Chapter 2

Howlers

Of course, Howlers followed. Harry woke up to Uncle Vernon screaming "RUDDY OWLS!" and looked to see that his window was open with multiple owls flying into his room, dropping letter after letter onto his bed before flying away. He immediately recognized the letters by their characteristic hot-to-the-touch feeling. The first ripped itself open, forming a rather angry mouth as an unfamiliar woman's voice yelled out.

"Harry Potter you are an absolute utter disgrace! Who do you think you are, tricking me like this? I had my daughter rooting for you during your little stunt in the Triwizard Tournament! We all had your sympathy and condolences until you popped out raving like a madman that You-Know-Who is back! Not only do you have to push Fake News, but you have to PRETEND to be an Alpha yourself!? You are disgusting and I hope that you never get mated!" The howler tore itself up and before Harry could blink, the second howler started. Apparently, while Harry was sleeping, the Howlers all communicated on the order that they will yell at poor Harry in.

"You are a disgusting boy! A shame upon all of wizarding kind and should just bugger off! I rather the world get taken over by You-Know-Who then ever be indebted to a whore of a ruined omega who has taken many knots up his bum! Go away you stupid 'Chosen One' I DID NOT CHOOSE YOU!"

It too tore itself apart and before the third could begin to scream, Harry grabbed the hot letter, ignoring the pain it brought him and ripped the letter in half. A small explosion sound filled his room and his hands burned, but otherwise he was unharmed. Harry heard his uncle screaming downstairs followed by the sounds of footsteps. Harry panicked and moved quickly, grabbing all of the letters in the pile, and ripping them up, many giving out small explosions that caused his hands to be riddled with paper cuts. The door to his room slammed open, and Harry saw the furious purple face of his uncle. "What do you think you're up to, boy?" He demanded.

Harry opened his mouth to argue but just as he did, one last howler flew into his room and burst immediately, it's female voice booming in the small room.

"Harry Potter, you disgusting tart! You are a waste of space, a whore to end all whores! Not even the Whore of Babylon would dare be near you! You disgusting Omega, you ruined loose hole bit! Do you have any shame on what you've done? Toying with those poor Alphas, those poor boys who did not know better! How many have you had stuffed in you? Hmm? Did you ruin poor Cedric Diggory before he died? Did you tempt him, you greedy tramp? Take him away from whoever he was dating? You should be ashamed of who you are! Tricking all of us innocent folks into thinking you're an Alpha, shaming your fellow Omegas for your harlot ways. You should be banned from Hogwarts and sent to Azkaban this very instant! I do not want you saving me, I do not want you saving my children—I do not want you in Britain any longer! I don't know where you've came from but go back to where you belong which is not here! I hope your friends all see you for the disgusting loose hole that you are and leave you. You're not even good enough to be called an Omega!"

The Howler ripped itself up and Harry stared at the pieces blankly before slowly looking up towards his uncle. It was almost comical, the shade of reddish-purple his uncle's face turned. His face looked as though it was ballooning as he just stared at Harry, glaring at him. "What is this all about, you freak? What did you do now?"

"Nothing," Harry said.

"Nothing, eh? That's a load of rubbish!" Uncle Vernon grunted. He closed and locked Harry's door before turning to Harry. The Omega has faced many challenges. He fought against the Dark Lord Voldemort almost every year since he was eleven. He killed a basilisk, outwit a Sphinx, and fought against Voldemort and his Death Eaters and lived to tell about it. However none of that mattered when Uncle Vernon was involved. Harry didn't know why he becomes so weak whenever he's around the Dursleys, separated from his wand and friends. The first blow as a fat fist against his head. Harry's head whipped to the side as his jaw ached. The next was his stomach and the wind was blown out of Harry's lungs. He gasped, curling over which only caused Uncle Vernon to punch him once more. Harry fell onto his bed and did his best to curl into himself as the assault continued.

Uncle Vernon tired of using his fist after some time and switch to using his old Smelting stick. The gnarled cane hurt more than his fists. It left big angry bruises, sometimes welts, wherever it struck if not outright cutting Harry. Uncle Vernon kept at it, muttering every curse and obscenity that he knew. When he was tired, Uncle Vernon dropped the stick and stood up tall. "Make breakfast and go tend to the garden, Harry," he said and left the room as though nothing happened.

Harry stayed curled on his bed, angry tears falling from his eyes and stinging his bruised cheeks. His body jittered with pain, he felt as though he was having aftershocks from a Cruciatus Curse. His bones ached horribly and for a moment he thought that they were broken as he forced himself to stand. His stomach and chest felt as though they were on fire, burning heavily. He took off his shirt and looked down at his body. Thankfully, nothing was sticking out. There were many, many blows, yes, and cuts from where the harder parts of the cane smacked him, but there was nothing major.

Harry dressed then went downstairs where he quickly got to work to make breakfast. He made a full breakfast for his Uncle and Dudley, Aunt Petunia only having tea and toast, while Harry was spared just a piece of buttered bread and a small glass of orange juice.

Harry went out and immediately started his chores, his head full of dark thoughts as he silently cursed his 'family.' He mowed the entire lawn with a very old push lawn mower that was powerless so Harry had to walk across the lawn tediously several times in order to get the blades to actually cut the grass, and several more times to make sure it is "perfectly even" and up to Aunt Petunia's standards. He was already exhausted, sweaty, and starving as he put the push mower away and fell to his knees in front of the front garden. Weeds popped out overnight, and there were several plants which were dying due to a long time of neglect and carelessness on the account of the Dursleys.

"Fallen again, little snake?" an amused voice hissed. Harry looked around and found Nagini sitting in the garden, hiding herself amongst the various weeds and bushes. Her body looked bigger than usual, with an obvious girthy bump. "I was just around looking for a snack. There was a very delectable mouse by your home. I saved some of the babies if you want one."

"No thank you," Harry said, trying not to get disgusted at the thought of eating mice. "Not to sound rude but what are you doing here?"

"Checking on my little snake of course," Nagini hissed, as though it was obvious. She slithered towards Harry and watched as he pulled weeds out. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Gardening," Harry answered, looking down at the snake. "One of the many chores on an endless list that I actually enjoy doing. It keeps me away from the Dursleys." He bent down to grab a particularly stubborn clump of weeds by the roots and winced as his chest and stomach surged with pain. "Fuck!" He cursed, pulling the weeds out as he immediately straightened out, which was a worse decision as the pain only increased. "Motherfucker—ow!"

The snake darted towards Harry, pushing her body upwards until they were face-to-face. "What did that muggle do to you?" she demanded.

"Nothing," Harry hissed, "I fell down some stairs."

"Liar." Nagini poked Harry's cheek with her nose. Her tongue stuck out and hissed against his cheek. It was wet and felt weird. "I can taste the muggle on you," she said. "He did something."

"It was nothing I didn't deserve," Harry said sadly. "I hate them but I'm powerless here. I try to lash out against them, but I only get beaten down. Not even by them but by Dumbledore too, he sends me back here every summer." Nagini hissed sadly. Harry started to pet her unconsciously. It was weird, this instant connection the two of them seemed to had, but Harry wasn't complaining or even questioning it. He needed someone to vent to, someone to confide in. And if that person was a snake, who was he to judge? "I told him again and again that I hate it here, that they don't treat me well but still he sends me back here."

"Why?"

"Because I deserve it," Harry said again. "I must deserve it because he keeps sending me back. It has to, I don't know, humble me or something."

"Or smother you," Nagini suggested.

"No! No, that's not it. Dumbledore would never—"

Nagini hissed angrily and poked Harry's cheek. She poked him again and again as the Omega tried to swat her away. "Wha—ow that hurts! Stop!"

"Listen to yourself! You don't deserve this! Those muggles treat you awfully because they are awful!" Nagini hissed angrily.

"But—"

"No buts! Be quiet little snake and listen to me!" Nagini hissed. "My Master would not even think of treating people the way you are treated! You need to treat yourself better! Stand up and grow a pair—"

"Like it matters," Harry muttered bitterly, "I'm going to die soon anyway. Voldemort is going to come and kill me any day now. I don't get how they expect me to beat him. I'm just a student! A teenager! I did amazing stuff, yeah, but everything I did to survive was just pure luck."

The snake hissed, and Harry was certain that she did not believe a word that he said. He looked down sadly, "It's true. I rely more on people's help than anyone. Ron and Hermione are the reason I've got the Philosopher's Stone. I survived against the Basilisk only because Fawkes came at the right moment with the Sword of Gryffindor. I couldn't even catch the real traitor to my parents, and he got away to Voldemort and revived him. Alone I'm just Harry, a lucky wizard who's just good at Defense Against the Dark Arts and gathering rumors about himself."

Nagini stared at Harry for a moment. She pressed her head against Harry's cheek in an almost soothing motherly way. "You are way more than just that, little snake. I can smell it on you," she said. "In fact, you remind me of my Master."

"I do?"

Nagini nodded. "Master loved telling Nagini stories of his past. He grew up alone like you. An orphan who was bullied by nasty muggles and a heartless matron. He fought back, of course, stealing what he could and taking what was his, but the fists hit harder. That was until Master discovered that he could use magic! With magic, Master made his life better! The bullies never bothered him, and he always had exactly what he needed."

"Lucky him," Harry sighed. "My magic just got me beatings and sent to my bed under the cupboard with no dinner."

"Hush Harry, Mama Nagini is telling a story of Master," Nagini chastised but hissed her tongue against Harry's cheek softly.

The Omega gave out a soft laugh, I'm sorry Mama Nagini, continue," he said.

Nagini nodded. "Master went to Hogwarts too and he found bullies there the same as at the place he was forced to call home. They had magic just as Master, but Master did not care. He proved himself to be better, and those bullies stopped. Some became his friends, while one became his Omega. You see, Master was an Alpha, not that it mattered. Master is Master to Nagini, and Nagini loves him just as he loves her. Bad things happened to Master when I found him."

"Oh no, what happened?" Harry asked. He moved slowly to lay down on the grass. It was somehow easier on his body to lay down than to sit. Nagini moved so that she was laying on Harry's chest. The weight hurt a little, but he did not complain.

"Master and his Omega got married, as is what happens, and they lived a very happy life as they pursued their dreams. They tried for many years for a child, until Master's Omega finally conceived. Master told me they had a beautiful boy, like you Harry, but after that, terrible things happened. Master's Omega died shortly after childbirth. Sickness took him away, and while Master was grieving, bad men snuck in and stole Master's baby boy."

"That's horrible!" Harry gasped. "Did he find him? Did he report to the Aurors?"

"No, he did not," Nagini said. "Master looked and looked, but nowhere could his little snake be found. That was where Nagini comes in. I found Master and helped him where I could."

"That's so sad," Harry frowned. "How is he? Your Master?"

"Still sadden, and still looking," Nagini said. "Master will tear this world apart looking for his lost son. Even after all this time?"

"How old would his son be now?" Harry asked curiously, his inner-hero perking up. "If he wants, I am sure that I can help!"

"That is a brilliant idea! I will bring you to Master and Master will tell you all! Come!" Nagini hissed, immediately slithering away. "Come, Harry!"

But Harry did not move. He sat up and looked fearfully at the house, his wounds aching as his body warned him to stay, not out of loyalty, but out of self-preservation. Nagini saw this and slithered towards him, huffing. "Mother Snakes tell, and little snakes obey! Come," she said again.

"I—I can't," Harry said in English. He shook his head and looked at the house. "If I leave now, I'll only get hurt more—maybe even worse! And Dumbledore will know, and he won't be coming for maybe even longer than already."

Nagini looked annoyed, but she shook her head. "Then I'm coming for you tonight," she said. "When the fat muggles are sleeping, I will take you to see my Master. I will not allow you to say no, little snake! When a Mother Snake tells, the little snake obeys! Understood?"

"Yes, I do," Harry said. He turned back to the garden with promises of seeing Nagini later that night. The snake slithered out of sight, and Harry's heart fell a little as he realized he was alone once more. His mind on the sad tale Nagini told him, he went back to work on the garden.

Harry was not allowed lunch. Instead, he worked through it, cleaning the bathroom and kitchen before mopping the floors and vacuuming the living room and stairs. His stomach was hurting from both hunger and the bruises from that morning. So much so that Harry stole bits of food while he was cooking when nobody was looking. Like always, his "dinner" consisted of table scraps and he was sent to bed afterward.

Back in his room, Harry stared at the pile of letters he tore apart. There were just little scraps of paper, and as Harry looked at it, a sudden fear exploded in his mind. What if one of those letters were from Ron and Hermione?

"Oh god," he muttered and rushed to his bed. It was an impossible task, sifting through the piles of torn pages and envelopes, looking for anything that resembled his friends' handwriting. He saw much more insults than he heard. Words like "whore" and "disgrace" written multiple times. It hurt him, seeing the words, but he was thankful in that none of that handwriting looked familiar at all.

He didn't know how long he was picking through the pile, looking desperately for familiar words. He picked up a rather small piece and turned it over, seeing one word in a familiar scrawl.

Ron

Ron at least wrote him a letter. Ron must have read what happened and wrote to make sure that Harry was okay. His relieved smile only lasted for a second before he realized what he did. In his haste to tear it all away, to get rid of those nasty howlers, Harry tore away the only letter that was friendly and comforting for him. "Don't cry damn it," Harry muttered as he wiped away tears. He knew that Ron wrote to him, now he had to find Hermione's.

He never found hers. He looked and looked, taking careful care to look at each scrap, reading the words and putting them in a different pile ten times over, but instead, all he found were hurtful words, baseless accusations, and small parts of Ron's letter. It was impossible to put together. From what he found, Ron mentioned The Burrow and hoping to see Harry soon along with something about Bill and Ron's second gender.

Harry continued himself and pushed down any tears as he swept every bit of paper into the small wastebasket in his room. Once his bed was clean, he moved to the small desk he was allowed and wrote a letter.

Ron,

I'm sorry to say that I didn't read your letter. I've gotten a bunch of howlers this morning and your letter gotten mixed together with them, along with Hermione's I'm hoping. In a fit, I've ripped them up instead of listening to them, and that causes them to explode. My hands are full of paper cuts and it hurts like bloody hell. All I found of your letter was just scraps. I'm sorry to ask this but can you repeat what you've written? I saw stuff about your second gender. Are you a Beta like the rest of your family?

I hope I can see you soon, even if I have to leave this place before Dumbledore comes to get me. I'm thinking that if it is important, I can suffer the yelling. At least I'm not getting punched daily. Missing you and Hermione.

Love,

Harry

Harry woke Hedwig up with gentle petting. "Hey girl, time to get you some exercise," he said gently. "Bring this to Ron, okay?" he said, giving Hedwig his folded letter. "I can wait for a response, hang out at the Burrow for a bit, do some flying, get some proper food. I'll meet up with you soon, okay girl?" Hedwig cooed affectionately, nipping at Harry's fingers. Harry opened the window and Hedwig flew out immediately, his letter clutched securely in her talons.

It was late at night by then, and Harry waited in complete silence until he was certain that the Dursleys were sleeping. He moved slowly through the house, his heart pounding at the fear of what would happen if he was caught. The stairs laid before him, and Harry braced himself with each step, praying and hoping that not one squeaked as he descended. Thankfully, he was fairly certain he knew which steps were, and took extra precautions to step on the sides of the stairs, skipping the steps he was worried about until he was directly in front of the front door. With a shuddering breath, Harry reached and turned the knob.

The door opened silently, and Harry walked out into the night air. It was a beautiful night, there wasn't a cloud in the sky and the moon hung full in the air with stars dotting the void. He frowned at the sky, wishing for more stars. Stupid light pollution, he thought to himself when he heard a hiss.

"Little snake took his time, Nagini almost fell asleep," Nagini hissed, slithering up to him.

"I'm sorry, I just had things to do."

"I saw an owl fly away, she looked very tasty," Nagini commented.

"Don't you dare, Hedwig is my friend," Harry warned. "Is your Master even awake?"

"He is, Master doesn't sleep much, ever since he last his little snake," Nagini nodded. She turned and led Harry away from the Dursley's house. The Omega followed.

"I've asked you but I don't think you answered," Harry hissed conversationally, "How old is his son now?"

Nagini continued to lead Harry away. She did not stop so Harry thought for a moment that she did not hear him before she hissed out, "Sixteen I think. I don't remember exactly. All you little snakes look the same to me, except you, Harry. You are my special little snake."

"Don't I feel lucky," Harry muttered. Nagini led Harry back into the forest. The treetops overtook the night sky with only the moon's light striking through the small spaces between leaves. Neither talked as they went along, Harry walking carefully as Nagini slithered against the floor, paying no mind to any adversary. She seemed to know the way, so Harry relaxed as he kept her in view. The forest was always strange in Harry's opinion. He never really remembered it, yet it was always there. Whenever he needed it, he would run into it while Dudley and his goons are chasing him. They never followed after him, so it was easy to lose them and be alone for a while. Thinking back, Harry never really saw any creatures in this forest either, which he assumed was just because of how close it was to Surrey.

The night was a little chilly, and Harry pulled himself closer as a strong breeze blew past him. "Are you cold?" he asked Nagini as the wind died down.

"I can still move, this is just a breeze," the snake said. "You remind me of Master. He is kind like you. Also you two smell similar."

"We do?" Harry frowned. "I'm not wearing any cologne or deodorant...

"I am certain," the snake nodded. "The Omega's smells remind me of Master."

"Then let's hope your Master took a bath," Harry muttered, earning amusing hisses from Nagini.

The two continued walking until after a while, he saw the end of the forest. Nagini continued to lead him, and they stepped out to the top of a hill. Harry looked around and frowned, they were nowhere near Surrey. Instead in the distance, he saw a manor. It was large, at least three floors, with expansive grounds all around. From the vantage point, Harry saw a small lake with a tiny island in the middle with a gazebo, along with larger than life topiaries of snakes and dragons. In one corner, Harry was amazed to see a large garden that had colorful flowers and peacocks sleeping. "This is where your master lives?" Harry asked, amazed.

"For now, his own home has been destroyed for many years," Nagini hissed. "Its occupants should be sleeping by now except for Master. Master loves the quiet of the night. Come along little snake."

Nagini led Harry down the hill and towards the front gates of the impressive mansion. The gates opened for them and they made their way down the impressive pathway towards two grand front doors. Harry's eyes moved from topiary to topiary, marveling at the lifelike dragons and snakes.

"He is in their study," Nagini hissed as they entered the main front hall, which was large with two staircases at the far end that curved towards the second floor where a balcony then led out of the room. Harry looked upwards to see a similar set of stairs leading to the third floor.

"This place is gigantic," Harry whispered, feeling very small all of a sudden.

"This way little snake! Come along," Nagini hissed, leading Harry away from the stairs and towards the wall where there were two doors on either side of an archway that led further down a hallway. Nagini stopped in front of one of the doors and looked up. "Master is in here; he is very kind."

Harry nodded and opened the door. Nagini slithered in as Harry opened the door fully before walking inside. The study was just as impressive as the rest of the manor. The walls were lined with books, the shelving only interrupted briefly by a fireplace made of marble and a giant window looking out into the flowers. There was a chair facing the fireplace which Nagini slithered to. A hand stuck out and petted Nagini, who hissed comforting.

"Um, hello," Harry said hesitantly, slowly walking into the room. "I know that this is out of nowhere but, my name is Harry. I'm an Omega. Your snake, Nagini, actually talked with me a bit—uh I can understand and talk with snakes, and she told me that you were still looking for your son. Bad men stole him away. I know that this is strange, coming from a stranger, but I would like to help you look for him." The door closed softly behind him. Harry stopped and turned to see before continuing. "Nagini helped me through with some things, and we talked a bit about how similar your and my lives are and—I just want to help you find your son if I can."

There was a period of silence. Harry stood awkwardly, shuffling from foot to foot as he rubbed his arms. The man in the chair slowly stood, and all at once, Harry was assaulted with the powerful presence of an Alpha. He gave out a little whine and force himself to focus as the Omega in him wanted to kneel or bare his neck in some way to show submission. The Alpha turned around and the first thing Harry saw was red eyes.

Frozen both by the Alpha's power and fear, Harry watched as the serpent-like face of Lord Voldemort stared at him, smiling in a curious way. His face was only illuminated by the roaring fire. "Will you help me, Potter? That is very sweet of you to look for my son," Voldemort chuckled. He took a step forward, and all Harry saw was blackness.

A/N: Updates are still every Wednesday, I just couldn't resist giving you guys a bit more since it is a new story! Love you all!

Angelbear1: I hope you enjoy this one too!

Brighteye343: Here's an extra hit! Next chapter will be Wednesday!

Rori Potter: My friend! How I missed you! I'm glad you're liking this! (I'm taking that Wow as a positive wow) I hope you enjoy.