Harry Potter and the Dragon of Magic
Chapter 6- Professor Snape?
(A/N: Hey, Chapter 6 finally, Sorry for the long wait, I was at a bit of a writers block, I knew what to say, but didn't know how to say it. Anyway, I just watched The Lord of the Rings twice and I'm sorry if it affects anything in my story such as dialog, adventures, etc. So I will apologize before hand. Now, sorry for boring you with this long Authors note (though I've read longer) and I'll just get on with the story. Just so you know, I'm obsessed with reviews… not sure why, I just love reading them, so please humor me and send me one!)
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Professor Severus Snape, potions master at Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry, grumbled as he slowly maneuvered the station wagon rented from the ministry down the crowded London street. As to why Dumbledore insisted on this form of transportation he did not know. Snape growled in frustration as the engine died for about the 20th time since he started. The cars behind him blared their horns as he tried to start it. When he finally got it started, he slammed on the gas pedal and the car jerked forward, to which he slammed on the brakes in panic without touching the clutch, making the engine die again.
"BLOODY HELL!" he yelled and slammed his fists against the wheel, causing it to honk loudly, and he jumped back in surprise. After about another half an hour of this, he had finally pulled into the parking lot of the building he was sent to.
He parked the car, one wheel up on the curb. Snape wisely decided to not fix it and risk getting a ticket, not that he would pay it anyway. He climbed out of the car, his usual gracefulness totally gone in the unfamiliar muggle contraption. He slammed the door and glared at the station wagon with contempt, furiously trying to straighten the muggle clothing he was forced to wear. When he gave up, he walked toward the large door with large smooth strides, intent on finishing this job as quickly as possible. In the main lobby of the squat building, he looked around.
He quickly walked up to the bored looking secretary in the corner office. As he approached, she looked up; she had shoulder-length dirty blond hair and wide hazel eyes, which scanned his body appreciatively. He gave her his most practiced sneer and asked her a question curtly. She chewed her gum once, then pointed towards a door in the far wall.
"Go through that door, then another directly opposite of it. He has a class so please knock." She said lazily, then looked back to the computer and continued typing.
Snape whirled around without a word and went through the first door, which led to a large room. From there he could see the other door, a white door with a gold handle. He walked up to it and knocked sharply. There was a couple minutes wait, and the door swung open to expose the last person he ever expected to see.
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Harry woke up to a splitting headache, now if it had been any other situation, he would have been worried, thinking his scar was the cause of it. However, he knew what had happened the day before, Vernon had struck him, not as hard as he usually did, on his left cheek, giving him a large bruise. He had backed into the wall, which of course, had given him the headache he had at the moment. Harry flung the sheets away from him and sat up on the bed, fortunately, the beatings had died down a bit and he could sit up and walk without flinching, the headache was his only problem. The bruise on his cheek could be explained away, limping could not.
Which, of course, meant that he would be able to go to Karate today, he had done a lot of catching up and he would have to do even more today. Even with all of that, he was willing to go. He had missed about 3 days in the last week, and he wanted to learn more. This was one of the only things he was good at aside from Quidditch; he could even beat Simon, who was the top of the class (Harry isn't technically in the class, so he can't be scored). He glanced at the clock, which shone 5:45.
He shut his eyes for a minute before standing up and getting dressed, he walked tiredly down the stairs and into the kitchen. He had an hour and a half before he had to leave for karate. This gave him plenty of time to make breakfast for his aunt, uncle, and cousin and eat his own breakfast.
Thirty minutes later, the pounding on the steps could be heard as Vernon stomped down the stairs, his wife and son behind him. He growled at Harry as the other two sat down to eat.
"Boy, The realtor is coming by this afternoon to see how much the house is worth. Plus, Dudley isn't feeling good," Harry looked over at Dudley who was healthily, if you could call it that, scarfing down his breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon strips. "So you will be going to Karate alone. I personally don't think Petunia should bother to take you in," insert evil glare, "But we decided it's best to keep you out of the house."
Harry just nodded, he found that if he talked at all, he would either get in more trouble or get hit, although lately, Vernon had only hit him when he did something really bad.
Vernon's beady eyes narrowed once more before he turned and began eating.
Another half-hour later Harry and Petunia were on their way to the now familiar karate building. Harry couldn't wait to be there, if nothing else, to get away from the stench of Petunia's ten different perfumes. However, he was also apprehensive as to what the other karate students, or Paul for that matter, would say about the bruise on his cheek that had not gone down in the least. Harry had come up with an excuse, a not very good one at that, about tripping and hitting his head on the doorframe. As the family car pulled up to the martial arts building, Harry nodded once to Petunia, and hopped out, dashing to the entrance of the whitewashed building. As he entered the building, he heard the screech of tires as Petunia pulled out of the parking lot.
Paul greeted him on the inside of the building with a grin and, thankfully, no question about the bruise on his cheek, although Harry saw his eyes flick to it and a concerned look come over his face. He ushered Harry into the karate room, saying he was the last one and he's glad he could make it today. Simon was the first to see him and called out to him, he ran across the room and joined the falcon group in their corner of the practice area. For not the first time, Harry was glad he had such friends. They, like Paul, made no comment on the bruise, or the fact that he was hardly ever there. All they did was make a joint effort in catching Harry up on the newly learned moves before class started.
Harry grinned, yes, no matter how bad things are at the Dursleys', I have good muggle and magic friends. Even though Harry was having a great time with his karate friends, he still dearly missed Ron and Hermione. Though he still kept in touch with them, it seemed to be dying down and he had not heard anything of the war effort, or lack of war effort, against Voldemort.
Once Harry and a Hawk who had been gone the day before had gotten caught up, Paul began the day's lesson. They learned a jump kick combo that was extremely fun to learn. Especially to watch someone else learn. Harry kept tally on how many times Simon fell on his arse, which turned out to be 17 until he finally got it right and kicked Rhea in the back of the head. The fight that ensued could rival one of Ron and Hermione's best. However, their fight was cut short as a sharp knock on the door announced someone's arrival. Everyone turned to look at it, even though the door was still closed. Paul glanced up from where he was helping an Eagle learn the combo. Since the Flacons' were right next to the door, he called out to them.
"Harry, would you get that for me? Tell who ever it is that I'll be there in a minute."
Harry nodded and walked toward the door. Almost everyone went back to what they were doing, except Ryan, who had been Harry's partner and was watching him. Harry opened the door, ready to tell the person the message Paul told him to. Yet when he saw who the person was, the words died on his lips and the two said the exact same thing. "YOU!"
(A/N: Did you really think I would leave you there?)
In surprise, Harry slammed the door shut.
Harry was debating what to say when he next opened the door, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Paul looking at him with curious eyes. Harry looked around at the class and saw everyone staring at him. He blushed and looked down as Paul opened the door.
"Ah, Severus!" He exclaimed as he saw who the person was. "I think you surprised young Harry here. Don't you think it would have been a little more mandatory if you had come after class?"
Snape, still standing at the door, glared at Harry, "If I had known he was going to be here, I assure you, I would not have come until I was sure your 'class' was over and done with."
Harry, insulted, looked back up, eyes narrowed, "Hey! I was having a perfectly fine day until I opened the door!"
As Snape got a good look at his face, the bruise especially, his eyes narrowed in curiosity. He recovered quickly, "Mr. Potter, I am on a short fuse at the moment and I need to speak with Professor Psidong, so if it doesn't interfere with your 'schedule' I would step out with him. Alone."
Harry looked down, more to cover his bruise than anything else, and nodded, surprised at his daring with the potion's master.
Paul smiled at Harry, "Please go back to your group, Harry. I'll have a talk with Severus." The two exited the room and closed the door gently behind them.
Harry turned away from the closed door to find the entire class standing and staring at him. He blushed, ducked his head, and walked back to the other Falcons' who were also staring at him. When he got to them they were silent for a second until Alyssa recovered and asked: "And what was that about?" The others nodded in curiosity.
Harry gave a wry grin, "He's a teacher from my school. He's the by far the meanest one."
Alyssa frowned, "What does he teach?"
"Po-" Harry stopped himself, "Chemistry."
Alyssa paused in though for a minute until a look of understanding came over her face, "You mean that was Professor Snape?"
Harry nodded grimly, "Yep, his main goal is to make my life as miserable as possible."
"So I've heard, Dean has told me about him."
The others were oddly silent through this, listening to their conversation. Harry noticed that the rest of the class had gone back to what they were doing, though they seemed more subdued than before. Simon was first to speak up aside from Alyssa.
"So what's he doing here?"
Harry shrugged and glanced at the door, "I don't know."
At that moment, the door opened and Paul came back in, closing the door behind him. He didn't seem as cheerful as he was before he left to talk to Snape. However, when he came back into the room, he recovered quickly and it seemed as though nothing had happened.
The class got back into the swing of Karate and the lesson passed too quickly for Harry's liking. All too soon, Harry was climbing into Petunia's car, where his aunt seemed very angry about something.
As they left the parking lot, she sniffed, "You were late."
Harry blinked, "Class just got over with." He knew that the class had gotten out much later than this before, but he also knew that Dudley had been with at the time, so of course Petunia wouldn't be mad them.
The rest of the ride neither of them talked, except for Petunia mumbling about ungrateful nephews and karate teachers.
When he got back to the Dursleys', he was met by a furious Vernon. His eyes flashed as Harry entered the house.
"Well, Boy? What do you have to say?"
Harry blinked, confused, "Um… I'm confused?"
If anything, Vernon just became more furious, "I don't need any of your lip! I know you did something! That Realtor was set against this house! He could probably tell there was a … unnatural being living here." He spat out.
Harry finally understood, "So I'm assuming the inspection didn't go well?"
Harry knew he had crossed the line, smoke seemed to emit from Vernon's ears and Harry was surprised he wasn't hit. Instead Vernon strode forward and grasped Harry by the collar of his shirt. He dragged Harry over to the stairs, opened the door to the cupboard in the side of them and threw him roughly in, causing Harry to bang his shoulder painfully on the opposite wall. Vernon growled at him.
"You will stay in there until you go to Karate tomorrow and you will get no supper or breakfast!" He slammed the door to the cupboard to emphasize his anger. Dust showered down on Harry's head and shoulders.
Harry sighed, it was going to be a long night. He had gotten used to the small bedroom and hadn't expected to be put in the cupboard again. He hadn't even gotten the chance to threaten Vernon with the 'convicted murderer as a godfather' bit.
Sometime in the middle of the night, Harry was awoken by a loud bang from outside and several screams that pierced the air. Harry groaned, his still sleeping mind not taking into effect what might be happening, he glanced at the clock that he had put in the cupboard long before and saw that it was two in the morning. Another scream rose, followed by a yell of pain from a man. Harry's mind finally woke up and his eyes went wide in disbelief.
"No!" He whispered. If what was happening at the moment was what he feared it was, he was no longer even remotely safe. He jerked the tattered covers off him and went to open the cupboard door. However, when he pushed against it, he found that Vernon had locked him in; Harry would have to take the hard way out.
He backed up to the far side of the small area and leaped at the door, his shoulder slamming into the wood, the rusted lock broke with a loud crack. Nursing his sore shoulder and wincing as another scream broke in the air, he walked around to the stairwell. As he glanced up it, he was surprised that the Dursleys' had not yet woken up. He shook his head and ran to the front door. After a second of internal struggle between his conscious and reason, he jerked open the door.
What Harry saw before him, was a sight that would be forever burned into his memory. The Dark Mark hovered above a house on the end of Privet Drive.
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(A/N: Well, I'm sorry this chapter was so short, I wanted to make it longer, but it interfered with my plan and I wasn't sure what I would be able to lengthen without it being entirely boring. Let's see, since I'm not good with subtlety I'm sure you can guess what is happening at the end there… but if not, I won't spoil the surprise quite yet. Anyway, Please review, I love them and the more I get, the more encouraged I am to write so if you want this story to keep going, please review… then again, even if you don't want it to, please review and be nice to the people who do, even if it's only me. Anyways, I'll just do thank yous' right now:
Someone2: Ok, you can be disappointed at this one too, I know it was short and I know you hate short chapters, but as I said it would have interfered with my plans to make it longer. I'll try to make the next one a lot longer ok? Bloody Brilliant eh? Well I'm glad you feel that way. Ok, thanks for the long review and if you used 'Generic Evil Laugh Type One' in that review… are you going to use 'Generic Evil Laugh Type Two' in this one?
Raven Of Death: Sorry for the violence in this chapter and I'm trying to put in as little abuse as possible while it still being there, because it does have a semi-kind of- large part in the plot. Anyway, I wont tell you if it goes down hill, you'll have to figure that out yourself and it all depends on what you define 'down hill' as. Hope you like this chapter!
Snowlily: Glad you liked the chapter, thanks for reviewing even though you were in a hurry!
Ghetto: Sorry for the delay on this chapter *Checks Date* Oh, lookie that, it's been exactly a month since I late posted *wince* Sorry! Anyway, I'll try to get the next chapter out sooner!
Zaln: I'm glad you liked it and of course I can email you, I'll add you to my mailing list (!
StarKitty: Well, thank you for the compliments *blushes* and as to whether Ryan finds out about Harry and tries to help him… I'm sure that will be cleared up in chapter 7, or chapter 8 if you count the prologue. Anyway, thanks for the review!
Bunny: THANK YOU! Someone who likes detail! Lol, anyway, it's ok that you aren't a big reviewer, I don't care if you just pop in to say you like it, I'm just obsessed with reviews (Literally, every day I come on the computer I check to see if I got another review () Anyway, Sorry if there were a lot of spelling errors, if there were, please blame Word Spell Check, not me ^_^.
Shadow: Thanks for the review, and I'm sorry this one took so long to post.
Bon: If you want me to put you on my mailing list, I'll be glad to, just give me your email address and I'll email you right after I post. You have school on Saturday? Ouch, sucks to be you (aren't I so caring?)
SamWitch: Let's see, I'm glad you love it, I'll post the next chapter ASAP! As for your questions: Why is Vernon being so mean? Well, see, my theory on it (which is obviously right for two reasons, one I wrote it, and two I'm always right () is that the first time Vernon hit Harry, he had just lost control of his actions, from then on, when nothing happened, he sort of just thought he could get away with it and it fit in perfectly with his plans to make Harry's life a living hell. 2) Why are Ron and Hermione being so distant? Well, actually they are not, I think I answered this in this chapter but if not… well, Ron and Hermione are owling him, but Harry is telling them that nothing odd is happening. Plus it's not the most important thing in the plot right now, so I'm sort of skimping on that (Sorry Ron and Hermione lovers!) And 3) Why is your keyboard being so stupid? *blink* I honestly don't know. Anyway, I'll post soon. Thanks for the review!
Looks up, wow that last one was very long, anyway, thank you all again for reviewing, and curse all who didn't ( (and I sincerely wish I could) but hope you don't mind the length of this one and I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I finish writing it. The Title will be something along the lines of: A Change in Plans Or something like that, if that helps at all. ~Phalanx)
Chapter 6- Professor Snape?
(A/N: Hey, Chapter 6 finally, Sorry for the long wait, I was at a bit of a writers block, I knew what to say, but didn't know how to say it. Anyway, I just watched The Lord of the Rings twice and I'm sorry if it affects anything in my story such as dialog, adventures, etc. So I will apologize before hand. Now, sorry for boring you with this long Authors note (though I've read longer) and I'll just get on with the story. Just so you know, I'm obsessed with reviews… not sure why, I just love reading them, so please humor me and send me one!)
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Professor Severus Snape, potions master at Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry, grumbled as he slowly maneuvered the station wagon rented from the ministry down the crowded London street. As to why Dumbledore insisted on this form of transportation he did not know. Snape growled in frustration as the engine died for about the 20th time since he started. The cars behind him blared their horns as he tried to start it. When he finally got it started, he slammed on the gas pedal and the car jerked forward, to which he slammed on the brakes in panic without touching the clutch, making the engine die again.
"BLOODY HELL!" he yelled and slammed his fists against the wheel, causing it to honk loudly, and he jumped back in surprise. After about another half an hour of this, he had finally pulled into the parking lot of the building he was sent to.
He parked the car, one wheel up on the curb. Snape wisely decided to not fix it and risk getting a ticket, not that he would pay it anyway. He climbed out of the car, his usual gracefulness totally gone in the unfamiliar muggle contraption. He slammed the door and glared at the station wagon with contempt, furiously trying to straighten the muggle clothing he was forced to wear. When he gave up, he walked toward the large door with large smooth strides, intent on finishing this job as quickly as possible. In the main lobby of the squat building, he looked around.
He quickly walked up to the bored looking secretary in the corner office. As he approached, she looked up; she had shoulder-length dirty blond hair and wide hazel eyes, which scanned his body appreciatively. He gave her his most practiced sneer and asked her a question curtly. She chewed her gum once, then pointed towards a door in the far wall.
"Go through that door, then another directly opposite of it. He has a class so please knock." She said lazily, then looked back to the computer and continued typing.
Snape whirled around without a word and went through the first door, which led to a large room. From there he could see the other door, a white door with a gold handle. He walked up to it and knocked sharply. There was a couple minutes wait, and the door swung open to expose the last person he ever expected to see.
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Harry woke up to a splitting headache, now if it had been any other situation, he would have been worried, thinking his scar was the cause of it. However, he knew what had happened the day before, Vernon had struck him, not as hard as he usually did, on his left cheek, giving him a large bruise. He had backed into the wall, which of course, had given him the headache he had at the moment. Harry flung the sheets away from him and sat up on the bed, fortunately, the beatings had died down a bit and he could sit up and walk without flinching, the headache was his only problem. The bruise on his cheek could be explained away, limping could not.
Which, of course, meant that he would be able to go to Karate today, he had done a lot of catching up and he would have to do even more today. Even with all of that, he was willing to go. He had missed about 3 days in the last week, and he wanted to learn more. This was one of the only things he was good at aside from Quidditch; he could even beat Simon, who was the top of the class (Harry isn't technically in the class, so he can't be scored). He glanced at the clock, which shone 5:45.
He shut his eyes for a minute before standing up and getting dressed, he walked tiredly down the stairs and into the kitchen. He had an hour and a half before he had to leave for karate. This gave him plenty of time to make breakfast for his aunt, uncle, and cousin and eat his own breakfast.
Thirty minutes later, the pounding on the steps could be heard as Vernon stomped down the stairs, his wife and son behind him. He growled at Harry as the other two sat down to eat.
"Boy, The realtor is coming by this afternoon to see how much the house is worth. Plus, Dudley isn't feeling good," Harry looked over at Dudley who was healthily, if you could call it that, scarfing down his breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon strips. "So you will be going to Karate alone. I personally don't think Petunia should bother to take you in," insert evil glare, "But we decided it's best to keep you out of the house."
Harry just nodded, he found that if he talked at all, he would either get in more trouble or get hit, although lately, Vernon had only hit him when he did something really bad.
Vernon's beady eyes narrowed once more before he turned and began eating.
Another half-hour later Harry and Petunia were on their way to the now familiar karate building. Harry couldn't wait to be there, if nothing else, to get away from the stench of Petunia's ten different perfumes. However, he was also apprehensive as to what the other karate students, or Paul for that matter, would say about the bruise on his cheek that had not gone down in the least. Harry had come up with an excuse, a not very good one at that, about tripping and hitting his head on the doorframe. As the family car pulled up to the martial arts building, Harry nodded once to Petunia, and hopped out, dashing to the entrance of the whitewashed building. As he entered the building, he heard the screech of tires as Petunia pulled out of the parking lot.
Paul greeted him on the inside of the building with a grin and, thankfully, no question about the bruise on his cheek, although Harry saw his eyes flick to it and a concerned look come over his face. He ushered Harry into the karate room, saying he was the last one and he's glad he could make it today. Simon was the first to see him and called out to him, he ran across the room and joined the falcon group in their corner of the practice area. For not the first time, Harry was glad he had such friends. They, like Paul, made no comment on the bruise, or the fact that he was hardly ever there. All they did was make a joint effort in catching Harry up on the newly learned moves before class started.
Harry grinned, yes, no matter how bad things are at the Dursleys', I have good muggle and magic friends. Even though Harry was having a great time with his karate friends, he still dearly missed Ron and Hermione. Though he still kept in touch with them, it seemed to be dying down and he had not heard anything of the war effort, or lack of war effort, against Voldemort.
Once Harry and a Hawk who had been gone the day before had gotten caught up, Paul began the day's lesson. They learned a jump kick combo that was extremely fun to learn. Especially to watch someone else learn. Harry kept tally on how many times Simon fell on his arse, which turned out to be 17 until he finally got it right and kicked Rhea in the back of the head. The fight that ensued could rival one of Ron and Hermione's best. However, their fight was cut short as a sharp knock on the door announced someone's arrival. Everyone turned to look at it, even though the door was still closed. Paul glanced up from where he was helping an Eagle learn the combo. Since the Flacons' were right next to the door, he called out to them.
"Harry, would you get that for me? Tell who ever it is that I'll be there in a minute."
Harry nodded and walked toward the door. Almost everyone went back to what they were doing, except Ryan, who had been Harry's partner and was watching him. Harry opened the door, ready to tell the person the message Paul told him to. Yet when he saw who the person was, the words died on his lips and the two said the exact same thing. "YOU!"
(A/N: Did you really think I would leave you there?)
In surprise, Harry slammed the door shut.
Harry was debating what to say when he next opened the door, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Paul looking at him with curious eyes. Harry looked around at the class and saw everyone staring at him. He blushed and looked down as Paul opened the door.
"Ah, Severus!" He exclaimed as he saw who the person was. "I think you surprised young Harry here. Don't you think it would have been a little more mandatory if you had come after class?"
Snape, still standing at the door, glared at Harry, "If I had known he was going to be here, I assure you, I would not have come until I was sure your 'class' was over and done with."
Harry, insulted, looked back up, eyes narrowed, "Hey! I was having a perfectly fine day until I opened the door!"
As Snape got a good look at his face, the bruise especially, his eyes narrowed in curiosity. He recovered quickly, "Mr. Potter, I am on a short fuse at the moment and I need to speak with Professor Psidong, so if it doesn't interfere with your 'schedule' I would step out with him. Alone."
Harry looked down, more to cover his bruise than anything else, and nodded, surprised at his daring with the potion's master.
Paul smiled at Harry, "Please go back to your group, Harry. I'll have a talk with Severus." The two exited the room and closed the door gently behind them.
Harry turned away from the closed door to find the entire class standing and staring at him. He blushed, ducked his head, and walked back to the other Falcons' who were also staring at him. When he got to them they were silent for a second until Alyssa recovered and asked: "And what was that about?" The others nodded in curiosity.
Harry gave a wry grin, "He's a teacher from my school. He's the by far the meanest one."
Alyssa frowned, "What does he teach?"
"Po-" Harry stopped himself, "Chemistry."
Alyssa paused in though for a minute until a look of understanding came over her face, "You mean that was Professor Snape?"
Harry nodded grimly, "Yep, his main goal is to make my life as miserable as possible."
"So I've heard, Dean has told me about him."
The others were oddly silent through this, listening to their conversation. Harry noticed that the rest of the class had gone back to what they were doing, though they seemed more subdued than before. Simon was first to speak up aside from Alyssa.
"So what's he doing here?"
Harry shrugged and glanced at the door, "I don't know."
At that moment, the door opened and Paul came back in, closing the door behind him. He didn't seem as cheerful as he was before he left to talk to Snape. However, when he came back into the room, he recovered quickly and it seemed as though nothing had happened.
The class got back into the swing of Karate and the lesson passed too quickly for Harry's liking. All too soon, Harry was climbing into Petunia's car, where his aunt seemed very angry about something.
As they left the parking lot, she sniffed, "You were late."
Harry blinked, "Class just got over with." He knew that the class had gotten out much later than this before, but he also knew that Dudley had been with at the time, so of course Petunia wouldn't be mad them.
The rest of the ride neither of them talked, except for Petunia mumbling about ungrateful nephews and karate teachers.
When he got back to the Dursleys', he was met by a furious Vernon. His eyes flashed as Harry entered the house.
"Well, Boy? What do you have to say?"
Harry blinked, confused, "Um… I'm confused?"
If anything, Vernon just became more furious, "I don't need any of your lip! I know you did something! That Realtor was set against this house! He could probably tell there was a … unnatural being living here." He spat out.
Harry finally understood, "So I'm assuming the inspection didn't go well?"
Harry knew he had crossed the line, smoke seemed to emit from Vernon's ears and Harry was surprised he wasn't hit. Instead Vernon strode forward and grasped Harry by the collar of his shirt. He dragged Harry over to the stairs, opened the door to the cupboard in the side of them and threw him roughly in, causing Harry to bang his shoulder painfully on the opposite wall. Vernon growled at him.
"You will stay in there until you go to Karate tomorrow and you will get no supper or breakfast!" He slammed the door to the cupboard to emphasize his anger. Dust showered down on Harry's head and shoulders.
Harry sighed, it was going to be a long night. He had gotten used to the small bedroom and hadn't expected to be put in the cupboard again. He hadn't even gotten the chance to threaten Vernon with the 'convicted murderer as a godfather' bit.
Sometime in the middle of the night, Harry was awoken by a loud bang from outside and several screams that pierced the air. Harry groaned, his still sleeping mind not taking into effect what might be happening, he glanced at the clock that he had put in the cupboard long before and saw that it was two in the morning. Another scream rose, followed by a yell of pain from a man. Harry's mind finally woke up and his eyes went wide in disbelief.
"No!" He whispered. If what was happening at the moment was what he feared it was, he was no longer even remotely safe. He jerked the tattered covers off him and went to open the cupboard door. However, when he pushed against it, he found that Vernon had locked him in; Harry would have to take the hard way out.
He backed up to the far side of the small area and leaped at the door, his shoulder slamming into the wood, the rusted lock broke with a loud crack. Nursing his sore shoulder and wincing as another scream broke in the air, he walked around to the stairwell. As he glanced up it, he was surprised that the Dursleys' had not yet woken up. He shook his head and ran to the front door. After a second of internal struggle between his conscious and reason, he jerked open the door.
What Harry saw before him, was a sight that would be forever burned into his memory. The Dark Mark hovered above a house on the end of Privet Drive.
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(A/N: Well, I'm sorry this chapter was so short, I wanted to make it longer, but it interfered with my plan and I wasn't sure what I would be able to lengthen without it being entirely boring. Let's see, since I'm not good with subtlety I'm sure you can guess what is happening at the end there… but if not, I won't spoil the surprise quite yet. Anyway, Please review, I love them and the more I get, the more encouraged I am to write so if you want this story to keep going, please review… then again, even if you don't want it to, please review and be nice to the people who do, even if it's only me. Anyways, I'll just do thank yous' right now:
Someone2: Ok, you can be disappointed at this one too, I know it was short and I know you hate short chapters, but as I said it would have interfered with my plans to make it longer. I'll try to make the next one a lot longer ok? Bloody Brilliant eh? Well I'm glad you feel that way. Ok, thanks for the long review and if you used 'Generic Evil Laugh Type One' in that review… are you going to use 'Generic Evil Laugh Type Two' in this one?
Raven Of Death: Sorry for the violence in this chapter and I'm trying to put in as little abuse as possible while it still being there, because it does have a semi-kind of- large part in the plot. Anyway, I wont tell you if it goes down hill, you'll have to figure that out yourself and it all depends on what you define 'down hill' as. Hope you like this chapter!
Snowlily: Glad you liked the chapter, thanks for reviewing even though you were in a hurry!
Ghetto: Sorry for the delay on this chapter *Checks Date* Oh, lookie that, it's been exactly a month since I late posted *wince* Sorry! Anyway, I'll try to get the next chapter out sooner!
Zaln: I'm glad you liked it and of course I can email you, I'll add you to my mailing list (!
StarKitty: Well, thank you for the compliments *blushes* and as to whether Ryan finds out about Harry and tries to help him… I'm sure that will be cleared up in chapter 7, or chapter 8 if you count the prologue. Anyway, thanks for the review!
Bunny: THANK YOU! Someone who likes detail! Lol, anyway, it's ok that you aren't a big reviewer, I don't care if you just pop in to say you like it, I'm just obsessed with reviews (Literally, every day I come on the computer I check to see if I got another review () Anyway, Sorry if there were a lot of spelling errors, if there were, please blame Word Spell Check, not me ^_^.
Shadow: Thanks for the review, and I'm sorry this one took so long to post.
Bon: If you want me to put you on my mailing list, I'll be glad to, just give me your email address and I'll email you right after I post. You have school on Saturday? Ouch, sucks to be you (aren't I so caring?)
SamWitch: Let's see, I'm glad you love it, I'll post the next chapter ASAP! As for your questions: Why is Vernon being so mean? Well, see, my theory on it (which is obviously right for two reasons, one I wrote it, and two I'm always right () is that the first time Vernon hit Harry, he had just lost control of his actions, from then on, when nothing happened, he sort of just thought he could get away with it and it fit in perfectly with his plans to make Harry's life a living hell. 2) Why are Ron and Hermione being so distant? Well, actually they are not, I think I answered this in this chapter but if not… well, Ron and Hermione are owling him, but Harry is telling them that nothing odd is happening. Plus it's not the most important thing in the plot right now, so I'm sort of skimping on that (Sorry Ron and Hermione lovers!) And 3) Why is your keyboard being so stupid? *blink* I honestly don't know. Anyway, I'll post soon. Thanks for the review!
Looks up, wow that last one was very long, anyway, thank you all again for reviewing, and curse all who didn't ( (and I sincerely wish I could) but hope you don't mind the length of this one and I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I finish writing it. The Title will be something along the lines of: A Change in Plans Or something like that, if that helps at all. ~Phalanx)
