Snape swept through the corridors of Hogwarts, his face set in a stern, angry expression. He was glad that he had been summoned by the headmaster during lesson time, he could not stand the children in this school, all so loud and messy. You may question why he is a teacher since he hates children so much but that is a long story for another time, for now we will just leave the fact that he hates children and has to deal with them everyday.
As soon as he reached the headmaster's office he snarled the password at the gargoyles that we guarding the door and made his way into the office.
"Why have you called me here?" Snape said, trying to not let his irritation show through his tone of voice, after all this man was his boss.
"Ah, Severus my friend. A small matter has come up that I want you to deal with for me. Mrs. Figg has informed me that she has not seen Harry Potter for quite a few days now and the last time she saw him he had a bruise on his cheek. I want you to go and check up on him."
"Why don't you seen Minerva, she would jump at the chance. I do not want anything to do with that boy, the offspring of my worst enemy. Find someone else."
"You and I both know that Minerva is busy planning her lessons. I know that you have finished yours, anyway he is not just James' boy, he is Lily's and someone needs to go Severus. Lily was your best friend after all..."
Snape stormed away from the headmasters office, his face looked even more angry than it did before if that was possible. Being guilted into checking on the Potter boy had definitely put him in a very bad mood, the children were lucky that he did not have any more classes or every house would probably have lost a lot of points.
'Why do I have to look in on the boy, all I'll find is a little brat being doted on by his family.' Snape thought as he reached the door to his chambers and went inside.
'Curse you Dumbledore, guilt tripping me, using Lily's death against me. I thought better of you.' Snape fumed internally as he poured himself a large glass of brandy and sat down on his favourite chair next to the fire.
'I'll check up on the boy tomorrow,' Snape thought, 'God, what a waste of a Saturday that will be.'
'How the hell did he manage to rope me into this?' Snape thought as he apparated to where Harry was being looked after by his family, 'Meddling old coot, making me check up on the boy when all I'll find is that he is being pampered by his aunt and uncle because he is the precious boy-who-lived. This is a waste of time.'
Snape raised his fist and knocked on the door three times in quick succession wanting to get out of this place quickly so he could go back to his rooms and sit down with a drink and a book.
"Yes, what do you want?" asked the man that appeared at the door, he was large with a red face, Harry's uncle, Snape assumed.
"I'm here to check up on Mr Potter..."
"There is no Potter's here!" Vernon yelled cutting off the rest of Snape's sentence. Snape was taken aback by this and checked the number on the plate by the door, yep it did say number four.
"Stop lying Mr. Dursley, I wish to see the boy."
"I will not let any freaks like you in my house!"
Snape quickly pulled out his wand and pointed it at the fat man in the doorway, "Back away from the door and show me where Harry Potter is." Snape said in a deadly calm voice.
Vernon stumbled backwards, making room for Snape to walk through the doorway, and pointed at the stairs. Snape lowered his wand and started to walk up the stairs, when he reached the top he looked in all of the rooms but Harry was nowhere to be seen. He looked at the pictures that were hung on the wall of the staircase, each one was of Vernon, Petunia, who Snape recognised even after all these years, and a young boy. 'That's not Potter,' Snape thought, 'He looks nothing like either of them, he must be cousin. Why is there no pictures of Potter then?'
He made his way back down the stairs and glared at Vernon. He was starting to get a bad feeling about this, Harry was not upstairs and he was in none of the pictures.
"Where is he?"
Vernon pointed at the stairs once again, not trusting his voice. Snape was about to snap that the boy was not up the stairs until he noticed the cupboard. Hoping that his suspicion was not true, Snape pointed his wand at the door and unlocked it before pulling it open and looking inside.
The sight that greeted Snape was one that he was sure he would never forget, there sat in the cupboard was a boy who looked about two years old. Skinny to the point of starvation, his body looked so frail as if a single touch would break his skin. The boy looked up at Snape and Snape gasped upon seeing the eyes that the boy had, 'His eyes are just like Lily's' Snape thought as he tried to take in the sight before him.
"Harry?"
The boy, who was still looking at Snape, nodded. Snape could not help the surge of protectiveness he felt seeing Harry in this state, he wanted to make the Dursley's suffer for this but he knew that his first priority had to be to get Harry out of there.
"Come here Harry, I'm taking you away from here." Snape said as he carefully picked up Harry's tiny body and stood up. Harry looked up at Snape, a glint of hope in his eyes at the prospect of being taken away, a small smile spread across Harry's face. Snape could not help but give a small smile back before turning to look at Vernon who was still stood where Snape had left him earlier.
"I'll be back Dursley, don't even bother trying to run, I will find you. You will pay for this."
"I..I'll call the police on you! You can't threaten me like that!" Vernon said, seeming to have broken out of the trance that he appeared to be in before.
"I can and I will, you would not stand a chance in any court. Not after what you have done to Harry."
"They won't convict me, he's a freak!"
"Dursley! Do. Not. Try. My. Patience! I'm taking Harry away from you and you will be punished for what you have done, end of."
Snape opened the door, Harry still cradled in his arms. They left the house, neither looking back. Harry looked up at Snape an even bigger smile now on his face, knowing that he was not going to be taken back there, that he was safe now.
"No-one's going to hurt you anymore Harry. I'm going to protect you from now on." Snape said, his mind already made up that he was going to look after Harry. He was going to make sure that Harry had the childhood that he deserved and no one was going to hurt him anymore, "It's all going to be okay now, I'll look after you."
With this Snape looked down at Harry and smiled once again, "Now this will feel very strange but when it's over I'm going to get someone to make sure that you're alright. Hold on to me very tightly okay?"
Harry looked slightly scared but grabbed onto Snape's robes with his small hands and buried his head into Snape's chest. Snape held onto Harry even tighter and apparated away, leaving the Dursleys and Privet Drive far behind.