The Funeral

Chapter 2 – The Funeral

The church was empty aside from Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. A coffin lay at the base of the altar. A large spread of coral roses lay on top. Aunt Marge's favorite color. Petunia and Vernon were sitting in the first pew, talking quietly to each other.

Harry was glad the coffin was closed. He didn't think he wanted to see the body. He followed Dudley to where the Dursleys sat. Uncle Vernon was first to see him approach. His expression instantly went from sorrowful to anger and then to one of neutrality, just as quickly. He never noticed the tall man enter behind the two boys and remain in the shadows at the back of the church. Vernon patted his wife on the arm before standing to greet his son and nephew.

"Dudders, sit with your mother a bit while your cousin and I have a little chat," Vernon said with a false smile on his face.

He grabbed Harry by the upper arm and led him back down the aisle. When he was sure they were out of Petunia's hearing range, he pushed him into a pew and stood over him. Harry couldn't help but to smirk to himself; Vernon was trying to intimidate him. Vernon was about to get a lesson in intimidation from the master, and Harry knew it. He also knew it was best to let his uncle get it out of his system before he spoke, so he decided to sit back and listen to the rant.

"Now you listen, boy. Because of your freakishness, the last year or so has been incredibly hard on me and my family. I nearly lost my job." Harry knew that wasn't true. Kingsley and Mr. Weasley had made sure that Grunnings had taken him back.

"We had to move and live in hiding. Then since we've come back here to our home, everyone thinks that we mistreated you. I don't know what you did to turn our friends against us like that, but you will be fixing it, or I will show you what abuse really looks like.

"I agreed with 'Tunia that having you here would be for the best. You will play Happy Family and you will act normal. If anything strange happens or I see your stick, I will make you regret the day your parents met. Do you understand me?" He grabbed Harry by the shirt collar and hauled him to his feet.

"Ye..." Harry felt a hand grab his shoulder. He turned and saw Snape standing there. The look on his face would have sent even the toughest seventh year to the hospital wing in fits.

"Dursley, if you value your pitiful excuse of a life, you will remove your hands from Mr. Potter," Snape said, his voice barely above a whisper, but the threat was clear.

Vernon did not remove his hands. Instead, he began to shake Harry.

"How dare you invite more freaks to my sister's funeral? I will..." Vernon never got the chance to finish his sentence. He was silenced as the Potion masters' hand began to crush his throat. Severus' anger was so great; he forgot for a moment that he could curse the man into oblivion.

"I believe I asked you to remove your hands from him."

Vernon dropped his hands, and Harry took a step back, straightening his shirt as he did.

"Now then, Dursley, we are going to discuss how I expect you to behave today. Mr. Potter will not act like a Happy Family with you. Nor will he lie to anyone about your past treatment of him in order to please you. You will not speak to Mr. Potter unless he speaks to you first. You will refrain from speaking ill of him to anyone. If I so much as suspect you of even thinking of harming him, you will be joining your sister on her final trip. Are we clear?"

A small sob escaped Vernon's mouth.

"I will take that as a yes." Snape released his hold on the man. "Go back and sit with your wife."

By this time, Petunia had realized that something was going on between her husband and the strangely familiar man who was glaring at him.

"Vernon, dear, is there a problem. Oh, I see he has arrived. Did you tell him how we expect him to behave?" She seemed unconcerned by the tall man standing next to her husband and nephew.

"Petunia. I would say it is nice to see you again, but I would be lying."

She looked at the man for the first time and realized just who he was.

"Severus. I would have expected you to be dead. I had hopes that someone would have killed you by now. I am happy to see the years have not been kind to you."

"Unlike you, I did not have the luxury of sitting home all day with a personal slave. I have survived two wars and a Dark Lord. What is your excuse?"

Harry was amused by the banter between his aunt and the Potions master. It could almost be mistaken for friendly bickering if one didn't know them better. Dudley didn't know what was going on. Vernon, though, was turning purple trying to hold his tongue. How dare this man insult his wife? And just who was the slave he was referring to? He had to calm down before he spoke. The man that Petunia called Severus did not seem like someone who would not follow through on his threats.

"Tunia, dear, do you know this... this man?" Vernon asked, trying to keep the contempt from his voice.

"I am surprised you don't remember me, Dursley. After all, I believe you said you would castrate me if I ever came near your tea with my chemistry set again." Harry could not stop the laugh coming from his mouth. He tried and almost ended up in tears. He was dying to know what the professor had done to the man.

"You! You're that little urchin that was friends with 'Tunia's freakish sister."

The laughter stopped. Harry drew his wand and, before he could stop himself, buried it in Uncle Vernon's throat.

"Potter. Put that away," Snape hissed, his teeth clenched tightly together. He turned to Vernon and growled, "It would be wise to refrain from speaking ill of his parents. It seems that since the war his temper has been on a short leash. I am not sure if I could stop him from killing you if he wanted to."

A minute nod from Snape let Harry know he was joking and just trying to diffuse the situation before Harry really did hex his relatives. Snape glanced at a clock in the entry.

"It is almost time for this to start. I suggest you take your family back to your seats. Mr. Potter and I will remain back here."

Vernon took Petunia's arm and began to lead her back to the front. Dudley looked as if he was trying to decide whether to follow or stay. Petunia made the decision for him. "Come along, Dudders."

"Dursley," Snape called out before the man got too far away. "In answer to your question, I always follow through on my threats."

Vernon's face paled. 'How did that man know he had been thinking that?'

Snape was correct; within a few minutes, the first of the mourners appeared. A man in an old naval uniform was first. He was fairly old for a Muggle. He went up to the Dursleys and spoke to them at length. He looked very unpleasant and all business like. Harry heard his aunt greet the man. Colonel Fubster. Harry remembered him now. He was Marge's neighbor at her old house. He was the one who had drowned the runt puppies in the litters for Marge. The thought sent shivers down his spine.

Mrs. Figg arrived next. Harry was surprised to see her dressed in a somber black skirt suit, though she still paired it with slippers. She went and greeted the Dursleys before returning to the back to speak with Harry and Snape. After a few minutes, she went and found a seat nearby.

The mourners continued trickling in for the better part of an hour. A few he recognized as people who lived in Little Whinging. He wondered if they had actually made friends with the unpleasant woman or if they just felt it was their civic duty to appear at the funeral. A few stopped by him to pay their condolences.

As he watched the mourners talk quietly to the Dursleys and each other, a low murmur of excited noise caught his attention. He watched as the people in the back were turning towards the door. The man and woman who appeared in the doorway looked vaguely familiar to Harry. They made their way towards Harry. It was only when they got closer that he realized who they were. The man spoke first as he held out his hand to Harry. Harry's jaw dropped open slightly.

"It is an honor to meet you, Mr. Potter. My mother and my cousin talk about you all the time. I probably should not have come here, but my family wanted to give you their appreciation for saving well, everybody," the man said. He was very handsome, and the woman by his side was equally as beautiful.

Nearly every eye in the church was watching them and trying to hear what the famous footballer had to say to the teen. Snape decided it would be best if they moved the conversation somewhere private and ushered the four of them into a small room he found in the front of the church.

Once inside, Harry decided it must be a sort of office. It held a desk and several chairs. They all took a seat. Harry was about to say something when the woman spoke.

"Please excuse him. He gets like this occasionally. You would think that someone who is used to people gawking at him wouldn't do it to others," she finished with a smile. Snape snorted.

"Miss ..." Harry started.

"You can call me Victoria. May I call you Harry?"

He quickly nodded.

"So you are a witch then?"

"No." She laughed. "I am a Muggle. Becks' family is magical."

"My mum's family. In fact, I think you know my cousin Katie. She was in your house at school."

"Katie Bell is your cousin? How? I thought she was a pureblood. But you're not a wizard, are you?" Harry could hardly believe he was sitting here talk with these two stars.

"I am, at least I think I am. I don't have a wand or practice magic, but I have some magic. Mum was cursed by Grindewald when she was a child and lost her magic. She has been little more than a Squib ever since. She never went to Hogwarts. She married a Muggle and went to live in the Muggle world. She didn't have much contact with her magical relatives, so neither did I. I did very little accidental magic when I was younger, so my mum never told me about magic."

"I seem to recall seeing you make a goal a few years ago that had to have been aided by magic," Snape drawled.

"True, but I really didn't mean for that to happen. I just wanted to score."

"You follow football," Harry asked, looking at Snape.

"Potter, I am a half blood. I do know what the sport is. I have been a fan of Manchester United since before you were both born," he said as he rolled his eyes.

They all laughed and waited for Becks to finish his story.

"When I received my Hogwarts letter, she told me everything. She even told me how she had lost her magic and all about the wars. She left the decision up to me. I thought about it for a few days and decided against it. I was happy with my life. My friends and family meant a lot to me. I did not want to give that up, so I declined the invitation. There are times when I wonder what my life would have been like had I chosen the other way, but I am happy.

"Since then I've met my mum's sister, Joann, and her husband , Sebastian. They are Katie's parents. We visit each other often. I learned all about magic from them. I have to admit to being a huge Quidditch fan."

"Really. Who is your favorite team?"

"Puddlemere United."

"They are mine as well. You know I played with Oliver Wood in school."

"Katie told me. She said you are amazing on a broom. I would like to see you fly sometime. Did you know the two of them are dating now? She is the one who got me hooked on the team."

"I had heard that," Harry said.

"Dear, we really should be going. We have monopolized Harry enough for one day," Victoria said.

He nodded and they all stood.

"Harry, it was a real pleasure. My mother wanted to come but was unable to get a pass from the Ministry to attend. They are being very strict with the wards."

"Thanks for uh... I mean thank you for coming. It was nice to meet both of you."

"Harry, I know we just met, but Victoria and I would like to have you as a guest at our wedding. My family would love to meet you. I can promise they will be on their best behavior and not fawn all over you."

Harry agreed to go. He told them how to get in touch with him, and they said their goodbyes. Harry and Snape then made their way back to the chapel. It was just about time for the services to begin.

A/N: Thanks to my beta, sempra. I hope she knows that I couldn't do this without her.