3 December 1992, Hogwarts
Neville still didn't know how things could get so wrong. As he looked at the snarling face of Snape, he knew that he was screwed. Snape has always been spiteful when it came to him, but this was different, this was more. It was like the boy who lived had crossed a line of sorts, and now he was out for blood.
What happened?
The potion should have lasted at least an hour, and Neville had timed it. They were inside the Slytherin common room for less than thirty minutes, and it took them ten minutes to sneak it in the first place. So, did Hermione somehow screw with the potion? It was a NEWT level potion after all, and the muggleborn was a second year, all things considered.
No, according to Hermione, it was exactly like it was supposed to be, and they had transformed perfectly into their targets. So, why did it stop working all of a sudden?
They had already gotten valuable information by tricking Potter. Hermione was right, that guy was a chump whenever it came to explaining things. It was a wonder how the guy ended up in Slytherin instead of Ravenclaw. That guy must have read more books than Hermione, especially considering how he kept showing her up whenever it came to knowledge.
Neville already knew that the muggleborn was going to run to the library next to confirm what he had said about the founders, as well as trying to overcome the unspoken challenge of finding what the monster of Slytherin was.
What really interested Neville was the fact that he somehow already figured out that he was a Parselmouth before he himself knew. It was obvious, now that he thought about it, but it did confirm that Hermione wasn't exaggerating when it came to Potter's intelligence.
To be completely honest, Neville didn't know how to feel about his godbrother. He just seemed so beyond him, so far away from him in terms of both personality and magic. It irritated him at first, but now, it was just intimidating to just speak with him. It felt less like asking Hermione for some help, and more like asking Dumbledore of all people. The Longbottom scion really wanted to connect with him, but he was so out of reach, that Neville was scared to make the first move.
Of course, Ron just hated the guy on principle. He was a Slytherin, thus he was a slimy snake that couldn't be trusted. That guy really had his priorities backwards, if he had any priorities other than Quidditch, chess, and fighting Malfoy. But Malfoy didn't count; he was a prick, and it was surprising how little he was regarded in his own house.
Neville's grandmother had drilled him countless times about being observant in political situations, and well, the Slytherin common room reminded him a lot about these lessons. What was interesting was the fact that Malfoy was shunned in Slytherin. It wasn't something he expected at all. The Malfoys always looked untouchable from the outside, but it seemed like the house was as annoyed as the rest of the school was when it came to the blonde ponce. You could see it in the way they all huddled away from him whenever he sat down. Malfoy probably thought it was some kind of sign of respect, but Neville knew. His housemates did the same to him, ever since he was revealed to be a Parselmouth.
Also, the fact that Malfoy was reprimanded for saying the word Mudblood and supporting the heir of Slytherin, and they had even contacted his mother. Now, that was worth the trip on its own. And the information they had gotten was practically a gold mine. They now knew that the chamber of secrets was opened before, around fifty years back to be more specific and that the petrifications happened as well, but it ended when a student died, and, according to Potter, someone was framed for it.
The real heir must be the descendant of whoever had opened the chamber fifty years ago. If they knew who was responsible in the past, they could track down their descendants and figure out who had done it as well. The conversation with Malfoy, on the other hand, was pretty lacklustre. All they had learned was that Lucius Malfoy had told him to let the heir be and that the Malfoy hid most of their dark artefacts in a secret room under the drawing room floor, which was why the Auror raids never found anything. Ron looked excited to owl that little fact to his father.
Unfortunately, they were all preoccupied with the whole disguise falling apart and them being attacked thing. Yeah, that wasn't fun.
In mere minutes, Snape was called into the room, with his billowing cloak behind him, and Neville found himself in the potion master's office with his best friends. Ron looked as pale as a ghost, and Hermione looked like she was having a nervous breakdown.
"Professor," Neville started.
He was immediately interrupted by the Slytherin Head of House, "Mr Longbottom, I have literally found you trespassing into a common room that isn't your own, in stolen Slytherin robes, having drunk an illegal potion, that could have easily poisoned you with the slightest mistake, a potion that you brewed with ingredients that I recognize to be missing from my stores. There is nothing that you could say would not make it worse. So, as your professor, I am advising you to stay quiet and not say anything that will probably end up hurting you in the long run. Most unfortunately, you are not in my House and the decision to expel you does not rest with me. I shall go and fetch the people who do have that happy power. You will wait here. I do not want to hear your voice at any moment before my return."
.....
Want to read ahead by more than 60 chapters. Then join my p@treon Right Now.
Link: p*atreon.com/BookReaderBoy (Remove the *)
Also Free members get 2 advanced chapters for Free as well.