Chapter 5: Frozen Flames

Draco was woken by the certain knowledge that it was time to get up, he never needed an alarm to wake him. However not twenty seconds later three alarms went off in the small underground chamber. Unsurprisingly Blaise was the fastest to react and halted the incessant bleeping before sitting up and offering a sleepy smile to Draco while he flicked floppy black hair out of his face and rubbed sleep from his eyes.

"Morning Draco. When did you get back?"

"Too late for my liking," Grumbled the blonde haired boy before he reached across to push at the bundle of blankets that was Vox, "Come on Vox, it's time for class."

Getting no response, Draco shrugged, got up and began to get dressed. By that time Crabbe and Goyle had managed to drag themselves awake and wander off to the bathrooms. Blaise looked over at the snake boy with some interest while he pulled on his robes, and when he was finally dressed went over to the still sleeping bundle in the other bed. He leapt back with a colourful curse.

"Draco! Draco, he's frozen!"

The blonde boy frowned deeply and went over to the bed. Vox lay curled beneath as much of his blankets as he could, green-gold eyes open. Draco laid a hand on his cheek. He scales under his fingers were cold, like dead ice cold. Frozen.

"Quick!" Draco surprised himself with how worried he was as he bent over and lifted the snake boy, and some of the blankets from the bed. Vox hardly weighed anything, and it was getting hard to believe that he was even alive. With Blaise holding all the doors open, Draco carried Vox up the stairs and surprised everyone in the common room with their appearance. Draco wasted no time in going to the hearth, and then, with only a second's hesitation, he deposited Vox in the flames, whisking away the blankets and his arms before they had the chance to get burned.

"What are you doing!"

"It's OK. He's immune to fire."

"What?"

It was about then that the thin film over Vox's eyes slid back and the happy green gaze met theirs. Vox smiled and Draco let out the breath he hadn't realised he was holding. Vox let out a low hiss and let his body stretch in the flames. Eventually he sighed and got up. Draco wrapped the blankets around him.

"You had me really worried!"

"Good morning Draco. I told you I was cold."

Draco's grey eyes widened in astonishment. All around him, people were asking questions. But he ignored them.

"Cold?" he echoed, "You didn't warn me you were gonna freeze!"

Vox just gave him an little, enigmatic smile.

Harry got to see his friend at breakfast that morning, although he seriously considered skipping the meal in order to avoid having to talk to the snake boy. Ron wouln't hear of it, and he and Hermione fairly dragged Harry into the Great Hall.

Most of the Slytherins were already thee, all wanting to see more of their newest and oddest member. Harry was ignored, thankfully, until the morning post arrived. He could hear Draco's east drawl explaining to Vox what just short of a hundred owls were doing in the Great Hall. He heard Vox's next question all too clearly.

"What are owls?"

Unfortunately, he was replying before hw even considered doing so.

"Winged hunting birds that come out at night and can see in the dark."

Vox smiled and hissed happily and all heads turned to look at Harry at that moment. Harry sunk down in his seat. The cold hand on his shoulder stopped him. Vox was dressed in out doors gear, robes and gloves and a cloak, but he was quite obviously still fairly cold.

"Go away Slytherin."

Vox's face fell in a frown.

"But Harry-"

It surprised Harry to hear the words in English.

"Vox, you don't belong here. Now go."

To give the snake his due, he did what was asked of him and left Harry alone for the rest of the meal.

It wasn't until half way through Charms when Professor Flitwick finally asked the sixth year Slytherin's to take up their wands that There was a low hiss from the back of the room, followed by the sound of Vox being hit lightly with the back of Draco's hand. The snake boy rubbed the back of his head and then repeated his question in halting English.

"What's a wand?"

The words made the class fall silent, then a rather confused looking Professor Flitwick told Vox to go to the Headmaster's office. Vox didn't know where it was, and so Filtwick told Draco to go with him. The two left in a swirl of black.

"I don't understand," Said Draco as they made their way along the coridoor. You knew we were wizards but you don't know what a wand is?"

"Where I come from, Wizard's make light flow from their fingers."

As they descended a staircase Draco stopped and turned to look at his scaled companion.

"Where do you come from Vox?"

The snake pondered the question, keeping his eyes on his feet. It was his habit while walking, as though he needed to see his socked feet on the stone in order to know he was still walking upright. They had reached the stone Gargoyle now, but Draco didn't know the password anymore than Vox did and when it sprang to life they just stared at it and shrugged. Luckily for the pair, the door behind it opened and Dumbledore stood there dressed in purple, silver star spangled robes.

"I thought I'd find you boys here. Come, I feel it wise to hold this meeting in another room."

Draco rolled his eyes and Vox frowned slightly but neither said anything as the Headmaster lead them up a few flights of stairs to a small room furnished with three comfortable chairs and a large fire place. Instantly Vox went to it and crouched down in front of the flames, smiling happily.

"Vox," Dumbledore spoke in soft measured tones and the snake boy turned slightly at the sound of his name, "Why don't you answer Mr. Malfoy's question?"

Vox sat back on his heels before sinking into a cross legged postion.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I don't remember."

The rest of what Draco referred to later as the 'impromptu meeting' went well, but for every question asked of Vox, he had an enigmatic on confusing answer. When he was asked how he got here he ignored the question altogether and simply sat staring at the fire. What was clear was his total lack of knowledge of the wizarding world, the muggle universe and earth. And Draco at least came to understand that the snake boy had come from a place very different from their own. He didn't mention this to Dumbledore of course, there was no love lost between the Slytherin and the old man.

The 'meeting' didn't finish until lunch was just about to start and so Draco and Vox made their way back to the Great Hall. What surprised Draco was that Vox didn't need him to lead the way, and didn't put a foot wrong all the way to the place.

"How come you know the way back already?"

"Map."

Draco scoffed.

"There aren't any true maps of Hogwarts, and I doubt you own one."

Vox stopped and turned, tapping the side of Draco's head with long nail-less finger.

"In here. What's Hogwarts?"

"It's the name of- oh never mind." Draco sat heavily in his chair and waited for the snake boy to slip into the seat next to him. Vox didn't, instead choosing to walk all the way down to the end of the table and make his way back up to sit opposite Draco.

"I want to show you something."

Draco leant forwards, his interest piqued to listen closely to what Vox had to say. Vox let out a soft hiss, with a little lilt in its tone.

"What did you say?"

"I trust you." Vox intoned and Draco wondered how you could say so much in two seconds of a single vowel, "I can't show you everything. I do not remember…the right words…magic is thinner here."

"Show me what?"

"This."

Draco noticed then that Vox had his hands clasped. Slowly the boy unlocked his fingers and raised one hand away from the other. In the palm of his hand danced a tiny flame. Before Draco could say anything the flame grew, elongated, changing shape in Vox's hand to follow his other hand into the air. When it was about a foot tall the flame twirled until lying in snakeskin palms was a single feather made of flame, tinted with hairlines of blueish green.

"Wow."

But Vox wasn't done yet and although Draco's eyes stung from watching the bright flame so closely he forced himself to watch as the shape twisted and changed becming longer, bigger, edged with green now rather than laced with it. Gold green, like Vox's eyes. Aflame-skae wound around the boy's arm, raising its pointed head to brushed the edge of a forked tongue across Vox's cheek. The snake boy smiled and let out a low hiss, a question. Then everything changed.

Draco felt just afterward as though he was dreaming but not dreaming, a strange sort of waking vision, and a moment of pure and total faith.

He saw Vox, standing and dressed all in a strange garb of close fitting leather, a twisted silver crest of his chest with some sort of helmet drawn over his head. His hair was braided back and in his hands was a long staff made of green-gold fire topped with the image of a snake with red eyes. And all around was raging fire and heat and Draco suddenly felt very small and very alone and very afraid.

Like all things, the moment passed and Draco found himself staring at Vox's empty hands, the flame snake was gone.

"What…" Suddenly Draco struggled to find words in his own language, "What was that? Did I really see…What happened?"

Vox smiled.

"You saw my world," he said, "And the life I left behind."

It took Draco more than a few seconds to realise that his new friend has spoken in parcel tongue, and a few more for him to realise he had understood the words.