Harry Potter
And the Price of Ability
So I realised almost as soon as I published the last chapter that the song I referenced, You Know You're Right, by Nirvana, wasn't released until 2002. Oh well. It was recorded in 1994, and would have been on Nirvana's forth album if Kurt hadn't killed himself/ had survived [insert conspiracy theory here], so it's not entirely anachronous. Either way, as the technology in the books is limited to basic descriptions, i.e. "car", "underground", "computer", etc, there's nothing to go by save the gravestone/ memorial in book 7 (and probably a few other references I missed), which will be altered to give a later date. I'm going by the publishing date of '97 to match with Harry's 11th birthday, as that's about as far back as I can remember, and also the year I first read Harry Potter. Sue me. I also apologise for the slow progress- I'm trying to find a job, spend time with my girl before she goes to uni this weekend, rebuild a bathroom (it's currently missing two walls), and figure out what I want to do with my life.
Disclaimer: in case anyone hasn't realised yet, there's no book called Harry Potter and the Price of Ability. And I'm a man. So I'm obviously not Ms Rowling, and only own (most of) the words I've typed. I'm probably one of the infinite monkeys who wrote something other than Shakespeare.
Chapter 4: Shattered
Harry was sat in the back of Uncle Vernon's brand new company car, hoping they'd reach the zoo soon. It wasn't that the car was uncomfortable, or that he wasn't enjoying the scenery as they drove out of the city: it was that he was stuck between Piers and Dudley, and they were intent on making his life hell. As soon as they'd got to the car, he'd been forced into the middle seat. Piers may have been scrawny but he was still bigger than Harry, even if Harry dropped his near permanent illusions. Before they left, Vernon had told Harry he wasn't to touch anything in the car lest he break it, and so Harry was squashed into the small middle seat, as far away from the electronic windows, speakers, and any escape route from the car. It was also the least defensive position in the car: with his uncle glaring at him in the rear view mirror every five minutes, he couldn't do anything to prevent Piers and Dudley constantly giving him sharp pokes or pinches for the entirety of the journey.
Harry was extremely relieved when his uncle swerved into a parking space in the large car park near the entrance to the zoo. Finally able to escape the torment of his cousin in the confines of the car, Harry got out and stretched, taking in the world around him. He'd never been out of the city before: the Dursleys had refused to pay for school trips to museums and local botanical gardens, saying that they couldn't afford the small fee for coach and entrance. They consigned him to sitting at the back of a year below class room, reading or doing homework whilst the rest of his year went to look at dinosaur skeletons or rare and exotic plants. The car park was like any other: a huge, gravelly, low maintenance expanse filled with the cars of visitors to the zoo. At one end, there was the large entrance they'd driven in through, and at the other was a wide section of ticket booths and turnstiles. Piers and Dudley had already run off in that direction, so Vernon quickly locked the car and set off after them with Petunia, Harry falling in behind them, out of sight. He could hear his aunt and uncle grumbling about the extra cost of admission for Harry, and didn't want to antagonize them by appearing happy in front of them.
They joined a short queue, and were eventually let in. It was around mid-day, and Dudley was already looking hungry, so they all headed to a nearby ice-cream shop. Vernon bought Dudley and Piers large chocolate ice-creams, and because the smiling lady had already asked Harry what he'd like, they got him a cheap lemon ice lolly as well. It was the first time he'd had ice-cream, and he thought it was delicious as he licked it whilst watching a large gorilla scratching itself and looking remarkably like a very hairy Dudley. As the Dursleys walked round, Harry made sure to stay a little way away from them, in case Dudley and Piers got bored and decided to attack him again. He knew they wouldn't be able to do much in the crowded zoo, as other parents were sure to comment if they attacked him violently, but they could still trip him or give him sharp knocks, and he wanted to avoid that. That aside, Harry had the best morning in his life. He got to see all sorts of animals that he'd only heard about or seen pictures of: lions, giraffes, elephants and tigers. However, his favourite were the cheetahs. They looked just as proud as the other big cats, but less lazy, and seemed to have a somewhat intelligent look; where the lions just looked bored and aloof, the cheetahs looked watchful and alert. He also liked their faces, with the dark markings around their eyes reminding him of his glasses a little.
At one o'clock, they went to have lunch at one of the restaurants in the zoo. This was the first time Harry had had lunch at a restaurant, and although he had the cheapest item on the menu, a burger and chips, he thoroughly enjoyed it. He even got to add some tomato ketchup, as the condiments were free, and so got to taste the source that Dudley poured onto almost every meal for the first time in his life. After the main course, Dudley and Piers got knickerbocker glories. Harry had said that he was full when the waiter asked him what he'd like, noting his uncle's fierce glare from behind the waiter. When the puddings arrived, Dudley threw a small tantrum because his wasn't big enough, so Uncle Vernon ordered another one and Harry had to sit through the sickening sight of Dudley stuffing his face with two puddings.
Finally, they were all finished, and headed off to the 'Danger Zone'. The Danger Zone was a large building that hosted all the most deadly animals in the zoo: all kinds of poisonous reptiles, spiders, and insects. Dudley was excited, wanting to see enormous man crushing pythons and all the highly venomous snakes, and ran inside with Piers, quickly finding the largest snake in the building. It was an enormous boa constrictor and, disappointingly, it was fast asleep.
"Make it move!" Dudley demanded, as his parents caught up to the two boys. Uncle Vernon rapped sharply on the glass, ignoring the large sign that told him not to. The snake didn't move.
"Do it again," Dudley ordered. The snake, which in Harry's opinion could have easily wrapped itself around his uncle's car and crushed it, lazily opened one eye as Uncle Vernon rapped the glass hard. It seemed to Harry as though the snake was judging them. Strangely, its gaze lingered on him for a second longer than the others, but it soon closed the eye again and did nothing more.
"This is boring," Dudley declared, and waddled off in search of other animals to torment, Piers tagging along with him. As his Aunt and Uncle walked away to find a bench to sit on, Harry moved to the centre of the window to give the giant snake one last look. He doubted he'd ever see a reptile this big again. To his surprise, the snake cautiously opened its eye once more, and looked around. Seeing nobody around save Harry, it raised its head until it was looking him in the eye. And bowed.
Harry nearly fell over in shock. The snake had bowed to him! There was no mistaking it- the snake had raised its head about three feet from floor of its enclosure and had made a very deliberate movement, lowering its head and about a foot of its body until it was horizontal before raising it to look Harry in the eye once more. Nervously looking around him, Harry bowed back.
"Err...hello?" He asked, feeling foolish talking to a snake. Then again, the snake had just bowed to him, so maybe it wasn't that stupid after all. The snake hissed at him, but he could tell it wasn't in an angry way. In fact, it seemed like it was trying to tell him something.
"Sorry about them... I get the same treatment. It's annoying, getting that all the time..." the snake nodded in agreement and hissed softly. "What do you do all day in there?" Harry voiced out loud. The snake gestured around with its tail, passing over a log, and a variety of shaded and sunny patches. Harry got the impression that its answer was "not really much to do", but was interrupted from further thought by a shout.
"DUDLEY! COME LOOK AT THIS SNAKE! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT IT'S DOING!"
Dudley came waddling out from behind a large tank of scorpions, moving as fast as he could whilst Uncle Vernon had got up from his bench to see what all the fuss was about. As he neared the enclosure, he passed another family who looked distinctly displeased at the behaviour of Piers and Dudley, protectively pulling their bushy haired daughter towards them. Dudley beat his father to the boa's enclosure, shoving a startled Harry out of the way. Harry fell to the floor, and jarred his elbow. He couldn't resist sending a magical sting to Dudley's rump as it rushed past him.
To Harry, everything seemed to be in slow motion. As he felt the small surge of magic leave him to administer the sting, Harry could have sworn he saw a glimmer of yellow in the air. Heading in two different directions. The first hit his intended target of Dudley's massive behind, causing him to yelp in pain, and fall forwards. Unfortunately, his raised hands came into contact with the glass front of the enclosure at exactly the same time as the second glimmer of yellow hit it.
The glass shattered.
Dudley kept falling forwards, glass raining down on him. The snake, which had still been 'standing' to look at this new adversary, moved remarkably quickly for its size. As soon as Dudley had started to fall, it had uncoiled itself and slithered to one side. As Dudley landed heavily on the ledge of the enclosure, the snake was well clear of him, avoiding the irony of a man crushing snake being crushed by a man. As the last of the glass landed on and around Dudley, the screaming began, snapping Harry back to real time. Dudley was screaming in pain from the cuts on his hands, whilst Piers and several onlookers screamed and shouted in reflexive panic and shock. Uncle Vernon was trying to lift Dudley back to his feet, hampered by the glass around him, whilst the snake was using the opportunity to try and slither away unnoticed. By the time Aunt Petunia rounded the corner to see what all the noise was about (she could never resist the chance to gawk at someone else's misfortune), Dudley was standing again, cradling his bloody hands. When he saw his mother, he ran towards her holding out his hands, and she started screaming louder than everyone save her crying son.
Several minutes later, a hoard of zoo officials arrived: a medic and the head of the Danger Zone to look after Dudley, several workers to contain the forming crowd and clear up, and a small team of handlers. Far more observant than the public, the handlers been informed of the escape via CCTV, and an alarm that informed them of any break in the enclosures. As everyone fussed around the Dursleys, or looked for the escaped snake, Harry was largely ignored. This suited him fine, as it meant that he could avoid awkward questions.
Over an hour later, Dudley's hands had been bandaged, the snake had been found in some shrubbery, and the manager had apologised profusely for what he was calling a "terrible accident".
"I don't understand how the glass could have broken like that!" He'd said, over and over again. "It's a miracle that no-one was seriously injured, and that the snake was caught so quickly."
"Well you can be sure we'll be suing the zoo for endangering our son like that!" Vernon had stated angrily. "He could have been crushed to death by that monster!"
"Well sir, the snake had been fed last evening, and that's why it spent most of today resting," the manager had explained. "We will be investigating how the glass broke so easily, but there are signs everywhere telling you not to bang on the glass. Your son is very lucky he didn't break into another enclosure; we were told he was near the scorpions before running over to the boa constrictor, imagine if he'd fallen into them! He'd have been stung repeatedly, and would have been lucky to survive."
"Well yes..." flustered Vernon, suddenly realising how close to death his son had actually come "...but the glass should have been tougher, a snake like that could probably break its way out!"
"As I said, we don't know why it happened, but we will be investigating it thoroughly, and checking all the other glass enclosures for cracks or signs of fatigue. In the meantime, I hope you'll accept our most humble apologies, along with a 5 year family pass to all the attractions run by our owner? It includes a major theme park, as well as this zoo, and several activity parks." Uncle Vernon had accepted the gift, but he knew that it was an attempt to prevent them suing. Listening in on the conversation, Harry could almost see the dollar signs rolling into his uncle's eyes like in one of Dudley's cartoons.
The long drive back was very quiet. Dudley was whimpering softly, clutching his bandaged hands, whilst Harry's aunt and uncle talked quietly in the front seats. Piers had calmed down, and was trying to tell Dudley about how the snake had snapped at him and nearly bitten off his leg as it fled, but for once, Dudley was ignoring everything around him. Amazingly, that included Harry, and so Harry had a much more relaxing ride home, free of pinches and prods. That was until Piers, tired of Dudley's unresponsiveness, turned on Harry.
"You were talking to it, weren't you?" He stated loudly.
"Talking to what?" Harry replied.
"The snake. Before I shouted, you were talking to it, and it was making all kinds of strange movements." Uncle Vernon's eyes shot up into the rear-view mirror.
"Don't be stupid. Snakes don't understand people. You're just jealous it didn't move for you. If people could talk to snake, it'd be all over the papers or something. I'm not some old Indian man playing a flute for a snake in a basket." Piers harrumphed in response, and glared out of the window. Uncle Vernon's eyes kept flicking up to the mirror to look at Harry, who put on a bored expression as though he had nothing to hide. Eventually, Harry's uncle stopped and went back to focussing on driving, leaving Harry free to think about the day's events.
He'd apparently done two new bits of magic today. He'd managed to repair a broken plate, and he was sure that his little magic sting had somehow weakened the glass. But it was odd, because he was sure he'd only fired off one sting. He was glad that between the breaking glass, the escaped serpent, and the cuts on his hands, Dudley had completely forgotten why he fell in the first place. Harry had never considered using the sting on anything other than people, and wondered how other objects would react. He didn't know if he could control the power either, though he thought that it ought to be relatively easy. He'd been pretty angry earlier, after being shoved to the floor, and so the sting had been a little stronger than he'd used in the past.
The fact that he'd managed to repair the plate was the more important of the two discoveries. He had so many broken objects; he'd be a lot more comfortable in his closet if he could fix them. But if the Dursleys ever noticed, he'd be in trouble for sure. Although his uncle seemed suspicious at the moment, he thought he'd managed to deflect most of it away. After all, his uncle couldn't prove anything; it wasn't like he'd made the glass disappear. But if they ever found items that they'd thrown away now fixed, they'd realise he was still using magic. Still, he had a couple of things they wouldn't notice that he could practice on first.
They dropped Piers off at his house on the way back, and finally they were home. Dudley immediately shuffled off into the lounge, whilst Harry went through to the back garden to get out of the way. On his way, he heard a howl from Dudley.
"MUM! I can't work the remote because of my hands!" Dudley shouted. His mother rushed in to help him, whilst Harry ran for the back door. He didn't want to be forced to wait on Dudley and look after him. In the kitchen, he paused briefly to put the kettle on, knowing that it would help keep his aunt and uncle calm, but was stopped on his way to the back door by a firm hand on his shoulder. He turned round to find his uncle glaring at him.
"What happened today, boy?" His uncle hissed. Crap. It looked like his uncle wasn't as devoid of suspicion as he'd thought.
"Nothing, Uncle Vernon," Harry lied. "Dudley pushed me out of the way and fell into the glass. I couldn't stop him because I was on the floor."
"Don't play smart with me boy. You know what happens if you do anything freaky."
"I didn't! Dudley broke the glass!"
"Well consider this your last warning. Anything suspicious, one toe out of line, and that's it. Got it?" Harry nodded glumly. "Good. Now get started on dinner." Uncle Vernon released Harry and went to the fridge, retrieving a can of Stella Artois from the fridge and heading into the lounge to join Dudley on the couch and wrest the remote from him. Harry dug out some frozen chicken kievs from the freezer and turned the oven on to heat up. He poured himself a glass of water, refilled the filter, and made the cup of tea for his aunt. He took it to her in the living room, and then went to back to the kitchen to continue with dinner.
Dinner was more bearable than normal, as Dudley couldn't use his cutlery. This meant that instead of the usual disgusting lack of manners, he was forced to eat more slowly as his aunt fed him bit by bit. By the end of the evening, Dudley was complaining that it was the worst birthday ever. He hadn't even been able to use his new computer or play with any of his other presents due to his heavily bandaged hands, and instead sat dejectedly in front of the television. Even Die Hard with a Vengeance didn't cheer him up, a first given Dudley's love of action films. After doing the washing up and getting ready for bed, Harry was glad to escape to his cupboard and begin to investigate his new fixing abilities.
-End of Chapter 4-
Author's Note
Various reviewers have questioned where this story is going. Particularly "how strong will Harry be", "what changes are you making", and "relationships with Dursleys/ Dumbledore". I can't really comment on his strength, because it's integral to my plot. I'm not making Harry weaker OR stronger than in the books, just different. This will be evident over the next few chapters, and will be one of the main focal points of the story.
The changes will become clearer as the story goes on, it should be obvious that it's not going to be short, so I can't give everything away at once.
Relationships is a difficult one. Readers have to keep in mind that by and large, Harry hasn't been treated much worse than he was in the books. We're told that he was slightly malnourished, that whilst they fed him, he" was never allowed to eat as much as he wanted to and that Dudley always took anything Harry really liked". Likewise, it's frequently implied that Dudley physically assaults him- how else do his glasses keep on getting broken? The only thing I've added is being hit by Vernon for using magic. As this has been a minor thing- the Dursleys don't know about his experiments/ training, and he's kept his magic hidden from them for the last 3 years- after all, illusions are meant to be something that other people don't notice, aren't they? Consequentially, Harry is fighting back against the Dursleys, something he doesn't do in the books. In the books, he never forgives them; he just says he doesn't want them to be killed by Voldemort. Seems fairly reasonable, with his "saving people" thing. I'm not saying that he's going to turn around and give them a hug, just that his main priority once he leaves them is to stay gone. Harry's not a bitter guy, he's not going to spend 7 years plotting revenge on them, and he already gets some on Dudley, who I see as his main antagonist. As for Dumbledore, you'll have to wait and see- Harry currently has no idea who he is!
I'm glad people are enjoying this, next time I'll try and keep the notes a lot shorter! Thanks for reading, please leave a review, and in return I'll try and work on the next chapter a little faster!
This chapter has been edited since first publishing. No content has changed, just correcting errors and (hopefully) making things better for you, the reader.
