Not Your Usual Veela Mate

Dark Marks and Spirit Snakes

Severus put his cutlery down and gave Harry a pointed look. "I've been meaning to ask you something, young man," he began, gaining the attention of everyone around the table.

"What's that, sir?" Harry asked with some trepidation, uncertain what he could have done to put that look on the Potions Master's face.

"Severus?" Lucius asked, wondering the same thing. He wanted to turn the attention away from the youth, but he was unable to as long as he didn't know what the problem was.

Sensing the older Veela's concern, Severus flicked his hand as if to wave the worries aside. "I'm just curious is all," he said, as if that explained everything. Returning his focus on Harry, he went on, "What in Merlin's name made you try to talk to the Dark Mark?"

Harry blushed and ducked his head. "I'm not sure. When I left Dumbledore's office, I was just so, so angry. I was actually on my way to the Room of Requirement to ask it for something I could smash, hoping to vent my temper that way.

"The 'talk' he and I had also made me realise that the complete break between me and Dumbledore was closer than I'd figured, and that we probably need to get away from here sooner rather than later.

"And it was then it hit me… I had no idea what the Dark Mark is like. I mean, I saw it for the first time at the end of my fourth year, when you, Severus, showed it to Fudge as proof that Voldie was back – and by the way, we have got to do something about that imbecile! – but other than that… " Harry shrugged. It wasn't exactly as if he was friends with any Death Eaters, and Snape and him had only recently become friendly towards one another. Harry could picture what would have happened if he'd walked up to Severus last year and said, "Hey, wanna show me your tattoo? I'll let you see my scar in exchange, if you'd like." Yeah, that conversation would have gone over very well, not! Snape would have hexed him into next year, if not further, and there was no one else he could have asked, now was there? It wasn't exactly something you went up to people and inquired about. And the way Dumbledore refused to share matters of importance and discouraged true exchanges of information…

Severus and Lucius nodded their heads in understanding. It really wasn't something the boy would be familiar with.

"But what possessed you to try and talk to it?" Severus persisted.

Harry shrugged once more. "When I was holding your arm I felt something. I'm not sure I can explain it, but there was an… awareness to the tattoo I didn't think was normal, not even for the wizarding world, so I played on a hunch and to my utter amazement, the snake actually talked back."

"What did it say?" Draco asked eagerly. He too wanted the mark gone, and yet he couldn't help but be curious as well. He knew of course that his father wore the Dark Mark. He had seen it on several occasions, mostly by accident. He had learned from an early age not to ask questions about it, but still he was burning up with curiosity.

Harry frowned in thought. "It didn't so much talk to me with words, rather it communicated in images. The spirit embedded into Severus' arm is a cobra. Once it roamed the spirit world freely, looking out for members of its race. Then Voldemort came, and somehow, the snake isn't sure how, he managed to wrestle her from the spirit plane and into this world and forced her into the tattoo. The ceremony was not designed for doing that.

"The American Indians used the ritual to embed the spirit of their totem onto their flesh so they could seek their guidance, and afterwards the spirit was let free again. Riddle somehow managed to bring the spirits to this world, without gaining their permission first, anchoring the spirits to the skull part of the tattoo, preventing them from leaving again. In time the spirits grew resentful and angry and they reacted the only way they could, by making the person they were tied to feel just as angry, resentful, and downright mean as they did.