"We could paint it Gryffindor red."

"That is such a wonderful color," Luna nodded in approval. "I do wish Ravenclaw's colors were red and black."

"Definitely not," came Snape's voice as he passed by in the hallway carrying a box of something to Luna's room.

Harry and Luna glanced towards the now empty hallway from where they were standing in Harry's room and laughed.

Luna put her hands on her hips then and said, "Blue then?"

Harry nodded and raised his wand where a jet of blue splashed out of it and onto the walls. Severus had given them permission to decorate Harry's gray bedroom so that it could be distinctly his for the remaining two weeks until school started again, despite the fact that Harry knew he would not be returning after that.

Luna giggled as Severus walked by and glanced into the room with a nod of approval at the dark blue color on the walls and then disappeared again. When he had gone she raised her wand and splashed bright red spots of varying sizes onto Harry's walls and then incanted something and emblazoned a large Gryffindor lion onto the ceiling in gold and red.

Harry and Luna laughed together and hushed suddenly when Snape walked by with another box, but the hushed laughter drew him in anyway and he set the box in the hallway and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I distinctly remember giving you permission to paint the room one color. My retinas will burn out before the day is out. If you insist on painting it red, do it all in one color."

"That's ok, I think I like the blue," Harry said with a smile and Luna said another spell, making the colorful spots and lion suck backwards into her wand again.

"Thank you," Severus said and walked out with the box again.

"What's he bringing in anyway?" Harry asked, sticking his head into the hallway.

"Some of the things from my house. Gringotts is taking the property back and he offered to retrieve the rest of my family's things. Come on, I'll show you."

Harry followed her out and down the hallway where six or seven boxes were stacked next to her desk.

Severus watched with curiosity as Luna began pulling things out and explaining what they were.

"Grandma Lovegood gave this to mother, but she hated it because it was orange and she said grandma only gave it to her because she hated orange."

"What is it?" Harry asked with curiosity.

"I don't really know, but daddy says it must have something to do with knargles because after she gave it to us knargles were always ruining the flowers in the garden."

Harry laughed and Severus left the room to retrieve the last box which was full of books. When he returned he found Luna trying to give something to Harry, and neither teen noticed as he entered the room and set the heavy box on Luna's bed.

"Really Harry, daddy would want you to have it. He'd be happy to know it went to you."

"Are- are you sure? It looks important."

Severus squinted to see what it was and saw the boy carefully holding a small brown pouch half full of something.

"I think it's the kind of thing that should be passed to family. That's the same bag of powder mother would sprinkle me with when I was small. It sat on the mantelpiece where we could always see it."

Harry looked over to her and seemed at a loss for words. "Family?" he said quietly, back still to Severus. "But I'm not."

Luna reached into her desk drawer then and pulled out her new pouch of pixie dust and opened it up, she reached in with her hand and scooped out a handful, motioning for Harry to do the same from the other bag. She dropped her handful into his bag and had him do the same into hers. "Everyone needs a family Harry. You can be part of mine."

It took Severus' keen spying eyes to see the way the boy's chin trembled then as he worked to get control over his emotions, and then he took Severus by surprise as he reached forward and took Luna into a tight hug, in the same way he had gripped Severus' arm for dear life the night he was sick in the bathroom.

"You're welcome Harry," she said serenely, noticing for the first time over Harry's shoulder that her adoptive father was standing there with his mouth open a little.

Severus cleared his throat then and Harry let go of Luna and took a quick step back.

"Do I need to put the charm on this room again to keep young males out?" It was the only thing he could think to say having been caught eavesdropping in plain sight.

Harry cleared his throat too and pretended to scratch his face when he was really wiping a way a tear. "No sir," he said, and hurried out and back to his own room where he quietly closed his door and didn't appear again until dinner.

"You are perhaps the kindest person I know," Severus said as he sat down in her desk chair and used a knife to slice the rest of the boxes open. If only everyone would take a page out of Luna's book, there would be no hurt or bloodshed in the world.

"It was only the truth Professor," she said in that day dreamy voice of hers. "He needs a family, and I have one to give."

Severus raised his brow, knowing that he was her only family left now, a distant cousin several times removed. She smiled at him and then sat down with an aged scroll of something and a Muggle pencil and scrawled something down. Severus stood and peered down at what she was writing on and then left the room to think over what had happened and how touched the boy had been to be offered a family so freely, even one only good for sentimentality.

He went out into the field in the back of the house and sighed as he took in a breath of fresh air and closed his eyes, recalling what Luna had written on the aged copy of the Lovegood family tree. He wasn't ready for what she'd written and did not know if he could handle the thought at the moment at all.

There next to Zenophilius Lovegood's name, now with a heart around it inside a tombstone to signify his death, was Severus' name with a line drawn down to Luna and Harry, indicating that they were his children. Luna was his child now... he had adopted her and accepted the responsibility. That in itself had been hard, because never before had he imagined he'd be a father to one, let alone a father to two. Harry was just a temporary charge though, wasn't he? He wasn't sure he could deny that he felt protective over the boy, and had promised him that he would no longer have to do things alone. He wasn't sure that he could accept it either though.

* * *

Harry felt more confused than he ever had. More confused than when Ginny had dated Seamus just to make him jealous, more confused than when Ron had turned on him during the tri-wizard tournament, and more confused than when Aunt Petunia scolded him for calling her mommy when he was four and gave him a spanking before locking him in his cupboard for the first time.

The pouch of pixie dust sat across from him on his desk in his new blue room, next to the wardrobe full of his new clothes. It all reminded him of the confusing feelings he was having for Luna, and for Severus Snape of all people. He laughed when they laughed, felt sad with Luna when she felt sad for her lost parents, felt worried when Severus had gotten called away for a meeting with Voldemort a few nights ago, and felt anxious that he would somehow be rejected by the man, even though he had only been civil to Harry for a month running now, a record to be sure. Rejected in what way he didn't know... Snape had always rejected him, but there was nothing to be rejected from at this point in time. It wasn't like Snape had asked Harry to be a part of his family after all. Luna's offer was for sentimental purposes only, because she didn't have the authority to invite Harry to be part of her family. Yet Harry was fearful that he would be sent away as if he was already a part of their little family. He might as well be getting locked in the cupboard all over again, and yet there was no cupboard to be locked into.

He really wasn't sure what he was feeling, because it was something akin to a mix between what he felt for Ron and Hermione, Ginny, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. He hated it when he didn't know what exactly he was feeling... when he couldn't put a name to it. That always made him scared and he hated that too.

Ron and Hermione were his best friends, and he knew they'd stick by him, but the affection he felt for them was that of a friendship. He loved Ginny and hoped that they could continue to date through this year and that nothing would go wrong, but the feelings he had for Ginny didn't quite match up to what he was feeling about this family... the family he wasn't a part of. And then there were Ron and Ginny's parents, who had doted on him and invited him into their home and into the folds of their family, although he still wasn't part of their family and might not ever truly be. It was all a jumble to him and he was fearful that whatever he felt would end up in hurt if he did something wrong and was turned away.

In the end, as Harry sat watching Snape and Luna play a Muggle card game called UNO and was invited to join, he decided that what he was feeling was affection, and realized that as summer drew to a close, he didn't want to leave this place where suddenly somebody had done what was in his best interest and had shown him some of the affection that he had sought after for so long and finally received. Somehow leaving meant that it would end and he'd never reach this long wanted feeling again.

Harry had just sat down at the dining room table to be dealt into the next hand when there was a knock on the door and Severus' head snapped up. Harry could feel how tense the man was across from him, and knew that he was not expecting visitors.

He gave Harry and Luna a sharp look and said quietly, "Go to Luna's room and pull down the ladder that goes into the attic. Wait there until I call for you."

Suddenly not the day-dreamy Luna that Harry was so used to, she jumped up, alert, and grabbed Harry's hand as they dashed off up the stairs. A knock on Severus Snape's door could mean death eaters, especially unannounced.

They climbed the dusty ladder into the attic, and then Harry used his wand to pull the ladder up again, and Luna lit her wand to give them some light as they waited quietly, hearts pounding in their ears.

"Have death eaters come before?" Harry asked, feeling a little panicked.

Luna nodded and said, "Once." She was quiet as they heard voices and strained to hear, but couldn't make out who was speaking. "It was the ones that killed my father."

"I thought it was an explosion-"

She shook her head and held up a finger to her mouth before saying very quietly. "That's only what they said for the papers. It was really Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange. Professor Snape thought I should know the truth." They stilled again as they heard footsteps in the distance, and then Severus' voice bidding them to come down.

Harry pushed open the ladder door in the floor with his foot and bright light met their eyes, making him and Luna squint down at Snape and Dumbledore.

"Hello Harry, Luna," the elder of the two men said with a smile, albeit a very tired looking one.

"Hello sir," Luna said with a bright smile as she climbed down and accepted a hand from Snape on her way. Harry climbed down but was not smiling. He was sure he'd be in trouble for running away... twice. He was also still a little upset that his bank account had been frozen.

With a sharp glance from Snape, Harry said very quietly, "Hello Headmaster."

Dumbledore gave him a smile and Severus lead the way out of Luna's room and back downstairs and into the kitchen where they could all sit down, although nobody did sit.

"The Headmaster has come to take you to the Weasley's for the remaining week of summer," Severus said dryly with a frown so slight that only the Headmaster caught it with a raised brow.

"Sir?" Harry looked to Dumbledore and then to Professor Snape, and Severus fought the urge to turn away at the panicked and hurt look in the boy's eyes. There was nothing he could do if the Headmaster wanted to take him, as the boy was not in his custody, just in his temporary care. He feared that Harry's absence might make Luna unhappy now that they had grown so close however, and that separating the two might also be a detriment to Harry who was finally starting to seem happy, or at least that's what he tried to tell himself as an excuse for the possibility that he might not want Harry to go either.

"Your friends miss you and requested that you be able to spend the last week with them. I have already sent your things ahead to them."

Harry swallowed and looked to Luna for help, but instead of the serene look he expected to find there on her face and take comfort in, her face was blank, and she was looking at Severus in the same manner that Harry had done a moment ago.

Harry bit his lip to not spit out about never having a choice, and wondered if he ran away if they'd think to look for him here, but moved a step towards the Headmaster quietly and determined himself to look at his new shoes instead.

"Good evening Severus, Luna," Dumbledore nodded with a smile, and then he gripped Harry's arm and they were gone.

Instead of reappearing at the Burrow, Harry found himself standing on a street in suburbia somewhere, and feared for a moment that he had been transported back to Privet Drive.

"We have taken a detour Harry, to visit an old friend," Dumbledore said at the confused look on Harry's face. "I do hope you will behave yourself?"

Harry looked up at him and as he looked away he glared unhappily and said, "You don't have to worry about me sir, I won't run away."

"That's my boy."

Harry wanted to snip at him about the comment about being his, but clamped down on his mouth and walked down the darkened street until they came to a house with a door ajar.

"Wand out Harry," Dumbledore warned him, and Harry went on alert, not knowing who they were there to see but knowing full well that a door ajar in the night meant nothing good.

Inside they found a house torn to shreds with blood splattered on the walls, furniture in ruin, and a cat mewling somewhere upstairs.

"Horace? Are you here?"

Harry frowned and thought that if someone was here, they weren't anymore, or at least not in one piece, but before he knew it the aged Headmaster was casting a spell at a chair and they heard a muffled "Ouch!" before the chair began to transform into a man with extra girth around the middle.

"I say, how did you know it was me old man?" The man standing there before them in striped pajamas seemed curious to know how he'd been discovered.

Dumbledore slipped his wand back up his sleeve and stood straight. "It was a dreadfully awful pattern for a chair Horace."

Horace looked down at his pajamas and said, "Well suit yourself then, blow my cover and be on your way."  He pulled out a short, fat wand from a hidden pocket somewhere and with a wave had righted the destroyed room again in a flash.

"Not bad for only a few moments notice eh?" He said to Harry, just now realizing that he was there. "When the alarm went of signaling magical activity in the area I had reflexes just fast enough to destroy the one room."

Harry nodded, not really sure if that was a good thing or not.

"What a lovely place to vacation Horace," Dumbledore said, looking around at the restored home.

"A wonderful couple, friends of my second cousin I believe... yes, well, they're off visiting relatives and I thought I might take refuge here for the night."

"Is someone after you Horace?"

Harry's attention was grabbed by this and he stopped his inspection of the crystal chandelier hanging from the sitting room ceiling to stare at the wide man.

He snorted and said, "Only you and half the death eaters on the island." He winked at Harry and Harry looked up to gauge Dumbledore's face for a moment, which was currently blank.

"Might I use your loo Horace? Ate something funny while I was in Brazil this morning and I don't think it agreed with me."

Horace waved his hand towards the hall and Dumbledore moved off. Once he was gone the man sighed and then looked over at Harry.

"Who are you then? I don't recall Albus having any grandchildren."

"I'm Harry Potter sir," Harry said, moving to hold out his hand for a shake as it was only polite. Horace didn't take it and instead gave him a close looking over.

"Harry Potter? It figures he would bring you." He raised his voice then and said, "Well you can just tell Albus that I'm still not coming!"

"Sir?"

"Never mind, never mind." His eyes flitted predictably up to Harry's scar as most people's eyes did, and then he moved over to the newly restored mantlepiece and said, "I taught your mother at Hogwarts you know, second best potions student I ever had. And do you know who my first best was?"

Harry walked over to look at a faded black and white picture in a golden frame full of students, and said, "Professor Snape sir?"

Horace nodded and said, "Of course that was too easy as he now has my old position as Potions Master and head of Slytherin house. He and your mother always got along famously in my class you know. Always scheming about the next best way to brew a potion in just the very way I told them not to."

"My mother knew him sir?"

"Oh yes, just look at the picture. That's them there."

Harry squinted hard at the picture and then stood up straight. The teenage versions of Severus Snape and Lily Evans were holding hands in the front row while James Potter glared daggers at them. Harry wanted to ask if they had dated but didn't get the chance as the next second the old professor was going on about the ‘Slug Club' and how he had taught all kinds of famous witches and wizards.

"It's too bad," he said finally as they heard the loo flush somewhere down the hall. "I would have liked the set." He gave Harry an appraising look right before Dumbledore came down the hall.

"Well, I must be getting Harry back now, as it is rather late. Good night Horace. Perhaps you can come to the Christmas ball this year. We've had to start one since you're not there to hold a Christmas party."

The Headmaster motioned for Harry to follow him and he did so, giving a last glance to the picture that was working it's way towards blowing his mind. Before they even made it to the front door however, Horace was out into the hall saying, "Very well, very well. You win old man. But I want a pay raise and I'm not living in the dungeons! I'm too old to be taking care of a house full of sly miscreants!"

Dumbledore gave a half bow with a strained smile and opened the door, leading Harry out into the night.

"What was that all about sir?"

"Unfortunately it is very late Harry, and I must insist we speak about it later. Take my arm."

Harry reached over and touched the Headmaster's arm, and they were gone, reappearing a moment later in a dark field outside the Burrow, the last place he wanted to be when he was feeling somber and unhappy.

They walked through tall grass up to the multistory, crooked house and Dumbledore said, "In you go my boy," but Harry stood still.

"Sir, when will you unfreeze my Gringotts vault?"

He snapped his fingers suddenly and then smiled down at Harry. "It is already done my boy. My apologies, but with the necessity to find you, and with you being so capable at avoiding detection, it was necessary to take steps to ensure your return. It was my hope that when you realized you were out of money, you would return. I did not realize that you had no need of money and were quite capable of taking care of yourself."

Harry turned away at that and walked up to the back door of the Weasley house, more upset than he'd like to admit about being taken from Snape's house, especially on such short notice. Dumbledore followed him into the house and brightly lit kitchen where Molly was immediately upon him in a tight squeeze.

"You had us so worried young man! Why if you were one of my own I would have grounded you to your room for weeks!" Harry's stomach churned uncomfortably at knowing how much stress he caused them, but her words only made him realize that he wasn't theirs any more than he was anybody else's.

Hermione and Ron were down the stairs and into the kitchen in the next second too and when Harry turned around, Dumbledore was gone, back out into the night without so much as a 'goodbye, sorry from taking you wherever I please and using you without your permission.'

"Harry! We missed you so much!" Hermione hugged him tight while Mrs. Weasley rambled on about Harry being hungry.

"Actually I've eaten already," Harry said, feeling in a foul mood and just wanting to figure out where he could go to bed. "I'd just like to go to sleep I think."

Molly stopped chattering and gave him a good looking over, including his frown. "Of course. Ronald, will you please take Harry up to your room?"

"Yes mum. Come on Harry."

Harry mumbled his thanks and followed Ron up the stairs, Hermione trailing close behind them, and he felt like a zombie, doing only what he was told.

"Bet you're happy to be out of that git's house," Ron said as they made his bedroom door all the way up on the third floor.

Harry turned and gave a hard stare at Ron and then bit out, "Yeah, just thrilled." He passed by him, not feeling up to an explanation for his sour mood and went into Ron's room. He couldn't even muster any happiness at seeing Hedwig there in a cage by his cot after being separated from her for almost two months, and fell onto the bed, burying his face in his pillow, trying to drown out the voices in the hallway as he heard Ron ask Hermione, "Have I said something?" He covered his ears and wondered at how he'd come full circle, back to a place where he felt so alone in the midst of everybody in a place where he once wished were home.