The Phoenix and the Serpent

Chapter Four - Mudbloods and Mysteries

"AAAAAAARGH!"

Tom sat bolt upright in bed, heart pounding, and threw back his curtains. One of his roommates - Kenneth Viridian - was standing at the far end of the room, his face white. Across the room, Daniel and Julian threw back their curtains as well, their eyes wide in alarm.

"What's wrong?" Tom asked urgently, untangling himself from his blankets and swinging his feet down onto the cold stone floor.

Kenneth was shaking. "A - a - s-snake!" he said, pointing towards Tom's trunk, his voice unnaturally high. "Right there!"

Relief swept over Tom; he collapsed back down onto the edge of his bed, his heart still racing. "That's just Medusa," he said apologetically. "I've had her for three years - she isn't dangerous at all. There's no reason to be scared of her."

Color rushed back to Kenneth's face. "I didn't expect to suddenly find a snake in the dormitory!" he snapped. "For all I knew, it was poisonous!"

Julian had gotten out of bed and had padded across the room in his slippers to get a better look at Medusa. "Actually, it is poisonous," he told Kenneth. "It's an adder."

Kenneth blanched, but he recovered in seconds and whirled around to face Tom. "What's it doing here, then?" he demanded. "Snakes aren't allowed at Hogwarts!"

"My father wrote to Professor McGonagall, and she gave me permission," Tom said defensively.

"Of course - I should have known," Kenneth said scathingly. "The son of the famous Harry Potter can get permission to do whatever he likes."

"What difference does it make to you?" Tom said, growing angry himself. "She isn't dangerous! She won't bite you, you know!"

"Oh, and I suppose she promised you that herself?" Kenneth said scornfully.

Despite himself, Tom grinned. "As a matter of fact, she did."

Kenneth stared at him. "You're not just arrogant," he said, "you're a lunatic as well! Since when do snakes talk?"

Tom raised his eyebrows. "Don't you know why the mascot of Slytherin house is a snake?"

"You're a Parselmouth?" Julian said incredulously

"Yes, I am."

Kenneth looked stunned. "But - you - you're not - " he stammered.

"I'm not what?" Tom said, losing patience. "Evil? My father is a Parselmouth as well, you know; there's no need to be so shocked."

"Harry Potter is a Parselmouth?" Julian said, looking even more shocked.

"Yes," Tom said curtly, getting out of bed. "And no, before you ask, we're not descended from Salazar Slytherin. Voldemort was his last descendent, and he's dead." He turned towards Medusa's traveling case and switched over to Parseltongue. "Medusa? Are you awake?"

"After all that sscreaming, how could I not be?" Medusa said grumpily, gliding out of her case and down onto Tom's trunk. "What wass that boy doing, poking around in your thingss?"

"Hey - you're right!" Tom spun around to face Kenneth. "I left Medusa's case closed - why'd you open it?"

Kenneth flushed. "I - I didn't realize it was yours."

"It was on top of my trunk! Whose exactly did you think it was?"

"I was tired! I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing, okay? And don't you think you should have warned us that you're keeping a poisonous snake as a pet?"

"I was planning to tell you today, but you went poking around in my things before I had a chance. Don't blame me!"

The two boys glared at each other, the silence stretching taut, until a hesitant voice from the other end of the room interrupted.

"Uh - guys? What exactly is a Parselmouth?"

Tom turned around, startled. It was Daniel, standing just beside his bed and looking utterly confused; he must have been watching the whole incident. But why didn't he know what a Parselmouth was? Was he a Muggle-born?

Tom hurried to explain. "A Parselmouth is someone who can speak the language of snakes. It's a very rare ability; I'm pretty sure that my father and I are the only two Parselmouths alive nowadays."

"That hissing was - uh - Parseltongue?" Daniel looked fascinated. "Cool!"

Kenneth was looking at Daniel with narrowed eyes. "Why didn't you know that?"

Tom's hands slowly tightened into fists as he waited in apprehension for Daniel's answer.

"Well, there's a lot I still don't know about wizards," Daniel said, shrugging. "I only got my Hogwarts letter about a month ago."

Kenneth looked furious. "You're a Muggle-born?" he said accusingly.

"Yes. So?" Daniel looked wary now.

"So?" Kenneth glared at Daniel. "Muggle-borns don't belong in Slytherin! My father will be horrified when I tell him that you're in my dormitory. I'm warning you now, Mudblood - if you dare touch any of my things, you'll regret it. Better yet, just stay of my sight altogether!"

"Oh?" Daniel said, glaring back. "I could say the same to you. In case you haven't noticed, I'm quite a bit taller than you are, and I've been taking ka - I mean, fighting lessons, since I was four. Don't start up with me; chances are you'll end up in the Hospital Wing."

"I'm terrified," Kenneth said, mockingly. "I have my wand, don't I? And unlike you, I know how to use it. Just like a Mudblood - forgetting all about magic." But perhaps Daniel's threat had unsettled him, because with one last scowl, he strode back towards his bed and trunk.

"Well, that's gotten rid of him, at least," Daniel said, glowering at his back. He turned to Tom. "Are there many others like that around?"

"Well..." Tom glanced over quickly at Julian, who was staring at Daniel in obvious dismay. "Slytherins tend to dislike Muggle-borns. Not me, of course, and not all Slytherins, but most of them. Not many of them will actually bother you - or at least, I hope not." He hesitated. "Julian? What about you?"

Julian averted his eyes, suddenly engrossed in examining the silver cuffs of his silk pajamas. "My family is Pureblood," he said stiffly. "We... we don't associate with Muggle-borns. Please tell Daniel that I - I have nothing against him personally, but I...." He trailed off, and still avoiding Tom's eyes, he hurriedly returned to his own bed and trunk.

"Pureblood?" Daniel said, looking taken aback. He gave Tom a lopsided smile. "What is that, some kind of royalty?"

"You'd be surprised," Tom said darkly. "Some wizards seem to think so. Pureblood just means that you don't have any Muggle ancestors, but Pureblood families have been around for centuries and centuries and are usually wealthy and powerful, and they often look down on anyone who isn't Pureblood."

"What do Purebloods have against Muggles?" Daniel asked, frowning.

"They consider them inferior," Tom said, shrugging. "Because they can't do magic. But not all Purebloods are prejudiced against Muggle-borns; my mother's family is Pureblood, and they're not like that at all. My uncle - my mother's brother - even married a Muggle-born."

"Why did he say that I don't belong in Slytherin, though? Are Slytherins mostly purebloods?"

"The founder of Slytherin house - Salazar Slytherin - didn't want to let Muggle-borns into Hogwarts, and usually chose the Purebloods to be in his own House. For hundreds of years, the Sorting Hat's been doing almost the same thing: Slytherin would get most of the Purebloods and none of the Muggle-borns. It was just this year that the Sorting Hat decided to change things. You heard the song, right? But most of the Purebloods still ended up here in Slytherin, because they tend to be ambitious." Tom offered Daniel a half-hearted smile. "Most of Hogwarts isn't like that; if you were sorted into any of the other Houses, chances are that none of your roommates would've cared one way or the other that you're a Muggle-born."

"So that's it, then? Kenneth, Julian, and the two of us?" Daniel looked around glumly. "And we're going to be together for seven years?"

"Well... Julian won't bother you, at least," Tom offered. "And we have classes with the other Houses. But just a minute...." Tom frowned and looked around. "Weren't there five boys here last night? Wasn't there another kid named Brian?"

Together, they turned around to look at the fifth bed, whose hangings were still tightly closed.

"I don't believe it," Daniel said, grinning. "He must still be asleep! He slept straight through Kenneth's screaming, and he still hasn't woken up!"

"Should we wake him up?" Tom said doubtfully. "It's getting kind of late...."

"Nah," Daniel said, shrugging. "Don't bother. Some people like to sleep late, and don't mind rushing to get ready. If he's still asleep when we're ready to leave, we'll wake him up then."

"Okay," Tom agreed. "We should probably hurry ourselves, though, if want to have enough time to eat breakfast."

"Wouldn't want to miss that," Daniel said, smiling. "The food here is definitely a plus." He crossed the room to his bed, avoiding Kenneth and Julian, and opened his trunk.

Kenneth looked up as Daniel walked past, and his mouth curled up into a sneer. He turned to Julian and muttered something, his eyes glinting; Julian hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.

Tom watched in alarm; what was Kenneth planning? He'd have to keep an eye out for Daniel, and hope that Daniel really would be able to protect himself.... Tom sighed and knelt by his own trunk to begin sorting through whatever he hadn't had a chance to unpack the night before.

When Medusa slithered out from underneath a folded pile of jumpers, Tom nearly fell over backwards in surprise.

"What are you doing in there?"

"Sssleeping, of coursse." Medusa raised her head and flicked her tongue in and out as she surveyed the room. "You were too busy arguing to desscribe to me what wass happening, sso I returned to my nap. Why did the boy sscream? What were you arguing about?"

"He was frightened of you," Tom explained. "I told him I was a Parselmouth and that I had permission to bring you here, but he still isn't happy about it." Tom made a face. "He probably wouldn't have liked me anyway, though; I got Sorted into Slytherin, and Kenneth's a Pureblood."

"Sslytherin?" Medusa hissed in surprise.

"Yes," Tom said glumly. "The Sorting Hat made some changes this year. It even Sorted some Muggle-borns into Slytherin. One of my roommates is a Muggle-born, actually, and two are Purebloods; you can imagine that didn't go over too well."

"Sso it iss as bad as you feared, then?"

"Well... not exactly," Tom admitted. "Daniel - that's the Muggle-born - seems nice, and do you remember that boy I met on the train? Adam? His sister was also sorted into Slytherin."

"And there are classsess to look forward to as well," Medusa reminded him. "You will sstill enjoy yoursself here, even if you are in Sslytherin."

"I suppose you're right," Tom admitted. "I've been looking forward to learning magic properly for ages and ages."

"Well, go on, then!" Medusa said, coiling herself back up amongst the piles of clothing. "It isss getting late, and you can finish unpacking later. Get dresssed and ssort out your school ssupliess."

"Yes, Ma'am," Tom said, grinning, and with a quick glance at his watch to confirm that Medusa was right (as usual!) he hurried to get dressed.

By the time Tom had finished and had gathered his books, quills, and parchment together, Kenneth and Julian had already left the room. Daniel was dressed, but he was sitting in the middle of the floor sorting through his supplies.

"Do you want me to wait for you?" Tom offered.

"Nah, this'll take a while," Daniel said, gesturing ruefully to the mess spread out in front of him. "I think I'll go wake up Brian now, and I'll finish this up while he gets dressed. You go on."

"If you're sure..." Tom said, disappointed. He wasn't looking forward to facing the Slytherin table alone, but he looked as though he didn't have a choice. Tom hissed a quick goodbye at Medusa, who wished him luck again, and he headed out into the Slytherin common room and then out into the dungeon passageways. A cluster of older boys were just ahead of him, and by following behind them at a discreet distance, Tom managed to find his way to the Great Hall without getting lost once.

Tom approached the Slytherin table hesitantly, trying to decide where to sit. As he scanned the table, he noticed someone sitting alone, quite a ways down from the rest of the students. Tom squinted, trying to make out who it was. Was it... Jennifer?

Tom had never expected to feel so relieved to see someone who was practically a stranger. He hurried over to where she was sitting and slid into the seat across from her.

"Hi, Tom!" Jennifer said, smiling.

"Hi," he said, smiling in return as he poured himself a drink. "What do you think of Hogwarts?"

"Amazing - well, except for my roommates." Jennifer made a face. "My dorm itself is great, though - and all of Hogwarts, really. Much nicer than Muggle boarding schools!"

"You used to go to a Muggle boarding school?" Tom asked, surprised.

"No," Jennifer said, shaking her head. "My mother wasn't too happy about sending us to boarding school even now; there's no way she would have sent us when we were in primary school! It's just that we had to tell our friends that we were going to boarding school, to explain where we'd be disappearing to every year, and the mother of one my friends went to boarding school when she was younger, so she loaded me down with advice and information." Jennifer pulled a platter of fried eggs towards her plate and helped herself. "Want some?" she asked.

"Yes, thanks," Tom said, and Jennifer passed him the platter.

They ate in silence for several minutes, and then Jennifer suddenly put down her fork. "I've been meaning to ask you - what do kids from wizarding families do before Hogwarts? They don't go to Muggle schools, do they? Are there primary schools for wizards?"

"Usually we're just taught at home," Tom explained. "Wealthier families sometimes hire tutors, but usually it's just your Mum and Dad. We don't do much - just reading and writing and arithmetic and a bit of geography, and in some Pureblood families, music and maybe even art. My Dad grew up in a Muggle family, and he's told me what it's like for Muggles, how you're all together from the time you're really young and how you learn all sorts of things, but it isn't like that with us. Until we start at Hogwarts, we don't really know many other kids our own age. I didn't know anyone my own age at all, because my Mum and Dad had me when they were still very young, so their friends' children are all younger than I am."

"Weren't you lonely?" Jennifer asked, surprised.

"Not really," Tom said, shrugging. "I have a brother who's only two years younger than me, and then I have two sisters and a baby brother. I have a bunch of cousins as well; Adrian's only two years older than me - he's in Ravenclaw - and I have another cousin who's just a year younger than me, a girl. Besides, my Mum has always said that all I need is a stack of books and I'll be perfectly happy."

Jennifer laughed. "I love books as well, but I've always spent most of my time with friends." She suddenly sobered. "I hope it won't be too difficult to find friends from other houses."

"All your roommates gave you a hard time?" Tom said sympathetically.

"Well, no," Jennifer admitted. "Janet was the only one who was really nasty. But one of the other girls, Valerie Nott, is a pureblood as well, and she mostly just ignored me. That just leaves Sophia Ashfield, and she does seem nice, but she was kind of quiet. Maybe she didn't want to antagonize Janet by talking to me, or maybe she was just shy - but either way, even if we do eventually become friends, I don't think we'd have much in common."

Dozens of owls suddenly streamed into the Great Hall through the open windows, swooping down and circling the tables to deliver mail to their owners. The noise level in the Great Hall immediately rose several notches as the students exclaimed in delight as they received their packages and letters.

"Wow," Jennifer said, craning her head upwards with an awed expression on her face as she watched the owls soaring overhead.

"Do you have an owl?" Tom asked.

"No - I wish," Jennifer said. "I wanted one, but my Mum said that a cat was enough. Do you have an owl?"

"No. My father was going to buy me one, but I convinced him to let me take Medusa instead."

"A cat?"

Tom laughed. "I can just imagine what Medusa would say if she knew that someone mistook her for a cat! No, Medusa is a snake."

"Really? A snake?" Jennifer looked impressed. "I didn't even know that snakes were allowed at Hogwarts."

"They aren't," Tom began to explain, but suddenly an envelope floated down in front of him, and seconds later a warm weight settled heavily on his left shoulder, nearly knocking him forward into his plate of food.

"Hedwig!" Tom said in delight, reaching over with his right hand to stroke his father's snowy white owl.

"She's beautiful," Jennifer said, looking impressed. "Whose is she, if not yours?"

"My father's," Tom explained. "He uses Hedwig to send letters. Though it's strange that Mum and Dad sent me a letter already; I've just gotten here! I hope nothing's happened...." Suddenly worried, Tom picked up the letter from where it had landed among the crumbly remains of a roll and brushed it off.

"There's another letter tied to the owl's foot," Jennifer pointed out.

Tom twisted his head to look. To his surprise, Hedwig was indeed carrying a second letter. How strange; what was the point of sending him two separate letters? Tom frowned and reached for the letter, but before he had a chance to grab it, Hedwig nipped him and flew off.

"Hey!" Tom said indignantly. "Come back here!"

But Hedwig did not return. With growing bewilderment, Tom watched as Hedwig flew directly towards the staff table.

"Where's she going?" he said, baffled.

"Maybe the letter is for someone else," Jennifer suggested.

"One of the Professors? Why on earth would my Mum or Dad be writing to one of the Professors?!"

But Jennifer was right. Hedwig landed in front of Professor McGonagall, who untied the letter immediately and began to read it with furrowed brows. When she finished, she rolled it up again and whispered something to Snape, who was sitting beside her. Snape nodded, looking grim, and then stood up to follow McGonagall out of the Great Hall.

Suddenly apprehensive, Tom ripped open his own letter.

Dear Tom,

How are you enjoying your first day at Hogwarts? Mum and I and all the kids miss you already. (Derrick had quite a temper tantrum last night when he realized that you were gone!)

You're probably wondering why I'm writing to you already. Well... Professor McGonagall owled me last night to let me know that you were Sorted into Slytherin, and to be honest, I'm worried about you, Tom. I know it won't be easy, being in Slytherin - your roommates haven't been giving you a hard time, have they? - and I suppose I just wanted to try to cheer you up. Remember what I said that day in Diagon Alley? Not all Slytherins are a bad lot, no matter what Uncle Ron says, and I'm sure you'll be able to find good friends. Don't worry about Uncle Ron or Grandma being upset; I've explained to that it wasn't your fault, and that the Sorting Hat did things differently this year. The truth is that I do agree with the Sorting Hat in principal - that part of the reason why Slytherin is so infamous for corruption is due to the fact that most of the good kids are so set against it. There's nothing wrong with ambition itself, just as long as you always remember that doing the right thing is more important than achieving your goals. Of course, I wish the Sorting Hat hadn't made the change this year!

Try to be careful about who you become friends with. I trust you - you know I do - but many Slytherin families are extensively involved in the Dark Arts, and you'll have to be extra careful to stay away from those sorts of boys. If any of them give you a hard time, go straight to Professor McGonagall. I wish I could advise you to stay away from Snape as well, but unfortunately, he's your Head of House. Try not to antagonize him, Tom; he can make your life very difficult. You do have one thing going for you, though - he won't be so eager to take points away from you, as he'd be taking off points from his own House! Just keep in mind that he's on our side; you know he helped me defeat Voldemort... and if you have any real problems, go to Professor McGonagall. She is the Headmistress, after all, so she can overturn any of Snape's decisions - but she won't be willing to do that except under extenuating circumstances.

I meant to write this letter to reassure you, and instead I've probably gone and made you even more nervous. Don't be, Tom; if you have the right attitude, most things will work themselves out. If you ever really need to talk to me or Mum, send us a letter, and we'll arrange for a time to talk to you through your common room fireplace. It isn't exactly allowed, but if we do it late at night, no one will notice - just make sure that Professor Snape doesn't find out! Send Medusa my regards. How did your roommates react to her? Mum sends her love and strict instructions to write back!

Love you,

Dad

Tom reread the letter, his apprehension fading but his bewilderment growing. It was wonderful to get a letter from Dad, and it was a big relief to know that if he ever really needed to speak to Mum and Dad, there was a way to do it, but so much of the letter made no sense. Why on earth had Professor McGonagall written to tell Dad that he'd been Sorted into Slytherin? That definitely wasn't a normal thing for a Headmistress to do! And what had Dad written to Professor McGonagall about? It must have been in response to the letter she'd sent him to tell him that Tom had been Sorted into Slytherin, but what about it had made McGonagall and Snape look so grim? Why was Snape involved in any of this to begin with? None of it made sense.

"Is something wrong?" Jennifer asked, startling Tom out of his thoughts.

"What?" he said. "Oh - no, don't worry. I'm sure it's nothing important, it's just...." He trailed off.

"If you're sure..." Jennifer said doubtfully.

Tom nodded, only barely registering what she'd said; he was still trying to figure out what was going on. Maybe, if he asked Dad about it when he wrote back tonight, Dad would explain? It was possible, after all, that Dad's letter to McGonagall had nothing to do with Tom. Somehow, though, Tom doubted it - and he was determined to solve the mystery.