Disclaimer: Harry Potter and Co. Belong to the lovely J.K Rowling, not myself.

A/N: Sorry for the long time between posts guys, I went away for reading break and came back to a mountain of homework. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

R/R

Chapter 10: Missing

As Severus predicted, Harry hadn't taken the news about the Dursley's impending trial (and his subsequent involvement) horribly. He shuddered as he peeked under the couch, he was searching for Silver, since he hadn't seen the kitten in two days. As he searched, his mind wandered back to the conversation he had had with Harry that faithful afternoon.

-Flash Back-

"Harry" Severus murmured softly, looking up at his adopted son worriedly, "I need to talk to you, please have a seat" He gestured at the couch, which was already adorned with Harry's blanket.

"Sure Sev" Harry flopped down, grinning contently, he had had a great morning playing with Blaise and exploring the castle. As Silver, everything was so different, so much more fun.

Taking a breath, Severus pulled out the letter he had received the previous evening and began his explanation. Harry's face had gone from shock, to fear, to anger, and then finally stopped on sheer, undiluted terror. Before Severus had even had a chance to speak, Harry had shifted into Silver and had bolted from the room, disappearing into god only knows what part of the school. Severus had sat there, stunned and staring at the space that his son had disappeared from. After a moment, Severus shot up and immediately began searching the quarters for his son, there was no sign of him. As time passed, Severus became more and more frantic, asking Blaise to help him look, and eventually dragging the rest of Slytherin house in.

-End-

"Any sign?" Blaise asked worriedly as Severus came into the Common Room, a bit of dust smudging his normally immaculate black robes.

"None" Severus said, sinking into a chair. The students rallied around him, Silver had become a favorite of the Snakes (their mascot) and he was worried sick (as were they all) about the small kitten.

"The trial's in two days" Blaise murmured, wincing at the sharp look in Sev's eye.

"I don't give a damn about the trial Blaise, I want him back" Sev hissed, making sure his voice was low so no one overheard.

"I know Sev, I'm just worried" Blaise murmured, "I want him to testify, I want those bastards to go to Azkaban and suffer for what they did to him. They get away scott free if he doesn't talk. It sucks, he shouldn't have to confront them, but unless he does, he'll never face his fear, never get over what happened" The Italian hissed passionately. Sev's eyes grew wide as he stared at his student, before he nodded dumbly. Blaise made sense, as much as it was horrid for Harry have to do this, in order for him to heal and move on with his life, he had to confront the Dursleys.

"We need to find him first" Severus murmured, eyes downcast. Blaise had already been asked, prior to them telling Harry about the trial, if he'd accompany them to the trial (disguised of course) and the Italian had immediately agreed.

"We'll find him Sev" Blaise said, though his voice caught a bit in his throat, he was worried about his boyfriend and he wanted nothing more then to gather him into his arms and protect him from everything.

HP/SS

Silver watched Severus and Blaise from the small hole that Hogwarts had created for him in Slytherin Common Room. His green eyes were wide, sad as he listened to the two most important people in his life grieve for him. He wanted to go to them, desperately but he couldn't make himself come out of the safe place that was just his. He knew he needed to deal with the Dursleys, knew he had to deal with what had happened to him. But it was so much easier not to deal with it, to shove it aside and just be happy the way he was.

He shivered lightly, in the two days he had been missing, he had hidden in the hole, not coming out at all. He hadn't eaten, his once glossy coat was covered in dust and patchy. He knew he needed to come out if he wanted to survive, but he was absolutely terrified of confronting the Dursleys. He knew he'd have Blaise and Sev there to support him, but he was still scared.

Mentally, he scoffed. He was supposed to be the Boy-Who-Lived, supposed to defeat Voldemort, but he couldn't even confront a few muggles? He shook his head in disgust, large ears flapping against his small skull. He needed to -to coin a phrase- man up. Shaking slightly from effort, he carefully slipped from the hole, glancing over his shoulder as the castle sealed up behind him, ready for whenever he needed it again.

Walking on shaky legs, he slunk worriedly towards his father and boyfriend, both of whom were sitting in the deserted Common Room, other students having gone to bed. As he moved closer, his movement must have caught Sev's eye, because a look of shock came over the dark-haired man's face before he suddenly threw himself at Silver, immediately scooping up the shaking kitten. Blaise, shocked by his Professor's actions, immediately turned, staring happily at the kitten in Sev's arms. Both men immediately began cooing over him, checking for injuries and commenting on his dusty fur and too-thin body.

Holding Silver tightly, Sev gestured for Blaise to follow and the two Slytherins made their way to the Potion Master's quarters in order to speak more openly and fuss more noticeably over Silver.

HP/SS

Once inside, Sev got a warm, slightly damp cloth and carefully began to wipe Silver off, cleaning him up. Once the dust was off the kitten, both Sev and Blaise could better examine the effects his two days of solitude had had on him. For a human, not eating for two days might only result in some bad hunger pains, and maybe falling unconscious. For a kitten, especially a tiny one like Silver, it could have devastating effects. They were able to see most of Silver's bones through his taunt skin, and his fur was hanging off of him, patchy in places. Sev sighed, "You'll have to go on nutrients potion" He grumbled softly, though his tone was affectionate.

Silver glanced up at Severus, mewing softly, his green eyes sad, apologetic.

"You're forgiven" Severus murmured, "But we need to talk Harry" He said softly, using his human name, reminding him that this wasn't an issue he could hide from.

Silver nodded, squirming away from his caregivers and shifting back into human form. He staggered slightly, hands gripping the table as Severus rose quickly and tried to support him. Carefully he and Blaise settled Harry on the couch, Blaise wrapping Harry's blanket around his too-thin shoulders.

"I-I wanna testify" Harry stammered, looking at the two men with sad green eyes. Sev sucked in a breath.

"Only if you want Harry" He murmured softly.

"I want too" Harry murmured, looking from Sev to Blaise, "If you both will be there"

"Of course Harry" Sev murmured, while Blaise drew him into a tight hug, "We'll both be there for you" Harry nodded, tears slipping down his cheeks and onto Blaise's shirt.

Sev sighed, thankful Harry had finally agreed to testify, but he also wanted to lighten the mood.

"Come on Harry, lets get you something to eat" He murmured, breaking the tension. Harry sniffled once or twice before turning his attention to his Dad.

"O-okay" He mumbled tiredly, letting Blaise hold him while Sev went to make some soup. Harry already had nutrients problems from his suffering at the hands of the Dursleys, and Sev wasn't going to give him anything to challenging to eat yet.

Coming back with a steaming bowl of chicken broth, Sev settled himself down next to Harry and carefully handed him the bowl. He was ready to snatch it back as he saw his son's hands tremble noticeably, though Harry managed to keep the bowl steady.

After Harry had eaten, he had dozed off almost immediately against Blaise. Smiling, Blaise raked his fingers through the messy raven-hair, glancing up at Severus occasionally.

"You think he'll be okay?" He asked, keeping his voice low.

"No, I think this is just the tip of the iceberg" Sev said, shaking his head sadly.

"He'll testify, but he's doing it for us, to reassure us. He still hasn't fully accepted what happened to him. This case is only going to make this harder. He's going to suffer immensely Blaise, and there's not a damn thing either of us can do it to stop it" The potion's master growled.

"We can be there for him Sev. We can be there to pick up the pieces when he finally confronts this, we can love him and protect him, but we have to let him do this" Blaise murmured. Sev nodded softly, running his fingers through his own hair.

"This is going to be bad Blaise, but you're right, we'll get him through this" Sev couldn't be more thankful that Harry had managed to latch onto Blaise. The Italian was extremely level-headed, and Sev was remarkably happy that he could rely on the young man.

HP/SS

Silver shifted, pawing at the soft blanket he was lying on in the box Sev had placed him in for Potion's class. He was on the desk, where Sev could keep an eye on him. Ever since he had gone missing, Sev had become remarkably over protective and insisted on taking Silver with him everywhere.

The night he had returned from being missing, was also the night that Dumbledore had announced Harry Potter's arrival at the school for the trial. He was, of course, staying in Dumbledore's quarters under Auror protection and no one as allowed to see him. So, now he stayed in Silver form until after the trial, unless he was posing as himself for the trial and occasional meals. Silver and Harry Potter couldn't be related to one another, not could Harry be seen anywhere besides with Dumbledore, which was why he was once again posing continually as a cat. He was fine with that though, he felt much better as Silver, safer.

He sighed, tomorrow was the trial and he was not looking forward to it at all. He knew and Sev had told him that it would a long, drawn out process and that he would have to confront a lot of things he had been hiding from. So for now, he was going to enjoy just being Silver even though he was trapped in a box that was far to large for him to jump out. He mewed, chewing on a piece of yarn from one of the many toys Sev had dumped in the box in order to distract him. He couldn't see what was going on, but he knew from his own experiences that the Slytherins were trying to mess up the Gryffindors potions, that Neville was just about at the end of his rope and was probably adding the wrong ingredients. He also knew Draco was probably overly focused on his potion, and Blaise was sneaking worried glances at his box. Sev was stalking the aisle, deliberately making Neville nervous and Hermione was trying her best to prevent Ron and Neville from leveling the potion's lab without Snape noticing her. He glanced up as a shadow loomed over head, and a hand reached down to scoop him up. Twisting, he tried to see he was holding him, and let out a pleased squeak as he saw Draco's face as he was pulled into the Blonde's chest. As much as Harry used to hate Draco Malfoy, with his induction into Slytherin, he had realized that the blonde was a nice, kind person and under a lot of pressure from his father to join the Dark Lord. He also knew Draco had no desire to join the dark, nor did many Slytherin students, they were just under pressure from their parents. He snuggled against Draco, purring as the blonde stroked him. It seemed Dray had finished his potion early (which was typical) and had gotten Sev's permission to play with him. Once Draco's work space was clean, he was able to set the kitten down and play with him, enchanting his ball of yarn to roll around the desk. Squeaking happily again, Silver dove after the ball, ignoring the blonde teen laughing at his antics. The ball was enchanted to stay at Draco's station, so Silver had to stay there as well.

Predictably, towards the end of class, a small -boom- sounded and Neville's cauldron was in pieces, a thick goop sliding around the floor. Resisting the urge to groan, Severus banished the potion, shooting a glare at Longbottom, who was quaking.

"That cat probably sabotaged it" Ron hissed loudly, drawing everyone's attention to the Gryffindor side of the room.

"And pray tell how a kitten could sabotage a potion Mr. Weasley?" Severus drawled. Silver was looking at Ron intently, curious as to how he'd somehow screwed this up. Draco was stroking his back, muttering clever comments under his breath directed at Weasley.

"He probably sheds all over the place, he contaminated Nev's potion with his fur" Ron said triumphantly. Severus rolled his eyes, clearly praying for some strength from whomever controlled the afterlife.

"If you had read about the potion before you showed up in my classroom Weasley. You'd realize that animal fur would have no negative effects on the potion" He drawled, "So therefore, it is impossible that his fur would have sabotaged Mr. Longbottom's potion. No, unfortunately it is just Longbottom's incompetence that destroyed yet another cauldron"

"Sure" Ron snorted, glowering in the direction of Silver and Draco, ignoring Hermione and the rest of the Gryffindor's frantic attempts to shut him up.

"Are you suggesting Mr. Weasley that I would allow my familiar to come to this class if I knew his fur would have negative effects on the potion? Are you suggesting I am as dunderheaded as you are?" He growled at the quaking red-headed teen.

"N-no sir" Ron stammered, wincing as Hermione kicked him in the shins.

Sev just rolled his eyes again, before turning to address the rest of the class.

"Please bottle your potions and deposit them on my desk. For next class, I want a six inch essay on the effect or lack thereof that Geoffrey's cat hair will have on a boil lancing potion" He said, his eyes turning on Ron again. The class groaned, but soon students were filing out, and Draco was handing the Slytherin Head of House his kitten back.

"Thank you Mr. Malfoy" Sev murmured, stroking Silver's ears lightly before putting him back in his box and gathering up the potions. Checking the time, he realized that he only had a few minutes before his first year Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws came in.

With Silver safely deposited back in his box, he began setting up for the first years, casting protective enchantments over the box that held his familiar, as well as over the room itself. First years (even those of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaws) were capable of blowing up even the easiest potions with the least volatile ingredients.

HP/SS

Harry Potter ducked his head as he walked into the Ministry of Magic. Professors Dumbledore and Snape walked beside him, along with Poppy Pomfrey. Blaise, disguised by polyjuice potion was standing behind Harry, lending his support. Inside the Ministry Atrium stood an entire hoard of reporters, all of them clamoring for Harry's attention. However, the Aurors and the group with Harry escorted the young teen through the crowd, making sure no one bothered him to much.

"Court room six Mr. Potter" A Ministry official murmured, pointing the group towards the newest lift. This was a closed case, yet it was high profile, so of course there were leaks, hence the reporters.

Harry shuddered, pressing unconsciously closer to Sev's side while Blaise placed a comforting hand on his lower back. The raven-haired teen shuddered softly, accepting the comfort as he was lead into the large court room. The room was circular, the center of the floor was depressed with a chair situated in the middle. Directly in front of the chair was a tall podium, where the judge would sit. Around the room were rows and rows of chairs, in the lowest circle was where the jury would sit. Up from that was where anyone invited to watch the case would be seated. Harry and his supporters were seated to the right of the judge, and on the left would be the Dursley's and their lawyer, whom had been assigned by the court.

Once Harry was seated, Sev on one side, Blaise on the other, the Dursley's were brought in.

Harry sucked in a painful breath as he watched the three people who had tortured him for the majority of his life. Blaise discreetly wrapped an arm around Harry, rubbing his side softly as he watched the Dursley's for the first time. It physically hurt to see the two obese men, literally resembling waddling walrus' while Harry was nearly emaciated. Sev seemed pretty pissed off as well it seemed, he was cursing under his breath.

Once everyone was seated, the Judge cast an enchantment which prevented anyone from discussing the case beyond the court room, as well as a charm that stopped any magical listening devices from working within the court room.

"We will now begin with opening statements from both sides" The Judge, Amelia Bones, said, gesturing for Harry's lawyer, which was a friend of Dumbledore, to begin.

The man rose, smiling reassuringly at his client before heading down to the center of the floor and beginning his statement.

Harry didn't remember anything the man said, he was absolutely terrified. When Vernon had walked in the room, he had very deliberately looked at Harry and licked his lips. As if he knew this was a large joke and that the boy would be coming back to his home eventually. While Harry knew that wasn't true, because Sev had adopted him, and he was, in essence a Snape, he was still terrified that that would happen.

Then, Harry's lawyer took his seat and the Dursley's lawyer rose. Harry shook as the man painted a picture of an ungrateful child, taking advantage of his kind Aunt and Uncle, not pulling his weight in the home and making up horrific stories just to punish the muggle family. Harry's breath came in shallow gasps as the man told the 'horror' stories about his accidental magic, terrorizing the family and how he used to lord it over them as he was magical and they were not. Harry felt dizzy, he felt hands on his back, rubbing it, though he couldn't hear what was being said. Finally he felt someone push him forward, positioning his head down by his knees and whispering frantically in his ear for him to breathing. After what felt like forever, the ringing in Harry's ears subsided and he was able to sit up. The first thing he was aware of was Sev looking at him worriedly, along with Blaise.

"Is Mr. Potter well enough to continue?" Judge Bones asked, looking concerned at the young man with the pale face. Severus glanced at Harry's lawyer and nodded.

"Yes your honor" The man said gently, glowering pointedly at the Dursley's lawyer, who looked unapologetic before he launched right back into his spiel.

"We will break for a short recess" Bones called, having heard both opening statements. "The jury will examine this evidence and we will meet back here to begin with presenting evidence at two" She glanced at the wall clock, it was nearing noon, so that would give everyone enough time to eat lunch and deal with whatever needed to be dealt with. Banging her gavel, she rose, sweeping out of the room which was an indication that they were all allowed to leave.

HP/SS

Severus immediately lead Harry and Blaise to a quite table in the ministry cafeteria, making sure Harry was shielded by him and Blaise, much like when they had gone to Diagon Alley a few weeks earlier.

By agreement, no one talked about the case, instead Severus told funny stories about what happened in his Potion's classes and Blaise tried to teach Harry how to speak Italian. They both knew their distraction techniques weren't really working, but Harry seemed to appreciate the effort, and neither man was willing to stop trying.

As two o'clock inevitably rolled around, Severus lead an anxious Harry and protective Blaise back towards the court room. Primary evidence was to be presented and the following day interviews would begin. On Harry's behalf, Poppy would be presenting her evidence as well as conducting an interview the following day. Her testimony would be crucial to the case. Also up for interviews was himself, Minerva and Albus and finally Harry himself. Odds were Harry wouldn't be interviewed until the last day of the trial, before closing statements.

Settling in his chair, Severus turned his attention to the Dursley's lawyer as he began to present bank statements 'clearly showing how much money the Dursley's dished out on that ungrateful Potter boy'.

Harry looked horrified, the evidence was completely fabricated, the Dursley's probably saved money on him, since they never clothed him, properly fed him or even allowed him a bedroom. He even earned them money when Vernon loaned him to neighbours to do their chores and took the money from him. Severus was fuming, though he knew Albus could completely destroy this testimony, since it was common knowledge that the Dursley's had received an allowance from the Potter vaults to pay for Harry's upkeep, obviously they hadn't used it on the boy. Sev was willing to bet money that the allowance had all gone towards taking care of their whale of a son.

"Madame Pomfrey you'll be presenting evidence on behalf of Mr. Potter. Will you please take the stand?" Bones asked. Poppy nodded, rising from her seat and ascending the stairs towards the middle of the room. Once seated, she pulled a large file from her bag and began to discuss Harry's grievous injuries she had treated every time he had returned from Hogwarts from the summer. She started with the starvation, then moved onto the physical injuries, finally ending in the rape. With all of this she had picture documentation and reports to back it up. It took Poppy well over an hour to get everything out, and by the end there were very few dry eyes in the court room. Many people were absolutely horrified, as sexual abuse in the wizarding world was extremely rare.

After ten long hours the day finally came to a close.

"Court will continue tomorrow morning at nine am with testimony by Professor Albus Dumbledore" Amelia Bones called out, "For now, court is adjourned" She added, dismissing everyone. With a weary sigh, Severus and Albus shepherded Harry and Blaise to the nearest floo where they immediately flooed to Severus' rooms. Once inside, Harry shifted into Silver immediately and Blaise took a potion to dispel the effects of the long-lasting polyjuice he had taken that morning.

HP/SS

"Can I stay here tonight Professor?" Blaise asked, cradling Silver tiredly.

"Of course Blaise, we have an early start tomorrow anyway, and I'm sure Harry could use the support" Sev said, gesturing towards the couch. Blaise sat, wrapping Harry's blanket around the kitten and watched as Severus ordered a later dinner from the kitchens. Today had been a lot more trying then he had expected and he was sure Sev felt the same way. He glanced up as Sev appeared, handing him a cup of tea and sitting down opposite while they waited for the elves to appear with food. Neither man spoke, to caught up in their own thoughts about what had happened and mulling over how they could help the young man, currently kitten, curled up in Blaise's lap.

As an elf appeared with food, both men dug in, though the food tasted like ash in their mouths. Blaise was horrified to finally learn the extent of everything that Harry had been through and Severus was completely devastated by what his son had gone through at the hands of those monsters.

It was late before either Blaise or Severus was able to go to bed, both caught up in their own thoughts, and when sleep did come, it was restless and nightmare filled.