Ten years later, Harry found himself dreaming about a unicorn. The unicorn often visited his subconsious mind, and he talked to Harry and understood Harry in a way that no one had ever done. His name was Chichi, and he was a beautiful horse of all colors, with a sparkling horn protruding from his head.

As Harry was conversing with Chichi in the vast, sunny field, a loud pounding suddenly interrupted him. The field and the unicorn vanished, and Harry found himself staring at the inside of his eyelids.

"Up!" screamed Aunt Petunia. "Get up! Now!"

His eyes opened reluctantly, and he reached out to grab his glasses. The tape keeping the two large circles of maginifying glass together was falling off. He put them on his face and blinked. He was no longer in the mystical field with his unicorn friend; he was back in the tiny cupboard beneath the stairs on 4 Privet Drive.

A stomping sound billowed from above him, and little flakes of the cieling fell into his hair. "Wake up, Potter!" shouted the unmistakable voice of his cousin, Dudley. "We're going to the zoo!"

Harry sighed and slid off his little cot, pushing open the door, finding himself being shoved back inside by Dudley, and reappearing in the hallway only to trudge into the kitchen. He immediately went to the stove and found the pan already hot. He put down a few strips of bacon as Petunia hissed, "Try not to burn anything."

"Yes Aunt Petunia," he mumbled.

The woman was wearing a rather ghastly green top that was too high and too low-cut for a woman that old to wear, and she had a green short skirt to match. She put her hands over her son's eyes and guided him into the living room, saying, "I want everything to be perfect for my Dudley's special day!"

Harry rolled his eyes and scooped the bacon onto a plate.

"Hurry up!" boomed a deep voice. "Bring my coffee, boy."

"Yes Uncle Vernon."

Harry had barely noticed his uncle sitting in the chair at the table, though he wasn't that difficult to notice. He was morbidly obese with a small head and a purple face, and a grey mustache in the shape of an S. He was a horribly ugly man, and as far as Harry knew, he had always been this way. He just sat around the house, smoking cigarettes and eating.

In the living room, Petunia had uncovered Dudley's eyes to reveal piles and piles of gifts wrapped in different papers, filling up most of the room. Petunia giggled happily, but Dudley looked unnamused. He turned and snapped, "How many are there?"

"Thirty-six. Counted them myself," said Vernon proudly.

"Thirty-six?" screamed the fat child. "But last year I had thirty-seven!"

"Yes, yes, b-but, some of them are quite a bit bigger than last year," stuttered a panic-stricken Uncle Vernon.

"I don't care how big they are!" snarled Dudley.

Petunia grabbed her son by the shoulders and said, in a small voice, "Now, dear, this is what we'll do. We're going to go out, and we're going to buy you two new presents. How's that?"

Harry rolled his eyes and set the cup of coffee before Vernon.

After breakfast, they scrambled outside to the car, Dudley jumping in back and complaining that his sweater itched. Harry reached for the door, but a fat hand grabbed his wrist. He turned to see Uncle Vernon, sitting in his wheelchair and glaring down at him.

"Now I'm warning you, boy," he hissed. "Any funny business, any at all, and you'll have no meals for a week. Now get in."

When they finally arrived at the zoo, Harry followed the Dursleys as they made their way to the reptile house. One of the first exhibits they stopped at was that containing a giant snake, resting peacefully on a warm rock. At least, it was until Dudley pressed his pink nose against the glass barrier.

"Make it move," he commanded.

Petunia wheeled Vernon over so he could smack the glass with a giant hand and shout, "Move!"

Although the wall of glass shook violently, the snake remained asleep. So, in frustration, Dudley pounded angrily and screamed, "Move!"

"He's alseep!" snapped Harry.

Dudley rolled his eyes and muttered, "He's boring." He waddled away, followed by Petunia and Vernon.

Harry turned to look at the awakening snake, mumbling, "Sorry about him. He doesn't understand what it's like, lying there, day after day, watching people press their ugly faces in on you."

Suddenly, the snake raised its head a bit and, astonishingly, winked. Harry's face flushed in embarassement; no one had ever winked at him before. He winked playfully back, pursing his lips. "Can you hear me?" he asked in a flirty voice.

The serpant nodded once.

"It's just," breathed Harry, leaning in, "I've never talked to a snake before. Do you talk to people often?"

He shook his head.

"You're from Burma, arent' you?" asked Harry, trying to impress him with his knowledge. "Was it nice there? Do you miss your family?"

The snake gestured with his head toward a nearby sign that read "Bred in captivity".

"I see. That's me as well. I never knew my parents either," he said, pushing out his lower lip. He paused and flipped his hair dramatically. "So, I must say, out of all the snake's I've seen, you're the longest and thickest."

The reptile blinked.

"It's true," giggled Harry. "You look so...firm. I'd just love to take you and put you-"

"Mummy! Dad!" shouted a voice from nearby. "Come here! You won't believe what this snake is doing!"

At that moment, Dudley came running up to the glass, knocking Harry to the ground in his hurry. Harry lay there, anger building inside him. He had been having a fantastic conversation, and he could feel a real connection forming. He was going to build up to asking the snake on a date, but Dudley had interrupted his plans. Dudley, who was now ignorantly climbing on the handrail and smashing his face against the glass, had ruined his chances at ever doing anything with the serpant.

It was then that the glass disappeared completely, sending Dudley tumbling into the small water tub in the exhibit. The snake immediately began slithering out and onto the floor beside Harry, who grinned hopefully at him.

"I'm taken," he hissed. "But thanksss."

Harry frowned and muttered, "Any time." He watched it slither away, nipping at a few shrieking pedestrians.

Meanwhile, Dudley was attempting to climb out of the exhibit, but he found himself smacking into a glass wall. He tried again and again, but finally processed that he could not get out. So, in sudden fear, he began banging on the barrier, screaming, "Mum! Mummy! Help me!"

Petunia screamed and rushed the her son, hitting the glass and yelling, "My darling boy! How did you get in there? Who did this? How did you get in there? Is there a snake?"

Harry chuckled, but halted immediately when he saw Vernon, who had been knocked out of his wheelchair in all the commotion and now lay on the ground, unable to move, glaring at Harry with a bright red face.

A few hours later, Harry found himself pushing Vernon's extremely heavy wheelchair through the front door of Number Four. Petunia hurried past them, hugging Dudley, who was wrapped in a blanket and was shivering uncontrollably. Once Harry reached his cupboard, Vernon shoved him inside. He grabbed a nearby umbrella and began beating the child until both nostrils bled and he had a considerably large gash on his head.

"What happened?" roared Vernon between smacks.

"I swear, I don't know!" whimpered Harry as his glasses fell to the ground and snapped in half. "One minute the glass was there and then it was gone! It was like magic!"

Vernon's face was the exact shade a tomato, and he looked as though he was either about to lunge at Harry or he needed a bathroom very badly. He pushed himself back from the door and slammed it shut, locking all twenty locks. He leaned forward and hissed through the tiny opening, "There's no such thing as magic!"