Harry was depressed, very depressed and Severus couldn’t figure out why. Since the day he had yelled at him, something had changed in the little boy. He no longer played, he didn’t eat as much and the dark circles around his eyes had returned. Often, he sat and stared at the floor with tears streaming down his cheeks. He looked as if he was losing weight as well, and he’d finally started to gain some.

When Severus asked him what was wrong, he would stare at Severus in a way that told him he should know. Then he would burst into tears and cry so hard that he seemed to have trouble breathing. It was heartbreaking to watch. He’d apologized on a number of occasions for yelling at him.

He bought new toys for the child, he bought a lot of candy, he took him to the park, but this did not cheer Harry up. In fact, it seemed to make him even more depressed. He’d stare at the new toy as if Severus was playing a horrible trick on him. Nothing he did seemed to work.

“I don’t know what to do,” Severus told Lucius, “he is losing more and more weight as the days go by.”

“What exactly happened that day?” Lucius asked who was just as confused as Severus.

“I told you, he wandered off, and I yelled at him when he found him. He started to cry, and he has been depressed since,” he answered.

“Do you remember what you said when you yelled at him?”

Severus thought back to it. He realized what it was right away. He had said: YOU JUST WAIT UNTIL WE GET HOME YOUNG MAN! He had threatened him! Dumbledore had told him that Harry could still be worried that someday he’d be beaten again. Now he was. He was probably waiting as each day passed for a beating.

“I threatened him. He must think he is going to get a beating,” Severus answered.

“You’ll have to explain what you meant then.”

Already, Lucius had lectured him as if he were some expert on children just because he had a small child.

You have to be very clear when you deal with children this young. They don’t understand. With Harry’s past, I expect it’s a lot different then with a child like Draco. He’s known nothing but abuse before you took him in. I bet they just beat him without explaining anything to him, so he has a harder time knowing what you mean.

But Lucius, he is a very clever child. I tell him something and he understands. It’s rare that we have a misunderstanding like the one we’d had at Hogwarts. It’s hard to know when he doesn’t understand now.

Well, they aren’t dumb, but there are some things they just won’t understand. So that’s why you explain everything, that way you don’t have a misunderstanding. You have to think about everything you tell them.

“I don’t wanna play with Harry no more,” Draco said as he walked into the kitchen. “He’s a big baby. Only cries a lot. I wanna go home.”

“Why don’t you just play by yourself then, Draco. I’m not ready to leave yet,” Lucius said.

“I wanna go home now!” Draco said and he stomped his foot. “I don’t wanna be here no more father. Take me home, you take me home NOW!”

“Do not tell me what to do, Draco,” Lucius said, but he was on his feet.

He picked Draco up.

“I swear, I’ll be happy when he is old enough to go through the floo on his own. I expect he need’s a nap anyway. I’ll be back in an hour or so, Severus.”

When they left, Severus thought that it would be a good time to talk to Harry. He entered the sitting room, where toys lay scattered all over the floor. There was a tall block tower. Harry was sitting very still, as he usually did, crying.

“Harry, come here, I want to talk to you,” Severus said.

Harry didn’t move.

“Harry-“

“Leave me alone.”

It was the first words he’d said in days. Severus kneeled on the floor beside him. He was ready to take the boy into his arms, but before he could, Harry had jumped to his feet. He backed away from Severus fast. Oh no, he thinks I am going to beat him. Did his uncle ever say that he wanted to talk before he beat him?

“I’m not going to hurt you, I promise. Didn’t I already tell you that I would never beat you? As I said before, I am sorry I yelled at you. I only did it because I was scared. Will you come here, please, Harry?”

“Leave. Me. Alone!” Harry repeated but angrily this time.

“Harry, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong,” Severus said.

He’d tried to get into Harry’s mind to see what could be bothering the child, but somehow he was always blocked out. He had a hard time believing that at the age of four, the boy knew occlumency. So he didn’t understand why he was blocked out when it had been so easy before.

“Harry-“

“LEAVE. ME. ALONE!” Harry screamed this time, tears streaming down his cheeks. “I HATE YOU MEANY SEVERUS I HATE YOU!”

Now that hurt.

“Harry, I’m not going to hurt you,” Severus said. “Why are you so upset with me?”

As soon as he asked, Harry started to cry. He collapsed to the floor, gasping as he cried. None of this made sense. Severus closed his eyes. Forgive me Lily, please forgive me. I’m sorry I’m not being a very good father to your son.

CRACK!

Severus jumped to his feet immediately. Was that Lucius back already? It definitely sounded like someone apparating. However, in the room strode Albus Dumbledore, wearing his usual purple star spangled robes.

“Albus?” Severus asked.

“No!” Harry shouted.

He had heard the crack too. Still crying, he threw his head back and screamed, a long scream, one that sounded as if he were in pain. When the scream ended he jumped to his feet.

“NOOOOOOO!” He shouted again. “No! Don’t make me go way! I’m sorry! Won’t be bad no more, please! No more bad Harry. Harry stay here! PLEASE!”

Severus and Albus stared at the child who was clearly in agony about something. No one said a word at first; this seemed to upset the boy even more. He screamed louder than ever, a look of anger was on his face. He ran over to the block tower and kicked it down. Around them, things started to explode. Pillows; potted plants; some toys, and potion bottles all blew up around them because an underage wizard was very angry.

“Why Severus, why!?” Harry’s anger was gone now.

He collapsed to the floor as he had earlier, crying as if he were in physical pain.

“Harry, what are you talking about? You’re not going anywhere!” Severus said.

“Ah, I see,” Albus said who had remained calmed during Harry’s outburst.

“What do you see?”

“You really don’t remember? Think back to when we were at Hogwarts, after you had yelled at Harry. What did you say to me after you had picked him up?”

Severus thought back to that day. I can’t do this Albus. I can’t take care of him anymore.

“Harry, did you think I was going to send you away?” Severus asked.

He remembered now, the morning after. He had found Harry sleeping on the floor. His trunk was half packed, but he’d only thought the boy had packed it for Hogwarts. What if he had packed it because he thought he was being sent away? Severus wanted to kick himself. He hadn’t really meant the words, he’d had no intentions of sending the boy away. He had said it out of frustration; sometimes people did that when they were upset.

“You say you can’t take care of Harry no more!” Harry sobbed. “Harry’s bad! Get hurt by uncle who don’t like him ever, now Severus don’t want Harry. Bad boy! Horrible child! You should be dead! Stupid freak! Never should have been born. Worst child alive! You evil creature!”

“Harry!” Severus said in shock.

Harry continued to shout out, saying things he couldn’t possibly understand the meaning of. Severus looked at Albus for help.

“Harry, did your uncle say those things to you?” He asked.

“Worst child alive cause no one wants you!” Harry shouted.

Instantly, Severus ran over and hugged him tightly. Vernon Dursley deserved more than two years in Azkaban; he deserved to stay there for life! He’d almost murdered the child, and yet Albus Dumbledore had vouched for him. He’d said that he hadn’t intended to kill Harry. The only reason the old man did it was because he believed everyone deserved a second chance.

“How can you believe any of the stuff you said at Vernon Dursley’s trial now? Did you hear everything Harry just said?” Severus said, he tried very hard not to yell. He looked down into his son’s face. “Harry, I am never sending you away. You are with me until you are all grown up. I didn’t mean it when I said I couldn’t take care of you anymore.”

And now it made sense why Harry had been acting the way he had been. If Severus was sending him away, then he would know what was bothering the child. Of course the boy knew that so when he asked him what was wrong, or gave him new toys, Harry thought he was being cruel. Slowly that had made him angry. He must have thought that Dumbledore was the one who would take him away.

“Not goin away?” Harry asked. “Goin to live at Hogwarts?”

“Yes, we will live here and at Hogwarts,” Severus said. “You will always be with me. I didn’t know that you thought I was sending you away. If I did, I would have explained earlier that I didn’t mean it.”

“Harry can’t walk around by himself in castle,” Harry said. “Right?”

“That’s right. I don’t want you walking around the castle because you can get lost. That’s why I yelled at you, I was very worried about you.”

“I was with the funny ghost,” Harry said. “Promise I’m not goin away?”

“I promise, you are staying with me.”

“I’m afraid, there is more of a problem,” Albus sighed. “Harry truly believes everything he just said. I never would have thought it, every time I’ve seen him, he appeared happy. I didn’t think he was over the abuse, but I thought living with you had made him happier, apparently not.”

“Well, what’s a child supposed to believe when someone tells him that? I never saw any of that when I looked into his memories. Harry told me about his home there as well, but he’d never mentioned that Vernon had said anything like that.”

“Aunt Marge,” Harry said.

“What?” Severus asked.

“Aunt Marge tell Harry that, not Uncle Vernon. Aunt Petunia never hit Harry ever, only Uncle Vernon. Aunt Marge say that Harry is horrible, she say he should run in front of car and die.”

“Who is Marge?” Albus asked Harry in a kind voice.

“His sister,” Harry said. “Uncle Vernon only hit Harry. Sometimes was mean too, but he never said die.”

“I want this Marge woman found immediately Dumbledore. She should be punished as well. Now he’s going to have to be in therapy. I thought he was all right, but on top of the abuse he was told that stuff.”

“I know, I know, and he believes it, otherwise he wouldn’t have shouted that.”

“Harry, you are a very good boy. You were not a bad boy when you wandered off. I was because I didn’t tell you that you couldn't walk around without me. As for the other stuff your aunt told you, it’s not true! You are not a freak-“

“Aunt Petunia call me a freak,” Harry said. “Not Marge.”

“Whatever mean thing your uncle or aunts said is not true!”

“I’m not a bad boy?” Harry asked.

“No, you are a good child,” Albus answered.

“I shouldn’t die?” he asked.

“What do you know about that?” Severus asked.

A child that young shouldn’t even understand death. Maybe he understood because his parents had died.

“Don’t know. Just know that’s where bad boys like me go,” Harry answered.

“Albus!” Severus said angrily. “What were you thinking when you left him with them? You knew Petunia wouldn’t accept him. What would have happened if Dursley hadn’t almost killed him? What if he grew up and came to Hogwarts believing all that?”

They talked a little longer. Harry was now quiet, he had his head on Severus’ shoulder. There was a whoosh of green flames after a while and then Lucius stepped out of the fireplace. As soon as he saw Dumbledore, he stopped in his tracks.

“Ah, Dumbledore, pleasure as usual,” he said icily.

“Severus, come to my office tomorrow. We’ll discuss further about his future then. I’ll see if I can arrange a therapist to come see him. Perhaps when you are teaching classes.”

Severus nodded mutely. Dumbledore said good-bye to all three of them, and then disappeared with a swish of his robes. This time he made no sound as he disappeared.

“So, did you find out what was bothering him then?” Lucius asked.

“In a moment,” Severus said as he held up a hand.

He looked down at Harry, who had stopped crying. His thumb was in his mouth, even though he was too old for that, and his eyes were closed.

“Harry?”

But the boy didn’t respond, he had been hoping to get some food into him. Severus looked at Lucius.

“I’ll explain in a moment, let me just put him down for a nap. Help yourself to some butterbeer.”

He took Harry upstairs. The boy looked as if he finally was relaxed after a week and a half of depression. When he put him into bed, the child barely noticed. How had he fallen asleep so quickly? He realized as he walked down the stairs, that Harry probably hadn’t slept well lately. The dark circles under his eyes told him that much. During his first week there, he had fallen asleep very easily, and it was because he hadn’t gotten much sleep at his aunt and uncles. Now he had barely slept because he had thought that he was being sent away.

It wasn’t fair; the child had been through so much for his age. He’d lost his parents, he’d been abused, told awful things and then he thought the one person who loved him hadn’t wanted him anymore.

Back in the kitchen, Severus told Lucius everything that had happened after he’d left.

“Did you call Dumbledore here?”

“No, I don’t know why he showed- oh,” Severus said.

They were going to discuss that they what they should tell Harry about his parents. He’d forgotten about it because of the child’s depression.

“I was going to ask, but it seems Dumbledore already has plans for him. I’ve hired a tutor for Draco to start his education in September. I was wondering if you wanted Harry to join as well. Some of the other children will be learning at my place, Crabbe and Goyle’s children, Parkinson’s, Greengrass’ and Nott’s. They’re all the same age, and I thought it would be easier on you.”

“Well, Harry probably won’t be in therapy everyday, it sounds like a good idea.”

He was surprised Nott’s son was learning with Draco. Severus had been under the impression that the two men didn’t talk often. It would be good for Harry to be around children his own age though. He wouldn’t put it past Lucius to hire someone to teach them about the dark arts, so he had to ask.

“What will they be learning exactly?”

“Their alphabet, how to count, and I also want Draco to improve his vocabulary. I’ve been trying to teach him certain words, but he doesn’t listen to me. The amount of times I’ve told him it’s ‘anymore’, not ‘no more’ is much too high to count. They’ll just be learning the basics. You probably wouldn’t have time to teach him what he needs to know anyway. When they are older, they’ll learn more about our world of course.”

“I don’t want Harry learning anything about certain things,” Severus said in a cold tone.

“Of course not. The children won’t be training to be future Death Eaters if that’s what you think. They are just learning what children their age need to know. The tutor is teaching them not me… but it’s nice to know how highly you think of me, Snape.”

Instantly Severus was sorry. He just didn’t want Harry to grow up to be against Muggleborns since his mother was one. He wanted the boy to have an open mind about that sort of thing.

“Well, I don’t see a problem with it. I’ll feel a lot better knowing he can’t wander off. I just have to see about the therapy.”

“What exactly was it that he was told?” Lucius asked.

He told him everything that Harry had shouted. The other man looked very angry, but he didn’t comment on it. Marge Dursley was going to be punished as well; Severus wouldn’t rest until justice had been served. What sick person told a child to run in front of a car anyway?

---
Later that night, after Harry had eaten, Severus held him in his lap for the first time since the Hogwarts incident. At first, he talked to Harry, apologized again for everything that happened. Then he had a long talk with him, he wanted him to understand that he was not a freak, a horrible child, or any of the other stuff he’d shouted out about himself.

“So you packed your trunk because you thought I was sending you away?” he asked after that talk.

“You said so,” Harry said. “Didn’t know if you’d let me keep my favourite stuff.”

“Is that why you only packed about three outfits? The trunk was mostly full of toys. We’re going to have to repack it before we move to Hogwarts, which is going to be soon. You need all your clothes. Also, it doesn’t matter if you forget any toys because I can always come back here to get what you want when I’m not busy.”

“Okay,” Harry said. “Read me a story?”

He seemed better now, but Severus wasn’t sure if he was. It was probably going to be a long time before he was okay. Hopefully the therapy would work.