Young and Helpless
Chapter Five
Remus sat on his Kitchen Chair, staring absent-mindedly at the blank wall in front. He sipped at his tea, before continuing to swirl it around with his spoon.
They've been abusing him. I know that for sure, but how badly? He thought. He sighed as he remembered Harry's reaction to him.
Abruptly, Remus got up, abandoning his mug, and instead staring fiercely at the wall.
"They will pay." He whispered menacingly, and with that, he grabbed his wand, and his cloak, and with a pop, disappeared.
"Hello, Ms. Dursley. How are you?" Remus said mockingly, as the door creaked open.
"I'm alright, thank you. I thought you said you would bring him back at nine. It's only three in the afternoon." Petunia said, as she let him in, closing the door behind him.
"Well. Some things have come up, unexpectedly, and they've sent me back, to ask a few questions." Remus said.
"Well…" Petunia faltered under his gaze. "I wouldn't know much about that. It's m-my husband that does. H-he's not home, b-b-but I'm sure he'll b-be in l-l-lat-ter." Petunia stuttered.
"Tell me, how does the boy act at home? We wish to compare his behavior in different locations." Remus lied, trying his best not to snap her neck.
"Well," Petunia began, evident relief flooding through her. "He's a happy boy, but a bit of a trouble maker. You see, we took him in, because he had no where else to go, but he doesn't seem to give us any respect." Petunia stated, eyeing Remus with suspicion.
"I see. Can you define respect for me?" Remus asked, his hand brushing upon his wand in his pocket.
"Well. He never listens to what we say, hardly does what we tell him to do, and he's always harassing our little Dudley." Petunia said, with a fake tear glistening in her eye.
"We try all we can. We tried being gentle, and caring, we try being slightly harsh. We get him everything he wants, and he still mocks us." Petunia added in a fake hurtful voice.
"Tell me, Petunia. What makes you think-." Remus stopped, and whipped out his wand, pointing it at her neck. "What makes you think you can lie to me?" Remus finished, with a dangerous tone.
She gasped, turning a deathly pale.
"P-put th-th-that away!" Petunia shrieked, backing away from the tip.
"What have you been doing to the boy? Don't you dare lie, or that might as well be the last thing you do." Remus said with narrowed eyes, keeping a steady grip on his wand.
"I hardly d-deserve the b-blame. It's Vernon. He does all that to the boy." Petunis stuttered, backing away against the wall.
"Really? So you have no part in this scheme of his?" Remus whispered, eyes still narrowed, with fire burning behind his eyes.
"I…" Petunia began, but she stopped, covering her face with her hands.
"What? What do you do to him? If you don't tell me, I have plenty of ways to get it out of you." Remus spat at her.
"I-i… P-please, d-don't hurt m-me." Petunia said, as her knees gave way, and she collapsed at his feet.
"So, you wont co-operate? Alright then. Verumon!" He twirled his wand, and a hazy olive green mist shot out, engulfing Ms. Dursley.
"What have you been doing to Harry Potter?" Remus whispered in a venomous voice.
Petunia froze, staring blankly out at him, and then parted her lips and began to speak.
"The boy thinks he's better. Vernon takes care of him physically. I'm the one who doesn't feed him properly, and I'm the one who blames everything on him, even if I know it was Dudley." Petunia spoke in a monotone voice.
Remus faltered, letting his wand momentarily slip from his fingers, his eyes widening, before he composed himself and once again held his wand up at her neck.
"What does Vernon do to him?" He asked.
"Beat him." She said simply.
"With what?" Remus asked quietly, afraid of the answer.
"I don't know very well. He slaps the boy, and uses the belt on him also, but that is all I'm certain of. I also think he was cutting the boy at one point." She said, keeping a steady blank gaze on the wall behind him.
He felt his stomach do flip-flops, as he let his wand clatter to the floor, closing his eyes momentarily.
"That'll be all." He managed to gasp out, grabbing his wand and making his way to the door.
"Finite Incantatem." He muttered, and then as an after thought, sent a jelly legs curse at her.
"Maybe this will teach you to mess with me." Remus said. He narrowed his eyes, and pointed his wand up the stairs.
"I want all of Harry's stuff right now. Or your son will suffer." Remus spat angrily at Petunia.
She squealed, and tried vainly to get up, but her legs flopped limply to the side, refusing to move.
"Oh Dudley! Come out and play!" Remus called from the bottom of the stairs. A large figure came waddling to the edge of the stairs.
"No!" Petunia screeched, crawling up to Remus, using her arms.
"Harry's belongings, or he gets it!" Remus repeated.
Petunia cowered under his gaze, and squirmed over to a small cupboard under the stairs.
"Well? Go to Harry's room and get his stuff! Or do you not care for your son?" Remus shouted, bubbling with rage. It was very rare that he lost his composure to this extent, but he had had enough of this charade.
"T-t-this is his room." Petunia whispered, pointing at the small cupboard under the stairs.
"W-what? What did you say?" Remus asked venomously.
"I'll g-get his st-tuff. Just leave m-my family alone!" Petunia said, and she grabbed the walls, to try and steady herself, unlocking the cupboard door. She hastily grabbed the pile of clothes on the cupboards floor, along with an old toothbrush, a broken plastic horse, and other little things, before dropping it at Remus' feet.
"You will never, ever touch Harry, ever again. Do you hear me? NEVER!" Remus spat out, and with that, bent down, picking up all of Harry's stuff, and then turned and walked out.
He stopped suddenly, and faced the house again.
"The hex will wear off soon enough. Although, you'll still be unable to use your legs when your husband gets home. Oh! I almost forgot." He said. He flicked his wand, and with a pop, Dudley turned into a large frog.
Petunia fainted.
"That'll teach you to mess with me." Remus concluded.
He stepped onto the driveway, and starred at the Dursleys' new car. He smirked.
"I'm sure Vernon wont mind a brand new coat of paint." Remus said, and flicked his wand at the car, watching as a bucket of fluorescent pink paint spilled its contents on the roof of the car.
He smirked again, and with a pop, he returned to his home, clutching onto the small pile of Harry's belongings.
A/N: I'm not very good at being evil, but I had to do something. As for the slight OOCness on Remus' part, well, Remus has to be mad, I mean, Harry's being severely abused at a young age.
About the cutting, it wasn't what you think. It's not like he was being cut up with a knife, it was more of an accident. You'll found out soon enough…
OMG SO MANY RESPONSES. Yes, Remus is NOT poor. Honestly, His house is small but roomy, he's an 'average' person; not poor, not rich. Yes, Dumbledore will be appearing later, yes slowing the story down was intentional, yes Remus gains custody of Harry, and sues the Dursleys, and all the other things you expect!
Bujiana