Information queen (Harry) [PG-13]

Misha was lost in Good Omens, one of her favourite muggle books, and didn't pay much attention to anyone. Herbology class was over, no other class for her today and she simply couldn't wait for the time, when she would be in common room, because that book was so interresting even after the 100th time or so, she was reading it. That somehow caused that she left the class first, but ended up last.

Harry came out of the class easily, he wasn't in a hurry or anything, today, he could take his time. His lessons were over, and his day was done. Ron had sped off, maybe to meet his brothers, and Harry was walking slowly. So slowly, he didn't notice a Ravenclaw approaching. She was so focused on her book, she didn't seem to see him either and then, boom, they bumped into one another. "Oh, sorry," Harry instantly apologized as he picked up the book that had fallen to the floor.

Misha didn't expected to crash someone. Well, she did that a lot, but never expected it. Maybe she could learn finaly. "Crap!" she cursed as the book fell on the floor and closed itself. She looked at the one she so successfully managed to crash down. "It's okay, I am to blame here," she replied and quickly took her book back. "You are that Potter's kid right? I'm Misha Salander," she introduced herself to the first year. "Forgive me my honesty, but you look like confused chicken everytime I see you," she told him honestly.

Harry only had time to widen his eyes a bit as Misha spoke in rapid succession. It actually got him to smile, before he replied, "Yeah...it's kinda cause I'm really confused when you see me," he admitted. "But yes, I'm Harry - Potter," he added.

Misha laughed a bit. "Everybody knows who you are, Harry," she told him, clearly amused. "After all, your parents were famous even without all that dying and you having scar from Voldemort stuff," she said as she leaned against the wall. "It's only you who seem to have no idea what the hell happened and why you have to be part of this," she added.

Harry was about to retort, but then Misha used that name. Harry himself wasn't really intimidated, but if others heard, "Yeah...er --I guess so..." he could only answer, as he looked at the floor.

Misha laughed again. "You are so cute, you know that?" she asked him, amused by his insecurity. "Luckily for you, I grew up at this place. And I am hungry to know everything. Sort of a gossip girl and historian in one. So, just because I don't have anything else to do, I am willing to fill you in. Interrested?" she asked him kindly. She had alredy position of so called information queen. She was like those guys in prison, who knows everything and gets everything for you, if needed. Misha herself loved to know her enemy as she called it. And with her dad groundkeeper, she spent her entire life here, knew every house elf and maybe even every centaur in forbidden forest, it was easy to get things that seemed to be out of the reach here.

"Well, I can't see why I wouldn't be interested," he answered quickly, smiling, feeling less uneasy as he usually did. All he had to do was let time pass.

"Great! So, first things first, what do you alredy know? And what interrests you the most?" she asked him, excited about the whole thing. Her mum once told her she used to be the same at school. For her mother however, this behavior was form of a protection. In Misha's age, she was alredy two years hiding the fact she was orphan, living only from money her mum, Misha's grandmother left her. Being possitive crazy gossip girl was great act with two major advantages. Nobody suspected Sarah was unhappy and just like Misha, even her mother had whole situation under control by simply knowing everything.

"Well...I know this school has secrets...don't know any of them. That interests me," he spoke honestly. He smiled at he thought of how Briana had told him Ravenclaws would be rather nice or at least would show some sympathy towards him.

"By secrets you mean stories of the past, secret rooms and passages into Rowena knows where or stories behind people whos names you heard the most? There is tons of all this around. Some of it recent, war was not so long ago after all, some of them are as old as professor Lestrange herself, if not older, since nobody really knows how old she is. I'm not sure if she knows, but it's quite disrespectful to ask woman about her age," Misha started, her thoughts drifted towards head of the Slytherin house. "This school is ancient, Harry. Unlike muggles, we wizarding society treasure history much more. Probably because magic, specialy certain types of it casted in certain situations, it never goes away, never disappears," Misha explained.

"Well now that you ask," he started, and then slightly widened his eyes and half grinned, "I kinda mean all of them," he hummed and then chuckled.

Misha sighed. "Well, you don't take it exactly easy, boy," she said and then smiled at him to show him she didn't mean it as bad as it sounded. "I guess I will start with the war. After all, my guess is, that topic would be the most interresting for you. My dad worked here during that time alredy, he told me that it wasn't that different from any other generation. You know, kids go to school, create groups. Your dad was part of one. Called themselves Marauders. From what I heard, they were quite a troublemakers. Four of them, all Gryffindors, probably biggest enemy to most Slytherins. Apparently, only one of them got out of the war alive and innocent. One ended up in Azkaban, the two others died. Small tragedy. The night Voldemort killed himself by trying to kill you, that night the whole group of Marauders went down," Misha started the topic Harry would probably want to hear the most. 

"The one who is now in Azkaban, Sirius Black his name is, he betrayed your parents and led Voldemort to them. After that, when Peter Pettigrew, another Marauder came to confront him, he killed him to. Or well, that's what court said. If it was truth, probably only Black himself can tell. One thing for sure, Remus Lupin, the last Marauder, must suffered the worst day of his life," she finished brief story of those four. "They invented many secret passages, did many pranks and spent more time at detention than in actual classes," she tried to add something cheerful, for she knew this wasn't a thing to make Harry smile.

Harry breathed in deeply, as Misha spoke about his father. The names of the others didn't matter to him, and he focused on James Potter. James Potter. James Potter. Why did his father have to be one of the marauders who died...why couldn't the other one, Sirius, die instead. He didn't care if he was Drake's dad, he wanted his dad. He wasn't usually selfish, but this was different. His father died because of that Sirius.... "Do you know any of the passages?" he asked, his tone now more grimm, but still showed hint of his usual happiness.

"Some of them? Yes. All of them? I have no idea," Misha smiled. "If I learnt something during my life here, it is that Hogwarts is probably impossible to explore completely. Not to mention I don't exactly have access to your comoon room and dormitories and I bet they left most of their work there," she added explanation.

"Guess I'll have to explore that part on my own," he mused before he gazed back at Misha, "Well then, stories behind names I've heard...Voldemort," he roared his name to make sure it came out and thanked Godric the halls were empty.

"Oh, him. Well, basicaly, he comes from a very ancient wizarding family, you may heard of them. Gaunts. They are direct descendants of Salazar Slytherin, known to be able to talk to snakes. He doesn't carry the name Gaunt. I actually even think he is not as pureblood as he make himself to be. However, he was uncle to the twins, sisters, Morana and Marvolo. They attended school in about same time Marauders did. Marvolo later married professor Carrow. Malphas and Magnus are their sons. They also have a daughter, she is still young for school tho," Misha started. 

"Morana's children are not in UK, nor is she. Her husband is in Azkaban as convinced death eater, mainly for torturing two people to insanity the night your parents died. She herself is on a most wanted list of criminals. Both of them are believed to be death eaters, whole family is, actualy. But there isn't a single prove to that. And even if Morana came back to UK and they caught her, she would walk free. Specialy Morana is very hated amongst people like Alastor Moody," she said very short version of what she knew. "Slytherin himself always believed in blood purity. His family line always stick with this rule somehow, Harry."

"I've met...well, seen two members of his family. Malphas and Magnus. Not counting professor Carrow...I had no idea they were from the same family. I just figured they were like the other Slytherins. You know, like Malfoy. They think they rule the place but in fact they're just stupid bullies," he sighed.

"Well, they do rule this place. At least their house anyway. All Slytherins are kind of... well it seems natural for them to see Gaunts as royality. So even professors like Snape, Yaxley, Lestrange, specialy Dellen Lestrange, they all feel urges to protect them, cover up for them sometimes. Let's just say you don't have to be friends with them, but you don't want them as your enemies," Misha winked at him.

"Though not all professors think like that. Briana for example is head of your house, and I'm pretty sure she doesn't let them do what they want," Harry stated, in his own way, trying to defend Briana, "But I don't plan on making them my enemies...well, at least not the oldest one. The younger one, Magnus, he was kinda of a....well, jerk at the feast," he admitted, and that was really what he thought. He didn't understand what Magnus was talking about with the 'mudbloods' and all, but a lot of people seemed offended.

"I didn't mean it that way. Professor Yaxley is great woman. But, you will see what I mean eventualy. There are some families, not only Gaunts, but another four of five of them, their kids are not exactly always spoiled brats or something, but their heritage, their families are ancient. They are usualy raised like royality, everyone knows them once they hear their name. Your family would be one of them, but unfortunately, your dad was last living member, due to the fact they didn't really stick with those unspoken rules. So now you carry a famous name, the more famous for what happened when you were infant, but you are only halfblood, which means in eyes of specialy the dark pureblood families, you are worthless," she tried to explain how it worked.

"So, if we're not 'pure', it means we're nothing to those dark families?" he asked just to be sure, "Well then I'm glad I'm not pure. I don't wanna be pure!" he exclaimed as he narrowed his eyes. He didn't care about blood purity or what not, he was proud in the parents he had had no matter what their blood status was.

"Not entirely. Many death eaters back in the war were halfbloods. What they are really against are muggles and muggleborns, like your mother was. But that doesn't mean blood purity is not important to them. They will be friends with you, stay by your side and so on, but only as long as you don't touch their bloodline. Members of pureblood families very rarely marry someone who is not pureblood as well. It's rare when pureblood member of the family ends up with halfblood or even muggleborn, but they exist. Like me. My mum is halfblood, my dad is pureblood. Or Kain Shadow, his mum is halfblood too," Misha said.

"Oh so as long as I, for example, don't meddle with their family, I'll be okay? Just an example...I've understood being who I am, I'll never be okay," he sighed.

"No, you are a special case, Harry. You will never be okay with many members of those families. Your mother was hated by many. Morana Gaunt in the front of this line. Dad told me she had empathy, she could see the good in people, help them. It sounds amazing, but not everybody is welcoming towards such a gift. Specialy not those, who spend their lives hiding from those feelings. Your father on the other hand used to be arrogant prat, for example professor Snape hated him genuinely from what I know. Your parents weren't invisible. Their actions, even combination of muggleborn and pureblood, all that made them many enemies. Those enemies often believed in Voldemort and you, their child, you stopped him somehow. You have much more enemies than you think," Misha told him what she knew. She herself was actualy his enemy. But right now, all her actions against Harry would be foolish nonsense, so he didn't need to know that.