Our entire journey up to the castle, my first real home in a long time, is extremely silent. Snape's walking as fast as possible away from me, so I'm having a rather difficult time catching up to him. After all, there's a big difference between my body structure and his. First off, I don't have long legs. He doesn't snap at me to hurry up as he usually would. In fact, he does attempt to slow down when he notices, but it doesn't do any good. My ribs are still killing me.

I sigh heavily. I know that it's not a good sign that after two weeks I barely look as if I've healed a bit. I mean, Dudley only wailed on me for like five minutes. One would think that Dudley couldn't have inflicted that much damage on me. I then stumble slightly before falling towards the ground. Strong arms catch me before that happens, though.

"You're a pain in my ass, Potter," Snape grumbles as he holds me up.

"I'm sorry, sir," I quietly reply. My legs are like jelly now. I can't believe this. I try to find some last shred of energy because I know Snape's patience or some semblance of it isn't going to last long. However, our brisk walk has pretty much zapped any I had. I catch the brief flicker of some unknown emotion in Snape's dark eyes before it disappears.

A few seconds later, Snape sighs heavily and stares at me with a look that says 'If you even so much say anything, I'll kill you.' I make no response when he wraps a supporting arm around my waist before we continue into Hogwarts. He's definitely trying to be, well, to be nice. He's keeping our pace extremely slow as we head through the Entrance Hall and up the steps into the Grand Staircase. It doesn't take me long to realize where we are headed. I bit back my sigh. Why is it every time I set foot in Hogwarts that I always end up in the Hospital Wing?

"Madam Pomfrey," Snape announces as soon as we cross the Infirmary's threshold.

I nearly wince when I see the momentarily flash of anger in the matron's eyes. I know she's not angry with me, though. After all, it's become routine for us now. She patches me up and lectures me about not eating, and I reply with false promises. It's not as if I was ever going to tell an adult that my relatives treat me like crap. The last time that happened, my relatives ended up suing my teacher for slander and I lost the one adult in my life that actually cared for me. However, now, now I can reveal everything, everything those bastards did to me without caring about being alone or worrying about what the Dursleys will do to me next summer. There isn't going to be a next summer.

"Mr. Potter, I'm beginning to think that we're going to have to have another conversation," Madam Pomfrey says softly while motioning to Snape to help me to a nearby cot. She instantly starts running her diagnostic charms on me.

At the sight of some of the words floating in the air, Madam Pomfrey's wand arm starts to shake slightly. She glances to Snape, and the two seem to have a private conversation with each other by just using their eyes. Whatever the conversation is, Madam Pomfrey wins because Snape sighs and inclines his head before leaving. The pristine white privacy screen then snaps shut around my cot.

"You've been neglecting to follow my instructions, Mr. Potter." She's not chiding me in her usual voice. It's almost as if she's holding back her emotions. She sighs heavily before gently helping me out of my extra-large filthy shirt. "Oh, Merlin," she whispers shaking her head. "Why did you not seek medical attention for these injuries, Mr. Potter?"

"I guess I sort of forgot," I reply quietly. I can tell she's not buying it.

"To beat a child, that man should be ashamed of himself," she mumbles angrily under her breath while casting several healing charms on me. "As if you don't already have your share of health issues, he feels the need to add these on just because…" She then shakes her head angrily.

I'm definitely missing something here. I open my mouth to speak, but the privacy screen opens again. I glance towards the intruders and sigh. Dumbledore has arrived, along with Snape. However, the familiar twinkle isn't in Dumbledore's blue eyes. I only glance down at the ground. I hope Dumbledore and Snape are not like Ms. Dawes and going to say it's my fault for what Dudley did.

"Madam, forgive me, but if I could speak with Harry a moment," Dumbledore says softly.

"In case you've failed—"

"Yes, Madam, I'm well aware of the extensive injuries to Harry. However, I believe you yourself would believe it'd be prudent to see if there is any truth to the claims." She huffs angrily before leaving.

"Sir, what's going on?" I ask, glancing at each of my professors. Snape only pulls out a copy of the Daily Prophet before handing it to me. I immediately grab it and glance at it. My mouth then drops at the headline, 'HARRY POTTER GOT ME PREGNANT.' WHAT? I scream in my head. I then quickly skim the article, feeling my heart race as I do.

Young Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, will soon be the Father Who Lived. A source close to the family has stated that last May the Chosen One seduced a then third-year Ravenclaw girl at a party and later became intimate with her, resulting in a pregnancy. Recently, the Prophet has gained an exclusive with the young girl herself in the hopes to prevent any other young ladies falling victim to the Chosen One's wicked ways.

"I'd say he was rather sweet and kind at first," says Lizzie Burke, the expectant mother of the Chosen One's child. "Some Slytherin boys wouldn't stop bothering me so Harry decided to step in. He asked them if there was a problem while motioning with his wand. The guys I guess decided it wasn't worth it, and they left. He asked me if I was all right then. It was like a fairy tale. I mean, most guys won't talk to me, and here's a sixth-year Gryffindor, the most famous and popular guy at Hogwarts, talking to me. What was I supposed to do? He asked me if I wanted some fresh air, and I agreed so we left the party. Looking back on it now, I don't know what I was thinking.

"We ended up in the Astronomy Tower. At first, I thought nothing about that. I mean, this is Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived. We talked for quite awhile up there. It was getting rather late. Looking back on it now, I probably should have gone back to my dorm before a teacher caught us, but I didn't. I don't know how it happened, but somehow we ended up kissing. One thing led to another, and before I knew it, well, you know.

"I guess I didn't realize what was going on until afterwards. I mean, I was waiting for someone special…someone that I loved. He wasn't that guy. He was just a really smooth talker. It was as if he had drugged me, but I doubt he did that. Harry is normally a sweet guy. He wouldn't hurt a fly unless someone he knew was in danger. I mean, he apologized afterwards and asked me if he had hurt me. What guy does that, honestly? He was really gentle so I told him that he didn't. I could see in his eyes that he too thought it was a mistake. The moment just overpowered us, and we both did something that we shouldn't have done. I'm not saying it's Harry's fault or that it's mine. It just happened.

"Over this past summer, I started to feel sick so my mum took me to the doctor. Let me tell you. When I heard the news that I was pregnant, I cried. I mean, I'm fourteen years old. I shouldn't be pregnant. I have my whole life ahead of me, and now my life is over just because of some stupid guy not being able to control himself around me.

"I later told my dad. He got so angry with Harry. I mean, sure I'm rather upset that I'm pregnant, but it wasn't as if Harry wanted this to happen either. He's a good guy. Really, he is. He's just misunderstood.

"Well, the other day, Dad saw Harry. I guess he somewhat lost it. I kept shouting at him to leave Harry alone. I mean, it's not Harry's fault. We just lost control, and this happened. It's not as if Harry forced me. He was very sweet like a gentleman you know. I just…I feel bad for Harry. And if I could just say one thing to him, I'd tell him that I don't blame him if he doesn't want to have anything to do with me. I mean, he has a really great girlfriend already, and I'm just nobody."

There you have it, Readers, the mother of the Chosen One's unborn child. There's been no response from Harry Potter yet, but the Prophet is rather convinced that even Harry won't be silent much longer. So, Readers, do you believe the Boy-Who-Lived will cast this child aside because it's a mistake? Or will the Chosen One own up to his mistake and take care of Lizzie and his child? Owl in your response, and we'll share the result in tomorrow's edition.

As for me, Readers, only time will tell. However, in these troubling times, we must remember that in darkness there is light, which appears to be the unborn child of Lizzie Burke and Harry Potter. This is Rita Skeeter signing off.

My eyes stare at the article in disbelief before noticing the picture of me in the bottom right hand corner. Bruises litter the picture of me in such a way that it looks eerily similar to how my face looks at this exact moment. My head whips up when I suddenly understand Snape, Pomfrey, and Dumbledore's reactions to me. They all think I did this! They all think I…I fathered a child! They're all bonkers!