“Hey, Harry?”
“Hmmm?”
“It’s a nice day out.” Ginny remarked as she gazed out the kitchen window. “Why don’t you take Severus out and go flying around?”
“I don’t think Sev likes flying, sweetheart.” Harry replied as he compared his lesson plan against the standards he and Remus devised the other day.
“Wamp fy!” Sev argued as he thundered into the kitchen in his walker. “Wamp fy! Wamp fy! Wamp fy!” The contraption squeaked as the infant bounced in his seat.
Harry peered at him from over the rim of his glasses. “You want to fly.” He repeated dubiously.
Why? Is that so hard to believe? Sev tried putting on his most innocent face and gracing Harry with his single-toothed grin.
Suddenly the floo flared green and out of the flames stepped Sirius, broom in hand. “Hey, pup! I have a great idea! Why don’t we all go out and enjoy the day, eh? Have a bit of a fly?”
Harry had just opened his mouth to respond when Merlin’s voice filled the room. “Ahem! Sir Henry?”
The teen’s head jerked towards the door. “Yes, Sir Merlin?”
“Sir Remus is at the door. Shall I let him in?”
“Of course.”
“Hey! Just in time.” Sirius muttered as the portrait hole opened.
“Harry, did you notice it’s a nice day out?” The werewolf began as he and Teddy strolled into the room. “I was just wondering—”
“Okay, stop!” The teenager held up both his parchment-filled hands as he eyed each of the people in the room. Everyone’s attention focused on him. He narrowed his eyes at them. “Why do you all want me to go outside all of a sudden?” He questioned suspiciously.
All the adults eyed each other.
“Uh-oh.” The infant muttered.
Harry’s eyes narrowed further. “Why did he say ‘uh-oh’?” He asked, pointed at Severus.
“Uh-oh!” Sev repeated, looking up at Ginny guiltily.
“Oh, for Merlin’s sake!” Ginny rolled her eyes. She opened the kitchen window, letting the sweet summer breeze blow into the room. “Harry, the Quidditch Pitch is empty, there’s not a cloud in the sky. Come on!” She tried reaching for the pieces of parchment but he pulled it out of her reach.
“No! Not until someone tells me what’s going on.”
“Nothing’s going on.”
“Wamp fy!” Sev bounced.
“I haven’t a clue.”
“Harry, you’ve holed yourself inside for the last few days working on lesson plans.”
“Those haven’t been the only things I’ve been working on, Gin.” The teen argued with his girlfriend.
“Regardless, you’ve been in here working.” She retorted.
“Sounds boring!” Sirius remarked, making Sev grin. The animagus glanced towards the infant. “When was the last time you played with Severus, Harry?”
The young wizard looked offended. “I play with him every day, Sirius.”
“Mow!”
“What do you mean ‘no’?”
“He said ‘more’, Harry.” Ginny clarified.
“Mow peh!” The infant bounced. “Wamp fy!”
“He wants to fly!” Sirius joined in.
“Wamp fy!”
“Want fly!”
“Wamp fy!”
“Want fly!”
“Wamp fy!”
“Want fly!”
“Wamp fy!”
“Want fly!”
“Wamp fy!”
“Want fly!”
“WAMP FY!”
“WANT FLY!”
“Alright, FINE!” Harry threw his lesson plans down onto the table in frustration and grabbed his robe from the back of his chair as he stood up. “We’ll fly!” He gave both Sev and Sirius the evil eye. The infant giggled and the animagus grinned. Harry rolled his eyes. “Just give me a minute to get my things.” He muttered as he made his way into the bedroom.
“You know, Severus, you and Sirius work better as a team than you do as rivals.” Remus remarked with an amused smile, earning himself a scowl from the infant.
“Couldn’t have said it better myself, Moony.” He held out a hand to the infant. “Give me five, cub.”
Severus scowled at the mutt’s assumption that it was okay to call him ‘cub’. That was Harry’s nickname for him, and no one was allowed to use it except Harry! Taking his two fingers out of his mouth, he blew raspberries at the animagus before slapping his palm with his drool-soaked hand. There! That ought to teach him. The infant smiled smugly.
“You, my young friend, have much to learn about insulting a professional insulter.” Sirius pulled a wipe from his pocket and proceeded to clean himself up. “I expected that.”
“Mo!” Severus frowned.
“Alright, alright, that’s enough.” Ginny broke in as she approached from the bedroom, Sev’s little coat and beanie in her hands. “Come on, sweet.” She lifted him out of his walker and took him to the living room to change him.
“Padfoot, if we’re going to play Quidditch, it’s going to be slow and low.” Harry remarked as he walked out of the bedroom, broom and diaper bag in hand.
“Aw, come on, pup! I can see it in your eyes, you want to go higher and faster.” He gestured towards Remus. “Just leave the kid with me and Moony. We’ll watch him while you let out some of that tension I know you got in there.”
Harry raised an eyebrow at his godfather. “I don’t think so, Padfoot.”
The animagus looked offended. “What? You don’t trust us?”
Harry rolled his eyes. “Of course I trust you! I trust you with my life. Not his, but mine.” Remus snorted and Sirius rolled his eyes.
“Wamp fy! Wamp fy! Wamp fy!” Sirius took Harry’s broom and the diaper bag as Ginny handed an excited Severus over to Harry.
“Want fly, want fly, want fly.” The teen imitated distractedly.
“You want his sling or his carrier?” Ginny asked.
“Give me his carrier. It’s better for flying.”
As Ginny helped Harry strap Sev in, Sirius approached Remus and whispered in his ear. “So is everything set?”
“As soon as Harry crosses the wooden bridge, the faculty will come in to help with the set-up and Ginny will call the rest of the Weasleys.” Remus replied, his voice exceedingly low. “Some of Harry’s friends—the DA, Dean, Seamus, Luna, Neville—are all coming as well.”
“How are they going to explain Severus?” Sirius frowned.
“Ginny’s going to tell them he was orphaned due to the war and that they’re taking care of him for a bit.”
“Is his name still going to be Henry?” Remus nodded. “And the Weasleys and everyone else know to play along?” The werewolf nodded yet again. Sirius was silent for a moment and then grimaced. “It’s a bit messy, isn’t it?”
Remus sighed. “Some of the Order is coming as well—the ones who knew Harry personally during the war.”
“Kingsley.” Sirius raised an eyebrow.
“Ginny’s hoping Harry will have the foresight to start the process for legal guardianship. Hopefully, everything can go smoothly from there.”
“Like hell!” Sirius looked at Remus as if he had just gone bonkers. “The moment the name Harry Potter hits a Ministry document, the press is going to learn about it. Severus will be exposed!”
“This will all come out eventually, Padfoot!” Remus argued. “It’s better if Harry have legal guardianship when it does, don’t you think?”
“Legal guardianship won’t protect him well enough, Moony.” Sirius retorted, shaking his head. “Not like adoption will.”
“Well you can’t just jump straight to adoption, Padfoot. And besides…” Remus shrugged, “…legal guardianship has more power behind it than you give it credit for.”
“No, Moony.” Sirius glanced towards his godson before lowering his voice some more. “Money and connections have more power behind them than you give them credit for.”
“Where are you going with this, Padfoot?” Remus’ eyebrows furrowed in concern.
“I know the way these dark families run, Remus.” Sirius unconsciously checked on his godson yet again. “If Harry’s serious about protecting Severus—really protecting him—then he should just think of bypassing legal guardianship altogether.”
“Severus isn’t going to go for that, Sirius.”
“You all should convince him to!”
“Harry’s not going to want to do anything Severus won’t want to do; not when it comes to stuff like this.” Remus argued.
“Hey! Are we going?” Harry said as he approached the whispering duo. “It’s guys’ day out, apparently. Ginny’s staying in to gossip with Tonks.”
“It’s not gossip, Harry!” Ginny interjected from the den.
“Of course it’s not.” The teen rolled his eyes.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Sirius muttered at Remus before turning to smile at his godson. “Listen! I got a great idea.”
“I’d be surprised if you ever ran out of them, Padfoot.” Harry chuckled. “Let me know when you’re done gossiping, sweetheart!” The teen called behind him.
Sev giggled. “Ga—bip!”
“Goodbye, Henry!” An exasperated voice replied as the portrait hole closed.
“Have a good time today, Sir Henry, Master Severus.”
“Thank you, Sir Merlin.” Harry threw a smile over his shoulder.
“Oh, and Sir Henry?”
“Yes?” The group stopped as Harry turned to face the portrait.
“Happy Birthday!” The old wizard smiled kindly.
Harry grinned. “Thank you, Sir Merlin.” The teen tipped his invisible hat at the painting before turning and heading down the corridor.
“Yes, Sir Henry, Happy Birthday!” Sirius said in a mock-announcer voice from Harry’s right.
“Happy Birthday, Sir Henry!” Remus joined in the ribbing.
“Ha—peh Bef—bay, Ehw Haweh!” Severus giggled, bouncing in his carrier.
“Aw shut it, all of you!” Harry rolled his eyes but the smile stayed on his lips nonetheless.
Sirius wrapped an arm around his godson’s shoulders. “So…how does it feel to be eighteen?”
“No different than it felt to be the seventeen I was yesterday.”
“I can’t believe you were planning to work on your birthday.”
“I wasn’t working. I was just finishing the stuff I hadn’t finished yesterday!” Harry retorted.
“In other words, working.” Remus interjected with a laugh.
“Whatever.” Harry rolled his eyes. “So what was this idea you had, Padfoot?”
“Oh yes!” Sirius took a golden snitch out of his pocket and tapped it with the tip of his wand, shrinking it slightly. “Here, try this on for size, Severus.” The animagus held the flying ball within the infant’s reach, but Severus merely frowned at it. “Come on! I didn’t do anything to it.” The animagus pushed
Severus glanced up at Harry. The teen peered at the snitch briefly before turning back to the infant. “He didn’t do anything to it, cub.” He ran his fingers through Sev’s baby hair. “Go ahead and take it.”
Severus eyed Sirius suspiciously once more before reaching out and gripping the golden snitch tightly in his hand. The ball fit perfectly. As soon Sev started pulling the snitch closer for further inspection, the little ball’s wings started beating rapidly, startling the infant and causing him to release the ball.
“Whoa!” “Hey!” “Ah!” “Whoops!” On reflex, Harry reached up and caught the snitch before it could get any farther.
“Still got it, I see.” Remus chuckled. On his chest, Teddy cooed in delight.
“Keep a good grip on it, cub. These things are slippery.” Harry commented as he handed the snitch back to Severus.
The infant frowned at the golden ball, blowing raspberries at it before snatching it back and gripping it tightly in his palm. This time, the fluttering wings scared him not as he brought it closer for inspection.
“I figured we could fly slow and low and have him practice chasing the snitch.” Sirius said, gesturing towards the inquisitive infant.
“That’s a great idea, Padfoot.” Remus commented as the trio sauntered through the clock tower courtyard.
“Sounds fun to me.” Harry glanced down at Severus. “What do you think, cub?”
Severus didn’t hear him. He was too busy studying the interesting little ball in his hands. It was a pretty little thing, all smooth and shiny. The wings weren’t beating as fast now as they were a second ago. Now they were just fluttering lazily up and down and up and down. Severus poked the base of the tiny wing before running his fingers through the miniscule feathers. It looked so pretty! “Mmmm!” The baby cooed with a smile, bouncing in his carrier.
“Looks like he’s taking a liking to it.” Remus pointed out.
“Looks like.” Harry nodded.
“Haweh!”
“Yes, sir?”
Severus held up snitch up to Harry’s face. “Mip!”
“Snitch!” The teen chuckled.
“Mip!” The infant grinned. Gripping the tiny ball tightly in his hand, Severus began shaking the snitch as vigorously as he could.
“Whoa there, cub! You’re going to get that thing dizzy.”
Sev giggled. “Peb-by!”
“Ah!”
“MIP!” Sev slowly transferred the ball from his right hand to his left and began waving it in the little metamorphamagus’ face.
“Oooooo!” Teddy’s eyes widened.
“Mip! Mip! Mip!”
“Why don’t you try releasing it for a bit, Severus?” Sirius suggested.
“Mo!” Sev snapped, narrowing his eyes at the animagus. “Mime!”
“Sev! Watch it!” Harry warned, sending the infant a stern look.
“Mime!” Severus whined, peering up at Harry with sad eyes and hugging the snitch close to his chest.
“Of course it’s yours, Severus. I gave it to you!” Sirius rolled his eyes. “I was merely suggesting actually playing with it.”
“There. You see now? Sirius gave it to you.”
Severus smiled and settled back against Harry’s chest. Gripping the snitch between his two small hands, he grinned at it. “Mime.” He declared in a satisfied tone of voice.
“Don’t you have something to say to Sirius, cub?” Harry raised an eyebrow at the infant.
“Uh?” Sev peered up at Harry, perplexed.
“Something like ‘Thank you’ perhaps?” He nudged the baby ever so gently.
Severus huffed and pouted. Peering at the mutt from the corner of his eye, he said in his most put-upon tone of voice, “Ank—ooo.”
“You’re welcome.” The animagus smiled kindly.
Severus hugged the snitch to his chest protectively and kept shooting suspicious glances in Sirius’ direction, as if expecting the animagus to take back his pretty flying ball at any moment.
“Oh, for Merlin’s sake! Would it help if I walked all the way over here?” Sirius asked sardonically, stepping a good ten feet away from Harry and Remus.
Sev grinned. “UH-HUH!” He cried in reply, yelling at Sirius as if they stood on opposite ends of a long tunnel.
Rolling his eyes, Sirius blew raspberries at Severus before falling in step beside Harry once again. The infant giggled at him and blew raspberries in return. Sirius blew raspberries back. Teddy squealed in delight and blew raspberries as well. Sev laughed and blew some more at Sirius. The animagus blew some at Teddy. Teddy blew some at Sev. Sev blew some back. Sirius blew some at Severus and then at Teddy. The two boys hit him back with a double dose of raspberries, making the animagus cringe and shield his face behind his arm.
“HA! We wimp Peb-by!” Sev slowly formed his left hand into a thumbs-up gesture and waved it in Teddy’s face.
This time, not only did Teddy laugh, but so did Remus, Harry, and Sirius!
“They win, Padfoot! They win!” Harry laughed, pointing an amused finger at his godfather.
“Bested by two infants. You’re losing your touch, my friend!” Remus added with a laugh.
“Say what you will. I shall have my revenge!” Sirius declared dramatically before dissolving into laughter. He was quickly followed by Remus and Harry and then Teddy and Sev.
The Quidditch pitch looked positively naked without the house colors and banners to decorate its spectator towers. The view was more than a bit depressing. Yet the moment Harry stepped onto the field, he could still smell that familiar aroma—the smell of freshly cut grass, the odor of wood, wet with the morning dew, the lingering scent of the night as it dissolved into the day. It was the smell of Quidditch in all its stinking glory. Yes…Harry loved that smell!
“Mip! Mip!” The infant on his chest cooed as he waved the snitch back and forth.
“Oh, it still has that smell.” The teen remarked.
“What smell?” Remus asked curiously.
Harry took a deep breath. “That smell.”
“What smell?” Sirius piped in.
“I don’t smell anything.” The werewolf added.
“Peh, Haweh! Peh! Peh! Peh!”
Sirius ran forward and jumped onto the back of his broom, stopping to hover in front of Harry and Remus. “You should try letting that thing fly for a bit, Severus.” The animagus nodded towards the snitch. “I charmed it so that it doesn’t go very fast…or very far.” He shrugged. “Try catching it like Harry and Ginny like doing.” And with that, he shot towards the sky, whopping as he gained both height and momentum.
Harry, Sev, Remus, and Teddy all watched him ascend until all they could see was a moving black spot against the clear blue sky. “Well…you can certainly take the man out of the boy, but you can never take the boy out of the man.”
“Ah!” Severus agreed.
“I think Sirius is the only one who completely fits that description.” Remus remarked with a smile.
“Oh, I highly doubt Sirius is the only one.” Harry replied, meeting Remus’ eye. The two shared a short laugh.
All of a sudden, there was a fluttering of wings and Harry’s chest began to shake as Severus began bouncing vigorously in his carrier. “Mip! Mip! Mip!” The snitch fluttered and zipped to and fro, taunting the infant by hovering just within his reach before quickly zipping back out of it. “Haweh, mip! Haweh, MIP!” Sev’s little feet began kicking Harry’s stomach as the baby stretched his little arms as far as they could in an effort to catch the snitch. “Haweh! MIP!!!”
“Alright! Okay, cub!” Harry glared briefly at a chuckling Remus before jumping onto the back of his broom and slowly gliding in the direction the golden ball had gone.
Gotta catch the snitch! Gotta catch the snitch! Severus chanted in his head as he stretched his little fingers out as far as they could go. “Fafew, Haweh! Fafew!”
“Sev—”
“Fafew, pea!” The wind started zipping through Sev’s hair as he felt Harry pick up speed. The snitch now floated right in between Sev’s two hands. Get it, Sev! Get it, get it, get it! The infant was just about to close his hands around the golden ball when it suddenly changed directions, zipping out from between his hands and towards the goalposts.
“Uh-oh!”
Sev giggled and peered up at his caretaker. “Go, go, go, Haweh!” He told him, bouncing excitedly in his carrier.
“’Go, go, go’? Are you sure?” Harry raised an eyebrow at him.
“Mip! Mip! Mip! Cap…mip!” Severus pointed towards the fluttering ball. “FAFEW!”
Harry chuckled and exchanged amused glances with Remus, who was hovering on his own broom close by. “‘Full speed ahead,’ I think that was.”
“Sounded like it.” The werewolf replied with a smile.
“Fafew!”
“Hold on, cub. Here we GO!”
And before Sev could blink, he was soaring towards the golden ball at top speed! The wind blew through his hair, the adrenaline pumped through his veins, and the roar of the crowd rang in his ears. Yes, they were cheering for him! Sev—er—us! Sev—er—us! Sev—er—us! Sev—er—us! Severus could feel their excitement! He had to catch this snitch! He just had to! Stretching out both his hands, the infant reached towards the golden ball. Once again, it zipped out of his reach just as he was close to grabbing it. This time, it zipped above their heads.
“You have to be quicker than the snitch, cub. Just think, ‘I’m quicker than the snitch!’” Harry whispered in his ear as the teenager steered them in the direction of the elusive ball. “Tell your hands, ‘You have to be quicker than the snitch!’”
You have to be quicker than the snitch! Sev chanted in his head. Once again, Sev reached for the pretty golden ball. The roar of the crowd was deafening. He was so close! So close! He could feel its wings brushing his fingertips. Al—most—there!
All of a sudden, a dark blur zipped by in front of them, startling Severus and making him lose his concentration momentarily.
“No! You got to focus, cub! Focus! Otherwise, the other seeker might take advantage of your lapse and grab the snitch before you!”
“Yes, he might!” A voice cackled from their right. Before Sev could blink, Sirius Black was flying right next to them, wearing that infernal smirk on his face.
“MO!” Sev cried, turning back towards the snitch and reaching for it with all his might. “Mime! Mime! MIME!”
“Better get it before I do then!” Sirius narrowed his eyes at Severus playfully.
Suddenly, the snitch zipped left, right, and then straight up, all while Sirius was talking. Ever the attentive seeker, Harry zipped right on after it, leaving his godfather in the dust. He pushed his broom just a little bit faster this time so that Sev could react more quickly. “Come on, Sev, be quicker than the snitch. Quicker than the snitch!”
I’m quicker than the snitch! Sev could feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins. He could hear Sirius quickly closing in behind him. He could taste the excitement. He could hear the roar of the crowd. He could smell the aroma of the pitch. He could feel the tiny feathers of the snitch as they brushed against his palms. I’m quicker than the snitch.
Severus snapped his palms shut around the golden ball, trapping it between his two tiny hands.
“He got it!” He could hear Harry exclaim excitedly above him. “He got it! Remus, he got it!”
“He caught it?”
“Yeah!”
Severus grinned at the fluttering ball between his fingers. The roar of the crowd was deafening. He could hear Glahblahblah WINS! Glahblahblah WINS! The name of the house was garbled, but Sev didn’t really care at the moment. He had caught the snitch! He, Severus Snape, had just caught the golden snitch!!! Oh, this was the happiest moment of his life!
Oblivious to the goings-on inside the baby’s head, Harry waited for his godfather to catch up to him before sharing the good news. “Oh, shut it! He had someone flying for him. It’s not entirely fair.”
“Shut it yourself, Padfoot. You know you let him win.” Harry elbowed his godfather playfully as they glided towards the goal posts, where Remus was hovering.
Sirius looked offended. “I did no such thing! That would imply I like him.”
“Oh, but you do!” Harry chuckled.
“You’re delusional.”
“Peb-by!”
“Ah!”
“Mip! Cap…mip! Cap…mip! Cap mip! Cap mip! Cap mip! CAP MIP!” Severus exclaimed, bouncing excitedly in his carrier as he waved the snitch in Teddy’s face. The little metamorphamagus grinned and cooed, imitating Sev’s excited gestures.
“You weren’t going that fast, were you, Harry?” Remus asked in concern.
The teen shook his head. “No. It just looked that way.”
“Hey, Sev! How ‘bout another go at it. What do you say?” Sirius exclaimed excitedly, pointing to the snitch in Sev’s hands.
The infant glanced at his closed hands for a minute before turning to grin at Sirius. Tipping his head back, he peered inquisitively at his caretaker. Harry raised an eyebrow. “What are you looking at me for? It’s up to you. Do you want to have another go at it?”
Sev glanced at his enclosed hands once again. The snitch’s fluttering wings still tickled his palm. The roar of the crowd still rang in his ears. The aroma of the pitch still filled his nostrils. The whole experience of Quidditch still lingered in his mind.
Did he want to do it again? You’re damn right he wanted to do it again!
Sev grinned playfully at Sirius before opening his hands and releasing the tiny golden ball.
Before Remus could even blink, a strong gust of air blew by him as both Harry and Sirius zipped after the golden ball. “That look like fun, Teddy?” The werewolf asked his giggling son. “You’ll be up there with them someday.” He added, rubbing Teddy’s tummy and planting a kiss atop his head. “If things keep heading the way they are, you and Sev will both be on the Gryffindor Quidditch team in no time.” The infant giggled up at him and cooed in response. Remus chuckled. “Yup…Severus has more of a seeker instinct in him, I think.” The werewolf mused. “And judging from the way you seem to like these goal posts, I’d say you’d make a first-rate keeper, eh?” The baby cooed once again and reached towards one of the pretty rings gleaming in the sunlight. His father chuckled as he ascended slowly on his broom to oblige him.
“Mime! Mime! Mime!” Remus heard a familiar voice screech from across the pitch.
“It’s not yours until you nab it, short stuff!” A second familiar voice echoed in reply.
Bffffft!
Bffffft!
Remus laughed at the two boys’ antics across the field as his own little boy began to study the goal post intently. “Soon, Teddy bear. Soon.” He muttered as he planted another kiss atop his son’s head.
The next two hours passed quicker than Sev expected them to. This catching-the-snitch business was fun! He and Sirius had zipped around the pitch in an effort to catch the snitch at least five times now; and out of those five times, Severus had caught the snitch thrice, much to the annoyance of a certain animagus.
“Three out of five, Padfoot. He bested you.”
Sirius frowned at his godson as he landed on the ground and jumped off his broom. “He didn’t best me. I let him win!” He retorted.
“Ah…and here I thought that meant that you liked him.”
“Just shut it, Harry!” The animagus snapped before stalking ahead of the group and away from his chuckling godson.
“We—wimp!” Sev exclaimed, waving around his tiny snitch as if it were his prize trophy.
“Yeah, we win, cub.” Harry nodded, planting a kiss atop his head. “It’s just that Sirius is a sore loser.”
“I am no such thing, Harry!” A voice boomed from somewhere ahead of them.
“A sore loser with great hearing, that is.” Remus interjected with a laugh.
“Peb-by!”
“Ah!”
“We—wimp!” Sev waved around his golden snitch and the little metamorphamagus giggled playfully.
A few minutes later, Remus, Harry, and the two boys sauntered out of the Quidditch pitch to find Sirius waiting for them at the top of the nearest moor. “Well come along then!” He gestured for them to hurry. “I’m hungry! Let’s go! Chop-chop!”
“Yes, don’t you know to never keep a hungry dog waiting?” Remus muttered, causing Harry to break into laughter.
As the three made their way back into the castle, they talked about the goings-on in the Quidditch world now that the war was over, while the babies babbled about something or another in their own special language. Apparently, not a single game of Quidditch was played by any English, Scottish, or Irish team during the course of the war. It was as if everything normal had come to a total standstill as terror had gripped the island nations.
“But that’s kind of what you expect during a war, isn’t it?” Remus pointed out. “Especially when you’re a dictator like Voldemort? Anything that the people consider fun must be the first to go. You take away their happiness, and the more you spread sadness throughout the land.”
“They become easier to control.” Sirius added.
“To a point, that is.” Harry interjected.
“And we reached that point during the final battle.” Sirius smiled, wrapping an arm around his godson’s shoulders and steering him through the halls of the fourth floor and towards his quarters.
Harry grimaced, “I still say I didn’t want a final battle.”
As Sirius gave Merlin the password, Remus remarked, “It was a war, Harry. Those all boil down to final battles.”
“Yes, well I—“ Yet Harry never got to finish his remark, for in that moment, the portrait hole swung open and…
“SURPRISE!!!”
Harry’s eyes widened and his mouth dropped open in shock.
“Eh—pie!” The infant on Harry’s chest exclaimed with a giggle, his arms and legs bobbing up and down in excitement. Most of the people in the room laughed at the adorable sight.
“I knew it!!!” The teenager cried out with a grin, making the rest of the room laugh as well. He pointed to the chuckling werewolf and animagus on either side of him. “I knew you two had something up your sleeves! Asking me to go outside at virtually the same time; when does that ever happen?” He turned to the group and spotted the faculty among them. He pointed to them as Ginny approached. “And you! I haven’t seen any of you all day. You’ve all been hiding from me!” The rest of the teachers laughed at him as Ginny wrapped her arms around the back of his neck. His arms immediately wrapped around her waist as well.
“Happy Birthday, my love.” She smiled lovingly up at him.
Harry graced her with the smile he reserved just for her, and his eyes shone with adoration as he murmured a, “Thank you,” before leaning down to give her a long, passionate kiss. The gathered crowd ‘ooh’-ed and ‘aw’-ed at the unusual display of affection. Meanwhile, between them, Severus cooed and bounced in his carrier before turning towards the crowd, taking his fingers out of his mouth, and waving at them with a smile. A flash of light and an even bigger ‘aw’ filled the room as Ginny and Harry broke their kiss and the birthday boy turned his attention to his guests.
“Thank you all for coming!”
Ginny directed everyone towards the food table as Harry worked the room, wanting to greet each of his well-wishers personally before doing anything else.
“Harry!”
“Ron! Hermione!” The men shook hands while Hermione reached in for a sideways hug. Severus waved a drool-soaked hand in her face and the young woman chuckled as she waved back with a smile.
“Look who showed up to the festivities.” Ron gestured behind Harry and before anyone could blink, Neville, Seamus, Dean, and Luna came up beside him.
“Hey! Look at all of you. How’re your summers going?” Once again, the men shook hands while Harry hugged Luna.
They talked briefly about their summer activities before Dean gestured towards Severus.
“Who’s the kid?”
“Didn’t you hear Ginny, mate?” Seamus interjected.
“No, not really.” Dean shrugged.
“This is Henry.” Ginny answered, coming up from behind Harry to lift Sev out of his carrier. “He was orphaned during the war and we’re taking care of him for a while.”
“You’re taking care of him?” Neville’s eyes widened. “Blimey! You’re taking care of a kid?”
“Must be difficult.” Luna commented.
Dean eyed the couple with a raised eyebrow. “Are you sure you can handle all of that?”
“Of course we can!” Harry replied with a frown.
“Not to be insulting, mate. I meant no offense.” Dean raised his hands in a placating manner, “I just meant…the professors told me you’re teaching this coming year.”
“Plus you’re doing Auror training.” Seamus added.
“And taking care of a kid on top of that?” Dean looked a bit skeptical.
“Look, we’re fine.” Ginny answered, hugging Sev to her chest protectively. The infant was sucking his thumb and watching Harry’s friends closely. “Raising Henry is about ten percent work and ninety percent fun, from the way I see it.”
“Whoa, whoa! Wait a minute. Hold on. Raising Henry?!” Dean’s frown quickly transformed into a scowl.
“What is your problem, Dean?!” Ginny snapped, getting in his face.
“My problem?!”
“Hey, hey! Calm down! Relax!” Seamus, Neville, and Luna pulled Dean away while Harry, Ron, and Hermione forcibly turned Ginny around.
“Hey, sorry about that, mate!” Seamus called back to them. “We’ll talk later. After…” he inclined his head towards his best mate and made a gesture which Harry took to mean, ‘After Dean has calmed down.’
“He’s just a bit jealous, is all.” Ron commented, squeezing his sister’s shoulder in support. “Hasn’t been the same since…well…”
“He’s jealous of me, that’s what it is.” Harry added with a smirk. “‘Cause I have the most beautiful girl in the world!”
Ginny rolled her eyes but couldn’t suppress the small smile that crept onto her face. “Oh, shut up, Harry.”
Harry chuckled and moved on to greet his other guests while Ginny took Sev into the bedroom to nurse in private. The professors all offered him well wishes before asking how Severus was doing, among other things. Harry answered them politely and made small talk for a few minutes before excusing himself and pulling Dumbledore aside. He told the headmaster about how he was sorting through his old house and how it was guaranteed that he would be getting most of his old possessions back, with the exception of a few disputed items here and there that he had to discuss with both brothers. The old wizard thanked him profusely, but Harry assured him there was no need.
The members of the DA all congratulated him on the new teaching position and the ones who were returning the following year expressed their excitement at learning more defense techniques from him. They were, after all, used to his style of teaching already.
“I wonder how the Slytherins are going to react to your methods of teaching, Harry.” Nigel mused aloud.
“Yeah, all the Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and Gryffindors already know your teaching style.” Colin Creevy added.
“Someone’s bound to challenge you—that’s for sure.” Hannah Abbott threw in.
“You’re going to be a fair grader, though, aren’t you? No unjustified point-taking?” Justin asked.
“Of course!” Harry nodded.
“Not like Snape used to be, right?”
Harry gave them a weak smile and nod. They talked for a few minutes more before the birthday boy excused himself and moved on to greet the Weasleys.
“How do you like your party, dear?”
“It’s great, mum. Thank you.”
“Ginny recruited us to help plan the festivities—”
“—along with little Henry, of course.”
“You’re going to love what she and the little guy made for your birthday present, mate.”
“Oh, eez vewy bootifil!”
“Dear, is little Henry alright? I tried to get him from Ginny earlier and he started crying.”
“Molly, I just said you should probably give him time!”
“Oh, hush!”
“No, no, he’s right. Er…Henry just needs time to get used to you, is all. Don’t worry, mum.”
“Harry!” The teenager turned at the sound of his name to find Dumbledore beckoning him over to a very familiar group of people.
The young wizard politely excused himself from the Weasleys and made his way across the room to greet some of the members of the Order of the Phoenix.
“Harry Potter!” A familiar deep voice exclaimed with a laugh.
“Minister Shacklebolt.” Harry chuckled and held out a hand.
The black man took it with a smile, “Oh, we can drop the formalities, can’t we, Harry?”
“For you? Anything, Kingsley.” Harry smirked. The teen shook hands with the rest of the group and made small talk with each of them for a few minutes before excusing himself and pulling Kingsley aside. “How busy is your schedule today, Minister?” He asked.
“I’m free for the rest of the day, Harry, why?” The older wizard raised an eyebrow.
Harry quickly scanned the room with his eyes before stepping closer to the minister and lowering his voice. “May I have a word with you later, then? After I get something to eat, I mean? I have a bit of a favor to ask of you.”
Kingsley smiled and placed a reassuring hand on Harry’s shoulder. “For the boy who saved the wizarding world, anything.” He winked and inclined his head towards the other Order members. “You know where to find me.”
Harry nodded his thanks before excusing himself and finally heading towards the food table with a relieved sigh. After liberally filling his plate with finger foods, Harry scanned the room for his girlfriend and found her sitting by the fireplace, talking to Hermione, Tonks, and Luna, Severus in his sling across her chest. Reaching out through the mental link he shared with her, Harry nudged her slightly, causing her to look up and meet his gaze. The two shared a secret smile.
As Harry began making his way towards their little social group, a sharp, shooting pain coursed through his right leg, making him freeze in his tracks. Across the room, Ginny stood up so quickly, she startled Severus, causing him to release the small snitch he had been playing with.
“MO!” He squealed, squirming in his carrier in an effort to catch the little ball once again. “Mime!” As the small golden ball quickly zipped around the room, all the guests suddenly became preoccupied with trying to catch the tiny thing, which effectively drew their attention away from Harry.
Ginny watched across the room as Harry took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The plate he was holding shook slightly as all his magical efforts quickly zapped him of energy. Sweat broke out on his forehead just a Minister Shacklebolt made a jump for the snitch, nearly catching the small ball. Ginny watched as Harry took another deep breath and held it.
“Ha, ha! I got it!” Professor Dumbledore exclaimed, grinning triumphantly at small ball in his hand.
As a cheer and a laugh erupted through the room, Ginny watched as Harry expelled his breath and relaxed his shoulders. The pain had gone.
Harry’s eyes fluttered open and his green met her hazel. Moments later, Ginny was overwhelmed with a sense of reassurance and love. We will get through this. I promise. The words flowed into her mind like water. They had come from Harry, no doubt. I promise.
“Here you go, young Henry!” Dumbledore smiled, handing the tiny flying ball back to its rightful owner.
“Mine, mime, mime.” The infant cooed, hugging the tiny ball to his chest.
Ginny smiled up at the headmaster. “That was quite the catch, Professor.”
“I’ll say!” Tonks grinned, her hair flashing bright pink. “You must’ve jumped higher than Kingsley to reach that thing!”
“It’s a pity I never tried out for my house’s team when I attended Hogwarts.” Dumbledore chuckled.
“I would’ve thought you would, Headmaster.” Harry commented, coming up from behind the old wizard.
“No, no, I was more the academic person and not the Quidditch hero.”
“What’s the difference?” Luna drawled. Everyone in the immediate vicinity glanced at her.
Dumbledore, on the other hand, chuckled, “You know what, Miss Lovegood? I have no idea.” And with that, he politely excused himself to resume his conversation with some of the members of the Order.
Half an hour later, things smoothed over between Dean and Ginny and everyone soon began enjoying themselves. Harry noted, with some amusement, that the volume at the party began to increase in direct proportion to how much the liquor in his liquor cabinet began to decrease. The cutting of the cake was both highly anticipated (considering the cake was made by Qizilbash Quality Confectionary, the same people who made Cauldron Cakes) and highly amusing. Severus had sat against Harry’s chest, eyeing the cake adoringly, as Molly Weasley lit the candles. And when it came time to blow said candles, Severus had insisted—nay, demanded—that he help Harry blow them out. The teen gave him an indulgent look before nodding silently, and together Severus and Harry blew out the eighteen candles on the three-layered cake.
Severus had been about to settle back down into his sling, content with waiting for his piece of cake, when a spark and a tiny flame caught his eye. One of Harry’s tall candles had lit itself back up again. Frowning, Severus leaned over and blew it out once again. Another spark and tiny flame signaled the rebirth of another one of Harry’s candles. Sev quickly turned to that candle and blew it out as well. Soon enough, another candle reignited on the far corner of the cake. Sev blew that one back out as well. Now the first candle had relit yet again! Sev took care of it in a hurry. And yet another lit. He blew it out. And another. He blew it out. And another, he blew it out; and another, he blew it out; and another! He blew it out!
“Haweh!” The infant whined, scowling up at his caretaker as he dived back into his sling.
Harry chuckled at him. “Oh come on, cub, I was only joking.” He stroked the back of Sev’s head through the material. “You want to blow out one more?”
“Mo!”
The teen merely chuckled as he carefully took the cake cutter and made the ceremonial first cut before he let Mrs. Weasley take over.
As her mum cut up the cake and passed it out to the guests, Ginny took Sev into her arms before handing Harry a large rectangular box whose tag read, “To Harry on your eighteenth birthday! Love, Little Henry and Ginny.”
“Oh, oh! Arthur, get the camera ready!” Molly called when she saw what present Ginny handed Harry. She had seen the present as Ginny wrapped it this morning and wanted to see the look on Harry’s face when he finally opened it.
“This is the one you made?” Harry asked, his eyes alight with excitement.
“Mm-hmm.” His girlfriend grinned. “Put quite a few hours into it as well.”
“Opem!” Sev whined, waving for Harry to unwrap the gift. The infant was bouncing with anticipation.
“Okay, okay! Alright.” Harry wore a gigantic smile on his face as he set aside the lovely ribbon and tag before ripping through the Quidditch wrappings to reveal a plain cardboard box underneath. Silence filled the room as Harry ripped off the spello-tape and pulled open the flaps of the box to reveal…
…a gorgeous black robe made of the finest material Harry had ever seen!
“That’s not the gift.” Ginny whispered in his ear as Sev shook his head playfully.
“It’s not?” The birthday boy asked in surprise.
Ginny smirked. “Pull it out.” She pushed. “There’s something unusual about it.”
Harry stepped back from the table and did as she bid. Soon the guests had a full view of the front of the cloak and the ‘ooh’s started accordingly.
“Wow!”
“Hey! Look at that!”
“It’s gorgeous!”
“Your own crest, mate!”
Harry peered at them quizzically before turning the cloak around and examining the front of the robe. Sure enough, there was something unusual about it. The inner lining of the cloak was made of royal blue satin and there, in the spot where a house crest would have normally been, another crest lay embroidered into the material. It was not like any crest Harry had seen before and it was incredible!
The primary colors were royal blue and gold. The supporters on either side of the shield signified royalty as opposed to nobility, and the shield itself was divided into four triangles of alternating color. The top blue triangle displayed a golden lion, the left yellow triangle held a green snake, the yellow on the right housed a white wolf, and the blue triangle at the bottom featured a golden hawk.
“The lion stands for Gryffindor house, of course.” Ginny explained. “That’s you. The snake is from the Black family, the wolf stands for Remus, and the hawk is from the original Potter crest…or what we could find of it.”
There were two scrolls on the crest—one at the bottom, and the other at the top. The bottom scroll displayed the family name in bright red letters: Potter. Meanwhile the top scroll presented the family logo proudly.
“You see…we couldn’t decide between amor est vitae essentia, which means ‘love is the essence of life’, and amor vincit omnia, which means ‘love conquers all’. Thus, we put both on there. We figured you could choose the one you wanted in the end.” Ginny finished.
“I love them both.” Harry answered softly. A gentle smile played at his lips as he ran his fingers over the crest Sev and Ginny made him. “It’s perfect.” Harry’s eyes shone with love and happiness as he locked eyes with his girlfriend and leaned over to give her a short but sweet kiss on the lips. “It couldn’t be more beautiful.” He whispered before leaning in to give Sev a kiss atop the head. The baby smiled around the two fingers in his mouth. “Thank you.”
“You should put it on, Harry!”
“I will! Now, please, have some cake!” And with that, the teenager threw the cloak over his shoulder and secured the clasp at the same time he began passing around pieces of cake. “I’m going to make it my official crest, love.” Harry murmured as he handed Ron two pieces of cake, plus one for Hermione. “The official Potter crest.”
Ginny’s eyes widened in surprise. “The official one?”
“The official one.” Her boyfriend nodded.
“Harry, are you sure?”
“Absolutely!”
“Hey, Harry!”
The teenager turned towards the familiar voice with a smile, “Yes, Minister—”
“Ah, ah, ah!” The black wizard raised an eyebrow at him.
Harry snorted. “Kingsley.”
The former auror chuckled at him as he took the offered piece of cake, “So…would now be a good time to discuss that favor you wanted to ask me?”
Harry’s eyes widened. “Oh! Oh, yes, yes, of course!” Harry excused himself from the two Weasley women and gestured in the direction of the master bedroom. “Let’s just go somewhere a bit more…private, perhaps?” As soon as the pair were safely inside the bedroom, Harry closed and locked the door, placing a whole set of silencing charms on it before casting a Muffliato between him and Kingsley just in case.
The elder wizard raised an amused eyebrow at him as he fed himself some cake. “Should I be worried?”
“No, no,” Harry chuckled nervously, “It’s just that I’m a bit paranoid.”
Kingsley snorted. “A bit.” He nodded. “So…what is it I can do for you, Mr. Potter?”
“I would be…very much in your debt if you could help me attain…” Harry took a deep breath, “…guardianship papers.”
Kingsley’s eyes widened. He had not been expecting this. “Guardianship papers?!”
“Papers for legal guardianship of a minor.” Harry nodded. “Yes.”
The black wizard was silent for a moment before the gears in his head began to turn. “Is this for little Henry out there?” He pointed his fork towards the door.
“Yes…and no.” Harry grimaced as Kingsley threw him a confused look. “The legal guardianship is for that baby out there. However…his name is not really Henry.”
“It’s not?”
Harry took a deep breath. “It’s Severus.” He hesitated slightly. “Severus Snape.”
Shacklebolt’s eyes widened until they were as big as saucers. The piece of half-eaten birthday cake lay forgot in his hand. “How…I don’t understand.”
Harry nodded and began telling the entire story from the beginning. “You know that story about Aidan Elson, right?”
By the time Harry was done with the tale, Kingsley was sitting on their rocking chair, looking contemplative. “Well…this situation is a lot cleaner than Mr. Elson’s, I must say.”
“But no different?” Harry asked apprehensively.
“No, no different.” Kingsley assured him. He was silent for a moment, his finger tapping his lips in thought.
“So…is it going to be possible?” Harry asked, leaning forward on his perch on the bed.
“Yes, yes, it’s quite possible.” The black wizard assured him. “I’m just thinking about how we’re going to keep this from the press.”
“Yeah, that’s what I was worried about as well.”
“Severus would be exposed if the papers were to learn of the guardianship.”
“I thought the stuff that went through Wizarding Child Protective Services was confidential, though.” Harry questioned.
“Technically they are confidential, yes.” Shacklebolt grimaced. “But there are, ahem…‘bugs’…everywhere.” Harry made a disgusted sound. “It’s something I’m working on fixing at the moment. This Aidan Elson business, as a matter of fact, was supposed to remain confidential, but you saw how that turned out.” Kingsley grimaced and began rubbing the wrinkles on his forehead.
“Well is there anyone you know inside the WCPS that can help us out?” Harry asked hopefully.
“Well I’m the Minister of Magic. I’m supposed to know everyone.” Shacklebolt joked.
A smile began tugging at Harry’s lips. “Come on, Kingsley.” He pushed. “Is there anyone that you know that’s loyal to you? Anyone that can help me out…and keep it quiet at the same time.”
Suddenly, Kingsley sat up in his chair, a smile lighting up his face. “You know what? I just might.”
Harry’s eyes widened. “You might?!” He asked excitedly.
“We might!” Kingsley nodded, gesturing between himself and the teenager. “You know Hestia Jones? She’s a member of the Order.”
“Isn’t she here today?” Harry asked, pointing towards the door.
“Actually she is, I think. Anyway, she works in Child Protective Services. I can’t believe I forgot about her a second ago! She can help us out.” Kingsley smiled.
“From start to finish?”
“From start to finish, absolutely.” The older wizard nodded, “She’s a social worker. She takes the cases. And the best part—she can definitely keep secrets.”
“That’s great!” Harry’s face lit up with a smile. “Perfect! That’s exactly what I needed!”
“What do you suppose is going on in there, Albus?” Slughorn slurred, swinging his cup of brandy towards the closed bedroom door.
“I don’t know.” The headmaster answered. The men were silent for a minute as they watched Miss Weasley, carrying a sleeping Severus, knock and then disappear into the room.
“Kingsley’s in there, isn’t he?” Arthur asked as they continued to watch the closed bedroom door.
“Yes, Harry’s asking him for a favor, I believe.” Molly answered, feeding herself a piece of cake.
“I wonder what that favor could be.” Remus added.
“Yes, one wonders.” Dumbledore commented, his eyes twinkling slightly and a smile tugging at his lips.
Moments later, the door crept open and Kingsley stuck his head through the crack and looked about the room. His eyes soon stopped in their direction. “Hestia!” He called. “Hestia!”
Dumbledore, Slughorn, Remus, Sirius, Arthur, and Molly all exchanged curious looks as Hestia Jones rushed by them and stopped at the bedroom door. They watched as Harry and Ginny appeared at the door and began shaking hands with the woman before Kingsley shooed them all inside and shut the door once again.
“Now I’m jealous.” Sirius added sardonically.
“What does Hestia have to do with anything?” Arthur asked.
“I think I know.” Dumbledore took his wand and cast a Muffliato on the group before indulging in one of his favorite pastimes: gossiping.
To be continued...