To Have a Home

A Different Perspective

Chapter 2

A pulling sensation followed by seemingly endless spinning put Harry further into shock. The last time he had traveled via portkey was at the end of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and he was subsequently bombarded by memories of that horrific night as the pair landed directly outside the gates of Hogwarts. Harry fell to his knees and tried to catch his breath as his entire body shook.

A gentle hand placed on trembling shoulders went unnoticed as the frail boy struggled to take in the oxygen he so desperately needed. Finally, Harry let his head hang down while he took a few ragged breaths. The potions master crouched beside the young Gryffindor and kept his hand in the exact spot he had placed it moments before. His voice was low as he spoke in his student's ear.

"I am sorry Harry, the portkey was the most efficient method of travel. The Knight Bus would have been too much of a hassle, and would have taken much longer." The man explained softly.

Severus watched as Harry took a few more shuddering breaths, before all of his mental and physical energy ran out completely, leaving the boy to sag on the ground in a heap. He picked the much too light boy up off of the ground and carried him through the gates and up to the castle. It was alarming how easy it was to carry the raven haired teen, and he could practically feel the boy's spine and ribs through his thin, oversized shirt. A red haze once again bordered Severus's vision like a picture frame, but he continuously reminded himself that Harry needed him to remain calm.

The man chanced a look at his student as he trudged up to the school. The adolescent in his arms had a pained expression even while unconscious. Tear tracks stained his face and Snape took note of a few old and recent bruises that marred Harry's neck and cheek. The lightning scar still stood out prominently on the teen's face, a reminder of the first tragedy that befell the poor child. Severus remembered clearly the moment he had received the news that the Potters had perished at the hands of Voldemort, leaving little Harry amongst the devastating carnage. He remembered looking up at the sky and cursing every god and deity in existence, wanting nothing more than to join Lily in the afterlife. It was his unrequited love for Lily Potter, and his mutual hatred of James Potter that had fueled his initial resentment towards the Potter spawn.

He recalled spotting Harry for the first time in the great hall, and immediately loathing the fact that he looked like a carbon copy of the man that once tormented him, except for the eyes. The eyes that were so brilliantly emerald; the eyes that held the life and essence of a woman that was ripped away from both the child that possessed them, and the man that stared into the inquisitive orbs. Every time he watched the boy walk through his classroom door, or saw him walking through the halls while seemingly attached at the hip to Miss Granger and the youngest male Weasley, the Potions Master was plagued by strong feelings of enmity and disinclination for the boy. Severus Snape had always assumed that Harry had been doted on by his relatives; that the boy was living a comfortable life, being brought up to be a pompous brat much like his father. However, Severus realized that he had misjudged the teen solely based on his lineage.

Walking through the front doors of the castle, Severus wasted no time in making his way to the hospital wing. He knew that Poppy would be present, organizing her shelves full of potions and salves that he had brewed specifically for her use. Despite the time, Severus did not bother knocking as he entered the room with Harry laying limp in his arms. The Hogwarts matron turned around to the sight of Severus depositing the teen onto the closest bed.

"Severus! What in Merlin's name are you doing here at this hour? And with Mr. Potter?" The nurse questioned while retrieving some potions from a nearby shelf.

"Harry," the professor started, but found his voice suddenly halt in his throat, blocked by the emotion that threatened to come out. "Harry attempted suicide just a short while ago. His relatives have been abusing him for who knows how long, and he fell unconscious after we used my emergency portkey to Hogwarts." He informed.

Madame Pomfrey listened with rapt attention, her eyes widening as Severus explained what had happened. Her eyes drifted to Harry, who lay on the bed, as pale as the sheets he had been placed upon. The woman waved her wand, casting a range of diagnostic spells, and waiting for the wand to produce the results. A few moments later, a sheet of parchment, about as long as a child's training broom, materialized from her wand. Madame Pomfrey scanned the list of past and present injuries and other ailments, her blood boiling as the reality set in of just how much pain the young Gryffindor had endured over the years.

The MediWitch handed the parchment over to Severus with a sad expression, and the man began to read.

Patient: Harry James Potter
Age: 14
Place of Residence: Number 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey