Of course I must send out a heartfelt thank you to this new story's first reviewer, xXxblacklilyxXx. I am glad that you are already hooked on this piece of work and I hope to further entertain you with my writing. As I am unsure exactly where this story is leading, my only hope is that in the end you find yourself in love with it. Thank you very much again, and I will dedicate this next chapter to you and your kindness. Please enjoy.
On another note I realized that I forgot to write a disclaimer. So here it is. I do not own Harry Potter or any recognizable characters from the novels or movies. If I did own them, the stories would have gone much more differently. That is all. I do, however, own everything original in here and ask for those reading to respect that and not to filch anything without asking me first. Thank you.
When the orphanage had arranged for the children to go on a field trip to the local zoo, Harry had been less than motivated. He would have preferred to stay back in the empty building away from everyone else, perhaps curled up in the meagerly stocked library with a ratty book as company. Since none of the workers at the orphanage were staying back it was only logical that neither could he.
The only thing he had been thankful for was the fact that once inside the zoo he was allowed to wander off by himself, provided that he didn't leave the facility. That had suited him just fine. He had stuffed his hands as deep as he could into the pockets of the grey trousers he wore and ignored the way that his white button up shirt came semi-untucked at the action.
As he had wandered aimlessly around he took note of the way the other orphans would stop to oooooh and aaaaaah at the various creatures in their enclosures. The prowling tigers seemed to be the most popular animal for them and so he had made a point to steer clear of the large animals which inevitably lead him to the less popular indoor enclosures that housed the smaller inhabitants.
Harry remembered that day vividly as well.
The overly large but nonetheless beautiful Boa that captured his attention had been lounging across branches of a fake tree, its chin rested on the furthest jutting piece of wood so that bright yellow eyes could stare out of the glass that kept in caged in. Harry had stepped right up to the glass, his breath fogging it up as let out a heavy exhale, his right hand reaching up to press fingers in front of the snake's face. The snake's pupils had seem to thin out as it slowly lifted it's head up to stare first at his fingers and then that large triangular head had pivoted to stare at his face.
Harry remembered because the snake had reacted strangely when he had uttered words for the first time in two years, "You're as confined as I am."
It had tilted its head before its body had flowed like a stream of water off of the branch, it's heaviness obvious by the muffled thunk as it did so, and it slithered right up to the glass where it slinked up into a rear, it's body contorting into a fascinating 'S' shape with its head ducked before his own. The Boa had pressed the top of its head right up against the glass, body swaying strangely, and Harry had had the sudden and unexplainable urge to remove the eyepatch that still hid his left eye from view. He had done so, slowly, the snake's eyes seeming to follow his movements. As soon as he dropped his hand that held the eyepatch to his side the snake had allowed its tongue to flick out once, twice, and then a third time before whispered words crooned in the back of his mind, 'Gorgeous, isn't she?' Harry had faintly realized he was nodding just before he found himself on the receiving end of a particularly vicious shove which landed him painfully on his back end, his hands marked with scuffs from the stone floor.
Above him had stood Scottie Lorell, the sandy haired ten year old who had decided that Harry was his to torment. Scotty hadn't been looking at him, though; he was excitedly plastered against the glass of the large snake enclosure right in front of the Boa, his muddy brown eyes alight with fascination. "Look at that monster!" He had exclaimed loudly to try and gain more attention to the snake and to himself as he was wont to do on a normal basis. He tapped at the glass right in between the snake's eyes and the Boa had reared back and away from the boy and Harry could hear the spitting and hissing even as long fangs extended with a mouth wide open which only seemed to make Scottie even more excited.
And Harry remembered with clarity a sudden rage rising up within him as his eyes narrowed to focus on the fingers tapping at the glass. He could remember the thoughts that Scottie wasn't worthy to look at the boa, let alone call it a monster. The voice in the back of his head agreed viciously and almost sounded as if it was hissing and spitting as well. Harry's focus had narrowed down to the space of glass between Scottie's body and the snake and then, quite suddenly, the glass had just….. disappeared.
There had been a comical moment where Scottie had floundered as he lost his balance, arms flailing to the sides and his eyes going impossibly wide, and Harry knew he hadn't imagined a distinctly feminine voice gleefully exclaiming thanks before the large Boa had lunged right at Scottie to sink her fangs (because Harry had been suddenly quite sure that she had been the one to thank him for the disappearing glass) into his neck, straight through his jugular.
Harry remembered because blood had splattered down on his face, on his arms, on the floor and everything else around them as the female Boa had ripped her head backwards to leave a relatively small yet deadly gaping wound that spurted blood even as little Scottie had tried to futilely grasp at it to stop the bleeding.
The female Boa had turned to him, then, leaning towards him to flick her tongue against the strange lightning bolt scar on his forehead that Harry had had for as long as he could remember and he had no fear of her as she did so. 'See? So beautiful,' that voice whispered in the back of his mind as the snake leaned back again with hot blood still seeping from her mouth and down her scales. Harry had reached out, slender fingers running down the side of her head and through the blood as they both ignored the gurgling and gasping boy lying merely a foot away from them, and the female Boa had hissed out another "Thank you" before turning to slither away, disappearing around a corner that led to the exit of the reptile house.
When the matron found Harry and Scottie thirty minutes later the glass of the reptile house had reappeared, but seemingly shattered around the floor where Harry still sat, eyepatch having been wrapped back around his head to hide his red left eye, staring off into the distance as if in shock.
But Harry had not been in any sort of emotion shock or turmoil. Even as police men and medical workers and others filed in one after another to question him (in which he never uttered a word,) he had not felt an ounce of terror or sadness. And as they had finally left the zoo with Harry's white shirt stained with dried blood from Scottie's lifeless body the only thought that Harry could remember having was if everyone bled so profusely from their neck, and if he would be able to see the beautiful Boa ever again.
The whispered voice in the back of his head had murmured to him that perhaps some day they should test it out, and he hoped that the snake found her way to them again.
Ta Ta for now. Hope it was acceptable, if even a bit vague. No worries, the "remembering" phase wont last the whole story. I find myself struggling a bit to write this new way but it is an exciting challenge.
