Summary: The Dursleys' fear and hate of magic grows to a whole new level when four-year-old Harry arrives on the doorstep in a different state to which he left. Then the wards on Privet Drive alert Albus Dumbledore to an emergency … What will he find?

Rating: T

Disclaimer: My own take on the HP world. Deal with it.

Author's Notes: Sorry for taking so long to update, RL and my muse were being pains in the backside! But the good news it, I have a Harry ship: Harry/Daphne Greengrass! I'm fond of the major character/minor character thing at the moment. I'm also adding Terry Boot/Hermione and Ron/… someone (probably either Luna or Susan Bones) to the ship list. And I've worked out where they will come in and everything. FYI, this fic will go as far as Hogwarts fourth year at least.
I've changed the rating down one. I think I over-rated it before. The worst really is over till we get to Hogwarts, and then it's not worse than the books.

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Chapter Three

BRRIINNG!!!!!

"Whaa …!" Albus jumped violently, sending water everywhere. He'd been falling asleep. "Minerva? … Oh, damn." He climbed hurriedly out of the bath, slipping and falling in a painful position. "Ow!"

BRRRRRIIIIIIIINNNNNNNG!!!!!

"I'm coming!" he yelled at no-one in particular, scrambling to find his clothes. He'd left his robes in the bedroom. Grabbing his pyjamas, he pulled them on inside-out, picked up his wand, dropped his wand, picked it up again and ran into his living-room.

The bell was the one set for Privet Drive's wards. Albus inwardly cursed, grabbed his cloak and called Fawkes.

Privet Drive looked normal. There was no sign of Death Eaters, anyway. Albus pulled his cloak tighter round him and hurried up to Number Four.

No-one came to the door. He rang five times before subtly unlocking it and hurrying inside. The place seemed to be deserted.

"Point me, Harry," he whispered to his wand. It turned in his palm, leading his gaze to … the cupboard under the stairs.

Confused, Albus pulled the door open.

-----

Harry was very drowsy, and his mouth and shoulders hurt. He was curled up in the corner, where Uncle Vernon had positively thrown him. His remaining energy was rapidly fading as he fought to restrain a gnawing hunger.

The cupboard door was thrown open abruptly, and he winced as the light burned his skin.

-----

Albus couldn't believe his eyes, but he pushed aside his surprise and acted quickly. Harry was still, his breathing irregular, his face lightly creased in pain and his eyes closed. Albus dropped to his knees, reached out and started to gently ease Harry towards him. The small boy flinched at the touch but didn't resist it, and once he was near enough Albus muttered a quick cutting spell and held his now-bleeding arm up to Harry's mouth, making soothing noises as he did so.

It took a moment or two, but once Harry had got a taste he started sucking hungrily. Albus mentally calculated fast, and when he began to feel light-headed he eased Harry off him and clutched a T-shirt from the floor onto the wound.

"Easy, now," he murmured. Harry moaned softly and Albus secured the makeshift bandage firmly before gently lifting him up. Calling Fawkes quietly, Albus shifted Harry in his hold to free a hand and grasped the tail feathers.

Fawkes brought them to one of the Hogwarts dungeons. There were cobwebs round the walls and a single cockroach on the floor. Albus cast a Scourgifying charm, transfigured the bug into a mattress and laid Harry carefully on it.

Harry whimpered and Albus shushed him gently. He whispered a summoning charm and after a moment a bottle of some dark liquid flew through an open door. Supporting Harry's head gently, he uncorked the bottle and let Harry drink from it as he had with his arm, occasionally pulling it away to stop Harry drinking too fast.

-----

Severus stared at Albus as if trying to decide whether the man had finally lost it.

"Are you sure it's him?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Albus paused. He'd known Severus Snape since he had taught him in school, and if there was one thing Severus hated it was the idea that he had been wrong about something. For the last three years Severus had been grumping about why Harry – he called him "the Potter boy" – had been sent to people who would obviously spoil him rotten, leaving him absolutely useless against Voldemort when he returned. Albus admitted he had his own reservations about leaving Harry with the Dursleys, but for different reasons. Severus was a stubborn man and refused to believe that said family could detest a child – their own nephew – enough to lock him up and leave him to starve. What Albus hadn't mentioned yet were the suspicious bruises on Harry's arms and back – he decided it would be even harder to persuade Severus then.

"Let me get this straight. Harry Potter has been apparently attacked and turned by a vampire in the one place he was supposed to be safe, and then his loving relatives shut him up in a cupboard? I admit I'm not that fond of Muggles Albus, but really!"

"It's him," Albus said firmly. "The wards were tuned solely to his well-being, and there were several witnesses who saw a child fitting his description looking lost in the town nearest the place where the Ministry found the body, not long beforehand. What is so hard for you to grasp, Severus?"

-----

Harry was lying on something soft in a pleasantly cool room with no idea how he got there. Opening his eyes slowly, he saw a dark room, though he could see easily. The walls were damp, dark stone and the floor underneath the mattress was hard. Harry still felt very tired and rather weak. He was sitting up slowly when a door he hadn't noticed before opened, making him jump and back quickly into a corner.

Two men entered. From where Harry was, they looked almost like giants. One was wearing odd-looking pyjamas and had lots of white hair, a tired face with deep lines, and eyes that twinkled. The other man was wearing a black dress and a horrible scowl on his face. Harry pushed himself further back.

The twinkly man slowly knelt down in front of him so they were on the same level and looked Harry in the eye. This time Harry didn't pull back.

"What's your name?" he asked gently.

"H-Harry," the boy stammered. "Wh-who are you?"

"My name is Albus," the twinkly man said gently. "This -" he indicated the scowly man – "is Severus."

Harry nearly giggled. What funny names! He stopped himself quickly. The Dursleys didn't like it when he laughed. Looking round to make sure they weren't lurking in the shadows, he asked hesitantly, "Did you bring me here?"

Twinkly-Albus said yes, he did.

"Why?"

Scowly-Sevvrus snorted. Twinkly-Albus shot him a frown and turned back to Harry.

"You weren't very well, Harry. You needed to come here to help you get better."

Harry considered. Twinkly-Albus looked and sounded like he was telling the truth. If he brought Harry here to make him better, then he must be OK. Harry was about to consider trusting this man when he suddenly wondered where "here" was and his face fell. "Is this Orphage?"

"Pardon?"

Harry explained how the Dursleys threatened to take him to a place called Orphage whenever he was naughty. For a moment Twinkly-Albus frowned slightly, before his smile came back and he replied, "No, this isn't Orphage. This is Hogwarts. It's a school for special people."

"Oh." Harry paused. "Are you going to take me to Orphage?"

"No," Twinkly-Albus said firmly.

"Am I going home then?"

Twinkly-Albus and Scowly-Sevvrus shared a look before Twinkly-Albus said, "No, not yet."

Harry's spirits fell. "Oh. OK."

-----

The sun was bright and warm on Minerva's skin as she lay, half-asleep, on a beach towel over soft white sand. A cup of iced tea with lemon, a thick book of Muggle poetry, sandals that had been casually flicked off, a folded light cotton summer dress and a wizarding wireless were all clustered round the towel.

It was the first time in several years that Minerva had had a bit of time to herself and she was rather enjoying it. There was just one thing plaguing her: she couldn't seem to go for half an hour without thoughts of Albus and how he was getting on without her cropped into her mind. Every time she shook her head, scolding herself.

"He's a big boy Minerva, he can look after himself," she muttered crossly.

It was the fifth time this had happened in the course of the morning, and she pulled her book across her face and groaned. The next moment something dropped on her stomach, jerking her out of her nightmares of Albus' attempts to dispose of his junk mail. She had always done it for him because fire charms weren't exactly his forte, and his desk was highly flammable.

It was a letter. She tore it open, thinking of all the things she would do to her employer if he really had set his office alight.

My dear dear Minerva -

I am so sorry to have to interrupt your lovely time off (which you so richly deserve and should have been having yearly if it wasn't for your old coot selfishly wanting you all to himself) but an emergency has come up at home. Without going into details, I have been put in a rather awkward position of finding a home for a four-year-old just-Turned orphaned vampire and need a few of your wise words to help steer me in the right direction.

Love,
Your old coot

Minerva shook her head, bemused. If Albus went overboard with the humbleness, not to mention the flattery, it meant he was really feeling very guilty about something. She sighed, but it didn't take her long to decide that as much as she was enjoying her time off, she was spending most of it worrying about what the "old coot" was making a mess of. Maybe it would be better to take a short trip home – just to set her mind at rest, of course.

TBC …

Review Responses

lilyseyes27: Well, looking back, maybe that was a slight over-reaction … but maybe she was tired and it was the last straw in a long day? But I guess seeing wings on a four-year-old would freak anyone out … not sure. Anyway, she freaked out because she saw wings and fangs on him. (shrugs) I would.

Dark Phoenix in Flight: Yeah, writing young Harry is really hard. Snape will have a part but he won't be adopting Harry. I find those fics irritating because they all seem to be manipulative!Dumbledore, which I can't stand. Liking the concept behind a story but not any other peoples' versions is normally what drives me to write fanfic.

Thanks also to Kandra13, TheEveningStar, Cherri202, Silver Dog Demon, ImSoMMAD, backluck-ngprod, Shadows stalk during …, Xzavic, ddmato, Ragin' Fire, Caiuslover and adge9631 for reviewing!

If I've missed anyone out (or mispelt your penname) – SORRY!

Note about reviewing: Please, for the love of Merlin, do not review simply to tell me to update! I get it all the time and am sick of it. If you review, please say what it is you did or didn't like, and bulk out your review as much as possible. Make it worth the review alert, please! As always I love guesses where the story is headed and what I'm going to do next, and helpful suggestions are always welcomed. Don't flame.
Thanks.