𝓳𝓮 𝓽'𝓪𝓲 𝓪𝓲𝓶𝓮 || Harry Potter Fanfiction

ballad of the songbirds and snakes

Has anyone read Ballad of the Songbirds and Snakes? So good. 100% recommend it for dystopian readers. I don't own the chapter title nor Harry Potter 

It was a very sunny Saturday and the zoo was crowded with families. The Dursleys bought Dudley and Piers large chocolate ice-creams at the entrance and then, because the smiling lady in the van had asked Hera what she wanted before they could hurry her away, they bought her a cheap lemon ice lolly. 

Hera had to force herself to eat it, she had standards after all, and she preferred sweeter flavors. 

After lunch, they went to the reptile house. It was cool and dark in here, with lit windows all along the walls. Behind the glass, all sorts of lizards and snakes were crawling and slithering over bits of wood and stone. Dudley and Piers wanted to see huge, poisonous cobras and thick, man-crushing pythons. Dudley quickly found the largest snake in the place. It could have wrapped its body twice around Uncle Vernon's car and crushed it into a dustbin – but at the moment it didn't look in the mood. It was fast asleep. 

Knowing what would happen, Hera decided to avoid the snake when Dudley was there. 

Dudley stood with his nose pressed against the glass, staring at the glistening brown coils.

"Make it move," he whined at his father. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass, but the snake didn't budge.

 "Do it again," Dudley ordered. Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on. 

"This is boring," Dudley moaned. He shuffled away. 

At least the bleached ferret had respect for snakes. 

The snake suddenly opened its beady eyes. Slowly, very slowly, it raised its head until its eyes were on a level with Hera's.

Hera moved forward in front of the glass, and very quietly she hissed. "I'm sorry about my cousin. He's a jerk."

The snake slowly nodded up and down.

The snake jabbed its tail at a little sign next to the glass.

Hera shook her head, "I can't free you right now. I'll get in trouble."

Disappointed, the snake slithered back down and "fell asleep" again.

Dudley came back to rap on the glass again but the snake didn't move.

When Hera, the Dursleys, and Piers were getting ready to go home, Hera decided to act. Her magic reached out and released the snake. 

The great snake was uncoiling itself rapidly, slithering out onto the floor – people throughout the reptile house screamed and started running for the exits.

The keeper of the reptile house was in shock.   

Petunia and Vernon both rushed them out quickly, to avoid the snake though Hera knew the snake wouldn't attack them while she was around. 

***

Hera knew that her letter would come soon.

It would be best if she went to the shop alone; Hagrid never let her do anything.