Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. The situation and reactions are most definitely not hers though :D

Challenge fic for Places in Harry Potter World Competition by No.1HPfanLuvsHP.

Prompt number 12. Magical Menagerie – The animal shop. Write about trust.

The problem with trusting

There were many people Voldemort trusted in the Wizarding World. Despite all evidence pointing otherwise.

He trusted Dumbledore and his pet followers to hate him and fight against him. He trusted that Potter brat to try and kill him at every possible opportunity. He believed Dumbledore's words about the Potter brat being treated like a prince, or the impression that he was treated as such.

In a similar way, the Light Side trusted that he and his Death Eaters would always try to ruin the world and attack everything in sight. Kill all mudbloods. Cause havoc and chaos wherever they went and the like.

There was only one other living creature he trusted with his wellbeing.

Nagini.

She had found him long ago when he had still been living in that god-forsaken Orphanage of his youth. She had found him and taught him everything he had needed to survive (he had needed to adapt some of the suggestions of course).

She was everything he had ever imagined a mother to be.

The closest other living creature to himself.

The only one that had known of his past and helped him. Unlike Dumbledore, Dippet and all the other Hogwarts' Professors of his time who had easily waved away his complaints of his living conditions.

He was not the only one they had done that to if what he was seeing was true and not the lie as he wanted to believe it to be.

The Potter boy had been treated in a way similar to how he had been treated at the Orphanage. Only he was treated like that by his own relatives which made it significantly worse than his had ever been. At least he had known that the caretakers at the Orphanage were never meant to care about him. They weren't his family.

Voldemort nearly felt sick.

He had at least had Nagini through the years who could communicate with him and advise him on the best possible routes to get what he wanted.

Potter had only ever had his owl. As much as the owl seemed to want to help, she was locked in a cage unable to do anything at all.

It was partially his fault.

He had trusted Dumbledore.

Trusted Dumbledore's word for the prophecy that ruined that boy's chance at a normal life.

Trusted Dumbledore's word for the conditions in which the boy lived.

Dumbledore was not to be trusted no matter what. Or with anything or anyone it would seem.

He had made an incredible mistake.

One he was going to make up for.

Starting with the torture of those filthy muggles.

Lucius and Narcissa were going to have a new charge by the end of the week.