Minerva sighed, "If what you are confiding in me are the truth to why Harry must live with the Dursley, then why didn't you tell me before?"
Albus smiled bitterly, "Why blame the dead when the living can carry it? I intended to take this secret to the grave, Minerva. The less know this, the better. And if Harry didn't suffer as much as he does, do you think it is fair for the boy to find out that it was his mother who condemned him to a loveless life? Granted that she does it with the best intend for both of her family, but the fact remained that Dursley would have made terrible guardian. Let her forever be the angel and I…the devil,"
She huffed, "You…foolish, foolish man!" She gulped, "So I supposed there are also reasons as to why you let a known Death Eater be a part of our staff?" Truth be said, she had never liked the idea of Severus on the staff and hold him in a professional distance.
Albus seemed to grow even older before her eyes, "Ah, Minerva. Do not think that this is a blessing for Severus. To him, Hogwarts is a prison. It may not be Azkaban but the man…he will die beyond the protection of Hogwarts,"
She stared at him, "You meant to say?"
"It is both a prison and a chance at life. True that he made the wrong choices. But no one and no one hurts the most other than Severus with the Potters death. You do recall how close he was to Lily, do you not?"
She scowled, "He was a nasty little boy,"
Albus nodded, "But there is a fragile heart behind that nastiness. I was too hard on him," He took a deep breath, "With Tom, I had tried to spare his feelings due to his unfortunate stand in society but apparently that kindness was something he took advantage of. I kept trying to show him the right path but he has chosen his own destiny, denying my effort. On the surface, he abides but beneath?" He shook his head, "And then when Severus came to Hogwarts, I decided to be harsh. I was wrong. Here is a boy who could use all the kindness the world could offer. My harshness toward him chased him straight into Tom's arms," He looked at the closed curtain, "With Harry I was contemplating what to do and how to treat him when he comes to Hogwarts. I decided that perhaps it is time I step back and watch him grow to be his own person. I had tried to meddle with the destinies of two boys and both of them turned their back on me. So who am I to shape Harry?"
He then laughed, "But it seemed Fate scorned my decision and decide that it is time I do meddle. The boy will need all the guidance he can get…and Severus will need to learn to see past his resemblance and his name to James,"
Minerva followed his gaze as Severus rushed out of the curtain with a list of potions in his hands, his cloak billowing behind him. She then noticed how Petunia shyly looked after him, her eyes filled with longing and secret wish. She then turns to Albus who watched the scene with a small smile. Minerva sighed, wondering just what did she do to deserve this man whose destiny was to meddle in the business of others.
She supposed it was also time for her to help him in his meddling…
Severus was fuming; this Petunia knows when she was escorted by a kind woman name Pomona Sprout to the Great Hall where everyone gets their meals. The tables were set like in a buffet and she took her plate before filling it with foods. Her stomach growled and she sighed, the weeks before Albus met her was rough. Vernon did not name her in his deed; in fact he named all of it to Marge, his equally terrible sister whose only grace was her love for equally nasty little dogs.
She know before long that Marge will ask for the custody of Dudley and she'll be damned if she allow the woman to get her claws on her baby. If his supposedly angelic father was terrible behind doors, she could only imagine what Marge will do when the public's eyes were blinded. She took a seat and at that moment Severus billowed into the hall, his familiar cloak billowing behind him as if he had grown great black wings. He has his usual scowl on his face, a face that she knew will light up into a smile the moment Lily came into his view, and took his plate before filling it with food. He came up short, stopping to a halt when he saw Petunia and the scowl deepened. Petunia wondered why only to receive her answer when he sat next to her.
She fought back the blush creeping up her cheeks and tries to hide it with a spicy choice of meal. She spied Severus as the man completely ignored her. It caused her to feel both sad and resentful toward Lily. She knew her sister was the beauty of the family and she was the apparently horse faced one. It had been her insecurity throughout her life.
Did he know Petunia was the one who saw him first? Did he know the reason why she knew where he came from that day he appeared at the park to confront Lily?
Petunia Evans had fancied the sour faced boy from Spinner's End for a very long time. The first time she saw him, she was smarting from the taunts of the boys and how differently they acted toward her sister whom they will shower with shy smiles and shy praise. She had run off with the blasted words that she will never find a boy who will fancy her nipping at her heels. She had hid herself beneath a hollow tree and cried her eyes out.
Then she heard someone else sobbing just above her. She had asked; her voice raw from crying, "Why are you crying?"
The sound stopped and a boy sniffed back, "Why are you?"
She sobbed, "Because I'm never going to marry because I'm so ugly and they even call me a witch!"
A pause then the voice came back, "Well…that's just mean. I mean, no one can be that ugly and witches aren't all ugly. Even that fat woman down the street got a nice husband and he's way better than my dad and she even only have one eye,"
She sniffed, "You're lying! You are just being nice to me so when you meet your friends you can make fun at how I had wanted to marry so badly!"
Another pause and the voice returned, "Why do you want to marry so much?"
"Because everyone else said only my sister will marry because she's pretty,"
He sighed, "Well, I'll marry you if it'll make you happy but I'm not pretty either,"
Petunia gasped at the implication that a boy had promised to marry her instead of his hint that he's not as pretty as the boys fancying Lily, "Promise?"
"Promise,"
"But…but how will I know it's you?" She has never seen him and how was she supposed to marry someone she didn't know?
Another pregnant pause and the voice replies, "Let's meet here tomorrow,"
"Okay…" But Petunia fell silent, afraid that he will see her and take back his promise. She waited and waited, wondering if she waited long enough she can see him before tomorrow. After a long time she heard someone climbing down and she waited with baited breath. She heard them moving away and she sneaked out, seeing a small boy with overlarge black sweater and inky black hair moving away from the tree. She followed him and hid when he looked at a fat woman with one leg and one eye. She muffled a gasp when an old man greeted her with a loving kiss. It was so obvious that they were so in love and Petunia wondered if he will love her just like that.
He sighed and kicked a nearby pebble with boat-like shoes and Petunia saw him for the first time. He then turned away and entered a shabby looking home. Petunia looked at the street name and memorised, promising to make herself real pretty tomorrow for their meeting. But it was all for nothing when he saw Lily's beauty…
Petunia bit back a forlorn sigh as she reached out for the pepper at the same time Severus did. His fingers barely touch hers before pulling back as though he had touched a flame. As for Petunia, she had freeze upon contact and waited for a word from him. But it never came. She held back a sigh of relief but at the same time hoping that he will say something. And here she thought she had gotten over him ages ago!
The stay at Hogwarts was interesting, but Petunia was a little spooked by the ghosts floating about and almost fainted when one walked right through her. But she can't help but be fascinated. The only thing she doesn't like was the librarian; Madam Pinch. Not only was the woman constantly eyeing her with suspicion, she was overbearing and annoying, always watching Petunia like a hawk whenever she visited the library for a book to past time with.
She also discovered the prejudice people had with Muggleborn or those with Creature ancestry and even the Creatures themselves were prosecuted! Frowning at the information, she concluded that the Magical Government was utterly corrupted. She could only hope that it was only in Britain or the Magical World was doomed to have Dark Lords rising time and again. Don't they even learn a lesson from their terribly troubled history? Apparently they don't otherwise they won't have Dark Lords rising and falling through the ages with a span of twenty to thirty years of peace between each rise.