Sorry it took me so long to update. At the moment, I do not have a computer and writing on a phone isn't easy.
Chapter 4
XXX
Harry avidly listened to what professor Snape was telling the class. He couldn't take notes since he couldn't read or write, but he moved his quill over the paper trying to look as though he was taking down the notes. At some point during the class Harry began to stare at a fixed point on the classroom wall while his hands twitched and his eyes blinked occasionally.
"Mr. Potter!"
Harry jumped in his seat and whipped his head around to face Professor Snape when he heard the yell.
"Think you are too good to listen to the lecture like the rest of your classmates do you?" Snape sneered.
Harry had no idea what was going on. He was paying attention and pretending to take notes wasn't he? Did the professor find out he couldn't write? He didn't understand why Professor Snape was picking on him for something he didn't do.
At this point Harry was too scared to say or do anything except stare at the Professor like a deer caught in headlights.
"So much like your father," the professor sneered. "You can't even hold yourself accountable for not paying attention. Detention tonight at 7:00 p.m. do not be late!"
By this time Harry was shaking so hard he could hardly keep himself sitting in the chair, and Draco was having to help hold him up while he looked at him in concern. He knew something had happened and that it wasn't that Harry was not paying attention, but he didn't know what it could be.
As Professor Snape berated Harry, the Gryffindors laughed and pointed from the other side of the room. Imagine Snape being mean to one of his precious snakes!
Harry tried not to cry as Professor Snape turned and continued to lecture the class.
"I must really be a freak" Harry thought, "everyone says that Professor Snape always favors his Slytherins, yet he hates me too."
As class ended, Harry began to pack his things away into his bag. He was so drained, all he wanted to do was go to sleep and never wake up again. He had hoped to be normal and find friends, and just not be Harry the freak. But, it seemed that was impossible and he would always be a freak no matter what he did.
XXX
At dinner in the Great Hall that evening, Harry was barely able to stomach even a small amount of food. The normally small amount of food he was usually able to eat due to the starvation by the Dursleys was even smaller because of how nervous he was about his detention with Professor Snape.
What was Professor Snape going to do? Would he whip him with his belt or something worse? Would he lock him up where no one would ever find him again? Or would he chop him up to go into one of the potions?
The possibilities kept running through Harry's head. The more they came the more nervous he got.
By the time dinner was over and it was time to make his way to his detention, Harry was a nervous wreck. The limp was made so much worse that he was having to hold onto the wall to keep himself upright. His hands were shaking worse than they had since his last beating by uncle Vernon, and a nervous tic had developed, which showed itself every few seconds.
When Harry reached the potions master's door, he barely had the strength to knock.
"Enter" was heard in a cold hard voice from behind the door.
Slowly, Harry opened the door and tried to enter the room without falling. He really didn't want to make his professor madder at him than he already was.
XXX
Snape watched Harry hobble into the room slowly. He briefly wondered what was wrong with the boy, but pushed the thought to the back of his mind as quickly as it had come. "There is absolutely nothing wrong with the insolent brat! Just like his father using every opportunity to get attention!"
"You will scrub all of these cauldrons completely clean, without the use of magic," he told Harry as he indicated the large pile of cauldrons stacked next to the sink with his hand. "You will finish all of them before you are allowed to return to your dormitory, so I suggest you get to work quickly."
Harry looked in the direction the professor had and mumbled a soft "yes sir." "Scrubbing cauldrons was not that bad. He had to wash the dishes for the Dursleys all the time, so this was nothing new."
Harry set his bag on one of the desks and slowly and carefully made his way to the sink to start on his chore. He wanted to do a good job so that maybe Professor Snape would no longer be mad at him.
It was very slow going for Harry, washing the cauldrons. The nerve damage and shaking in his hands made it near impossible to hold onto the cauldrons properly. The longer it took, the more tired he got, and the more tired he got, the worse the shaking and the lack of a grip became.
Eventually, about halfway through the cauldrons set before him to wash, Harry lost his grip on the cauldron he held in his hands.
It fell to the floor with a deafening thud that resounded around the room. Harry stood frozen, unable to completely wrap his mind around what had just happened.
"Potter!" Professor Snape yelled from across the room. "What have you done? You can't even scrub cauldrons without causing trouble and trying to get more attention!"
Snape continued to yell at Harry and did not notice what was happening.
Harry had started to shake even more, and he could barely hold himself upright. "What had he done? Now Professor Snape really was going to kill him! He just knew it!"
At this point Harry started to have a tick, then the freaky shakes started to happen. They started off smaller, but slowly began picking up in strength.
Midway through his tirade, Severus noticed that something was off with the boy in front of him. His body was starting to convulse and it just kept getting worse.
As soon as he noticed Potter beginning to fall, he moved forward to catch him, and barely made it in time.
Severus knew that the boy was having a seizure. He had seen them before, although he had never seen them this bad. He held Harry close yet loosely so as not to let him be hurt by the convulsions, but also not holding him too tightly to cause more damage.
The seizure lasted for about five minutes, and when the convulsions started to slow, Severus stood up and carried Harry to his quarters and placed him on the couch in front of the fireplace. He then cast a charm on the edge of the couch to keep Harry from falling off.
When this was done, Severus turned to the fireplace and floo called Madame Pomfrey.
XXX
When Poppy Pomfrey stepped through the fire, she rushed over to the unconscious boy laying on the couch. He looked so small. Why hadn't she noticed how small he was before?
Slowly, Poppy moved her wand over Harry's body to do the diagnostic scan while Severus looked on, concerned and worried for the tiny boy asleep in his living room.
As much as Severus used to see James Potter's face in the boy, he could no longer look at him and treat him with the previous hatred. For the first time he saw Harry, and not James Potter.
A quill and parchment appeared next to Poppy after she finished her diagnostic scan. The quill wrote at a fast pace and the parchment just kept getting longer as the list of injuries, illnesses, and possible disabilities grew.
Both Poppy and Severus gasped as they watched the list get longer and longer without showing signs of stopping.
As the quill finally came to a stop, Poppy and Severus read what was written with growing anger barely disguised on their faces.
Name:
Harry James Potter
Age:
Eleven years and two months
Injuries:
Bruises covering all of his body
Broken right wrist
Sprained left wrist
Left shoulder dislocated
Left ankle broken
Right ankle badly sprained
Severe nerve damage throughout entire body
Very damaged bladder
Bruised kidneys
Severely damaged lungs
Almost all bones broken at one time or another/ none healed correctly
Damaged Spine
Damaged throat/esophagus
Illnesses:
Asthma
Epilepsy
Post traumatic stress disorder
Disabilities:
Brain damage
Dyslexia
Learning disabilities
Anxiety disorders
All injuries, illnesses and disabilities listed above are caused by severe abuse. Learning disabilities and epilepsy are caused by brain damage which is due to severe abuse including but not limited to blunt force trauma to the head. Will never make a full recovery.
After they had finished reading the medical report Poppy had tears running down her face, and Severus wasn't holding up much better.
"He can't go back to those despicable people!" Poppy all but yelled.
"No, he can't" agreed Severus.
Both of them eventually came to the same decision. They would have to talk to the headmaster about this. After putting a charm on Harry to alert them if there was a problem or if Harry woke up, they both left the room and headed towards the headmaster's office.
When they arrived at the head masters office they said the password and the gargoyle moved aside.
"Ah Severus, Poppy, to what do I owe this pleasant, yet unexpected visit? Lemon drop?" Asked the headmaster with a smile on his face.
"No Albus, we do not want any of your blasted candy" said Severus with a scowl.
"Albus, we are here on important business about a severely abused student," Poppy said in a no-nonsense tone.
Immediately the smile left Albus' face and he became serious in an instant. "Who is this child?"
Poppy hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "Harry Potter."
Albus was shocked. Never in a million years did he think that Harry Potter of all people would be abused. He had thought for sure that Petunia would take care of Harry as if he was her own son.
Poppy, tired of waiting, looked at Albus and said, "We must do something Albus. He can't go back to that place, to those evil people!"
"Where would you suggest I send him Poppy? He needs protection from Voldemort. You know that."
Before Severus had even thought about what he was doing he blurted out, "I will take him! He needs protection and I can do that, but more importantly he needs love and I can do that. I already care for the boy more than i thought I would ever care about anyone."
Both Albus and Poppy watched Severus with a stunned look on their faces. After what he had just said sunk in they both smiled and Albus said, "well, now that's settled, let's go check on little Harry!"
XXX
Well, that is chapter 4. Again, I am sorry it took so long. Please review, all criticism is appreciated unless it is rude, or degrading. Please keep those comments to yourself. I understand not everyone will like this story and that's fine. Any suggestions or advice is also welcomed!