AN: Every four weeks, I'm going to be posting three or four chapters, or try to. I hope you all enjoy

PLEASE READ AND REVIEW

The boy had a fae-like appearance. A soft face with emerald green eyes and a head full of just shagged black hair. A lightning bolt shaped scar was above his brow, and he wore thick round black framed glasses. He had fading bruised on his skin, and pastily skin.

Harry Potter sighed, standing close to the fire in the bin before him. He was fifteen, and basically homeless. True, he was staying at a homeless shelter, but it wasn't a home, and he couldn't stay during the day. As he stared at the fire, he couldn't help but think about why he was in the streets of London, and not in Surrey with his aunt and her family.

Harry sighed as he clutched his backpack close. He only brought a weeks worth of clothing, his wand, and homework. He was mentally cursing the Ministry for forcing him away from the castle, especially since the Order was too busy with Mr. Weasley to let him anywhere outside of the school or Private Drive.

After being picked up, his uncle decided to 'teach the freak a lesson for disrupting their vacation' or something like that. After a rather harsh beating, he was shoved into the closet. He blacked out. When he woke up, he was scared.

Private Drive was empty.

Devoid of human entities.

Searching the house, revealed that the Dursleys had been gone for weeks. Upon looking around, he found a box in the attic that held his birth certificate, passport, and things he needs to travel. There was an old locket with a picture of his mum and what seemed to be his Potions Professor, Severus Snape. With one last look, Harry left the house that he was forced to call home.

He didn't go to the Wizarding part of London more than once, in fear that a Death Eater would take incentive and kidnap him. So, here he was, sharing a nook with kids who were orphans or runaways. They didn't ask questions, though he was forced to help out by supplying either wood or food.

"Hey, Harry?" Harry looked up, shivering in the cold. The eldest boy, name Eek, obviously a made up one, was staring at him in worry. "We should get you to the clinic." The shivers slowly stopped.

"Can't, allergic to the medicine they would prescribe. Only...two weeks...'fore school starts." Harry would have fallen into the fire, if the older teen hadn't grabbed him around the waist. "Don't feel too good."

"I know, love. We got to do something, do you have a doctor?"

"Madame Pomfrey...at school. Need Hedwig..."

"Hey, no falling asleep! Shit! Cat, help me get him to the clinic!"

"But he just said that he's allergic-"

"We'll tell the doctors, but he needs to get somewhere warm." Eek said, running a hand through his hair. He was tall, lithe, if not a little underweight, with dirty blond hair, and gray eyes. Cathrine, or Cat, had hacked brown hair, gray-green eyes, and pale skin. She was the second oldest at seventeen.

"Right." Together, they looped an arm around Harry's waist and made their way to the clinic five blocks away. "Dr. Shay!" Cat called at the on-call doctor. He was talking to a man with long black hair, black eyes, and pale tanned skin. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Harry, he's really sick! I think he's gotten hypothermia! He says that he's allergic to most medicine." The man beside the doctor perked up.

"Ah, Severus, Harry is the boy I was telling you about. How he would bring in the little ones that have a better chance at getting adopted." The men moved over to the boy. "I think I'm going to have to get him to a hospital, Cat, Eek."

"I know the one he needs to go to. He is a student of mine." Severus said, getting dark looks from the kids.

"You wouldn't happen to be his chemistry teacher, would you? I don't trust you within a yard of Harry, let alone, taking care of him." Eek growled, highly protective of the younger boy.

"We wouldn't be in this situation if he hadn't ran away from his family-"

"Ran away? Dude, he was abandoned after his lard of an uncle wailed on him from 'ruining their vacation'. He is still healing!" Cat snapped, her American accent taking over. She had been abandoned three years ago, in the middle of the Forest of Dean. Her eyes widened in horror, as her hand clapped over her mouth. "Oh damn it!"

"Nice going Cat. You know he's going to hate you for blowing that out there!"

"It's not like I meant to say it, Eek!"

"So what? You Americans are so calloused!"

"Excuse me for caring about him enough to defend Harry when he can't."

"Children!" Dr. Shay said, staring at them in a way that made them feel guilty. "Severus would never harm a child, no matter how much he dislikes them." The two shared uneasy looks, before agreeing with the adults. They would have to place their trust in them, no matter how reluctant, because Harry needed help.

"You promise us that you'll protect him! He said that if anyone caught him, he would be sent back to his aunt. He can't go back to that house." Cat said, hand carding through her brown hair.

"He won't be going back." The man swore, "and I have already promised to protect him. If I had known that he was abused... He will be safe with me, young lady."

"I...tell him he will always be welcomed." Eek said, looking at the boy he saw as a little brother. "He's family...even after I manage to get a place to live, I'll go back to our nook every friday..."

"I will let him know." Severus said, mentally noting that the teen actually seemed to care about the boy passed out on the cot. "Darrick, I should be getting him to a place where our doctor can see to him."

"Er, right, of course. Kids, come, I'm sure you're hungry. I'll get you food." Darrick Shay gave his friend a look, "you best let that boy know everything, Severus Snape."

"Yes, Darrick, I will, now get those kids something to eat. I'll take Mr. Potter to the doctors." Once the three left the room, the dark man lifted the small child up, and disapparated from the clinic and to his home located in Spinner's End. After placing Harry in the guest room, he fire-called Poppy Pomfrey.

"Severus? What have you done this time? Or was it HIM?"

"Neither, Poppy. I have a student here, hurt and sick. I believe he has hypothermia, and he was thrashed by his family."

"I'll be right over." Ten minutes later, they were in the bedroom. "Help me administer the potions. What was Albus thinking, sending the poor boy to them? I've told him time and time again that he has worrisome injuries, and yet does he listen?"

"Poppy?"

"Sorry, Severus, I was ranting. Harry sees me every year, at the beginning, so that I can heal all of his injuries."

"You knew?"

"So did Albus, but he insisted that Harry was safest at the Dursleys, and that he would speak to them." Poppy sighed, finishing with administering the proper treatment. "He should sleep through the night, however, Mr. Potter is known for not doing so."

"You gave him dreamless sleep."

"Yes, but half the time, it doesn't work. He's had nightmares since he was a firstie. I found him wandering the halls late on the first week every night. I had to weedle the information about him having nightmares from him. He was harder than you, Severus." The man sighed, promising to stay in the room, reading, and escorted the nurse out. "He is nothing like James, Severus, please remember that."

"I will try."

"No trying about it. That boy needs someone to trust. He's stopped listening to me saying it will get better. He thinks I'm lying when I say I go to the headmaster. You have never lied to him. He'll rely on that." With that, she was gone.