Severus sneered at the prone form of Petunia Evans. He couldn't believe how she had talked about Harry. The boy was sweet as can be. He had no clue how he had turned out so well with her as an example. Thank Merlin he would never set foot in this house again. Severus considered burning it down.
"Oh Merlin!" Sirius rushed past him and started puking in the kitchen. Severus retraced his steps and ended in the front hall. Madame Bones had the cleaning cupboard open and was taking notes. Lucius looked horrified at her side. He stepped closer and felt his heart stop. On the inside of the door was a taped up paper that read "Harry's room." A small cot was shoved inside with a threadbare blanket on it. There were more drawings of a younger Harry with spiders around him. He had drawn arrows pointing towards them that read "my friends!" Severus continued to look at the tiny room and saw marks on the walls. It seemed Harry's accident magic was strong as a child. It was a mix of scratches and claw marks. Lucius took his wand out and flicked it around the cupboard.
"374. That was how many times Harry lost control of his magic in this place." He spat the word out.
"They locked a magical child in a broom closet and and and" he had never seen Lucius stutter before but the man couldn't get his words out. Madame Bones flicked her wand and said "no one will be able to get in here without my say so. I don't want anyone messing up the evidence. Now, I am going to look around outside. I will be gone for ten minutes. I will have no knowledge on what will happen inside while I'm gone." She straightened her monocle and wandered out the front door. She had stunned Harry's cousin so he wouldn't get in the way of the investigation so it was just the three wizards and the Aunt. Lucius gave a feral smile and strode towards the sitting room to get some answers, Severus trailing behind him. He took off the silencing charm and said "let's have a little chat, hmm?"
She glared at them and spit at his feet.
"Go to hell!" Lucius just grinned and said "oh I won't but you will. I'm betting you won't last two days in Azkaban." Petunia gasped and said "what? Why would I go to that place?" Sirius wiped his mouth as he came into the room.
"Because you abused my godson, you bitch. Harry is Heir to two Noble Houses. The pureblood families are going to eat you alive. You might have gotten some sympathy from the public, being a muggle and all. Except Harry is also the Boy-Who-Lived. He's basically treated like a messiah to most of the Wizarding World and you treated him worse than a dog. I wouldn't be surprised if you had a little accident on your way to Azkaban. Magicals can't stand child abuse." His eyes were burning as he looked at her.
"Now I don't know if you know this but Lucius and Severus used to be the left and right hand to the Dark Lord. I'm sure they can think of a proper gift for you before we leave." They silenced the woman before she could start screaming and got to work. They only had ten minutes, after all.
Draco was satisfied when he saw Vane spit out one of her teeth. He was glad he kept his brass knuckles on his person.
"Now would someone like to explain what happened?" Aunt Andy asked as the Headmaster and Professor McGonagall looked at them. Neville raised his hand and she said "yes Mr. Longbottom?"
"Those girls were spreading malicious rumors about Harry and Draco! Vane acted like she was going to attack Harry so Ginny was defending them. Draco was just trying to get them to apologize when she accused him of not loving Harry! I mean even a blind person could see Draco is head over heels for Harry!" Longbottom had joined the fight and Draco was impressed with his initiative. He had thrown a girl at another girl. Ginny pinched her bleeding nose and continued "yeah! All because that slag Vane thinks Harry's an object!"
"Five points from Gryffindor for language, Weasley." McGonagall said, her scowl fierce.
"So you children brawled in the corridor over Harry Potter?" McGonagall asked, rubbing her temples. They all started shouting at once and Draco was about to rip another chunk of hair out of Vane's head when Professor Dumbledore used his wand to make bang loud enough to shake the windows.
"That is enough! You will all have twenty points removed each and detention for a month. We do not handle problems with our fists but with our words." Draco rolled his eyes at the old man's saying. He probably would have sent him to Azkaban if Aunt Andy wasn't there.
"We will also be writing to your parents about your behavior." Before he could continue, the door was swung open to reveal Harry. His hair was sticking up and his glasses were askew. He was also dripping sweat.
"Darling! What are you doing here?" Harry zeroed in on him and stumbled forward.
"I heard there was a fight and you didn't come back! Are you okay? What happened?" Draco pulled him into his lap and started dabbing his face.
"It's fine, my heart. Just a little spat. You should have stayed in bed. You look like you're about to pass out." Harry just laid his head on his shoulder and muttered "I was worried about you." His husband really was the sweetest.
"Hi Harry! My name is Romilda Vane! I hope you get better." The girl grinned at him and her missing teeth stood out. Harry squinted at her before saying "Gross" and throwing up at her feet. Draco quickly held his hair back as he shot the shocked girl a smug smile.
"May I take Harry back to the infirmary?" Professor McGonagall grimaced and spelled away his puke.
"You all should go and get yourselves cleaned up." He squatted down and Harry climbed on his back.
"Let's go. I don't want Harry catching a chill." Neville and Ginny followed him and they didn't look back.
Amelia Bones had seen horrifying things that most people would flinch at. She had survived her family getting massacred by the Dark Lord and clawed her way to the top of her field. Seeing Harry Potter's living arrangements turned her stomach. The boy was the same age as her niece and she couldn't imagine treating Susan the way Harry had been treated. Susan had written home about Harry plenty of times. She had told him about the Bones tradition of kidnapping their brides. They shared meals and classes together. Amelia would make sure his Aunt and Uncle were punished by the law.
As the jury filed in, she could already tell who was voting guilty. They had decided to keep Harry's name anonymous since he was a minor. The only information the jury knew so far was that a magical child had been abused by their muggle family.
"Wizengamot will now begin! I ask that no one interrupts until we have reached a vote." Cornelius Fudge shouted out, bringing his gavel down. She normally couldn't stand the spineless man but she would make an exception today. She would do everything in her power to bully him and those in his pocket for a guilty verdict.
"We call Lady Bones to the stand." She walked up to the podium and sat down.
"Lady Bones, you were the one who arrived on the scene, is that correct?"
"Yes. I went with the concerned guardians and heard enough incriminating evidence to take actions. I'm glad I did. If everyone will look towards the projection, you will see the bedroom the child lived in until they received their Hogwarts letter." People let out gasps of outrage at pictures.
"The front of the closet door had a deadbolt on the outside to keep the child in."
"In your opinion ma'am, do you think the guardians did it with their own safety in mind?" She couldn't help her sneer as she stared down the muggles.
"No. Being afraid of a magical child and hating one is completely different." Shouts rang out in the courtroom and Fudge banged his gavel to restore order.
"That's a strong accusation, Lady Bones." The lawyer said, his eyes intense as he stared at her. She ignored him and pointed at the next picture.
"If you look closely at the walls, you can see signs of magical backlash. As we all know, children's accidental magic is usually caused by strong emotions. The child had three hundred and seventy four cases of magical outbursts in this cupboard alone. I'm honestly surprised they didn't become an obscurus." The room was silent as everyone took in her words. Obscurial were the worst thing that could happen to a child. There was no way to separate an obscurus from its host. The few times it was recorded the child only lived until they were ten. The whole wizarding world had mourned the loss.
"Thank you for your testimony, Lady Bones." They called up a psychiatrist from Saint Mungos and had them explain the effects of growing up in a cupboard would have on a child.
"The child would be small for their age. They would probably seek out small cramped places when upset because it would make them feel safe. The lack of sunlight would easily affect eyesight and lead to many vitamin deficiencies. From Madame Bones report, I see they were never given the proper vaccinations as well. A common cold would easily prove fatal for a malnourished child. Such malnutrition would lead to the child's bones being fragile like a bird. I'm assuming the child is receiving proper care?" The man questioned and Amelia nodded her head.
"The child has been on a nutrition potion and will start the process of regrowing most of their bones." She knew Lord Black hadn't talked to Harry about the painful process that would take place. The poor boy had been stuck in bed with the flu. Madame Pomfrey was the one who had found out about his malnourishment while doing a routine checkup while he was in her care. His hard upbringing had made his bones brittle. Professor Snape's nutrition potions had helped but it couldn't fix years of damage. If Harry didn't regrow his bones, he would be at risk for serious injuries and would never reach his proper height. He wouldn't be the tallest child but he would at least get some of the Potter height.
"Good. I would also suggest making sure his organs are in functioning order. So much stress at such a young age is hard on a child's body." After hearing everything so far, the jury was foaming at the mouth. The wizarding world didn't have many cases of abuse because children were believed to be a gift from Magic. They were their pride and joy. To hear what one of their own had suffered at the hands of Muggles, it was like spitting in Magic's face. As the jury filed away to reach a verdict, she decided if they didn't say guilty, she would take matters into her own hands.
Hermione chewed her lip as she watched Harry's reaction to the news. They were all huddled around his bed with the paper. The front headline screamed "Abusive Muggles Sentenced to be Kissed by Dementors." It was right before Winter break and Harry was finally over his flu. He was staying one more night in the Hospital Wing for observation.
"It's what they deserve. I hope those muggles regretted every horrible thing they did to you." Draco said spitefully, his black eye healed to a ugly yellow color. She still couldn't believe she had missed the fight. She would have been happy to curbstomp some idiots.
"They probably didn't. They didn't like me." Harry looked awkward as he said this and Ron hugged him tightly.
"Well it was their loss! We like you and you're better off without them." The twins ruffled his hair and said "Yeah! You're a Weasley now, Harbear! Charlie and Bill are coming home for Yule so you'll get to meet them!" Harry smiled at them and Madame Pomfrey bustled over.
"Alright dear, it's time for your medicine. Just one more and you'll be good as new." She had him regrowing his bones and he only had his feet left. Hermione had cried in her dorm when she had first read the article. How could Harry's Aunt and Uncle treat him so terribly? Well she was glad they were gone. If they had went to Azkaban, she was going to owl Mrs. Black herself and see if the woman would give them a "warm" welcome.
"Harry! Daddy has come to read to you before you go to sleep!" Mr. Malfoy breezed through the door and shoved Draco off the bed so he could take his spot.
"Father! It's still my time slot!" The Malfoy men had made up a visiting schedule because they kept fighting over who would take care of Harry. Mr. Malfoy just sniffed and said "make me move, son." She saw Draco slip on his brass knuckles and sent Harry a pleading look. He just snickered and scooted over.
"Daddy Malfoy, maybe you could read to me and Draco? I think it would be nice if we were all together." She breathed a sigh of relief as he sidestepped their argument.
"Alright Harry! We'll be leaving! We'll see you tomorrow at breakfast!" Ginny said as she dragged Neville out of the room, the rest of them following her. It'd be nice to get back on their schedule, she thought as she started her Transfiguration essay.
