Disclaimer: I own none of these characters, I don't even own the story line. This is a response to Severitus' challenge. And I want you to know that I am not being paid to do this.

A/N: Well I loved to read these challenge ones, so I decided, what the heck let's do it.

Chapter 6--- Hundred Mile High City



Snape was in Dumbledores' office discussing Harry's actions. "Really Albus, I hate to agree with Severus' beliefs, but the boy is a normal student and should not be given any leniency because of //who// he is." McGonagol said, "I say we should treat this matter as though he were any other student. I say expel him."

Snape looked pleadingly at Dumbledore. "Harry," Dumbledore said, "was under a lot of strain, and pressure, we are talking about temporal insanity."

"Why Albus, what could possibly drive some one to do such a thing as burn down a teachers office?"

"The reason why, is not open to discussion." Dumbledore said sternly, and Snape exhaled a breath he hadn't realised he's taken.

"What would happen, if he did get expelled?" Snape asked hesitantly.

"He'd return home."

"Too his aunt and uncle?" he asked her.

"Yes, Severus, look we haven't expelled him-not yet, stop getting your hopes up."

Snape shook his head; "You can't expel him."

Mcgongal gave him a very stern look. "What?" she asked shocked. "Severus, he burned your office down, I must admit I thought you'd have your hands around the boys throat by now."

"He's been under a lot of strain. I really don't care that he burned down a dingy old room."

"Oh, so you know what the boy is going through, but I don't, well that's just typical. I know Albus that the overall decision is yours to make, but please be sensible."

"I am being sensible, Minerva." Then she left, and Dumbledore turned to Snape. "So Severus, having a change of heart are we?"

Snape slumped down in a chair. "I don't know." He sighed. "Really I don't."

"Well you seem to be fighting very hard against Harry's expulsion."

"I don't want him returning to //them//."

"Really, I had no idea what was going on. I don't think any one knew of the finer points. Severus, come with me to speak with them this weekend, sort something out."

Slowly, Snape nodded.



+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



"Hermione what are you doing?" Ron asked as she dragged him up the stairs.

"Going to the library."

"Ooh, well there's a change of destination. I know //that// Hermione, but //why? //"

"I want to look up illusion spells."

Ron groaned and didn't even try to hide it. "Can't you do that on your own, I want to see Harry." Hermione merely pulled harder and whispered something very harshly.

"I'm doing this for Harry."

"What, I don't remember him wanting you to look up illusion spells."

"He didn't ask me to, oh please, Ron don't tell me you haven't noticed."

"Noticed what?"

Hermione tilted her head back and sighed. "Oh never mind, I'm not explaining it here." She looked around- no one.

"Oh yeah 'cause walls can hear."

"Oh…Come on."



+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



Dumbledore rang on the doorbell of four Privet Drive and waited patiently for an answer. It took a few minutes for it to come but come it did, there a woman stood, who Snape presumed was Petunia, Lily's sister. But at first glance she looked nothing like his beautiful Lily, in fact, they didn't look like they could be sisters at all, or even related. He wondered deeply whether Lily was actually adopted.

A high pitched screech emitted from her. "Vernon, it's one of…one of //them!//"

Snape gave Dumbledore a questioning look and raised an eyebrow, and pushed the door, (Which was left slightly open,) and walked in. "Really Severus, where are your manners, you don't just walk into people's houses."

"You," a voice bellowed from the hallway, "Get out of my house." He was holding what Snape guessed was (from the pictures he had seen) a shotgun. Snape gave him a look that quite clearly said.

'You really are insane aren't you.' Then one of his cold glares, that made Dursley quiver in his shoes, and walked right past him.

"Please mind him," Dumbledore called, walking in himself, "He never does know where his manners are.

He walked right into the kitchen where Petunia was cowering away in a corner, in an apron and rubber gloves. "The boy," he demanded off of her. "Where does he sleep?"

"U…upstairs. Third on the right." Not even listening to the whole sentence he strode out of the kitchen, past Dursley in the corridor still and jogged lightly up the stairs and made himself to Harry's room. It wasn't too bad. Mountains of broken toys, he never remembered Potter…Harry…he corrected himself, being a clumsy person, also lots and lots of books, that looked as though they had never even been opened, let alone read.

He heard Dumbledore come in the door. "Oh, lot's of toys, and books."

"They're not Harry's." Snape sated plainly. "They're that cousins of his. Nothing here belongs to Harry."

"It was our Dudley's second room." Petunia said who had come upstairs.

"Second?" Snape ordered. "Where was he before?" no one said anything. "The cupboard." Snape muttered walking back downstairs; he blasted the door off of the cupboard under the stairs.

What he saw almost made him collapse, there, shoved in, was a bed and what looked like a shelf that had been made, a cheap lamp and a draw to keep some stuff. He didn't say anything, as Dumbledore came down the stairs.

Snape had been praying that Ron was exaggerating when he told Lupin, but now Snape knew he wasn't. Slowly he turned to face Dumbledore, full of bitterness and anger he said. "I want him out." Dumbledore nodded,

"We'll think of something, Severus."



+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

When Harry returned to the dorm every one gave him a strange look, Ginny smiled weakly and Colin Creevy waved. Not saying any thing he went upstairs and sat on his bed. "Harry?" Ron asked. "Why did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Burn his office down."

"I don't want to talk about it…" silence "did your parents ever get drunk?"

"What?"

"Did they? Can two people get so drunk that they loose control of them selves?"

"Yeah, I think so." Ron sat down next to him. " Bill got plastered once, he came home and he couldn't speak he was so out of it."

Harry flinched slightly, and fell back down on the bed.

"Sure you don't want to talk about it."

"Positive, I just want to forget that anything happened."

"Hermione's suspecting something what ever it is. She was looking up illusion spells earlier."

The look of fear on Harrys' face was a clear as crystal on Harry's ever changing face.

A/N: Sorry that chapt's short, but I have a bit of writer's block. I've been cursed I tell you.