Hello everyone! And welcome to the first chapter of my new mentor fic. After completing my 'The potions -" series, it's such good fun to start out with something new and I hope that you'll enjoy this story as well.

Important note: Those who are already familiar with my work might be expecting me to update daily, as I've done in the past. Sadly, that is not going to be the case. Starting now, I'll be doing weekly updates so you'll be able to read a new chapter every Friday.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Harry Potter characters or the world in which they live. All I own is the story and I don't make any money writing this.

The Subterfuge

Chapter 1

Even though summer had just begun, it was a dreary day. The clouds ran thickly across the sky, their grey colour scheme prophesising a storm or at the very least a heavy downpour. There was nary a soul to be found in the park leaving only the wind to play softly with the contraptions that children typically found amusing.

There was but one boy present on the playground. One of his most distinctive features – besides the obvious scar on his forehead shaped like a lightning bolt – was the emerald green of his eyes. Until recently they had been full of laughter and life but now they exuded only pain and anguish.

Harry Potter sat sideways on one of the swings, shifting his heels in the sand as he stared at his left arm. The remains of a long, jagged cut were clearly visible. Harry was sure that it would become a nasty scar that would never really go away, much like Voldemort would never go away. That's how it seemed to Harry, anyway.

The first drops of rain began to fall but they didn't bother Harry. He shifted to rest his forehead against one of the ropes that kept the swing aloft, thinking – as he had done for most of his first week back – about Cedric. The kind-hearted Hufflepuff didn't have to die. If Harry hadn't told him to take the cup with him, he would be home with his dad right now. Harry clenched his fist thinking of the lifeless gaze that had been in Cedric's eyes. He would never be able to unsee that.

More drops fell onto Harry's hands as he looked at them. It took another moment for him to realize that they did not come from the skies but found their origin in emeralds.

The sound of laughter brought Harry out of his reveries. He looked up to see five tall boys coming towards him, shoving each other playfully in the process. He sighed and averted his gaze, knowing that running wouldn't work. Maybe ignoring them would make them go away.

"Hey, freak!" Dudley yelled unnecessarily. With no one else around, Harry could hear him perfectly, even if he spoke normally. In any case, Harry did not dignify his greeting with a response. He didn't even raise his eyes to meet those of his oversized cousin.

"He's ignoring you, big D," Dennis told Dudley. "I think he's not afraid of you anymore."

"Oh, he's scared alright," Dudley growled. "In fact, he's so scared that he can't even speak. Isn't that right, freak?"

Harry clenched his hands around the rope but continued to ignore Dudley. 'Just go away,' he thought desperately.

"Say something," Dudley growled. He took a hard step forward and pushed Harry, causing him to fall sideways off the swing, his left leg still hooked around the seat. This elicited some exaggerated roars of laughter from Dudley's gang as Harry clumsily unhooked his foot and got up.

Not wanting to be a part of whatever this was, Harry ducked his head, turned around and made to walk away when he was grabbed by his upper arm. He hissed in pain when Dudley pressed down hard on the bruise he had received from Vernon just the previous day.

"And where do you think you're going?" Dudley growled. "I did not give you permission to leave."

"I'm not one of your lackeys, Dudders," Harry snarled. "I don't need your permission."

Piers and Gordon snickered at the nickname, and Dudley became very red in the face, much like Uncle Vernon when he was angry about something. Without warning, he raised his fist and connected it with Harry's stomach who doubled over in pain. Who had ever thought that teaching Dudley how to box was a good idea?

"Don't call me that, freak!" Dudley exclaimed. "You will treat me with the respect I deserve or face the consequences."

"Consequences?" Harry replied, a voice in the back of his mind begging him to stop provoking his cousin. "I didn't know you knew any words that big. Are you sure you used that right?"

Dudley punched him again, connecting painfully with Harry's ribs this time causing him to fall over because of the impact. He coughed a couple of times as he tried to regain his lost breath and looked up at Dudley in defiance.

"Look at you," Dudley said coldly. "You're an outcast. A freak. You have no parents and mine hate to have you around. No one wants you." Dudley kneeled down next to Harry, his nostrils flaring. "In fact, I don't think anyone would care if you died. Do you?"

Harry tried to get up but Dudley just pushed him back down.

"You'd best be careful," Harry warned. "If you don't, I will –"

Dudley laughed before Harry could even finish his sentence. "There's nothing you can do, you idiot," he said. "Don't you think I know that?" He glanced at his cohorts over his shoulder, grabbed Harry by the collar and pulled him close enough so he could whisper into his ear. "Go ahead," he hissed. "Go and get yourself expelled. I'm sure that killer you're screaming about in your sleep will get to you in no time. And none of us will stand in his way."

He released Harry and got back to his feet. "We've been here long enough," Dudley said. "It's starting to rain and It's getting late. Let's go home. I'm getting hungry."

Harry couldn't help but snort at that comment. Unfortunately for him, Dudley had heard him. His cohorts all shared a look and were smirking at each other as if they knew something good was about to happen.

"Problem, Potter?" Dudley spat.

This time, Harry did manage to scramble to his feet, vaguely aware of his aching ribs as he glared at his cousin.

"You obviously don't need any more feeding, Dudders," he challenged. 'Shut up, Harry,' the little voice inside of him begged. "In fact, by now I think you could go on a hunger strike for a year and not starve to death."

"What exactly are you saying?" Dudley asked, his tone dangerous.

"I'll use small words this time," Harry said slowly. "You. Are. Fat."

If ever Dudley had struck a likeness to his father, that moment was certainly it. His face turned a shade of purple that was almost unnatural, his beady eyes practically popping out of their skull in rage. His nostrils were flaring dangerously as his hands clenched and unclenched. Harry noticed that Dudley's gang had not laughed. They were now remarkably silent, waiting for the storm to come. Harry knew that he had gone too far.

With the agility of an illusionist, Dudley procured a switchblade from the inner pocket of his vest, releasing the blade with an audible click.

"Care to say that again?" Dudley asked, his voice dangerously low. Harry swallowed and backed up a few steps. He had known that Dudley had a switchblade, sure. But he had never expected the oversized whale to ever actually use it on anyone. It was just for show, wasn't it?

Dudley slashed the blade in Harry's direction who threw his body back to narrowly avoid the weapon. "Dudley," Harry gasped. "Stop it."

"Big D," Dennis said doubtfully. "Maybe you should –"

A fierce glare from Dudley shut his friend up before he refocused his attention on his cousin. A scrawny kid who – without his wand – was completely defenceless to stand up to his cousin.

"We've put up with you for far too long," Dudley growled. "You're an ungrateful freak who takes everything he gets for granted. And now you dare to insult me? ME?"

The blade slashed again but once again Harry managed to dodge it. He was much more light on his feet than his cousin was and if he could just stay calm, he was sure that he could evade his cousin's wrath until he had calmed down somewhat. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Piers circling around him. Dennis, Gordon and Malcolm stayed firmly in place, clearly not sure what to make of this.

"Stop scurrying," Dudley growled. He stabbed the blade in Harry's direction and nearly made contact because Harry was also trying to keep an eye on Piers.

"And get stabbed?" Harry countered, his eyes now trained on the blade. "Do you think I'm crazy?"

"I think you're dead!" Dudley hollered. Suddenly, Harry felt someone grab his arms from behind and twist them into an angry hold. Dudley charged forward at Harry who saw it happen as if it were in slow motion. He could see the stray raindrops on Dudley's face, and the slightly darker colour of the fabric on his shoulders where the rain had already soaked him. The angry glint in his eyes was not as scary as the malicious grin he wore at the prospect of puncturing Harry a couple of times at least.

As he thrust the blade forward, his fist clenching around the tool twisted and Harry could only imagine how much damage that would do when it connected. He could feel his own throat constrict with fear and his heart pounding in his chest, racing as if it could outrun time.

And then it stopped.

As did Dudley.

For a mind-numbing second, Harry's consciousness was attacked by stimuli. The roaring of heavy rain assaulted his eardrums. The sudden absence of pain told him that his arms had been released and it was all he could do to catch himself when his balance suddenly shifted dramatically. He could see Dudley's halted movements, his offending fist still outstretched but it didn't move. The eyes that had been full of rage only seconds before were now fearful.

That's when Harry realised just why Dudley had stopped moving. From the waist down, his limbs seemed to have been transformed into bark and tree roots, some of which stretched to his arms, constricting them to stop their motion. Leaves were starting to sprout from Dudley's pores and branches were starting to grow on the top of his head as if he were producing some strange sort of antlers.

Harry watched his cousin's transformation with an entirely new kind of fear when screaming shook him out of his reverie. Dudley's gang had started running as if the devil himself was after them. The four of them made to the northern exit of the playground when the sound of a car backfiring and the sudden appearance of a cloaked figure stopped them in their tracks. He whipped out a wand, flicked it once and all four boys fell to the ground in an unconscious heap.

The man – a tall wizard with short brown hair – then laid eyes on Harry and walked over to him. Harry ignored the pathetic whimpering of his cousin and stepped away from the arboreal miscreation to meet the wizard. He certainly didn't seem dangerous. He had more of an official air about him. And Harry knew that all he would need to fear from him was expulsion and possibly persecution.

"Mr Harry Potter, I presume," the man said smartly, his eyes barely flickering to look at Harry's scar.

"Yes, sir," Harry said.

"I am Auror Brown," the man said. "I have come here because you cast a transfiguration hex on a muggle." His cold eyes locked onto Harry's. "Have you anything to say for yourself?"

"It wasn't on purpose," Harry said, trying his best to remain calm. "I didn't even have my wand on me. But Dudley – well – he attacked me. He really wanted to hurt me! If you'll come see, he's still holding the knife."

Brown nodded and took a closer look at Dudley, whose eyes betrayed nothing but sheer terror. In his frozen state, he had indeed not been able to let go of the knife, which Brown took notice of.

"You do realize that you are allowed to protect yourself, even when underage, don't you?" he asked, frowning at Harry.

"I told you that I didn't have my wand," Harry said desperately. "I didn't exactly expect my cousin to jump me so close to my own home."

"Rarely do we suspect to be attacked, Mr Potter," Brown said sternly. "That's why you should always carry your wand with you."

Harry clamped his mouth shut. He didn't exactly want to tell the Auror that his wand had been locked away by his uncle, right alongside his other magical items.

Brown sighed deeply. "Partial transformations – especially when performed with accidental magic – are particularly tricky to undo," he said. "The transfiguration wasn't even one of another animal. A mammal would have been an easy fix. Even a bird or reptilian would have been relatively fine. But this? A half-transfiguration of a human into a tree? This is a different matter entirely."

Harry frowned. "You can fix him, though. Right?" he asked desperately. If the Auror couldn't, his aunt and uncle would surely kill him. And even if he did, Vernon would still likely beat him within an inch of his life.

"This is not something I can do," Brown admitted sternly. "He will have to be admitted to St Mungo's and he will have to stay there until they have been able to undo what you did."

"How long will that take?" Harry asked, fiddling with his oversized shirt.

"It could take weeks," Brown replied. "Months even, if you're unlucky. These things need to be handled carefully."

"But people will notice his absence," Harry objected. "What would I tell them?"

"We'll handle that in a moment, Mr Potter," Brown sighed. "But first, I must deal with the other four muggles I apprehended. We can't have them spreading stories about what they witnessed today, can we?"

Harry nodded as the man walked back over to Dudley's gang. In the meantime, Harry took his seat on the swing, not caring at all about the rain that had now soaked him to the bone.

"Well, Big D," he said to his cousin. "It looks like we've really done it this time."

Dudley whimpered and Harry couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Don't whine," he said sternly. "You heard Auror Brown. It might take a while but you'll be good as new in time. But me? I don't need to tell you what your dad will do to me when he finds out."

Dudley remained silent but the rage in his eyes was telling.

"Oh, you think that I deserve it, do you?" Harry challenged. "If you hadn't come at me with a knife, I wouldn't have had to do anything. A knife, Dudley! What were you thinking?"

Dudley exhaled harshly and Harry found himself vaguely wondering if his cousin would be performing photosynthesis as well for a while.

"Don't give me that look," Harry chided, feeling empowered now that his cousin was defenceless. "You really could have killed me! And even though no one here in Surrey likes me, I have friends in the wizarding world. Do you really think they would have let you get away with it?"

Harry watched as Brown woke up Dudley's gang one by one, waving his wand to no doubt cast some memory charms.

"I really don't know what I ever did to you, you know?" Harry continued. "Besides this, of course." Harry chuckled at Dudley's misfortune. "Perhaps a stay at St Mungo's will make you less afraid of magic, won't it?" he continued. "Maybe you'll find out just what a prat you've been."

Dudley snorted as if he didn't believe it and kept staring at Harry.

"No, I don't really believe you will, either," Harry sighed. "Just try not to upset any other wizards. At St Mungo's they're not restricted and can use magic as much as they want."

This made the fear in Dudley's eyes return and Harry smirked at his little victory. He knew that he shouldn't amuse himself with Dudley's misfortune too much but he would pay the price for it soon enough.

When Brown had finally sent all four boys on their way, their memories sufficiently altered, he stepped back over to Harry and Dudley and regarded the tree-muggle appraisingly.

"I think it's best that you wait right here while I sort this out," Brown told Harry without taking his eyes off of Dudley. "I'm not sure what protocol is when something like this happens, but I'm certain that something can be worked out."

Even though the rain was pouring down on Harry aggressively, he really didn't want to return to the Dursleys without his cousin so he readily agreed to wait.

"Good," Brown nodded his approval. He placed his hand on Dudley's shoulder – which was still largely human – and apparated on the spot. Only the cracked path where Dudley's new roots had been were evidence of the magic that had just occurred.

Harry sighed and sat down underneath a big tree, trying to shield himself from the sky's onslaught, wondering how in the world he had ended up in this mess.

Somehow, Harry had managed to fall asleep as he waited for the Auror to return. He realised this as he was rudely awoken by a rough, baritone voice and a shove to his shoulder.

"Potter, get up!" the voice snarled and Harry groggily thought that the voice sounded a lot like the one of his most hated professor.

He blearily blinked as he righted himself. The rain seemed to have lessened in ferocity to that of a mild drizzle. He looked up only to see the Potions Master himself come into focus. Harry couldn't help but frown.

"Snape?" he asked in confusion.

"Even when we don't find ourselves in the confines of Hogwarts, I expect you to refer to me as Professor or Sir," Snape said icily. "Now I advise you to get up before you catch pneumonia and die on the spot."

"I didn't think you'd care," Harry growled.

Snape scoffed and crossed his arms. "I assure you that I would not shed a single tear should you drop dead tomorrow, but there are a great many people who risk their lives on a daily basis to make sure that you stay safe. Sleeping underneath a tree in the pouring rain seems like a bad way to repay their efforts. As is transfiguring the better part of your cousin into a tree."

"I didn't mean to!" Harry argued, jumping to his feet.

"Honestly, Potter," Snape snarled. "You're getting to be a bit too old for these random bouts of accidental magic. You're supposed to have your magic under control by now. Though I suppose I should have expected you to once again be the exception to the rule."

Snape crossed his arms and regarded Harry with an absolutely hateful glare. "Tell me, Potter. Did you enjoy attacking your cousin?"

"You don't even know what happened!" Harry shouted. "You just come here assuming that – hold on, why are you here?"

Snape fixed Harry with a pointed glare.

"Sir," Harry added defiantly.

Snape raised his eyes heavenward as if he was praying for the gods to give him strength before replying. "I was sent here to help deal with your little… temper tantrum."

Harry glared at Snape. It had not been a temper tantrum. He had genuinely been afraid for his life. But he wasn't about to tell Snape that. He'd rather drop dead than admit to Snape his fears.

"Dudley has been taken to St Mungo's," Harry said evenly. "So you should probably head over there next, sir."

"Potter, are you being deliberately obtuse or are you honestly this blatantly ignorant?" Snape asked in exasperation. "I am not able to simply fix your cousin with a handy potion. That particular problem is something that will take a while to right itself. In the meantime, I am here for damage control."

"Damage control?" Harry repeated, now feeling his annoyance give way to confusion.

Snape scowled and glared at Harry with such ferocity that he was almost certain that Snape would happily kill him on the spot.

"As we've established, it will take a very long time for your cousin to recover from his ordeal," Snape explained, his voice void of all emotions. "In the meantime, his absence will surely be noted and the ministry is honestly not too keen to keep all the muggles who could have questions about it in check."

Harry frowned. "Alright," he said slowly. "And you can help with that problem?"

"Don't interrupt, Potter," Snape snapped. "If you'll allow me to explain, you'll hear the conclusion soon enough. In order for your cousin's absence to go unnoticed, he will be replaced by someone who is able to brew the Polyjuice potion as is necessary as well as play the part of subterfuge. Unfortunately for both of us, I am the most logical answer to your current problem."

Harry swallowed thickly as he tried to make sense of Snape's words. "Hold on," he said. "Are you trying to tell me that you're going to be playing the part of my cousin?"

"It would appear that you do have a brain in that thick skull of yours," Snape sneered. "Yes, Potter, I will be impersonating Dudley Dursley for as long as he remains in St Mungo's. In order to accomplish this goal, I will need you to inform me of his mannerisms, habits and speech pattern."

Harry stared at him, his mouth agape. Perhaps it would be better to come clean to the Dursleys after all. He didn't want Snape living with him and finding out about the way the great Harry Potter lived his life. He didn't want to teach Snape to call him things like 'freak' and 'waste of space'. He most certainly didn't want to inform Snape about the intricate details of 'Harry hunting'. Perhaps he could warn the Dursleys about Snape's arrival. If he did that, Snape would find out nothing and the Dursleys would be forced to act nice for once. Yeah. That would work.

But Snape seemed to be sensing his thoughts.

"Before you get any ideas, I should inform you that the ministry deemed it necessary for your aunt and uncle to remain oblivious to the current predicament," he said. "If you should choose to go against their wishes and tell them anyway, I imagine that they would not hesitate to expel you."

Snape sneered as he spat those last words. "Of course, I would not be against your future absence in my class so if that's what you are trying to accomplish, be my guest."

"What?" Harry exclaimed. "You can't be serious!"

"Take it up with the minister," Snape growled, uncorking a vial from his pocket and adding a hair he had procured from a handkerchief that seemed to be filled with the things. Had they shaved Dudley or something?

With one last dangerous glare in Harry's direction, Snape downed the disgusting potion. Harry shuddered as he watched the transformation. Seeing his scary, dark Potions Master change into the ginormous blob that was his cousin was a sight he could've gone his whole life without seeing.

This summer was quickly becoming one of the worst ones he had ever had.

And there you have it, folks! Please don't forget to leave a review. Even those who already read the chapter when they helped me decide with which story to move forward. It's my only reward!