A Tall, Dark Stranger
Harry pulled out the old battered soup pot under the sink and flipped it over, the raised handles keeping it from laying flat on the tiled floor. He climbed up on the wobbly, rusted thing so that he could reach the tap. Even still, he had to prop himself up by his ribs on the edge of the sink uncomfortably so that he could crane his neck to drink from the faucet.
Sometimes, drinking water helped, but after being home alone for five days, all I did was make his tummy ache even more. The clawing station in his gut just wouldn’t go away. With no one around to see he glared, balefully at the padlock on the fridge door. Uncle Vernon had even taken everything out of the cupboards and shoved it all in next to the milk, clicking the lock shut with a snap. He smirked to himself as he muttered, “No freak is going to steal from me while my back is turned.”
Harry sighed and tucked the makeshift step stool back out of sight. It would do him no good to dwell on what was out of reach. He could probably get away with stealing two or three more tomatoes off the back of the plants by the shed, but he still had nine more days until the Dursleys returned. He would have to wait a few more days before he could pick another of the small green tasteless things if he wanted them to last for the whole two weeks.
His stomach made another uncomfortable twist, and he decided to try to get his mind off it by getting some work done on Dudley's second bedroom. He climbed the stairs on shaky legs and opened the door. To his dismay, he found the room and utter chaos. Harry had just cleaned this room right before the Dursleys left, and had thought he could put this room off and just dust it before they returned.
But the room now looked as if a bomb had gone off.
Dudley’s new gaming console was still on, with the little computer chips for it strewn across the floor. Dudley’s new hockey set was out with the goal propped against the far wall. When Harry took a closer look, he could see that the drywall was dented all over from the hockey puck. Worst of all was the shiny new skateboard that Uncle Vernon had just purchased for him with the sign-on bonus for his new job. It now lay broken in half in the middle of the room. (Probably a casualty of Dudley’s increasing weight.)
Harry futilely hoped that Dudley would not point his pudgy finger at him when Petunia discovered the destruction, but he knew he would never be so lucky. Harry could all too clearly imagine the reaction Vernon would have. He could practically feel the bite of the leather and metal over his back. There would be no escaping the hiding he was sure to receive when they returned from Paris. Harry hunched his shoulders, and quietly began his work, knowing there was nothing he could do to avoid the punishment to come. Vaguely, he wondered if it would not be better for the hunger to win out, so he would not be around to face the consequences when the Dursleys came back from Paris.
As Harry cleaned, he unearthed a mostly emptied bag of jelly beans and a crushed bag of crisps from under Dudley’s pillow. Harry had to force himself not to just devour it all. Instead of eating three of the jellybeans, and takes everything else downstairs to stash in his cupboard, under the loose floorboard.
He had just gone back upstairs and started scrubbing at a grape soda stain in the tan carpet when he was startled to hear the chime of the doorbell. Harry immediately began to panic. They couldn’t be back yet! They said it would be two weeks! But Harry knew Uncle Vernon would lie, just to see if he could catch Harry doing something worthy of punishment. Although, he probably wouldn’t ring the doorbell first…
Cautiously, Harry crept down the stairs and peeked through the curtains with shaking hands. Outside, in the swelteringly hot July sun, was a tall man dressed head to toe in all black. He looked odd, draped in thick fabric that hung off him in a similar fashion to the white robes the choir often wore for Christmas mass. Harry wondered if Petunia would be more mad at Harry for ignoring a guest and letting someone so strange stand on their doorstep where any of the neighbors could see him. Or if he would be in more trouble for letting a stranger in the house without their permission.
The doorbell buzzed angrily again, making Harry flinch. The now-ingrained instinct to keep everyone around him happy won out over his natural caution. After all, angry Dursleys were always more dangerous than anything his instincts could warn him about. He hurried to open the door, his hands twisting in the overly large shirt he wore that hung down to his knees.
His anxiety mounted as he finally took in the intimidating figure. The man hadn’t looked nearly as tall from the sitting room window. A glance up revealed a long hawk-like nose and piercing black eyes. Those hard onyx pools glinted with a restrained fury that would even rival that of Uncle Vernon‘s in one of his most foul moods.
Harry immediately flinched and went back to staring at his shoes. “H-hullo, sir,” Harry stammered, his whole body starting to tremble. “I-is there s-something I-I can help you w-with?”
The man frowned, crossing his arms. “My name is Professor Severus Snape and I need to speak to one of your… relatives.”
Harry began to fidget, “Ah, um… M-my Aunt and Uncle are a-away at the moment. Can I t-take a message and have them call you when they get b-back?”
The man’s lips pinched even further, “ I’m afraid this matter is of the utmost importance. May I come in?”
Harry stepped aside quickly, not willing to argue with such an imposing figure. He knew there was nothing he would be able to do to stop him if he wanted to come in. Fighting Vernon had never done anything but make matters worse. Harry led the man to the sitting room where the professor sat draping the heavy folds of fabric over Uncle Vernon’s favorite armchair. Harry knew he should offer a guest of the house some tea, but everything they had was locked away. He would just have to push on and hope the man wasn’t offended. “Uh, a-are you a professor from my school, sir? I’m sorry, I’ve only been there for a year and I don’t know all of the teachers yet.”
“Not as of yet, but that is not why I am here.” The man (Mr. Snape) crossed his arms again looking uncomfortable, “ I would like to skip the pleasantries and get right to the point, Mr. Potter. I have recently been made aware that through a miscarriage of justice, you were illegally placed in your Aunt's care.”
Harry’s heart began to beat faster with hope. “You mean I don’t have to keep living with a Dursley’s?”
Obsidian eyes met emerald, “No, Mr. Potter. I’m saying you never should have been placed here to begin with.”
Harry’s smile lit up his face, “S-so I can leave? Just like that? Where will I go?”
Mr. Snape nodded, “If you like, you have a few options. The manner of your parents' death has made it more complicated, but if you don’t mind a temporary arrangement you can leave tonight.”
Harry frowned, “Why would a car crash make it difficult to find me at home?” he stared down at his hands twisting in his lap. “I-is it because my d-dad was the drunk driver?”
Heavy silence was all that greeted him.
Harry wasn’t sure what, but he must have done something wrong. Something probably bad enough for him to have to keep living with a Dursley’s forever. He hunched his shoulders, trying to make himself as small as possible. “I-I’m sorry sir,” he begged, “I d-didn’t mean it I-I…”
“Who told you that!” the man whispered, furiously. Harry glanced up to see the man’s face and regretted it instantly. Mr. Snape’s eyes were like chips of ice, glinting with such a cold fury that it made Harry shiver.
His eyes began to blur with tears as he tried to answer, “M-my Aunt,” he whispered hoarsely, “She… she said my parents were out drinking and d-didn’t have the good sense to call for a taxi. She s-said they crashed her car into the ditch…” She also liked to say that they couldn’t even die properly because they should have taken Henry with them. But the professor didn’t need to know that.
Suddenly, the lightbulb above them shattered.
Harry froze, staring at the broken fixture in horror.