Harry would have to take their word for it–he didn’t know Ned (or MJ, or anyone at this school) very well. Not yet. But he was hoping (maybe not optimistically but hoping all the same) that this time and at this school, things would finally stick. Peter wouldn’t be the only kid his age who he’d had more than a twenty minute conversation with. Maybe here, he’d be an actual student and not just a fancy name. Because everywhere Harry went, he’d been popular, so he knew he had nothing to complain about: he easily made it onto every sports team, had girls (and some guys) sending every hint his way that they wanted to go with him to homecoming, and he’d never been to detention. Not once. But he’d never been able to fight the nagging little voice in his head that said if he wasn’t Norman Osborn’s son, he wouldn’t have any of it.
But all Norman Osborn’s power and money couldn’t get Harry out of this one.
Another Potter reference occurred to Harry as he twisted in the lizard’s grip, banging his fists against unrelenting, scaly flesh: a white-haired, well-groomed boy shouting through the halls of Hogwarts, My father will hear about this! Harry wasn’t Draco Malfoy, and he didn’t think he was going to get turned into a ferret, but he knew for a fact his dad would hear about this, and either the world would find Norman Osborn suing this school (and then the city) for all it was worth over Harry’s gravestone, or, well, he’d probably do the same thing even if Harry lived. As the black tar rose closer, he thought: maybe the ferret would be better.
“Get away from me!” he yelled. He’d almost forgotten that a lizard was about to rip his head off because the tar-creature was opening its mouth, and the razor sharp fangs inside were enough to make his heart stop.
And then all hell broke loose.
Harry’s head snapped toward the trophy case as far as the lizard man’s tight grip would allow, and he watched in amazement as MJ fell from the sky like a flying squirrel. The heavy trophy bounced off the lizard’s head, but it did the job: in his surprise, he dropped Harry. The boy hit the ground, hard, the pipe water splashing around him but doing very little to stop some pretty gnarly impending bruises. In all the chaos–the lizard swiping out at MJ, Harry screaming for it to stop, Spider-Man swinging in and planting both feet on the lizard’s chest, throwing him halfway across the hallway–no one, not even Harry, noticed when the black tar grabbed his hand. His hands were wet, blood dripping from his palms, so what was the difference? No one noticed the slime slip in side him, no one saw it ooze beneath his skin and disappear. All Harry saw was the clatter of the storm drain and a single black drop slithering away.
There wasn’t time to overthink it. By all appearances, the goo monster–whatever it had been–was gone, making its escape back into the sewer, and Spider-Man was battling the lizard, both stumbling into the school library. Harry scrambled to his feet and spotted MJ through tunnel vision. He scrambled closer, grabbing hold of their arm and helping them to their feet–though he wasn’t sure they needed it. “I can’t believe you just did that,” he said, breathless. There was a bang behind them, and Harry tightened his grip on MJ’s hand, lacing their fingers together. “Come on,” he said. “We gotta get out of here.”
The breath was kicked out of their lungs, a choked sound escaping them as they hit the boney back of the lizard man. Their weapon slipped from their hands, eyes filled with blurred colors of black, white, and green. For a moment it felt as if everything went in slow motion, their decent, watching Harry slip from those scaly hands- their body curling subconsciously, protecting their head with their arms. The flash of sharp teeth and a black tar-like substance hovering menacingly, maw widening as if it would eat both Harry and the lizard whole.
In the span of those seconds, they had only one clear thought.
'I didn't plan this too well.'
Before they hit the ground with a heavy thud, having landed on their side, water splashing around them. Their bones seemed to creak from the force, a gasp leaving them, eyes wide in pained shock. Blood roared in their ears, drowning out Harry's screams as they stared up into the face of the lizard man. It was terrifying, staring into the scaly face, the slits on the side of its cheeks, (god could it open its mouth as wide as that tar monster??) sclera yellow eyes staring down at them enraged. The worst was the teeth, fuck the teeth where human teeth, solidifying the uncanny valley effect.
It didn't help how they remembered dull knives caused more pain to the victim then sharp ones...
'Jesus Christ it's like Voldemort on steroids' they hysterically thought scrambling to crawl away as the lizard's claws swiped down at them. They barely had time to raise their arm to cover their face, hearing a riiiiip as their jean jacket sleeve was torn, the claws having come dangerously close to sinking into their skin, only to be saved by the skin of their teeth. Spiderman had swooped in, faster then MJ could keep track, his feet planted into the lizard's chest forcing the lizard to stumble back down the hall. With how high they were on adrenalin they couldn't feel the slight sting, having not fully come from their encounter unharmed. The scratches weren't deep, if they hadn't known better they would've thought that it was cat scratches with how lightly they were grazed.
MJ may have sat in shock on the floor for who knows how long, the water soaking into their clothes, leaving them sopping wet only to be brought out of it by Harry. "I couldn't let you die, you still haven't told me the details about that murder bombing and the leg," they weakly joked as he helped them up, legs shaking ever so slightly as they stood, their body still reeling in shock. "After this, I'm going to pester you to death over it until you spill your guts." They flinched at the sound of the bang, breath hitching in their throat. They held Harry's hand that oozed comfort in a death grip, taking his advice, and dragging him down a separate hallway.
"If Peter's not hurt when we find him I'm going to punch him," they announced trying to sound angry instead of worried. "Maybe we should just put a baby leash on him so he can't wander off like this." It sounded like a joke but they were truly considering it as they ran down the hall with Harry in hand. "Where do you think he could have gone," they asked having peaked into empty classrooms. "Outside or- wait, fuck what if he went to check on Ned in the bathroom??"