Project Apophis
Disclaimer/Plot/Author's Note: SEE FIRST CHAPTER
Recommended Reads: Harry Potter and the Hermetic Arts, Harry Potter and the Physical Adept and Harry Potter and the Runecraft of the Norns by HaikenEdge, Trickshot and Bonded by JustBored21, Ignore the Dementor by NinjaPandaScholar, Death Makes Equal, The Necromancer and The Darkening Of Your Soul by MaeglinYedi, Seventh Horcrux by Emerald Ashes, Green Eyed Beast by MrWriterWriter, Shrinking Solution by unquenchable69, Weres Harry? By DobbyElfLord, Kill me if you can and The Overpowered Gamer by PercyPendragon3, Harry Is A Dragon, And That's Okay by Saphroneth, Core Threads by theaceoffire and The Thief of Hogwarts by bluminous8
Key Pairing: Harry/Rhea
Other Pairings: To be determined
Normal Speech
'Thoughts'
'Mental Speech'
/Parseltongue/
Review Answers:
WhiteElfElder: Let's just say the ball is about to get well-and-truly rolling;
A10riddick: Not in this story, but I do have another currently on-site where he can do that;
Stormshadow13: First off, it's Flerken, just to help; second, as funny as that is, I have my own little idea that is about to come to pass;
"Well done, Harry; now, what do you say we pull in at the next service station and I get you some chocolate, or a nice cake, as a reward?"
By the time they reached where they were going, Harry James Potter had well-and-truly eaten like a king, feeling truly full – and, as his drooping eyes suggested even before they reached their destination, sleepy too – and loving how warm, happy and satisfied both he and his new friend-slash-guardian, Mr Smith, felt about the whole thing.
On the plus side, there wasn't any rubbish for Mr Smith to chuck away, even before they left said service station…
Chapter 3: Food Disagrees With Me
"Welcome to your new home, Harry."
Harry stared at his new home in wonder, awe and a little intimidation, though the latter was mostly because of the fact that, even after needing a long drive, traffic jams and a couple of stops for bathroom breaks and light snacks, they still needed to use a small boat to cross the water and reach the spot where they would be living.
To Harry's surprise, the new home was a luxurious, estate-like building that was set on an island in the middle of Lake Windermere in the Lake District. Signs around the island indicated that it was authorised personnel only and even had arrows indicating where local boat trips should steer clear of the island. As well as the house, there was a small copse of trees surrounding the estate and a single, sandy bank, which Mr Smith steered the boat towards as he greeted Harry and introduced him to their home.
"Wow," gasped Harry, stepping off the boat and onto the sandy shore, "This…this place is…it's so…"
"Beautiful?" asked Mr Smith, earning a nod from Harry, while Mr Smith chuckled softly as he explained, "Well then, my friends will be pleased to hear that the island earns its name: you see, Harry, this is Belle Isle; it's the largest of the islands on Windermere and is all private property owned by my friends and I."
"You…your…your friends?" asked Harry, earning a nod from Mr Smith.
"That's right; they are the ones that helped me rescue you and bring you up here; Belle Isle House, or, just simply, The Beauty Spot, to give it a name I prefer, is now your home, Harry. As your new guardian, it falls to me to look after you, but, as with many places and young souls like yourself, there are rules…chief among them being: you do not make any attempts to leave the island shores without my permission or without me accompanying you, is that clear?"
"Y-y-y-yes sir," said Harry, lowering his head as he walked up the shoreline with Mr Smith, who placed a hand on Harry's shoulder as he went on.
"That being said, Harry; this entire island is yours to peruse and explore to your heart's content. I will also allow you to go swimming in the lake's waters, but, again, you must return to the island or, if you're swimming to the shore, you must contact me from the mainland and let me know. I will give you a phone number that leads to my direct line in the study; if it rings and I am not there, I have something that will inform me of it ringing and even tell me who it is…so, if I look at it and see your name; even though I am not answering the phone, I will be happy knowing you have followed the rules, do you understand?"
"Yes sir," said Harry, walking towards the olden-days estate that seemed to be located at the heart of the island.
As he did so, Harry listened as Mr Smith went on, "Now, before you ask, Harry, while on the island, you are free to do as you wish, explore to your heart's content and even, if you so desire, slack off and just be a lazy, happy-go-lucky kid with a king's palace, so to speak, to do with as he wishes. You do not have a schedule, or lessons, or anything else and, furthermore, just in case it hasn't yet sunk in, I also want you to know that everything on this island, including inside the house and, heck, even the house itself…"
Here, he moved so he was kneeling in front of Harry where, to the boy's surprise, Mr Smith then patted his covered stomach as he chuckled softly.
"Everything, Harry, is yours to eat, should you desire it!"
"I…I can…eat…a house?"
"More like eat me out of house and home, literally," chuckled Mr Smith, earning a surprised look from Harry, while Mr Smith went on. "Actually, this brings me to another rule for you during your stay here, Harry; you see, while you are living here, my friends would like you and I to…well, let's call it performing an experiment with your strange, but humorous appetite for, pretty much, anything your belly desires. So, from time to time, I will be coming up to your bedroom, which, as strange as this may sound for you, Harry, is actually the Master Bedroom, at that, and I will either be giving you, or leaving you, small pieces of things that I want you to eat. When you do, like we did in the car, if there is anything you can't eat, and not just because it might taste bad or something like that, but if there's anything you can't eat. I want you to tell me immediately, so I can make a note of it and pass the information on to my friends, is that understood?"
Harry nodded, before he actually wiped his mouth to clean away the drool that had formed there, but Mr Smith just laughed, "Let me guess; you're feeling hungry again?"
"Yes sir."
"Then let's go and find you something to eat," said Mr Smith, indicating the house behind them as he smiled fondly as he tousled his ward's hair.
"You may have anything you wish…"
Apophis
For the next several years, Harry truly understood what it was to live free, without a care in the world, and have the world delivered to him on a silver platter – almost-literally, in his case.
Every day, he got up when he wanted to, could play any games, watch any cartoons, read any books and go wherever he wished, as long as he remembered the rule about wanting to leave the island for the mainland or some other fun.
And, just as he had promised on their first day, Mr Smith – or the Maître'D, as Harry had jokingly referred to him once, and the name seemed to have stuck around since then – showed nothing, but pride, gratitude and kindness towards Harry. On the rare occasion Harry forgot to report in, Maître'D would give him a chore to do as punishment or, more often than not, he would have Harry eat some things, even if he was already full or if he was tired and just wanted to go to bed.
Curiously, Maître'D never hit Harry, nor did he threaten to do so; he also didn't yell at Harry for being lazy, or even smelly – if the young boy took a little too long between baths – and he certainly never complained about the boy overeating or being too greedy.
In fact, as Harry got older, so too did his appetite get bigger…
Apophis
What started out as small boxes, papers and nuts and bolts from a toolkit, soon turned into much larger appetites for Harry.
For example, one day, he'd been casually drawing a picture of his island home and, out of curiosity more than anything else, Harry then started eating his pencils right out of the box, including the sharpeners, the erasers and even the felt-tip pens.
In fact, he upended the whole box, chewed up some of the pencils, swallowed the others whole and then, just because he could, he had the box for dessert before, realising he couldn't draw anymore, now his materials were in his tummy, he ate his half-finished picture and the rest of the drawing pad for an after-dinner snack.
And yet, the very next day, Maître'D surprised Harry with a year's supply of writing and drawing materials, as well as a full-sized box – the kind you'd usually transport washing machines, televisions and other large objects in – that was actually full of drawing pads, tracing papers and even a foldable desk that Harry set up in his bedroom.
Apophis
Another large meal Harry enjoyed was when, once, he'd come across a shopping trolley that some unscrupulous idiot had dropped into Lake Windermere and just dumped there. In the time it had been there, the trolley had also acquired several bottles, a few discarded boots and even a large briefcase filled with things Harry didn't really understand.
And yet, with Maître'D's permission, he dragged it onto the island and had a beachside picnic, chewing the trolley up like it was made of candy sticks, while he drank the stagnant water that had gathered in the bottles and then, without so much as a care for what may or may not be inside, he chewed his way through the briefcase and ate the locks and handles for pudding.
And yet, to Maître'D's surprise, his ward was still hungry.
And yet, Maître'D looked at Harry with pride.
Apophis
For nearly five years, Harry ate, lived, played and savoured the lap of luxury.
However, it wasn't long before reality hit him hard with a bump…
Or rather…
A burp!
Apophis
The sound of knocking on his bedroom door roused nine-year-old – he would be ten in a few days – Harry James Potter from his sleep.
Given the fact that, in the past, Maître'D had only ever knocked if it was important, or if he had some new, interesting thing for Harry to attempt to sink his teeth into, or swallow whole – so far, successfully, every time – the young boy knew it had to be important.
Moving to the bedroom door, Harry turned the handle and opened it, revealing a surprisingly-grave-looking Maître'D, who smiled thinly when he saw Harry looking at him, "Hello Harry; sorry to disturb you, especially after how well you did last night with that, normally, poisonous material…"
"I can still taste it when I burp," laughed Harry, earning an amused chuckle from Maître'D before he asked, "What's up, D?"
"Ah, I still can't get used to that nickname," laughed his guardian, earning a shrug from Harry.
"Well, I know I should call you Mr Smith, sir, but, to be honest, like I've always said, you're like the head waiter at the restaurant that is my home, serving me all I can eat, whenever I want. Meanwhile, you're delivering orders from your friend, the Head Chef, and filling me up day in and day out, so, like a head waiter, I either call you my Maître'D or just plain D: makes sense, really."
"To a child, maybe," drawled D, earning a shrug from Harry.
"I am a child…so, what's up, D?"
Here, D's expression turned grave again as he cleared his throat before he told Harry, "We've had a…a very special…order…come from…"
"The Head Chef?" asked Harry, earning a nod from D, while Harry actually licked his lips as he asked, "How big is it?"
"If you succeed, you…you'll probably be full for the rest of the day, maybe even tomorrow as well," answered D, earning a surprised, if not disbelieving look from Harry as he laughed softly.
"Come on, D; even the biggest meals you've let me eat never stay in my belly for too long…and the Head Chef's had me eat some big stuff too. I mean, do you remember the javelin? I still don't get what they were thinking, but I gulped it down like spaghetti…or how about the computer they sent me for Christmas? It might as well have been a gingerbread house with how easily I munched it up and swallowed it down. And then there's…"
"Harry James Potter!" insisted D, earning an alarmed look from Harry, if only because of how D had never raised his voice to him, not even when he punished Harry for breaking what the boy considered the only rule of the house – no leaving the island without permission.
But now, D was raising his voice, and he even looked angry, if not scared, as he explained, "This is no laughing matter; if I say what you're going to eat will be bigger than any meal before now, I mean it! In fact, my friends have made it perfectly-clear that, for the first time in five years, you are unable to do anything with this meal, your life of luxury ends here today! In which case, you will be taken somewhere that the only freedom you'll have is to eat and, even then, it's when we allow it, do you understand?"
Suddenly, for the first time in five years, Harry actually wished he'd stayed in Little Whinging.
He didn't know why, but, even as he nodded his response to D's question, he had a sickening feeling in the pit of his belly; one that told him that his guardian was a whole lot more than just the guy who let Harry do whatever he desired.
But, thanks to the fact that this man had bought Harry from the Dursleys, it was far too late now.
"Yes sir, I…I understand…and, I guess, it's lucky…"
"Why?"
Smiling softly, Harry shrugged before he patted his trim stomach;
"Because I'm really hungry…so…what's for breakfast?"
Apophis
As D led Harry through the house, the young boy didn't see the look of remorse, even doubt and dread that flashed across D's face as he tried to keep his focus, and his gaze, away from the ravenous youth following behind him.
He knew, even before Harry would see what was on the menu, that this would be the toughest thing Harry had ever been instructed by…by the Head Chef, to attempt to eat. He also knew that the consequences for failing to consume this newest food delivery would be severe, and not just for the boy, but also for the Project.
The…the Head Chef had been very pleased with all the reports sent by D, not to mention the pictures taken from the spy cameras and hidden video recorders that monitored, observed and, yes, even recorded and displayed all of Harry's feedings.
Watching the boy go about his business, working to consume things that would kill a normal human being was a wonder in it of itself, while, at the same time, watching him differentiate between eating like a person and then, from time to time, swallowing things whole like a bird or a snake, it was a marvel to behold.
And whenever he was still hungry…oh, yes, the Head Chef had been very intrigued by that, especially after so many other failed experiments, all of which had fallen long before now.
Some fell to their refusal to indulge their appetites; others fell to more-fatal feedings, and, out of the many Prospects over the years, apart from Harry, only one person had reached the point where Harry was at now.
In fact, only that same one person had passed this point, but just barely.
Apophis
However, the Head Chef, and all of D's fellow waiters had high hopes for Harry James Potter.
After all, if a boy like him could cheat Death, maybe even eat Death, there was no telling what he was going to be capable of when he learned to unlock his full potential.
Not to mention if he should ever be able to actually reach unlocking a full stomach.
Apophis
After leading Harry through the main hall, D reached a single candlestick, which he pulled on with an audible click, earning a surprised look from Harry as the movement revealed a winding staircase, which was lit by flaming torches.
"This way, Harry."
"Where are we going?"
"A secret dining room," said D, hoping the boy's childish naivete and imagination would sate his hunger for knowledge.
When Harry licked his lips excitably, D allowed himself a thin smile as he led Harry down the stairs, which seemed to go below the very surface of Lake Windermere itself, judging by how cold it suddenly got, not to mention the distant sounds of water sloshing around the underground passage.
At one point, the stairway opened into an underwater tunnel, similar to those in a Sea Life Centre, which showed the bottom of the lake, earning an awestruck look from Harry as he followed D along the tunnel before, finally, they stopped outside a single, iron door.
"Your breakfast is through here," said D, pulling a key from his pocket before he looked to Harry as he explained, "Once I close this door, the light will come on and you'll see what my friends would like you to eat. It will only be unlocked again when your final test is over: Be successful, Harry, and, on my honour, I give you my word that this will be the last thing they choose to test you with…but fail, and this will be the last day you live in this house…understood?"
"Yes, Mr Smith," said Harry, earning a raised eyebrow from D, who then smiled.
"Do you know what? I've kind of gotten used to the whole Maître'D thing, kid…"
Harry smiled weakly, before D put the key in the lock and, with a single click, he opened the door, steering Harry inside; once the boy was inside, D closed the door, locking it behind Harry before, taking a step back, D turned to a lone wall next to the doorway; pushing on a single brick, D watched as a panel opened, revealing a secret room, which had several monitors, as well as one-way glass, as well as a night-vision camera, which showed Harry stepping into the first room with a curious, but also hungry look in his eyes.
As D entered the monitoring room, one of the screens flickered into life, revealing a figure half-bathed in shadows, hiding their identity, while their voice was distorted, no doubt by the monitors allowing them to communicate.
"He's inside?"
"Yes sir," replied D, watching as Harry carefully stepped into the room before D reached out and, once the boy was securely inside, he flicked a switch, which was the cue for light to flood Harry's feeding room, revealing the meal on offer.
As he'd expected, D saw Harry's eyes widen in horror, if not disbelief, as he saw what he was expected to eat, before he turned back to the door, only to remember it was closed and locked.
As for D, he sighed softly as he mused, "Good boy, Harry…at least you didn't try the locks again, to see if I was bluffing."
"He still has to pass the test," argued the figure on screen, earning a low sigh from D.
"Sir, I still think I should have toned him up a bit more…let him be a teenager…I mean, they are bottomless pits, after all…"
"The intel we've received suggests that this is the right time, Aleister," argued the figure on screen, their words edged by a strong, if not firm note of personal annoyance and amusement as they went on. "Soon, your young protégé there will be called back to the place where he is famous: and, once there, they will attempt to squash down his hunger, curb his appetites and even encourage him to ignore and forsake his empowerment altogether. If we are to be truly successful, and the Project is to advance, then…"
"Sir."
"What is it?" asked the shadowy figure.
"I…I hate to interrupt you," said D, or Aleister, as the shadowy figure had named him. "But…um…I really can't believe I'm about to say this…"
"What?"
Pressing a button, Aleister D Smith watched as a split-screen formed on the shadowy figure's monitor, revealing what it was that D couldn't quite believe, hence why he fed the images to his superiors.
This allowed his superiors to blanch in abject disbelief as they, along with D, watched as Harry tilted his head back and proceeded to swallow down his breakfast, his eyes screwed tightly shut and his throat and stomach bulging as he sent it down into his body with as much ease as he had eagerly devoured so much food before him.
The fact that his meal was a small boy, who was screaming for his Mummy wasn't even recognisable on Harry's face.
All he knew was the hunger.
All he cared about was the feast.
All he wanted…was a full stomach.
"My God!" exclaimed the figure on-screen, before D heard a round of applause from off-screen, indicating that the figure, the Head Chef's partners, were also watching this test, and marvelling at the boy's ability. "Look at him! So…so predatory…so hungry…so…"
"He's doing it," observed D, putting a hand to his mouth as he smiled behind said hand before he added, "But look at his eyes: they're closed…he's trying not to stop himself…not to be sick…not to cry…yes, he's doing it, but he's not completely for the idea, is…"
Suddenly, a low buzzing sound filled the room, earning a small smile from D as he asked, "Permission to go and congratulate him, sir?"
"Granted," said the Head Chef, before D heard him chuckle as he asked, "It's the boy's birthday soon, isn't it, Aleister?"
"This weekend, sir."
"I think it's high time I met the young predator, face-to-face," said the Head Chef, earning a nod from D, before the Head Chef added, "I think I'll also bring along Rhea to meet her new brother-in-arms; a little birthday party to celebrate his special day. He'll have probably assimilated that little runt by the time we arrive anyway."
"Judging by what he was saying before the feast, I daresay you might be right, sir," said D, giving his superior a curt nod of the head before he left the viewing room where, reaching the door to the feeding chamber, D unlocked the door and stepped inside, just in time to see Harry fall to his knees and rub at his now-swollen, distended stomach.
As he approached, D saw several small bumps, as well as thrashing motions, cover Harry's stomach before, to his surprise, the young boy's eyes squinted and tightened; as D watched, he saw Harry's stomach go still before, to his amazement, the boy rose up and turned to him, revealing a distended belly that was already metabolising, forming a slim, if mildly-athletic-looking physique, albeit one that had a little paunch from the big meal that Harry had just eaten.
At the same time, Harry belched loudly, before he gulped hard as he looked at D with an almost-lost look about him, while D smiled fondly before he asked, "Harry? Are…are you all right?"
"No…" said Harry, looking down at his stomach, before he smiled softly.
"But I will be…"
Apophis
The soft sound of the boat's engine grew silent as three figures disembarked onto the shoreline of Belle Isle, led by a tall, fierce-looking figure in dark clothes, with sunglasses covering his eyes and a trilby hat on his head. He wore a long, dark coat and black, leather combat boots and, as he stepped onto the island, the man frowned as he turned to his companions.
One of them was a young girl with snow-white hair and a proud, if not elf-like grace about her; her eyes were like the colour of violet crystals and, unlike her companion, she was dressed in a casual sleeveless t-shirt and knee-length denim shorts, as well as sandals on her feet, exposing ten toes that had been painted in emerald-green-coloured nail polish.
With her was a second man; a raggedy-looking man with wiry, dark hair and eyes that were like the colour of stormclouds; he was dressed in a casual coat, shirt and jeans combo, but with bare feet that stepped onto the sand and looked back to his companion in abject curiosity.
"Something wrong, Chief?"
"Aleister isn't here," said the man in the long coat, looking around curiously as he mused, "I told him that we would be here at 10am to greet the young boy, but he's not here…where is he?"
"Hello Chef."
Suddenly, the man turned to see none other than Harry James Potter walk down the beach, kicking up sand in a cavalier manner before he smiled at the darkly-dressed man standing on the shores of his home. The young boy was dressed in nothing, but a pair of swimming trunks and, judging by the slick, damp sheen covering most of his body, he had obviously been swimming in the lake itself, yet he didn't seem fazed by his casual look or the fact that the one responsible for all of this was standing not three feet from him.
Instead, Harry just smiled before he added, "So you're the one I should thank for my new home, are you? Well, thank you, Chef…oh, and this must be the only other person to pass that final test of yours, is she? Hi…you're kind of cute, you know? So cute, I could just eat you up!"
"Thank you, Harry," said the white-haired girl, before she surprised the man in black when she crossed the beach and, to the amusement of the other man, she then kneeled before Harry, like she was praying to him, as she added, "Wow: I heard you were handsome…they didn't say you were godly…and, being named for a Goddess myself, I ought to know."
"Rhea," said Harry, earning a nod from the girl, whom her second male companion was amused to see shiver in liking as Harry said her name, but he wasn't done there. "Wife of Kronos, or is it Cronus spelt C-R-O-N-U-S? I always get them mixed up…anyway, wife of the guy who gobbled up his kids, so they couldn't be any more powerful than him; not that I get his reason, but I like the fact he ate them nonetheless."
"Me too," agreed Rhea, before she indicated the man with the wiry hair as she added, "Daddy said that's why he called me Rhea; cause he knew I had the Gift and…hey…do you know where your Waiter is? According to the Head Chef, he's supposed to meet us here…"
"I think I know," agreed the wiry-haired man, before the Head Chef gasped when he felt something strike him hard in the back.
The next thing he knew, he was being turned over, forced to look up as the wiry-haired man walked towards Harry, who was led back to him by Rhea, before the man actually bowed to the small boy as he smiled at him.
"It's nice to finally meet you, Mr Potter…my name is Fenrir Greyback and this is my daughter, Rhea; she, like you, is an Apex Omnivore…a feeder of the whole world…a descendant of the Great Devourer…and, in recognition of my wish to bare my throat to the true Alpha, I offer this measly human as a snack…or perhaps a birthday cake, seeing as how it's your big day…"
The Head Chef barely had a moment to try and question why he was being betrayed like this, before he saw Fenrir Greyback's eyes flash amber as he smiled down at the helpless man.
"On the plus side, I want to thank you, human: your filthy Muggle government's desire to create the Ultimate Weapon made it so easy to find my little Alpha and help him take his rightful place…as the Devourer of Worlds!"
"LONG LIVE APOPHIS!" Cried Rhea, the cry echoed by Fenrir.
As for Harry, he licked his lips before he descended on the Head Chef.
"Oh, and feel free to say hi to Aleister when you meet him in my stomach, Head Chef…he was so tasty, I said I'd keep him until you met him!"
The last thing the Head Chef saw were Harry's jaws opening as the Apex Predator claimed yet another prey…
Chapter 3 and, brr, talk about a chilling reception: what seems to have started out as some Black Ops test turned into the end of the world for the Muggles, but what is the terrifying Fenrir Greyback's connection to this?
Also, what, exactly, is Harry and what does he have to do with the Great Devourer?
Keep Reading to Find Out
Next Chapter: Happy birthday, Harry Potter…only, he's not quite the same Harry anymore…and to think, this all happened because of three Muggles willing to do anything to be rid of him: Harry should thank them…in fact, you might even say he's hungry for the chance…
Please Read and Review
AN: Portrayals
Rhea Greyback: Aimee Richardson
Fenrir Greyback: Rory McCann
AN2: Challenge
Also, before anyone, including the prompt creator, has a go, let me say this much: the challenge only said he had to be bought by the government and allowed to eat things – and, obviously, people – but it didn't specify anything about the how, the why or the how long;
So, I decided to add a mythological side to it and then, when coming up with some aides, my first thought was a character not really used as a central character in stories: Fenrir Greyback.
Then, I added an OFC – whom Harry will be paired with eventually – and, well, the rest just sort of wrote itself…