The next morning dawned pleasant, though a bit blustery, on 4 Privet Drive. Petunia Dursley saw her husband off early that morning, kissing his overly-whiskered cheek. Dudders was packed off to a friend's house for the day, an expedition he'd been looking forward to for weeks. By eleven o'clock, Petunia was resting on the sofa with her feet up, sipping a cup of tea and relishing the quiet.

At first, she'd felt guilty about leaving the freak in a parking lot. She'd actually gone back the next morning, stealthily, when Vernon had already left. But the boy was gone, and she convinced herself it was for the best. Sure, she had to do her own cleaning and cooking again, but it was worth the peace of mind with that brat gone. Wretched child. She'd never understood why those freaks had left her sister's brat on her doorstep. Whining at her, those overly large green eyes scrunched up, waving his chubby fists. For just a moment, she'd felt her heart soften at the realisation that this little child was an orphan now, who must be lonely for his mum and dad.

And then her eyes had wandered to the livid lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead and before she knew it, her lip had curled and she'd slapped the baby across the face, yelling at him to stop that stupid bawling this instant, or she'd give him something to cry about. Everyone knew that freaks were different than regular children, anyway. He needed a stern hand. Vernon provided most of the discipline, she supplied the rest. And she made good and certain that Dudders knew that 'Harry Potter' was below him in every way. Just a freak, that's all, not like normal people, not like decent people.

Sometimes she felt guilty, remembering her dead sister, thinking of how Lily would react to her now. What would have happened if Lily had gained custody of Dudley? Would she have treated the boy like she treated Lily's son? But then the boy would muck up again, and those thoughts would be pushed firmly to the back of her mind. They didn't matter, that was all.

Vernon had been the one to come up with the abandonment plan. Tired of dealing with the brat, he had put forth the idea of simply...leaving him somewhere. They'd instilled him with a deep mistrust of strangers and authority figures in particular. It's not like the boy would go to the police. Perhaps he could just vanish, and then they would be rid of the freaky boy with the freaky scar and freaky powers that plagued their every moment. If they were lucky, those wretched other freaks wouldn't even notice the brat had gone, and they could continue to receive payments for his upkeep. Petunia smiled and took another sip of tea. That would be lovely.

It wasn't until a loud, insistent knock sounded on the door and Petunia found her house filled with wizards and child protection services that she realised the freak could have found someone worse.

He could have found his own kind.

At the sight of Petunia's bewildered, horsey face, Severus Snape found himself hard pressed not to deck the woman. She professed confused innocence at why they were there at all and had the gall to claim that Harry was merely off at a friend's house for the week.

"It's hard being away from him," Petunia claimed, dabbing at her eyes with a lace-edged handkerchief. "But we'll manage."

"Really?" Severus sneered, his dislike of her growing exponentially. He'd never liked her when they were children, but he'd never realised the depths of cruelty she could sink to, either. "That's why he's at my house? Funny, I hadn't met him before the other night."

"You!" Petunia gasped, only now properly seeing him. Her chin firmed and she looked at him with the most open hatred he'd ever seen on a person's face. She could rival the Dark Lord. "I should have known," she spit. "Slimy Severus, back again for another gloat. Maybe you took him."

"Spare me the histrionics, Petunia, you and I both know you've always failed as an actress," Severus said dryly, still resisting the urge to curse her into next month. "This nice woman has something to say to you," he smirked as he stepped back and allowed Amelia Bones to approach. They'd already been all over the house and discovered there were no pictures of Harry anywhere, no mention at all that he even lived in the house, save the cupboard beneath the stairs. The smell of blood and sickness was so strong, Amelia had nearly retched when the door was pried open.

Most damning of all was the crayoned inscription on the back of the door. "Harrys Room."

"You're under arrest for the endangerment, neglect, and abuse of Harry James Potter," Amelia said, fastening magical handcuffs around the woman's wrists. Petunia stood there, dazed-looking, until finally, she erupted in surprising fury, trying her damnedest to strike at Severus. Her foot grazed him before Shacklebolt tackled her, rapping her head against the coffee table and knocking her into unconsciousness.

"Really, was that necessary, Kingsley?" Amelia reproved. A slightly shamed grin appeared on the man's face.

"Yes," he said, and Amelia couldn't help but grin back. One of the worst cases of child abuse she'd seen in years, anything to crack a smile.

"Thank you, Severus," Amelia finally said, turning to him. "We'll wait here until Dudley comes home, and then the muggles can take care of him. When Dursley gets home, he'll also be charged."

Severus nodded, sparing a final disdainful glance for the unconscious, trussed-up woman on the floor. Her cup of tea lay on the table, and he hoped she never got to finish it.

"I'll be off then," he said. "I've got a child to attend to." He turned on his heel and was gone.