Harry was quite shocked when the man tapped his shoulder:

- Can you tell me the way to no. 4 Privet Drive? I need to meet someone there.

Harry looked at the man. He was wearing a dark blue robe. He was tall with long black hair and very beautiful obsidian eyes. He has a hooked nose and thin stern lips. His voice rang through the trees like a soft melodic sonate.

Harry furrowed his brows curiously:

- I live there, actually. Who do you want to meet?

The man answered:

- Harry Potter. Do you know him?

Harry smiled shyly:

- I am Harry Potter. Why do you want to meet me?

The man looked surprised as his eyes widen for a moment. Then he spoke with his velvety voice:

- I am Severus Snape, Potions professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am here to guide you to the wizarding world. But first, - he looked solemnly at the boy - why are you in this state?

Harry shivered. He didn't want anyone to know about this, let alone Snape. He stuttered:

- I-It's nothing, sir. I'm fine.

Snape frowned. This was not what he had expected. He had expected an arrogant, good-for-nothing boy, not a small, broken and isolated child, just like him when he was young.

He sighed quietly. The abuse must be very horrible, otherwise Harry wouldn't refuse to tell him. He knelt down to the boy's height and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder:

- Harry, I don't know what you are thinking but I can guess that they are quite...unpleasant. I promise you I'm not going to leave you, nor hurt you in any way. I promise to be there for you, so please tell me what's wrong.

Harry looked into the man's onyx eyes. They shone a bright light of sincerity that couldn't be mistaken. He took a deep breath. Maybe he could tell Snape about it. Maybe he could protect him. And maybe, he wouldn't have to live there anymore. So, Harry gathered all his courage, and started telling his painful childhood.

After Harry finished the story, Snape was very, very still. He was shocked, speechless, dumbfounded if he could say. He didn't know that the abuse would be to this extent. He was furious at those foolish, imbecile Muggles who didn't cherish a child of Magic. He was also angry at himself. How could he bring himself to hate a fragile, innocent creature just because his father was a pain in his neck? So, he made a silent vow to watch over the not-so-Golden-Boy. He thought long and hard about it, and he decided that he must gain the position as the boy's guardian. In order to do that, he must first talk to the Muggles. He stood up, noticing a pair of nervous emerald eyes staring at him. His eyes sadden a bit. He turned to the boy and said:

- Can you take me to your Muggle relatives? I have something to tell them.

Harry noticed the sneer in Snape's words and smiled. It was good to have someone protect him. He nodded:

- Yes. Please follow me professor.

Harry got up. But before he could take a step, Snape called him:

- Harry?

- Yes, professor?

- You can called me uncle Severus if you like. - Snape pulled up his lips, just a little but it was visible to Harry. Harry chuckled:

- Of course, uncle Sev~ - he was practically singing the last few words. Snape rolled his eyes and sneered, though without any real venom:

- Little brat. Hurry up and lead the way or we won't have much time left for your shopping.

- Ok, uncle Sev. - Harry giggled and started leading the way back to no. 4 Privet Drive.

~~~

On arriving at the doorway, Harry was pretty frightened. Although Snape was behind him he couldn't help feeling afraid of that family. And before he knew it, he was shaking unconsciously, catching Snape's attention:

- Scared, Harry?

- Definitely. - He wasn't afraid to show his fear. After all, he was still a child. Snape gently patted his back:

- Don't worry, I will always be here for you.

Harry nodded slightly and opened the door, stepping inside with Snape close behind him.

Just as he set foot in the living room, Vernon marched up to him:

- Where were you, FREAK?!! Those chores of yours aren't going to finish themselves!!!

He brought up his hands to slap him, bringing Harry to flinch uncontrollably. But when the hand was half way through, Snape caught it in midair and squeezed it, hard. He growled:

- Don't you dare hurt him, you filthy Muggle.

Vernon was taken by surprise. He stumbled back a few steps, his eyes were a mixture of surprise, hatred, and plain fear. He fell down sitting on the floor while the other two crouched around him.

Snape was also surprised. He didn't expect himself to react like that. Then again, he felt there was something strange going on inside his mind but he couldn't quite get a hold of it. He sighed quietly. He would get back to it, but right now he must focus on claiming Harry's parental rights.

Snape glared at the Dursleys:

- You are more barbaric that I've thought, Dursley, too much of a boar for a pig. I think you should have yourself caged, can't have you running around like a wild animal.

Vernon was furious, but he was smart enough to know Snape wasn't easy to deal with. He grumbled:

- Mr, you have no right to barge into my house like this. Kindly leave my house so I can solve my little 'domestic problem'.

- No. On the contrary, Dursley, you have no right to hurt this child, nor the right to judge him. - Snape snarled.

- And why can't I? - Vernon snapped back, and immediately realized he had made a mistake when Snape eyes turned even darker:

- Any common Muggle cannot have any advantage over any kind that is under the protection of Magic, that includes wizards, witches and magical creatures. Considering you are also a Muggle, I hope you are not too much of a dimwit to realize that you have violated the most ancient law of the world.

Snape thought he had scared Vernon enough, but the dunderhead was still too stubborn:

- Now listen here, you have no power against me. I have this freak under my roof, so I can do whatever I want with him. It's what that old beardy weirdo had told me. - Vernon talked back. He tried to act brave, but his trembling voice had betrayed him. He had seen how pale Snape went. A braver man than Vernon wouldn't have stand Snape's fury, so he scurried back to the corner of the room.

Snape was shaking with rage when he heard Vernon mentioned "old beardy weirdo". He knew, he knew about Harry's agony all along, but he didn't do anything to stop it. So all these years, he had been working for tyrant! Manipulating people to do his job for him, and then getting all the credits and fancy titles while causing misery to others. Albus Dumbledore was definitely no good.

- You can do whatever you want to him? You do not have any power whatsoever over this child. A worthless, filthy imbecile like you shouldn't have any of that. In fact, I rather you vanish from my sight.

Snape pretended to flick his wand when Vernon fell to his knees, begging:

- Please..don't kill me -

- Who would want to kill you? I said I would vanish you. That will be much better, yes? You will not lose your pathetic little life.

Vernon nodded quickly;

- Yes, yes. You can do anything, just please don't kill me.

Snape again prepared to flick his wand, but he stopped. He seemed lost in thought for a moment before speaking again:

- Are you sure? Being vanished is not very charming. Getting trapped in a void, where no one can hear you scream. You can go anywhere you want, do whatever you like, and no one can stop you, because nobody is there. Just you, and nothing.

His voice was seeping through the room, covering the atmosphere with his dark, haunting voice.

Vernon and his family were dumbstruck. They froze at their place, unable to move an inch. Snape's words kept repeating in their minds like a broken record player. It was powerful, malignant, and that frightened the life out of them, much to Snape's pleasure.

Snape was, for once, having a good time. This was his best scare yet. It was oh, so much fun. Tom would be proud of him... Wait, who was this Tom? Why was he thinking of him? Severus was confused, but he was just one step away from claiming Harry's parental rights. So he temporarily shook the thought away and approached the Dursleys. He spoke again, his voice was a soft one, yet threatening:

- So do you still want me to vanish you? Or you can hand me your position as Harry's guardian, and I'll leave you alone.

For a while there, he thought Vernon would not give up his position, but the coward was scared to the bone, so he accepted immediately, nodding his head furiously:

- Please, do whatever you want, just spare me-

- Shut it, Dursley. Must you be reminded that I won't stain my hands with your nasty blood. Now hand me the contract, or whatever you called it.

- Yes, yes, right away sir.

Vernon scrambled to his feet and dashed up to his room. He returned almost immediately with some papers. He shakily handed them to Snape:

- H-here you are, sir. Now can you-

- Don't interrupt me, Dursley. - Snape threatened. His eyebrows furrowed attentively as he read them.

Harry, who was still standing behind him, stood on his toes to take a closer look. Snape caught a glimpse of the sight through the end of his eyes and smiled, leaning over for Harry to see more clearly.

After he finished reading, Snape folded the papers and slipped them into his pocket. He put on a few protection charms to prevent them from getting damaged. He then wrapped his arms around Harry's shoulders and whispered into his ears:

- Be ready. I'm going to disapparate. I can't explain it right now but I can tell it's going to be unpleasant. So try not to let go of my hand.

Harry nodded. Snape then turned to the Dursleys:

- Though I really love to stay and torture you a while longer, but we've got things to do. But if I ever hear of another abuse from you, I guarantee you will never see the light of day for the rest of your miserable life.

Just like that, he disapparated.

~❤️~❤️~❤️~

Hello dear readers! I'm back~~ Last week I was pretty busy with the school's flashmob competition so I was very exhausted. I couldn't upload this part sooner although I had finished writing it. You won't be mad at me, will you?

Anyways, please don't be a silent reader. Please leave some comments so I can get to know you and your opinions better. Please vote if you like my story. I will really appreciate that.

P.S.: What do you think about the book cover and chapter covers? Are they good? Please let me know ❤️