Hi there (^0^)/ and Merry Christmas, this is my take on how the fairytale The Beauty and the Beast should have went :3... Also, just in case, this is a Severus x Harry story... if you don't like that I think you should rather leave...

For those who stayed: I hope you'll like it~ (^^)

And unlike any of my previous ffs this one has a main picture which I've drawn myself. (^^)

Warning: (for future reference) AU, Slash, mentions of abuse (not sexual), (possibly-turn-surely) Mpreg

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, J. K. Rowling does... nor do I own the plot of The Beauty and the Beast... I'd be dead by now if I did (^^;)

... Depths of Black ...

1. Single Rose, The First Encounter

Once upon a time there was a family which consisted of four members.

However it was not a happy family one would expect in an ordinary fairytale.

Because out of that four-member family there was one member who definitely was not happy.

This one person was called Harry.

Harry was a cousin to the other child of the family, Dudley, and he was brought to live with his relatives on a night surrounded by mysterious circumstances. However the Dursleys, as the family was called, never felt obligated to care for him.

Blood is not always thicker than water and as such Harry never truly felt to be a part of the family.

In fact the Dursleys thought of him as no more than a slave.

He was not loved in that family... and its members did anything they could think of to prove just that.

And that one day of all, the one which was meant to change Harry's life and set events he never thought possible into motion, was no different.

...

"Freak! Come here you useless waste of space!" screamed Vernon, the Master of the house, through his Mansion. He knew full well that the corridors will lead the sound to the room without windows, one no bigger than a cupboard, where the person he called was forced to live.

And soon enough said person emerged.

Harry was a boy with dark hair which seemingly defied gravity and eyes of piercing green colour. That colour was only partly hidden by his glasses, but dimmed it was not.

Be it as may Harry was also a boy very small for his age of fifteen... Then again, being "raised" in a limited space with little to no food and loads of heavy workload would do that to anyone.

Even raised like that however Harry never grew into a bitter person and everyone but his prejudiced family liked him.

"What is it Uncle?"

Harry was forbidden to use the names of the members of the family. The only woman of the family, Petunia, ordered so, saying that she was disgusted with only the thought of the boy saying her name out loud.

"I'm going out to the town, prepare the carriage for my departure, including the cases with clothes which Petunia feels to have no use for anymore and are to be sold. They are in the Clothing room opposite to the Master suite."

Once that was said Harry knew better than to complain and was already on the way to the second floor of the Mansion.

He was by no means surprised when he found out that his Uncle chose the biggest and heaviest wooden cases to be carried, some of them weighing about twenty kilograms by themselves, not to even think how heavy they were with four or five dresses which weighed up to five kilograms each.

'Better get to it now, I guess...' Harry only thought as he took the handles of the first case, already mentally preparing himself for the pain in the back he was sure to get once taking care of all six cases.

He however did not think to complain, because every time he did something his Uncle deemed as overstepping of the bounds, a punishment was sure to come.

Getting punishment for no good reason was bad enough. The punishment for not doing chores or breaking rules was worse.

And Harry would work as a mute if it would be needed to avoid those.

...

Vernon Dursley was preparing to leave for the town when his son appeared next to him.

"Daddy! Are you going to the town?" Dudley asked, already thinking of all the things his father will bring him.

"Yes, I am. Is there anything special you want?" the obese man asked his equally hindered son.

"Yes! I want new sweets from Honeydukes and Chocolate frogs from there of course, they're my favourite, and something from that new fabric Madam Malkin advertises as of the best quality and..."

"Okay, okay... I'll bring all that and much more." Vernon nodded to his son. As much as he hated the wizarding world as whole - not broadcasting it though, who knew what the freaks would do to him then - he would get over that for his son's sake. Call it irony or not, but Dudley Dursley was taken with the newest trends of the magical world and as such Vernon always brought something for his child.

It was no surprise that he did not care to bring anything to the boy his son's age, who lived with his family as an equivalent to the wizarding House Elf.

A boy who watched the man leaving, still heaving a bit from the excercise he was forced to get when preparing the carriage. At least the coachman was a kind man and readied the horses himself when Harry asked him, otherwise he would have had to do that as well.

'I want something from the town also...' Harry thought, never before getting a present, his eyes sliding to the perfectly trimmed garden, one just awaiting the arrival of spring which was around the corner. Caring for said garden was Harry's work also.

'Even a single flower would be enough.' the teen thought sadly, looking up again in time to see Vernon's carriage disappear from sight.

'Is it too much to ask for a single rose?'

Be careful what you wish for Harry...

...

Returning from the town, Vernon Dursley was content with his purchases He sold all the dresses, passing them as new ones - a near-truth, actually, his wife only wore them once or twice before deeming them boring - and bought new ones. He bought all the things his son wanted and more, having bought everything he thought his son might show even the slightest interest in... And he also bought a new whip to use on the 'freak' for when he misbehaved.

'That one was a great purchase indeed.'

All that however slipped his mind for a moment when the carriage passed the great castle everyone has thought abandoned... just as it always did. This time however, something was different.

"Stop here!" the man screamed, nearly causing the coach driver to fall off his seat.

The poor driver had no choice but do as ordered.

As Vernon stepped out of the carriage he started walking down the path to the castle, caring only little for the big rusty lock he took off the gate before entering.

"Sir! That is not a good idea!" the coachman cried out, seeing the man walk into the private property which the castle was.

"Shut up, or you're jobless!" Vernon only shot back. The red-headed coach driver had no other choice but to do just that. He after all had a family of nine - including himself - to take care of. And there were not many free posts as of the moment. What if he lost his job, as measly as it was paid?

And so Dursley walked down the path still.

He only stopped walking when he came upon roses which started to border the path as it neared the castle.

"Strange. I thought roses only bloomed later." he wondered out loud, not bothering to think of stealth.

He felt an urge to pick one of the roses up, even not understanding why.

"Maybe Pet would like one?" he continued voicing his thoughts. "For sure she would."

And like that he incautiously picked the prettiest rose he saw, pleased with himself for getting the rose for free... until he heard a low-pitched voice behind himself.

"Just what do you think you are doing, muggle?"

In that moment the man froze completely. He only turned around when the low voice spoke up again, lengthening the only consonant in the word he said, making it sound like a hiss.

"Sso?"

Once Vernon turned around he nearly fainted.

There, looking at him from a very, very close distance was a giant snake. The hissing quality of the sound was indeed no coincidence.

"What do you think gives you the right to just come and pick one of my roses, filthy muggle?" the snake continued. In that moment Vernon cared less for the fact that snake should not be speaking to him. He was thinking how to get out of the situation.

"I only wanted to get one of them for..." he broke off. He could by no means drag his wife into the mess, who knows what the snake would do to her if it knew?

"For who?"

"For my nephew." Vernon said, pleased with himself for thinking up the lie. Maybe the snake would hurt the freak like that. One more great way to punish the waste of skin for even existing.

"Really?" somehow Vernon was sure that if snakes had eyebrows, the one before him would be raising one of them up.

"Oh, really, he just loves spending time in the garden..." Vernon went on.

While not a complete lie that statement was not quite true. As much as Harry loved the flowers in the grand garden, he by no means was happy to do everything on it by hand, especially as he was sometimes forced to stay outside with no water or food until his work was finished.

"Bring him here."

"Excuse me?"

"Bring. Him. Here! You stupid muggle, have you gone deaf?"

"But why..." Vernon was by no means pleased with the vision of having to actually hire someone to work in his house. It cost money... whilst the work of the freak was for free.

"Give him the rose you picked, for it can not be returned to ground, as an exchange for that the boy is required to come here. The rose will bring him here." the snake said, a series of hissing sounds following, making the rose glow faintly.

"The next one who touches the rose will be brought here... Don't you dare disobey me muggle, if you just drop the rose somewhere it will come with great pains for you. Ones which could just kill you..." the snake said as its eyes, which would seem as black as an obsidian if not for the slightly lighter brown colour lining the slit of a pupil, neared the man's face until they were few centimetres from him. "And believe me, it might just happen if I want..."

Once saying that the snake turned around and slithered away.

The threat however, rang through the scared man's mind still.

...

"What happened, sir?" Arthur Weasley asked when the man owning the carriage he was ordered to ride came back from the garden pale-faced.

"Nothing!" the man snapped. "Just drive back." he said, already climbing back into the carriage which seemed too small for someone his weight.

"As you wish, sir." Arthur sighed as he took the reins.

The reason for his current Master's fear was however gnawing at him the whole way back to the Mansion.

...

"I have to go, Uncle is going to return soon." Harry smiled sadly at the woman who became a mother figure of-sorts to him.

"You're always welcome when you're free, dear." Molly Weasley smiled back at him, waving her wand to clear the table on which an empty plates and glasses were. At that movement Harry could not help but feel a pang of jealousy. He however quickly pushed it aside.

"Thank you Mrs Weasley, I really appreciate that." Harry smiled sincerely. "Tell Ron I said hi... and others also."

"Of course I will. It's a pity you and Ron missed each other again, but you know him, once he gets his mind on something - or someone this once - it's hard to make him come home. What was the girl's name?"

"Hermione." Harry laughed. "He really seems taken this time, not like the other girl few weeks back."

"It really seems so this time... but don't worry you'll soon see him again... and twins also. They are just so busy as of lately, opening their own shop and all that..."

"Yeah, I know." the Weasley matron did not know that, but Harry had a part in the shop's start. Even having no money he helped with the items the twins invented. He may not be able to actually use magic, however that did not ban him from learning the art of potionery. He learned everything he could from what the Weasley family told him about it and helped twins to create some of their products, even going as far as inventing a few of his own. He did not want to be mentioned at all, though. What if his uncle got to know?

Harry was brought out of his musing by sound of hooves on the path leading to the Mansion.

"I have to go!" he cried out, nearly knocking over the chair he had been sitting on as he quickly stood up. "Thank you for everything Mrs Weasley. I'll stop by if I have time."

"Of course, deary." the red-headed woman smiled sadly, pitying the boy as she knew a bit about the harsh treatment he got. "See you soon."

"Hopefully." Harry only said as he sprinted out of the back door.

He had a strange feeling that it was not going to be soon that he will have a chance to come back to that house.

...

Vernon Dursley held the rose to the point of having the sharp thorns piercing his skin. It was a wonder the thorns could get through the layer of fat to the blood, but the red liquid was soon dripping in slow drops down the man's palm. And it did so until the moment the man got out of the carriage in his mansion.

"Daddy! Did you bring me... Wow! What is this!? Can I touch...?"

"NO!" the man yelled, cutting off the rant of his son who stopped reaching out for the glowing rose immediately in shock. His father never forbid him from doing anything so far.

The man's thoughts however were to get rid of the glowing object as soon as possible and so he searched for the boy he hated with passion. He saw him just going through the door of the house of the red-headed servants, which in normal circumstances would earn the boy immediate punishment of thirty whips across the back... that day however Vernon Dursley had to skip that favourite way of torture to the boy, one of the few the boy had not yet managed to learn resistance to. Having his back whipped every other day at least the skin never healed properly and so he always started to cry out in pain about halfway through his punishment... Ah, how much Vernon loved torturing the teen.

"Freak! Come here!" he yelled, causing the said boy to freeze on the spot, then come in rush before the Master of the house.

"What is it Uncle?" Harry asked weakly, already imagining the pain which was to come.

"Come with me..." Vernon said only, walking as fast as he could - which was not much - in the direction of the Mansion.

As Harry walked slowly after the man he was confused. Usually the man would be already describing just how much pain he will bring to him and how much he would enjoy it... why not today?

Harry's confusion grew even more when the Dursley lead him and stopped in front of Dudley's room of all.

"Get in!" he ordered and Harry did just that.

As the Master of the house started one-handedly searching his son's wardrobe Harry was already asking himself whether the man has finally gone mad... or maybe he suffered some apoplexy of sorts?

"Put this on!" came yet another order.

'He's giving me clothes? How weird can it get?' Harry asked himself as he started redressing. It was the first piece of clothing he got in well-over a year at least. He did not even bother voicing his protest, when it became apparent his uncle had no intention of leaving. He only turned around.

Even if the shirt must have been the smallest Dudley owned it still looked too big on Harry, for he was quite a few sizes smaller than his cousin. The pants were one of the few charmed ones Dudley owned - Harry was sure there will be a quite a loud screaming fit from the boy if he was really to get them - and resized themselves on him. Same went for the shoes.

As Vernon Dursley looked at him with his eyes narrowed Harry knew that the man was definitely not happy to give him the clothes. Only seeing them seemed enough for the man to beat the life out of him he was sure. What was the reason for all this however?

Even as the boy was wondering he did notice the man coming closer. And soon he was standing in front of him.

"Now listen, freak..." the fat man spat out. Only at that moment did Harry notice just how tightly was the man gripping the rose he held out before his face. "Once I'll give you this you'll go away. You will not speak of what is happening here, of the treatment, of the punishments, of nothing you hear?"

"Yes, Uncle."

"You're from a loving family which was very sad to send you away, you get it?"

"Yes, Uncle."

The man seemed a bit reluctant about sharing the next information, however he did not want to risk it to backfire on him - as it would if he lied, probably - and so he said it.

"Your birthday is on 31st of July."

Harry stared in shock at the man in front of him. The man swore not to say the date of his birthday to him, it was one of the first punishments Harry remembered, for inquiring about the very date, in fact.

How bad a situation has to be if the man is willing to share the information with him? Harry somehow cared only a bit for that at the moment however. Because knowing that piece of information he somehow felt more complete.

"Yes Uncle."

"Hopefully you'll be eaten by that thing."

"What?"

Harry however did not get an answer to that for his uncle pressed the glowing rose into his hand... and he was whisked away.

... there is a price for every wish.

...

"Oh, my... here already? One would have thought the man would prolong it." were the first words Harry heard when he came to a bit. It took a bit longer before he opened his eyes though.

"Where am I?" Harry asked looking around, everything being a blur as his glasses must have fallen off. And so he searched around himself, hoping that they did not crash.

"In my casstle." the voice answered, dragging the "s" on a bit.

"Huh? A castle?" Harry asked a bit confused as he still searched for his glasses.

"Were you told anything?"

"Not much..." Harry admitted as he finally came upon the legs of his glasses, bringing them to his eyes.

When he put them on he came face to face with the giant snake his uncle has met already. His reaction was however miles different from the one his uncle had.

"Wow..." he whispered to himself as he reached out his hand to touch the snake, being more than fascinated by the snake's shiny scales and its deep, knowing, almost obsidian-black eyes. The creature however shifted a bit to not allow that, finding the look of wonder in the boy's eyes funny.

"What is your name child?" the snake asked, the amusement a bit readable in the voice.

"Harry."

"So... Harry. Welcome to my castle. You may call me Severus."

Woohoo~

What do you think so far? :3 Also.. a POLL on my profile (about the possibility of MPREG in the story)

Review please? o(O.O)o

See ya~ ( "-.-)/