Title: Slytherin Harry

Chapter One: An Ally

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter so please don't sue me

Info: I am a free writer, I am not on a schedule, so updates will be infrequent, don't like don't read

Info: There may be graphic depiction of various subjects some people may be uncomfortable with, such as sex, death, and or betrayal. Don't like, don't read.

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Bold – Parseltongue

Normal – Normal Speech

Italics – Important/Emphasized

Underline – Store Titles

Double Underline – Personal Titles

Dark Underline - Spells

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Harry was outside weeding aunt Petunia's garden. He was hot, dirty, and most of all thirsty, but he was not allowed to have anything to drink until he had finished weeding the garden. Aunt Petunia always claimed that she had the most beautiful garden in their entire community, but in truth it was all Harry's hard work that made it possible. He planted the plants, took care of them, watered them, added the fertilizer, and everything else. All his aunt ever did was watch over him like she was the warden of a maximum security prison whenever she was outside to make sure he did not do anything freakish.

Harry had always hated his family but never could do anything about the way they treated him. His uncle loved insulting him, and 'disciplining' him whenever he did anything that was abnormal, or against the rules. He remembered on time when he was in class and his teacher kept yelling at him for not turning in his homework, even though he told her that Dudley his cousin had destroyed it on purpose, but no she did not care about that and continued yelling at him until he just snapped. In that instant her hair mysteriously turned blue. He remembered the lashings he got from his uncle for that little move, but Harry did not care for he knew why his uncle hated him so. It was because he could use some sort of supernatural power, and if the Dursley's hated one thing it was things that were abnormal.

Harry practiced trying to harness these powers by trying to copy TV shows, books, legends, or anything he could get his hands on since reading was one of Harry's few comforts. He would always go to the library and just read anything that interested him at the time. So far Harry had only a limited amount of success. He couldn't do any of the big magical feats he saw on tv, but there were a few things he had been able to pull off.

"God, why do I have to weed the old prunes garden in the middle of the freaking day" asked Harry, as he continued to pull weeds. That was when he heard a strange voices coming from behind him. When Harry looked back he saw a foot long garden snake that had a look that Harry could have sworn looked like curiosity.

"Ok now I know I am going crazy. I must be having a heat stroke from all of this sunlight." Harry grumbled to himself before looking back at the garden. That's when that voice spoke again.

"So you are a speaker." The voice held an obvious amount of amazement in its tone.

Harry looked at the snake for about five minutes before he was able to snap out of his stupor and ask probably the most obvious question anyone could ask in that situation. "Did you just speak?"

"Of course I did. Do you see anyone else out of here" asked the snake. It was looking at him with a calculating look, and Harry did not know why he was not bothered by a snake talking to him, or eyeing him.

"Oh, sorry I just am not use to snakes talking to me. Are you some kind of special snake or am I just having a heat stroke?" He was not entirely sure if he was just hallucinating or he had somehow developed a new power that let him talk to reptiles or maybe it was just snakes.

"I am just a regular garden snake, but my cousin is a half breed. He is half viper, half Runespoor and believe me he just loves to rub it in" replied the snake, with a bit of annoyance in his voice, although Harry was trying to figure out how it was possible to decipher something like that from a snake.

"How can I understand you if you are just a regular snake, and what do you mean magical?"

Questions began to form in his mind. He wanted to know why it was he could use magic and no one ever told him. He guessed that his aunt and uncle prevented any such attempt, but still it seemed too important for their denial to prevent him from learning. In a split second he began to wonder if there were others like him, and if so how many were there. His final question was if his parents were the same as he was.

"You are a Parselmouth. A Parselmouth is a witch or wizard that can speak to snakes. It is exceptionally rare for a person to have this gift. The last person who wielded it became very powerful, and equally feared. You are very lucky to have been born with this power, and you could become even luckier if you can find yourself a powerful serpentine familiar." Harry didn't feel very special as the snake partially ignored in in favor of eyeing a small mouse not too far away.

Having a million questions forming in his mind and no patience to be ignored by another sentient being Harry's anger began to bubble in the pit of his stomach. This he had learned was the best method of harnessing his powers. Extending his hand he made a grasping motion that restrained the small mouse. It tried to scuttle away, but the force holding it was too strong. With a deft motion he pulled it in closer and offered it up to the snake. It looked at him funny, so he crushed its neck. Satisfied the snake ate its prey in one satisfying gulp.

"Now that I have your full attention, could you explain this familiar business to me?" Excitement was taking the place of annoyance as something good was finally starting to happen in his life.

The snake eyed him lazily for a moment before replying to him. "A familiar is basically a wizard's non-human partner that they have bonded with. Once bonded I hear that the wizard and familiar gain some kind of mental link although my cousin never explained it to me on what level the link is. He also told me that the wizard becomes stronger after gaining a familiar and that the familiar itself gains new abilities from being bonded." As it spoke the snake coiled up in the sunlight enjoying the sensation of digesting a free meal.

"Would you like to be my familiar?" He wanted to get stronger faster, and this familiar business sounded like the way to go. Being able to speak to snakes sounded like a rare ability, so having a snake familiar only sounded natural to him.

"No. As much as I would like to be your familiar, as I could be, I must decline. You are a wizard, a wizard that can speak to snakes to boot, so you need a powerful familiar that you will benefit the most from" spoke the snake as it looked around to make sure there were no potential predators in the area.

"I need to get stronger faster, and this familiar business sounds like the way to go. If you will not be my familiar then will you at least help me find a magical snake that will?" asked Harry. He did not like the idea of just stumbling across a magical snake and then convincing it to be his familiar, even if he would benefit more from it, it was impossible to tell how long it would be before he would actually run into one.

"I do know a few, but I do not think I could stand hearing their bragging. Plus, they are not that strong so you will not benefit much from them." If the speaker asked him he would instantly agree to be his familiar, but he knew that a speaker should have only the best possible familiar, and he was most defiantly not going to give that honor over to his unworthy half breed of a cousin.

"Then what should I do? You say you are not fit to be my familiar, and you do not know of any who could fill that role, so basically I am stuck until I can find a strong magical snake and convince it to bond with me." The annoyance in his tone was starting to leak through. He wanted power, and he was not easily deterred from perusing it when he wanted something.

"Instead of finding a magical serpent to become your familiar, why don't you just make one" asked the serpent like it was the most common thing in the entire world.

"How on earth am I going to make a snake" asked Harry. The idea that a snake could be made started to raise question in his head once more. If his kind could make living beings then he was seriously starting to wonder just power powerful they were. Even he never though himself capable of making life outside of the normal biological way. "And for that matter how do you know how to make one?"

"All snakes know how to make the king of serpents" spoke the snake with an air of finality.

"King of snakes? What is that?" Now that was interesting. He did not know that there was such a thing as a king of snakes.

"Yes, surely you and the muggles have heard of the mighty basilisk before." Its scales must have gotten too warm as instead it slithered under some underbrush for the shade to cool down.

"What is a muggle, and yes I have heard of the legendary basilisk. What is your point?"

He glanced back at the house for a moment. Seeing no one checking in on him he sighed in relief. He leaned over and made it look like he was working. It would not do to have his aunt and uncle come outside and see him not working. Worse of all if they heard him speaking to a snake.

"A muggle is a human that cannot use magic, and my point is that if you make a basilisk then you can have the most powerful serpent familiar in the entire world. As its creator it will naturally hold a bond with you. If you are the first one it sees then it will imprint upon you. And seeing as it is still young it is more pliable and as such more easily to be convinced to join in the Familiar Contract."

The snake eyed the wizard before it. It did not speak of creating a snake king lightly, as almost every single person who had ever created a serpent king had died. It considered not telling him how to make the serpent king. There was a Runespoor not too far away. It would make a good familiar. But, as he looked at the boy, he saw the fire in his eyes. That fire had convinced the snake to trust in his resolve. Only someone with a drive that powerful could stand on a serpent king's level as an equal.

"So if I make this Serpent King then I will become much more powerful and the snake will benefit as well?" He was in shock at how great today had been for him. He learned that what he was doing was magic, that he had some special gift even amongst his own kind, and that he might become even more powerful thanks to gaining a familiar.

"Yes, but be warned. Creating a Serpent king is not something I would ever recommend for anyone who was not a speaker." The seriousness of its tone had Harry's full attention.

"I do not know what you know about the Serpent King, but it is true that if you look into the eyes of a grown basilisk you will die instantly. Even a new born basilisk has the ability to petrify any who look into their eyes. They also have the most powerful venom know to snake kind. Only the tears of a phoenix can cure basilisk venom. Unless you have such an incredibly rare resource on hand you are sure to die." Harry was already making a mental list of everything the snake was telling him.

"You will have to be very careful, because the basilisk will have to bite you to become his familiar, but you must make sure that he agrees to it first. If he does not agree then it will be a bite to kill, instead to bond." The idea of being bitten by the most dangerous snake in the world did not appeal to Harry at all. Still, he wasn't going to back down.

"The thing you need to remember though is to close your eyes as soon as the egg starts to hatch. Even a newborn basilisk will still petrify you even if it is not on purpose. All it would take is a single glance." It wanted to give the speaker as much info as it could so that he did not end up sending the boy to his doom.

The snake talked with Harry for a while longer answering as many questions as it could. When it became apparent that the little snake's knowledge was very limited Harry let him go about his business in peace. He absent mindedly went back to work while the bulk of his mental faculties were spent going through everything he had learned.

That night as his relatives were sleeping Harry pulled out two pieces of metal he had learned to pick locks with. After several minutes of painstakingly slow work he was able to unlock all the bolts on his door. He made sure to relock them behind him in case anyone woke up. His uncle and cousin were known to frequent the kitchen at all hours of the night while his aunt had a weak bladder. It horrified him to know these things.

He made a b-line straight for the nearest golf course. The little snake had told him the three things he needed to create a basilisk was a live chicken egg, a toad, and time. He had plenty of time but none of the other two things. Realizing that getting a live chicken egg in the suburbs was next to impossible he figured he would improvise and see what that got him. If it all went to hell then he would just have to find a live chicken egg one way or the other.

In the small pounds that dotted the golf course were flocks of ducks. Harry figured ducks and chickens were similar enough to one another that using either's egg shouldn't make too much of a difference. The ducks who protected these eggs thought differently. He had to bite back some serious fear that grew inside his gut as he tried to pilfer on of their eggs. Things only got worse as a security guard showed up to investigate all the squawking. Luckily he had been able to grab one of the eggs and dive underwater long enough for the security guard to give up and drive away on his golf cart. The ducks chased him for a while, but eventually he got away.

One thing he never thought he would have trouble finding was a toad. There always seemed to be one everywhere, yet as luck would have it, this time Harry wouldn't find a single one. Eventually he gave up as the night sky began to grow lighter. With the sun on its way Harry found a massive green frog sticking to a wall catching flies flying about a porch light and grabbed it before heading home. He used the same thinking for the frog as he did the duck egg. Hopefully everything would come out alright.

When he got back to his aunt and uncle's home he peered into the window discretely to see if any of them were awake. After seeing that the coast was clear he slipped inside. Unlocking his room from the outside was much easier than the inside. Once the door was closed behind him he turned on his desk light so he could see. Fishing out some duct tape he secured the tree frog onto the egg. It would take some time and he didn't need it going anywhere.

Once the frog was secure he hid it away in his desk. The last thing he needed was any of his relatives seeing what was going on. No doubt they would think him a lune and send him off to some mental hospital.

Over the months Harry would collect insects and worms from his aunt Patunia's garden during the times he was tending to it. The frog seemed happy enough as it was getting a free meal, but the lack of movement meant Harry had to clean it and the egg, as the cupboard would without a doubt start to stink if he did not. It was a fowl task, but one he did without complaint. The reward would no doubt outweigh the cost.

After six months of feeding, watering, and cleaning up after the frog the egg finally started to hatch. Seeing this, Harry immediately closed his eyes. He heard the cracking of the duck's eggshell, then some hissing, followed by some movement, before the sound of air rushing out of something followed by a faint croak. Harry could only assume that the basilisk had made a meal of the one that had been forced to be its sitter. After a few moments Harry decided it was time to start communicating with the kind of serpents.

"Did you enjoy your meal?" Although he felt stupid for asking as it did sound neither smart nor cleaver, but apparently the snake did not mind.

"Yes, it shall hold me over for a while, but eventually I shall hunger once more, and need to eat again." It was surprised a human could speak the language of the snakes.

As a magical snake it new instinctively everything a newborn snake did on top of several other things. The first was about itself. It knew of the potent venom in its fangs, how deadly his eyes were, and how resilient its hide was to damage both mundane and magical. Then of course there was what all snakes knew, magical or not, and that was the speakers.

"Well I am happy you liked your first meal, but there is a reason why I made you. I wish for you to be my familiar. I am under the understanding that we will both benefit from this arrangement so I see no real reason not to go ahead and do it." He tried to make the basilisk see how beneficial this agreement was.

"That is true" spoke the basilisk. It eyed him considering his offer. "Perhaps it is for the best. I am already at the pinnacle of my species… perhaps with you I could go even further."

A wave of joy rushed up Harry's spine at the snake's acceptance. Six months of effort, time, and anticipation had gone into this endeavor. The risk alone was enough of a problem let alone everything else. Had he been rejected there would have been great disappointment. Then there was the possibility of him being killed by the snake. Or if he got the chance him killing the snake in frustration.

Harry rolled up his sleeve and presented his wrist in the direction the snake's voice had come from. There was some faint movement before two small pin pricks pierced his skin. The bite was only an annoyance but the sensation of liquid fire being poured into his veins soon took his mind off of it. He desperately grabbed something at random, a book, and put the spine in his mouth. His uncle was at work, and his cousin was out with his bully friends, but his aunt was still in the house. He could not scream out in pain without alerting her.

He bit back the pain but it only continued to spread. Never in his entire life had he felt such agony before. It was only his rough home life that had partially prepared him for such pain. Yet, as it crept through his body, a new pain started to form.

A throbbing started to echo in his head. Pressure seemed to be building up in his skull to the point that he was scare it was explode. His teeth were clenching down on the book so hard now that they had pierced through the wood covering down into the pages beneath. As the venom spread the pain of both only increased.

Black spots began to form in his vision. He was sure he was going to die at any moment. It wouldn't be long before he hoped it did for the pain was simply unimaginable. Then, as the venom entered his brain, a hollow scream emanated from somewhere in the room. At first he thought it was coming from him, but soon realized that it wasn't.

Reaching up he could feel the lightning bolt scare on his forehead vibrating as if it were the one screaming. Even through the pain he could feel something liquid pouring from the scar covering half his face. In his vision not clouded by black spots he could see that whatever the ichor was it was not blood. It was thick and black almost like tar and smell most foul.

After seeing the ichor Harry was sure he was going to die. Just as his body was about to rip itself apart he began to fight back. He refused to be kowtowed anymore. He pushed back against both the pain, the venom, and whatever it was coming from his scar with the full might of his soul. Every ounce of his being railed against this ignoble fate refusing for his story to end so sadly.

Just as his resolve seemed to be falter a sound like glass shattering in the background reverberated from within his head. In an instant the burning sensation in his blood cooled into a pleasant flow that nursed his wounds. Yet, he barely noticed this as shadows seemed to explode from his forehead flying around the room creating leering faces at him before disappearing like mist. Voices had come from them yet he could not understand what they said before they were gone.

As the darkness took ahold of him he noticed his aunt rushing into his room. He cursed the shadows whatever they were for alerting her to whatever unnaturalness he was doing. Then, everything went dark, and Harry Potter passed out exhausted from a long day.

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As Harry's eyes opened everything was white. He blinked a few times getting rid of the residual sleep. As he leaned forward his body tensed up. Every muscle in his body was sore for some reason. That was when the memories from the previous day hit him like a freight train. Looking around he was shocked beyond words to discover himself in a hospital.

Harry could count on one hand the number of times he had been brought to a hospital. He couldn't count the number of times he had needed to on both hands and both feet. For them to have brought him here meant his condition was fatal. Yet the kindness of his relatives for not wanting him to die in a way that inconvenienced them was seconded to his immediate question. Where was the basilisk?

A definitively male voice hissed in his ears. "It seems you survived the bonding. I guess that makes me your familiar. Congratulations are in order I suppose."

Turning over Harry was shocked to see the small serpent staring at him from under a chair. Its yellow eyes stared up at him from the darkness. Even the shadows could not hide the leaf green scales that covered its body. It reminded him of the tree frog that had incubated it. He briefly wondered if it had something to do with it. As its head lifted he realized that its belly scales were white. All in all it was about four inches long and could hardly be distinguished from your common variety garden snake.

Looking down he saw a black tattoo of a snake coiling around his wrist biting its own tail. It was a tribal tattoo with there being a small gap in between each scale. It was quite beautiful in its own way. Yet it was the hum of magic he sensed in it that really drew in his attention.

He went to pop his back, but something odd happened. His spin bent back far more than it should have. His bones around his ribs flexed to accommodate this motion as well. As he sat up once more they all went back in place. Tentatively he pushed on his ribs with his fingers feeling them flex. Yet as he did so he took note that they were not weak. They would give, but they would not break. Looking over at the hiding snake a thought popped in his head.

"I think more about me has changed than first anticipated." The snake looked at him oddly and he repeated himself using the snake language. He went to take off his glasses to rub his eyes, but noticed they were not on his face. Realizing he could see perfectly without the glasses drew a grin to his face. "I'm already seeing the benefits." He looked at the snake. "Bad pun intended." It just continued to stare at him.

Harry didn't elaborate. His mind was focused on a new goal. He knew that to go back to the Dursleys would surely result in a fierce welcome home reception. Having to be admitted to the hospital alone was bad enough, but if they were aware of any of the magic he was doing then it was possible he wouldn't survive the night. That was not an option he was willing to concede to. He could kill them, make it look like an accident, perhaps the basilisk would be able to do it, but it would cause too much suspicion. At the moment it was best to play it safe.

Looking towards the door he noticed it was partially open. The nurse who was to check on him wasn't at her desk. After a moment he made his decision. His appearance quickly began to shift. Soon after only a few moments he looked like someone else entirely. His hair was blond, his eyes blue, and his skin tan. He now looked like a young adult in his mid-twenties. The only thing he couldn't change was the hospital gown they had him in.

Standing up he walked over to where the snake was hiding. Stretching out his hand he made a come here motion. The snake slithered into his hand and up his arm resting on his shoulder. It hid its head though if one were to look closely enough a golden eye could be see peeking out next to his collar bone.

Together they walked out of the hospital glancing around. After they got to the lobby a certain voice caused him to stop in his tracks. He saw Dudley banging on a vending machine cursing it like a petulant child. What Harry was really interested in was Petunia's purse lying on the floor behind him. It didn't take long for Harry to realize that his aunt must have given his cousin her purse so he could go buy whatever snacks he wanted from the vending machines. Obviously one of them had taken some of his money which was distracting him.

Seeing a golden opportunity he walked up behind his cousin as silently as possible. Looking around and seeing that they were all alone he knelt down and opened the purse up silently. Digging through his aunt's plane collection of makeup supplies he found the shopping money she always kept on her. A couple of twenties, some ones, and some change. He pocketed it all before slowly backing away. Once he was sure Dudley wouldn't find out what he did he turned on his heels and walked right out of the hospital.

A guard tried to stop him, but he just ignored him. Walking outside he flagged down a taxi. His plans were to go to Diagon Alley, but he needed some clothes first. Knowing his aunt and uncle would be at the hospital with Dudley meant he had plenty of time to ransack their home for everything it was worth.

XXX

The leaky caldron was a rather dingy looking English bar. It had all of the traits required to be an old English bar as well. It was old, in an old English style, very dark and dank, smelled of bad alcohol and cheap cigars, plus the bar tender was cleaning one of those old timey mugs that they use to sell ale in repeatedly. He never once put it down, and only glanced at it and continued trying to clean it with what Harry could only assumed was a dirty rag by the looks of it. Harry walked right up to the man, and asked him a question that would make or break this trip.

"Hey I am looking for Diagon Alley, but I can't seem to find it. Could you help me" asked Harry, as he looked at the man with a serious look, which caused his eyes to glow slightly.

The man looked down at the boy. He was a little below average height for a student about to attend Hogwarts but he just figured he was a late bloomer. The boy was dressed in rags which made the bartender believe he was from an orphanage probably due to the last wizard war with he-who-should-not-be-name. The boy had uncontrollable black hair, but the most remarkable green eyes he had ever seen. They reminded him of something but he could just not place his finger on it. After a few seconds he showed the boy how to get into Diagon alley and then left the kid to his own devices.

Both Harry, and his new familiar where amazed at what they saw. There were kids probably a year older than him running around looking like Christmas had come early, and honestly Harry could see why. There were all kind of amazing things just flying around, animals where all over the place, and there were people who were just smiling like they were remembering when they first came here. Harry overheard some people talking about going to some place called Gringots to retrieve some money. Harry instantly perked up at this, and began to follow them.

When the people stopped they were in front of a large white building that made Harry thing of the White House in America, with the words GRINGOTS in big gold letters on the front of it. After admiring it for a few seconds Harry walked in. He was shocked at what he was seeing. There were these creatures that he had never seen before counting what looked like gold coins. Harry stood transfixed for a few moments, before he caught up with the people he had followed in who he assumed was there for relatively the same reasons he was. After waiting for a few moments he heard the creature sitting at the podium call "NEXT", which prompted Harry to scurry in front of him.

"Reason for coming hear" asked the creature, although it never looked up from the papers it was writing on, but Harry assumed it was waiting for him to speak his reason for being it its kind's bank.

"Uhm, well you see sir my name is Harry Potter, and my parents died when I was born. I was wondering if they had any assets that they left behind that I may acquire." He tried to use big words to sound important to these creatures who Harry felt were like some kind of land shark.

The creature looked down at him with what Harry assumed was curiosity, but the look soon disappeared and was replaced by a more business look, but the feeling of being surrounded by sharks did not disappear.

"Do you have your key" asked the creature.

"Key? No sir I do not have any key, as I was never given one." He was wondering where that key was now that he knew it existed.

"Well Mr. Potter since you do not have your key you will just have to take a blood test to see if you really are the Heir of the House of Potter. Please follow me, and do not fall behind." Its snap had Harry scurrying behind him.

Harry found it hard to believe the creature could out pace him, but soon found him-self almost jogging to keep up with the creatures impressive walking speed. When they stopped they were in front of a large office that Harry assumed was the creature's office. When they got in there the creature pulled out a piece of parchment and an odd quill.

"Please pick your finger and allow the blood to drop onto the parchment. The parchment is magically enchanted and will tell us who you are related to." As he sat down he folded his fingers and looked at Harry with a look that only a shark that smelled blood could do.

Harry quickly pricked his finger, but as soon as the blood hit the paper healed it. The creature looked at him oddly but did not say anything about it. It quickly took the paper, and began to look at it. It looked oddly excited, or at least that was what Harry assumed the emotion the creature was performing. After a few minutes it put down the parchment and gave Harry a piercing stare.

"Well Mr. Potter you are full of surprises are you not." Harry looked at him inquisitively. It ignored him. "To have five titles is almost unheard of. You are indeed the heir to the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter. In turn you have been named the sole heir to the previously believed extinct Most Ancient and Noble House of Peverell. You have inherited the somewhat useless Ancient House of Gaunt as well. You have been named the heir to Sirius Black who himself is the head of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black. Then there is the Most Ancient and Noble House of Slytherin which has become a figurative house over the years."

"I suppose those are some important families?" He let the question hang in the air for several seconds.

"Oh yes some of the most important and influential families in all of Europe actually. They were and most still are very rich." The way the goblin banker spoke practically oozed greed. Whatever other impression he might have of them this would always be their defining trait in his eyes.

"So then do I have access to them, or is there something I have to do to get that access?" This creature seemed chalk full of information regarding law and money and Harry was going to milk it for all it was worth.

"That depends on each of the houses. Your parents set up a certain amount of money you would be able to draw from each year from an account that holds interest from the main vaults. It is by far more than enough to pay for the next seven years you will be going to Hogwarts, but nothing compared to what is in the main vaults." The creature flicked through several files. "The other houses are a different story. As you are the only known living descendent of the House of Peverell you theoretically have the right to full access. The same could be said about the House of Slytherin and Gaunt. Unfortunately the age of majority states that a lord may only take up his house responsibilities upon the age of majority. But, there is also a second law that states that a minor may take up the responsibilities of his house if he is the only living member left."

Harry just sat back letting this tidal wave of information wash over him. Yet, he felt calm. In a strange way his mind was already running through ways to use this knowledge to his advantage. It was odd as he never really thought like that before. How or why his mind was almost instinctively weighing the benefits against the cost was strange yet not unwelcome. He was on his own now and this type of thought would prove wise if he wanted to survive.

"What would happen if I were to take up my titles and responsibilities?"

The creature gave him a pointed look. "Then you would be held responsible for all of the investments your houses have made. You would have to attend government meetings and give your input. Your word in the Ministry would affect the lives of most the magical communities in England." He went to say more, but Harry cut across him.

"That is enough thank you." The goblin gave him a curt nod of the head, but nothing more.

Harry thought for a moment. "You implied that some of the titles held less sway than the others. What did you mean by that?"

"The lordship of the Ancient House of Gaunt means very little. You get one vote in the Ministry of Magic as well as Wizengamot. The vaults are practically empty. They have no holdings. Besides the small amount of power in the government the house is practically worthless." He shifted through some more files. "As for the Most Ancient and Noble House of Slytherin it is much the same way. Years of fools burnt through all the money ages ago, and although it is one of the founding houses of Hogwarts there is very little power it has over the institute. Even less considering the problems it caused for the other two founders. It does get two votes in the Ministry and Wizengamot, but other than that there is not much use for it."

"So if I decided to take up these two houses I wouldn't have to deal with any of the other issues that come with being the head of a house?"

"You do not technically have to vote in the Ministry of Wizengamot, though you will be asked. So, no, there will be few if any responsibilities asked of you if you were to take up these two houses."

"Then I shall become the Lord of these two houses now. Perhaps they will come in handy later."

The goblin agreed and left a moment later. After a few minutes he returned holding old boxes done up in silver and green. In one case was the ring of House Slytherin. It was silver with a snake them over a beautifully cut emerald. The Gaunt ring was much the same though a lesser of the two. Instead of an emerald however there was a jet.

"These two should come in hand, but I do not think I am ready for such responsibilities of the others." He paused. "I think it would be wiser to wait until I have graduated from Hogwarts before taking on such a huge burden."

"Power always comes with a price tag" commented the goblin.

"Agreed," replied Harry. After a moment he started up again. "I would like to make a few requests." The goblin nodded his head. "First, I want that key destroyed. I do not know who has it, but I don't like the idea of strangers having access to my only source of income. Second, do you have bank cards or do you have to carry your money in pouches? Finally, do you have any recommendations regarding access to stores of knowledge, such as a library or book store?"

"You need not worry Heir Potter. Though another has a key to your vault his access is not acknowledged by this bank. But, if you so desire, we will ensure the key is destroyed." He moved some paperwork around. "As for a bank card we have been experimenting with such a thing. So far it has not been widely accepted as the humans prefer the method they already use, but if you desire it then there is no issue granting you this service."

The goblin leaned forward and began scribbling something on a piece of parchment. He slid it to Harry who picked it up and read it over. "The top list are for the standard pursuer of knowledge. Those looking for more esoteric knowledge may find what they are looking for in one of the shops listed below. That beings said what you plan on doing with this knowledge or what happens to you while looking for it is not a responsibility I or this bank accept. Do we understand one another?" The goblin gave Harry a menacing look.

To its surprise Harry's own killer green eyes stared back just as fiercely with a sly grin on his face. "Of course, this is just business." In a second Harry could have sworn he saw a tint of respect in the goblin's eyes before it vanished completely.

"So true," began the goblin. "As you have decided not to take up your position as lord to any of your hereditary or conquest based titles you will not be given access to any manor, villa, or business they might own. But, as you are still a much respected customer of this bank certain amenities will be extended to you for family's years of loyal patronage."

Harry thanked him, but informed him he didn't need much. A room of his own that had the basic living utilities was all he needed at the moment. Later on he would move on up in the world, but as he stood wasting any resources was not an option. The goblin seemed to understand what he was trying to say. Thirty minutes later he was back in the Leaky Cauldron with a one bedroom apartment all to himself.

It had one bedroom with a standard sized bed pressed nicely with blue and white sheets. The walls were a standard vanilla color with a rug passed over the stone floor. The kitchen and living room were one feature, but that wasn't an issue. His greatest joy was the indoor plumbing. He had been fearful that these magic users still operated medieval toilet operations. Seeing as there was even toilet paper he figured things wouldn't be too different from what he was used to. In fact they were already a hundred times better.

"Would you stop admiring your now living conditions?" Harry looked down at his familiar questioningly. "I can feel how much you wish to go looking around."

"Before we get to that you need a name." Harry gently picked up the baby basilisk and held him in his hands. "Now what would be a good name for you?"

"That is pointless in this moment" replied the snake in a somewhat lazy tone. "You created me, you are the one I agreed to enter a familiar contract with, and you are the speaker. Whatever you decide will be fine."

Harry thought for a moment. "How about Herpo? The name comes from the man who first created the basilisk race."

The snake hummed to itself for a moment before bobbing its head up and down. "Yes, that does seem a fitting name."

"Good, then we have an accord." Harry put the snake back on his shoulder as a grin worked its way onto his face. "You know what? I think this is the start of something great."

"Agreed."