since everyone has now seen how to handle real danger, we can end tonight's lesson here. Next time, I will prepare a safer demonstration."

Snape cut him off coldly.

"There will be no next time."

Professor McGonagall took over.

"Prefects, lead your houses out. Gryffindor, leave through the left door; Hufflepuff, leave through the right door. Slytherin, stay for three minutes."

Hufflepuff shielded Justin Finch-Fletchley as they left. When they passed near Harry, the group automatically veered away, keeping their distance.

Harry saw that gap and turned pale.

"Why are they doing this?"

Hermione whispered an explanation.

"Parseltongue has a bad reputation in the Wizarding World, especially now with the Chamber of Secrets."

Harry looked at her.

"You knew?"

"I knew it was related to Slytherin, but I didn't expect that you would be able to."

"I didn't know either."

Ron patted his arm.

"It doesn't mean anything."

Ernie, by the door, turned back.

"I hope the Professors think so too."

Professor McGonagall immediately reprimanded him.

"Mr. Macmillan, leave the Great Hall."

In the Slytherin group, Flint stared at Harry, an amused expression appearing on his face.

"Potter can speak Parseltongue, how interesting."

Adrian Pucey added.

"Maybe the Heir of Slytherin isn't on our side."

Draco, who had just returned to the group, heard this and his face darkened.

"Shut up."

Flint looked at him.

"What's the matter, Malfoy? You helped him start it earlier, and now you're speaking up for him?"

Draco lifted his chin.

"I told you to shut up because you'll drag the whole house down with you."

Flint stepped forward.

"What did you say?"

Allen walked from the back row to Draco's side and glanced at the door.

"He said you should wait until the Professors are far away before being stupid."

Seeing Allen, Flint remembered the incident with the salamander blood last year, and his face twitched.

"A distant branch of the Potter Family is here to lecture me too?"

Allen tapped his fingertips against the spine of his book.

"You can go tell Snape right now that you think the Heir of Slytherin is in Gryffindor."

Flint didn't respond.

Zabini added.

"And while you're at it, explain why you're so interested in the Heir of Slytherin."

Adrian Pucey pulled Flint.

"Let's go."

Flint shook him off but didn't speak again.

Draco followed Allen toward the side door. After avoiding the brightest lights of the Great Hall, he finally squeezed out a sentence.

"Did I cause trouble?"

Allen looked ahead.

"You released a snake, Harry spoke Parseltongue, Justin Finch-Fletchley wasn't hurt, and the Professors saw the whole process."

Draco frowned.

"You call that comforting?"

"I call it the sequence of events."

"The whole school will associate me with him."

Nott walked behind them.

"They'll focus on Harry first."

Zabini continued.

"You only released the snake; he's the one who made the snake obey."

Draco paused.

"But I was the one who released that snake."

Allen looked at him.

"So starting tonight, you don't talk about snakes, you don't talk about the Heir of Slytherin, and you don't talk about what Potter can do."

Draco closed his eyes.

"If someone asks?"

"Use the standard script."

Draco recited the lines.

"My father doesn't tell children about old matters; the Chamber of Secrets is just a legend; the true Heir of Slytherin wouldn't tell anyone their name."

Zabini nodded.

"You remembered it this time."

Draco stared at Allen.

"Harry speaks Parseltongue—did you know that beforehand?"

Allen tucked the book under his arm.

"I knew he would attract the heat."

Unease flickered in Draco's eyes.

"You used him as a shield?"

Allen countered.

"Before tonight, who did the whole school suspect?"

Nott answered bluntly.

"Slytherin."

"And after tonight?"

Zabini looked in the direction the Gryffindors had left.

"Harry Potter."

Draco was silent for a moment.

"I didn't mean to push him that far."

Allen stopped at the corner of the corridor and turned his head to look at him.

"This isn't your fault. It's fate."

"Fate?"

"Someone put a snake on the stage, someone was born able to speak to snakes, and someone is waiting for the school to be afraid. Tonight just happened to put them all in the same room."

Draco followed him.

"Then what do we do?"

Allen walked toward the Dungeon.

"Go back, sleep, and starting tomorrow, stay away from Harry."

Nott asked.

"What about Ginny?"

Allen didn't stop his pace.

"Record her absences, record the second floor, don't touch her."

Zabini looked back toward the Great Hall.

"The panic will spread."

Allen pushed the wand in his sleeve back into place.

"It has already begun."