Chapter 13 – House of Snakes

He was feeling a bit useless again. With the diary reduced to a tiny pile of ash, he was at a loss. As far as The Quest went, all that was left was to destroy Nagini and then the Infernal Prat himself. It didn't help that he wasn't at all certain when the snake had been made into a Horcrux. And, of course, he needed to be sure about the Harry Horcrux.

He had no idea why—he was certainly no Seer—but, just like what he'd told Snape about not blinking out of existence, he had a feeling about this. Perhaps it was to do with the fact that Cameron was there and had already sacrificed himself to destroy the Horcrux when the Menace to end all Menaces tried to kill baby Harry, or maybe there was only ever the most infinitesimal chance of a soul fragment lodging in the lightning bolt scar and it just hadn't happened this time.

If he was right about this, he didn't think he'd ever be able to adequately explain it. Not that he'd need to, since no one but him would know to question it. He would just have to learn to live with the question.

Either way, he didn't think Harry was carrying around a Horcrux in his head. To be sure, though, he would need to get close to him. He was hoping that, just like with the other Horcruxes, he'd be able to feel the darkness in Harry's scar. Unfortunately, no one had ever said anything about sensing dark magic in Harry, not even Dumbledore, so it wasn't a sure bet. Maybe people had felt it and just not mentioned it, though that didn't seem likely.

The wards at number four Privet Drive were not going to allow anyone magical inside, of course, so he'd have to find another way. Even if that hadn't been the case, it wasn't the way he'd choose to do it. If at all possible, he was hoping to avoid ever meeting his younger self. Besides, he had no desire to return to that house or speak to his relatives again.

He could wait until Harry started school and hope to run into him while visiting Snape, but that had its own set of problems, not the least of which was that Snape wouldn't like it. He was always adamant that no students know he was there. Besides, anyone trying to get close to the Boy Who Lived would draw attention and suspicion from the staff, which he certainly did not want directed at himself. No, it would be best to try before he entered the wizarding world and was constantly surrounded by prying eyes.

The problem was that the Dursleys generally didn't take Harry anywhere, and they definitely didn't let him go anywhere alone. There was school, but the teachers would be wary of a stranger. Maybe he could stop by Mrs. Figg's house with a copy of The Watchtower when he knew Harry would be there.

Thinking of staying with Mrs. Figg made him think of the time he hadn't been able to and he grinned.

He was going to the zoo.

XXX

He'd been wandering around the reptile house trying to tune out the snakes' complaints for over an hour when they finally came in. Relieved to have something else to focus on—not that he blamed the snakes, of course—he stepped a bit closer.

Harry started talking to the python just like before, but this time the snake didn't talk back. Oh, it talked all right, but it didn't answer Harry's questions and Harry didn't respond to anything it said either. Cameron couldn't believe he hadn't thought to check for that. If the Horcrux had allowed him the ability to be a Parselmouth, of course young Harry wouldn't have it if he wasn't a Horcrux.

His magic in general didn't seem affected—he still accidentally made the glass disappear and trapped Dudley inside. Cameron tried not to laugh.

He remembered being worried his unique ability would disappear once the Horcrux was gone, but apparently learning to use it had done something for him and he could still speak Parseltongue. This would be an unexpected advantage as far as keeping his identity a secret—Cameron Sage was a Parselmouth and Harry Potter wasn't.

That difference alone had him almost completely convinced his theory had been correct, but just in case, he contrived to bump into Harry on his way out.

"Pardon me," he said, keeping his face averted while steadying him with a hand on his shoulder. He left the zoo feeling much better. He hadn't felt even a twinge of dark magic from the boy, and it pleased him. No one should be expected to sacrifice his life for this cause, least of all a child who was already expected to commit murder.

Of course, he couldn't be one hundred percent certain his deduction was correct, and there was always the possibility that when someone got around to trying to kill the Stupid Prat he wouldn't die and Cameron would be proven wrong, but he was sanguine nonetheless.

XXX

"Why do you even keep in contact with him?" he asked when Snape returned from tea at Malfoy Manor. He looked weary.

"It's expected of me."

"Expected by whom?"

"Albus," he answered, lowering himself to the sofa.

"Even after what he did?" he asked, looking pointedly at Snape's bad leg.

Snape snorted. "That's not the worst thing he's done to me."

Cameron scowled. It was really high time he brought Malfoy to task for his actions. "Still."

"It's my job to keep myself apprised of his and his associates' activities. Besides, I need to be in good standing with them when the Dark Lord returns if I'm to be an effective spy."

"No, it's your job to teach kids Potions. As far as I know, risking your health and sanity is not part of your contract."

"Don't be purposefully obtuse," Snape replied, closing his eyes and letting his head fall back against the sofa. "I have to do it. It's my duty."

"You think you still have to atone," Cameron realized. "You can't keep doing that forever. It's no way to live. Besides, I think you've more than paid your dues."

"What would you know about it?" Snape snapped.

"I know more than you might think." And he did. He'd seen what the Death Eaters got up to through the visions he'd had. He also knew Snape well enough to guess what it had done to him to keep doing those things in the hope of gathering information after he changed his allegiance. Not to mention the risk to him personally—Cruciatus was never easy to bear, no matter how noble one's intentions.

"Perhaps you do," Snape conceded. "Nevertheless, it is my choice."

"If you insist." He stood and held out a hand to Snape. "Shall I distract you from whatever aggravation he's caused you, which I've no doubt exacerbated?"

"You'd better."

XXX

"The Potter brat will be the death of me."

Cameron carefully tamped down his initial reaction to mild curiosity. "Oh?"

"He was chasing trolls around on Halloween! Imbecilic child."

He feigned shock. It was a damn good thing he'd mastered Occlumency so well. "There were trolls in the school? How did that happen?"

Snape poured himself a drink. "Just the one, actually. I'm sure that Quirrell brought it in as a distraction to get at—never mind that. But Albus refuses to do anything about it without absolute proof. He's endangering the students, it's unconscionable!"

"Doesn't sound like Potter needs much help endangering himself, if he's chasing after trolls."

"Perhaps 'chasing' is a small exaggeration. Either way, he is an infuriating whelp who believes himself capable of anything. He'll be fighting dragons next, mark my words."

He fought not to snicker. Would Snape remember that statement in three years when the Triwizard Tournament rolled around?

Now that he thought about it, though, he was certain Nagini was made into a Horcrux before then. Maybe if he could get rid of her…but no. He didn't know where the Bodiless Bastard was going to hide out after he vacated Quirrell. The graveyard after the Tournament was the next place Cameron knew he'd be, so he couldn't mess with it.

"Forget about him. Do you have marking to do?"

"Yes, actually." He spread out a stack of essays on his desk.

"Hmph," Cameron pouted. "I think you need a new job—one that doesn't follow you home at the end of the day."

Snape narrowed his eyes. "Oh you do, do you?"

"I'm just kidding. I know this position is important to you, and I respect that. I just miss you during the school year."

"Well. That's all right then, I suppose."

Cameron rolled his eyes. "Thanks a lot. What can I do to persuade you to put it off until tomorrow?"

Snape put down his quill. "It wouldn't take much. I have been wanting to fuck you all week."

His heart started beating faster. "Well, that works out rather nicely for me, doesn't it?"

Snape pulled him up off the sofa into a kiss.

"Me, as well."

XXX

"Er, what's in the box?"

"I come over at Christmas, and you ask 'what's in the box'? How dense are you, exactly?"

"Well, it's just you usually have my present shrunk in a pocket."

Snape put the box on the sofa. "This one cannot be shrunk without damage."

"Well, when you put it like that," Cameron said, eyeing the box, "who needs tea? I don't think I can wait—here's yours, let's get started." He drew the package out of his pocket and tossed it to Snape, resizing it in the air.

"Show-off," Snape grumbled while he opened it.

He arched an eyebrow. "Multiple Choice Exams as an Effective Teaching Tool. Are you trying to tell me something?"

"Well, yeah." Cameron grinned. "How could you tell?" Snape declined to answer, unless an exasperated look counted, so Cameron focused his attention on his gift.

"Oh, my. This is a surprise," he said, peering into the box. "Where did you get it?" When he didn't get an answer, he looked up.

"Snape?" His lover was staring at him wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

"Was that—? You're a Parselmouth?" Ah, that explained it. He really needed to work on controlling which language he was speaking in the presence of a snake. He nodded carefully. Surely the Head of Slytherin House wouldn't censure him for this?

"Say something else," Snape demanded.

It was better than being assumed evil, he supposed. "Hello there. I'm Cameron; what's your name?" he asked the snake.

"I am called Thessa, if you must know."

"Nice to meet you, Thessa. Would you like to stay with me, be my friend?"

She looked at him askance. "You seem pleasant enough, I suppose."

He looked back up at Snape, who was still gaping at him in wonder. "Her name's Thessa. I think she likes me against her better judgment." Snape didn't reply. "So, since you obviously didn't know I'd be able to talk to her, what made you think to get me a snake?"

Snape blinked several times, and finally spoke. "You have several rather deplorable Gryffindor tendencies, but I think you would have made a passable Slytherin."

That made Cameron smile. "Really?" Thessa wasn't exactly the quintessential Slytherin snake—she was a small, Kelly green, grass snake. Utterly harmless. She did have the attitude, though.

"I only said 'passable'."

"High praise, coming from you." He held Snape's face in both hands and kissed him. "Thank you."

"My pleasure."