Ficathon FIC: Serpent's Son by Penemuel
Author: Penemuel (g_shadowslayer)
Title: Serpent's Son
Character: Tom Riddle
Rating: G
Warnings: none
Summary: Young Tom meets a new friend
Disclaimer: He's not mine -- if he was, he'd have better motivations and be a much more rounded character
Author's notes: I've had this little vignette as part of my Tom's background for years now, so being able to write it out makes me happy :D Grass snakes are native to much of Europe and parts of North Africa, are non-venomous, and can live up to 25 years.
Word count: 1002 per MS Word
Written for prompt #63:
A very young Tom Riddle talks to a snake for the first time. No crack. (suggested by ashishishe)
Serpent's Son
by Penemuel
When Tom Riddle was five, he was adopted for two days. The family was a very lovely, quiet couple with a house in London. They loved books and they seemed to love Tom, and of course it was too good to last...
They took him home and gave him a good lunch, a little alarmed by how thin and pale he was. Then they got him settled in, showed him his room, let him take a warm bath and play in the large tub. He had a large dinner with bread and honey for dessert, slept in his own room in a soft bed with crisp cotton sheets, and didn't have to worry about any other boys yelling or fighting or waking him up.
The next day, they gave him a small carved wooden figure of a knight on a horse -- his first toy that was truly his. Very politely he thanked them, and smiled a happy little smile. Then they brought him out to their quiet back yard and let him play with his new toy, while his new father read a book and his new mother went back in to make tea.
They had a garden at the back of the small yard, where they grew lavender and a small rose bush or two. Tom sat on the grass nearby and trotted his little knight along the edge of the garden, hunting for Dragons. Much to his surprise, he actually found one.
There was a smooth flat stone in the garden, a river stone his mother had found on one of their trips to the country. It was polished dark and rounded by the water, a soft almost charcoal grey that held the sun's warmth close to it. And it was the favourite sunning spot of a small grass snake.
The snake coiled itself over the stone, warming its underside against the stone and letting the sun beam down on its shiny back. It hissed softly with surprise when Tom and his little knight startled it awake.
"Oh!" Tom gasped, startled himself by the tongue that flicked against his hand.
"It's rude to disturb someone when they're sleeping, young Master," a strangely sibilant voice told him.
"Oh -- I'm sorry," Tom said politely, moving so he could lie down on his stomach and be face-to-face with the snake. He didn't even question the thought that it was the snake speaking -- after all, a five-year-old's view of the world is often more magical than an adult's.
The snake's tongue flicked against his hand, then the snake uncoiled and slithered its head right up to his face and flicked its tongue against his cheek. He giggled because it tickled, and nearly missed the snake's response: "That is quite all right, young Serpent's Son. Your intrusion is far more welcome than the clumsy tread of man."
"Why did you call me that?" Tom asked, cocking his head to look into the snake's dark eyes.
"Because that is who you are, young Master. Yours is an old and powerful line, honoured by my kind for centuries."
Tom goggled at that. "You know my family?"
"I can smell your bloodline, Serpent's Son. I met your mother, once -- she saved me from your Uncle. She always tried to protect my kind, if she could. She would have protected you, too. You should not blame her -- she did the best she could."
"She left me -- she died," Tom said petulantly. "She was too weak."
"No. She was unwell and abandoned, young Master. She was far stronger than you can understand right now. But know this -- you have her strength in you. Never forget that."
Tom nodded, almost entranced by the snake's flickering tongue and dark eyes. He reached out to stroke a finger down the sleek scales of its back, and giggled at the feel of it. "May I pick you up?" he asked politely.
"You may, young Master," the snake answered, and Tom carefully scooped it up from the warm ground.
The boy giggled again as the snake began to coil slowly around his arm, then jumped, badly startled by a crash of china and his mother's scream. "A snake! A snake's got our baby!" she shrieked, and Tom ran up to her.
"No -- it's all right, Mummy! See? He's my friend!" he said, scared as her eyes went wide and she screamed again, then began backing away from him.
"What's wrong, Darling?" his father asked, rushing from his chair in answer to her cries.
"He's possessed! A demon has him! He's speaking in tongues and consorting with snakes!"
"He's my friend!" Tom protested, not knowing what was going on or why his new parents couldn't understand his reassurances. He'd been speaking with the snake and didn't realize he was still speaking Parseltongue, every word of his explanation an eerie hiss of sound.
"Thomas!" his father shouted, brandishing a gardening spade. "Put that creature down, now!"
"He's my friend! I won't let you hurt him!" Tom shouted back, and light burst from his outstretched hand, forcing his parents back. "Leave us alone!" He was crying, now, both afraid of his parents and afraid of what was happening.
"We have to give him back -- tell them we made a mistake! We can't handle this!" his mother gibbered, hiding behind her husband.
"I am sorry, Serpent's Son -- I never meant to cause trouble," the snake hissed, uncoiling and letting itself slip back to the ground. Within moments it had slithered away into hiding, and Tom sank to the ground, sobbing at the loss of his friend.
He found himself hauled bodily into the car and returned to the orphanage, overhearing his parents shouting at the matron and knowing the strange things they were saying meant there was something wrong with him. But it was another six years before he truly understood what had happened -- and then he vowed that no one would ever treat him like that again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~:>~
Title: Serpent's Son
Character: Tom Riddle
Rating: G
Warnings: none
Summary: Young Tom meets a new friend
Disclaimer: He's not mine -- if he was, he'd have better motivations and be a much more rounded character
Author's notes: I've had this little vignette as part of my Tom's background for years now, so being able to write it out makes me happy :D Grass snakes are native to much of Europe and parts of North Africa, are non-venomous, and can live up to 25 years.
Word count: 1002 per MS Word
Written for prompt #63:
A very young Tom Riddle talks to a snake for the first time. No crack. (suggested by ashishishe)
Serpent's Son
by Penemuel
When Tom Riddle was five, he was adopted for two days. The family was a very lovely, quiet couple with a house in London. They loved books and they seemed to love Tom, and of course it was too good to last...
They took him home and gave him a good lunch, a little alarmed by how thin and pale he was. Then they got him settled in, showed him his room, let him take a warm bath and play in the large tub. He had a large dinner with bread and honey for dessert, slept in his own room in a soft bed with crisp cotton sheets, and didn't have to worry about any other boys yelling or fighting or waking him up.
The next day, they gave him a small carved wooden figure of a knight on a horse -- his first toy that was truly his. Very politely he thanked them, and smiled a happy little smile. Then they brought him out to their quiet back yard and let him play with his new toy, while his new father read a book and his new mother went back in to make tea.
They had a garden at the back of the small yard, where they grew lavender and a small rose bush or two. Tom sat on the grass nearby and trotted his little knight along the edge of the garden, hunting for Dragons. Much to his surprise, he actually found one.
There was a smooth flat stone in the garden, a river stone his mother had found on one of their trips to the country. It was polished dark and rounded by the water, a soft almost charcoal grey that held the sun's warmth close to it. And it was the favourite sunning spot of a small grass snake.
The snake coiled itself over the stone, warming its underside against the stone and letting the sun beam down on its shiny back. It hissed softly with surprise when Tom and his little knight startled it awake.
"Oh!" Tom gasped, startled himself by the tongue that flicked against his hand.
"It's rude to disturb someone when they're sleeping, young Master," a strangely sibilant voice told him.
"Oh -- I'm sorry," Tom said politely, moving so he could lie down on his stomach and be face-to-face with the snake. He didn't even question the thought that it was the snake speaking -- after all, a five-year-old's view of the world is often more magical than an adult's.
The snake's tongue flicked against his hand, then the snake uncoiled and slithered its head right up to his face and flicked its tongue against his cheek. He giggled because it tickled, and nearly missed the snake's response: "That is quite all right, young Serpent's Son. Your intrusion is far more welcome than the clumsy tread of man."
"Why did you call me that?" Tom asked, cocking his head to look into the snake's dark eyes.
"Because that is who you are, young Master. Yours is an old and powerful line, honoured by my kind for centuries."
Tom goggled at that. "You know my family?"
"I can smell your bloodline, Serpent's Son. I met your mother, once -- she saved me from your Uncle. She always tried to protect my kind, if she could. She would have protected you, too. You should not blame her -- she did the best she could."
"She left me -- she died," Tom said petulantly. "She was too weak."
"No. She was unwell and abandoned, young Master. She was far stronger than you can understand right now. But know this -- you have her strength in you. Never forget that."
Tom nodded, almost entranced by the snake's flickering tongue and dark eyes. He reached out to stroke a finger down the sleek scales of its back, and giggled at the feel of it. "May I pick you up?" he asked politely.
"You may, young Master," the snake answered, and Tom carefully scooped it up from the warm ground.
The boy giggled again as the snake began to coil slowly around his arm, then jumped, badly startled by a crash of china and his mother's scream. "A snake! A snake's got our baby!" she shrieked, and Tom ran up to her.
"No -- it's all right, Mummy! See? He's my friend!" he said, scared as her eyes went wide and she screamed again, then began backing away from him.
"What's wrong, Darling?" his father asked, rushing from his chair in answer to her cries.
"He's possessed! A demon has him! He's speaking in tongues and consorting with snakes!"
"He's my friend!" Tom protested, not knowing what was going on or why his new parents couldn't understand his reassurances. He'd been speaking with the snake and didn't realize he was still speaking Parseltongue, every word of his explanation an eerie hiss of sound.
"Thomas!" his father shouted, brandishing a gardening spade. "Put that creature down, now!"
"He's my friend! I won't let you hurt him!" Tom shouted back, and light burst from his outstretched hand, forcing his parents back. "Leave us alone!" He was crying, now, both afraid of his parents and afraid of what was happening.
"We have to give him back -- tell them we made a mistake! We can't handle this!" his mother gibbered, hiding behind her husband.
"I am sorry, Serpent's Son -- I never meant to cause trouble," the snake hissed, uncoiling and letting itself slip back to the ground. Within moments it had slithered away into hiding, and Tom sank to the ground, sobbing at the loss of his friend.
He found himself hauled bodily into the car and returned to the orphanage, overhearing his parents shouting at the matron and knowing the strange things they were saying meant there was something wrong with him. But it was another six years before he truly understood what had happened -- and then he vowed that no one would ever treat him like that again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~:>~