Harry Potter and the Ferratilis Potion by Arualcopia
Past Featured StorySummary: At the Dursleys the summer after Sirius' death, Voldemort sends werewolves to attack Harry. Taken to Grimmauld Place by his rescuer, Severus Snape, Harry devises a disastrous plan to rescue Sirius from the veil, resulting in his being transfigured into a baby. Snape is the only one who can brew the potion to restore him, and is the only one to realize that Harry still retains his 16 year-old-mind. Over the summer and the first two potions which restore him to age eleven, Harry begins to feel that Snape is the only one who understands and can protect him. Is he right or has his deaging muddled his thinking? AU story for 6th year.
Categories: Parental Snape > Guardian Snape Main Characters: .Snape and Harry (required), Draco, Hermione, Neville, Original Character, Other, Remus, Ron, Voldemort
Snape Flavour: None
Genres: Action/Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Media Type: None
Tags: Adoption, Baby fic, Child fic, Deaging
Takes Place: 6th summer
Warnings: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 26 Completed: No Word count: 156772 Read: 173286 Published: 15 May 2006 Updated: 14 Nov 2007
Unreality by Arualcopia
Author's Notes:
It's been ages since I've updated, so if you can't remember what's happened in my story, here's a brief reminder:

Voldemort used a potion to control werewolves (the ferratilis potion) and sent them after Harry. Snape rescued him and brought him back to Grimmauld Place. There he discovered a dark artifact, put it on, and went crazy. In that state, he went to the Department of Mysteries to rescue Sirius from the veil only to be deaged to a baby. Afterwards, Snape took care of Harry, creating a potion to bring Harry back to his sixteen-year-old self. He was briefly five and went to his relatives only to discover they too were infected with the ferratilis potion, which was slowly killing them. Harry returned to school an eleven year old, and then was later aged to sixteen. He was captured in the hallway one night when he was on his way to see Snape. He was taken to Voldemort and tortured for four days before he and Snape were rescued by Lucius. Lucius and Narcissa were later killed, while Draco, Snape, and Harry escaped to Grimmauld Place. There, they recovered; Snape adopted Harry (and also gained custody of his godson Draco). Harry then fought with Draco, and was sent to his room. After a while of waiting for Snape to come, Harry decided to go find the man. First, he went to the bathroom and washed his face; there he heard an odd ringing in his ears, which turned to pain and he passed out. After that he looked for Snape only to discover a plate of chocolate frogs in the kitchen. He ate one and some of another, until he realized that they were poisoned. Meanwhile, Snape went to Harry's room to look for the boy, only to discover Harry was gone from Grimmauld Place...

Harry, unable to move, stared out across the table. He couldn't believe that he'd been stupid enough to eat some mysterious chocolate frogs. Those same frogs had completely disappeared, probably so that Snape would be unable to create an antidote for whatever poison he'd injested. It was odd, though, how the poison was acting on his body. At first, it'd been relatively fast. One moment, Harry was eating and the next he was unable to move. Now. though, his body's state seemed to level off.

It could be doing damage I'm unaware of, Harry thought. His breathing sped up, the panicked feeling returning. No! Harry told himself. He was not going to panic; he had decided that earlier.

So far, the poison had only caused dizziness and a little bit of pain. And then, of course, he was unable to move. Harry tried to jerk his arms. It was annoying that he couldn't move, that was for sure. And he felt completely vulnerable, waiting for Draco to come and hex him at any moment. But those were his only symptoms.

He didn't understand the point of this poisoning. Surely Draco would have entered the kitchen by now. Unless the idiot had gotten himself caught, Harry thought smugly. But even if Draco had been caught, someone else would have come to the kitchen by now.

Unless the others have been poisoned, too, Harry realized with a start. He tried to pull up his head, move his legs, or even wiggle his fingers. Again, Harry calmed himself; he was not going to panic.

The situation seemed so odd. Why wasn't anyone coming? Draco, Snape, Remus, even a random person through the floo or an enemy, Harry shuddered. But the manor was quiet, too quiet.

Harry had spent a lot of time at Grimmauld Place this last summer, and even with the portraits, magical creature infestations, and most dark artifacts gone, the house itself seemed to constantly creak and groan. In fact, even before he ate the chocolate frogs, the house had seemed off. Ever since...

The bathroom, Harry gasped. At the same time, his body jerked and he found himself falling to the floor. He hadn't been able to move his arms to protect himself when he fell, smacking his cheek sharply on the stone floor. His arms, legs, and body followed, each part impacting just as painfully.

Strangely, Harry's first thought was, I'd never expected to see the kitchen from this angle again. Really, it'd been ages since he was a baby, and considering his current circumstances, he should be thinking about more important things. Such as getting help!

But Harry resigned himself to the reality that nothing was normal. In fact, it was likely that no one was coming-that no one could come. Harry had to help himself as quickly as possible, so that he could find the others and help them as well. A bizarre calm came over him. Harry decided to call it "resolve."

He had to move, especially considering where he was laying. He was right next to that odd spot on the floor, created by one of Snape's overflowing potions the day Harry'd sent sparks all over the kitchen. As a baby, he'd always avoided being near it. Studying the floor as best as he could, considering he couldn't turn his neck, he was relieved to see that the spot wasn't right under his nose as he'd thought.

His relief was short lived, however. He knew the floor of Grimmauld Place's kitchen! Taking into account his body's angle, wedged in between two chairs, half under the table, the spot should be there. And, he knew that spot hadn't been removed. Couldn't, in fact. The potion had permanently warped the stone.

Harry turned his neck to get a better look at the stones. This isn't Grimmauld Place, Harry gulped. It couldn't be. His palms grew sweaty and his breathing quickened. He was growing panicked again... until, he realized, he had moved his neck.

Harry held his breath, and looked towards his left hand. Wherever he was, it wasn't real, at least in the sense that this wasn't Grimmauld Place. He had to figure out where he was, so that he could get back to where he should be. And to do that, he had to move. Tentatively, he willed his fingers to flex.

The fingers moved- easily, as if nothing had been wrong in the first place. Harry let out his breath, smiling widely at his still moving fingers.

Several minutes passed, Harry still with a silly grin on his face watching his fingers move. Finally, he remembered the bathroom, and how everything had been off since he'd passed out there. Rolling to his hands and knees, Harry pushed his body up to his feet. He figured he'd best return to the bathroom, to try and figure out where he was and how he got here. More importantly how to get back, he thought, taking the steps two at a time. Distantly, he considered the possibility that he might be dreaming, or perhaps still under the poison's effects, or maybe even going bonkers. But at least he could move again, and he wasn't panicking.

xxxxx

Running down the stairs as quickly as possible, Severus reached the Floo in record time. A quick incantation and he saw the name Molly Weasley dance across the hearth. He knew the boy wasn't foolish enough to run off and he didn't really think it were possible for Harry to slip past him while he'd been sitting at the table himself. But, it was the simplest... safest option and now it was impossible.

Harry had been removed.

Fear, worry, dread and more... the emotions all rushed over him; he had to get Harry back. Instantly, with a skill only a master occlumens could possess, Severus siphoned all of his feelings into one. Rage. He would get Harry back. And woe to whoever got in the way. And the person responsible...

"Draco!" Severus called, his voice carried by his magic, even though he hadn't cast a spell. "Werewolf!" Both of them had better be fast, Severus decided. In the meantime, he cast his patronus, sending for Albus. And then added one to McGonagall. And the Weasleys. In fact...

No, Severus thought, he didn't know who could be trusted. He already regretted the sending for the Weasleys.

"Severus, what's going on?" the wolf asked, his voice completely calm, with only a small hint of curiosity.

Severus growled. How dare Lupin be calm! The infuriating man had always kept a tight leash on his emotions. If the wolf was trying to hide something, the only way Severus would be able to tell was Legilimency, and he had no desire to look into Lupin's animal mind. Nevertheless, Severus stared the man in the eye. "Harry is gone, presumably taken," he said.

The color in Lupin's face quickly drained, leaving behind a sickly, pale skin. Severus knew it wasn't an act; the man had never been very good at lying. "Pardon?" Lupin asked.

Severus' face twisted into his harshest glare. He wouldn't repeat himself; they didn't have time. "Check the wards, and who has apparated in or out for the past hour."

A loud pop sounded behind him. In one swift motion, Severus whipped around and pulled out his wand. A strong blasting curse was ready on the tip of his tongue, before he made eye contact with sparkling blue eyes.

Dumbledore's eyes quickly changed from cordial to focused. Severus was now seeing Albus, the leader of the Order of the Phoenix. "Harry's been taken," Severus said, his voice letting slip a hint of his alarm.

Before Dumbledore could reply, another pop was heard, as Professor McGonagall apparated in. Severus grated his teeth; he couldn't explain the situation again. He needed a plan, some sort of focus.

"Severuuus," Draco whined, his voice still up at least one flight of stairs. "What do you want now?"

Severus growled as he quickly made his way up to the stairs. He made it to the entranceway, when he saw Draco sauntering down the main staircase with a jaunty, arrogant look. That didn't help Severus' mood.

Quickly, Draco noticed the anger on his godfather's face and took a step backwards. Miscalculating the height of the stair behind him, Draco tripped.

Severus didn't pause in his pursuit. Grabbing hold of the front of Draco's robes, he said, "Do you have anything to do with Harry's disappearance?"

Draco looked back at him; his gray eyes were wide, full of confusion and fear. "N-no, Severus, I-"

Severus didn't listen to the boy's response. He knew he couldn't trust Draco's words. The boy was an experienced liar. "Legilimens," he incanted, slipping easily into the boy's mind.

Draco had some occlumency training, Severus knew. But like anything, Draco never took the time to practice unless he was really pressured to do so. The shields crumpled easily enough and soon Severus surveyed the boy's memories. He quickly glanced over every thought since Draco had been brought to Grimmauld Place, giving extra emphasis to the afternoon's events. There was no hint of malicious plans or secret conspiring, only sulking, whining, and more sulking. Frustrated, Severus pulled out of Draco's mind and released the boy's robes.

Draco fell back further onto the steps. The boy panted with exhaustion, and brought a hand to his head, no doubt nursing a headache. Still, the boy, foolishly, kept his eyes locked on Severus. The fear in his eyes had nearly turned into terror, but also held the pain of betrayal.

Severus felt guilty; he hadn't intended to hurt his godson. He reached out a hand to help pull Draco up, but the boy flinched back. "Draco, I-" Severus began.

"No one had apparated in or out of Grimmauld Place since this morning," Lupin said, coming up from the kitchen.

"Neither has the Floo been used," added Mrs. Weasley.

"And the wards are intact," informed Albus.

Severus turned away from Draco to look at the others. "What about a portkey?" he blurted out the moment he thought of it. He cursed himself for not thinking about it sooner.

"I've already checked," replied Mr. Weasley. There's no trace of a portkey activating.

Severus shook his head; of course there wouldn't be a trace. He knew that some portkey signatures were very subtle; he'd need to do a few scans of his own. But even then...

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Draco scramble back onto his feet as he half-crawled, half-ran up the stairs.

"Mr. Malfoy, stop," Professor McGonagall called.

"Malfoy!" Lupin yelled, jogging towards the steps.

Severus held up a hand. "Leave him be," he ordered.

"But the boy might know something!" Lupin said, climbing up the stairs.

Severus stepped in his way. "No," he said, "Draco doesn't know anything." Occluding away the guilt that tried to consume him, Severus performed as many tracing spells that he knew. If anyone had slipped in a portkey, he would discover it. He had to. He had to get Harry back.

xxxxx

As Harry made his back up to his bedroom, it became increasingly hard to maintain his "do not panic" policy, especially as he crept through the main entrance hall. Light filtered in through the windows by the door, the glow seeming too yellow to be natural. The walls around him seemed to be old, covered in a dirty charred-brown color mixed with a coppery-red that seemed to be oozing down from the ceiling. Almost like the house is bleeding, Harry shuddered.

Worse than all that was the addition of Mrs. Black's portrait. It hung on the wall, in its ornate frame, as if it had never been removed. Added to that, there was no sight of the curtain that had once concealed it.

Harry swallowed thickly. So far the portrait hadn't noticed him. Mrs. Black looked past him, off into the distance as if gazing further than Grimmauld Place's walls. Quietly, Harry took a step backwards toward the stairs. He needed to get back to the bathroom and figure out what the heck was going on.

Reaching his right arm out behind him, Harry made contact with the banister. The wood was slightly damp; he could feel the distinct tree like texture, as if it had recently been cut down. Harry turned to look at the banister; it appeared polished and dry, like it always had. He ran his hand up its surface, taking a step up the stairs. It still felt rough, wet, and alive.

A chill ran up his spine as Harry instinctively drew his hand back. Taking a moment to calm down, he told himself again, I will not panic. Simultaneously, all the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Slowly, breathing with shallow breaths, Harry turned to Mrs. Black's portrait.

She stared back at him.

Startled, Harry fell backwards and landed gracelessly onto the stairs. A deep-throated laughter arose from the portrait, cutting Harry straight to the bones.

It was enough to spark Harry's adrenaline, sending him scrambling to his feet and then up the stairs, two at a time. He ignored the way the walls seemed to flex and hum, as if the very house were laughing as well. He ignored the burning of his chest, as each breath drew in a musty decaying lungful of air. He ignored any and all thoughts, except get away.

Reaching the top of the stairs, Harry dashed into the first bedroom he encountered and then shut the door behind him. He turned towards the door and leaned against it. Bracing his feet, he pushed with all of his strength, lest something try to push its way in. At the same time, he leaned his ear against the door, listening for any sound of movement, or perhaps an increase in the volume of Mrs. Black's laughter.

He heard nothing. Relaxing his body marginally, the adrenaline rush left him. Harry tried to calm his breathing. Repeating his mantra, I will not panic, in his head, he wanted to cry. His hands were shaking and his knees were weak. But he hadn't the time to relax; he berated himself for not running all the way to his own room. It was stupid, because now he'd have to work up the courage to open the door and walk down the hall. Harry sagged a little, giving more of his weight to the door; he'd faced things far more dangerous than a portrait!

Harry's thought's flashed to an image; long slender fingers, holding loosely to the serpent headed wand. Behind it, Lucius' face scowled, but his eyes held a glint of intense joy. Harry shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut, as a tear escaped down his cheek. He forced himself to think of something else.

He couldn't panic; he couldn't let his fear control him. Reaching for the door handle, Harry took a deep breath. A giggling behind him made him freeze.

xxxxx

"Severus, you have to listen," Mr. Weasley urged.

Severus scoffed, sparing one moment to think; no I don't have to do anything. He kept pacing up and down the hall, repeating again any and all tracing spells he knew. As far as he could detect, no magic-nothing at all- had been cast since he'd sent Harry and Draco to their rooms save his own charms and two packing spells. He'd already ripped Lupin's suitcases apart in a fit of... rage... panic? Severus didn't know what to think of it.

"Harry must still be in the house," he distantly heard Mr. Weasley continue.

Severus had looked through Harry's room twice more, banishing the drapes that had cluttered the floor. The little owl window, the only one capable of opening, he'd checked for any weakness in the wards. Nothing had passed through since Hedwig the night before.

"There's no evidence that Harry has been taken," Mr. Weasley said again. Severus ignored him.

It was impossible for Harry to just vanish. He performed all the tracking spells he knew; the boy was nowhere. There were only seven humans in the house, Draco, the Weasleys, the wolf, the Headmaster, McGonagall and himself. He rediscovered that the boggart still inhabited the drawing room's desk drawer, and sent a colony of pixies from a third floor cupboard into oblivion.

"We need to search the house more closely," Mr. Weasley prattled on.

Severus was well aware of the inane search parties now being conducted by the headmaster. The others had all split up to search the house, top to bottom, leaving no room, bathroom, or cupboard untouched. Severus growled in frustration; it would do no good. The boy wasn't in the house. But Harry hadn't left either, Severus realized. Nor was he taken, by any recent Death Eater means- and it was highly doubtful that some dark artifact had been sent a couple days ago, only to act now. So the Death Eaters were ruled out, Harry hadn't left, and he wasn't there.

Hit with inspiration, Severus headed to the drawing room. In a sense, Harry had vanished- out of existence, so to speak. To what existence, was the question. No time turner had been used, Severus was sure, so Harry wasn't in another time. In fact, no magical artifact had been activated. And no spell, traceable spell, Severus corrected, had been used against the boy. At least, nothing cast in the past couple of days, but that said nothing of the ancient wards. The one force-the one culprit Severus hadn't thought to check...

The noble and ancient house of Black.

xxxxx

Harry couldn't ignore the giggles. Nor-he decided-would he panic. Besides, the laughter sounded young and childish. So, once again taking a deep breath, Harry turned around. He nearly joined the laughter himself, thinking he'd been afraid of what he'd see.

Instead, he found the room the opposite of anything scary. It was a children's playroom, filled will all sorts of magical toys. Cluttered and messy, the room was obviously well used. Across the room, a small boy pushed against another door, somewhat mirroring Harry's previous stance. The boy was young, perhaps six or seven and giggling like mad.

"Hello," Harry called to the boy. "Who are you?"

The boy ignored him, or didn't seem to hear and kept pushing the door shut. Something on the other side of the door banged. Harry jumped.

"Let me out," a little voiced whined.

Harry started to make his way over, stepping carefully so as to avoid the numerous toys.

"And why should I let you out?" said the boy between giggles.

"Because I'll tell Mum if you don't," a voice replied.

"You can't tell Mum if I don't let you out."

There was a long silence and the pounding on the door stopped. The boy Harry could see stopped his giggling and leaned his ear against the door. In the silence, Harry could make out pitiful sobs coming from the other side of the door.

"I'm scared, Siri," the voice cried. Harry gasped, and took a closer look at the boy in front of him. "It's dark," the voice continued to weep. "A- and I gotta go potty."

"Oh, fine," the boy called Siri said, pulling the door open. "But don't tell Mum," he warned. As the door opened, Harry saw a little boy step out of a tiny dark closet. The little boy, probably four years old, had tear-streaked cheeks. Harry noticed the older boy, 'Siri' roll his eyes. "Don't be such a baby, Regulus," he chided.

Sniffling, Regulus made his way across the room. The boy was slow at first, but then sped up as he got closer to the hall. He opened the door, but before he left, he turned back towards Siri. "I'm telling mummy on you," he taunted. Siri's eyes grew large and Regulus slammed the door shut.

For a moment, Harry stared at the boy in front of him. This 'Siri' definitely looked like a small boy version of his godfather. That was obvious.

"Sirius?" he asked, appalled as to why the boy didn't notice him.

The boy continued to look at the door his brother had left through, chewing on his lip. For a moment, Harry had thought he'd somehow traveled into the past, and this was the real Sirius as a boy... maybe I can save him. But then that thought quickly passed. This must be something else, a memory perhaps.

Not quite ready to give up hope, Harry reached out to touch Sirius' shoulder. It made contact. "Sirius," he repeated.

With a snap, Sirius' head turned to meet his. Harry let out a breath as they made eye contact. The little boy's eyes held innocence and wonder. Of course, there was a small amount of fear-the look of a boy trying to figure his way out of trouble.

"Who are you?" the boy asked with curiosity.

"I'm Harry," he replied. Wanting to say more, but not knowing what, Harry just continued to stare at the boy in wonder. Perhaps there was a way to warn Sirius. He knew he couldn't stay in this time, with this boy Sirius. But if somehow he managed to give Sirius instructions, to stay behind instead of following him to the Department of Mysteries... sure it would be odd, Harry realized, as he noticed Sirius studying him. An odd glint passed by Harry's eyes, startling him for a moment, until he remembered that this was Sirius after all... and just a boy too.

"You're not supposed to be here are you?" Sirius asked innocently.

"No, I suppose not," Harry replied. "I'm from the future, I think. I need to find a way to get back.
"Really?!" Sirius' eyes grew wide.

"Yes, do you-"

Harry was cut off by an all too familiar voice. "Sirius!" Mrs. Black bellowed; it didn't sound like the woman was constrained by a portrait either.

Sirius gasped, looking quickly towards the door leading to the hall. "If my mum doesn't want you here," he explained quickly, "then she'll be mad when she finds you. She'll make you leave." Sirius chewed on his lip. "You've got to hide," he decided. "I won't tell, I promise." Sirius opened the door to the little closet and motioned for Harry to get in.

Harry did as the boy directed, but stopped the door from shutting. "What?" he said. He knew it was highly unlikely that the boy could help him get back, but it was worth a try. "I think something happened in the bathroom," he said in a rush. "I got a headache and there was an odd sound. When I woke up, I was here, in this time..."

Sirius scrunched his face up, thinking hard. "Stay quiet," he said. "Hide in the closet. You'll be safe here, I promise." Sirius thought some more, "And, and don't go back to the bathroom, okay? It's bad; it hurt you. You don't need to go back there."

Harry nodded, and pulled his hand back. The door shut, leaving him in darkness, save the small strip of light on the floor. "Sirius," Harry whispered, "when your mum leaves, come back for me, okay?"

There was no response. The shadows in the strip of light shifted a bit, until they were gone.

Harry leaned against the back wall of the closet, sliding down until he was sitting. Pulling his knees to his chest, he sat and waited for Sirius to return. He felt odd for a moment, considering the situation. But he really didn't have any other options, did he? Somehow, he'd gotten himself trapped in the past, or so it seemed. Or had he... he had a nagging feeling he was forgetting something.

xxxxx

Severus sat on the couch in the drawing room. For a while, he had stubbornly tried to stand, convinced that, if Harry was suffering, he'd better be doing something more than sitting around. But after a while, it became awkward to hold onto the book and he gave in. Mr. Weasley had left a while ago, confused as to what he was doing, but Severus didn't mind, he could do with less distraction.

The old tome he was reading was nearly falling apart. The book was simply titled "Wards," but it was the oldest book on wards he'd encountered. He wasn't exactly sure what he was looking for, but he remembered Lucius mentioning something once, a lot time ago. In fact, it was back when Draco was born, and he'd been named the boy's godfather. Which meant if Lucius and Narcissa died, Severus would be the acting heir of the Malfoy fortunes. Then, if Draco died after that, well Severus would be the actual heir. And Lucius, being Lucius, took the time to point out to Severus, that some of the estates were warded against falling into the hands of anyone less than pureblood. Severus, curious as to what that meant, asked Lucius and the man responded by saying the owner would "vanish." Which, at the time, Severus didn't really take seriously. Surely Lucius was trying to scare him... but Severus was taking it seriously now.

The book had a whole category of wards that could protect a house from future owners, but they were so old Severus had figured they were just a myth. Hence, he studied the oldest book on wards he could find. And, to his surprise, there was a whole chapter on these wards, called "Inheritance Protection." They did a whole range of things, from protecting a manor from being demolished, to being repainted an undesired color. But he saw nothing about vanishing an undesirable owner.

All the wards, though, had to be linked to something specific. Some object that was likely to stay throughout time. The wards were tricky, too, because they had to be given a bit of a personality and some intelligence, in order to subvert future wizards' plans. One example the book listed was to maintain the grounds layout. The front gate, or preferably the perimeter's fence, could be implanted with the "intelligent ward." From where the object sat, the wards would "watch" the grounds. If a future heir tried to remove trees or plant a hedge in an unwanted location, the "intelligent ward" could use any means to stop him. Usually, this included interfering with the wizard's spells, breaking his or her tools, or could go as far as injuring the offender.

But nothing, Severus growled, mentioned vanishing

He did have one clue, though; he knew that the wards-if it were wards-had to be linked to something specific. Severus also knew that Harry had gone to his room and likely vanished from there. If he knew Harry at all, the boy hadn't left the room and instead waited, perhaps sulking, until Severus said he could leave. At the very least, Harry might have wandered to Severus' room, which still kept the potential area low. So Severus decided to inspect the rooms for any concentrated wards, or perhaps normal objects acting like magical artifacts.

As he made his way over to Harry's room, Severus noticed a movement down the hall. Someone had stepped quickly into his own room, and that gained Severus' attention. Whoever it was, he hadn't wanted to be seen, judging by how quickly the body had moved. Being quiet, Severus crept as quietly as possible down the hall and paused outside his doorway. The idiot who'd tried to sneak into his room had left the door ajar-an obvious mistake as far as Severus was concerned. He never left his door opened. Listening intently, he waited until he heard the sound of rustling paper. Pulling out his wand, he leapt into the doorway.

He quickly recognized the boy. Scowling, he spoke in his deadliest of warning tones, "Draco Malfoy." The boy, who'd been rifling through the paperwork on his desk, froze. "Pray tell, what are you doing in my room?"

"I-er," Draco started, still not moving a muscle. Severus started to walk closer. Draco quickly dropped the parchments he was holding and turned to face his guardian. "I just want my wand," Draco whined.

Severus was shocked to note the level of fear still present in Draco's face. The boy's hands even shook, as he tried to back further away from the dour Potions Master. Severus studied the boy a bit more, before he looked down to the paperwork on his desk.

Although the paperwork was confidential, it wasn't that important. Considering the boy's nervousness, Severus expected it to be worse. But the documents were merely an outline of Harry's trust, all the accounts and properties the boy would once again control when he'd come of age... except... something was off.

Glaring at Draco, he gave the boy a wordless command to stay put. In one swift movement, he scooped up the deed to Grimmauld Place. At the bottom, just below the name of Sirius Black was Harry Potter's.

"Severus, listen I-"

"Hush," Severus snapped. Below Potter's name, ever so lightly, a new name was beginning to form. Severus had to squint to read it, but it quickly became obvious, "Draco Malfoy."

Just as Severus came to the realization, the boy paled. "Look, I know-"

Severus glared and spoke with a low, harsh voice, "What have you done?"

Remarkably, Draco's complexion lost even more color. "Severus," Draco pleaded, "please listen. I came looking for my wand. Honest. I- I just noticed that myself. I swear."

For a moment, Severus considered using legilimency on the boy again. The thought, though, broke through his glare. He knew the boy hadn't done anything to Harry, including making any plans to harm Harry in the future. Sighing, Severus turned back to the parchment. "Do you know what could do this?" he asked, his tone holding no more animosity.

Draco shuffled. "Well, I should think the most obvious would be Casses reveranusquam."

"What?" Severus' head shot up; he'd never heard of the spell.

"Potter's a halfblood," Draco spat, some of his usual arrogance returning to him. "All the old Malfoy manors are protected by Casses reveranusquam.Surely the Black estates are as well. I am of Black descent after all. And being pureblood, I am the most suitable choice for an owner."

"The house is picking you?" Severus asked, disgusted with himself for not knowing about the ward.

"In a sense," Draco shrugged.

"And where is Harry?" Severus asked, hoping for the life of him, that his voice didn't let slip his desperation.

Again, Draco shrugged.

xxxxx

Harry didn't know how long he'd stayed in the closet, but it seemed like a very long time. Added to that, was the fact he couldn't hear anything coming from the playroom. He wasn't even sure he'd heard Sirius leave in the first place. His thoughts were preoccupied with the audacity of being duped by an eight-year-old that he didn't even think about the painting, the chocolate frogs or any other odd thing that had happened.

"Sirius," he whispered intently- he still didn't want to bring Mrs. Black's attention to him, if that was a risk.

There was no reply, not even giggling. Harry couldn't just sit and wait, every instinct told him to get up. He'd been sorted into Gryffindor after all, so why was he cowering in the closet?

Gingerly, he rose to his feet and reached for the doorknob. It turned easily, but when he pushed, the door didn't budge.

"Sirius," he said louder, "are you holding the door shut?"

Still, there was no reply.

He pushed harder on the door, trying to be quiet at first. Soon he gave up and lunged forward, pushing the door with his whole body. All the while, he shouted for Sirius.

There was never a reply.

Harry stepped back from the door and closed his eyes. For the first time since entering the closet, he took a moment to think. Suddenly, he remembered all the odd things that had happened, stretching back to passing out in the bathroom. With a sickening feeling in his stomach, he realized that it was likely that Sirius wasn't real- that this wasn't the past. That this place-whatever it was-couldn't possibly be a reality. It had to be some sick dream...

Tears slipped down his face. His first thought was to grieve again for Sirius. He had wanted the boy to be alive; with all of his being he wished that there were some way to save Sirius. And then the grief gave way to fear. The panic nearly overwhelmed him. But, just as quickly as it came, he shut it off.

He needed to get back to the bathroom. There had to be a way out. There had to be.

With that decided, Harry opened his eyes, and reached again for the closet door. He was confused, when, what he thought had been the door, was nothing more than a smooth wall. Reaching out to the walls on either side of him, Harry felt for the telltale signs of the door's wood paneling. Harry swallowed; I must have turned around. Yes, the doors behind me. Turning around, Harry tentatively reached out to the last wall. It was smooth.

Harry screamed.

xxxxx

Severus had pumped Draco for every last ounce of information the boy knew about Casses reveranusquam. To his consternation, it hadn't been much. Dumbledore was proving to be just about as ignorant and Minerva had left for Hogwarts, to investigate. One thing was clear, though; the manor itself had taken Harry, somewhere. Each moment Harry was gone, the stronger the house's hold became. Which meant the chances Harry would come back grew slim... not to mention the risk to the boy's sanity.

Dumbledore and the other's wanted to sit around and research, and to discuss, and to do nothing whilst the boy suffered. Severus flung the blankets back from the Harry's bed, ready to check the sheets for any odd magic. He didn't have time to think. Severus checked the pillows. The room was completely torn apart. At the back of Severus' mind, he felt a gnawing panic, wishing that he hadn't banished the drapes. If Harry had been... But then the idea that Harry was trapped in drapes was just about laughable.

Severus stepped back from the bed and took a deep breath. He was being an idiot he realized... no worse, a Gryffindor. He quickly scanned the room again, looking for an object that seemed somewhat likely to hold a victim, somewhere... even symbolically.

As he looked across the room, he caught sight of Draco peering into the mirror and momentarily had the instinct to roll his eyes. He'd dragged the boy along, hoping the spoiled brat might be off some help, not so that Draco could fix his hair. Draco gasped, and then leaned closer.

Severus did roll his eyes. "Draco," Severus growled, "now is not the time to worry over your vanity."

Draco blushed, but didn't look away from the mirror. "I thought I saw something," Draco said, his voice holding some seriousness and a lot of embarrassment.

"What did you see?" Severus asked, stepping closer to the bathroom. He'd checked the mirror before, of course, but it couldn't hurt to check it again.

"Well," Draco explained, "it sort of glimmered funny."

"Glimmered funny," Severus repeated, somewhat mockingly.

"Yeah," Draco's blush deepened as he looked away from the mirror. His voice grew quieter as he shrugged, "it seemed to wink at me." Draco's body involuntarily shuddered and Severus decided, as odd as Draco's statement was, he'd have to take the boy seriously.

Severus looked at the mirror. Once again, he tried a series of scanning spells, checking for any excess amount of magic placed into the object. As before, there was an unbreakable spell to protect the mirror and simple opinion spell to ensure the mirror could comment on appearances.

Severus narrowed his eyes. "How do I look?" he asked it.

The mirror didn't respond.

Beside him, Draco squirmed, "Erm-"

"I asked the mirror," Severus growled.

Draco relaxed. Suddenly, he started and his body became stiff. "It hasn't replied," he said, staring at the mirror intently.

"No, it hasn't," Severus reached out towards the mirror.

"I found it!" Minerva shouted. Both Draco and Severus jumped at the unexpected interruption. Minerva ignored them and started to read from her book. "Casses reveranusquam confines the unworthy owner into an alternate reality- an unreality, created by the manor's personality itself. Once the victim accepts the unreality, he or she becomes a part of that unreality and can never be distinguished. However, before that time, the victim may be removed from the unreality by a simple summoning charm, that is if the gateway between reality and unreality can be found." Minerva stopped reading as she thumbed through a few pages. "It suggests a number of likely objects," she explained.

"I believe I know," Severus said, pointing his wand towards the mirror. "Did the book suggest a type of summoning charm?" Accio would be the simplest, but it was never a good idea to use that on a live creature.

"I suggest Revinio," said Albus as he looked over Minerva's shoulder.

Severus nodded. He hadn't seen Albus enter the room, nor the Weasleys or the wolf, but that didn't matter. He could get Harry back. The spell was a good choice, usually used to call an errant child back to home. It carried the sender's voice over a long distance directly to the intended individual. Children would be told to come, aided by a mild compulsion they could hardly resist. It was a perfect summing charm.

"Revinio citatus a Harry Potter," Severus intoned.

xxxxx

The world around Harry had simply dropped away.

Or is that just me? Harry thought, as his body came crashing to the floor.

Harry had been leaning his back into what should be the door to the closet, even though there was no light what so ever to indicate it was. His feet had been pushing up against the opposite wall in order to give him better leverage. Even though he'd stopped screaming shortly after his initial burst, he'd gone wild like a trapped animal.

His fist, feet, back and arms hurt, after all the flailing he'd done in attempts to escape. That compounded with the pain he'd earned when he fell from the table, and the constant strain he'd felt since eating the chocolate frogs, and the headache that seemed to start it all. Now, he could add a sorely pained butt and a knot on the back of his head.

After momentarily giving into the pain, wanting nothing more than to lay back and relax until someone bloody well rescued him, Harry sat up and surveyed the room. He sat, halfway in, halfway out of the small closet. The room, though, looked nothing like the playroom he'd discovered Sirius in. Now it was just like any other nondescript guestroom at Grimmauld Place.

Crawling back to his feet, Harry suddenly remembered what had just happened. There had been a loud thump, or bang, or clang, or something and Harry felt as though Snape had called him. It was odd. Harry wasn't sure, because he hadn't exactly heard the man, per say, but he was convinced beyond a doubt that Snape had indeed called him, and that he needed to get his butt moving to his bathroom. Now.

Snapped into action, Harry quickly walked across the room and opened the door to the hall. He didn't pause to consider any possible obstacle, because he'd realized that whatever apparitions appeared, they were just distractions. Besides, nothing had really hurt him; it had always been Harry hurting himself in his rash reactions.

Except for the potion, Harry thought. His whole body still felt stiff and sore.

As doubt crept into his mind, Harry looked up and noticed a creature creeping across the wall. Wonderful. The creature appeared to be some sort of lizard, a very large lizard, its body being a little larger than that of a cat. The long tail more than doubled its body length, ending with a collection of spikes, long enough to impale Harry's chest.

The lizard-like thing stopped a few feet down the hall and took a moment to snap it's impressive jaws. Then, slowly, menacingly, it flexed one of its long-clawed paws, while the tail behind it began to flick back and forth.

Harry cocked his head to the side. If Sirius wasn't real, than neither was this lizard, creature, thing. Ignoring the scary beast, Harry continued down the hall.

It didn't take long for Harry to realize how wrong he was. Apparition beast or not, its claws sunk deep into his chest and cut him clear to his cheek in one upward swipe of the lizard's paw. The pain was so sharp and intense, it brought Harry to his knees. The boy was in too much of a shock to think or panic. In a stupor, Harry brought a hand up to his cheek, touched the cut and then pulled back his hand to stare at the blood. Therefore, he did not react quickly enough as the beast leapt off the wall and onto his back. The force pushed Harry to the ground as the creature's teeth bit into his shoulder.

Harry screamed. White-hot pain shot from his shoulder and engulfed his body. His stomach lurched, causing it to reject its meager contents. The jaws released their pressure, giving Harry a momentary respite. With a sickening realization, Harry recognized the animal's body tense as if preparing to bite again.

Not wanting to be chewed alive- or eaten, Harry shuddered- he reached over his shoulder and grabbed hold of one of the creature's legs. Pulling as hard as possible, he yanked the beast off his shoulder, although it didn't go without cutting more gashes into Harry's back. He was then forced to drop it when it bit his hand. Reacting quickly, Harry lifted his foot and brought it down on the lizard's shoulders. He'd been aiming for its head, but a squeak of pain and an oh-so-satisfying crack assured Harry some damage was been done.

Quickly, Harry stepped over the lizard, intent on sprinting to his bedroom. Before he could get too far, one of the lizard's tail spikes impaled him through the calf muscle. Again, Harry screamed, as he stumbled to the floor. The spike easily broke free from the creature's tail and remained in the boy's leg as he struggled to his feet.

Moving as fast as he could, Harry limped down the hall. He knew the creature was following behind him, but it must have been injured enough so that it couldn't catch him. Harry reached his bedroom door, opened it and collapsed into the room. Not wasting a second, he used his good leg to slam the door shut and to hold it closed. Moments later, he heard scratching and snarling as it tried to get in, but he felt safe in the knowledge it couldn't get to him.

"Snape!" Harry yelled, still hoping that there was some chance that the man was in his bathroom. His heart sank when he heard no reply. "Snape!" he called again as tears started to run down his cheeks. Filled with pain and confusion, it was getting harder and harder for Harry to think. He didn't know what was real or understand what was going on. Sirius and Regulus may have been distracting apparitions, but that lizard-creature was real enough. Perhaps Snape's call, that he thought he'd heard, was just another false lure. Hadn't Sirius told him not to return to the bathroom? Harry shook his head; he was just so confused.

Crawling backwards, Harry gingerly leaned against his bed, trying to avoid both the bite and the scratches on his back. Clenching his teeth, he stifled a scream as he removed the spike from his leg. Blood pored from the wound and Harry knew he'd need some medical attention soon. In the meantime, he decided to look for something that could serve as a bandage.

For the first time, Harry noticed the room. His breath caught as he felt himself spiraling down into a world of panic. Trying to swallow, his throat felt dry and sore. Pulling himself to his feet, Harry tried to assure himself, that he had been rescued. That he wasn't still trapped in Voldemort's manor.

The scratching at the door stopped and after a moment of silence, footsteps could be heard. They were coming down the hall, towards the door. Harry pulled himself to his feet, hoping that he was wrong, but the potion...

Harry limped over to the windows, covered with heavy drapes. He would look outside and see the sun. As odd as this place was, it was still Grimmauld Place... a warped version of the manor, but Grimmauld Place nonetheless.

The steps in the hall had reached the door at the same time Harry reached the windows. Pulling the drapes aside, he looked out into nothingness.

"No," he breathed. He didn't want to believe it. But it seemed more and more true. Lucius Malfoy had forced a potion on him once. Harry shuddered, as his knees gave out from under him. He'd been forced into a dreary dream-like state imagining beasts and pain and all sorts of torture. That was the day Harry had broken, the day he'd begged them to stop... begged them for mercy.

Harry felt the pain of his body as realization started to sink in. His cheeks were streaked with tears as he pulled his feet close to his body. He heard the locking charms on the door break.

"SNAPE," Harry yelled. He didn't want to believe it had all been a farce. That he'd never been rescued at all... His mind worked quickly, all sorts of scenarios passed through his thoughts. But they all led back to the same conclusion. Lucius had tricked him, had fed him another potion so that he'd believe he'd been freed. All so that he could break again.

Harry knew that was real. He knew that was the truth. And he wanted nothing more than to die.

xxxxx

"Did you hear that?" Severus barked. He was surprised that no one else reacted. Harry had just called out for him, plain as day.

"Severus, my boy," Albus said soothingly, placing a hand on his shoulder. "We should contact the ministry, an Unspeakable may be able to help."

Severus shrugged the man's hand off his shoulder. He knew what the Headmaster was doing. The old man was giving up. There was no way Albus would contact the ministry unless he was desperate. But so far the summoning hadn't worked and none of them had experience with this type of magic.

"Get out," Severus snapped. Draco, the wolf, and the Weasleys all scrambled to obey. Under normal circumstances, Severus would be pleased with the result.

"Severus," Albus warned, not with anger in his voice, but concern. Right after Severus had said the summoning charm, the mirror had changed. It still reflected the bathroom, but none of its occupants. Severus was sure that it led to where Harry was and he was sure that Albus didn't want him to go there.

Severus spared a moment to look Albus in the eye. "Go contact the ministry," he said. "But please, let me go." He knew that Albus was glancing at his mind; he didn't care. He had to go into the mirror and find his son. Yes, Harry was his son now, even if the ministry hadn't officially confirmed it. And he simply couldn't let the boy go. Besides, even with the risk that Severus might not return either, Harry's life was just more important.

Albus nodded, his eyes filled with regret. "All right, my boy," he said softly, backing out of the room. "Bring him back to us."

" Albus, no, you-" Minerva protested as she was pulled out of the room.

Before Albus shut the door, Severus could see the pain in the old man's eyes. Albus didn't want to lose Harry, Severus could see, but his heart was warmed when he realized the headmaster was just as concerned about losing him as well.

Severus looked back towards the mirror and held up his wand. "Albus wait!" he shouted. He heard the door open a crack, but didn't turn to meet the man. "After two minutes, summon me back," he said. And then without further ado, Severus reached out and touched the mirror with his wand. Instinctively, he willed himself into the alternate world and felt himself pass.

The only indication Severus had that he was somewhere was the incredible stench that filled the air. He felt as if he were hugging ten dead Sirius Blacks and shuddered. He was sure that a full minute had probably passed, before he had the strength to will his feet to move. He went quickly to the door and threw it open.

Beyond relieved, he spotted Harry curled up near the window drapes. "Harry," he called, but the boy didn't look up at him. He ran to the boy's side and quickly assessed the boy's body. It was littered with bruises. Cuts on his chest and back looked deep, and his leg was bleeding profusely. "Harry," he said again. Touching the boy's uninjured cheek; he gently nudged the face to look at him. Harry's blank, broken eyes startled him. "Harry," he repeated a third time. Harry blinked, and then a spark brightened the emerald green, and Severus was once again impressed by the boy's resilience.

Severus lifted his wand, ready to accio a potion from his private stores. So caught up in the need to heal the boy immediately, he didn't pause to think about where he really was. Before he could say the spell, he was interrupted.

"Severus, come," he heard the Headmaster call. And all at once, Severus remembered the mirror and the pressing need to get the hell out of wherever he was. In one swift motion, he scooped the boy up and ran into the bathroom. Reaching his wand out to the mirror, he willed himself to return. He blinked and then the oppressing smell was gone.

Quickly, Severus laid the boy on the ground. It was best not to jostle the boy too much, especially since he didn't know the extent of Harry's injuries. Lifting his wand, Severus said, "Accio medical pouch."

Albus beamed down at him, "Well done, Severus, well done."

"I'm going to stabilize Harry as best I can," Severus said, "and then we are going to get the hell out of this house!"

To be continued...
End Notes:
So I've finally updated. I'm sorry that it's taken so long, but I've really been busy. And there's just so much I could point out and whine about. But here it is: a new chapter! I'm going to work on A Potions Accident next and try to get back into my regular pattern of updating a lot more frequently. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and I would love to hear some feedback. Oh and the two spell that I came up with are random words I looked up in Latin and strung together… so no laughing at me.


This story archived at http://www.potionsandsnitches.org/fanfiction/viewstory.php?sid=1151