"talking"

'thinking'

time change, character change

The War of Lemuria and the Prince of Avalon

Chp 3-A Grudging Respect

(Snape's POV)

"You!? You... who are you?" Vernon shouted as Petunia cowered behind him. They were making quite a scene, for a tall, pale, thin man had just appeared on the front lawn. Vernon was washing his car, and, luckily for him, no neighbors had seen.

"My name is Severus Snape. And you are the guardians of Harry Potter I presume?" Snape drawled.

"We are." Vernon began gruffly. "And we don't want his kind around here. So you can just go back to wherever you came from because he isn't any more special than my Dudley. He's misbehaved and is being punished, no visitors allowed. And no, you can't come back later; we don't want your kind around here." Vernon spat, glaring at the potions master.

"Well," Snape began coldly, "It really doesn't matter what you want or don't want muggle, I'm here to take Potter to Hogwarts."

'And if it weren't for your lack of respect for me, I might rather like your attitude. It's about damn time someone treated the brat like he deserves.' Snape thought.

Vernon's eyes bulged at the mention of Hogwarts, but he moved to quickly block the front door.

"He's not going! Summer isn't even over yet and the boy will have to suffer his punishment!"

'I like this man's style. At least Potter isn't treated like a king as Albus indicated. But still... something's not right. He should be able to hear us perfectly, and from the way he talks about his home life you'd think he wanted to come back. Why isn't he running out the front door with his things?' Snape thought glancing up at the window with bars on it.

"That's his room, correct?"

"What of it? The boy has a nasty mouth, and he gets the punishment he deserves." Vernon shouted again.

Snape simply dissaperated. When he reappeared he immediately noticed that something was wrong. He hadn't even heard Potter's expected gasp of surprise and dislike. Snape had been 

sent to check on Potter because his letters had been unusually cheerful for someone whose beloved godfather had just died. Dumbledore and the rest had grown tired of the obvious statements about how badly the child wanted to escape, but they planned on talking to him well and good when he returned to HQ. After all, he shouldn't abuse his power as prophesized killer of Voldemort just so he could escape his annoying muggle relatives. Snape knew the Order expected a little bit of trouble from the muggles, but he doubted they'd ever expected this. What Snape saw when he looked down was Harry Potter, lying on his side in a pool of blood. He gasped in horror.

'No... This cannot be... he can't be... no..' Snape could only stare.

Potter wore no shirt and strips and chunks of flesh were missing from his back and chest. Then Snape noticed the boy's wrists, both which had been slashed and were still bleeding. He came to his senses and did a quick closing spell that temporarily stopped the blood flow. Then, as gently as he could, Snape lifted the boy up, realizing just how light Potter was. As he walked to the door he saw that it was locked, and a food slot was the only opening. Snape looked on in disgust. He might not like him, but he would never do such a thing to anyone. Not even Potter.

"Accio Trunk! Accio wand!" He yelled. Right before he dissaperated Hedwig gave a soft hoot, and he saw the letters attached to her feet.

"Accio Owl!"

Then he was gone. He reappeared in the Hospital wing at Hogwarts, yelling for Madam Pomfrey.

"Hurry up Poppy, he's dying!" Snape shouted as he carried the boy to a hospital bed.

"ALBUS! COME QUICK!" the Hogwarts nurse yelled.

She put Harry in the bed and began rapidly muttering healing spells as she forced a blood restorative liquid down his throat. As the headmaster arrived Madam Pomfrey removed the sheet so that Dumbledore, who had just entered, could see the chunks of missing flesh from the boy's back. She cast another spell, and the open wounds healed themselves, fading away to scars. It was then that they noticed the many older scars covering Harry's legs, chest, and back. It was horrible.

"Albus...I can't believe...for how long…"

"Neither can I Poppy." The headmaster said, sitting down and resting his head in his hand.

At that moment the old fool looked every inch his age, but Severus knew it was an act to distract the nurse from her second question. He wasn't a spy for nothing.

"Harry never said a thing about this. Not to any of us. If we had know how he was being treated... I would never have sent him back there for so long." The headmaster sighed, already re-directing the blame, and to Potter no less, as Severus himself often did. Snape scowled, 

knowing the medi-witch was falling for it without even a glimmer of doubt in her head. Snape knew better than to trust so blindly, especially with Albus Dumbledore. No, Severus knew something was going on.

"Now, now Albus, it's not your fault." The nurse said, fretting about the room and bringing them all pepper up potions.

"I'll pass." Snape replied, paler than normal and absorbed in his thoughts.

"Severus, you need it even more than the headmaster and myself. You're positively white!"

He knew it was true. But he couldn't help it. While Potter had been bleeding to death, he had been thinking that he liked the way the muggles treated him. He had been pleased, because year after year Albus had reported that the Dursleys treated Potter like royalty. Severus had been glad to see it was not true. How could this have happened? How could Potter have endured so much pain without telling anyone? And what on Earth was Albus hiding? Why did the old man feel the need to lie about the golden boy's home life? These thoughts made Severus blanch, and he wondered if this wasn't the first summer the boy had been found like this.

As if tired of being ignored, Hedwig suddenly hooted for everyone's attention. She too had seemingly been deep in thought on the state of her master.

"What? Oh! Albus! The owl has notes attached to her legs!"

Dumbledore went to the notes, reading first his, then Ron and Hermione's. He shook his head and sat down with a thud. Not only had Harry been suffering physically, but emotionally as well. He let the others read the letters, knowing they'd want an explanation. Now they were all shocked into silence. Even Snape was in awe of what the boy had done.

And Potter was right, to a degree. Snape had never thought of him as anything other than The-boy-who-lived. He had always acted like Potter was just an attention seeking little brat. Then again, that's all Albus made him seem to be. The old headmaster said Potter had a cushy life at home, although he was a bit attention-deprived. He never told Severus to treat him poorly, but he never said anything against his treatment of the Potter brat either. But, like Severus, Potter had been forced into situations by the headmaster, and like Severus he hadn't been ready. They had placed a great burden on his shoulders, but they had done it too soon. Snape had always thought so, but he had assumed that Albus knew what he was doing. He had assumed that Albus had learned from his mistakes, mistakes made with Severus himself. It seemed that that was not the case.

'Damn! If only he hadn't gotten his stupid godfather killed! Then we'd all be fine now!' Snape thought, reverting back to his usual self and finding a way to blame Black and Potter.

"What are we supposed to do Albus?" Pomfrey asked. "Should we call in a psychiatrist from St. Mungo's?"



"Perhaps. Either way, we'll have to keep him here for the rest of the summer. Maybe we should invite some of his friends to keep him company as well, and to watch over him..." Dumbledore thought aloud.

"That's a good idea, but Ron and Hermione are both off somewhere with their families. Who else should we invite?" asked Pomfrey.

"Well, I loath to suggest it," Snape began, "But what about Remus Lupin? Potter always seemed fond of him... maybe he can talk some sense into the boy..." 'At this point, I want to find out who knew how much, and why nothing was done about it. This boy might be seriously damaged, and though I don't particularly care, I certainly don't want another dark lord on our hands…'. That's what he told himself anyway.

"That's a brilliant idea! Maybe he can cheer Harry up! He was Sirius's best friend after all, and a friend of the boy's father!" exclaimed Pomfrey.

"Yes, I agree. I shall send an owl for him at once." Dumbledore said as he left the Hospital wing for his own rooms.

"And Poppy? Watch Harry for me all right? Lupin will want to see him when he wakes up..."

"Yes, Albus." She said as she gave the teen some dreamless sleep potion.

He should wake up in about two days with the dosage she gave him. Poppy had seen the boy in the hospital wing often enough that she had gotten rather close to him, or at least she thought she had. He must have used a glamour to cover the scars…and she hadn't even noticed…this did not bode well for him, or for the wizarding world. She could only hope that Harry would forgive them.

1 day Later

(Lupin's POV)

When Remus Lupin got an owl from Albus, he didn't think much of it. His first thought was that it was another request for information about the Werewolves and their position in this war. When he opened it and read it, all color vanished from his face, and he let out a low growl as the hair on his arms and neck stood on end. This was his pup that those muggles had dared to mess with. Remus managed to calm himself down, for he knew he couldn't go to Harry in this state. He knew that the fragile child would misunderstand, and think that the anger was directed at him.

'Oh Harry…why didn't you tell us…I'll kill those bloody muggles, I really will. Maybe I can get Severus to help me with the legal shite, but I'm fairly certain that werewolves who kill to protect members of their pack are immune to punishment…something to look into anyway…' he thought as he prepared to apparate to the edge of the castle wards.



Once there Remus walked up to the castle doors at a quick pace, only slowing when he neared the hospital wing. His inhuman smell picked up the scent of old blood, and his steps slowed as he tried to prepare himself for the sight he knew awaited him. No amount of preparation would have been enough.

"Oh my!" Remus gave a gasp of surprise upon seeing Harry's condition, and then he fixed Madam Pomfrey with a stare and said "Tell me everything."

"He was beaten by his so-called 'family'!" Pomfrey muttered bitterly. "As close as I am to the boy, I should've noticed something. He's been glamouring himself for years Remus. Years! They must've been abusing him his whole life, there are injuries here as old as fourteen years and not just a few either. How could they…and there are signs of other things, things that only therapy or Legilimency might reveal. I'm worried Remus. The boy is emotionally unstable, and understandably so. I know you left after his third year because Albus asked you to, but he really needs you now, and not just for a brief visit. He wrote letters…you should read them." She finished softly.

Remus read them quickly, and by the time he was done he had tears in his eyes. This was Harry, his pup, the boy he'd wanted nothing more than to take care of since he'd met him when Harry was 13. Even then he'd thought that there was something off about the boy, but he'd chalked it up to the dementor's effects.

"Harry…oh my Harry…If I'd but known…I never meant to leave your side, but it seems even I overlooked your situation…and to think that I sent you back to those muggles willingly. Why didn't Dumbledore tell us there were problems? I know Minerva said they were the wrong sort to raise you…but I never thought much of it. Harry, when I taught you the Patronous charm, I did it for you, I never meant to indicate that you should teach it to others…I never meant for any of last year to happen. And after all that, I should've stayed with you this summer…oh pup, I am so sorry…" Remus whispered, a soft spatter of tears spilling from his eyes down onto Harry's bed.

Remus's hands were gripping the sheet so hard that his knuckles were white, and red little moons appeared on his palms. His shoulders were shaking and his eyes seemed to be battling between showing his rage at everyone who allowed this to happen and his sorrow that it had happened at all, and that he had not been there to help put a stop to it. But he was here now, and that was a start.

Everyone was so wrapped up in their own thoughts that no one noticed when the boy twitched. They didn't see the way his eyes moved under his eyelids, and they certainly didn't count on the dreamless sleep potion wearing off so rapidly. So when Harry began screaming at the top of his lungs Remus Lupin jumped, falling backwards, and Dumbledore, Madam Pomfrey, Snape, and McGonagall all came rushing in. Well, all except Snape. He sort of glided in. He would never rush to the side of the Potter child.

Being the last to arrive on the scene at Harry's bedside, Severus thought it prudent to speak up.



"Well, what's wrong with him?" he snapped, irritated at being called to the hospital wing in the middle of his brewing.

"I'm not entirely sure Severus." Madam Pomfrey replied. "The Dreamless sleep potion shouldn't have worn off yet, not for another 22 hours…At least he's still asleep. That must be one doozy of a nightmare though." She finished softly.

"Perhaps," began Dumbledore, "his emotions are too strong, and the potion simply could not block the strongest of his subconscious thoughts?" He asked Pomfrey raising an eyebrow.

"That is a possibility Albus, but it poses problems." Madman Pomfrey frowned as she thought of the possibilities.

"What sort of problems Poppy?" Remus asked tentatively, his fear for Harry plainly etched onto his face.

"Well, we can't wake him for one thing. The shock of waking from such a dream, especially in his state, could kill him." She said grimly. "For another thing, if his emotions regarding his situation are that powerful, then bringing him back to us will be difficult, if it's even possible. Lastly, if we do bring him back to us, he may never forgive us for it."

McGonagall gasped at this revelation, covering her mouth with her long fingers. Remus stayed where he was on the floor, surprised by the seriousness of the situation. Did Harry really have emotions so strong that a drought of dreamless sleep potion wouldn't work? And he was screaming. Was what he felt that bad? Had they caused the-boy-who-lived this much pain? By simply thinking the child who had survived Voldemort would have no trouble surviving life, and all it stresses, even though Harry had much greater stress, and had to handle more than any adult should? Was his pup's pain so great that it could literally kill him? And why, oh why, had no one ever noticed?

(Snape's POV)

Harry screamed again. Lupin stood up, smoothing Harry's raven hair back and attempting to gently wipe his forehead with a warm washcloth. Madam Pomfrey said there was nothing else that could be done, and all but Lupin and Snape went sadly about their work. Snape just stood there, silently watching over the boy, taking over when Lupin needed sleep.

He didn't know what to do. He felt bad, mainly because he had never believed Potter about his family. He had even mocked the boy in class once, saying that Potter must be getting soft, especially if he could defeat the Dark Lord as a baby, but couldn't even stand up to mere muggles as a teen. But he hadn't known... He had heard Potter say his guardians were "difficult to live with", but he had never mentioned being beaten like this.

'Yet we've seen the scars. They're long white jagged marks, all over his body. The boy has endured so much pain, and never once has he complained about it. Sure, he has said the 

Dursleys were difficult to live with, but that was always in reference to chores, and work they made him do. He has never complained about the pain, but taken it like a man.'

'But this... most full-grown men wouldn't even take this. Yet Potter stood on in silence, accepting the pain as just another part of his life. Tolerating it as best he could. No wonder the boy wanted to take his life! He had been silent for so long, afraid of what we would say if we knew... He just broke. Many adults would have broken long before this, yet he had still managed to apologize for disappointing Dumbledore!'

'After all that Dumbledore and the rest of the wizarding world have done to him, he still apologized for letting us down! Even before he allowed himself to break, he apologized first. As if he needed permission to break, to give in to the pain that must be running through his body and mind! I know I never liked Dumbledore's child champion, and I still don't... but... I... well; perhaps I've been a little too hard on him...' Snape thought with a grudging respect for the Golden Boy.

Well, that's it for this chapter! Hope ya liked! Tell me what you think. And I had to throw Snape's POV in there, it makes it a little more interesting and helps explain why Harry did what he did. Plus, it ties in later in the story. Review please! I live for reviews! And thankee all who do review!