The Chamber of Secrets (Hermione Granger X Male Reader Insert)

23. A Howling Christmas

(Y/N)'s POV

He sat peacefully on his favourite armchair near the window. The warmth of the fire spreading throughout the Common Room. (Y/N) was reading Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2, and was reading up on the Disarming Charm in complete silence.

Until, Hermione, Harry and Ron came charging in to the Common Room. Ron shoved Harry into an armchair before he said something that caught (Y/N) completely off-guard.

"You're a Parselmouth!" exclaimed Ron. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I'm a what?" said a thoroughly confused Harry.

"He's a Parselmouth," said (Y/N) in disbelief. "How do you know?"

"What's a Parselmouth!" exclaimed Harry.

(Y/N) looked at the flushed cheeked Harry and quickly closed his book. "A Parselmouth is someone with the ability to speak to snakes," he said in an annoyed manner. "Like Ron said, why didn't you tell us?"

"I didn't know I was one," said Harry. "I mean, I've done it before. I accidentally set a boa constrictor on my cousin Dudley at the zoo once — long story — but it was telling me it had never seen Brazil and I sort of set it free without meaning to. That was before I knew I was a wizard..."

(Y/N) got up from his armchair and paced back and forth in front of the fireplace as Ron spoke. "A boa constrictor told you it had never seen Brazil?" repeated Ron faintly.

"So?" said Harry. "I beg loads of people here can do it."

"Oh no they can't," said Ron. "It's not a very common gift."

"Harry this bad," said (Y/N) as he kept pacing in front of the fireplace. "Very, very bad."

"What's 'very, very bad'?" said Harry, growing hot-headed. "You don't know the full story, (Y/N)," he said. "I was telling the snake to not attack Justin —"

"Oh that's what you said to it?" said Ron.

"What do you mean? You were there...you heard me."

"I heard you speaking Parseltongue," said Ron, "snake language. You could've been saying anything. No wonder Justin panicked, you sounded like you were egging the snake on or something. It was creepy, you know."

(Y/N) stopped pacing back and forth and looked to Harry. Harry's mouth gaped open as he looked at Ron. "I spoke a different language? But — I didn't realise — how can I speak a language without knowing I can speak it?"

Ron shook his head. Both he and Hermione looked like someone had just died. (Y/N) just looked at Harry with a frown. Harry clearly couldn't see what was so terrible. "D'you three want to tell me what's wrong with stopping a dirty great snake biting Justin's head off?" said Harry. "What does it matter how I did it as long as Justin doesn't have to join the Headless Hunt?"

"It matters," said Hermione, finally speaking in a hushed voice,"because being able to talk to snakes is what Salazar Slytherin was famous for. That's why the symbol of Slytherin house is a serpent."

Harry's mouth fell open, he finally understood the severity of the situation.

"Exactly, said (Y/N). "And now the whole school's going to think you're his great-great-great-great-grandson or something..."

"But I'm not," said Harry, his voice filled with panic.

"You'll find that hard to prove," said Hermione. "He lived about a thousand years ago, for all we know, you could be."

...

(Y/N) awoke in the morning and looked out the window to see the mounds of snow outside. It looked like a blizzard had occurred last night. Since the blizzard had created the snow so thick, the last Herbology lesson of the term was cancelled.