Torment

A/N: Hey, thanks everyone who reviewed, love you guys. Anyway, here's the next chapter, hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or related characters and settings.

Chapter 2: Hogwarts

The rest of the summer holidays went by quickly for Harry. He was constantly plagued by memories of his Uncle but Mr and Mrs Weasely didn’t bring up what they learnt again. Soon, Harry, Ron and Ginny were on the Hogwarts express, on their way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry and Ron joined a carriage with Hermione Granger, Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood while Ginny went off and joined her friends. The trip was rather uneventful. Hermione kept her nose buried in a book like usual, Luna read the Quibbler, Neville and Ron talked about Quidditch and Harry was lost in his thoughts. Soon, they changed into their robes and they arrived at Hogsmeade Station. Getting off the train was the usual hustle and bustle but eventually, they all got off and Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville and Luna took a carriage by themselves to take them to Hogwarts. When they arrived, they made their way into the Great Hall and took their places at their house tables. Harry looked across to the Slytherin table and saw Draco Malfoy sneering at him. Harry rolled his eyes and turned away. After the sorting of the first years into their houses, everyone helped themselves to the feast. When all the plates were cleared, Dumbledore stood up and gave the usual speech and then everyone was dismissed and left to go to bed.

The next few days were also rather uneventful. Well, that was until they had their first defence against the dark arts class. When the Gryffindor and Slytherin seventh years arrived, they were met by a smiling Remus Lupin, having returned this year since they couldn’t find a suitable defence against the dark arts teacher.
‘Hello class, some of you may remember me from your third year. My name is Remus Lupin. Now then, like in your third year, I’m going to be using a Boggart today. You should all remember what they are. Now though, I’m going to show you a more complicated spell to get rid of one. If you could repeat after me. Sethral!’
‘”Sethral,”’ the class chorused.
‘Good, now if you could line up, I’ll bring out the Boggart.’
Everyone did as they were told and got into line. Harry was five people away and was exceedingly nervous. The first time he faced a Boggart, it turned into his worst fear, a Dementor, he wondered if that had changed. He thought about all the terrifying things he’d faced and seen. Voldemort, Dementors, death eaters, dead Cederic, dead Sirius. But the thing that stuck most in his mind was his Uncle and what he’d done last summer. He was three people away, two people, one person. Before he knew it, it was Harry’s turn. He took a deep breath and stepped forward. The Boggart instantly changed into Harry’s uncle. The Vernon Boggart stepped towards Harry and spoke.
‘You’re a filthy disgusting lying freak!’ it hissed. Harry couldn’t move, he was frozen to the spot with his wand pointed uselessly at the ground. Vernon moved forward again and wrapped his thick fingers around Harry’s neck. Reflexively, Harry dropped his wand and moved his hands to his throat, trying to remove the fingers but it was useless. The rest of the class watched in horrified shock. ‘But maybe I can have some fun with you before I kill you.’ Oh god, Harry thought, it’s going to happen again. That was his last rational thought before he was shoved backwards against a desk and spun around. Vernon pushed down so that Harry’s head was pressed painfully into the wood. The tears came and streamed down his face as he heard the Boggart fiddle with its trousers. Lupin, like the rest of the class watched in shock as the Boggart attempted to pull down its trousers with one hand. Before it could though, Lupin snapped out of his trance and pointed his wand at the Boggart.
‘Sethral,’ he said quickly and the Boggart exploded. Nobody moved apart from Harry, who sank to the floor, clutching his neck and coughing heavily. ‘Harry?’ Lupin said as he took a step towards the boy on the floor. Harry looked up, his green eyes sparkling with tears. Harry slowly got to his feet and then ran out of the room as fast as he could. He kept going, he didn’t care where just as far away as possible. He slowed his pace and came to a stop by an empty classroom. He leaned against the wall and wiped his eyes. He couldn’t believe it had almost happened again. In front of the entire class as well, now everyone would know what his Uncle had done.
Harry was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t hear the footsteps. He looked up though when he heard someone timidly call his name. There in front of him was a girly with curly brown hair and brown eyes and a boy with ginger hair and blue eyes. The girl was Hermione Granger and the boy, Ronald Weasely. Both Ron and Hermione stepped forward and pulled Harry into the empty classroom. Hermione quickly locked the door behind them. Harry walked away from them, his back to them.
‘Harry, what just happened?’ Ron asked. He received no answer so Hermione stepped forward.
‘Harry, the Boggart, was that your Uncle?’ Harry sighed and gave a nod. Hermione and Ron shared a worried glance. ‘Harry, did… did your Uncle ra… rape you?’ she asked shakily.
‘I don’t want to talk about it,’ Harry muttered.
‘It wasn’t death eaters, was it?’ Ron said. Harry turned around and faced them.
‘What?’ he asked.
‘When you came to my house during the summer you were covered in bruises. It wasn’t death eaters, was it? It was your Uncle.’
Harry sighed again. ‘Yes.’
‘Harry, why didn’t you tell us?’ said Ron.
‘You don’t get it, do you?’ Harry asked as Ron looked at him confused. ‘Ron, he’s family, my Uncle. I can’t say that I trusted him but…’ he sighed again and turned away from them.
Hermione laid a hand on his shoulder and turned him around again. He adverted his gaze, boring a hole in the floor. ‘Harry, tell us what happened. Tell us what he did.’
Harry looked up at her incredulously. ‘No!’
‘Harry, please…’
‘I said no, Hermione,’ he yelled. She looked like she was on the edge of tears as he turned away again and rested his head against the wall.
‘Harry mate, you’ve got to talk to someone about this. If not, you may never get over it,’ Ron said but Harry didn’t answer.
‘Ron’s right, Harry. If you keep this bottled up inside then you may never accept it and then it’ll be harder to get over it and move on,’ Hermione said quietly.
Harry turned around again and sighed in defeat. ‘Fine,’ he muttered, ‘What do you want to know?’ Both Ron and Hermione looked relieved that he hadn’t yelled again. They quickly pulled over three chairs and sat down, Ron and Hermione next to each other and Harry in front of them. Hermione spoke first.
‘Harry, do you know what made your Uncle do what he did?’
Harry nodded and looked at Ron. ‘Your mum sent my Uncle a letter. It said she knew I was being mistreated and that someone was going to come and pick me up. It also said that if she heard of me being mistreated anymore then there would be consequences.’
Both Ron and Hermione glanced at each other. ‘What happened next?’ Hermione asked.
Harry took a deep breath. ‘He accused me of telling Mrs Weasely lies about how I was treated. I said I hadn’t but he didn’t believe me. He called me a liar and a freak and said that I was lucky they took me in. I asked if I was lucky for all the things they had done to me and then he grabbed me by the throat…’ Harry stopped and looked at the floor.
‘Then what,’ Ron asked, looking like he wanted to be sick.
‘He… He said, ‘But maybe I can have some fun with you before I kill you,’ and then he pushed me onto the floor and…’ Harry’s voice broke as more tears streamed down his face. He took a deep breath and continued. ‘He said he’d been waiting years to do it, ever since I turned thirteen.’ He looked up at his friends, the tears coming strong now. Both of them looked shocked and horrified and Hermione also had tears coating her cheeks. ‘The whole time he was still strangling me. I couldn’t do anything, I couldn’t stop him.’
‘Harry, if you couldn’t stop him, what made him stop?’ Ron asked quietly.
‘What?’ Harry frowned.
‘Well, something must have stopped him because, from what you said, he probably would have killed you so something must have made him stop.’
‘My Aunt and Dudley must have heard me yelling because they came in while he was doing it. As soon as he let go I ran, got dressed, burnt my pyjamas, packed my trunk and apparated to the Burrow. If they hadn’t come in… I was almost unconscious as it was, it just hurt so much…’ Harry looked back down at the floor and wiped his eyes.
Hermione slid off her chair and knelt in front of him, forcing him to look at her. ‘Harry, I’m so sorry this happened to you but I think you should tell Dumbledore.’
‘What…? No!’ he said angrily.
‘Harry, I agree. If you don’t tell anyone then he’ll just get away with it. Tell the muggle authorities and put him in prison for a couple of years,’ Ron said.
‘You don’t get it,’ Harry said angrily. ‘He’s my Uncle. MY OWN UNCLE AND HE FUCKING RAPED ME! HE’S MY FAMILY AND HE DID THAT TO ME! I DON’T WANT ANYONE TO KNOW!’ Harry jumped to his feet and walked over to the other side of the room and started banging his head against the wall. Ron looked over at Hermione for help.
‘Harry please, either you tell Dumbledore yourself or he’ll find out through other means. I think it would be better if you tell him but your going to have to talk to him about it at some point.’
Harry turned around and glared at her. ‘Why, are you going to tell him?’
‘No but in case you’ve forgotten, the entire class saw that Boggart and most people are smart enough to work out the implications of what they saw. Also, Lupin was there and he knows what your Uncle looks like and he’ll realise what happened,’ she said.
Harry groaned. ‘Great, it’s bad enough that Mr and Mrs Weasely know. Now you and the class. My life just keeps getting better and better.’
‘Wait, my parents know?’ Ron asked.
‘Oh, uh, sort of. Mr Weasely figured it out from the bruises on my legs and told your mum. They think it was death eaters though, they don’t know it was my Uncle.’
‘That’s what they were on about, isn’t it? When they asked us to leave, that’s what they meant when they asked if you heard what they said and if it was true?’ Ron asked.
‘Yeah, anyway, you two are going to keep on nagging me until I tell Dumbledore aren’t you?’
‘Yes we are,’ Hermione said firmly.
‘Fine, let’s get this over with.’ Harry made his way over to the door but before he could open it, Ron called him back. ‘What?’
‘Um… well, it’s just, your neck.’
Harry groaned again and dug his hand in his robe, looking for his wand. ‘Shit! I left my wand in Lupin’s class.’
‘It’s OK, here.’ Hermione pulled out her wand and quickly healed Harry’s bruises. ‘Look, we’ll go and get your wand and you can wait outside for us. I don’t think you’ll want to face Lupin right now.’
‘Thanks, come on, let’s go.’ The three of them left and headed off to Lupin’s classroom. Unknown to them, someone had been listening to their entire conversation. The boy stepped out from the shadows, his pale blonde hair and grey eyes shinning in the light, a smirk across his face.
‘Now that was interesting,’ Draco Malfoy murmured. He turned and walked away.

Meanwhile, Harry, Ron and Hermione reached Lupin’s class. Harry refused to go in so he waited outside while Ron and Hermione entered. Hermione knocked on the door and Lupin looked up from his paper work where he was sitting behind his desk.
‘Good evening, Ron, Hermione,’ he said smiling
‘Hello professor,’ Hermione replied. ‘I don’t suppose you’ve seen Harry’s wand? He left it here and he wants it back.’
‘Of course, I have it here.’ Lupin pulled open a draw on the desk and pulled out Harry’s wand. Before he gave it to them though, he spoke. ‘I don’t suppose you’ve seen Harry?’ They nodded. ‘Did he talk to you about the Boggart?’ Again they nodded but this time, wary. ‘I don’t suppose you could tell me…?’
‘I’m sorry but I don’t think it’s our place to say,’ Hermione said before he could finish.
‘Of course, I’m just worried about him. How is he?’
‘He’s not doing too good but he should be OK in a couple of days,’ Ron said.
‘Here,’ Lupin said as he handed Ron the wand. ‘Just tell Harry that if he needs talk, my door is always open.’
Hermione nodded. ‘We will, goodbye professor.’ They turned around and left, finding Harry leaning against the wall with his eyes closed. ‘Are you all right Harry?’ Hermione asked, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder. Harry slowly opened his eyes, his green orbs glittering.
‘Yeah, just, what Lupin said…’
‘He’s a good man,’ she said with a smile. Harry smiled back, the first real smile he had worn in a long time. ‘Should we go and talk to Dumbledore now?’ He nodded as a reply and they set off, walking along corridors and down stairs until they reached the Headmasters Office. The gargoyle guarding the door stayed silent as they realised something.
‘Shit! We don’t know the password,’ Ron cursed. He heard a ‘Tsk’ behind him and turned to see Hermione smiling. ‘What?’
‘I know what the password is,’ she said. At their questioning looks she sighed. ‘I saw Dumbledore yesterday.’
‘Why?’ Ron asked curiously.
‘Never you mind,’ she replied as she stepped forward and muttered the password. The gargoyle stepped aside and they ascended up the revealed staircase and to the door at the top. Hermione knocked and when a voice called ‘Enter!’, they filed into the room. They spotted Dumbledore behind his desk in robes of midnight blue and gold. He looked up at them, his blue eyes twinkling behind his glasses.
‘Hello Miss Granger, Mr Weasely, Mr Potter. To what do I owe this great pleasure?’ he said, smiling.
Hermione and Ron saw Harry visibly freeze so Hermione stepped forward. ‘Harry would like to tell you about something that happened to him this summer,’ she said.
Dumbledore sighed. ‘I wondered when you were going to come and talk to me about this. Does this have anything to do with your Uncle, Harry?’
Everyone watched as Harry paled. ‘You… You know?’
Dumbledore stood up and walked around his desk. ‘Yes Harry, I know, but not all of it.’
‘But how?’ Harry asked.
‘Molly and Arthur Weasely told me about you showing up at their house covered in bruises. They said you told them it was death eaters but there were none reported around your Uncle’s house at the time so the only logical conclusion was someone in that house. Also, Mrs Figg said she saw you leave with the bruises and then you apparated. Although, I do feel there is something missing, am I right?’ Dumbledore asked, raising an eyebrow.
Harry nodded. ‘He, my Uncle, he…’ Harry stopped and try as he might, he could not get the words out. He glanced over at Ron and Hermione for help.
Taking the hint, Hermione asked, ‘Harry, do you want me to…?’ Harry nodded again and she stepped forward. Dumbledore watched the exchange curiously, wondering what on earth Harry’s Uncle did to him that would render him speechless. ‘Professor, sir, Harry told us earlier today what happened. He didn’t want to but after me saw, he told us…’ Hermione was cut off by Dumbledore.
‘What did you and Mr Weasely see?’
‘Well, we were in our defence against the dark arts class and Lupin brought in a Boggart again. When it turned into Harry’s Uncle, it tried to do what he did again. The entire class saw but before it could do it, Lupin destroyed it…’ Again she was cut off.
‘I’m sorry Miss Granger but I’m still getting the short end of the stick as some would say. What exactly did Harry’s Uncle do?’ Harry muttered something under his breath as he stared at the floor. ‘What was that?’ Dumbledore asked having not heard what Harry had said.
Harry looked up into Dumbledore’s twinkling blue eyes and repeated what he had just said. ‘He raped me,’ Harry said as the twinkle was instantly lost from Dumbledore’s eyes and he looked as old as he actually was. He sank into his chair behind his desk.
‘I think you three should take a seat and tell me exactly what happened.’ So they did. They took their seats and Harry began to tell Dumbledore what happened. He told him how his Aunt woke him up at 1.00 am. How his Uncle had shoved the letter from Mrs Weasely under his nose and started yelling. How he had replied. When he came to the last part, he practically choked on the words.
‘… and then he grabbed me by the throat and said that maybe… maybe he could get some fun out of me before he killed me. Then he forced me onto the ground and ra… raped me.’ Harry closed his eyes tight shut, the images as well as the pain returning to him as if it was happening to him right at that moment. He could feel his Uncle thrusting into him. Smell the semen and blood. Hear his Uncle pant and groan in pleasure with every move. The tears came again, threatening to fall but he quickly wiped them away. He had shed enough tears over that man. He felt Hermione’s gentle hand on his shoulder. He leaned into it, letting her voice ground him and bring him back from the painful memory.
‘Harry, do you want me to tell him the rest?’ came her voice. Harry shook his head.
‘No, it’s OK.’ Harry opened his eyes again and fixed his gaze on the floor. ‘The entire time he was still strangling me as he did it and he said… he said he’d been waiting years to do it, since I was thirteen. My Aunt and Dudley must have heard me yelling because they came in then. Then he got off me and I ran and got my stuff. When I got back downstairs, my Aunt was waiting for me. She asked if I was all right and if I wanted her to look at the bruises but I said no and then I left.’ Harry finished retelling it, still looking at the ground but then he looked up, chancing a quick glance at Dumbledore. The man looked like he was between anger, sadness and confusion. He wiped his eyes and looked at Harry sympathetically, catching his gaze.
Dumbledore sighed. ‘I’m so sorry this happened to you Harry, this is my fault. I never should have sent you there. I was trying to protect you but I made things worse.’ Harry swore he saw a tear trickle down the old man’s cheek but then it was gone.
‘It’s not your fault. It’s no one’s fault except Vernon Dursley and I hope he rots in hell!’ Everyone, even the portraits, flinched at Harry’s outburst.
‘Harry, I know you’re upset but don’t go and do something stupid like revenge. I’m sure he’ll go to prison but…’ Harry cut Dumbledore off.
‘I’m not stupid and I don’t ever want to be near that man again. I’m not going to waist the rest off my life on him,’ Harry spat, anger etched on his every feature.
‘I know that Harry and I’m glad you feel like that. Now though, I think we should talk about what we should do.’
‘What do you mean?’ Harry asked, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
‘I mean about your Uncle. We should tell the muggle authorities about this.’ Dumbledore saw Harry open his mouth to protest but he continued. ‘I know you don’t want to Harry, but this could happen again. It may not happen to you but it could be someone else. If he would rape his own nephew then I’m sure he could do it to some of the other children on your street and they may not be as lucky as you and get away.’ Harry nodded at this. It was true and it could happen. ‘Right, don’t you worry about that right now though. I’ll sort it all out but I think you three should go down to dinner now. But first, can I have a word with Miss Granger and Mr Weasely, Harry?’
‘I’ll wait outside,’ Harry said as he got up and left the room. Dumbledore turned to Ron and Hermione.
‘Miss Granger, Mr Weasely, I did not mean to invade Harry’s privacy but I could not ignore one thought that I heard while Harry was in here. I think that, in light of recent events, Harry might try and hurt himself.’ Hermione and Ron glanced at each other. ‘Now, I want you two, as his friends, to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn’t try anything. What he needs right now is help and support.’
Hermione nodded. ‘We’ll do whatever we can.’
Dumbledore smiled. ‘Very well, you best be off. Goodbye.’ They both left and found Harry by the door outside the room. Again Ron and Hermione shared a glance, noticing how tired and depressed Harry looked. They both dragged him down to the Great Hall to eat. When they entered, there was a lot of whispering and pointing at Harry. He ignored them, used to people whispering about him by now. The three of them took their usual seats at the Gryffindor table. Everyone stared at him as he let Hermione pile his plate up with food for him. Harry ate slowly, not really that hungry. His gaze was drawn to the Slytherin table where he could here laughter. He saw a few people glance at him and smirk and knew that they were talking about him. He turned away again.