AN: _sigh_ I know it's another story from me without the other being finished…plot bunnies are both evil and…well depending on your point of view, good. Alright so this is a Severitis NOT SLASH…here's the first chapter. Let me know what y'all think…
PS I don't own the Potterverse I merely dabble its many dark arts…_cheeky grin_
Tested Hearts
Chapter One
Privet Drive was a very normal street in the suburbs of London, England. Each house looked just like the next with the only varying differences being some slightly different shades of paint on their trim and doors. Each yard was mowed immaculately, each bush trimmed to just the right height and happy children played in the small park not far from their homes. Of course, with a small community trying to be the epitome of perfection each one had a flaw of some sort. Number 2's family was on the edge of divorce, Number 10 was under investigation of having connections with the IRA, Number 6 was always trying to collect as many garden gnomes as possible within her home. They may not know about each others little bits of abnormality, but they all knew Number 4 and the scrawny, moody, urchin that was Petunia Dursley's nephew. According to Mrs. Dursley he came from a drunken lazy father who killed both himself and his do-nothing wife in a car crash sixteen years ago, leaving their son being dumped on their doorstep to terrorize their precious son Dudley. The word on the gossip train was that Harry was constantly beating Dudley up and threatening them and that he hated strangers, so of course to keep the peace in the house he was sent to his room every time someone came over. Now some people believed it while others, well, they saw the healing bruises and the skinny one running away from the huge porker of a cousin and his gang of hoodlums who routinely torment the streets smaller children. Leaving the smaller ones to quickly realize that the trick to not getting beat up was to stay away from Harry Potter and Dudley Dursley because the war between those two would usually rival the tales of World War II. Harry had always found safety in high places even before learning that he was wizard and could fly on a broom, sadly during the summer holidays he couldn't fly so the biggest tree would have to do. He let his leg dangle from his branch as he laid back with his hands cushioning his head against the rough bark, ignoring the biting sting of the wood pressing into his battered skin. His ribs were burning and a faint weez could be heard when he took to deep of a breath of air and he just knew that the leg that was stretched out on the branch was at the least cracked if not broken entirely but none of it really matter at the moment because of the simple picture of his uncle's puce colored flabby face being punched by his own fist. Each time that came to his mind a smirk pulled at his busted lips retearing the bloody skin. He winced slightly as a sigh tried to escape but stopped at the sudden shot of pain in his chest, absently rubbing his battered hand down his face wincing once again at the stabs of pain from his black eye and busted lip. A sudden soft sound of a pop a little ways from his hiding spot caused him to freeze and lower his hand to his belt where his wand was hidden beneath his over-sized dirty gray shirt. He peered down to see a familiar head of black hair and hooked nose looking left and right in search of something; he noticed that the black slacks and button-up shirt weren't out of style and actually well thought through instead of the garish outfits most wizards put together to travel in the Muggle World. Which was a good thing as the older couple that tended to at least try to help him by hiring him a few times a summer from Number 13 were passing by at that moment. Harry watched his Potions professor carefully as he nodded a greeting to the elder couple before they passed by completely.
"Potter, where are you? You were told to stay in the house not go wandering where just anyone could pick you off. Now, I know you're here somewhere," the man growled with his typical sneer back in place.
"Now how should I know if you're here as a friend or foe, Professor; of course, if you couldn't find me right on top of you there really is no reason to speak up is there?" Harry asked, his wand aimed directly at the man when he jumped. The teenage watched him spin around and look up, his own wand drawn. The professor's eyes roved over him the black orbs only widening slightly before going back in place.
"No one on duty has seen you within the house since this morning. Professor Dumbledore sent me with the party to search for you. Now get down here so I can make sure you get back home and to your family,"
"Snape, you of all people should know that they aren't my family and that it is not my home. It will never be home to me," Harry growled as he gingerly swung his other leg around to let him slowly sit up, a small wince of pain twitching his eye being the only sign of pain.
"Who did that to you?" Snape asked cautiously as his mind went back to their failed attempts at occulemency training. He watched the boy slowly climb down to let himself fall the last few feet to the ground, landing flimsily on one leg while holding his side tightly. Snape could hear the weez in the boy's breathing.
"Who do you think?" Harry sneered with a look that was perilously close to one of the Potion Master's own.
"Why have you not told anyone or is this the first time?"
"Why do you care, Snape? You'd just as soon kill me yourself if it wasn't for that life debt you own my father which is absolutely ridiculous when it is apparent it's been paid twelve times over already. Now go away. You can tell the others I'm fine but I won't be going back into that house until I know everyone's asleep. Goodbye, Professor," Harry stated as he started to limp away from the man in the opposite direction of Number 4. Severus shook his head as he started to do exactly what the brat wanted when he watched from the corner of his eye as the boy suddenly stumbled then fell to the ground, unmoving.
"Damnit," Severus muttered as he instantly started towards the prone figure. "Potter, what happened? Can you not even manage to walk away?" he growled as he came closer to see a pain filled expression on the teenager's face. Severus instantly knelt next to him to gently roll him over, his eyes bulged as the gray steadily began to become sticky and turn a deep red.
"What has your pride gotten you into now," he muttered as he slowly picked him up then turning to make his way towards Number 4. His gaze found the three other Order members the instant he came within sight of the house and he braced himself at the sight of Lupin's amber brown eyes change to a bold gold as his nose flared with the smell of blood.
"I didn't do this, Lupin; I found him like this, well except for the being unconscious part. We need to get him to Headquarters," Severus stated as the werewolf stormed their way followed by worried Tonks and Bill Weasley.
"Geez, my brothers mentioned that the kid's family wasn't nice to him but I never dreamed that it was this bad," Bill muttered as his eyes spotted the injuries. Lupin jerked his head over to the oldest Weasley child, freezing the redhead down to his veins.
"You knew!"
"Remus, please calm down. He's in safe hands now, and we need to get him to safety. Bill and I will get his things while you and Snape take him. We won't be far behind," Tonks placated as she put a hand on Remus' tensed arm. She waited until he nodded before she motioned for Bill to follow her into the house. The two men glanced around before disappearing with a small pop, completely unconcerned with a small pop.
NTBW
"Alright, Dursleys where are Harry's things?" Tonks yelled as she stormed into the house waving her wand madly as her mouse brown hair changed to a bold red.
"You're one of those freaks! Get out of my house!" Vernon bellowed as he lumbered from the kitchen holding a slab of raw steak to his right eye; his face turning a shade of puce that if it was any other time would have had both Tonks and Bill laughing their butts off.
"Freak! I'll show you freak!" Tonks shrieked as she instantly brandished her wand and where Vernon Dursley, fat lump extraordinaire stood, now stood a Vernon Dursley with purple skin, spiked line green hair and lobster-like claws for arms. A donkey's baying came out of his mouth instead of the scream that would normally have come from it. The horse faced Petunia Dursley ran out with a scream at the noise, her eyes wide as she jerked her head back and forth between her husband and the two strangers in her entrance way. Bill was certain that the woman was going to break her long neck if she kept it up.
"That blasted boy's trunk is in the cupboard and that filthy creature is in his room. The thing shrieks have rang in the house all day. Take them all, take the brat and keep him for all I care. I don't want him to ever enter my house again! You and the rest of the freaks like him are not welcome!" The house shook violently at her yelling as the wards came crashing down. Bill glanced over to Tonks before he took off up the stairs where he remembered the twins telling him where Harry's room opened the first door he came too finding a tiny room with a dilapidated bed frame with a bare mattress and single thin blanket. He turned to his left at the rough sounding hoot to see Hedwig locked in her cage on top of the crumbling desk.
"Hey girl, I'm Bill a friend of Harry's. Are you alright?" he asked as he came closer to her to see a weak nod.
"We'll take care of you; we've already got Harry away from here and getting looked at." He added as he sent an unlocking charm at the padlock. Glancing around the room didn't bring up much that he could see to be the kid's. He spotted a faded and duck taped rucksack on the back of the desk chair that he had seen Harry carrying so he grabbed it but didn't see anything else so he picked up Hedwig but stopped as the owl started hooting again, looking down he watched her pointing her talon towards the bed. Bill shrug his shoulders as he put her back down then went over to the bed. He lifted the blanket then turned to see the owl shake her head then dip it slightly. He dropped to the floor puzzled at the animal's movements but looked under the bed at any rate only to find nothing under it. He arched an eyebrow at Hedwig only to see her dip her head once more. Turning back his gaze fell onto the floorboards and it instantly clicked. Harry had hid something under them, trying each one until he found the loose one and stared at the amount of stuff. A stack of cards and letters kept together by a shoelace tied around them, a picture album, a calendar, broken quills and ink bottles, a flashlight, and a potions textbook with parchment stuffed inside it. Then his gaze finally found a silvery looking piece of material. He reached down grabbing it all t then put it all in the rook sack on the bed. He turned back to see Hedwig nod her head before putting her head under her wing. Bill took that as the sign of everything being gotten. He shook his head as he lifted the bird's cage then made his way back down to see Tonks fuming with Harry's trunk next to her and a normal looking Vernon slumped to the floor with Petunia continuing to look from her husband to Tonks rapidly.
"Listen and listen good, you pathetic excuses for human beings, this is the last you'll see of us but if people come in black robes and white masks I'd suggest you start praying because we won't be coming to save you," Tonks growled.
"Come on, we need to get back," Bill stated as he waved his wand over the trunk watching it shrink down to a matchbox then picking it up to put in his pocket.
"Right," Tonks said with one last glare at the two on the floor before disappearing with a loud pop. Bill looked down to see the resigned look in Hedwig's eyes before he Disapareated as well.