The Greedy Frog
patreon
HP: The Salazar's Heir Chapter 27
🕑 Added 2024-01-21 17:23:47 +0000 UTCChapter 27: Quidditch and Support
“Did you really use Ancient Magic?” Ron asked the heir of Salazar.
Sebastian nodded but at present, he was more interested in the troll than talking about his magic.
“How did you find that troll?” He asked, “I mean you did rush to the washroom before anyone else.”
“We…” Ron looked down, “We heard Hermoine scream and since we were waiting for her in the corridor, we went there to check on her.”
Sebastian knew that there was something more that they were hiding. But he also knew that they weren’t going to answer honestly.
‘It is not possible for them to spawn a troll out of nowhere.’ Sebastian thought as he walked beside them. ‘But how is it even possible that a troll walked inside the bathroom? Hogwarts’ defense is not that weak.’
He heard that there was a troll in the dungeon and there was kind of a big ruckus in the dining hall.
But he had skipped dinner so he didn't know much about it.
However, he knew that there was definitely something wrong with this situation.
‘At least, I got something out of it.’ Sebastian was satisfied with the result. ‘It was something I thought of on the go, but it should pay off.’
The reason why he showed his skill was so that he could get a certain green card from Filius.
As the professor of charms and one in charge of the art of dueling, Filius had authority to grant dueling permission to students irrespective of their house and year.
This was exactly what Sebastian wanted.
‘Not now, but after a while it will definitely come handy.’
This little ‘idea’ involved him and a few students of the final years.
‘That’s mostly for later though,’ Sebastian made up his mind, ‘For now, I need to perfect my elemental manipulation so that I can move onto the next magic.’
And as he wondered about the new possible magic, a certain scarred boy asked.
“Sebastian,” He heard Harry ask, “Have you noticed anything weird with professor Snape recently?”
As he looked at the spectacled boy, it was not only him who was waiting for an answer but his friends as well.
‘Did they do something?’ He wondered, aware that their relationship with Snape was quite amusing.
“Not really.” He shook his head, “And I rarely talk to him. So, maybe even if there is something going on with him, I haven’t been paying much attention.”
This reminded him that he was asked to visit the professor.
‘There is still time till Saturday.’ Sebastian wondered what the professor was planning for, ‘He did seem a little interested in the potion that I talked about. Maybe it is about that?’
But that made him wonder, ‘But why would he ask to meet him on Saturday for something so trivial?’
That didn't make much sense, ‘Looks like I will have to be a little patient to figure it out.’
This was one of the few things that he was bad at –waiting.
“I see.” Harry sounded a bit disappointed.
“Anyhow,” Ron finally decided to draw their attention away from the matter, “Are you going to watch the quidditch match?”
Quidditch.
It was possibly the biggest sport of the wizarding world.
A sport that tested a wizard’s athleticism, magic control, balance and tactics.
“Is it mandatory to watch it?” Sebastian asked.
He knew what Quidditch was, he had seen and read about it.
“Err…” Ron tried to think about it, “I don't think so.”
“Perfect,” Sebastian smiled, “Then I am not going.”
This shocked the trio.
“Really?” Hermoine, someone who wasn’t much a quidditch fan either, was shocked by his nonchalant refusal. “Almost everyone is going to watch it, professors included. It is the school’s biggest sporting event.”
Sebastian thought about it, “It does not involve any magic except flying around in a magical broom and chasing after a flying snitch, does it?”
The trio tried to think, but couldn’t think of anything.
“No.” Hermoine answered, “It is mostly about your control over magic and your ability to control your broom.”
It might sound easy to a few, but it was a hectic task.
Controlling the broom, steering through the air currents and aggressive opponents all while chasing after the golden snitch was something that required a lot of skill and practice.
“Then my answer remains the same,” Sebastian smiled, “But I did hear that you were selected to play alongside the seniors, Harry.”
‘This is also why they might want me to watch.’ Sebastian wondered, ‘But I have something else to do.’
“Thank you, Sebastian.” Harry gave the heir a smile, “But I wished you could have watched the match.”
Sebastian felt a tad bit bad. He knew that the trio was quite nice and he did like them.
‘Unfortunately, this is a little bit more important than a match.’
“Truth is that I have to go to the Ministry regarding the recent incident.” He said which finally made the trio understand.
“Oh.” Hermoine muttered, “The ministry.”
She knew a little about Sebastian’s situation and that the heir was summoned to the ministry. But another reason for her interest was that she adored the ministry.
An authority which comprised the elite witches and wizards who had to study for an eternity to reach there.
She believed that if she did her best, maybe even she could reach there.
Unfortunately, she was unaware of the dark politics that went inside the ministry.
“I hope you can understand.” Sebastian felt a little bad as this was mostly a lie. He didn’t have to go to the ministry but to somewhere else.
“It's alright.” Harry said, “I know that you have a lot of things that you have to think about.” He sighed, “I am thankful that I don't have that many issues.”
This made Sebastian laugh, “Oh, don’t worry Harry. You are also a pureblood and the only heir of the house of Potter, you will get those headaches soon.”
The boy paled, realizing that Sebastian wasn't wrong.
“But don’t worry.” The heir assured, “I will help you out.”
After all, it was always good to be on good terms with strong families.
“T-Thank you.” Harry didn't know how he was supposed to feel. Just thinking about the responsibilities made him scared.
“Anyways, enjoy your quidditch match.” Sebastian grinned, “I know you will win.”
“I will try.” Harry smiled weakly.
…
…
{An hour later}
“Let's see.” Sebastian stood in front of a massive door with a gargoyle statue right next to it. “What was today’s password?”
He tried recalling. It always amused him that the headmaster had a security measure in front of his office.
‘What does he even hide in his office?’
He wondered but during that time, he recalled the password.
“Ah,” He stared at the gargoyle statue, “Fizzing Whizzbees.
And the moment he said that, he saw the gargoyle shaking as the massive door opened.
There was a very specific reason for which he was in front of Dumbledore’s office and he hoped that the headmaster would agree with that reason.
“Ah, Sebastian.” He heard Dumbledore’s voice. “You are finally here.”
“Thank you for telling me the password, sir.” He said.
And well, it was one of the few times that he had entered the room with a password.
Most of the other times, Dumbledore took him inside or the door was opened by another professor.
“I heard about your little display,” Dumbledore seemed a little sad, “Quite tragic that I missed it.”
Sebastian smiled. He knew how strong Dumbledore was.
The old man was one of the few people whose strength could be felt just by his presence.
But the heir also knew that the man was still interested in ancient magic.
Everyone was.
“It was just simple magic, sir.” He said, “Nothing that you cannot mimic.”
Maybe not in the same way, but Dumbledore could definitely find a way.
Dumbledore shook his magic, “One of the reasons why magic is so interesting is that every individual has at least one distinct magical skill, theory or spell that separates them from the rest. And your magic on its own is a topic of research, so missing even the simplest spells can be sad.”
Sebastian knew this but didn't extend the topic.
Instead he decided to ask about the issue at hand.
“I heard you said something about the revival of the House of Slytherin, sir?” He asked, recalling the main reason for the invitation.
The headmaster nodded. “Minister Fudge recently sent a notice summarizing the situation.”
Sebastian listened intently. He knew that everyone pretty much accepted him being the heir of the House of Slytherin, but there were still issues.
Namely the question whether the House of Slytherin was to be revived or not.
To him, it felt absolutely insulting that it was even a topic of debate. But he knew that after Slytherin’s fall, many houses reaped the benefits and if house Slytherin was to be revived –they would lose more than they could acquire.
So they wanted to keep the Slyhterin name from rising.
“While it is tragic, it is also true that house Slytherin does not hold the power that it once held.”
When Dumbledore said this, it hurt Sebastian.
But the boy could not refute.
“The lands, wealth and political power are gone.” Sebastian sighed, “But the name remains.”
Dumbledore looked at the boy, “Fudge said that the council finally found a way to reestablish the authority of Slytherin.”
This drew Sebastian’s interest. “How so?”
“You know that the people who are on your side are there simply because of the respect that the name Slytherin holds in the wizarding world.” Dumbledore explained, “Truth is, it is this respect that is shielding you. There are many people that want you to face unfortunate situations.”
Death.
They wanted him dead, and Sebastian knew that.
“The current powerhouses are divided between either supporting you or against you.” Dumbledore said, “So Fudge gave a solution.”
“And that is?” Sebastian’s eyebrows were raised.
“He suggested that you need at least over half the support of the wizarding world, including the council to regain the authority.”
“That…” Sebastian frowned.
“Almost impossible.” Dumbledore agreed, “It is a nightmarish task to gather such support from the wizarding world and on top of that, you will have to promise too much to the council members which might prove to be an issue in the future.”
The councilmen were simply wolves ready to pounce at Sebastian.
“But that is why another solution was proposed.” This statement by Dumbledore gave Sebastian a little hope.
“Which is?”
“You know about the Sacred Twenty-Eight of the wizarding world, right?” The headmaster asked and the boy immediately nodded.
“I do.”
“The other solution is that…” Dumbledore paused for a second before continuing, “You need the support of the five most powerful wizarding families of the current time.”
This…
“That is equally difficult.” Sebastian refuted immediately.
“But not impossible.” Dumbledore reminded, “It is not the world you have to join hands with, but five families. Five of the strongest and remember that they are proud of their inheritance, something you are too.”
‘True,’ Sebastian mused, ‘There is not much they lose from helping me.’
“But they will not do it for free,” Dumbledore said as Sebastian agreed. “So, you will have to think about what you can provide them or help them with.”
After all… not all of those families were nice and kind.
“And also…” Dumbledore took a deep breath, “He suggests that you take the position of the Lord of Slytherin soon. Most families will never deal with the heir. You need to be a lord to even hold your ground against them.”
This was something that Sebastian already knew.
“This is quite early.” The boy looked down, “But I already expected that I would have to take the mantle sooner or later.”
Dumbledore gave a comforting smile, “Remember that no matter what, you are still a student of Hogwarts, Sebastian. And as such, I will always protect you to the best of my abilities and you will always have my support… as long as you follow the right path.”
Dumbledore acted like a grandfather at times, and that was something that Sebastian respected.
‘He is a weasel, but a kind weasel.’ He smiled, “Thank you, professor. I will tell you once I am ready to take on that position.”
“I will wait for that day.” Dumbledore showed a relaxed face, however that expression was going to change.
“But… if you do not think it is too much to ask, I have a request to make.”
This drew Dumbledore’s interest.
“May I visit the treasury again?”
After all, the heir had a pet as well as a few things that he needed to check on.
______________________________________________________________________________
[[A/N: Tell me if you spot any typo.]]
