I hugged her close to me, finally feeling her tears when she buried her face in my neck for a moment. Then we let go and she squeezed my hand in support one last time before leaving.

Hermione Granger. She might be the first real friend in this world.

On the contrary there was Theodore Nott, my next visitor. He wasn't a friend, he was a follower and upon hearing he had come I had known immediately that he was the representative of all my Slytherins.

Theodore closed the door behind him, looked around to check if we were alone and pulled out his wand to draw a privacy ward. Only then did he bow his head in respect for me.

"My Lord", he said and waited for my answer.

"Report", was all I said.

Something like relief flickered over his face. I had always been a strong leader. Nothing could shake me up. Me being shipped off to Azkaban must have damaged the very foundations of their beliefs. But me giving out commands was a piece of normalcy and that was what he needed.

"The school is in a chaos. All the victims could be cured but no one saw an attacker. Everyone now beliefs you to be the one who attacked the muggleborns during to that bloodtraitor Weasley making a scene in the middle of the Great Hall. Rumors went from there and made you to not only be a parselmouth and the heir of Slytherin but also a dragon breeder, fiancé of a naga girl, apprentice of the Dark Lord and a whole lot of other ridiculous stuff. Some stupid Slytherin first year blabbed about you being the Hogwarts founder Salazar Slytherin himself reborn who came back to purge his school of all the muggleborns. The older years have been pestering us for details but we have been holding back as much as possible, not forming a clear opinion. We wanted to wait for your commands first.

Assaults of other houses have increased in numbers. Professor Snape is a great help but he too seems to think you the one responsible. The headmaster made a speech the day after you were arrested. He told us you were entirely innocent and only went down to the chamber to save the girl but were too late. He also said the real culprit was captured and no danger anymore but he didn't name anyone. Of course those words sent contradicted messages.

Lucius Malfoy has offered his help in your trial. He is displeased that your lawyer wouldn't even let him speak to you. He was the first to hear that there wouldn't be a trial at all and told Draco. We decided that only one of us was going to visit you in case you wanted to distance Slytherin house from the latest events."

I nodded approvingly. "You have done well. I want you to deliver the following message to my nest of fellow snakes, consisting of Malfoy, Zabini, Greengrass, Hopkins, Davis but also Turpin and Longbottom. I was not the one to kill Ginerva Weasley. She was being possessed by a spirit who had been chained to a dark artifact. She was the one who opened the chamber. She forced the guardian of Slytherin, who is normally a peaceful creature, to follow her commands and attack the muggleborns. I was able to defeat said spirit but it had already taken her life. The guardian of Slytherin has been misused. He was supposed to protect our house only. During the founding days muggleborns were an actual threat to the school, if not by intention then by association. I will not approve of innocent young children being violated, no matter how dirty the blood in their veins might be. The so called heir, who was just a halfblood himself by the way, did not only attack students, he also desecrated an ancient and incredibly valuable place. A place that I consider rightfully mine. When I went down there my priority was not to save the girl but to destroy the spirit and that is exactly what I did.

Me going to Azkaban has not actually anything to do with it. My reasons for going there instead of waiting for a trial or paying a fee are my own and will probably never become clear to you. All you have to know that everything is going according to plan."
"What are we to tell the other students?"
"For our enemies from the other houses: Remind them that the guardian of Slytherin is not dead. He is very much alive and he's pissed. Remind them that with the heir gone it's only a matter of time before he goes on a rampage and that fighting against those he has been sent to protect will not help their case if they want to survive.

For our fellow snakes: Tell them the rumor is true. And no, not the one of my having a a naga fiancé." And who even got the idea? Naga were human like creatures with the lower body of a snake. Until now I had thought they were only myth, even in the wizarding world. "I am indeed a parselmouth and a descendent of Slytherin. This is a fact that can actually be checked by whoever I chose to prove a point to. As for the other rumors feel free to strengthen them. Be creative in inventing some more. Make sure nobody knows what to believe anymore by the time I get back. Make me a Dark Lord who's getting rid of concurrence, make me the devil himself out to eat your souls, I don't care, but don't make me a mudblood hater. To assume I would have such petty prejudices is an insult to my intelligence."

"We will do as you say. What should we do about Granger and the twins?"

"I've already talked to Granger and you can sent in the twins after you're gone. I do not expect there to be many problems. Now tell me how the club's going."

"The show that was planned at the end of the year was canceled, as were further Quidditch games and the exams. However less people then we would've expected actually dropped out. Zabini stooped holding Outtakes after the Clearwater girl was attacked. It might be possible to continue those for the rest of the school year if Granger called the crowd together."

"Tell her to do so. It is important for us not to lose any more ground. The dueling sessions should only continue if many people outside of the nest wish for it. Otherwise I still expect you to practice on your own."
"I will relay the message."

"Good. You're dismissed."

After Nott was gone I had a minute to brace myself for the next encounter. I hadn't had a chance yet to determine whenever or not the Weasley twins believed Rons version of the story or not. Losing them, worse yet, making them my enemy, could be disastrous.

But when the twins entered they didn't look about to throttle me. They were looking only slightly better then their father, their usual grin missing and their heads bowed as if a heavy weight pulled them down. But I couldn't detect actual anger with them.

"Morning, Charles."
"Quite a mess you've found yourself in, isn't it?"

"You could say that", I answered calmly.

There were a few awkward moments of silence.

"Well, what are you going there?", the twin I decided was George asked. "There're lot's of people who could bust you out." Was there a hint of bitterness?

"I may not have been the one to kill Ginny", I replied seriously. "But I might as well have been. I knew where the chamber was and how to open it. Yet I didn't say anything because I wanted to catch the heir. Doing so was more important to me then protecting the lifes of the students. They were only petrified after all, or so I thought. I only realized my mistake when it was too late. I hope that by serving my sentence I might be able to pay for it as well as calm some of the hostile feelings your family might have towards me."

"Well, you'll have no success concerning Ron", Fred said. "He's vowed to take vengeance and he doesn't believe that she was possessed at all. According to him you're the devil incarnate who came down to haunt him personally."

I barely hold back a snort. Did he even realize that he was playing into my hands with that behavior? People who were out looking for evil in me would first search for someone who hated me. By hating me for such a ridiculous reason and fanaticism he was destroying the credibility of the anti-Charles-front. If such a thing existed. Which I doubted. Well, it didn't yet at least.

"I'm sorry but I can't really bring myself to care about that guy. He's always hated me and he's the youngest of you. It's natural for him to search for a culprit. But what about you? What do you think?"

The twins exchanged a glance.

"We wanted to hear it from you."
"I think", the other twin continued, "I think you should have done more to save her."
"You shouldn't have gone there alone."
"What the hell did you found that club for if not to help you?"

"But you did those mistakes because you were stupid and arrogant, not on purpose."

"You're an asshole but you aren't a murderer."
"Does that mean... you forgive me?", I asked, barely daring to hope.

"Under one condition."
"Next time you're planning something that big you'll tell us."
"We get it if you don't want any teachers involved-"
"-and we may not be the best duelers-"
"-but we have lots of tricks up our sleeves. We might have been able to help you."
I gave them a smile. Not the typical evil smirk, but an honest smile. Sweet Salazar, who would have known that by ensuring Ginnys death I wouldn't lose my allies but further ensure their loyalty? Harry, Hermione and now the twins – getting myself into Azkaban already began to pay off. I had been able to guilt-trip my brother, evolve Hermiones support from helping-out-a-a-friend to I-will-always-be-at-your-side and now the twins basically offered to make full use of their repertoire of inventions and distraction pranks.

The people that mattered – the people who could've been a threat to me – were the only people who believed me to be innocent. The rest saw me as a frightening, powerful if somewhat cruel young wizard who was on his way to become the next Dark Lord. Under this mantle I would be able to gather evil followers and plot with Riddle and nobody would to a freaking thing about it. Had the world ever seen a better double agent?

I had planned for this to happen with Dumbledore, sure. It was one of the main reasons why I wanted to go to prison, playing the poor, guild-ridden hero who couldn't save the girl. But to have this much support even from my school mates was a huge bonus.

"I will make sure to let you know if I need anything", I promised.

"You better do."
"After all we have to keep an eye-"

"-on our business partner."

"Oh?"

"You might not know since you were stuck here but we've completed the quest."
"Tell me everything", I said, evil grin back again.

"We've placed several bugs in Lockarts office after Christmas."
"He's got a bunch of faked love letters that were enchanted to record conversations."

"The fool is the sort of guy who keeps that stuff."
"Anyway, the conversation between him and your brother, Ron and Granger is on it too. We have proof that he did not only fake all his heroic acts but he also planned on obilivating them."

"As soon as you were arrested Lockart bragged about how he knew you were the heir the entire time and it was his doing that you were caught."

"We used the records and played the conversation for the whole hall to hear."
"We had already sent copies to Dad and he pushed it through the right channels."
I laughed at that. "You did rather well. I'm glad I'll never have to see his face again."
"Oh, but you will", George said with a sadistic grin. "You'll meet him in Azkaban."

The laugh died on my lips. "Are you serious?"
"Dead serious. He got two years and lost more then three quarter of his fortune."

"Wow. Remind me to never get in your way, will you?"

"Oh we will. Just don't forget what you promised."

"Of course not. I'll fund all your pranks for the upcoming school year. However I have a condition."
"Hey, that wasn't part of the deal!"
"Relax. I simply ask for you to never prank my humble self."
"What about your snakes?"
"They're fair game. As long as it isn't something that could cause long-term damage of course."
The twins grinned and we shook hands on the deal.

After I bid them goodbye there was one visitor left but I seriously considered calling it a day and leave for Azkaban early.

When the old man entered his usual twinkle was absent from his eyes. He almost looked exhausted. Exhausted and sad.

"Hello my-"
"I", I interrupted him harshly before he could even step in fully, "am not your boy."

Dumbledore looked a little bit taken aback but he covered it with a smile quickly.

"Of course not, forgive me. I have to say I find your determination admirable. Although I'm not sure if you know what you're getting yourself into."

"Why don't you just cut to the point and tell me what you want?"

Dumbledore took a seat and acted as if he had all the time in the world. It was infuriating me.

"And there I was thinking Slytherins liked to play around and search for the true meaning of ones words behind their phrases."
"Only when talking to their friends and potential allies. You are neither to me. You're a disappointment."

I loved to break Dumbledore. I thoroughly enjoyed to see his world crumble around him, to make him wince and avert his gaze because he couldn't stand mine.

I knew where he was coming from. I knew everything about his past with Grindelwald. For the Greater Good, that had been his idea. Today he wouldn't sacrifice the life and happiness of thousands of muggles anymore but still he wasn't above manipulating events in a way that put little school children in potentially dangerous situations while the bad guys were dealt with. He did it on purpose, I was sure of that but looking at him I also knew that he regretted it. He wished there would be another way but there wasn't. Failing my brother or me was bad enough but when we actually blamed him he felt as if he was back at the beginning of the century again. He felt as if he was the bad guy. He felt as if he was still following Grindelwald. Not only made it feel him guilty, he was also constantly remembered of his friend and teenager crush. There was a reason why he never found a partner again in all that time. He was still in love with the Dark Lord. By reminding him of that connection I was pouring salt in those still open wounds. And geez, did that feel good.

It also made him indebted to me. He had hoped for me to be a naive little Gryffindor hero like my brother. Someone who'd forgive him his absence and lack of action. If I was that hostile towards him now, what would happen if he really screwed up? No, Dumbledore would do anything to make it up to me as long as he still saw some hope for me.

"I... I am sorry, Charles."
"I can imagine you say that a lot lately. And it's 'Mr Potter' for you."

"Do we really have to-"
"I'd be fine with 'Lord Slytherin' too, if that's better. Doesn't the rest of the school already call me that?"

"Maybe they wouldn't if you had decided to stay and tell them otherwise."

I sighed. "Look, headmaster, what do you think is easier? Convincing a few selected individuals that I'm not a murderer when the whole school is full of ridiculous rumors and prejudices about me? Or convincing the whole school that everything they've heard are lies only for those that matter to me to find out that some of the things are actually true? Wouldn't it be logical for them to assume that there's some truth to the rest too? They'd always doubt me and I'd never be able to trust anyone ever again."

Of course he asked the inevitable question: "What do you mean with the things that are true?"

"I am a parselmouth. Ergo, I am the heir of Slytherin, by blood and everything. I researched my family tree after that writing on the wall appeared for the first time. Potter, Woodstone, Lenard, Peverell I believe the line goes up until it ends with Slytherin. Since the male line died out long ago I'm just as much a decedent of Slytherin as Moldyshorts himself is. Actually, I read about ancient heredity law and do you know what I found out? Conflicts about heritages, more precisely who has the right to claim a certain bloodline that died out can be solved by duel. I defeated Moldyshorts not once, but twice, hell maybe even three times when you count Halloween eleven years ago. As far as magic is concerned that's more then enough."

I read it in the old mans face that he hadn't known that piece of information. Sadly I wasn't able to determine whenever or not this troubled him before he masked his emotions again.

"Enough of this. If you believed there was a way to change my decision you wouldn't have come yourself. Therefore, why don't you tell me what you really want already?"

Dumbledores expression became serious. "There is something I have to ask you about that day. You brought with you young Ms Weasley and claimed that she had been possessed by a spirit who lived inside of a little black book. The Weasleys confirmed that they saw her writing in such a diary but it was never found. The remains you brought with you fit the description. Sadly ministry officers had already arrived and took you away before I could probably utilize the clues you gave me. The diary belonged to a person named Tom Marvolo Riddle. You know who that is, don't you?"

"Yes." There was no point denying it. I had already let it slip that I defeated Moldyshorts twice after Halloween.

"Not telling anyone was probably a good idea. Not only would it have frightened your friends and your brother but it would have also made your story even more unlikely, at least in the eyes of the ministry that would like nothing more then to forget Voldemort altogether. However I think I might have an idea what kind of magic the book possessed. In order to make sure I need you to tell me exactly how you destroyed it."
I had known he would ask eventually. I couldn't tell him that I had used a basilisks fang because I didn't want him to know what kind of creature the monster was. He had probably figured it out already but even if he did; me using a fang would mean that either I had slayed the beast (then why wouldn't I have mentioned it?) or I had allied with it and now protected it by claiming that the chamber had been empty.

At the same time I wanted him to believe the horcrux destroyed. Basilisk venom wasn't the only possibility but there was no chance he'd believe me able to control Fiendfyre. Those were the only methods I knew would work definitely. But did Dumbledore know too? This early in the game, had he already researched dark magic in such detail? I didn't think so.

I remembered to have read once that a horcrux could be destroyed by any means as long as it was impossible to repair physically or magically. It was just that the creator warded it against destruction until you needed a really ridiculous amount of power to get through. I'd probably be able to break such wards with my parsel magic but Dumbledore mustn't know that either.

"When Riddle and I dueled he wasn't solid. Not the entire time anyway. As he gained substance his spells became more powerful", I began to explain. "I could see it. I could see the magic draining from the girl towards him. It was like some sort of smoke filling him. At first I thought it was only the girl but even when she was long dead the smoke continued to come. Eventually I realized it came from the book that was with her. I tried to get it but he was faster. After that I played for time. I knew once he was completely solid he would be vulnerable again too. And I was right."

"How did you defeat him?"
"Avada Kedavra", I whispered. It was the only other spell I knew could kill horcruxes – at least the animate ones. "He threw that curse at me and I reflected it. He was killed by his own spell. His body dissolved into smoke again and I ripped the diary apart with a few slashing spells. Riddle told me Ginny had tried to destroy it before and failed but whatever protections were laid on it were obviously drained of their magic by him."

"Arrogance, the Dark Lords greatest weakness. But tell me, how did you reflect the killing curse? It's supposed to be impossible."

I shrugged. "It's impossible to block by magical means, yes. But if you just duck behind a big rock you're safe, the curse shatters like every other curse would. I simply conjured a mirror in front of me to reflect it."

"I see. Charms was always your strong subject and you're quite good at transfiguration too. Most wizards look down on this kind of magic but you used it to your advantage."

"Well, what can I say, I am a genius", I scoffed. "If that's all you wanted to know I would appreciate it if you left now, Sir."

"Are you that eager to meet the dementors?"
"Sure. I'll hug and kiss them till they'll never let me go again."

Dumbledore sighed. "It seems I don't have my way with words around you. I'll leave you to your own but I want you to know that when you reach Azkaban all you have to do is ask for me and I will do my best to get you out of there. Please promise me you'll do that when you feel you can't stand it any longer."

"Hell will freeze over before that happens but if that's what makes you leave, fine: I promise."

Finally the old man left. Silverspur returned and took me to Number Four where the Dursley had to sign a few papers before I was to be shipped off to Azkaban. Their glee on the prospect on not only being rid of me for another summer but also on me behind bars was disgusting. Unbeknownst to them I had set Notch (the snake) free in their garden where he would hunt down Dudley as often as he could. The muggles still didn't know he wasn't poisonous. By the end of the summer they'd wish for me to come back even if it was just to keep my pet in check.

My last day in freedom was coming to an end. Darkness enveloped the horizon as my lawyer took me to the forsaken island via portkey. It was raining profusely when we appeared at the shore. The cold enveloped me like a tight cloak and the waves crushed against the shore angrily. A little boat was already waiting for us. Two wizards clad in gray uniforms were waiting for us in it. I was searched for a wand but they didn't seem to be overly interested or motivated. The amulet was overlooked.

"The maximum security prison is a rough place", Silverspur muttered as we took our places in the boat together with the escort. "I'm not sure if you knew what you were doing when you proposed to go there."
"I did it in order to shorten the sentence from the usual 20 to 14 weeks", I replied.

"I know that. But you will see that it really isn't worth it. Dementors patrol in that area far more frequently. The cells are filthy and the food is bad."

"Sounds like Number Four to me. Now be silent. It's too late to change my mind anyway."

"Indeed it is", the wizard sighed.

We had reached the prison. The guards, who were dirty, emotionless shadows of their human selves, escorted us through a dark iron gate. The cold was ever present. It crept under my skin and I could feel Silverspur shiver next to me. The prison was looming ahead of us like a giant fang, dark and rotten and giving off an aura of death and suffering. Suddenly he couldn't wait to say goodbye.

"Is there... anything else I could do for you?", he asked at last.

I hesitated. "The news", I replied finally. "If it is at all possible, I would like to get a newspaper once in a while."

"I think that could be arranged. Good luck then, Mr Potter."
"Luck is something that does not exist in this place", I answered darkly. I felt the dementors approach. With each passing second I was feeling more empty.

"Take him to block B, cell 56", one of the human guards said.

The dementors were coming closer. Images flashed past me, too fast to take in. Darkness threatened to overcome me. I waited till the last second when the human guards lost their interest in me. Then I sent a sudden surge of magic right into my left leg, my foot and the amulet hidden in my sock.

Suddenly there was music. A warm, harmonic melody could be heard by no one but me. It didn't drive away the dementors who grabbed my arms with those rotten hands of theirs but it gave me nice fuzzy feelings and chased away those images from my birth parents arguing with each other, images from that time before they got divorced. There was a horde of butterflies in my stomach and I actually had to suppress a giggle. Lunas magic had done wonders to my mood.

Bathing in bliss I failed to remember the way I was lead until we passed another gate that had 'maximum security' engraved in it. The cells here were dark, cold, dirty and open to one side that sported heavy bars. I recognized some of the faces; Bellatrix Lestrange being the most prominent one. I was actually surprised that she didn't shout at me with her crazed voice or mocked me like a little child. It was only then I remembered those people weren't likely to get news in here. She couldn't know who I was. Her mind was not healthy enough to connect my appearance to James Potter and in the darkness she couldn't see my scar.

But there was one other person that did recognize me. I knew it as soon as he scurried to his feet, his eyes big as saucers as he grabbed the bars, staring at me with incredibility, shock and horror.

It was Sirius Black. It was the man I had come to break out of prison.

Thanks for reading 'Do not question'. Feel feel to leave a review!

The third fanfic is up now. 'Do not doubt' starts off right where this fanfic leaves, in Azkaban. I'm done with humor now, this is getting serious. Have fun with it!