Fandom Discussion: Parselsmut, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme

[themostepotente]

Parselsmut -- sounds like it could be a spice, doesn't it?

What prompted this discussion was my finding hd_parseltongue, modded by cmere1. My only complaint with the community is that it's strictly Harry/Draco. I would have preferred a broader spectrum of characters, but it is a nice little foray into Parselsmut.

On to the discussion...

I've always found Harry's speaking Parseltongue interesting. It's an intriguing (though rare we are told) gift, and so far only Harry, Voldemort, and Salazar Slytherin have been named Parselmouths. That, I find disappointing. And unlike Animagus study, I gathered it was either something you were born with or weren't.

Now, I understand Rowling has wanted to illustrate its rarity. I can't see her giving this to just anyone. I mean I just can't see a Badger speaking Parseltongue, even though I keep hoping Hufflepuff will bore at least 'one' evil entity. *G* But Lucius and Severus? I could see either of them as being a Parselmouth and still keeping the gift a rare one.

Lucius is the epitome of a viper. Everything about this man screams ophidian, and okay my sick and perverted mind would love to see Harry and Lucius sparring in Parseltongue during the fuckage.

And c'mon, Severus is the fucking denmaster of Slytherin. If you looked up Slytherin in the dictionary, his picture would be there. It makes A LOT of sense for him to be a Parselmouth.

Couple other points. Wouldn't Parseltongue have been an effective method of communication between Voldemort and his Death Eaters? He could've sent a shitload of communiques, and hello, who the fuck would've translated them 'before' Harry Potter?

I'm also wondering if it's possible for Voldemort to transfer this power again, only this time willingly.

Any thoughts? Leave 'em here. Parselsmut recs? Likewise.

--P

Comments

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

I promise I'll restrain myself next time. *G*

oooooooooooh.

[hogwartsgenius.livejournal.com]

Thinking of Alan Rickman speaking parseltongue just gave me shivers. The good kind.

[scarah2.livejournal.com]

What Olsen twins? This is a picture of Voldemort.

here from the Snitch...

[melannen.livejournal.com]

>>I'm also wondering if it's possible for Voldemort to transfer this power again, only this time willingly.

But he *did* transfer the power willingly. In canon. And we do have another person who has canonically spoken parseltongue. Nobody ever remembers Ginny.

And let me tell you, Ginny parselsmut is *hot*. Too bad I'm the only person who's ever written it that I know of.

[starkittyn.livejournal.com]

hee! :)

[cmere.livejournal.com]

Sigh. Yeah, someone over at harrydraco said something about making a comm for H/D parseltongue fics, so I did. Afterwards, I thought hmm. Maybe I should've made hp_parseltongue instead.

[ook.livejournal.com]

I think the "squib getting magic" thing might happen in book six. That's the rumor, anyway. If it happens, I hope it's Petunia. :)

[ook.livejournal.com]

I have read it. Excellent fic. That ol' Snape is sure a clever feller! And Potter sure is gullible when it comes to snakes. ;)

[nataliadarimini.livejournal.com]

I *love* parseltongue, but what I'd really, really like is for there to be different flavours of people who can talk to animals. Like if Rowena Ravenclaw could talk to birds or something. Though, actually, the owls seem to understand what is said to them, and the tropical birds that Sirius used to send his letters. Hmmm. I guess I need to pick another one. Maybe Helga Hufflepuff could secretly speck the hidden language of Badgers. Though that one is just kind of sad. I need to write a Mary Sue that can speak to guinea pigs and fancy hamsters.

[tytoalba.livejournal.com]

LMAO
that was the best I've heard all day.

[gwendolen.livejournal.com]

From that assumption, it would stand to reason that there could possibly be only a single family that carries the genes.

But marriages over the century would spread this gene into other families and parseltongue should creep up in families related to the Slytherins. It's never said that Riddle is a direct descendant. He could just as well be a cousin of a minor line or something. Maybe there are more people around who are related in some way to Slytherin but the exact relations got lost over the centuries. Which doesn't make much sense when we consider how closely the purebloods seem to monitor their bloodlines and that 1000 years isn't that long a time. Especially not for the long-lived wizarding folk.

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

There's a reason it's the system shut-down sound on my system.

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

You get all my childfree love tonight.

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

The be the nasty, cold voice of reason... since snakes can't hear airborne sounds, Parseltongue can't be an ordinary spoken language. It may sound like hissing (oh so sexy hissing!) to the human ear, but there would have to be a magical component to it for it to be understood by serpents. You couldn't just study it like Latin.

It may not be as tricky as the Animagus transformation, but if you aren't born with the gift, it's got to be a difficult process, likely involving spells, rituals, and a very patient test subject. You don't want to accidentally say "Your mother mates out of season" to a fifteen foot reticulated python.

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

I could see Parseltongue being phonetic like Tolkien's languages.

Pity Rowling didn't develop it more. I mean, if it was important enough to further the story in CoS, we're likely to hear more of it.

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

I've always thought that the Acromantulas should have a language all their own, and that the dementors would have some form of verbal communication.

How else would Voldemort have swayed them?

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

Oh, don't get me wrong -- the commm is great!

And about hp_parseltongue? If you build it, I will totally pimp it. *G*

Re: here from the Snitch...

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

I'm not a huge fan of Ginny Weasley, but now that you mention it...

Did she actually speak it? Could you possibly leave a direct quote? I've only read CoS once.

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

I do not claim it is high art, BTW. Just porn.

You say this like it's a bag thing. *G*

What's it listed under in your memories?

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

From that assumption, it would stand to reason that there could possibly be only a single family that carries the genes.

scarah2 pointed out that 'Herpo the Foul' could speak Parseltongue, and there is no mention of his being blood related to Slytherin.

Re: here from the Snitch...

[melannen.livejournal.com]

Well, we don't actually hear her speak it face-to-face, but she was using it to get into the Chamber and control the basilisk-- at least, we heard somebody talking to the basilisk, and Tom-through-Ginny was the only one who could have. (I suppose it can be argued whether it was Tom-possessing-Ginny or Ginny-under-Tom's-control, but either way it was her body using the power.)

I'm not a huge fan of fanon Ginny but with a little Tom in her she's great.

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

I can see people hiding this talent, because of the stigma attatched. Can you imagine some lowly Hufflepuff discovering one day that he can talk to snakes? He's certainly not going to tell anyone. A Slytherin might, because they'd just see it as another form of power, but anyone from the other houses would be horrified, and not use it at all, if they could.

Ha ha -- lowly. I take it you're not a Hufflepuff fan either? *G*

[elfflame]

Actually, don't mind them, but I have this disturbing tendancy to think like a Slytherin... :P

[florahart]

under parselsmut, course! :D

[fer-de-lance.livejournal.com]

'Parselsmut' doesn't sound so much like a spice as like a fungus which infects parsley. Rather the herbal equivalent of wheatsmut.

Hmm, does it induce hallucinations? :D