Just in case anyone wondered: I've done my research. Harry has never actually cried. Despite what Rita Scooter said!

I messed up! At the beginning I said Harry was 15 but he's actually 14 at the moment. I fixed that. I'm proofreading the whole thing.

I've been reading a book called "A child named it" I'm putting an idea from the book into the fic. It's an amazing book! Just amazing and sad.

The Rescue

Harry entered the house and found it empty. Not thinking about it he went up the stairs and put his bag on his empty bed and headed downstairs to do his chores before anyone arrived. When he was halfway done Dudley came back from school.

"Where's my mum?"

Harry ignored him not looking up from the dishes and received a shove. He looked up at Dudley's pig face with unblinking eyes.

"Where is she?!"

"I don't know."

Dudley grumbled and left the kitchen. Harry heard the TV turn on and he went back to the dishes on routine. Petunia came into the kitchen and nodded at Harry. Things had been strangely calm since Vernon was off on a business trip. But Harry knew better than to let his guard down. Any day now Vernon would come back. That night he was allowed to sit at the table, much to Dudley's displeasure.

"You just wait, I'll tell father and he'll set you straight."

All through dinner Dudley kept whispering threats to Harry but all were ignored. Dudley then decided to take a different angle.

"It'll be your birthday soon. Don't expect anything from us though. And whatever those freak friends of yours send you dad'll destroy it."

This tactic didn't work either. Dudley was getting very wound up.

"I bet father will be here by then!"

Harry dropped his spoon.

'Shit.'

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Time passed by and things stayed the same. Harry would burry himself in his work during school and as a result became a top student. He would, however, dread returning to the Dursley's house even if Vernon was away for now. Dreading the time of returning back to the Dursley's only made the time slip by all the more quickly. Harry hardly had time to register anything that had happened that day. He seemed to, however, have dark clouds following him around. The final bell rang and students rushed out of the doors. Slowly Harry got up and began to walk to the door but was stopped by the teacher, a woman in her late thirties with red hair and warm brown eyes. Harry couldn't help but notice that her manner was just like Mrs. Weasley's.

"Harry, dear, is something wrong at home?"

Harry started a bit and his eyes gained a bit of focus.

"No. Everything is fine."

"Are you sure? It's just that, I've noticed you haven't got any friends...that you've become very skittish; and seem to be anxious around people."

The lady took his hand and he flinched. She gave him a look that told him he'd proved her point. She turned his wrist and pointed out several bruises.

"You've got scars all over your arms and you look like you haven't slept in days."

Harry knew he looked bad but he didn't care anymore. He was sure he was going to die soon anyways either by all the things he had to go through or in Voldemort's hands. The only thing that hurt him was the fact that Dumbledore, who presumably knew everything, hadn't even tried to check on him.

"I'm worried about you dear."

The woman showed true concern. For a moment Harry felt like he could have told her everything from the Dursley's to Voldemort but he bit his tongue and forced a smile. Something that now felt alien to him.

"Everything is great. I'm just a bit worried about the Science Fair. I'm working very hard on my project. Well I've got to go. Bye!"

Harry left the room before the woman had a chance to speak.

"Science Fair? There is no Science Fair...I run it."

Her suspicions confirmed the woman went to the office and picked up the phone.

"Hello? Get me the police department...yes I'll hold..."

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As Dudley had predicted Vernon arrived that very day.

'What a wonderful present Uncle Vernon. Your presence just brightens my day.'

Harry tried to avoid Vernon's look at all costs while at the dinner table. When he did meet his uncle's stare he felt a mixture of both relief and fear.

'He's going to kill me...'

Vernon sneered viciously proving his suspicions right.

"Why don't you go to the garage Potter?"

Harry didn't move. He couldn't move. Vernon's tone was tense.

"I said-"

Harry got up from his seat and walked slowly out of the house to the garage. He walked down the pair of old cement steps not even bothering to turn on the lights. Harry sat on the bottom step and held his head in his hands. His lack of sleep was gaining on him a little more each day. Just the effort of staying awake was wearing him down. He looked straight ahead then out at the little window that viewed the front yard. A storm was developing outside. The dark clouds got nearer by the second. Harry began to wish that they could, somehow, swallow him up and that he could evaporate among them. On impulse Harry put his palms together and said his very first prayer.

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"We will depart tonight."

Severus stood before the Slytherin's with an indifferent look on his face.

"The assignment now is to write two rolls of parchment on what you learned about muggles."

"I learned they're all bastards."

"What was that Ms. Zabini?"

"Nothing Professor."

'I agree…muggles are bastards.'

Severus fixed her with a side-glance of his cold black eyes.

"I thought so."

Severus turned around to head back to his tent.

"Professor shouldn't we make one last observation? After all, it is Potter's birthday. We can observe how they would celebrate that."

Malfoy really didn't think there'd be a celebration. He just wanted to see Harry get bashed one more time. Even though Severus knew this he still agreed.

'Maybe Malfoy's onto something…'

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The Slytherin's looked into the house but couldn't see Harry anywhere. The large man, Harry's uncle, stood up from his chair. He kissed his wife on the cheek and ruffled his son's hair then out a side door that led to the garage. Severus narrowed his eyes and rounded the house to the front yard. It began to rain. The students were complaining about not wanting to get wet but Severus didn't listen. Something was seriously wrong.

"YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF CRAP!!!!"

There was the unmistakable sound of bones cracking. Severus felt his blood turn to ice. The Slytherin's froze; nobody knew what to think. Pansy snapped out of her shock.

"Somebody do something! Oh God, oh God…"

Pansy was jumping up and down waving her hands around frantically.

"Professor! He's going to kill Potter! He's going to kill him!"

Zabini covered her mouth trying to hold in a cry of horror as if she knew /exactly/ what was happening behind the door. Severus moved away from the garage door and stepped back.

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Harry felt his uncle's massive hands clasp around his neck tightly. He gasped for air but none reached his lungs. His hands moved wildly about as he tried to pry the huge man off him. He looked at his uncle's face and could still make out his features. Vernon's face was contorted in anger and his eyes looked about ready to bulge out of his sockets.

"What? Superior beings like you need air?"

Vernon laughed wildly. Harry stopped struggling; the loss of oxygen was making his mind foggy. He felt his whole body begin to go limb. There was an enormous blast. Parts of the wooden garage door flew all over the place. The source of the blast was a man.

"WHAT THE-"

Vernon let go of Harry's limp body and stared at the man. The man was tall and wore a black robe. Moreover, he held a wand. Harry felt the air rush back into his lungs and had just enough time to look up at his savior whose face was momentarily lit by a flash of lightning. He had just enough time to register the sound of a police siren before passing out.

'Snape...'

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