Chapter 18: A Talk with Uncle Sev

A Talk with Uncle Sev

The next morning, the Golden Trio made their way to breakfast. They made it just in time to hear Mrs. Weasley's howler. Everyone had a laugh at Ron's expense. No one was having as good a laugh as Draco was, considering he had told Weasley that taking the car was a bad idea. However, that good mood vanished as he received his own letter from the owl he recognized as his godfather's.

Draco,

Come to my office after class. We have a long overdue conversation that must take place.

Severus

If the situation were not so grave, Draco might have laughed at the stereotypical brevity of his godfather's note. Yet, he knew that he would have to decide soon whether or not to betray Harry's trust. Harry was his friend, and had asked him not to tell his godfather the truth. Although, at the same time, it was in Harry's best interest that he go to his beloved godfather and tell him about Harry's uncle, and the lack of food, and the cat flap, all of it.

He was still deciding when he arrived at his godfather's office and was about to knock. Was it really betraying Harry's trust to do what was in his best interest? Draco decided he would tell Severus the truth as he knocked on the door and heard his godfather intone, "Enter."

Draco gulped. He actually did not know if he would get a word in edgewise. This seemed like the beginning of a lecture, not a conversation. Draco walked over to his godfather's desk and sat down in the chair directly in front of it. Severus was standing across from the boy, staring blankly at him.

"What were you thinking?" Severus asked Draco, eyes narrowing. Draco scrunched his nose and averted his eyes.

"Which time?" Draco asked, thinking over the various things he had done since the last time he had talked with Uncle Sev. Severus sighed.

"The time you decided to kidnap Mister Potter and take him to your home, where your Death Eater parents live." Severus clarified. Draco worried his bottom lip.

"Uncle Sev," Draco started. "If I told you I thought someone was being abused, would you be able to do anything? Would you believe me?"

Severus was taken aback. What could this possibly have to do with why he had taken Harry Potter from his home? He thought for a moment.

"It would depend on the situation and what you consider abuse. If his parents verbally abused him, there would not be much we could do. If they abused him physically, I would have to report what you told me to Dumbledore. He would take it from there, usually. The ministry would be contacted and the child most likely taken from their home." Severus explained.

"What if I know Dumbledore won't do anything for the student?" Draco implored. Severus quirked an eyebrow.

"He has to. It's the law." Severus contradicted.

"I think he has ignored the problem for years." Draco butted in. Harry had told him once last year that the squib, Arabella Figg, had watched over the Dursley situation for years, had been in close contact with Harry, but nothing ever came of it.

"What makes you think that?" Severus pushed. He was becoming concerned. Who could Draco possibly think was abused that Dumbledore would ignore? Draco took a deep breath.

"I know for a fact that Harry Potter is abused." Draco admitted quickly.

"What would possibly make you think that?" Severus asked him, incredulously. He was about to say there was no way Harry Potter could be abused, when he remembered Harry admitting to living with Petunia. But Petunia would not stoop so low as to abuse her own nephew, would she?

"He used to live in a cupboard under the Dursleys' stairs. I saw it for myself. There was a little, childlike drawing that announced it as such. The handwriting suggested Harry was no more than five years old. They had four bedrooms upstairs that I saw when I went to get Harry." Draco paused for a moment. "That's another thing. When I came to get Harry, he was limping and had bruises all over his face. I had to get the house elves to fix him up right." That was a lie. Draco had done it himself before going to bed that night.

"He could have had a run in with the stairs or a door." Severus suggested lamely. This did not sound good for Lily's son.

"When we met at Madame Malkins, she took off Harry's shirt. He was covered in scars and bruises-old and new. If you look closely at his right hand, there are a few fingers that look broken and healed improperly. When I asked him about it, he told me his uncle got frustrated." Draco added. Severus motioned for him to continue. "During the summer, I wrote to Harry and he told me not to worry if he ended up getting back to me a little late. He told me his uncle got frustrated when his dinner was late or the house wasn't clean. He's treated as a house elf."

"And how do you know he didn't make up those things as excuses?" Severus implored. Draco bit his lip in thought.

"Tell me, when he stayed at your house, was there ever a mess?" Draco interrogated. Severus considered this for a moment.

"No, he kept his room very clean." Severus thought very hard for a moment. "In fact, I always came back from my potions lab to find the dishes done, and Mister Potter always took his plate to the sink and washed it before putting it away." Draco nodded. "He was also very quiet. A lot quieter than I thought a twelve-year-old boy could possibly be, especially considering who his father was."

"When I came to rescue Harry, his uncle stormed in, calling him a freak and asking him how many times he had told him to be quiet." Draco added in.

"He also eagerly arrived before every meal time. I thought he was just prompt." Severus admitted. Draco nodded.

"When I arrived, he had bars over his windows. I had to call Dobby in to disintegrate them." Draco started.

"That could have been to protect against burglars." Severus interrupted.

"On only Harry's window? Inside the house, not on the outside? He also had a door with seven locks on it, all locking from the outside. At the bottom of the door, there was a cat flap. When I asked about it, he told me that they had to feed him without touching him. He told me it was every couple of days they fed him. I also noticed at Madame Malkins how skinny Harry was. You could see every rib protruding from his side. They starve him." Draco countered. Severus sighed.

"Why do you think Professor Dumbledore will not do anything for his Golden Boy when he finds out about the abuse?" Severus asked, not doubting anymore that Harry was abused. His godson could ferret out a lie in a second. He always saw straight through it.

"He's had a squib spying on the Dursleys for years, an Arabella Figg?" Draco paused to ensure that was the right name. When he saw Severus' eyes widen in surprise, he figured he must be right. "Do you know her?"

"She was a spy for Dumbledore during the war. She kept a look out for any suspicious activity in the muggle world. She's extremely observant." Severus muttered, more to himself than to Draco.

"And when we saw Mr. Lupin, he said that he went to Professor Dumbledore every year on Harry's birthday to ask for the Dursleys' address, to see if Harry was alright. He told us Professor Dumbledore always told him that everything was fine, that Harry was perfectly fine, and he should have nothing to worry about." Draco added that little embellishment. It was the gist of what he caught the werewolf trying to say.

Severus rubbed his head and sighed. "Is there anything else?" Draco bit his lip and finally addressed the part that he must admit very delicately to avoid being found out as a time traveler.

"I think Dumbledore wants Harry abused." Draco admitted. Severus' head shot up.

"That's a serious accusation, Draco." Severus scolded. Draco took a deep breath and continued.

"All of last year, what happened at the end, Harry didn't want to do it." Draco started. He had to pull everything he gathered from Harry and Hermione's description of the events. "Dumbledore sent Hagrid-Hagrid-to take Harry to Diagon Alley after he sent thousands of letters to the Dursley household. The previous letters all were unanswered, as Harry admitted his uncle and aunt burned them all and did everything in their power to keep Harry from getting his Hogwarts letter. Isn't it Professor McGonagall's job to contact muggle-raised children to inform them of Hogwarts?" Draco asked.

Severus had to sit down at this point. He leaned back in his chair taking all this in. "Continue." Severus commanded his godson.

"He also charged Hagrid with grabbing the Philosopher's stone, at the same time he took Harry to the Alley to get his supplies. That meant Hagrid-who isn't the best secret keeper, if we are being truthful, had to take a curious eleven-year-old to grab the stone. What did he think was going to happen?" Draco asked rhetorically. "Also, how did he not know that Quirrell was a host of the Dark Lord? The man fought against him for years, knew Quirrell for years, and didn't notice something different? Besides all that, when you all came to scold us for the troll, Dumbledore looked happy-not concerned, not even proud-just happy. His eyes were twinkling. In addition, the challenges that protected the stone were so easy three first years could get through them-no offense." Draco added quickly. "How did he even think that the Dark Lord would not get through all of that?"

"How does this connect to him wanting Mister Potter abused?" Severus questioned, sincerely curious.

"Who else would risk their neck to save a precious stone other than someone who thought their life was worthless?" Draco pointed out. Severus took in a deep breath. Then, he took another deep breath. He thought back to that first day with Mister Potter: I'm not that great. The pieces were all coming together.

"Professor McGonagall was always saying how Harry was always with the 'worst sort of muggles'. I thought she was mistaken, but that was back when I thought Harry was living with his grandparents." Severus realized. Draco nodded.

"Did you also notice what he wore during the summer, when school was not in session?" Draco prodded. Severus tried imagining the boy in question.

"They looked like they were four sizes too big." Severus breathed. Draco nodded.

"And full of holes. I saw that house, Uncle Sev. The Dursleys are well-off." Draco told him. Severus placed his head into his hands. This was a bit of an overload of information. Severus then looked at the clock and noted it was almost dinner time.

"Thank you, Draco, for coming to me about your concerns for Harry. I will look into it." Severus promised as he ushered Draco to the door. Draco nodded and disappeared in the direction of the Great Hall. Severus closed the door and sank to the ground in shock. He had to do something, but what?