this conversation on track so that we may conclude it quickly, is that understood?'
Harry nodded, and -
In the light of the single torch, shaded toward the reddish end of the optical spectrum, the snake's green scales were not very reflective, and the blue-and-white banding hardly more so. Dark seemed the snake, in that light. The eyes, which had seemed like gray pits before, now reflected the torchlight, and seemed brighter than the rest of the snake.
'Sso,' hissed the venomous creature. 'What did you wissh to ssay? '
And Harry hissed, 'Sschoolmasster thinkss that woman'ss former Lord iss the one who sstole her from prisson.'
Harry had thought about it this time, and carefully, before he had decided that he would reveal to Professor Quirrell only that the Headmaster believed that; and not say anything about the prophecy which had set Voldemort on Harry's parents, nor that the Headmaster was reconstituting the Order of the Phoenix... it was a risk, a significant risk, but Harry needed an ally in this.
'He believess that one iss alive?' the snake finally said. The divided, two-pronged tongue flickered rapidly from side to side, sardonic snakish laughter. 'Ssomehow I am not ssurprissed.'
'Yess,' Harry hissed dryly, 'very amussing, I am ssure. Except now am sstuck in Hogwartss for next ssix years, for ssafety! I have decided that I will, indeed, sseek power; and confinement iss not helpful for that. Musst convince sschoolmasster that Dark Lord iss not yet awakened, that esscape was work of ssome other power -'
Again the rapid flickering of the snake's tongue; the snakish laughter was stronger, dryer, this time. 'Amateur foolisshnesss.'
'Pardon?' hissed Harry.
'You ssee misstake, think of undoing, ssetting time back to sstart. Yet not even with hourglasss can time be undone. Musst move forward insstead. You think of convincing otherss they are misstaken. Far eassier to convince them they are right. Sso conssider, boy: what new happensstance would make schoolmasster decide you were ssafe once more, ssimultaneoussly advance your other agendass?'
Harry stared at the snake, puzzled. His mind tried to comprehend and unravel the riddle -
'Iss it not obviouss?' hissed the snake. Again the tongue flickered sardonic laughter. 'To free yoursself, to gain power in Britain, you musst again be sseen to defeat the Dark Lord.'
In reddish-orange flickering torchlight, a green snake swayed above a white hospital bed, as the boy stared into the embers of its eyes.
'Sso,' Harry said finally. 'Let uss be clear on what iss propossed. You ssuggesst that we sset up imposstor to imperssonate Dark Lord.'
'Ssomething like that. Woman we resscued will cooperate, sshould be mosst convincing when sshe iss sseen at hiss sside.' More sardonic tongue-flickering. 'You are kidnapped from Hogwartss to public location, many witnesssess, wardss keep out protectorss. Dark Lord announcess that he hass at long lasst regained physical form, after wandering as sspirit for yearss; ssayss that he hass gained sstill greater power, not even you can sstop him now. Offerss to let you duel. You casst guardian Charm, Dark Lord laughss at you, ssayss he iss not life-eater. Casstss Killing Cursse at you, you block, watcherss ssee Dark Lord explode -'
'Casst Killing Cursse?' Harry hissed in incredulity. 'At me? Again? Ssecond time? Nobody will believe Dark Lord could posssibly be that sstupid -'
'You and I are only two people in country who would notice that,' hissed the snake. 'Trusst me on thiss, boy.'
'What if there iss third, ssomeday?'
The snake swayed thoughtfully. 'Could write different sscript for play, if you wissh. Whatever sscenario, sshould leave open posssibility Dark Lord might return yet again - nation musst think they are sstill dependent on you to protect them.'
Harry stared into the red-flickering pits of the snake's eyes.
'Well?' hissed the swaying form.
The obvious thought was that going along with the Defense Professor's plots and deceptions a second time, spinning an even more complicated lie to cover up the first mistake, and creating another fatal vulnerability if anyone ever discovered the truth, would be exactly the same sort of stupidity as the putative Dark Lord using the Killing Curse again. It didn't even take his Hufflepuff side to point that out, Harry thought it in his very own mental voice.
But there was also a certain question as to whether the appropriate moral to learn from the last experience was to always say no immediately to the Defense Professor, or...
'Will think about it,' hissed Harry. 'Will not ansswer right away, thiss time, will enumerate risskss and benefitss firsst -'
'Undersstood,' hissed the snake. 'But remember thiss, boy, other eventss proceed without you. Hessitation iss alwayss eassy, rarely usseful.'
The boy emerged from the private room into the main infirmary, running nervous fingers through his messy black hair as he walked past the white beds, occupied and unoccupied.
Shortly afterward, the boy emerged from the Hogwarts infirmary entirely, passing Madam Pomfrey on the way out with a distracted nod.
The boy walked out into a hallway, then into a larger corridor, and then stopped and leaned against the wall.
The thing was...
