To See A Falling Star

To See A Falling Star

By Lady FoxFire

May 18, 2002

The door only opened a few inches before the security chain stopped it. A woman pressed her face against the narrow opening, the door hiding her features from view. She studied the tall pale man on her porch and swallowed nervously before she found her voice. "Yes? Can I help you?" her voice trembled.

"Is this the Dursley's residence?" the mysterious man asked in a deep, rich voice.

"Yes," the woman replied timidly. "But my husband is away right now, perhaps if you try at his office in the morning..." she said as she tried to shut the door.

The man thrust his boot in between the door and it's jam, leaning his weight against the door. "I'm not here to see your husband, Mrs. Dursley. I'm here about the Potter child."

"Harry?" The woman squeaked with panic in her eyes. "What... what do you want with him?" Her voice trembled with fear.

"I'm Professor Snape, Potter's potions teacher at Hogwarts. When he didn't arrive at the school, I was sent to retrieve the child," he explained.

"I... I... he... He says he doesn't want to go back there," the woman stuttered. "He doesn't want to see anyone either."

Snape's eyes narrowed at Petunia's words. "I don't care what you claim Potter said. I will see that boy immediately or you will find out what a fully trained wizard is capable of. Is that understood?"

"Yes." Her voice broke under Snape's icy stare. "I... I... you need to move your foot. So I can take the chain off."

Snape snorted in disgust as he removed his foot. The woman immediately shut the door in his face; only the sounds of her fumbling with the chain stayed his hand from cursing her. Finally the door swung open, and Petunia hid her thin frame behind the door as she motioned the potions Master inside. Once in she quickly shut the door, throwing the deadbolt and replacing the security chain.

"He's upstairs. Last door down the hall," she said her back towards him, her long hair hiding her face.

Snape quickly stormed up the stairs, snarling the whole time about how Dumbledore should have sent someone else to deal with his boy and his Muggle family, instead if wasting his valuable time. When Snape reached the last door in the hall, he flung the door open irritably.

He stepped into the doorway of the dark room; his arms crossed over his chest and a look on his face that would have set grown men to blubbering like babies. He eyed the clean but sparsely furnished room with contempt.

Finally he noticed Potter sitting at his window, his back toward the door watching the moon slowly rise into the sky. His white owl Hedwig sat on the windowsill next to him as the boy stroked her soft feathers. Hedwig ruffled her feathers when she saw Snape in the doorway.

"Go away," Harry said in a dejected voice as he watched Snape's reflection in the windowpane.

"Hardly. I've been sent to retrieve you, Potter," Snape said snidely. "I'm surprised at you. I didn't even think you could mess up such a simple thing as catching the Hogwarts Express."

Potter's shoulders slumped forward at the sound of Snape's voice. "Just go away, professor. I'm not returning to Hogwarts."

Snape slammed the door behind him. "That's what you think, Potter." Snape's voice dropped into a deep growl. "Dumbledore order me to bring you to Hogwarts and that's what I'm going to do. Now get your trunk!"

"No," Harry replied softly as he continued to watch Snape's reflection, refusing to turn around and face the man. "There's no point in me ever returning Hogwarts. My uncle won."

"I don't care about what you want. Now go get your trunk," Snape demanded in a voice that would never be argued with.

"No. There is no point in me returning to Hogwarts," Harry said in a firm tone. "Get out of my room and leave me alone, professor."

"I will not!" Snape snapped at him as he glared at the back of Harry's head; growling in frustration as Harry made no move to follow his orders or even to turn and face him. "Potter, face me when I'm taking to you."

Snape marched over to Harry, grabbed the boy by his shirt and whirled him around, preparing to yell in his face. "Harry!" His voice trembled sickly as he looked into the boy's eyes.

Where once his eyes were a brilliant green, they were now dull and cloudy, like a frosted windowpane on a wintry day. Harry snarled as he stared up unseeingly at Snape, "As you can see, professor, I can't."