It has been over a year since I've updated this story. I apologize profusely to those who have been waiting for this fic to be continued, I haven't been doing a very good job of continuing the stories I already have started for my brain constantly coming up with new ones. I will assure you that this fic will never take so long to be updated again, and I have every intention of continuing and eventually finishing this fic. Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoy.
Disclaimer: I do not own any recognizable plots within this story, I am simply a fan of the Harry Potter world making a few of my own wishes (and perhaps a few other people's) fantasies come true through words.
Harry Potter had quickly discovered that apparition is just as terrible as portkey, if not worse. Perhaps the overwhelming tension squeezing him was just because of his small body, but the snake boy was not eager to learn if his suspicions were true. He never wanted to apparate again, snake or human form. The pitch black around him was as sudden as the pressure pushing against him in all directions. The snake bit onto the shoulder of the man below him, terrified he would be forced away from his caretaker before they could even arrive to their destination. His eyes squeezed shut on their own accord as the pressure finally broke his control.
The discomfort ended as soon as it began, but his mind took a moment to catch up with his body. The snake blinked blearily as his body slowly relaxed itself as he spinning room came to a sudden halt. Harry hissed in displeasure before removing his fangs from Tom Riddle's shoulder. It wasn't until he properly opened his vivid green eyes that he had even remembered the heat beneath him was in fact human at all. The man's head was turned to face the snake, who looked as scared as a snake possibly could.
The shoulder he had been resting on, was now most likely bleeding. Because he bit him. He bit Tom Riddle. Harry inwardly groaned, sure he was dead now.
Tom regarded the snake's posture with a raised eyebrow, the perfectly trimmed eyebrow disappearing underneath a muss of curly locks. The snake almost appeared...human in it's inner turmoil. The snake adverted its eyes nervously, glancing at the offended shoulder.
-Stupid wizard travel.- The snake hissed, quickly attempting to slither down the man and put some distance between them. Tom, however, did not deem that acceptable. The man caught the pale snake in his right handle, careful to hold it tight enough so it couldn't slip through his fingers, but not so tight that it would hurt the young snake. The snake's muscles tensed as if Tom had every intention of avada kedavra-ing the creature. His ruby red eyes swam with mirth at the sight of the terrified snake. Was it this skeptic of every human it same across, or could Harry have told his pet about his mortal enemy? Tom couldn't quite tell.
"Lucius, please put Potter's bird-"
-Hedwig.- Harry found himself interrupting, despite his fear. Hedwig was his familiar, his first friend. He would not allow her to simply be regarded as a bird by anyone, dark lord or not. Tom's eyes flitted from the owl resting on his shoulder to the snake he held in his hand. The snake shrunk into his hand for a fraction of an inch, but did not back down.
-Her name is Hedwig, not Potter's bird.- He hissed, glancing up to his familiar as she hooted. The bird nipped affectionately at Harry, and the snake boy realized the owl must still recognize his magical signature, as faint as it was. This form hid the majority of his magical signature, but by no means did it restrict any magic. The snake's eyes widened as he realized with blatant horror that if his familiar could sense his magic, that it was entirely possible the wizard holding onto him and the other next to him could possibly sense him as well.
-Pardon my missstake.- Tom hissed, a gleam in his eye. The wizard was obviously enjoying the snake's company. Lucius watched passively, although his eyes were lit with curiosity. He had no idea what the snake had said to amuse his lord so. It was rare to see his leader in such a happy and relaxed state, but was by no means unwelcome. Tom deserved a bit of happiness.
"Lucius, please take Hedwig to the owlry. You are dismissed for the weekend after that, if I ever need you I will call." The man corrected himself. The owl hooted at the mention of her name, and nuzzled the curly locks before flying to the impossibly pale man who managed to hide most of his grimace as the owl landed on his shoulder. Lucius hated birds, and always made a house elf take his letters to their owl. The feeling of the claws digging into his clothing, only mere seconds away from digging into his unblemished skin, had Lucius thoroughly disgusted.
"Of course, Tom. Goodnight." The blond replied, walking out of the office stiffer than normal.
Harry watched the Malfoy leave, a hint of worry still coursing through him. He did not like not knowing where Hedwig was, but he hoped he'd have time to snoop around and find where Tom ordered her to be kept soon enough. His eyes shifted from the closing door to the wizard holding him, who's eyes were still focused intensely on Harry. The snake boy squirmed uncomfortably, and the grip tightened on him tightened a fraction.
-You are an odd ssssnake.- Tom informed Harry, who rolled his eyes at the statement. He wasn't truly a snake, so of course he'd be odd. But he didn't think the bloody dark lord would state such an obvious remark.
-Master taught me human traits from a hatchling.- Harry replied shortly, attempting to look around the parts of the office not immediate to his eyes.
Tom's eyebrow raised once more, skeptical of the statement. It was rare that a snake could adopt the habits of a human, no matter how early it was trained. Harry squirmed a bit more, attempting to remove himself from the constricting hand. He was suddenly feeling extremely trapped, and needed distance before he messed with the delicate relationship he currently had with the dark lord of all people. Oh bloody hell, why had he thought it a smart idea to send that letter?
Harry managed to squirm out of Tom's hand, but only because the man loosened his grip with a sigh.
"Fine, get down if you must. But don't blame me when Nagini tries to eat you." Tom muttered, causing the wriggling snake to freeze. The snake turned and glared at him.
-Nagini?- The small snake hissed, turning his body around to better stare at the smirking man holding him. A surge of annoyance ran through snake Harry, and he bared his fangs as a warning. Tom in turn used the tip of his index finger to run it across Harry's scales, almost immediately soothing any ill feelings the snake boy felt toward the man holding him. The heat of the finger, coupled with the delicate yet firm touch almost had the snake hissing in pleasure. Harry's eyes slipped closed of their own accord, allowing himself to relax into the heated touch. He could have easily drifted to sleep, the complete and utter exhaustion of the day finally settling in, but a threatening hiss coiled his muscles once more, and the touch from Tom meant nothing in terms of relaxing. The snake must have slipped in while Harry was otherwise occupied with getting away from Tom to notice an entrance.
Harry's eyes snapped open, focusing on the largest snake he's ever come face to face with without a glass barrier between them. The small snake boy curled into himself, backing down from the intimidating snake. The snake's eyes were gleaming dangerously, and Harry found himself wondering if this was how anticlimactic his death would be.
-Master, what is this hatchling doing here? You know I don't like sharing you.- The snake hissed violently, not taking her eyes from Harry despite speaking to her master. Tom's laugh floated across the two tense snakes, bringing utter confusion to both animals. He patted Nagini's head affectionately, calming the quick-tempered snake considerably, although she still took it upon herself to glare at Harry.
-Worry not, Nagini. He is here because Harry Potter is missing, and is his familiar.- Tom replied, catching the snake's attention. She stared at her master, the first time her eyes had moved from Harry since she had slithered into Tom's office.
-Your mate is missing?- Harry's eyes widened in alarm. Mate? What on earth was this snake talking about. Tom sighed, pulling Harry's eyes back to the youthful face of his enemy.
-Yesss. I worry one of Dumbledore's,-The man sneered the man's name, the hissing doubling tenfold at the mere thought of Dumbledore. -goon's discovered Harry's cry for help before I could get to him.-
As Harry attempted to take in the information, he felt two pairs of eyes settle on him. It took him a moment to notice, but by the time he did, Nagini looked irritated with him once again.
-What?- Harry hissed, looking between the two warily.
Tom's eyebrow raised up bemusedly for the umpteenth time that night.
-I asked if you knew where your master was,...- Tom paused suddenly, a small frown on his face.
-What's your name, hatchling?-
Harry blanched at the question. His immediate response was to say Harry, but a boy naming a pet snake after himself seemed implausible. It would only cause suspicion. Before snake Harry could stop himself the name, -Dante- rolled off his tongue. Tom eyed the small snake for a moment before nodding affirmatively.
-And if I knew where my master was, I wouldn't be here, would I?- Harry bit out, eyeing Nagini hesitantly. The snake hissed back venomously, and Harry coiled in on himself once more. He never did take kindly to being threatened. Before the small snake could retaliate, Tom took it upon himself to intervene.
-You both, cease this childish fighting at once.- The man hissed irritably, his free hand raising up to brush through his head of curls. Harry glared at Nagini once more for good measure, but did as asked. Nagini growled something under her breath, irking Harry once more, but the small snake kept quiet for fear of what Tom Riddle would do.
-Dante, you will be permitted to stay here, while I search for your master.- Tom informed, shushing a protesting Nagini. Harry sighed quietly, accepting the fate he had brought upon himself. He never could have a normal year, thanks to his own bad luck and a certain dark lord.
-Why do you want to kill my master so badly?- Harry grumbled, slithering his way down Tom's torso and onto the shockingly cold floor. He hissed in displeasure, already missing the warmth of a body. He couldn't fathom how Nagini stood the floor so impassively. It was disgustingly cold.
The snake did not have to live with the feeling for long, as a familiar tingling feeling washed over him. The feeling brought a wave of warmth, relaxing any tense muscles Harry had left. The warmth was nice, but no where near the intensity of natural body heat. Magic induced heat had an obvious artificial element to it that left Harry missing the real thing. The only thing stopping him from obtaining that was the man who had cast the heating charm in the first place. Harry had no desire to curl up in his enemy's hand at the moment, especially with the odd look in the man's ruby red eyes.
-Kill him?- The man laughed softly, the sound sending a shiver up Harry's spine. -I would never kill my mate, Dante. That would kill me as well.-
Harry stared at the man unblinkingly, attempting to understand the answer he had just been given. Nagini slithered up to the small snake boy, not stopping her advancements when the snake flinched. She bent down to look at the hatchling, as she called him, and gave him a very calculating look.
-Do you not know what a mate is, hatchling?- Nagini inquired, the venom and anger long gone from her voice. Harry took a moment to think of how to respond, but the snake ultimately shook his head no. Nagini hissed a slew of insults, not directed at him, but it scared him all the same. Harry coiled into himself once more, his instinctive defense mechanism. He watched the large snake until she was finished with her rant. The boy felt wary as she gazed at him with a gleam in her eye, and he suddenly wondered what the snake could be planning.
-You are my hatchling now. I will teach you everything your incompetent parents did not teach you.- She sniffed. Harry knew the snake meant well, but the insult directed at his parents infuriated him. The snake boy stood at full height and hissed angrily.
-My parents were killed on my bir-hatchday, it is not their fault I was alone.- Harry bit back, watching as Nagini raised back up at the threat. Harry was a small snake, but it was entirely possible he was venomous. Any amount of a threat would alarm a snake, despite its size. Nagini lowered herself back down to Harry's size and gently nudged Harry's head with her snout. Harry tensed at the affection, but slowly let himself relax into the oddly comforting gesture. He sighed contently as the snake hissed motherly comforts to him, and Harry soon felt himself lulling off to sleep. The tension leaked from his small body without consent, and the small snake was only faintly conscious of a warm hand picking him up. The heat was much more comforting, and Harry found himself wrapping around it in his sleepy stupor. A quiet laugh tempted him to open his eyes, but the even softer hush following it coaxed his eyes back closed.
-Worry not, little hatchling. Master will take care of your master, and I will take care of you.- Haary heard Nagini whisper, but the words were lost on the snake's sleep logged brain. He simply allowed himself to delve further into the warmth he could feel, not caring enough to wonder just where the warmth originated from.