Chapter 1: A Very Large Power Surge
Harry lay curled in a fetal position as the waves of pain washed continuously over his body. His uncle Vernon had really done a number on him this time. It wasn't his fault that magical maturity happened the few months before a wizard's seventeenth birthday. He let out a small whimper from the next wave of pain that hit not knowing that his Uncle was still in the room sitting in a corner waiting for him to return to consciousness.
Vernon did not believe that lesson was not being learned that he was trying to teach if Harry was not even awake. So he waited quietly. His freak of a nephew had managed to spread his disease to his cousin, and the boy would not go unpunished. Finally, the boy whimpered and alerted him that he was awake. He took up his favorite weapon a choice an old fence board that they replaced earlier that summer. It had several nails that used to show as rusty, but now they were covered in crusted blood from previous use. Yes, the boy will pay with his life, and hopefully his curse will leave my son.
Malfoy Manor – Scotland
Lucius Malfoy waited patiently in the apparation room for Severus to show up. His best friend and his son's godfather was coming over for dinner that afternoon. There was something off with him lately; a kind of extra cloud of melancholy hanging over him that was not a part of his usual sullen demeanor. Dinner today was his way of seeing his friend and finding out if there was anything that he could do to get his snarky persona back.
The sound of a pop broke him out of his thoughts with the arrival of a non-smirking Severus Snape. They quickly embraced, and moved out of the tiny room into the manor proper. As they settled into Lucius' study a house elf popped in and served their customary pre-dinner glass of wine Draco entered the room reading one of his schoolbooks, and trying to decide how to phrase the question about the spell he was reading about. Lucius cleared his throat and Draco's head popped up. He sighted his godfather and immediately moved to give the man a hug in greeting. Severus asked his godson about his summer, and what he had been up to lately with his friends. The conversation was what it normally was, and soon time flew by and a house elf was there to tell the men that dinner was ready in the dining hall.
Dinner was delicious and everything seemed to be normal. There was talk about what was happening in the wizarding world, and what Draco expected to get on his O.W. L. s. It wasn't until Narcissa excused herself, and Lucius sent invited Severus back to his private library that he turned his attention to finding out exactly what was bothering the potions master.
Privet Drive
The board came down fast again and pierced his back; a scream erupting from his lips and quietly fell into begging his uncle to stop. Harry thought that he would be used to the punishments by now the summer had not started off very well...
Flashback
The ride from King's Cross station was made in total and complete silence. Dudley didn't even make any of his usual comments about being hungry and needing a snack. At Privet Drive everyone trooped into the house. Vernon carried Harry's trunk inside to his room just in case some of those weirdoes were watching the house already while Harry carried the cage and his owl. Harry was then told to come down stairs so that the family could have a little talk about what was going to happen that summer.
It was decided that instead of Harry doing a lot of chores around the house that summer he would help Dudley with his summer homework, and training for his boxing. He would still be doing most of the cooking over the summer, and also the gardening but that was it. If there were no complaints then he would get plenty of food, and no one would bother him this summer.
The next day Dudley started a new version of Harry hunting instead of Harry hiding away from him he was to just run and keep out of reach of the punching combinations that he was doing. Harry learned quickly that the weight his cousin had been loosing over the past two years playing the sport had really increased his speed. It took a day or two, but Harry found a nice pace that worked out well for his cousin's needs. That is not where the trouble with Dudley came from. It was Dudley's summer homework. Dudley had no trouble with his math homework in fact Harry could tell that it was more advanced than what a normal guy in Dudley's year would be taking. He figured out that the reason Dudley's other grades were so low was because he couldn't read.
Dudley told him that he couldn't tell his parents they wouldn't believe him anyway, and for him to do the other subject assignments for him. Harry knowing that this was a big problem and that Dudley needed help made the mistake of telling his Uncle Vernon first. That was the first time that Vernon had punished him that summer. He called Harry a liar and threw him to the floor hitting him repeatedly with the belt that he had on. After he was finished Vernon told Harry that his son's homework had better be done before the summer was over, and that if he was telling the truth then it was his fault and that he better fix it.
Dudley would not cooperate though with the reading lessons though and Vernon making sure that Harry was lying had his son tested by a professor friend he had. He was quite surprised when he found out that the little freak was indeed correct, and that his son could read, but not beyond the kinder/ 1st level. A tutor was hired to come and teach the freak to read for it would not look good if it came out his son could not read well. In turn the freak was to use the same methods that he learned from the tutor on Dudley. Vernon required Harry to work with Dudley each day for four hours on his reading, but did not take away any of the other chores that he was required to accomplish.
The next time Harry was punished was the day he was supposed to cut the grass in the front and back yard, and pull the weeds form his aunt's garden. The chore usually took up most of the day and Harry figured that Dudley's lesson was more important so he decided that he would do the lesson first, and work through dinner to get the yard finished. When his uncle returned home and saw that the boy was still working on the yard he was furious. It wasn't like the boy had a lot of other chores to do. He went inside and had dinner with his family first. Dudley it seemed was making progress and Vernon was very pleased about this. It still did nothing to cool his ire at the fact that the boy had neglected his chores until later. Just s they were having their pudding the boy came inside, and went to wash up in the sink. Aunt Petunia pointed to a cheese sandwich and a glass of water that was sitting on the counter. He gratefully thanked her before wolfing it down all the while not realizing that Vernon was sending him a look of pure evil.
While his aunt and cousin went upstairs to prepare for bed after dinner. Vernon caught the boy unawares just as he was starting the evening dishes for his aunt. (She claimed to not be feeling well that night and Harry was stuck doing the dishes). One moment he was scraping the dishes, and the next he was on the floor trying to protect his head from the incoming blows his uncle was levying on him. Vernon reprimanded Harry that this beating was a warning and any other time he came home to see that he neglected to get his chores done in a timely manner that the punishment would be much worse. After that Harry started incorporating Dudley's lessons into whatever chore was left for him that day.
Though this reason for the beatings was pretty much taken away from him Vernon found that it was a wonderful way for him to release the stress of the day. So Harry learned early on after that his punishments were not always because he did something wrong, and that made things even scarier for him.
There was something wrong with Aunt Petunia early in the summer she would unexpectedly get very tired and want to take naps and go to bed early at night. Though as the days passed she would do some very strange things and could not explain why. One day while doing laundry she poured bleach on all of Dudley's Smelting things, and on another day she left the house in nothing but her robe to go to the grocer. While Harry had no control of his aunt and the episodes she was having he found his uncle punishing him for them, and not trying to get his aunt the help she needed.
End of Flashback
It was then that his accidental magic started going wild even when he was not currently in the room. It never occurred to him that it just might not be him doing all of it. Dudley as he was getting more proficient in reading it seemed that he was becoming less muggle than what he appeared. Vernon caught on that day because he had denied Dudley of his past time of Harry Hunting and while throwing his fit the small figurines his mother collected started to rise and swirl behind him. Dudley was greatly shocked when his father hit him across the cheek, and sent him to his room. Vernon then went and found Harry somehow the freak was spreading his disease, and he was going to put a stop to it.
The shock of this attack on Harry was very surprising to him. He knew that his chores were done, and that he had already had his normal daily beating that day. His uncle kept mumbling as he was swinging the different tools he was using to punish him. Harry thought it sounded something like not going to happen to his family, it's a disease, normal we're normal, and get rid of the freak. It was then that he knew that his uncle was going to kill him, and someone else in the house was showing signs of magic.
Malfoy Manor – ScotlandOnce Lucius and Severus were sitting comfortably in his study with their selected evening drinks Lucius approached the subject of his semi-depression and how it was affecting the others around him. Severus wasn't a person to be forthcoming about his feelings, and it took a while and a lot of Lucius's fine scotch to finally get a hint of what was bothering the surly man. It also took a last night visit from Draco; he had come in to bid the men a goodnight. The look of longing that crossed Severus' face was the most telling emotion he had that night. After Draco left Lucius broached the subject of how wonderful it was to have a son, and how smart his son is.
All Severus could do was nod and agree while his face became more and more sour. He didn't catch on that Lucius was baiting him until he saw a similar glint in his friends' eyes that could rival Dumbledore. It was then that Severus confessed that he wished he had a son or someone who could carry on the Snape name. Even though he found most kids to be annoying and bothersome there was just something missing from his life and maybe just maybe it could be filled with the fulfillment of family. Of course he also added that he did not have time to find a pureblooded witch that fit his standards, and then courting and marrying her. He shuddered at the thought of it though was hard for him to process. The toughest part was to find a witch that would not mind the fact the he was indeed gay, and the marriage would be in just name only. Snape's did not have bastard children. It was just something that was going to have to wait until things in their world slowed down.
Lucius laughed out loud of his friend predicament. He let spill about the innocent little joke they played on him when they were new recruits for the Dark Lord. He also told him that all he had to do was to find a witch that he found acceptable, and pay her to carry his child. Severus just blinked up at his friend. There was no way in the world that he would have ever thought of taking the option Lucius had just offered him. Lucius also told him that he had left very strict requirements that people would have to have to qualify for using his deposit and that more than likely no one had ever met the requirements that he outlined.