Babies Can Teach a Valuable Lesson by preety_lady_serenity
Summary: Harry turns into a baby after an accident in Potions and Snape is assigned to become his guardian. But can Snape take care of a baby? And especially a baby like Harry? Alternative Universe, written before the HBP (posted firstly in ff.net in 01-30-04 )
Categories: Parental Snape > Guardian Snape Main Characters: .Snape and Harry (required)
Snape Flavour: None
Genres: Drama, Humor
Media Type: None
Tags: Alternate Universe, Baby fic, Child fic, Deaging
Takes Place: 6th summer
Warnings: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 34 Completed: Yes Word count: 122052 Read: 172466 Published: 30 Jan 2006 Updated: 01 Nov 2007
Questions and Meetings Arranged by preety_lady_serenity
Author's Notes:

Disclaimer

Woolfy: For the last time! The characters belong to a woman from Britain named J. K. Rowling and not to a girl from Greece. 

Hello guys miss me? I have been away for long, haven’t I? Six courses a semester is harder than I thought. I have very few moments to relax and when I do so I write just for you. So be honoured. I could have some sleep instead.

Once again much thanks to my beta-reader DreamlikeCheese

I hope you enjoy it.

Severus Snape paced on the grass feeling the chilly breeze on his face. He stopped and looked at the horizon as the last bits of sun sank below it. He resumed pacing, lost in his thoughts.
“What can Lupin be telling him? Why did I ever ask for this? I can see his return to Hogwarts now. He will be talking about how great James-Obnoxious-Potter was. He wasn’t, of course and I am not jealous! It won’t worry me if the boy will be enthused over his father more than he will be with me. WHAT KIND OF A STUPID IDEA IS THAT? Why should worry anyway? I am certain that I do not care what the boy believes about me! He will probably come to my office as soon as he grows up and will accuse me of pretending to like him out of pity. As if anyone knows how I feel.”
“Severus, dinner is served,” Molly Weasley’s voice announced.
-)-)-)
It was time to leave and Snape felt lucky that Harry had fallen asleep. He went over to the couch, where the boy was lying, draped in a blanket, and looked at Harry for a moment.
“Severus, can I have a word with you?” Lupin whispered softly and motioned to the man to follow him into another room.
Snape followed with a scowl.
“I… am… I just wanted to tell you that… I am grateful you let me talk to Harry about Lily and James.”
“Do not get any ideas of importance Lupin. You are after all the closest of his parents’ friends,” Snape answered back.
“Of course,” Lupin continued smoothly, “I want, as well, to apologise for my behaviour the last time we met. I was near my full moon days…”
“Well, it was a change from your usual passiveness,” Snape let out grumpily and stared at the man intensely.
“Well – um – what I want to say is that I have avoided talking to Harry about unfortunate events between you and James and I was more subtle talking about James than Sirius would have been.”
“I appreciate that,” Snape answered back, unable to control his mouth. They both looked at each other in disbelief.
“I realised that – I mean… I have never thanked you for not telling anyone about the werewolf incident in our sixth ye-“
Lupin never managed to finish his sentence for Snape exclaimed “Enough!” in a slightly louder tone of voice, glared at Lupin with a look of anger, and something close to pain, and got out of the room as quickly as he could.
-)-)-)
Despite Snape’s assumptions that little Harry would talk about his parents in an endless manner, the boy did not do so. Snape was glad about it, relieved he almost admitted to himself.
“Legilimens.”
FLASHBACK
Little Harry was looking fondly at Mrs. Prentice’s kittens. They were mewing softly as Mrs. Prentice, a white cat with red and brown spots, was breast-feeding them.
“They are really tiny,” Harry said in delight, only to receive Mrs. Figg’s comment.
“Yes, yes now. Let’s go and feed the rest of the cats, we would not want them to start complaining.
His sighed as he waved the kittens goodbye.
END OF FLASHBACK
“No, no Harry!” You have to pay attention,” Snape scolded the boy softly when they withdrew from the memory. “You have to repel me, before Mrs. Figg takes you away from the kittens. Remember my promise.”
“I will try Sevvus,” the four-year old Harry said timidly and he was presented with the same memory once again.
FLASHBACK
The kittens mewed hungrily as they lay near their mother. The female cat licked one of the kittens’ fur lovingly as the others buried their heads on her tummy. Harry looked at himself and then remembered. He had to find Sevvus. He searched around the room, trying to notice the man in the background. He noticed something blurry that did not fit the background. He focused on it as it became clearer and clearer and began to resemble the man with the long black hair. He immediately tried to repel him from the memory. He struggled and struggled, feeling his breath halting, a piercing stinging against his ribs. He let out a gasp of pain. He felt panic rising as he could not breath. He could not do it properly. He plunged towards his guardian.
END OF FLASHBACK
Both man and child found themselves sprawled on the floor. Snape on his back, while little Harry drew long breaths of air. Snape turned to look at the boy.
“Good – work Harry. I am very… pleased with you,” he commented. His expression, however, changed when he saw the boy’s face full of tears.
“Sevvus,” a panicked Harry whispered, “I not want to do Occlumency anymore. It is very difficult to throw you out my head. I can –I can – I can no breath!” he finished with difficulty.
Snape looked at Harry uncomfortably as the boy buried his head against his, Snape’s, ribs. He raised his head minutes later, after his muffled sobs had subsided and stared at his Guardian with puffy red eyes.
“Harry,” Snape asked in concern, “how long have you had trouble breathing in Occlumency?”
“Long. Today, I was very scary.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
“Uncle Vernon says no good when complain. I no want be trouble.”
“Harry,” Snape, exclaimed letting out a loud puff of air, “you are not trouble. It is very difficult for you to do many things if you don’t ask for help and if you don’t ask for help you cannot solve them. And when you cannot solve your problems they end up piling up and you end up in a bad position.”
“I am sorry Sevvus. Don’t be angry,” Harry whispered unhappily.
“I am not angry with you lad,” the man finally spoke, “I am not angry with you.”
It was at that moment that Snape realised that he held Harry in a tight embrace. And to his surprise he did not attempt to move.
-)-)-)
Severus Snape was enjoying a nice cup of tea while Harry smeared his face with ice-cream, his reward for his achievement on managing Occlumency in happy memories. The boy seemed to have left behind the panic incident he had gone through some minutes ago and was sucking his ice-cream happily. Snape, of course, was lost in his thoughts and he did not suspect that the boy was about to add an extra one soon.
“Sevvus, can I ask something?” Harry asked innocently.
“Hmmm,” Snape responded absent-mindedly as he enjoyed the warm aroma of tea in his mouth and nose.
“Where babies come from?”
Hot liquid sprayed outside the black-robed man’s mouth. He turned crimson red and looked at the little boy, his face flaming with embarrassment.
“I-who-they-“he mumbled as if his mouth was desperately trying to articulate words.
“You don’t know?” little Harry inquired in surprise.
“Of course I know!”
“Well?”
“Tell him Merlin brought him to the castle – Too old. This answer had not been used since my grandfather was a child. How about he sprouted out of a pumpkin patch? This is too moronic even for a toddler. Came out of a pixie egg? Are you going to stop with the idiotic answering? Well, figure it out on your own… Oh dammit, I’m having a conversation with myself now.”
He pursed his lips together, drew a long breath and counted to ten. He opened his eyes to see the boy looking at him expectantly.
“A baby comes out of a mother’s tummy,” he answered slowly and carefully.
“Oh and how it gets there?” Harry shot the next question immediately.
Snape thought for some seconds.
“A man has inside him half a seed. The woman has a half a seed as well. So a man and a woman join the two seed halves and this action results in having a baby.”
“Seed?” Harry asked, narrowing your eyes his eyes in doubt, “Seed like beans? And what they do? They plant it in a pot?”
“Umm… Not exactly. They join their half seeds inside the woman’s tummy.”
“How they do it?” Harry questioned immediately.
Snape felt himself going flaming red. He drew a long breath. He exhaled.
“Let me just say they do an act that requires love.”
“Can you do it too Sevvus?”
“Yes,” the man replied immediately, wishing the boy would stop asking.
“Can you show me how to do it?” Harry shot out innocently.
Snape coughed. He suspected that his face would remain scarlet forever. It seemed impossible to him that his face would regain its normal colour after it had been painted so many shades of red.
“This act, Harry, is only preformed by grown-ups and children cannot see it,” he whispered slowly.
“But if you do no show me how I will know how to plant babies?”
“As you will grow, the knowledge of how to perform it will come to you. You cannot remember how you started to speak, can you?”
Little Harry shook his head in denial.
“In the same sense, this will take place. One day, you will just know.”
Harry, to Snape’s great relief, seemed to have satisfied his curiosity. He granted his guardian a smiley ‘okay’ and turned his attention to Bibi and his ice-cream.
-)-)-)
Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry sat in his chair feeling exhausted. His one-hundred-and-twenty year old body constantly reminded him that he was by no mean young and that it was time for him to rest. Yet, he could not. Not with a war inches away from him. This year had been the most exhausting for him. The Order had members all over the world that tried to help and yet neither the British Ministry of Magic nor the other ministries around the world were keen to acknowledge the great consequences of Voldemort’s return. Instead of gathering together and deciding on how to deal with Voldemort, the governments spent each day accusing one another of promoting the Dark Arts. They spread panic in their people by hunting anyone that seemed to have the slightest association with the Dark Arts and instead of promoting a sense of security, they ordered the closing of schools and left vulnerable the ones that were most likely to get recruited, young people.
From the beginning of the school year, the old wizard had run around trying to convince the British Ministry of Magic to allow Hogwarts to open again the following September. For months he fought for Hogwarts’ re-opening. He was afraid. He was honest about that. If he failed to convince the council of Governors then the sixth and seventh years would be in grave danger.
Moreover, the Ministry’s relationship with other governments was like elastic stretched to its breaking point. And he, Albus Dumbledore, was running around trying to patch the holes the government was creating. Finally he had to deal with the families that needed immediate protection, a very exhausting-for-the-body-and-soul procedure. He closed his eyes and tried to relax, yet he could not help but feel that his bones were about to shatter any second into tiny pieces.
The headmaster had his eyes closed for two minutes when the gargoyle that guarded his office’s entrance started moving. He sat up as Severus Snape, the Potion Master of the school, entered.
“Headmaster, I was informed you required my presence,” the young man commented and stood still opposite him.
“Severus, do sit down,” the old wizard said slowly and pointed at the armchair near the man.
Snape sat down while Dumbledore whispered a soft ‘tea’ and a silver tray appeared with two porcelain cups and a complete tea-set. Dumbledore poured Snape his tea and offered it to him, before he would fix a cup of his own. He took a large sip.
“I have found a solution for Miss Parkinson’s dilemma. I have discovered a place inside Muggle London. Some wards and a Secret Keeper will ensure the Parkinsons’ safety. As long as they give their consent and she passes the ‘procedure’, I do not think we will have a problem. How things are going?”
Snape’s face darkened as the word ‘procedure’ was articulated. The Veritaserum Potion was brewed in huge amounts to be used on his Slytherins.
“I am glad to know that you found a solution,” Snape mumbled grumpily, avoiding answering Dumbledore’s question about the upcoming interrogations.
“I talked to Miss Parkinson’s parents today. I might say we had a very long discussion, but nevertheless I managed to convince them that it will be better for their daughter’s welfare if they allowed her to remain protected at Hogwarts. Though…”
“Though what Headmaster,” Snape asked quickly.
“I have to ask your secrecy on this issue Severus. The board of Governors wished for Hogwarts to remain closed for the year to come. As Harry turns to legal age they think Voldemort – stop fidgeting Severus – is keener to attack the school during his final year.”
“As if the Dark Lord ever needed an excuse to attack somewhere,” Snape snorted. He stopped and looked at the Headmaster, “But Headmaster, if the school remains closed what will happen to Harry – I mean the students?” he asked, correcting himself in the process.
“Why did I ask about Harry– Potter? I do not care of his welfare, I shouldn’t be so concerned,” he hissed to himself.
“The students will remain home or sent to other magical academies. Though, I strongly object to both options. What I will try to do is to convince the Governors to keep the school open for the fifth, sixth and seventh years if possible. Unfortunately the Governors will demand the parents’ written statement for the fifth and sixth years but at least we will have the seventh years protected.”
“Yes, but we still have to face the problem of the Slytherins that need protection over the summer holidays.”
“Severus, I have to deal with the issue of Hogwarts’ re-opening for the moment. As soon as I do that I will discuss this issue as well,” Dumbledore commented with a sigh and sipped his tea with a loud slurp.
-)-)-)
“The Headmaster will provide my parents with a place to hide?” Pansy Parkinson commented in disbelief. She let out a sigh of relief so heavy that it sounded as if she had held her breath for the past few days. “I am so relieved.”
She formed a smile.
“Thank you sir.”
Snape smirked.
“Well, I think we must return to business. I do not remember giving you a detention for the little incident you and Mr. Malfoy created in my classroom. I would say that two weeks cleaning the mould off the outside walls of the Quidditch Stadium is quite an appropriate detention, don’t you think?”
“But – but sir. . .” the girl stammered as her cheeks were painted a crimson red.
“Tush, tush, Miss Parkinson, you must deal with it one day soon, mustn’t you?” he interrupted her with a sly grin.
-)-)-)
Wednesday afternoon found the four-and-a-half year old Harry Potter and Severus Snape walking together in Hogwarts’ Grounds. This would be an unusual sight for Hogwarts’ residents if Harry Potter had not turned into a baby and been assigned to Snape’s care. This, for most students, was an even more unusual situation, but alas there was nothing they could do.
In reality, not both man and boy were walking. Little Harry was flying on a toy broomstick, the tip of his feet brushing over the grass. The broomstick did not fly quickly, for it was magically set to fly at the pace of the man’s walking. This, of course, was much more easier for both the boy and the man as neither Snape had to adjust his step to the small boy’s nor did Harry have to walk four steps to reach the distance of the grown-up’s one step.
The boy and man walked and flew towards the Quidditch Stadium. Harry stopped and dismounted, while on Snape’s face an expression of wicked satisfaction was drawn. Draco Malfoy sat cross-legged on the green grass and on his left sat Pansy Parkinson. They each held a big brush that they dipped into a bucket of warm water and soap before they scrubbed the mould off the wall. This would be of no interest to the ones that had low skills of observation. But if someone were to observe the ground carefully he would see the tip of Draco Malfoy’s fingers rubbing Pansy’s fingers in the same way one would pet a kitten or a puppy.
Snape felt little Harry taking his hand and pulling him softly towards the lake. They walked together now, the toy-broomstick resting inside Snape’s pocket. They passed the lake and went towards the forest.
“Aww Sevvus look!” little Harry cooed in amazement as a grown-up unicorn appeared from the forest, its golden foal following after.
Snape made a shushing sound, placing his index finger in front of his mouth and they both sat down to watch the unicorns graze. Harry looked around before looking at Bibi. Snape could not help but visualize Harry as a teenager holding the toy; though lately little Harry seemed somewhat embarrassed to hold the stuffed toy in front of too many people. It was a moment later when they heard something approaching.
It was a series of halting ‘bumps’ and ‘swish’ as if someone was dragging his feet towards them. A couple of cracking sounds followed from the trees. Something appeared to be breaking branches on its path. Boy and man stood up as the unicorns raised their heads, let out a neigh and galloped into the woods. The ‘bumping’ sound became stronger, louder. Little Harry touched his guardian’s hand and out of the woods emerged the form of Rubeus Hagrid.
For those who did not know him, Rubeus Hagrid seemed terrifying and dangerous. He was twice as tall, and five times wider, than the average man and from his face hung a beard of tangled strings of hairs. His hair was long and equally tangled and as for his hand and feet, they were the size of beer barrels. He wore a cape made of fur skin and carried a sack made of what seemed to be dragon-hide. Yet, despite what he seemed to be, Hagrid was the kindest and one of the most good-natured half-giants that had placed his foot on Earth’s soil.
Hagrid walked slowly towards them and his hut. He stopped in front of the raven-haired man in order to greet him and take a look at the small boy. Little Harry, nevertheless, had frozen still with a look of terror on his face.
“Good mornin’ professer Snape. Gallopin' Gorgons! ‘S that Harry?” he asked looking at the toddler, who he had not seen since Christmas “Yeh‘ve grown!”
He leaned down to take a look at Harry, stretching out his hand to offer it to the boy. Little Harry, however, sprang away from Hagrid and hid himself behind his guardian.
“No, no, go away, I no want to!” Harry screamed frightenedly.
Hagrid took a step backwards, taken aback by the boy’s outburst. Snape stared at the half-giant in puzzlement and then at the boy who had started sobbing. Snape leaned down and scooped the boy into his arms.
“What is wrong Harry? Hagrid is a good man,” he whispered soothingly in the boy’s ear.
This, nevertheless, did not soothe Harry. On the contrary he continued.
“NO, NO AWAY . . . I WANT HE GO . . . I . . . sniff . . . GOOD… I… sniff sniff . . . WAS… hic . .GOOD. . . I promise be good,” he kept crying and crying.
Snape looked at Harry and then at Hagrid in uneasiness. While Harry was crying uncontrollably, pain was drawn on Hagrid’s face.
“ I be’er go an’ look wha’ Fang is doin’” he whispered, turned on his heels and disappeared towards his hut.
Snape looked at Hagrid’s form disappearing in the evening’s shadows before turning on his heels and carrying the little boy into the castle, who did not stopped crying in distress until he had fallen asleep.
-)-)-)
Much to Snape’s dismay what seemed to have caused Harry’s outburst remained secret. In fact just the mere reference to Hagrid’s name and little Harry would start crying hysterically. In addition, Hagrid had not taken his meal in the Great Hall and had not left his hut since he had arrived. This, of course, caused many whispers and critical looks to be directed at Snape by most students, especially the Gryffindors.
“Rumour has it that Snape has planted strange ideas in Potter’s head about Hagrid so that the boy would stop trusting him,” Snape heard a second-year Gryffindor whisper to an anxious Hufflepuff friend. “The Slytherins never wanted Hagrid as I am told.”
“Five points from Gryffindor Miss Lockless,” he snarled menacingly, stopping the conversation. He scanned the girl with his gaze, “for the foulest uniform I have ever seen,” he concluded pointing at a small stain at the girl’s uniform before marching away fuming.
To add to Snape’s current ordeal, the man still could not solve Harry’s little problem in the Occlumency lessons.
“Ah, why do I have so many troubles?” he thought as he scribbled on a piece of parchment, “I may not have been the best man in the world but I see no reason for being punished so severely.”
He looked at the parchment and scowled at the bunny-heads he had doodled while thinking. He tore the parchment in pieces and tossed it into the fireplace, acknowledging the fact that the whole student population of Hogwarts would die of shock if they found out their menacing Potions Master doodled bunny-heads when absent-minded.
Suddenly he heard a soft tapping on his window. He looked up to see a male Boreal Owl tapping the window with his beak impatiently. He stared back at the black-robed man and let out an indignant ‘hoot’. Snape opened the window.
“Well well, I have not seen you for a while,” Snape commented with a smirk as the owl perched on his left forearm.
The man extended his index finger to touch the owl’s neck and received a quite hard nip.
“Ouch Eberus, there is no need to be so affectionate,” he hissed half-angrily and took the parchment from the owl’s leg, giving him an owl-treat.
Eberus hooted proudly and squeezed his master’s forearm hard enough to pierce the skin slightly.
“Oh get away you bloody bird,” Snape said, with a tone of affection and tapped the bird’s head with his index finger.
The owl hooted and flew outside the window towards the owlery. Eberus was not a pleasant owl but for a reason he could not determine, Snape had a soft spot for him. He unrolled the parchment.
“Dear Mr. Snape,
We have anticipated for your offers and we gladly accept them. The trout’s tears have been collected and will remain in moonlight until the delivery date at Thursday 15th of June. Leane will meet you at the usual meeting place at four o’ clock in the afternoon.
Regards
Kiara of the Veela Tribe of Klen Khar.”
Snape let the parchment down with a slight blush. He regained his composure fairly quickly as he remembered something important. He let out a soft curse. The day of the exchange would take place on the day the sixth years would sit their NEWTs exams.
Snape stood up and moved to Harry’s bedroom. To his amazement he opened the door and found out that the boy was missing. The room was quite tidy, apart from many blocks that were built to form a little wall. Snape turned his head and scanned his bedroom, wondering whether he was getting too old to notice a child hiding.
“Sevvus, look what Bibi and me made!” Harry’s happy voice interrupted his thought.
The boy’s head could be barely seen from the wall of blocks he had built around himself. And suddenly Snape had an epiphany. He found the solution to the biggest problem he had been dealing with for days, how to solve Potter’s Occlumency problem.
Oh finished this part.
The End.
End Notes:
Important Author Notes (Please read them after you read the chapter)
  1. I was studying historical events and I was astonished to discover that when great wars approach governments tend to close down schools. In Greece during World War II most schools were closed and remained closed until the end of the war. So here comes the idea of Hogwarts closing.
  2. As I once said before I am mostly Canon romance and I still hope you are not offended with Draco and Pansy, or any other pairing I have included.
  3. The reason why Harry reacts towards Hagrid like that will be revealed in next chapter. I am rather fond of Hagrid so I am sorry for making Harry treat him like that. Yet, the reason Harry acts like that will be justified.
  4. Before you say ‘Oh no Mary-Sue romance approaching’ and turn your pc off because Snape blushed when he read the letter by the Veelas, I am once again informing you that this fic includes no Snape romance, nor Harry romance. So the blush has to do with something that will be revealed later on. The meeting also is essential to the fic.


This story archived at http://www.potionsandsnitches.org/fanfiction/viewstory.php?sid=1087