Chapter Eleven – The Homecomings

Vernon and Petunia came home at last, terrified at having lost Dudley at the airport, and unable to fully enjoy their week-long vacation just before Harry would get home, and right at the time he got home. Yet another failed attempt to get him off of their backs, they noted when they Dudley working in the yard.

Wait – Dudley working in the yard? Harry not? Their eyes almost popped out of their skulls when someone, Harry, opened the door and Dudley waddled inside. He'd lost weight, they'd noted, and Harry had gained weight. They frowned, knowing immediately that something was wrong. Something was very wrong, this could only mean that someone else was in charge while they were gone. One of his lot.

They snuck into the house that night, the doors left wide open. Well, wide open for a muggle. They peered around, and Petunia audibly gasped as they heard their son's sobbing. They followed it hesitantly, only, to their horror, to find Dudley locked under the stairs just as they'd done to Harry. He was gasping, and had most definitely lost at least ten pounds over the course of a few days.

"Mum, dad, get me out of here," he pled quietly. "But, don't wake him up."

"We won't, Dudders. Potter won't be for the wiser," Petunia shushed, not knowing he meant someone that wasn't Harry. Vernon pushed her aside, and she looked around mortified, every sound echoing loudly in the night.

"Petunia, stop that racket," Vernon hissed, glaring at her.

"It's not me," she whispered, a lamp aloft. She turned, and gasped inaudibly at who was standing in the moonlight. It couldn't have been – but it was.

Severus Snape, the boy who had loved Lily so strongly, was in her home, torturing her son, and doing who knew what else! He was probably teaching her blasted nephew about how to become more of a freak, a monster, and probably had brought another owl with him to make a mess, and let that ruddy white one out as well. To make it worse, he'd probably started moving someone else in as well.

"You-You're!" she stuttered.

"Good to see you, too, Tuney. Drop it, Dursley," Snape growled, and Vernon dropped the key to the padlocks in shock with a yelp. Harry bounded downstairs, glaring at the two forms he hated most. "Potter, go back to bed. I'll handle this."

"Yes, Professor," he said obediently and crept upstairs so as not to wake up Kiru. He paused just long enough to quietly whisper, "Professor, what will happen now?"

"Rule Two, Potter," Snape reprimanded, and Harry darted up the rest of the way and into his room. Kiru dashed down, not knowing what was going on, saw the two muggles, and stared at her father. "Kiru, room."

"But, father-!" she stammered, and then fled just as Harry had from her father's glare.

"You're not allowed to attack us," Vernon said desperately. "They'll break your wands."

"Whoever said I was going to let you go?" Snape sneered. "No, I've got something much better in mind. I noticed how your son was overweight – much like yourself, you lazy whale of a lout – and decided that since Harry was in need of gaining weight, I would give them each other's lifestyles. Well, I also had a reason to let the boy know what he was doing was wrong and to punish him for it, as well as give me a good reason to enjoy myself. Your brat's been doing all the yard-work for a couple days now, it seems almost presentable, while young Potter is enjoying getting to sit around and study for school like a good boy. He's much happier with me since I at least don't believe in withholding food or beating someone half to death for a punishment."

"You-you-you!" Vernon spat, but Snape's wand lit at the tip, showing his coldest, and hardest glare yet. He was more than furious, he knew that, and he knew Lily would be, too. "What are you doing? Get out of my house, and take those freaks with black hair with you!"

Kiru's vision turned almost red with rage – she pulled out her Ocarina, and played the Nocturne of Shadow. "Lily Potter, I summon you," she whispered, and a hot draft brought a large a startled Lily Potter back to life. "Lily, I need you to go downstairs and help my dad. He won't let me, and I don't know if he's fighting Death Eaters or not."

"I'll be right back," she promised, and slunk downstairs. She recognized her clan on the way down from the voices alone, including that of Vernon. Severus had improved upon his glares, and it was sending chills up her – and the Dursley's – spines. "Tuney?"

"Lily? Impossible," the horse-like woman stammered. "You're dead!"

"Kiru," Lily grinned. "Is a musiclancer, a rare gift among witches and wizards that comes from mixing two different lineages from the heads of houses – she's a Gryffindor-Slytherin combination. She just so happens to know a song that can summon the dead. Speaking of which, Tuney, you did not do what I asked that day twelve years ago."

"Lily's right, Petunia," Severus glared. "Instead of housing Harry, you locked him under the cupboard, starved him half to death, and forced him to do slave-work for you tirelessly while you sat on your asses and got fatter than Horace Slughorn!"

"That wasn't nice, Severus," Lily grimaced. "To Professor Slughorn, that is. Now, what else have you two done that my best friend now has to reverse?"

"Nothing," Petunia stammered, but Snape was on a role now. He'd just managed to go back to getting a good night's sleep when these two had barged in. So, in a huff, he told Lily everything, and even pulled out a bottle of Veritaserum for good measure, just to scare the living daylights out of the Dursley's.

"I'm tempted to Obliviate them," Snape sighed at last after he finished his angry rant.

"Don't, Sev," Lily said softly. "Harry deserves a second chance. Need I remind you that you hardly treated him any better than they did until I reminded you that Harry isn't James."

"Which he has gotten with me," Snape said calmly. "And I have been working on getting along better with him. We haven't fought yet this summer, although I won't deny I was ready to strangle him on quite a few occasions."

"Really? Oh, Thanks, Sev," Lily gushed. "You have no idea how much this means to me. The fact that you're treating my son better than his own aunt and uncle did – especially considering the fact that you hate James. I forgive you."

Snape diverted his eyes to Lily for mere seconds before a loud bang was ensued, and his gut was on fire. Petunia had screamed, and Snape used Expelliarmus to keep the children from getting hurt. Chessie was immune to the magical wards since she helped set them up, and raced across the street immediately to help Severus. Lily vanished with a crack, one that she knew she couldn't fight. She'd lost all power; she couldn't fight her own sister, even if her son's life was at risk. Severus would get him out; that she was sure of. The question now was of this new woman, who looked about their age. She gasped in recognition at the Slytherin that was seven years her junior. She sighed, knowing that Severus had been badly hurt, and had informed the Muggle authorities. Dudley was let out of the cupboard, but was easily swayed into lying to cover up Snape's cruelty with a glare from Chessie and the Potions Master. He knew what would happen – the two could, and would, make his life a living hell, more so than it already was.

"You're under arrest for attempted murder," the cops said angrily to Vernon ten minutes later, and Petunia stared in shock as Dudley did nothing when they arrived. Snape glared, and Dudley opened his mouth to speak.

"That's not all he did officers. He's been beating my cousin for years," Dudley revealed, and Vernon's eyes bulged in their sockets as he turned a dark purple. "He forced my cousin to live under the stairs for his entire life until a couple years ago when he outgrew it, and had almost starved him to death. If my cousin's friend from private school hadn't broken my cousin's window, my cousin would have starved to death for sure. I was shocked when I lost sight of my parents, but I now realize what's going on. Dad's abusing my cousin, who's been living with us since his mum and dad were murdered, and if my cousin's teacher hadn't showed up tonight, my cousin probably would have died this summer for sure."

"Dudders," Petunia gasped, and Snape grunted in pain. Another officer put a hand on the wound, desperate to stop the bleeding, and the wailing of sirens could soon be heard once more. "I had nothing to do with this, I swear!" Snape grimaced and locked eyes with Harry, who stood stock-still on the stairs, Kiru hidden behind him. Harry smiled at Snape for the first time ever, and was mouthing words that had hitherto been what Snape thought was foreign to the boy: Thank you.

"Sorry, mum," Dudley whispered quietly as they led her away and the paramedics pulled up.

"Chessie, watch them," Snape said firmly as she watched him be loaded onto the ambulance. "Keep them safe, and out of trouble."

"I promise, Sensei," Chessie said, holding up her left arm. "I promise."

Just as the paramedics drove off, Harry and Kiru stumbled downstairs, not knowing what was going on. They'd heard the sirens, and the gunshot, and had seen the blood on the floor, as well as the paramedics and police's panicking. They knew that could only mean one thing – Severus was gone for who knew how long. The officers pulled the boys aside one at a time, and each one began telling their side of the story. Harry and Dudley explained from the beginning. Kiru from when her father had begun watching over them in honor of Harry's dead mother's memory. Snape was giving his witness as well, albeit very unhappily in an ambulance. He'd known that Harry came from an abusive home when Harry flinched a number of times in "Chemistry" class, and had a distinct inkling that more was going on in his home than they knew.

"Harry?" Dudley asked, the two of them now wearing prison uniforms. "What'll happen now?"

"Well, Big D," Harry said calmly. "Severus or Chessie will probably bail us out, if we're lucky. If we're not, then I'd gather that someone I know will. Trust me, we've always got our ways and our circles of influence, even where you least expect it."

"I believe you," Dudley whimpered, scared of the sight of the angry and pained Potions Master who had put his life on the line to protect Harry. "I was wrong. Your teacher's more devoted than I thought possible."

"Yeah," Harry muttered, not knowing where to go with this, and – to his shock – wondering if Snape was alright. "I didn't think he had it in him, either. As far as I've known up until now, he hates me with everything he's got. Now that I know why he was protecting me – it makes more sense as to why he acted the way he did, and still does."

Within days, the newspapers were slewing out articles about the perfect Dursleys and how their reputation was ruined, but never anything about their home, or even the anonymous teacher who had rescued the Dursley's poor nephew, or the boy's name. The article did, however, mention the fact that Dudley had betrayed his parents and told the officers everything he knew. The two boys had also put Marge in jail for her illegal dog breeding and fighting. The two boys were also incarcerated, but were due to be let out for cooperating with the law for so long and seeing as they had no control in the home whatsoever.

Snape heard the familiar beep-beep-beep of the hospital, and shook his head as he woke up from the drugs that the muggles had put into him. The medics panicked, and Snape gave them his best glare before hearing the familiar name of Hitoi brought up by the more terrified ones. Two people walked in, ones that he knew must have been Chessie's parents, and visibly scowled at the rest of the younger, less experienced, medics.

"Ah, you must be Mr. Snape," the old woman smiled gently. "We'll take this one, kids. Go tend to the others who need you. He won't be giving Junketsu and me any trouble."

Snape had to suppress a laugh – a man whose name meant 'chastity' had no chance of earning his respect anytime soon. Still, the other medics left, leaving him alone with the elderly couple.

"It's alright, young man," Junketsu chuckled. "I'm used to it from those who understand Japanese. Go ahead and do what you need to do – we can tell you're like our daughter, Chessie. You're her new neighbor, if I'm correct."

"Yes, sir," Snape grunted quietly. "Thank you." With a slight bit of concentration, he focused and willed the bullet to go to the entrance so they could get it out of him cleanly. The male medic did so, and Snape was soon flicking his wand at his internal organs that had been damaged.

After about twenty minutes, his magic ran out, but it had done wonders for his health and sanity. The bullet had ruptured a kidney, and even lodged itself inside him. He was tired, yes, but it had been well worth the extra effort. He was well on the road to recovery, and trusted the two medics enough to stitch his wounds shut. He would apparate to Poppy or – crazier yet – Granger, for help. Either them or Molly, and the last one on his list was Granger, with Poppy first on his list. He was almost back into the deep waters of slumber when an angry Lucius Malfoy barged in – no doubt having gotten word through Kiru's uncanny fire abilities with the Bolero of Fire. Lucius looked at the potions master, who was saluting mockingly, before his hand flopped down tiredly. Lucky for these two muggles, they didn't know what the dark mark looked like.

"Severus you," Lucius began, but the old woman shook her head. "You're the parents of a muggle born?"

"Yes, our daughter is a witch," the old man repeated as he cleaned his tools and put them away slowly. He was wary of leaving the two wizards alone – hell knew what two would do, especially from the rumors he'd heard of the Malfoy's.

"I see," Lucius said tartly.

"Potter's aunt and uncle," Snape growled. "The brainless whale shot me with a gun. Believe me, Lucius, I won't make the same mistake twice. Even if it was on orders to do so, he can forget it."

Three days later, Harry and Dudley were finally allowed to go home. Chessie was there, and so was Lucius Malfoy. Strangely, Arthur, Ron, and Ginny Weasley were also there, and there was a wary truce amongst the two men. Draco was more concerned for Kiru, who were both visiting Snape in the hospital. Ginny and Ron rushed up to Harry as he got home from the cops, who were standing appalled. Kiru had been in charge while her father was gone, and this new neighbor had been kind enough to not only help that night, but well into the next week, even rallying a few of the children's friends from school to help calm them down. Snape, however, wasn't pleased with Draco's report.

"Sir, Weasel-bee is at the house," Draco sneered at last. "It was that Chessie woman's idea. She said it would be better for the boys if they had someone to look forward to when they got home. Three Weasley's – the father and the youngest two – are there, and father is as well with Chessie."

"Yes, Lucius visited me," Snape grinned. Kiru was at the window, crying silently. "Come now, princess, I'm alive and almost recovered. What's wrong now?"

"I'm scared, daddy," she sobbed. "I'm scared of what will happen when they come back. We won't be of age, and it's impossible to keep an eye on two muggles, and not hex them. What will we do?"

"I've been thinking about that," the potions master admitted. "But I have a feeling you won't like the idea that I had in mind. Kiru, how objective are you to getting a new mother?"

"As long as she's not violent towards either of us, I don't care," Kiru replied truthfully. She'd never had a proper motherly influence before McGonagall, and even then she'd been changed hands so often between female aurors it hadn't even been funny.

"I see," Snape said simply, plotting his next move. He'd have to find out how Chessie would react – and how to get a bigger living space with more rooms. With both a witch and wizard of age in the house, they could handle twice the trouble in the same amount of time or less.

"Severus," Lucius greeted warmly as the Potions teacher walked slowly up the driveway. Kiru and Draco had visited him, and he'd been dispatched early for good behavior and a speedy recovery. But the kids could all tell that he tired easily, for by the time he reached the house, he was breathing slightly heavily. He was sweating before he even reached the kitchen, and Ginny shot up from her chair – which was nearest to the doorway – to make room for the exhausted professor. He plopped down, breathing heavily, but nodding thanks.

"Severus, are you alright? How's the bullet wound?" Chessie asked, and the Weasley's eyes widened.

"Yes, Weasley, bullets come from guns, which are the muggle version of a wand," Snape snapped before they could even start. "Guns shoot bullets and other projectiles at over one hundred kilometers or so an hour – and it's not fun to get one in you. I've got the hospital bill to prove it…"

"I'm so sorry, Professor," Ginny whispered, backing off. Ron opened his mouth, but closed it again, not sure what to say to his most hated teacher.

"Professor," Harry said as he and Dudley walked in. The two raven haired wizards looked at each other before embracing, one delicately so as not to hurt the other. "Thank you for saving us. We owe you our lives. Well, and I owe you my freedom."

"You know why I did it," Snape chided, jabbing his lightning shaped scar before falling back onto the chair. "Confound it all, I hate this stupid injury! How long will this take to heal?"

"The medics said to take it easy for a few more weeks," Kiru said, coming up to her father's side with bandages. "That, and change out the bandages every so often."

"Seems simple enough," Snape frowned. Something was missing – ah yes, the third member of the dream team wasn't here. Thank Kami for that, but he'd still rather have the redhead boy out of his house. It was his now, wasn't it? "Potter, what are the legal rules of custody?"

"Um, abusive parents go to jail and the children go to the next of kin," Harry answered slowly, knowing what he wanted to know. "But, you've already got custody of Dudley and me, sir. I doubt the police would argue with you. We just tell them that my aunt and uncle had gone away, and you adopted Dudley and me since the newspapers pronounced them dead. If they ask questions, just say that you were my mum's best friend, or heck, call yourself my godfather if you need to. I doubt anyone would take both me and Dudley back in."

"If it's all the same to you, Harry," Dudley said quickly. "As overprotective as your teacher is, he scares the shit out of me."

"He does that to everyone, Big D," Harry retorted. "Trust me, even the medics who were trying to help him were terrified of him, and that was with a bullet killing him."

"Dunderheads," Snape shook his head with a smirk. "It was quite satisfying to scare them into shitting bricks when I woke up from their muggle drugs. Pah, they thought it would keep a wizard asleep, but I got the last laugh when two Muggles walked in with a daughter who's a witch. A certain witch in this room."

"You met my parents?" Chessie panicked, and Snape couldn't suppress a small huff of amusement as she blushed crimson. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought they had," Snape shrugged. "Besides that, Kiru was occupying my time by panicking left right and center. I swear she's as protective of me as I am of her. A pity she can't channel that energy elsewhere when another Slytherin is around…"

"Dad!" Kiru yelled in shock, blushing crimson just as Chessie had before her. Draco had also averted Snape's gaze and had taken a sudden interest in their backyard, Harry noted.

"You like him," Harry realized. "Kiru, you like Ma-Draco, don't you?" she blushed deeper.

"Guilty," Ron grinned, suddenly noticed. "Oi, Malfoy's blushing, too!"

"I am not," Draco snapped, turning to show that he wasn't flushed. Yes, he was embarrassed, but he had a grip on himself more than that. "You lying, filthy…"

"Draco," Snape warned, and the young Malfoy clamped his mouth shut. "Thank you. I do not need another blood bath in my house, most especially so soon after the last one that nearly killed me."

"Well, Harry, I'm glad to see you're in capable hands," Arthur said standing up, unable to take the tense extreme hatred-filled surroundings any longer. "And I'm also pleased to see that you're recovering well, Severus. Ron, Ginny, I think we best leave – before we do more harm to Professor Snape than good."

"Bye guys," Draco sneered, and Snape smirked. He would always prefer his little snakes over those Gryffindor brats any day of the year at any given time. Harry raced out, probably to talk to Ron and Ginny about the mudblood, but had raced back once the familiar crack of apparition was heard.

"Well, we'd best be leaving as well," Lucius admitted. "It's a shame we couldn't stay longer, Severus, but I feel it would be better for your health if you got some more rest. I'll be sending a house elf to help you until you have made a full recovery."

"Thank you, Lucius," Snape said with a nod. "That is most appreciated – although I daresay we need to leave some tasks up to the muggle, still."

"But of course," Lucius grinned evilly. He frowned – Potter had freed Dobby, which other house elf was the unhappiest? He sighed before apparating back to his home to give Narcissa the good news of Severus' triumph. He could also tell Draco was heading to his room to write a nice, lengthy letter to Kiru.

"Dad," Kiru said at last. "What'll happen to the Muggles?"

"Who cares," Harry laughed. Just then, another resounding crack was heard. "Oh, now who?"

"Harry?" they heard Hermione knocking frantically from behind the front door.

"Severus?" a worried Professor McGonagall joined in.

"Don't you dare," Snape mouthed, but Dudley did anyways, Harry close behind.

"Harry!" Hermione squealed hugging him as Dudley backed off. He'd gotten better at being able to move around now that he wasn't so fat. Well, he was still fat – just not as fat, and was therefore able to move a little more easily. "I thought he weighed more than this from your description!"

"I did, before your teacher got a hold of me," Dudley stammered, to which Severus slammed a book down onto the table, scaring Dudley into sitting obediently on the couch. Kiru raced downstairs, only to laugh profusely at Dudley's wetting himself again. "It's not funny!"

"At least I protected you from the law, boy," Snape retorted coldly as he slowly made his way out to the door, leaning on a cane for support. "I could have let you go to jail for beating, Potter, too, you know."

"Sorry, sir," Dudley muttered, and Harry moved aside for the two girls to come in. Snape was relieved that it was Minerva who'd brought Hermione – anyone else and the know-it-all would have driven him batty.

"I saw that, Severus Snape," Minerva grimaced. "Stop mentally attacking my lion cubs."

"Stop attacking my snakes," he retorted, heading over to sit on the nearest chair. He sighed, more than happy he was home, but also exhausted. "We mustn't touch what isn't ours, Granger."

"Sorry, Professor," Hermione said quickly, putting her hands behind her before stopping at one of the photos. "Sir, who are these?"

"Ah. The one with the four boys in it – as I'm sure you'll recall, Minerva – are the Marauders. Remus Lupin is the thin one, aka, Moony. Padfoot is Sirius Black, the one with long black hair. Potter, Sr, was Prongs, as you can guess. I think you know who the last one is," he said waving his hand. "As for the next frame – that one was of Sarabella, Lily and I in our fifth year, just before Lily and I had gotten into an argument. One that lasted well beyond her death, I'm sorry to say."

"Yeah, but she apologized. Right, dad?" Kiru asked. "That night that the Dursley's broke in and shot you, the one that I brought Lily back to weaken them – didn't she apologize?"

"Yes, Kiru, she did," Snape said simply. "We both apologized. The next picture over – you'll have to ask Potter that one."

"That one's of me, mum and dad, taken right before they were murdered," Harry told her sadly, his green eyes confused in the photo and he started crying as an infant from the flash. "Professor Lupin gave me that photo. He'd had a copy made to put back in his album, but he gave it to me to let me know that my parents weren't killed before they failed to let the world know I was there."

"Wow," Hermione murmured. She giggled at one of she, Ron, Harry, and Ginny in this most recent school year.

"I try to keep that one up to date," Harry smiled. "And I'm not the only one. Take a look at the next one."

"Is that – Kiru and Malfoy?" Hermione asked, and Harry laughed before nodding. "How? When? Why?"

"That's my godson you're insulting, Granger," Snape warned wearily, taking his eyes off Minerva for a split second. He snapped them back onto her, and she scowled.

"Honestly, Severus, I'm not going to hex you," she snapped, and the Gryffindor teens laughed. Dudley was amiss in all this, not knowing what to do. "Severus, how did you do it?"

"What, the muggle? Same thing I do with the students," he smirked. "It's quite fun, truth be told, with less limitations on what you can and can't do."

"Professor!" Hermione shrieked, startled by a large raven that swooped in. Snape held up his arm, and the raven landed with a letter on its leg. "You- use a raven?"

"Your point?" Snape retorted, looking at the contents. "Ah, Albus finally wrote me back. It took him long enough, I daresay. I sent him the blasted letter as soon as I was allowed to write in that blasted hospital. I swear I was tempted to write in my own blood, and threatened them to give me pen and paper before I did so."

"Typical," McGonagall shook her head. "Severus, what is it?"

"I wrote to him about the issues I'd run into with custody," Snape replied, scanning the letter. "Hm, it seems like he doesn't give a ra- snake's tongue. What, it's better than cussing in front of a first year."

"I still don't approve of it," McGonagall snapped angrily.

"I never said you had to," Snape said as his vision blurred slightly before he slowly fell into the dark waters of slumber, with just enough time to mutter out a few choice swear words.