Well, that had gone much better than expected.

Severus stood, fingers absently twiddling with the tiny cotton nodules of the bath towel in his hands, anxiously watching the tiny form of his godson as the child played in the bath.

Maybe played was the wrong word.

The animated animals Poppy had pressed on him as he prepared to leave the stringent hospital wing were now frolicking in the used bath water. Harry mostly sat there, watching the animals play around him. Occasionally, one would swim close enough for the boy to grab at, and the resulting scuffle and splashes left the little boy drenched, and seemingly not bothered by it.

Still, Severus was concerned.

Harry was clutching his genitals.

The child psychology books he had read over the years all suggested that this was some kind of self-comfort  maneuver, though he wasn’t one hundred percent sure how that worked. He wondered briefly if, with his history, he had ever done likewise, before the machosistic part of his brain pulled his mind back o more unpleasant matters.

If the boy sought comfort from himself that he didn’t yet trust Severus to give, then fine. Unfortunately, the young potions Master didn’t believe that was the case. The look of pure acid the boy had given him as he’d pulled the ghastly excuse for clothes off the tiny frame made his instincts scream and his stomach churn.

The child had promptly slid his little hands between his legs and turned away from him, shooing mistrustful glares over his tiny shoulder. Heart hammering, and brain suddenly too small for proper thought, Severus had lifted the boy, carefully ignoring the way Harry curled more in on himself, and set him in the tub. Harry had then sat there, tummy deep in lukewarm water, eyeing Severus and the four bath toys with a level of suspicion that would have done a certain old auror proud.

Severus had decided right there that he would use magic to clean the boy up if he wasn’t potty trained, and he’d let the boy wash himself.

Harry hadn’t complained.

Now he was just waiting till Harry got bored. Or cold. A slight drying charm would ease the process along nicely, and he wouldn’t have to endure those suspicious eyes for too long.

When the boy was washed and dressed in warm pajamas, Severus stood in the kitchen, considering his options. The potions Madame Pomfrey had prescribed all required a full stomach and would send him straight to sleep. Perhaps he boy would eat and take his medicine with minimum fuss? He was about to broach the topic when there was a booming knock on his door.

Shooting a reassuring look to his young charge he strode over to the door. He had seen Hagrid not an hour ago, he grumbled internally. What could he possibly want so soon?

He opened the door to a wide glimpse of Hagrid’s tear-streaked, beaming face, before becoming aware of a brown, yipping blur shooting past his legs. He spun around and drew his wand in one smooth movement, a curse on his lips as the thing drew near to Harry, and only the appearance of a happily wagging forked tail saved the little crup from a sudden death.

His flinty gaze quickly rested on the apologetic face of the school’s Groundskeeper.

“Sor’ ‘bou’ tha’, P’fesser,” the large man began. “Little thing’s a bi’ enth’siastic, I’n he?”he sniffed.

“Indeed,” Severus intoned. “However, I find myself most curious as to why you would bring an infant crup all the way down to the dungeons, Hagrid. There are no potions that require those particular ingredients, at least none that you should possess knowledge of.”

“’Ere now, Severus” Hagrid scowled. “The cup’s for Harry!”

“Certainly not!” Was he man mad? “Harry is in no condition to care for an animal, Hagrid.”

“O’course ‘e is, Severus,” Hagrid replied, moving to perch himself on the sofa when Severus moved aside. “’Onestly, listenin’ to you’d think you never took Care O’ Magical Critters.” He shot Severus a disappointed look. “Crups don’ need no carin’, ‘cept someone to romp wit’ from time to time. They’re magical, aren’ they? Jus’ need to bond to a magical human, they do, and the rest is a breeze!”

Severus rolled his eyes, and turned a disapproving glare at the small bundle of brown fur. The thing really was excitable, continuously jumping on Harry’s feet. He would have hexed the thing, except Harry didn’t seem to be bothered, and was actually stopping every few steps so the little fur ball could catch up, before taking another step, and subsequently rolling the magical creature off again.

It was probably the closest to fun Harry had ever been after his parent’s death. Lily and James had nearly spoiled the little urchin, he was sure.

“Hagrid,” Severus began, dragging his mind back o he present. “I don’t care how easy it is o care for that mutt; you cannot give an abused child an animal to care for!” His voice rose at the end, and said furry menace yapped a few times in his direction.

“I gave you a niffler,” Hagrid replied evenly. Snape had the grace o turn a bright red, much to Hagrid’s private amusement.

“But sill – “

“Oh, come now, Severus. I’m not takin’ ‘im back and tha’s tha’.” He paused. “’Sides, he little thing’s already bi’ ‘im, nothin’ anyone can do, now.”

At his words, Severus whipped around, wide-eyed and panicked. He was halfway across the room before his brain caught up with the situation.

One, he crup was small enough for its size o suggest that it only had its milk teeth, which couldn’t cause much of a bite.

Two, crups bonded by ingesting a tiny bit of their intended’s blood.

Three, Harry seemed to be in no pain, or even slight discomfort. He was seated on the stone floor near the fireplace, scrawny arms wrapped around the enthusiastic black crup hat was diligently acquainting his tongue with every inch of the little boy’s face.

Hagrid chuckled from behind him, and Severus turned to see the large man heave himself to his feet. “I’ll see you lot at dinner, then.”

Severus scowled, but made no move to stop him. “I refuse to thank you for saddling me with this burden.”

Hagrid chuckled. “You’re very welcome, Severus.” He let himself out.

And then Hagrid was gone, and Severus was alone with his ward again. Except for the puppy, whose presence he refused to acknowledge. It wasn’t like he’d wanted the thing. It had been foisted upon him, and as such, his was perfectly within his rights to be discontented. Yes, perfectly. And if he was internally obsessing about what the darn thing would do to his shoes, then so what? They were his. To wear. Not to be chewed upon. Maybe he’d apply an itching charm to the leather…one activated by saliva…..hmm, maybe.

Severus was only partially submerged in his thoughts. There was a child in his care, after all. Said child was still seated on the floor, watching him with a deeply thoughtful expression on his tiny face. Harry seemed to be dissecting him with his jaded green eyes, and Severus unconsciously stiffened.

Harry was…different. He wasn’t nearly like any other eight year old he had ever met. Not that he had met many. Harry wasn’t much like most abused children either. He was a bit too free with information concerning his upbringing. Severus mentally reviewed the scene from the hospital wing. After Severus had been forced to seat himself on the hospital bed, Harry had been paying avid attention. As before, he watched Harry follow every move Poppy made, but the boy was also watching her face, and every expression she made.  That was….curious. Harry also watched Minerva and Hagrid in a similar fashion, his grass green eyes lit with a suspicious light. Goodness, was he calculating? Severus scanned through the memory weighing Harry’s expression against the reactions he had received. He stood there, shocked.  Harry had been sizing them up, he was sure of it.

Severus didn’t know whether to be concerned or to laugh out loud. Harry, at eight years old, was fully cognizant of the effect his words had on his audience, was even studying them to make sure his words had the desired effect.

And that was…incredible. Dangerous. Scary. It was positively Slytherin. Severus met that green gaze and smirked. Slytherin, he could deal with.

He turned, and swept into the hallway. “Come along,” he called over his shoulder. “Let’s go decorate your room.”

There was a bit of a scuffle, and then the patter of little feet quickly drowned out by over-excited yapping. Severus sighed softly.

There went his peace and quiet.