A/N: This is my first story. Blame any and all spelling and grammar mistakes on me because I don't have a beta. Future Drarry but it's a slow burn.

Thoughts are in italics. Parseltongue is in bold italics.

Please R/R.
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"Why hasn't Harry responded to our letters yet?" Dumbledore questioned angrily. "We've sent scores and not a single response."

"Well, Dumbledore, I don't think his name is Harry anymore. Have you seen the accepted students list?" McGonagall unrolled the parchment that had every accepted student's name magically written the moment they were accepted. The name 'Harry Potter' had been scratched out and 'Nicodemus Evans' had appeared beside it.

"For Merlin's sake what the hell happened?" Dumbledore rubbed the bridge of his nose. For his plan to work the boy, especially his name, had to be recognizable. "We'll do a home visit and figure this mess out.

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Nicodemus rolled over, checking his watch. Shit, it's already eight o'clock. At least there are only 16 hours to my birthday. Grabbing his glasses Nico did a quick check of the living room. He'd been squatting in an abandoned house for the past few days and the living room was the only place that was, well, livable.

He packed his meager belongings in his backpack. The last thing put up was Nico's 1.5-meter ball python named Fluffy. Just before he was going to sneak back out through the loose window boards he heard two distinctive cracks. Nicodemus spun, drawing his Bowie knife as he went, "Who the hell are you and what do you want?"

Before him stood two elderly folk in what appeared to be fancy bathrobes. Nico almost felt bad and was about sheathe his knife when the man spoke, "Harry, my boy, how are you?"

Fuck, how do these people know my old name? "First of all, I ain't ya boy. Secondly, my name's Nicodemus or Nico, not fuckin' Harry. Thirdly, answer the bloody question before I carve ya like a Christmas goose." Dumbledore stood shocked, this wasn't what he'd planned. Not in the slightest. How am I supposed to make a boy who obviously trusts no one trust me implicitly? And the Dursleys' treatment didn't have the intended effect. This is going to be much harder than I originally thought.

McGonagall, while equally shocked, managed to keep it off her face. Before her stood a boy with short hair on the sides and hair on top that was long enough to cover his iconic lightning shaped scar. Speaking of scars in addition to the one of his forehead there was one stretching from between his eyes to his right earlobe. In that ear was two earrings. This visit is going to be...unique, to say the least. "Hello, Ha-I mean Nicodemus. I am Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The man beside me is Professor Dumbledore the Headmaster of Hogwarts."

Understanding and anger lit Nico's eyes "You guys are the barmy folk who've been spamming me with those tosh letters?" He'd been attacked for the past week by letters with the same handwriting. The fact that the letters had followed his change of sleeping arrangements had been especially creepy.

"Yes we sent the letters and they are not tosh. Everything stated in them is completely true." Dumbledore replied gently.

Nico raised an eyebrow "You expect me to believe that there's a school for bloody magic just sitting in the middle of Scotland?" Before either of the professors could react the boy muttered to himself. "Well, magic would explain a shit ton of the crazy things that've happened to me." Louder he directed his next comment at the two people standing in front of him "OK, let's say the two of you haven't completely lost the plot. How the hell do you expect me to pay for it? Where do I buy my school supplies for that matter? And why are you just now visiting me? I mean sure there were the letters but those didn't explain that much."

Dumbledore started "Harry my boy-"

"I already told you my name ain't Harry and I'm not ya bloody boy. If you are planning to continue using the wrong name then I'll just finish this conversation with Professor McGonagall."

Dumbledore gritted his teeth and slowly exhaled through his nose "Nico the first thing I must ask is while Harry Potter is no longer your name, something I will respect, was it your name previously?" Dumbledore barely avoided grinding it out but the exasperation remained in his tone.

"Yeah. How'd you know that?" Nico tightened his grip on the knife. It had dropped down a bit during the conversation but he snapped it back up to chest level, edge facing outwards.

McGonagall pulls out 3 scraps of parchment and quickly transfigured them into chairs "Take a seat, you'll probably need it. But before we explain please put the knife away."

Nico followed her instructions but before she began again he opened his backpack and pulled out his snake. "This is Fluffy," he lifted the serpent briefly, "he is completely safe and I only keep him in there," Nico nodded to the ratty, black backpack, "for transport. Since it appears that we'll be here for while I figured I'd let him out for a while."

I don't like these people, master. They seem odd.

Firstly, I told you to call me Nico or friend. And never Master, Fluffy. Secondly, I don't like the man either and the lady seems OK. I need to hear them out.

Fine.With that Fluffy slithered up his owner's arm and made himself comfortable on Nico's shoulders, head nestled in the hollow of Nico's collarbone. Nico glanced up only to be met with anxious and alarmed glances. "What?"

"You can talk to snakes, Nico?" Dumbledore carefully questioned, raising his eyebrows in curiosity and carefully hiding his small, satisfied smile. Just as I suspected. At least one thing is going according to plan.

"Yeah. So what?"

"It's just an incredibly rare ability so it's just a shock. There is nothing wrong with it. But back to the matter at hand. The lightning shaped scar on your forehead- do you know how you got it?"

"The Dursleys told me I got it in the car crash that killed my parents."

McGonagall raised her voice, anger, and incredulity causing her Scottish brogue to come out "They told you that your parents died in a CAR CRASH?" Nico nodded "Dumbledore I told you not to put him with those people. I told you that the Dursleys would do him absolutely no good but you ignored me. Look at what they told the boy."

Nico jumped up from his seat, unsheathing his knife as he went. Pointing it at Dumbledore's face "YOU'RE THE ARSEHOLE WHO SAW FIT TO PUT ME IN THE CUSTODY OF THOSE NEGLECTFUL, SELF-CENTERED EXCUSES FOR HUMAN BEINGS?" Dumbledore swallowed and nodded slowly, he opened his mouth to explain Nico spoke the following words slowly, and darkly with cold fury shining in his emerald green eyes, "Explain. And it better be good." Nico took a step with every word, and on the final one, he pressed the tip of the knife to the hollow of Dumbledore's throat.

McGonagall started to draw her wand but Dumbledore, stuck in a chair with an 8-inch knife pressed against his throat, shook his head no. Only luck prevented his neck from being pierced. To Nico, he said "I must explain the circumstances surrounding your parents' death before I can tell you why I decided to leave with the Dursleys. On Halloween 1981 a dark wizard by the name of Voldemort," McGonagall flinched at the name, an action that did not go unnoticed by Nico, "attacked your and your parents' home. He killed your father first and then went after you and your mother. Your mother died protecting you. When Voldemort," McGonagall flinched once more, "came after you, he used his preferred method- the Killing Curse. Which, until you, was thought to be 100% effective. Instead of killing you the curse backfired and killed Voldemort instead, leaving you, Nico, with your lightning shaped scar."

"What does that have to do with leaving me with the bunch of fuckwads known as the Dursleys?" Nico spat with a sneer on his face

"You became famous that night partly because you defeated Voldemort the darkest and most evil wizard who has ever lived and partly for being the only person to have survived the Killing, which earned you the nickname 'The Boy Who Lived'. I left you with the Dursleys for 2 reasons. First of all, I wanted you to grow up without the drama and vanity of being a celebrity. And secondly, I placed a Blood Protection Charm as a form of protection because while Voldemort may have been defeated his followers might have come after you to avenge their leader's death. For it to work you have to be living with relatives and consider that place home. I did not know how horrible they would be towards you. Even with McGonagall's warnings, I thought the benefits of the Blood Protection would outway the whatever the Dursleys' might put you through." Nico snarled and pressed the point of the knife slightly deeper, pricking Dumbledore's skin. To appease the increasingly angry child he added: "Which I was completely wrong about and I'm sorry about everything that you had to go through due to my gross miscalculations."

Dumbledore maintained the suffocating silence but prayed in his head. Please let there be enough truth in there to allow my dragon crap to slip through unnoticed.

Nico stared into Dumbledore's twinkling eyes. He's hiding something. I know it. But I can't prove one bloody thing. Nico withdrew the blade as both adults sighed audibly and backed away. "Fine." He flopped back into his chair.

McGonagall caught Dumbledore's eyes and decided to speak up "Nico may I ask why you changed your name? As well as why do you hate the Dursleys so much? And why did you run away?"

Nico sighed and sheathed the knife "When I lived with the Dursleys they kept me in a cupboard under the stairs. My cousin, Dudley, bullied me constantly. I was forced to cook for myself starting when I was 5. If I burned something, my hands were run under scalding hot water. Uncle Vernon called me 'freak' regularly and when he was angry I was either 'Potter' or 'boy'. If I didn't complete my chores I was locked in my cupboard without dinner. When I got in trouble at school- mostly for things beyond my control like my magic or Dudley and his gang- I'd be locked in there for a week or more. The only food I got during those times was broth, water, and a slice of stale bread once a day. I didn't run away, by the by. A couple months before my 8th birthday, right before the end of school, Dudley and his friends were chasing me so I tried to get away by jumping onto the trash cans. Somehow I ended up on the roof instead, the Dursleys were called, and I was suspended for the rest of the school year- which was about a week. When we got home I was locked in the cupboard for a month. When they finally let me out they shoved my clothes into my backpack and drove to the park. When we got there Vernon grabbed me by the collar of my shirt and dragged me out of the car. He told me that if I ever returned to their house he'd kill me. I never tested him on that threat."

McGonagall was about to begin speaking but Dumbledore beat her to the punch "Nico I'm sorry for what you went through there but why did you change your name? Was it to maintain anonymity?"

"Nah, the Dursleys never reported me missing. They probably said I went to some school for delinquents. I changed my name because I wanted to completely disassociate myself with the Dursleys and that time in my life."

"What caused you to choose the name you did?" McGonagall inquired

"I took my mother's maiden name because I wanted to have a connection with her besides Petunia. The name 'Nicodemus' was taken from the bible. I've read it from cover to cover mostly because when I was locked in the cupboard there was nothing else to do. I don't actually believe in any of that God or Jesus bullshit."

Dumbledore smiled inwardly The little arse doesn't even know how apropos his chosen name is. "I guess this means that there's only one more question for us to ask: Will you be attending Hogwarts in the autumn?"

"Depends on the answer to these questions: Is there someone who can take me to wherever I buy my school supplies because I'm certain that you can't buy them in the London I know? Where can I get money to purchase them because I only have about 5 quid to my name? Also, I noticed snakes weren't on the approved pets list so would I be able to take Fluffy with me?"

"Nico, your father was from an extremely old, and wealthy, pureblood family. You have plenty of money in Gringotts- the Wizarding bank located in Diagon Alley. Tomorrow we'll send a representative from Hogwarts to take you there. About Fluffy, we usually don't allow snakes as pets but since you can communicate with him I'll allow you a familiar exemption."

"OK. I'll go to Hogwarts. I'll await your representative tomorrow. Goodbye."

McGonagall and Dumbledore said their goodbyes and apparated right outside of Hogwarts' anti-apparition wards. McGonagall retired to her chambers with a glass of Highland Park 18 scotch. Next year will definitely be interesting. She downed the rest with a smirk.