The Duelling Club and Parseltongue

By evening, Harry was the only one left in the Hospital Wing, fast asleep. Suddenly, he heard that voice again and snapped his eyes open. As he looked around, Dobby appeared.

Harry learned from Dobby that he was the one who had stopped Harry, Mia and Ron from getting to school, and who had controlled the Bludger that chased him.

Dobby also told him that something terrible was about to happen at Hogwarts, and that history was about to repeat itself.

There was also Colin's petrification, and what Dumbledore had said: the Chamber of Secrets had been opened again.

"Someone else was attacked?" Mia pondered what Harry had told her about the previous night.

"Again? You mean the Chamber of Secrets was opened before?" Hermione asked as she brewed the potion.

"Don't you get it? Lucius Malfoy must have done it when he was at school, and now he's told Draco Malfoy to open it," Ron said, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

Why does he have to keep singling out the Malfoys? Mia brushed aside Ron's words helplessly and continued thinking.

"Maybe. We'll know when the Polyjuice Potion is ready." Hermione added an ingredient to the cauldron. Mia had kindly provided the ingredients; Hermione had originally planned to start an explosion in Potions Class on purpose and steal some, but Mia had stopped her in time.

There's no need for that. Really.

"Tell me, why are you brewing Polyjuice Potion in broad daylight? And in the girls' bathroom, too. Aren't you afraid someone will find you?" Ron looked at Harry and Hermione sitting on the floor, then at Mia, who was standing in the same position as him.

"No one comes here."

"Why?"

"Moaning Myrtle."

"Who?"

"Moaning Myrtle."

"Who's that?"

"I'm Moaning Myrtle!" A ghost emerged. "I wouldn't expect you to know me! Who would ever remember ugly, miserable, moping Moaning Myrtle? Aaaaah!!!!"

Mia covered her ears in pain. So loud!

Lockhart had recently started a Duelling Club. Mia usually wanted nothing to do with anything involving Lockhart, but when she heard it was a duelling club, she had to go.

She took Harry, Hermione and Ron along. It was a good thing, after all, and the best way to train their magical abilities.

"Oh no, I really don't want to go!" Ron wailed.

Quite a few people had come to the Duelling Club. It seemed everyone was interested in the activity.

"Do we have to be here? I feel like we'd be better off training in secret." Harry didn't think it seemed very reliable and spoke quietly to Mia.

Ron nodded vigorously. He certainly didn't trust Lockhart.

"I think he must have a good reason for doing this," Hermione argued.

"His reputation's already fallen apart like that, and you still haven't given up on him?" Ron looked at Hermione's infatuated expression in disbelief.

"Lockhart may be unreliable, but starting the Duelling Club is a good idea. This way, you can try facing different opponents." Mia explained her reasoning to them.

"Mm-hmm!" Hermione nodded vigorously.

"Really?" Harry couldn't shake a bad feeling. He kept feeling that someone was out to get him.

"Gather round, everyone! Come along, can you see me? Can you hear me?" Lockhart appeared in a flamboyant outfit.

The students gradually gathered around the central platform.

"In light of the dark events of recent weeks, Professor Dumbledore has permitted me to start this Duelling Club and take the opportunity to train you all, so that one day you may be able to protect yourselves as calmly as I do. For the full details, see my books."

"..." Mia had just been about to praise him.

With that, Lockhart unfastened his cloak and tossed it into the crowd. Mia dodged it in disgust, while the girl behind her who caught it screamed silently in excitement.

"Allow me to introduce my assistant, Professor Snape." Lockhart rolled up his sleeves and pointed to the other end of the platform, where a man in black robes appeared.

The students all craned their necks to look.

Professor? How on earth did Lockhart persuade Professor Snape to go along with him? Mia knew her professor never cared to bother with anyone.

"He has generously agreed to help me with a demonstration. Don't worry, young people, I'll return your Potions teacher to you in one piece afterward."

No, you should be worrying about whether you'll be in one piece.

The two men faced each other with wands in hand. After making the duelling gesture, they bowed, walked a certain distance with their backs to each other, then turned and raised their wands.

"One, two, three."

"Expelliarmus!"

No sooner had Lockhart finished counting than Snape sent him flying.

"Is he all right?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"Who cares?" Ron said, taking pleasure in his misfortune. Harry could barely keep from laughing too.

"An excellent demonstration, Professor Snape, but if I may say so, your intentions were rather obvious. If I had wanted to stop you, it would have taken no effort at all." Lockhart got up awkwardly and pretended nothing had happened.

You're being a little obvious about saving face, too. I suspect the professor definitely put a bit of personal feeling into that one, Mia thought silently.

"I think it would be best to teach the students how to block malicious spells first, Professor," Professor Snape said in a deep voice like a cello.

"An excellent suggestion, Professor Snape. Now, two students, please come up. Potter, Weasley, you two."

Professor Snape rejected that suggestion and put forward Draco from his own house instead.

But Mia hadn't expected that, when she had only meant to bring Harry and the others here to train, the snake Draco conjured would inadvertently expose Harry's ability to speak Parseltongue.

For a time, everyone in the school was saying Harry was the heir, and they began subtly isolating him.

"Professor?" After receiving a look from Snape, Mia left the club and headed straight for the dungeons.

"Potter is a Parselmouth?" Professor Snape truly hadn't known Harry could speak Parseltongue, nor had he expected Draco's trick to inadvertently expose Harry's ability.

"Yes. We found out before we turned eleven, when we went to the zoo on our cousin Dudley's birthday." Mia knew the whole school was isolating and shunning Harry, and she was beside herself with worry.

"Why can Harry speak Parseltongue?" Snape didn't understand. Harry and Mia were twins, yet Mia couldn't speak it. Besides, only Salazar's descendants could speak Parseltongue, and he was certain Lily wasn't one, and James Potter wouldn't have been either.

Mia couldn't tell Professor Snape that Harry was a Horcrux, because she shouldn't have known about Horcruxes.

"You may go for now. The Basilisk has begun attacking people recently, so be careful." For the time being, Professor Snape could only set the matter aside. The Basilisk was the more urgent concern now.

"I know." After leaving, Mia went to the library, where Harry, Hermione and Ron were.

The students who had been whispering fell silent the moment they saw Mia. Even if Harry really was the heir, no one dared bully him in front of her. Mia had fought to earn her reputation, and she was at the height of her fame; she was the one responsible for dealing with the aftereffects of the Cruciatus Curse.

Seeing the large empty space around Harry, Mia frowned deeply and walked over.

"Harry."

"Mia." Harry was uncomfortable sitting there. Their gazes pricked him like needles.

"Tsk." Seeing Harry like this, Mia felt a pang in her heart. Harry had inexplicably been burdened with being the Chosen One, yet no one had ever given him the respect due to the Chosen One.

"You're isolating and shunning your classmate over a rumor you don't even know is true. Don't you think that's stupid? I don't care what you think, but watch your eyes and your mouths. If anyone dares say anything out of line in front of Harry, I don't think you'll want to find out what happens."

Mia could bear being wronged herself, but she couldn't stand seeing her brother, her family, wronged.

Mia's words carried weight. She had a group of loyal followers behind her, and as long as she made her position clear, they would follow.

There were the families of the Cruciatus Curse victims, for example, and the people who had submitted to Mia's strength.

At the very least, after Mia said that, no one dared isolate Harry or talk about him anymore.