Lilies

Chapter 4

For the first two weeks of Harry’s summer back at the Dursleys, they still treated him badly, but not as bad as before he went to Hogwarts. Then Dobby came and splattered the pudding, causing them to know about how he wasn’t allowed to use magic outside school. Since then, his treatment has become even worse.

Uncle Vernon hired a man to put bars on his window and gave him a small amount of food once a day, usually consisting of stale bread and a glass of water. He was still ordered to do chores around the house, but it seemed like they all had purposefully spilled or messed things up to give him even more work.

Harry learned not to steal food the hard way. The first time he tried - it was midnight and everyone was snoring away - he accidentally stepped on a creaky floorboard, alerting Uncle Vernon who was asleep on the couch. Scared and in shock, Harry couldn’t move as Uncle Vernon barrelled towards him and wrapped his thick fingers around Harry’s thin neck, squeezing tightly.

“You think you can sneak past me, boy?!” He spat out.

Harry gasped for air and clawed pathetically at the hand choking him. Uncle Vernon laughed but didn’t let go. Harry’s vision dimmed and he began seeing stars, his uncle’s laughter sounded very far away, he felt lightheaded, and his lungs started to burn from the lack of air. Uncle Vernon finally threw him onto the floor before he could pass out, making him hit his head pretty hard. Gulping lungfuls of air, Harry scrambled to get up and ran back to his room, his uncle cackling all the while.

Since then, whenever he made a mistake, Uncle Vernon would choke and slap him, and if he fell onto the floor, he would get kicked in the stomach or head. Dudley joined in on the fun too, pulling his hair and shoving him down the stairs. Aunt Petunia didn’t beat him - said it was too much for her - but she made up for it by yelling constantly at him. His food was also slowly reduced: from three slices of stale bread to two slices to one and eventually, he was only given a glass of water each day. He tried to drink straight from the tap in the bathroom but was found out by Dudley who immediately pulled his head back by the hair and called for Uncle Vernon.

Due to the constant choking and dehydration, Harry’s voice became extremely small and raspy. His throat felt scratchy, uncomfortable, and hurt when he tried to speak.

Harry was ecstatic when he heard that the Dursleys were leaving for the night.

“We - that is me, Petunia, and Dudley - are going out tonight, boy,” Uncle Vernon said, sneering at him. “The bathroom and lounge had better be clean when we come back, you hear me?”

Harry nodded, trying not to look happy.

He watched the car pull out of the driveway and sat listening to the sound of the engine. When he was sure they were gone, he immediately went to the kitchen to find something to eat. It was useless to try and steal from the cupboards or fridge - Aunt Petunia had counted everything and locked them - but Dudley was a picky eater and sometimes bits and pieces of his food would get thrown away. Tonight was one of those days.

Harry let out a little gasp of happiness when he found a piece of half-eaten bread and bacon pieces in the trash. It had been a week since he last got a piece of bread. He was feeling very hungry, his stomach clenching and hurting from the lack of food, so what morsels he could salvage were very delicious. As he munched on a bit of bacon in silence, he felt his eyes stinging. He sat down next to the dustbin and let his tears fall silently.

He hated his life.

Crying felt wonderful. He cried until he had no more tears left, then got up and began cleaning the bathroom and lounge, which had been completely thrashed, courtesy of Uncle Vernon. It was almost midnight when he finally finished his chores. His knees and back were hurting from crawling and bending over all night, and all he wanted to do was to lay down on his bed and not do anything else.

He heard the familiar rumbling of the car engine pulling into the driveway and Dudley opened the front door with a big bang. Harry couldn’t help but flinch when he heard Aunt Petunia’s shrill laughter and Uncle Vernon’s heavy cackling. But they didn’t look for him, and he drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

Harry was suddenly woken up by Hedwig, who was flapping in her cage. “What is it, Hedwig?” He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and sat up. His jaw fell open in surprise at the sight before him. There, outside his barred window, were Ron and Fred and George in a flying car!

He quickly went to the window, astonished. “What are you guys doing here?”

Ron frowned at his raspy voice and whispered, “Let’s get you out of here, Harry!”

“But… how?”

George winked at him and tied a rope on the bars. Suddenly, there was a loud noise somewhere in the house, startling all of them, and seconds later, Uncle Vernon came bursting through Harry’s door, purple in the face from anger. His small eyes widened at the sight of the flying car, and before anybody could react, he grabbed Harry’s collar roughly and screamed at his friends, “Leave! Leave all of you! I will not have this in my house, you hear me?!”

Fred and George wanted to say something, but the neighbors were starting to come out because of the noise, and they couldn’t risk being seen by muggles. So they shot Uncle Vernon a disgusted look and Harry an apologetic look before taking off.

Harry felt his heart sink. His only hope of getting out of here, now gone.

He flinched when Uncle Vernon turned to him, fuming. “Why are your freak friends here boy?! You- did you-” But he didn’t finish his words. He took Harry violently by the neck and dragged him downstairs, where Aunt Petunia and Dudley were standing, puzzled. Uncle Vernon opened the cupboard under the stairs and threw him inside. He sneered at Harry before slamming the door shut and locking it.

“That’ll teach him!” He heard Uncle Vernon growled before they all stomped back upstairs to their respective bedrooms.

Harry squirmed and tried to find a comfortable position. The cupboard was dark and dusty. It was also too small for Harry who had grown a little taller in the past year. After shuffling around and failed to find an agreeable position, Harry sighed. He didn’t expect Uncle Vernon to have installed a sensor on the bars.

Harry curled up and rubbed his sore throat. Alone in the darkness, Harry cried himself softly to sleep.

TBC

To Smile317: Thank you :D I'm really glad I was able to convey the feelings well.

I hope you guys feel sad in this chapter too.

Please review :D

- Strosevae