The next day Harry, with Flint's help, was able to place an order for a Nimbus 2000. Draco Malfoy, however, was not at all happy at not making the team.

"Wait until my father hears about this! I was supposed to make the team!" Malfoy ranted in the common room.

"I wish he would shut up about his father." Ron whispered to Harry as Ron was teaching Harry how to play Wizard Chess.

"He reminds me of a girl I went to school with." Hermione added. "Her mum was one of the teachers. When ever things didn't go her way, she would go to her. She was so annoying..."

"What was that, Mudblood?" Malfoy challenged.

"Snape said for us not to use that word, Draco." Blaise Zabini spoke.

"I've heard him use the word before. He and my father are friends. If he can use that word, why can't I?" Malfoy replied.

'Snape is friends with Draco Malfoy's dad and calls people Mudblood? That doesn't seem right. Snape seams so nice...' Harry thought.

"Maybe he wants to set a good example. I've heard my dad swear when he thought he was alone in his shed trying to figure out how some Muggle thing works but he won't let my brothers, sister or I swear." Ron explained.

"Nobody asked your opinion, blood traitor. Your whole family has a thing with Muggles. If you are going to be a Weasley in Slytherin, you should make friends with the right crowd. Hanging out with a Mudblood encyclopedia who shouldn't even be at this school is against everything my father said Slytherin is all about." Malfoy mocked.

Ron stood up and pointed his wand at Malfoy.

"You're no Slytherin Weasley. A true Slytherin would never fire the first curse. You probably told the Sorting Hat anywhere but Gryffindor so you can be away from your family. Is it true that your family all sleep in the same room because you are all so poor?" Malfoy continued to mock.

"EAT SLUGS MALFOY! " Ron yelled. "VOMITO INVERTIBRATES!"

A green spell left Ron's wand but Malfoy moved out of the way. The spell went across the room and hit the wall causing some sparks to fly.

"You can't even aim right. Just shows you, you don't belong here." Malfoy taunted.

"Leave him and his family alone. You're the one who doesn't belong here." Zabini accused.

"Yes. You keep getting into trouble. I won't be surprised if you get suspended or worse - expelled." Hermione added.

"I don't care about your father. So what if he's on the board of governors? That doesn't mean you can go around like you own the school. There's about a dozen students who have parents or relatives on the Board of Governors and you are the only one causing trouble." a fourth year girl snapped.

"Not to mention bragging about it." a portrait of an extremely ugly witch added, causing various other portraits in the room to nod.

Malfoy, apparently couldn't handle so many people and portraits arguing against him and decided to leave the common room.

"Thank Merlin he left. I really wanted to curse him..." Ron muttered angrily.

"I can tell." was all Harry could say.

"Please don't. I don't want you to get into trouble. If he makes fun of you or your family again, tell Professor Snape." Hermione added.

Snape was in a bad mood as he headed for his office. He was teaching third year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws when a bunch of dung bombs went off in the classroom. The room smelled like a cross between hippogriff and dragon dung - except it was much more powerful. Since he was teaching third year Gyffindors, it was obvious it was one or both of the Weasley twins' doing and he gave them both detention. That caused them to stop laughing. Fortunately it was just before supper and he didn't have to teach anymore classes that day. Hopefully by morning, the smell would be gone from the classroom.

He went to his office after eating supper. He knew that he needed to get Sirius Black out of jail as soon as possible if there would be any chance of Harry spending Christmas with Sirius. Upon being released, Sirius would no doubt be sent to St. Mungo's. If his condition was anything like how it was in the old timeline, the healers at St. Mungo's would not release him until he got back up to a healthy weight. That might take at least a month with the proper potions and food, Snape thought to himself. And if Sirius decided to live at 12 Grimmauld Place, it would take at least another month for a professionally trained crew to get that place cleaned up and be an appropriate place for an 11-year-old child, especially one that trouble always seems to find.

Harry deserved to have a happy Christmas, he continued to think to himself. However, that wasn't the only reason for Snape wanting Sirius freed. He needed Sirius' help to get access to Bellatrix LeStrange's vault to destroy the horcrux that was being stored inside of it as soon as possible. With both Bellatrix and her husband in jail, the only person who would have access to her vault would be the head of the family Bellatrix LeStrange was born into. At the present time, it was her cousin Sirius Black. That meant Snape had no choice but to let Sirius in on his secret about being from the future. It was meeting he wasn't looking forward to considering the rivalry Snape had with Sirius and James Potter while they were in school together. If he had someone Sirius would listen to with him, it might make the meeting easier.

McGonagall was out of the question. Sirius never followed her instructions when he was in school. 'Perhaps I should let Sirius' only living friend Remus Lupin in on the secret?' Snape thought to himself privately. Remus was more mature than Sirius and Snape believed he could manage to have a civilized conversation with him.

But one thing bothered Snape: how could the Ministry allow Sirius to remain in Azkaban for so long? Sirius was arrested and sent more or less straight to Azkaban without a trial. They just threw him in the infamous prison for him to rot and told the world he betrayed the Potters and killed 13 people, including Petter Pettigrew. Under the Emergency War Time Act of 1973, Sirius was supposed to get a trial no later than 60 days after being arrested. If they didn't, they would have had to drop all charges against him and set him free.

'It doesn't seem like the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to make such an oversight as that.' Snape thought. 'By-The-Book Crouch was still head of that department when Sirius was supposed to get a trial. How could Crouch make an oversight like that? Unless...'

Then it dawned on him. After Voldemort disappeared, Lucius Malfoy turned to the light side and pleaded imperious curse despite the evidence against him. 'What if during questioning, Lucius Malfoy imperious cursed Crouch into excepting bribes to let other Death Eaters go free and to keep Sirius in jail?', he thought. 'Sirius couldn't legally be disowned as he is the eldest son of a person in line of being head of the Black family. If he were to die, the title would go to Bellatrix LeStrange, and if something were to happen to her, it would go to her youngest sister Narcissa Malfoy since Andromeda Tonks, who had married a Muggle, had been legally disowned. Lucius Malfoy must want his wife to be head of the Black Family so he can have access to their wealth... Sirius' grandfather Arcturus Black did die a mysterious death earlier this year... How could dozens of droxies get into a house and bite a person to death like that unless that person is Gilderoy Lockheart?'

Snape realized that if it were true that Lucius was the reason for Sirius being in jail for so long, then to proving to the world that Pettigrew was not only alive but the real traitor and mass murderer would not be enough to get Sirius free. Lucius could just say Sirius was a Death Eater and suggested the switch and told Voldemort about it. Snape felt he needed to do something to get Lucius to agree to have Sirius released. He needed to meet with Lucius as soon as possible. Fortunately Lucius had just arrived back from his trip and was going to meet with him about Draco's behavior the next day.

Harry couldn't sleep that night. Something kept him awake. It wasn't a sound but more of a presence. He looked at the clock. It was 11:00 at night. He was supposed to be asleep 2 hours ago. He had a strange urge to get out of bed and head towards the common room. It was against the rules but he couldn't fight the urge. As he walked down the hallway, he suddenly had another urge to stop at a one of the paintings. In the painting was a man. His face was monkeyish with a long thin gray beard. He never seen that man before.

"Good evening Mr. Potter. I'm sorry for summoning you. I've observing you and would like to talk to you alone in private." The man said with a hissing sound to his voice.

"Who are you?" Harry asked.

"I am Salazar Slytherin. Or rather a copy of his mind that he left behind to help manage the school," the Slytherin said.

"Why do you want to talk to me?" Harry asked again. He was shocked that a portrait of Slytherin was wanting to talk to him.

"I don't normally chat with students. I've been observing you. I can sense inside of you a piece of Tom Riddle's soul in addition to that of your own. I'm curious why nobody has given you a potion to get rid of it." Slytherin inquired.

"I have piece of someone's soul inside of me?" Harry asked a little dismayed. He may have been knew to magic but it seemed rather odd a portrait was telling him that there was something inside of him.

"Yes. You do. Tom Riddle is one of my descendants and one of the few people I can feel without too much effort if they are inside of this castle. He is very evil person and I knew from the moment he stepped into Hogwarts he was not to be trusted. He has apparently put a piece of his soul inside of you as part of his misguided quest to obtain immortality. As long as a piece of his soul is inside of you, he cannot die. It's really complex and I don't expect a first year student to understand it. There's a potion you can drink to get rid of the piece of his soul inside of you. It's an obscure potion and if the healer or potions master here doesn't know how to make it, I will gladly give them instructions." Slytherin spoke.

"I'll talk to Professor Snape. He'll probably will want to ask you questions so can you please stay here?" Harry asked Slytherin.

"I'm sure he will. I'm not going anywhere. If you ever need me, just go up to any of the paintings in the castle and say Muggles are fascinating." Slytherin replied.