Viper Weed (Remix)

Chapter 3


Morning dawned bright and early with an unpleasant surprise for Harry. He was awakened not by pleasant sunlight or an alarm, but by something he wanted to see much less.

He fluttered open his eyes to see Malfoy poised over him with a quill in his hand. Letting out a sharp yell Harry pushed Draco off of the bed with a shove. He really needn’t have though, because when he looked Draco was curled on the floor with his hands pressed to his ears.

“Malfoy? Hey, Malfoy, are you alright?” Harry asked. Draco just groaned.

“Why the bloody hell did you have to shout like that? Didn’t they tell you not to in the Hospital Wing?” Malfoy groaned.

“What?” Asked Harry “I…they…I forgot I guess. What happens when I shout?”

“This is what happens.” Draco said, moving with surprising speed and landing a punch solidly on Harry’s ear. Harry let out another yell of surprise, and Draco was soon doubled over on the floor again.

“For Merlin’s sake, stop bloody shouting!” The other boy yelled at him.

“Bloody hell. Look, I’m sorry that you can’t handle me shouting Malfoy.” Harry said lazily, before flopping out of bed and walking over to the windowsill.

The Viper Weed was preening happily in the sun, seemingly unaffected by the argument that had occurred. As Harry drew close however, it turned its unblinking stare to him and flicked its tongue out. Harry responded likewise, letting his tongue slither out and split into two prongs, it feeling as natural as breathing.

“Will you stop doing that? It’s creepy.” Said Draco quietly from behind him. Apparently he’d given up lying on the floor and groaning.

“I thought you were meant to be in the Slytherin house?” Harry asked teasingly.

“That doesn’t mean you don’t look fucking weird doing that.” The other boy replied. Harry just sighed and turned to the plant.

“The light coloured boy seems to think my tongue is odd.” He remarked to it. The snake shook its head languidly and replied.

“Light colour bring tongue. Bring tongue to boy.” Harry frowned. He wasn’t so sure he liked what the plant was saying.

“What do you mean ‘bring tongue to boy’? You mean show it to him, right?” He queried.

“Bring tongue to boy, show boy tongue.” It replied, sticking its own tongue out at Draco. Draco frowned, but Harry laughed before sticking his own tongue out at the other boy, doing his best to make it split into forks. Draco just snorted and muttered something about ‘disgusting hybrids’ before turning away.

Harry crawled onto the deep windowsill and sat talking to the plant for awhile, all the while getting more and more coherent responses. It seemed that the creature had a very good memory for words. After awhile Draco reminded him that they needed to go and visit the greenhouses.

“Malfoy, why did were you sitting over me with a quill when I woke up?” Harry said suspiciously, noticing the same quill lying askew on the floor.

“I was going to write ‘Malfoy Rules’ on your forehead before you woke up. It’s a permanent ink too.” He said casually. Harry scowled at him, but his stomach rumbling spoiled the effect.

“When am I going to get any food?” Harry almost whined, his stomach still growling. “I didn’t even have lunch yesterday.”

“Hmm…” Draco paused. “I suppose that Snape might allow you to visit the kitchens and eat some breakfast after we see Sprout. Of course, you still don’t know if you’ll even like human food anymore.” Harry only groaned.


---

Sprout was already up and sitting at the table, waiting for them with breakfast when they arrived. Harry sat down and looked at the food gratefully, beginning to eat before Pomona had even said hello. He did notice that nearly all his food was meat though. Where as the others had mushrooms and tomatoes on their plates, his was conspicuously free of them, instead having sausages, bacon, and eggs.

“I’d guessed you’d be quite hungry Harry. I also took the liberty of leaving plants out of your meal. I somehow doubted you’d want to eat them.” She said with a smile. Harry shook his head vehemently before taking a deep gulp of water.

“Right Harry, I think it’s time we begin.” Pomona said when they’d finished eating. “First off, Viper Weeds are very vicious and dangerous creatures. On small plants, such as those you were working with, their bites only act as a powerful sedative, knocking the patient out more completely than most potions can. The brain activity is lowered to an absolute minimum, allowing only the victims heart to beat, and them to be able to breathe.” Harry nodded in understanding, and she continued.

“In the wild, Viper Weeds this size use the bite to knock out their prey so that they can devour it. However, these plants are still only small, and relatively harmless. Larger plants are far more dangerous. They like to kill magical creatures and absorb both the carcass and magic. In larger plants their bites become venomous. They start to synthesise at least two more chemicals aside from the sedative. The first one is highly poisonous venom that renders the victim incapable of moving or breathing in a matter of minutes. However, like many creatures, the antidote to this poison is contained within the plant in a small sack just beneath the jaw.” Pomona paused once more to see that Harry was absorbing the information.

“So far, Viper Weeds have been harvested because of either their poison or their antidote. However, we have reason to believe there may be more properties to them than that. There are certainly more characteristics than currently known. We think this is the case because to record, no plant has ever been found that has grown bigger than a meter high. We think that this is because although they are innately magical, they need a much larger amount to be able to grow much bigger. Other than that there isn’t much else we know about them.” She paused and took a sip of her tea before continuing.

“Now, that plant of yours will need a lot of care. You’ll need to water it each day, and you’ll also need to feed it. They tend to like rabbit, although each plant expresses different tastes. I’m sure Hagrid will be more than willing to supply you with any meat you need. It will need a lot of sunlight, and a reasonable amount of attention. As I already said, you should continue to speak to it every day. I would recommend that you take it around with you, but that would endanger other students, and we cannot have that risk. Although you should definitely bring it to Herbology lessons.” Harry nodded.

“Professor, can I ask you something?” Sprout nodded. “Why did you get the Viper Weeds in the first place?” At that Draco laughed, and Harry turned to look at him curiously.

“You obviously don’t read the papers very well Potter. Haven’t you heard the rumours?” Harry replied that he had not. “The Prophet printed an article recently detailing rumours of a giant Viper Weed. Said that all the snakes around were migrating to it, and now everyone is on it’s tail.” He smirked at Professor Sprout. “Hogwarts here just wants in on the glory of pioneering information on the plant, or growing one comparably big.”

Sprout had the decency to blush briefly, but went on quickly to try and correct Malfoy.

“Mr Malfoy, that reflects very badly on the school. We simply have the facilities to attempt an up to date and ‘pioneering’ as you so put it, experiment. It will work much to the NEWT students advantage, and each of you will be assigned a plant to work on as a project, each testing different strategies for growth or behaviour.” She looked over at Harry. “Although I would say that Harry here has a head start.” Draco just snorted and turned back to his tea.

“Professor. I need to know why I’m like this. You haven’t mentioned anything about that yet.” Harry said, gesturing to his opalescent skin. Pomona looked at him critically.

“All right then Harry. The other professors and I agree that it is probably a pollination that has occurred.” To the side of them, Draco choked quietly on his tea. “Something that is as yet unrecorded. Generally Viper Weeds only pollinate creatures that have killed, and no doubt Miss Granger has told you, they never pollinate anything magical. We can only assume that the pollination reacted with your magic and created a hybrid between you and the plants. I have to say though, that I have no idea of why it has occurred, or why they picked you, as they expressed no interest in any other student.”

“What changed apart from my appearance?” Harry asked thoughtfully.

“Well, most obviously is your voice. The tone has changed, it is more delicate and a mix of light and low tones. Your eyes should react differently now too. Poppy examined them, and it seems that you will have greater night vision, and some colours that were previously invisible you will now be able to see. Your hearing should have changed as well. You should be able to detect smaller sounds with much more precision. Your magic may have changed as well, but of that we are so far unsure.” She rattled off quickly; not noticing Draco’s narrowed eyes.

“You’re leaving something out.” Draco said cuttingly.

“I can assure you Mr Malfoy, that I am not.” She said, but her eyes betrayed her as they flicked to Harry, tinted with slight fear.


---

Later, as Harry walked with Draco back up to his rooms he thought about that look. It hadn’t passed him by that almost all the staff had that same look of fear about him.

“You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d say that the teachers are afraid of you Potter.” Said Malfoy calculatingly. Harry sighed.

“I know what you mean. It’s starting to get a bit annoying. That and no one telling me anything.”

“It must have been something that happened when you were in the
hospital wing. Are you sure you don’t remember anything?” Draco asked. Harry gave him an odd look.

“No, nothing at all. Why do you want to know anyway?” Draco laughed.

“No need to get so defensive Potter. I just want to know what scared the teachers that bad. It has to be interesting if they’re that worried.”

Harry watched as Draco absently flicked his wand and conjured a puff of smoke. Entranced, he watched as the cloud slowly formed into a dragon and began to glide gently in front of them. Draco had a look of distant concentration on his face that made Harry feel a kind of tug between his shoulders.

“How did you do that?” He asked in wonder. Draco looked up at him absently.

“Oh? That? I just wanted to make a dragon.”

“You do stuff like that all the time?” Harry asked, intrigued.

“Yes, of course. Don’t you?” Draco asked offhandedly.

“No…I wouldn’t even know where to begin.” Harry admitted.

“You should then. It’s good practice.”

Harry looked at the boy walking beside him, entranced. Draco had bitten down on his lip slightly as he concentrated on making the smoke dragon do twists and turns in the air. Harry wasn’t interested on the dragon though. Instead, his attention was riveted on the boy that the magic was pouring from. He could feel the magic around them, like a scent, like a colour that hung in the air. He wanted to get close to the other boy and lick the magic off his skin, suck it out, own it. Unconsciously he began to walk closer to him; eyes fixed on the other boy’s neck.

Then suddenly the feeling was gone, as was the smoke dragon, and now it was Draco that was staring at him.

“What is it Potter?” He said lazily. “Am I that gorgeous that you can’t keep your eyes off me?” Harry took a moment to process the comment before blushing and spluttering a reply.

“No! Bloody hell. You’re so damn vain.” Harry retorted, but his heart wasn’t in it. He’d never felt anything like that feeling before. In fact, thinking about it, he hadn’t seen anyone use magic since he left the Hospital Wing. He cast a quick glance at Draco again; just to make sure he didn’t still feel like he wanted to touch him.

Dammit! I wanted to lick him! Lick the magic out…and do what with it? Absorb it I suppose. Bloody hell this is complicated. It must be one of those plant things. Harry thought despondently.


---


Harry found himself once more ensconced in his room. Draco had left him at the door, telling him that he had lessons to attend, and for at least up until lunch time Harry had been told to stay in his room. Just to punctuate this, Draco placed a locking charm on the door. Harry had noticed that he still hadn’t got his wand back from wherever it was, although he did remember Snape saying he would get it back for lessons.

Sighing, he curled up on the windowsill, absentmindedly stroking the Viper Weed. This plant thing was complicated, although he felt surprisingly unfazed by it all. He supposed that that would all change when knowledge of his condition got out to the rest of the school, if it hadn’t already. Well, perhaps when he got out into the school once more.

He had a few hours before he was meant to be reintroduced to the student body, and in that time he planned to learn all he could about the changes. He turned to the small plant and began talking to it. This time it was different though. Instead of constructing sentences, he rattled off any words that came into his head. After about half an hour he found himself repeating words, so he stopped and began talking to the plant properly.

“Why did you all do this to me?” Harry asked.

“It was time for Harry to change. We need something new, something to help.” The plant hissed. Harry frowned.

“Help with what?”

“I have no word for it. Harry Potter needed change, more big now, big magic and more help for the Vipers.”

“What does my magic do?”

“Magic does big things. Magic makes Vipers help, helps Vipers. Harry is a Viper now.”

Harry sighed and leaned back, an unconscious smile crossing his face as the sun his face. The plant looked at him quizzically before continuing quietly.

“Things are bad. Harry Viper will make things good. It has been told that Harry will.” Harry’s eyes jerked open.

“What do you mean, ‘it has been told’?” Harry asked.

“Viper can’t speak more, things have been said, but more words must come to speak more.”

Harry sighed once more, before standing up and walking to the center of the room. He stopped at the edge of the shaft of sunlight that was streaming in from the window. He could feel the heat against his toes, and it made him feel like growing. Relaxing, he tried to concentrate only on the part of him that felt like growing. Soon he had entered a kind of trance, his eyelids felt heavy, and his feet felt like they were spreading ever so slowly, searching for cracks in the floorboards, searching for a purchase, searching for nutrients. He felt when they contacted a crack and one of his toes flattened and inched down.

There was a sudden knock on the door, and Harry jumped involuntarily, jarring the sensations he had just felt. His eyes flew open and he immediately looked down at his feet, but there was no apparent change. He could have sworn for a moment his feet were more elongated than before, but in a moment it was gone, and they were back to normal.

With irritation he crossed to the door and opened it. To his disappointment it was Snape waiting outside.

“Yes?” Harry asked provactively.

“As much as it pains me Potter, I have come to talk to you.” Snape said, scowling.

“Talk.”

“First off, I will forgive your insolence given that you have only just become a plant, but trust me Potter, any more and I will take points.” Inside Harry seethed, and Snape smirked at him.

“I will be performing a series of tests on you. The first and foremost is to test the limits of your strength. Be prepared.”

“Fascinating.” Harry replied, still irritable.

“Five points, and five more for earlier insolence. I did not need to tell you this Potter, do take that into account.” Snape snarled before sweeping away.

It was not a minute later when there was another knock. Angrily, Harry got up and flung the door open. To his surprise and joy, outside stood Hermione.

“Hermione?” Harry said incredulously. “How did you find this place?”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. Professor Sprout told me where you were and what the password was. It’s quite ingenious really, the way the door works. The tapestry is enchanted to reveal the door when the password is said. It’s not like the other password protected rooms, because until the password is said or the door is opened from your side, the door is in an intirely different place in the castle, leading to a different room.”

“Its nice to see you too ‘Mione.” Harry said fondly, pulling the girl into a hug. They chatted and looked around Harry’s rooms for a moment before Hermione spoke up again.

“Oh damn it. We should have left from Potions five minutes ago. Harry, get your books, we have to hurry or we’ll be really late.”

“Potions is my first lesson?” Harry asked glumly. Hermione just smiled.

“I guess you’re just fated to have Potions when you least want it.”

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