Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Alexis grew up to be a very beautiful little girl, even at the age of eleven. She had long, red, wavy hair and dark green eyes: a dead ringer of her late biological mother, Lily Potter. Everybody who met her loved her. However, it couldn’t be said the same for Dudley Dursley. He acted the part of the protective older brother very well, despite Alexis’ protestations. Despite their young ages, most of the boys at Surrey Primary had already recognized the attraction of the opposite sex. The logic of boys under the age of thirteen was that the prettier a girl was before puberty, the more beautiful she would become after puberty. So on that note, it was quite obvious that many boys were attracted to Alexis and demonstrated their ‘coolness’ in front of her by bashing up children younger than themselves - something hardly fair, and Alexis was not impressed.

On Dudley’s 12th birthday, his friends, Piers and Douglass, were invited to the zoo with Alexis and the Dursleys. They were the only people who could be trusted to protect Alexis from any harm.

“Mum! That stupid tiger won’t move!” complained Dudley to his mother.

“Dudley, that species is known as the Bengal Tiger, known for its beautiful white fur and sun baking, which is why it hasn’t moved,” said Alexis gently, but not in a know-it-all voice.

Alexis was a very intelligent little girl, but she wasn’t at all proud. She knew, and couldn’t deny, that Dudley simply did not have her intelligence, and he knew it as well. Dudley had a nasty temper when it ignited, and just like Uncle Vernon, it was capable of leading to a serious heart attack.

“Hmmm…” said Dudley, staring at the tiger. “Well, you’re the animal expert, here.”

He moved on to the section where the monkeys were.

‘Fat little boy.’

Alexis heard a voice in her mind. She jumped and then looked around to see if anyone was watching. Her gaze switched back to the tiger on display.

‘Is it you?’ thought Alexis, silently in her mind, at the tiger.

‘Of course, it is me!’ The tiger seemed very indignant.

‘Excuse me? I know a normal tiger wouldn’t know how to mind-speak, so are you magical?’

‘I am one of the Tailts, a species of the magical tigers,’ the tiger said with pride.

‘Are you really? The Tailts are supposed to be extinct... If you are here, then where are the others?’ Alexis eagerly asked.

‘I am the last of my kind in Great Britain.’ The thoughts that came through the link were filled with loneliness and sadness.

‘Where do the others live?’

‘Where I was originally from: Asia.’

Alexis bit her lip in deep thought. She pitied the tiger, all alone without any of its kin.

‘At the end of this day, when I leave, I’ll release you from your cage.’

‘Thank you, kind lady. Only a true Ravenclaw would think so wisely,’ thought the tiger and peered about delightedly.

Alexis nodded her head, with no idea at all about what the tiger had said. A true Ravenclaw?

“Alexis? Alexis!” called Petunia. “Where are you?”

She walked towards the Dursleys, who were in the Reptile House.

“Hey, Dud! The dolphin show is about to start!” said Alexis excitedly.

They ran quickly to the water creatures’ arena where the dolphins and seals would perform tricks for their audience.

For the whole afternoon, they stayed at the zoo, watching the various animal shows and, in general, having fun. At the end, Alexis as promised set up a distraction and released the tiger from its exhibition. Everyone screamed with fear and shock as the tiger roared out its excitement at the prospect of freedom. Sprinting after a security guard, he turned and exited through the front gate.

“That was way cool! What did you do, Lexi?” asked Dudley, awed.

“What makes you think I even did anything?” An innocent sparkle gleamed in her emerald-green eyes.

“Who are you kidding, Lexi? We know you love all the animals, and you’d release all animals in the zoo to the wilderness,” laughed Dudley.

“But then they wouldn’t be able to survive,” Alexis replied wisely. “Oh, I simply caused a little distraction and accidentally opened the front gate,” she added airily.

They drove back to number four, Privet Drive after an interrogation by the police. The police had questioned everyone within close proximity to the tiger exhibit, something that did not please the Dursleys.