He turned to listen to the other snakes in turn. If anyone had been watching him, all they would have seen was a kid eyeing some possible pets, never guessing that he was listening to their voices.
He was tempted to buy a magical snake right away, so he could start practicing the skill and start to learn its limitations and possible usages, but it was hardly a suitable time.
...
He couldn't take the snake to Hogwarts for several reasons. First, it wasn't one of the officially sanctioned pets; only owls, toads, and cats were, and he could hardly leave it with his godfather. He also already had Serenity; whilst not officially his owl, she was as good as. Then there was the problem that even if somehow he got the snake into the school, it would be mighty suspicious given the current events unfolding there, even if snakes themselves were fond of eating rats and he could explain it away by that argument alone given Pettigrew. That could be countered, in turn, by asking why he didn't just buy a cat then. This occurred to him at the same time as he looked over at the felines on display.
'I'll buy a snake another time,' he mentally concluded, 'probably this summer,' already making plans as he moved over to the felines, before one feline caught his attention as he read the description beneath its cage. 'Kneazles have a very high level of intelligence, are independent and occasionally aggressive, and have an uncanny ability to detect suspicious and distrustful people.
They can also safely guide their owner home. Because of their aggression towards certain individuals, Kneazles have a XXX classification by the Ministry of Magic if they are not interbred with another species.' Smiling as he read more and more about the magical cat species, he noticed that most of the Kneazles on display were half breeds at best and were wary of him.
After looking over the cats for a while, and ignoring the snake voices, he concluded that he would have to find out more about the species before he executed his recently formed plans. Picking up the items he originally came into the store for, he discreetly paid the store owner an additional galleon to use his floo rather than make the journey back to use a public one in the alley.
Reappearing in 12 Grimmauld Place, he gracefully stepped out of the fireplace, just to be greeted by Remus waiting for him. "Where have you been? We've been looking all over for you," the werewolf demanded.
'Still hasn't worked it out yet that I don't like him,' he thought. "Shopping," he said, while holding up the bag as evidence, with the shop name clearly printed on the brown bag reading 'Magical Menagerie.' "The line was longer than I expected…" he offered in explanation as he tried to move past the werewolf.
"Harry, stop, we're just trying to help you," Remus pleaded while grabbing Harry's arm.
"I don't need your help, nor do I want it," he shot back quickly with a good amount of the venom that he was feeling for the werewolf who was trying to push his way into his life. "I was fine for eleven years without you; just because you're living here doesn't mean you're family. A friend? No, I don't need you." Pushing the arm away, "I'll be in the library if Sirius needs me."
...
(Library)
"You know you have Remus downing a bottle of firewhiskey downstairs?" his cousin asked from where she was leaning against the bookshelves, her arms folded across her chest just like a mother would when scolding a misbehaving child, even if the effect was weakened with her being in tight, low-rise, hip-hugging jeans and a Weird Sisters sleeveless top, showing just a sliver of tantalizing skin at her midriff.
"The truth often hurts," he stated dispassionately, as he flipped a page of the book he was reading.
"You know, you had a lot of people worried about you?" Tonks stated as he looked up from the book he was reading on magical creatures. "I was worried about you."
Mentally sighing as Tonks successfully employed a guilt trip, his gut rebelled, even if his mind understood objectively what was happening. "It was meant to be no more than a five-minute errand, things just took longer than planned; there were unforeseen events," he stated plainly, whilst debating whether to just tell Tonks that he was a parselmouth, even if it went against his decision less than an hour earlier to keep the knowledge to himself for the moment.
There were several advantages to telling her though. First, it would strengthen the bond between them; their relationship would grow closer and Tonks would in turn believe that he had taken her more into his trust, and she would open up more to him in turn. It would also give him someone he could share it with and help protect the secret as well, even if it increased the risk of being discovered.
However, she could react badly and run off, he thought, before he remembered that she was a Puff, famous for their loyalty, and she was family after all. Taking the seat next to him on the sofa, "So what caused these unforeseen events?" his cousin predictably enquired, as he started to take control of the chat.
Closing the tome, he decided to run with the idea of sharing his newly discovered ability with her. "Promise me that what I'm about to tell you, you will keep to yourself. I'd rather keep this a secret, as people will react negatively if they found out," deciding that an oath of secrecy would be counterproductive to establishing shared trust and would imply that he wasn't ready to trust her.
"Sure, Harry," Tonks agreed quickly, much quicker than he expected. "You're my cousin," she said earnestly and gave him a tight hug.
Mentally taking a moment to compose himself so he didn't appear eager to talk, only reluctant to share what he was about to tell her, he looked around the room, acting the part. "I am a parselmouth," he said quietly, as Tonks' hug loosened. "When I walked into the pet store I heard voices, dozens of them. I knew it wasn't the customers, so I looked for the source; it was the snakes on display."
"Ohh Harry," Tonks said, hugging him tightly, trying to comfort him.
"I think you understand now why I was delayed," he stated, his arm wrapping around her waist, hugging her back in a sideways hug.
"Yea, I understand now," hugging again.
"Thanks cuz," he said, while rubbing her side affectionately, before adding softly, "I just remember how everyone reacted around Neville after finding out that he was a parselmouth," he started. "He is the lovable, famous, and popular 'Boy-Who-Lived.' If people abandoned him over it, what would happen to me?" he asked her, whilst remembering what it was like not having any friends at primary school, how his cousin had scared them all away with rumors and threats.
He mentally patted himself on the back for his superb acting skills; by god did he love the mind arts when it gave him this much control over his displayed emotions. It even allowed him to call up specific emotions in this situation just by recalling disheartening memories. It just gave him so much control, as Tonks pulled him closer and tighter.
"Don't worry cuz, I won't abandon you," she reassured him, at the same time as her hug stirred up other primal desires in him, along with the proverbial snake he had in his trousers, which he promptly suppressed with his mind magic, even as he enjoyed the physical touch and closeness of her supple body.
"I was thinking about how useful snakes could be in finding and detecting Pettigrew. Then I noticed the cats, and read the description of Kneazles," showing her the book he was reading on creatures. "It occurred to me that Kneazles could help detect Pettigrew far easier than snakes. I was just trying to learn more about them and the true extent of their abilities. Want to help?"
"Sure, Harry," she quickly agreed, picking up a book.
He mentally patted himself on the back as Tonks opened the book. "Thanks."
...
if you want to read ahead of the public release you can join my p atreon :
p atreon.com/loveran