Disclaimer: Not My characters. None of them! They belong to J.K. Rowling. What a brilliant mind she has! No copyright infringement is intended, honestly!

Chapter 2 – Bloody Hell!

Snape and Dumbledore apperated behind a large oak near the Dursley home early morning the next day. "Are you ready, Severus?" Dumbledore inquired happily. Snape only nodded nervously. They walked up to the door when they heard a loud thud and a man screaming incoherently, followed by a pained scream that sounded quite like Harry. Snape glanced at Dumbledore who nodded.

"Alohamora!" Snape shouted, charging through the door with his wand in front of him, followed closely by Dumbledore. They ran down the foyer into what turned out to be the kitchen, where they heard more thuds and cries.

As they burst through the door, they saw Harry lying on the floor in front of them, bloody and bruised. "I burned the bacon," he said simply to them before passing out.

"What the bloody hell are you doing in my home?" Dumbledore and Snape turned to see a large man with an angry, purple face. He took in their appearance, the robes and wands, before continuing his shouts. "You are a couple of those freaks! Get out of here! Your kind are forbidden!"

Snape was furious. He stormed in front of the angry man. "Are you Harry's uncle?"

"Yes, not that it's any of your business," Vernon replied.

Snape turned and looked back at Harry lying on the floor, Dumbledore kneeling next to him, then up at the table at the thin, grim faced lady and severely overweight boy sitting next to each other in fright. He glanced back down at Harry whose face had a large black bruise forming on the side of his face. "He said he'd burned the bacon. You hit the boy for burning your bloody breakfast!?"

"He's my nephew, I'll do what I want," Vernon said diligently.

"He's – my – son," Snape drawled out, before turning swiftly to check on Harry. He gasped at what he saw.

"We have to get him to Hogwarts to see Poppy." Dumbledore said hurriedly.

"I'll get his things." Snape turned back to Vernon, threateningly pointing his wand. "Where are the boy's things?"

"If you take him, he's NEVER coming back."

"Where are his things?"

Vernon sighed. "Under the stairs."

Snape went back into the hall, and after shouting a few spells, came back carrying Harry's owl, Hedwig, in her cage, and stuffing what Vernon thought looked like a tiny trunk into his robe pocket. "You beat the boy and keep his owl under the stairs. I'm surprised you don't keep him down there!"

"We used to," Vernon said smugly. This was the wrong thing to say. Snape raised his wand and Vernon recoiled.

"Severus!" Dumbledore shouted. "There is no time for that, we need to get Harry back to Hogwarts." Dumbledore then cast a rare, angry glare at Vernon. Do you have a fireplace?"

"In the living room." He replied simply.

"Go start a fire for us." Vernon ushered his wife and son into the other room. Dumbledore looked at Snape, who was looking at Harry with pained eyes, lightly fingering the developing bruise on the boys face. "Can you carry him, Severus? We'll have to floo to Hogsmeade with him and walk him up to Hogwarts."

Snape nodded and gathered Harry in his arms, carefully holding the fragile boy against him. It seemed he had gotten a bit thinner over the short time he was away from Hogwarts. So they were starving him too? Snape followed Dumbledore into the Dursley's living room, where Vernon was hurriedly throwing old papers into the flames.

"That will do," Dumbledore told him, taking out a small canister of floo powder. "To the Three Broomsticks, Severus."

Snape nodded, and Dumbledore threw a pinch of the powder into the fire place. Holding Harry tightly, Snape stepped up to the flames, throwing one last angry look at the Dursley's. "Three Broomstick's," he said before stepping in, followed shortly by Dumbledore.

Snape stepped out of the fireplace, getting odd looks from the few patrons in the pub. Dumbledore walked out behind him, and nodded to everyone, giving a simple "Good morning." And then he followed Snape out as they hurried down the road. "Severus, perhaps we should levitate Harry back to Hogwarts." Snape nodded, and Dumbledore pulled out his wand, pointing it at Harry. "Supporto Mobilicorpus."  Snape let go of Harry who laid flat and straight in the air and they set off for Hogwarts.

            Dumbledore glanced over at Snape who looked deep in thought. "Something bothering you, Severus?"

            "All these years…has he been suffering like that for all these years? Only to come to Hogwarts and deal like prats like me." Snape shook his head. "We can't tell him till he gets better, you know. We don't know how he will react."

            Dumbledore considered this. "Yes, well I'm sure Poppy will have him feeling better in no time." Snape nodded.

Authors Notes: Short, I know, but I'm putting more up right away, so deal with it, eh? Hehehe.