Talent Unlocked

When Harry woke up, he felt better than he could ever remember feeling. He hadn't even realized that he could feel this good! Yesterday he would have said that he was fine; a little overwhelmed but physically just great, but today… today blew that feeling right out of the water!

He was in his bed; or at least, the bed he had woken up in yesterday, and a robe and trousers were laid out for him. Harry rushed through his morning ablutions and hurried to put the clothes on. Then, he rushed out the door and through his common room. In the Founders' master common room, he found Hermione and Neville, who were chatting away with Helena and Slytherin over a small breakfast spread.

"Harry!" Hermione bounced up and immediately gave him a hug. Neville looked a little as though he wanted to do the same, but didn't. Helena rose at a more sedate pace, but also gave Harry a strong hug.

"I am very glad that Hufflepuff's treatment worked for you, young Harry," she said. "How are you feeling?"

"Fantastic! Amazing!" Harry said, sitting down and piling his plate high. "It was like when you have a broken ankle, and it hurts, but then when the pain is gone the next morning you feel fine! This is like something I didn't even know was broken, but it is completely healed now! I've never felt this good!"

"Broken bones don't heal overnight!" Hermione said.

Harry shrugged. "Mine do!"

"Another indicator that you have a strong self-healing power, young Harry," Helena said. "Now, I believe all of this came about because you wanted to know what powers you have?"

Harry nodded, unable to keep the smile off his face. He felt fantastic!

Helena's smiled widened a little in response, then she studied Harry. "You excel in self-healing, as we know, but also have a talent for healing others. Your talent for speaking to snakes is not the only language talent you have; I'm sure you would excel in learning many other languages, and might have the ability to speak another animal language. You also have a talent for metamorphmagus and animagus changes, spectral magics, and creature magics."

"The horcrux in your scar was partially feeding off of your magics to sustain itself, which is why it was able to last for so long in a living host," Helena continued. "Because of that, your magic would have been spotty, underperforming at times and overperforming at times."

Harry nodded. "That explains why when I tried to jump over a few bins I ended up on the school roof!"

"Yes, that would have been a time that your magic overperformed, due to stress. When extremely stressed, your adrenaline would have given your magic a boost, allowing it to burst past the blockage created by the horcrux. Your self-healing would have also shone in times of stress, as injuries boost your adrenaline. I would imagine, however, that your other talents have largely lay dormant, oppressed by the presence of the horcrux. You were likely only able to speak parseltongue consistently because Tom Riddle could as well, so the horcrux encouraged, rather than repressed, that ability. You should now find yourself casting magic more consistently and successfully, and your passive powers, such as your metamorphmagus skills and language skills will become more apparent."

Harry nodded. "I understand. Helena, thank you again for seeing that thing and getting rid of it!"

"You are more than welcome, Harry," Helena said with a smile.

After a moment, Slytherin spoke up. "Young Harry, today I shall be taking you around the grounds again. I will introduce you to the other snakes who guard this castle, and we shall see if we can discover any more hidden languages you may know."

Slytherin then turned to Hermione and Neville. "I presume, given your previous reactions, that you two would not like to meet our snake defenders." Both shook their heads quickly. "You shall meet with Ravenclaw this morning, who shall discover your interests and what you should study while you are here." Hermione and Neville both seemed relieved by that.

They all quickly finished breakfast; the others had a headstart on Harry, but he found his appetite had increased dramatically since the day before. Once they were done, Slytherin stood. "Come, young Harry." Harry quickly jumped up and followed him, eager to go.