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[Reviews - 1254]

Digging for the Bones by Paganaidd

Summary: Rather than allowing Harry to stay at Diagon Alley after he blew up Aunt Marge, the Ministry sends Harry back to the Dursleys. Harry returns to school after a terrible summer, to find that he's not the only one with this kind of secret. A student has been killed by his family. New screening measures are put into place by the Ministry: Every student must be given a medical exam and interview to look for child abuse. With Dumbledore facing an inquiry, Snape is entrusted with the task of making sure EVERYONE receives one.

1. Home Again by Paganaidd [Reviews - 34] (4673 words)

Character Death!! Seriously AU after Harry blows up Marge.

2. Aftermath by Paganaidd [Reviews - 33] (3666 words)

3. A Subtle Pattern by Paganaidd [Reviews - 24] (1873 words)

4. The Seeker In Hiding by Paganaidd [Reviews - 24] (2111 words)

5. Exam by Paganaidd [Reviews - 25] (2679 words)

Some descriptions of child abuse.

6. Betrayed by Paganaidd [Reviews - 23] (2112 words)

7. Secrets by Paganaidd [Reviews - 32] (2235 words)

Had a hard time with this chapter. Hope it works!

8. Home Visit by Paganaidd [Reviews - 15] (2840 words)

9. A New Friend by Paganaidd [Reviews - 22] (2018 words)

Some fluff before the storm

10. Guardian by Paganaidd [Reviews - 16] (2396 words)

11. Realizations by Paganaidd [Reviews - 13] (2435 words)

My weekend plans fell through, so my readers get another chapter.

12. Setting Boundaries by Paganaidd [Reviews - 21] (2378 words)

Um. I don't know how to say this...The story gets darker from here. Suicidal themes. Thought I should mention it.

13. Lunch With Potter by Paganaidd [Reviews - 12] (2689 words)

14. Fear by Paganaidd [Reviews - 20] (1442 words)

A short chapter, but necessary, I think.

15. Halloween, 1979 by Paganaidd [Reviews - 19] (3063 words)

If you didn't like chapter 7, you will not like this one. While not graphic (I'd let my fourteen year old read it), it contains discussions of why and how Severus helped Lily conceive Harry. If this disturbs you, stop reading now. Also, Sev uses the "F" word once.

16. Appointment in Hogsmeade by Paganaidd [Reviews - 17] (2857 words)

Thanks to my awesome beta chrmisha!

17. Reassurance by Paganaidd [Reviews - 16] (3920 words)

Thank you Mother-of-Tears for the information on opticianry.

18. Lunch with Snape by Paganaidd [Reviews - 17] (3438 words)

19. Secrets Revealed by Paganaidd [Reviews - 21] (3358 words)

20. Out of Bounds by Paganaidd [Reviews - 22] (2814 words)

Thanks to my beta Chrmisha!

21. Familiar by Paganaidd [Reviews - 12] (3222 words)

Thank you Chrmisha, for wonderful beta-ing.

22. Consequences by Paganaidd [Reviews - 19] (2118 words)

23. Tribuo Vita by Paganaidd [Reviews - 16] (4199 words)

This is a potentially upsetting/triggering chapter. Hard to write. Likely, hard to read. Pretty dark stuff. I swear, on the soul of my muse, it ends on a hopeful note.

But, there are more than just references to child abuse and suicide. Please, remember that this is rated 16+ and read accordingly

24. Seeking Peace by Paganaidd [Reviews - 15] (4812 words)

I'm not good a gauging "ick" factor, but there's some mention of various bodily fluids in this one. The aftermath of failed suicide attempts is not pretty. Just so you know. And some swearing.

25. Mrs. Weasley Arrives by Paganaidd [Reviews - 27] (4044 words)

Thank you, Kristi, for being my continuity fairy.

26. My Child by Paganaidd [Reviews - 32] (4273 words)

27. Panic by Paganaidd [Reviews - 28] (5286 words)

28. Spinner's End by Paganaidd [Reviews - 13] (4431 words)

Sorry for the wait. First I was away for a few days, and then last week I was taken to the hospital with a kidney stone (complete with ambulance ride). Blame any glaring problems on heavy duty pain killers.

29. Making Himself At Home by Paganaidd [Reviews - 22] (4004 words)

30. House Elf and Late Night Tea by Paganaidd [Reviews - 15] (4358 words)

Sorry for the wait. Kidney stone. Percocet. Blame any problems on the narcotics. Feeling better now. Going away for a couple weeks. May or may not update while I'm away.

Thank you for the reviews!

Onward

31. His Grandfather's Eyes by Paganaidd [Reviews - 16] (4697 words)

My apologies for the wait for this chapter. I'm an EMT in Vermont, so I've been sort of busy since Hurricane Irene came through. Honestly, I think my next female villain will have to be named Irene.

Things were okay in my own town, but the ones next to us didn't fair so well.

32. Dinner with Dumbledore by Paganaidd [Reviews - 22] (4033 words)

I was asked to do chapter recaps, so here goes:

Last chapter, Harry had a conversation with Mrs. Cook, Severus still thinks a house elf is cleaning his house and Albus is coming for dinner.

33. Comfort by Paganaidd [Reviews - 20] (2321 words)

34. Unearthing Some Truth by Paganaidd [Reviews - 16] (5403 words)

Last time: Harry has a little bit of a crying spell and we see that Sev's not completely rubbish at comforting people.

Someone identified the main ingredient in the calming draught as valerian. Absolutely right! Valerian totally smells like sweaty socks. I'd give a hundred points for that answer. Now, a hundred points for the base of the appetite stimulant Sev's been giving Harry!

I do try to base the botanical ingredients on actual herbal lore. It's a hobby of mine.

35. The End of His Rope by Paganaidd [Reviews - 25] (4579 words)

Yeah, real life just keeps interfering with writing, darn it.

First: The hundred points goes to New Dragon Rider for correctly identifying Snape's potion. It has a marijuana base. It is anti-anorectic, anti-emetic and anti-anxiety, with a very short (in this preparation) active period. There have been several studies on the use of it for eating disorders. Please remember that Cannabis is legal in the Wizarding World and that it doesn't have quite as potent an effect on wizard nervous systems. Also Snape is a qualified Potions Master and that the potion he has been using on Harry has been approved by St Mungo's Hospital as safe in wizard children over twelve.

Second: Potentially triggering chapter.

Onward!

36. Mortal Peril by Paganaidd [Reviews - 21] (2424 words)

37. The Storyteller by Paganaidd [Reviews - 30] (1139 words)

A short middle of the night conversation.

38. Watching Harry by Paganaidd [Reviews - 21] (3989 words)

39. Digging Deeper by Paganaidd [Reviews - 16] (2236 words)

40. Trusting by Paganaidd [Reviews - 25] (2332 words)

41. Walking in the Rain by Paganaidd [Reviews - 20] (2884 words)

Sorry about the wait!
Thanks for making it a "Featured Story"

42. Revelations by Paganaidd [Reviews - 26] (3897 words)

A/N This chapter may be disturbing to some readers. Please remember that this is rated for teen and older.

Let me make clear: The views and opinions of these fictional characters do not necessarily reflect my own.

Also, there won't be any pairings in this story. The children are only 13 and I would not allow my own children to date at 13, so I am certainly not going to write about it. The adults are too busy with crises to worry about romantic entanglements.

That would be another story altogether.

43. Examining Shards by Paganaidd [Reviews - 17] (2375 words)

A/N Not much action here, but mostly reflection on the events of the past few chapters.

A note on my last chapter: The law I cited is a real 19th century law. I did not make it up-I'm not a good enough writer to write in 19th Century legalese. As Snape observes, the laws of the Wizarding World are at least 50 years or more behind the Muggle world. This will continue to be a Thing in this story (as it has been throughout), that the laws and social norms look *very* different to 21st Century eyes.

Personally, I am very fond of the 21st Century.

44. Tea and Treasure by Paganaidd [Reviews - 14] (2364 words)

45. Under Layers by Paganaidd [Reviews - 21] (4355 words)

46. Glimmers of Truth by Paganaidd [Reviews - 15] (3719 words)

47. Up Against the Wall by Paganaidd [Reviews - 21] (3377 words)

48. House of Horror by Paganaidd [Reviews - 14] (2169 words)

Thanks to Badgerlady for making this eminently more readable.

49. Off to the Burrow by Paganaidd [Reviews - 8] (2310 words)

Thank you, Badgerlady, for sorting out my punctuation.

A moment where our boys can catch their breath.

50. Soul Bond by Paganaidd [Reviews - 22] (4229 words)

A/N I'm just going to repeat my statement that there are NO actual pairings in this story. Please read to the end of the chapter before deciding I'm a terrible person. Also, please remember that the age of consent and the age of majority are not the same thing. Since the age of majority in the Wizarding World is 17, a year younger than where I live, so it follows that the age of consent is also a year younger.
No, there is still no explicit sexual content here-nor anything even close, just more insight into Wizarding culture.

Thank you, Badgerlady for your much needed help and Aleegirl for your input.

51. Complicated by Paganaidd [Reviews - 20] (2566 words)

52. Side effects by Paganaidd [Reviews - 27] (3392 words)

Thanks to Badgerlady for excellent beta-ing.

53. Arrangement by Paganaidd [Reviews - 11] (2479 words)

54. The Worth of a Soul by Paganaidd [Reviews - 15] (3362 words)

Thank you Badgerlady for Beta-ing and Kashel for your input.

55. Tea With Lily by Paganaidd [Reviews - 18] (2590 words)

As always thanks to my beta, Badgerlady

56. Into the Light by Paganaidd [Reviews - 19] (3521 words)

Thanks to Badgerlady for awesome beta-ing. Sorry for the wait. My computer crashed and ate this chapter and the next chapter of Severus Dreams.

In our last episode, Severus had decided he would let Harry in on the secret he's been keeping.

57. The Calm After The Storm by Paganaidd [Reviews - 18] (4275 words)

Thanks to Badgerlady for rescuing my punctuation.

58. Father by Paganaidd [Reviews - 14] (5156 words)

Thanks to Badgerlady

59. Uncle? by Paganaidd [Reviews - 23] (2405 words)

As always, thanks to Badgerlady

60. Unexpected Intelligence by Paganaidd [Reviews - 19] (3776 words)

I'm back! Hopefully I will be able to update more often for a while.

As always, thank you Badgerlady.

When we left them, Severus had been called back to Hogwarts by Albus

61. Black by Paganaidd [Reviews - 17] (3330 words)

Thanks to my awesome beta, Badgerlady.

62. Snuffles and the Storyteller by Paganaidd [Reviews - 34] (4309 words)

Unbeta'd version.