Chapter One

  Severus was absolutely spent when it came to working on this potion. He was so tired that words would never be able to properly describe it. However if he was successful when it came to brewing this elixir he might be able to slow the aging process by hundreds of years! It would mark a milestone in his career for the rest of his life! He would no longer be known as a past Death Eater, but as a man that aided the world in outliving their children’s children! Alas he was getting way too far ahead of himself. He wouldn’t even know the potion worked until he tested it on something…and unfortunately because he had no other live test subject, which meant that he would have to drink it himself. It was a bit unnerving because if he wasn’t careful Severus was certain, without a shadow of a doubt, that it would kill him if even the most miniscule detail was off.

  Oh well, no one could ever say he didn’t take risks when it came to his career, however he was certain that Albus would not appreciate him risking his neck. Not with how the wizarding world was panning out…but if this potion worked, he might be able to work out a way for his employer to survive through the second wizard war! For some reason Albus was certain that he would not see the end of this one, whereas Severus was certain to make sure that he did. Only an hour or so more and he would be able to test it. It would work, it just had to work…if it didn’t, well then Severus wouldn’t be around to see any more of this world. He would never lose a loved one again; this potion would assure that if it worked. Never again would he feel that pain of a broken heart, this would take care of all of that.

  Severus stirs later, and a sixty minutes of life that had slowly ticked by the potion was done and Severus had moved a small dose into a vial. This would be it, he would take this and hopefully lose at least a couple years off his age. Nothing too dramatic of course, just turning him back to his late twenties or early thirties Taking a seat at his desk, he took a deep breath and swirled the silver liquid around in its vial. He hoped it didn’t taste as bad as it looked…oh well, he supposed it wouldn’t matter soon. Gently bringing the vial to his lips he tilted his head back and downed the dose in one gulp.

“UGH!!”

  Jesus! It burned…Merlin did it burn! Something had to be wrong with the potion, something just had to be wrong! He was going to die; he was going to suffocate to death in his lab. His hands clutched his throat and sputtering loudly he tried to catch a single breath before his death. He wanted something to remember and it that was the scent of his workplace then that was fine with him. The smells of his work books….w-warm…parchment….ink…………p-peppermint? Wait…that wasn’t righ-

  The students had heard the screaming and the fuss clear down in the dungeons…and Albus supposed it was by sheer happenstance that he had been on his way down to the dungeons regardless. However he was extremely worried when he heard the sounds of his Potion’s Master screaming in agony! It took him several minutes to get into the office, but when he did he was shocked to no end. Albus wasn’t even sure what he was looking at. He saw a large bundle of robes and an unconscious little boy among them. He had dark hair like Severus, far too long for his little face…and his body was so small that Albus was certain he could hide the young boy in a Hogwarts Trunk and still have room for all of his books.

  What had Severus done to himself?! Was this Severus…yes, it just had to be. Only Severus could get into his potions lab…and there was no way a small child could make their way onto the grounds without being a child or ward of the staff.  Going to the small child, he gently scooped the little one up into his arms. So small, and light, Albus had known Severus had been mistreated as a child, he never knew to what extent however. Severus was always unbelievably closed off…to the point that Professor Dumbledore was practically begging him to open up a little bit more.

“Oh, Severus,” he whispered, sadly. “My boy…what have you done?”

  Making sure he grabbed at least one portion of Severus’ robes he wrapped his son up so nothing would be revealed to the students that were no doubt crowding the potions room. Needless to say he wasn’t certain if using the Floo network would be safe for the young child, he would have to make his way up to his office the old fashioned way…and hopefully he would find someone that could send Minerva to him. Closing his eyes briefly he wrapped Severus up further, when he felt the little boy shiver against him. He had no doubt that he would, it was frigid down here.

  Leaving the potions classroom he was immediately bombarded with students and mindless questions. He knew that they were curious and for some part might have been concerned, but Albus really didn’t have time for questions or pleasantries…his Potions Master was a small child again, a toddler if he was correct…and he had absolutely no answers or notions to go off of other then the fact that Severus had been brewing a potion. Continuing up the steps he stopped briefly to a student that had yet to be absorbed in the bustle downstairs.

“Excuse me, lad,” he said politely. “Would you kindly send Professor Mcgonagall to my office? Hurry lad, hurry, it is quite urgent.”

  Dumbledore did not have time to see if the boy heeded his plea, and continued to make his way to his office. All the while staring down at the little one in his arms. In fact, more than once Albus had nearly walked into a wall. He was just so shocked, so worried, so…scared. What if this was irreversible, or what if Severus had tried to poison himself and had made an error in his potion. There were so many things running through his mind that the Headmaster could barely focus. Releasing a shuddering breath he did not know he was retaining Albus turned to the opening of his office and began ascending the stairs.

“I promise everything will sort itself out, Severus…I swear I will find a way to fix this for you.”

  Albus, you fool, again you are making promises you cannot keep….you swore to protect his beloved Lily for him and how well did that turn out?

“Oohh…”

  Albus looked down at the little bundle in his arms, and frowned as he tossed and turned a bit in his arms. The poor thing must have been having a nightmare. Albus knew how bad those could get for his friend, and he cursed Voldemort, his parents, and any other undesirables that would hurt his Severus Snape.

“Shh little one, sleep…nothing is going to harm you…you are safe.”

 Summoning a small sofa from the upstairs level of his office he set Severus down and covered him with his black robes.  The longer Severus slept the better…he could only imagine how the Potions Master was going to react when he awoke, and that was a reaction he did not value seeing just yet. Merlin what was he going to do? Severus played such a big role in the battle against the Dark Lord…how was he supposed to explain that he was a child now? What if Voldemort tried to summon him and wasn’t able to do so? Did this little Severus have his Dark Mark still? Or was this an accident that reverted both the mind and body back to the age of a child?

  Just as his mind was about to further analyze the situation at hand Albus watched as the door to his office flew open and Minerva strode to him. Her face was twisted with worry and Albus had no doubt in his mind that she had heard many stories on her way up to him.

“Where is Severus?” she asked, slightly winded. “I have been hearing-

-I assumed the students would be spreading this story around like wildfire…however, the only way for me to reveal to you what had happened is to show you.”

“Show me what, Albus?”

“Now, it is going to-

-Albus! Show me what?!”

  Sighing softly, the Headmaster left his desk and moved to the small bundle on his sofa. Gently removing the blankets he heard a rapid gasp on Minerva’s part. He was actually happy with that reaction, he had been so worried she would pass out.

“That…is…is that Severus?!” she whispered frantically. “I knew this would happen! Damn that stubborn man and his potion experiments! I told him that he would kill himself brewing…or do something even worse! How old is he Albus? Merlin he looked four…three?! What are we going to do! He’s a member of the Order, Merlin Albus…what the Hell are we going to do?!”

“Minerva!” Albus said, gently gripping her shoulders. “Minerva…please calm down, I am not sure how old he is…and I’m not sure what we are going to do yet. Those answers will come, hopefully soon as possible. But for right now we have to figure out what we are going to do with Severus.”

“It’s the end of term, Albus! And what about Voldemort? If he’s a toddler that mad man will kill him!”

“No, he will not harm Severus…” Albus said sternly. “Because we are going to hide him…we are going to protect him Minerva, until we can find an antidote.”

“And what if there isn’t one, Albus? The one man alive that could brew such an elixir is on your sofa and four years old.”

“Then we let him age as nature intends.”

  Severus didn’t feel well, his head hurt like the blazes and he felt cold and naked. His eyes were so heavy that they wouldn’t open and he felt like he had sweat clear through his blankets into the sofa. What had happened? Had he fallen asleep on the couch? Father would be very angry if he caught Severus out of his room so soon…or was it so late? Oh well, better be safe than sorry…he needed to wake up. However when Severus opened his eyes it was not to find himself in his cold, dank, living room.

  No, this room was bright and had many books lining large wooden bookshelves. It was so beautiful and lovely here, and Severus could swear that he had seen this room before…in his dreams. Was he still dreaming? If that were the case he needed to throw himself against something to wake up. But when he stood and lost the robe that had been wrapped around him, his face blushed scarlett. He was completely naked! What was he going to do?! Crawling back onto the sofa, he wrapped up again and sniffled softly. Where was he, why was he alone? Where was his mummy…his mummy would make things better.

“Mummy?” he called, softly. “Mummy…I need you, mummy!”

  Tears welled in his eyes. Why wasn’t his mummy answering him? Had father hurt her again and she was unable to come to him? Maybe she was sick…mummy got sick quite often, but Severus was always there to take care of her! He really needed to find mummy before it was too later.

“Mummy!” he called, his voice cracking with emotion. “Mummy, where are you?”

   His chin quivered and before he knew it tears were rolling down his flushed cheeks. He wanted his mummy, if he didn’t find her in time she would leave him forever…and if that happened Severus didn’t know what he would do. His mummy was the only one that protected him against father, without her home Severus was sure he would die.

“Mu-

-Severus, my boy,” a warm voice called. “I am so sorry I was not here for you to wake…I had to excuse myself for a moment.”

  Severus sniffled and looked up at the man in the purple pajamas. He had a long white beard and wore strange glasses. He almost looked like the Merlin from his story books, but Severus was certain that it wasn’t him…Merlin was dead, maybe this was his cousin or great, great, great, great, great, great, great grandson…or something like that. He did sound nice though, and his gentle smile reminded him of mummy.

“I want my mummy…” he sniffled. “Do…do you know where my mummy is…?”

  Dumbledore’s face took on a grim expression. This was going to be most difficult, when Eileen Prince had died Severus had been a young boy in school…but as a toddler he was terrified to tell him the truth. It would break his little heart. However Albus knew that this could not be avoided, he needed to tell the little one that his mummy was gone.

“I do, Severus…” he said softly.

“Where is she?” he asked, eagerly. “Is she home? Did she leave me here? Is she coming back? Did father hurt her again?”

  Merlin, this was so hard…he begged for guidance. How was he to tell Severus again that his mother had died when it had been so hard the first time around? As a matter of fact the first time had even been done in this office, on that sofa…and yet Albus yearned for Severus to be a teen again to receive this news. A child’s heart was so easily broken, and Dumbledore wasn’t sure he would be able to mend it back together.

“Severus…your mummy…she’s…she’s gone to heaven, Severus.”

“W-What?” the little boy whispered. “N-No! NO! You are lying!”

  Albus felt his eyes twinkle and burn…he could not cry right now. Not when the little one clearly needed his strength and guidance, he really didn’t want to fail Severus now. He had done so far too many times already, and Dumbledore would make this right….he just had to.

“Severus, please, I am so sorry.” Albus said softly. “I am truly, sorry.”

“My-my…my mummy! She…she can’t be dead! She…she’s mummy! MUMMY, NO!!!”

  Albus frowned, knowing that this had to be so difficult for his friend. But Albus knew that if he had waited to tell him it would have just blown up in his face…although the explosion he was enduring at the present moment didn’t seem much better.

Chapter Two

It had taken a calming draught, a dreamless sleep potion, and a small fever reducer to get Severus to fall back asleep. And for that Albus could not be more grateful. His little potions master had been throwing himself into a terrible panic, and Albus wasn't sure anymore of his glass windows could take it. All of them were already horribly cracked from Severus' volatile emotions. Now he just had to figure out what he was going to do. He could not very well keep Severus here at Hogwarts, it would be unsafe for him…not to mention he had a feeling that it would become unsettling for a small boy to be cooped up in such a large place for so long, and then have to return during the school year.

He also had to manage to find someone that would be able to take care of young Severus. As much as Dumbledore wanted to, he was just far too busy to keep the little one in his care. Of course wherever he placed Severus, Albus swore to come and see him whenever he could…but so long as the Dark Lord was back in power the Headmaster was certain to have a very full plate when it came to his duties and obligations to the school. Glancing back at the sleeping boy, who he had been able to conjure pajamas for, he could not help but smile slightly. Severus was a very sweet looking child. His dark hair would need to be trimmed, and he surely needed to put some weight on his bones, but all in all Albus could not believe how adorable he looked.

What was he to do? Minerva could not watch him; she had her own family affairs to worry about…and any other Professor at Hogwarts would think him daft to even ask. But…there was someone that he knew could keep an eye on Severus where no one else could harm him or even know of his current situation. A place where Dumbledore would see him regularly and Severus would not be in any form of danger whatsoever.

Turning to the fireplace he tossed a handful of floo powder into the hearth and said, "Sirius Black."

OotPOotPOotP

Sirius had been cleaning for what had to be hours! And no matter how hard he tried he just could not find a way to remove all the dirt and crap from his home. He was literally at wits end when it came to this bloody Hell hole, still he would take Number 12 Grimmauld Place over Cell 1209 in Azkaban. Throwing another moldy hand rag into the waste bin he yawned and reached up to move several locks of dark hair from his face. Remus was supposed to be here helping him, but his friend had cleverly skived out to go and purchase some groceries at a muggle market. Crafty thing, he always thought Remus was far too clever to be in Gryffindor.

"Sirius?"

Turning towards the fireplace Sirius smiled, what a lovely surprise! He rarely got callers, he hoped to hear from Harry next…but those messages were far harder to send back and forth. Still, a call from someone was better than a call from no one at all…he did get tired of being lonely.

"Professor Dumbledore!" he beamed. "It's good to hear from you, plan to come and visit me soon? I must insist against it though, the house still looks awful and I have yet to even get to the second floor."

"Hello Sirius, yes…I daresay I shall be visiting you soon…but this will not be a trip regarding the house. I actually have a job for you, that I am not sure I can allow you to refuse."

Sirius's face took on a darker expression that was joined with a slight hint of worry. Whenever the Dumbledore asked a favor that "could not be refused" it made him very nervous. There were many times he had been asked these favors and went through with them, but never had he been asked by the Headmaster to do something he could not refuse.

"Is it Harry?" he asked, first and foremost.

"No, no, it isn't Harry…" the Headmaster said, gently.

"Voldemort?"

"No."

"Harry's relatives?"

"It has nothing to do with Mr. Potter." The Headmaster said, softly.

"Oh, then what is it Headmaster, please don't keep me in suspense."

Dumbledore nodded, that was the last thing he wanted to do. He was actually hoping to get this out into the open as quickly as possible, in case Severus woke up with another nightmare or something of that nature. The boy had very unsettling dreams that worried Albus, but he wasn't sure how many more doses of Dreamless Sleep would be able to be given to his young friend before his body just found a defense to it all on its own.

"It involves Severus-

-Snape?" he snapped. "And what does that slimy git want?"

"Sirius," Dumbledore said, sternly. "I am going to ask you to abandon your dislike for Severus and his past….you are going to need to do the favor I am going to ask of you."

Sirius's face contorted into a glare and he snorted. He wouldn't even try to be nice to Snape, that git didn't deserve anything he had. A Death Eater, walking around free…while Sirius was stuck in his blasted past still a prisoner! An innocent man no doubt! What made Dumbledore think he wanted anything to do with Snape?

"There was a potions accident, at Hogwarts-

-big surprise." Sirius scoffed, however Dumbledore paid it no mind.

"Severus is four years old."

There was a long silence, one that Dumbledore thought would last forever…that was until Sirius broke out into hysterical laughter. Albus sighed and waited, he knew that there would be no talking to his past pupil when he was in this type of mood. So he waited, and after ten minutes of uninterrupted laughter Dumbledore's blue eyes lost their twinkle and hardened.

"I am glad you find this all very amusing," he said, smiling. "Because you will be Severus's guardian until we can find an antidote."

And that was the moment when Albus thought Sirius Black would actually murder him, of course the young man refrained and continued to glare into the hearth of his fireplace. There was no question of whether or not Sirius would do it…Albus would make sure that he did! He had let him escape Hogwarts and did nothing to report him…of course Albus believed him to be an innocent man but those sort of things cost him a great deal when it came to his reputation as Headmaster. He would not let Sirius skive this responsibility.

"No, Professor Dumbledore, absolutely not! Why can't you find someone else to do it? Someone more equipped, someone that DOESN'T hate Snape with a burning passion!"

"Because Severus is in danger now, he IS a spy to Voldemort and will be hunted…your home is the safest place for him and with you unable to leave it you are the perfect person for this position."

Sirius glared and growled in his throat.

"So, generally you are saying, that because I am a prisoner here I should have to babysit.

Dumbledore sighed, "If that is the context in which you choose to view this situation, then yes."

Sirius didn't know what to do! He knew that he couldn't turn Dumbledore down, not when the man was mostly responsible for keeping him free…but he also could not STAND Severus Snape! And even as a four year old, Sirius was certain that Snape would be a demon child sent from the depths of Hell to torment him.

"Sirius, he has nowhere else to go," Albus sighed. "Would you rather I drop him into an orphanage? Where Voldemort could come and murder him on the spot? Do you want an innocent man's blood on your hands?"

"Severus Snape is ANYTHING but innocent Headmaster…that man has more skeletons in his closet then a bloody graveyard has graves!"

Dumbledore sighed; he was really starting to lose his patience. He recalled having a similar conversation with Severus after Mr. Potter's third year…and it had trailed out exactly the same way. Sometimes he wondered if Sirius Black and Severus Snape detested one another, not because they were so different, but they could both be so alike.

"And you Sirius?" he asked casually. "Did you not try to kill Professor Snape back when he was a boy? Have you atoned for that?"

"How dare you, Dumbledore!" Sirius snapped. "He followed us down there, it was not-

-who told him how to get into the Whomping Willow?"

-It doesn't matter, James saved him!"

"Yes, James Potter did…but you Sirius….were you even able to apologize? You have been so close to death this past year and the year before that…do you not even feel a shred of guilt or sympathy? As a man…you know that you do."

Sirius was at a loss for words. He really had no counter argument for anything the Headmaster said, and he really knew that when push came to shove that no matter what he did he would end up taking in the Snape brat. It wasn't fair…but Sirius supposed that he wouldn't have to have too much communication with the boy. He could make Kreacher do most of the work and with Snape being a bloody Slytherin he was sure Kreacher would grow quite fond of him.

"Fine…but I don't know how you expect me to support a child…I have no job and no money."

Dumbledore smiled gently at him and his blue eyes regained their twinkle. Money would not be an issue, Severus would have everything he wanted or needed to keep him happy. Albus would make sure that his little Potions Master was well fed and well cared for.

"Remus is staying with you, is he not?" Dumbledore continued.

"Occasionally…why?"

"Then I suppose he will be able to help you care for young Severus."

"Hmph…" Sirius snorted. "Sure…when are you bring the slim-I mean the kid over?"

Dumbledore cocked his eyebrow at Sirius, but chose to let his last comment slide. It would take a lot of work, but with Severus in this new form Dumbledore was certain that it would not take long for his past pupil to fall in love with the boy. Dumbledore had, and although it had been hard back when Severus was a student, he was certain that it would be as easy as breathing now.

"I will bring him later in the evening…I would like to find him so fitting clothes and make sure he is able to handle travel. He is in a very fragile state right now."

Sirius rolled his eyes, he was so sure.

"I had to tell him his mother is dead."

Sirius froze…well didn't he feel like a giant prat. He wasn't sure if Snape liked his mother or not, but at the age of four every relative one had usually was held up with some form of affection. At four, life and death don't seem so complex. It is just a matter of believing that mummy and daddy, or so and so, went to a better place and were happy…but for Snape, he doubted the kid ever believed that stuff. He was far to analytical to believe anything so simplistic and wonderful.

"Oh…" he said a bit crestfallen. "Is he…okay?"

"At the moment…I gave him some potions to put him to sleep."

Sirius nodded, rubbing the back of his neck a bit uncomfortably. He didn't know what else to say on the matter, so he supposed that was more or less his cue to excuse himself back to cleaning…he would no doubt need to make up a spare room for Snivellus if he was going to stay with him.

As Albus bid Sirius goodbye he went back to where he had placed Severus, only there was a slight problem…the little boy was no longer there! Eyes wide with worry he quickly sent Fawkes out with a message to alert all the teachers that there was a small boy wandering the halls of Hogwarts.

OotPOotPOotP

Severus wanted to find his mummy so that he could say goodbye, he knew that that nice old man had said she was gone…but Severus knew his mummy to never leave without at least giving him a kiss and hug goodbye, it just wasn't her. Walking around barefoot, his little body shivering from how cold the cobblestone floor was, he continued his search far and wide for his missing mother.

Maybe, mummy's outside? His mind said frantically. She loves picking herbs and working in the garden!

That just had to be it, his mummy would be in the garden waiting for him before she went back to heaven to be an angel. He remembered her telling him that's where all people went after they left earth. Although Severus kind of wished he could have gone with her, he wasn't sure if he wanted to leave his planet just yet, there were too many things that he had yet to do.

Walking around the halls he found that there were many children here as well, but none of them looked close to being his age. Where was he exactly? They were all wearing robes, and a lot of them seemed to match. Was this a clubhouse or something? Maybe it was a school and he had gotten more loss than he had originally thought. Oh well, surely one of these older kids could help…he just needed to find the nicest looking one.

Looking around he found a boy sitting all by himself on a stone bench. He had black hair that reminded Severus of a porcupine and deep, emerald, green eyes. For some reason the eyes reminded him of something… something nice that made him feel happy. Surely he could help him find mummy. Going over to him, he gently wringed his hands together in nervousness.

"Umm…e-excuse me?"

The boy's green eyes darted down to him and he watched pleased as he smiled.

"Well, hello there," he said gently. "Are you one of the teacher's child?"

Severus shook his head, his mummy wasn't a teacher. She was far too busy being home with him to do such a thing.

"No," he said softly. "I can't find my mummy…I'm lost."

"Oh no," the green eyed boy said warmly. "Well, my name's Harry Potter…would you like me to help you find her?"

"Yes, please." Severus said with a nod.

"Okay, but can you tell me your name first?"

Severus nodded and smiled back gently.

"My name is-

"SEVERUS SNAPE!"

Chapter Three

Snape…the little boy that had come to him looking so adorable in a pair of plaid pajamas…was Severus Snape dungeon bat of Hogwarts. Harry didn’t even know what to think…he knew that he had a great hatred for Snape, but this little version was almost too adorable to resist! He was so small and had these big dark eyes that just melted the heart of anyone in the room. Harry had always been a sucker for children, and the fact that Severus Snape was now a cute, toddling, four year old…all the years of hatred were slowly melting away. Especially since it appeared that Severus had absolutely no memory of them whatsoever.

“I just wanted to find my mummy, sir…” he heard little Severus sniffle to the Headmaster. “Am I in trouble?”

Harry watched as little Severus’s chin began to quiver and his dark eyes swelled with tears. Merlin, how could Dumbledore stand to watch this little boy cry? It was heartbreaking enough for Harry to watch! Everything in his body was telling him to reach forward and coddle the little one, but then he remembered that Snape no longer knew him and might not appreciate that kind of interaction.

“Severus running off like that was a very bad thing to do,” the Headmaster continued sternly. “And I want you to promise me, little one, that you will never do such a thing again.”

Severus nodded, tears rolling down his face, and breaths coming out in short gasps. He really didn’t like getting into trouble, he knew that Professor Dumbledore was speaking to him in a way he rarely heard at home…but it still left him with a yucky feeling in his tummy. He looked up at Harry that was watching him a bit sadly; Severus hoped that he didn’t make his new friend upset either! Severus didn’t have any friends and already he had gotten one and lost one!

“I…I…am sorry sir…” he cried softly. “I…I just want mummy…”

Harry’s eyes took on a look of hurt and he looked up at the Headmaster…already he knew what had been left unsaid. Snape was one of the younger teachers, but no one knew whether or not he still had parents, and it was apparent that he didn’t.

“Severus your mummy is in heaven-

-But…but she never said goodbye!” he cried.

Harry gently reached forward and placed a hand on the small boy’s shoulder. He was sure this must be one Hell of a day for the past potions master. Harry watched as Severus looked back and more tears slid down the little child’s face. Without another thought Harry scooped him up and held him on his lap. He knew what it felt like to not have parents…he knew that kind of pain. And it inflicted him when he was four as well.

Severus had been shocked when Harry had pulled him up into his arms. He wasn’t used to that kind of treatment, more or less just a smack and his father telling him that he needed to get over whatever was ailing him. Closing his eyes into Harry’s shirt he sniffled and tried to calm himself. Crying was bad, crying just got him into more trouble, but with his mummy gone he couldn’t help it! He just missed her so much!

“I…I…I don’t wanna….cry…I…I’m sorry…”

Harry shook his head and hushed the little boy. If Severus Snape had been back in his thirties he would never believe this story, not in a million years. Harry would have never suspected Severus Snape as a man that had a single emotion. He typically believed that Snape was the person that chose to crush and kill all sense of emotion.

“It’s okay Prof-…Severus…” he corrected quickly. “Everything will be okay.”

Gently taking his sleeve Harry wiped the tears from the little one’s cheeks. He was sure that this was all some crazy dream. Was he really comforting his rival Professor? Was he feeling sympathy for the man that had caused him so much grief during his past four years at Hogwarts? He supposed he was, and Harry damned anyone else that questioned him about it.

“So, Severus,” he said, a bit hesitantly. “I know you got in trouble, but since you are so sad…I think you deserve a chocolate.”

Severus looked up at Harry and sniffled softly. Him? Get a chocolate? But he was a bad boy…and the only thing that naughty little boys got was a spanking…not candy. He supposed that Harry wasn’t familiar with the fathering thing, after all he was still a student. Maybe when he was older he would learn how to treat children. However, Severus was a bit hungry…and a chocolate sounded very nice at the moment. His mummy gave him chocolates that were shaped like frogs. They hopped and would jump onto his head and make him giggle.

However he wasn’t sure if Professor Dumbledore would be happy about him having chocolate. He had run away and apparently that wasn’t allowed.

“Professor Dumbledore?” Harry asked warmly. “Is it okay if he has a chocolate frog? I got tons from the…well…you know.”

Albus looked down at the little boy nestled on Harry’s lap. He supposed that one chocolate frog would not hurt, and after the ordeal Severus had gone through something warm and sweet in his tummy might help him feel a little better. Chocolate did wonders on the heart and soul…ironically enough, adult Severus did not really like chocolate.

“I suppose Severus can have one chocolate frog.” The Headmaster said with a small smile.

Severus’s eyes lit up at the mention of him being allowed to have a sugary treat. He rarely ever got to eat candy, only when mummy could sneak it…and now he was able to eat chocolate without fear of being swatted or thrown against the wall.

“Okay, Severus…let me just-“ he broke off briefly, adjusting Severus on his lap so that he could reach down into his bag. “Hmm…it has to be in here somewhere?”

He smiled, teasing Severus gently as he continued to dig through his satchel. Really he had found the frogs the moment his hand had gone into the crowded fabric of the bag. 

“Did you find it Harry?” Severus prodded, giggling slightly. “Cast a spell, cast a spell!”

Harry smiled and grabbing a frog brought his hands behind his back.

“Okay, Severus…which hand has the frog.”

Severus pursed his lips in thought….trying to determine if he saw Harry put the frog in one hand or the other. He just had to pick the right hand; he wanted his chocolate so bad! Biting his lower lip he held his little hand up to select which arm Harry held his candy with.

“Umm…the left?”

Smiling Harry quickly switched the candy over and nodded. Bringing the chocolate to him he gently unwrapped it and let it hop around in his hand. Severus giggled and moved his head so that it could hop on top and sit against his black hair. He looked to Harry and watched as his new friend began laughing out loud. He hoped that he wasn’t making fun of him…He hadn’t meant to make a fool out of himself.

“You are absolutely sweet…no need to add the chocolate to your head, Severus.”

Smiling slightly he removed the chocolate from his head and bit off the head. All in all it was the more humane way to eat a chocolate frog. When one thought about it, if you started at the legs you left the poor thing a cripple. However the head was quick and clean and death was assured instantly…no pain or agony, just yummy chocolate goodness.

“Jeez Sev,” Harry smirked. “Way to take no prisoners with that frog.”

Smiling Severus brought the bottom half the frog towards his lips.

“Wan som?” he asked; his mouth full of candy.

“Umm…no thanks…been trying to cut back.”

Severus nodded and swallowing leaned back into Harry’s chest. He was awfully comfortable on his lap; he hoped that he wouldn’t leave. Severus had never had a friend like Harry that brought him candy and held him when he was sad. It was nice to have someone be there when he felt all alone, and he wasn’t ready to give that up just yet.

“Harry?” he said turning to face him. “Are we friends now?”

“Absolutely!” Harry beamed, his green eyes shining brightly. “And you will have to meet my two other friends Ron and Hermione…Mione will absolutely fall in love with you.”

Hermione had many awful experiences with the Potions Master when he was an adult, but he was certain that when she saw him as a child all of that would be forgotten. After all his friend was far more forgiving than he was. He wouldn’t even be surprised if Hermione died of shock when she heard that he was being so kind and forgiving to the little boy in front of him.

“Mione?” he repeated. “She has a nice name…I don’t like mine.”

Harry frowned as Severus took on a more crestfallen expression and looked down. He knew what that felt like too. Names brought on a lot of judgement…none of them deserved of fair when it came to people such as himself and possibly Snape. Although he didn’t know too much about his professor he had heard that he hadn’t the best life…to which Harry can relate. He often wished to find someone that could justly sympathize with his situation, but that person never came. Perhaps he could be that person for Professor Snape…and maybe when he changed back, if he ever changed back…things would be different.

“Why do you hate your name, Severus?” he asked, gently moving several strands of black hair behind his little ears.

“It’s…mean…and father yells it a lot. I’m just sick of hearing it.” He whispered.

“Oh…well then lets pick a nickname for you, Severus.” Harry said with a smile.

“A nickname?” Severus repeated.

Harry nodded.

“Yeah, something that people can call you that YOU like…how about Sev? Or maybe Sevvy…”

Severus paused in thought wondering which one sounded less mean. He liked Sevvy, but only because it was so close to Harry’s name. They both ended in Y and that was super cool! He wanted to grow up and be like Harry, just like Harry!

“I like Sevvy, Harry.” Severus beamed. “I wanna be Sevvy now.”

Harry smiled and nodded…it was a cute name for a cute little boy. Something simple and sweet that would no doubt help everyone see Snape in a new, brighter, light. Harry was the unlucky one, his name didn’t have many nicknames associated with it…only ones he had no desire of keeping. Harry was just Harry…he couldn’t have a nickname…although Sirius called him scamp occasionally, but that was different. He really was “Just Harry” the boy who bloody lived.

“Harry,” Severus cooed softly. “My name’s close to yours now! I have a Y in it too!”

Harry’s eyes lit up and he smiled enthusiastically at Severus as he bounced in his lap. Maybe sugar wasn’t the best idea for Severus. He did seem a lot more talkative with that little frog in his tummy, but Harry couldn’t be having any more fun. Severus was practically bouncing off the walls and he only had ONE chocolate frog.

“Albus, Harry is so funny!” he laughed. “Sooo funny!”

“Is he?” the Headmaster chuckled from his desk. “What makes you say that.”

Severus giggled and shrugged…he wasn’t sure why Harry was funny…he just made him laugh. As a matter of fact everything seemed funny to him at the present moment. Especially Headmaster Dumbledore! His robes were bright purple with stars all over them! They looked like pajamas! Why was the Headmaster wearing his jammies in the middle of the day?

“Professor Dumbledore?” Harry chuckled. “Have you given thought to who is going to take care of getting Severus’s clothes? And…t-o-y-s?”

Harry wasn’t sure how little Severus would react to getting toys when he was a mile high on sugar. This kid was walking on sweet sunshine, and he wasn’t going to aggravate it with promises of toys. Especially when he wasn’t sure if the Headmaster had any money for children’s toys…maybe Harry would be able to pick up a few things in Diagon Alley. Toys weren’t expensive by any means, and maybe he could find Sevvy some nice story books as well…but then something else occurred to him…he didn’t even know where Severus was staying! He hoped that Dumbledore would be keeping him, the boy deserved to have a nice home…not one like he apparently used to have. He also wouldn’t mind having Severus somewhere he would be able to visit…and if Dumbledore had custody he was certain that he would be able to see little Sevvy at least once during Summer break.

“Sir? Who is going to be taking care of Sevvy?”

Dumbledore smiled and stood from his desk. Now was the perfect time to relay his news…but as he thought more on it another idea sprung into his head…perhaps Harry would like to live with Sirius as well. Of course he knew that he would like to…it had just been out of the question at one time. However Dumbledore didn’t see as much harm in it now as he once had…he would have to discuss it with the other Order members before he took action.

“Actually Harry, why don’t you accompany Severus and I to his new home…” he said smiling. “You can help Severus settle in and make sure he is comfortable.”

That…and the sight of his god-son might soften up the guardian of the little Sevvy Snape.

Chapter Four

Severus wasn’t sure he wanted to live with this Sirius guy…his house wasn’t very nice to look at…and the inside reminded him a lot of his own home. Paint fading and grey, and looking like it belonged to Dracula. It was not a happy home to live in at all...so there was a slight possiblity that Sirius was sad too. If that were the case then all Severus had to do was try and make him happier and maybe help him clean his house a little bit. He was sure he would be able to make him happier if he were to dust, there was too much coating everything. Clutching Harry’s legs he hid his face behind them as they continued through the old home.

“Harry?” he asked sweetly. “Will you hold me? This house is scary.”

Reaching his little arms up at Harry, he smiled gratefully when he little feet left the ground and were able to wrap around Harry’s middle. That was better, and now he could get a clearer view of the house. Being short had its disadvantages; he never could really see what was coming.  And in his house that was never a good thing.

“Professor, are you certain Sirius is in? I don’t-

-BLOODY HELL REMUS, LOOK HOW HUGE AND HAIRY IT IS!” he heard a loud voice boom, rattling the dusty rafters. “KILL IT! KILL IT! NO, DON’T BRING THE EIGHT LEGGED THING HERE!! KILL IT!”

Severus whimpered and hid his face in Harry’s shoulder. He didn’t like loud voices and that man’s voice boomed through the house like a cannon. He was scared, he didn’t want to live here! Not with another Tobias Snape! No…no not with father!

“Sevvy? You’re shaking…hey…what’s wrong?”

Gently prying Severus from him so that he could get a better look at him, he stroked his little nose. He had never seen Snape so scared before. Loud voices clearly did not put his mind at ease, another thing they both had in common. Yelling wasn’t an effective tool when it came to anyone, so why did people insist on thinking it was.

“I…I don’t…like it here Harry…” he whimpered softly. “Those loud voices…they are scary.”

Harry frowned with Severus and gently rubbed circles into his back. He didn’t like the idea of Severus being scared for some reason; it just seemed to unnerve him. He really wanted his new friend to be a happy child… and he would be sure to talk to Sirius about his vocal level before Dumbledore forced him back to Privet Drive.

“They will stop Sevvy, and I promise that they are not directed at you…I think Sirius caught a spider or something.”

“I love spiders!” Severus beamed. “They are so cool!”

Harry shuddered, after his second year at Hogwarts he was pretty sure that he was off spiders for life. It didn’t matter the type, they all could just burn in bloody hell for all he cared. Ugly things they were, but he wasn’t completely surprised that Severus liked them. He was a potions master after all, even in childhood that passion and talent was still there.

“Do you think so?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “There are a lot in my old room…mummy told me they were protecting me from Father…I don’t think they were…they just liked my socks.”

Harry got a mischievous glint in his eye and reaching down he removed one of Severus’s shoes and began tickling his foot. And no sooner than a minute later had the sound of laughter filled the house. He tickled and tickled to the point that Severus was gasping and squirming in his arms, flailing around like a little fish that had been pulled from the water.

“Hahaha-Harry!” he squealed.

“But you have such cute little feet, Sevvy…no wonder spiders love your little socks! Do they nibble your toes, Sevvy?”

Severus laughed, unable to answer any of Harry’s questions! It tickled so much that he could just barely stand it and he felt close to sicking up…but before it got to that point two men appeared at the bottom of the stairwell they were passing. Breathing a bit heavily for a moment, Severus hid his face in Harry’s shoulder. He wasn’t sure if these new men would like them…but they didn’t look nearly as scary as father did. The one man actually looked kind of sick and he had boo-boos all over his face and towards the nape of his neck. Poor man, he hoped that he was taking medicine and using potions on those scars…they made him look sad. Then there was the man next to him…and he looked a bit mad…had Severus already done something wrong? His eyes were dark and he had rather long hair…kind of like Sevvy’s only his curled a lot more and Severus’s was just straight and lanky.

“Sirius!” Harry said, beaming.

The man turned and smiled warmly at Harry, and for a moment Severus almost felt his fear disappear…that was until Sirius went from being happy and smiling to his first expression…one of disgust and loathing. Severus felt his chin quiver a bit, but he quickly looked away in an attempt to hide it.

“So, Sirius,” Harry said, prodding his God-father a bit further. “This is Sevvy…”

“Snape…” Sirius said coldly. “I do not need an introduction Harry…I know who he is.”

Severus didn’t like the sound of that, by that tone Sirius sounded like he wanted to have him disappear. Was Harry really going to leave him alone with this man? Someone that didn’t like him or want him even in the same house as him? There just had to be some type of mistake.

“You-You do?” little Severus squeaked.

However just as Sirius was about to reply Remus moved forward and shook his head. He would not let his friend alienate a small child…he did not care who the child was in the present or who he had been in the past. Judgment was not meant to be pressed down into the innocent souls of children, they were supposed to live life loved and wanted. And for Sirius to try and do anything else, because of a school grudge, well…that just was not happening. Not under his watch…and Remus would be watching quite thoroughly.

“He does, little Severus,” Remus said gently. “He knows you because Albus has told him all about you! Isn’t that right, Padfoot?”

Sirius wanted to snort but he refrained from doing so and just nodded. Remus would kick his ass through London and back if he misbehaved, and although Mooney didn’t look like the type it didn’t change the fact that he would do it. His friend could be very brutal when he needed to be, which was what made him such a great teacher and best friend.

“Padfoot?” Severus repeated, tilting his head a bit to the side. “I thought your name was Sirius?”

Remus smiled.

“That’s his nickname…mine’s Mooney.”

“Oh! Harry gave me a nickname too!” the little boy announced. “Sevvy…because my name is mean.”

Remus’ eyes softened a bit at hearing Severus say such a thing. He thought that his name was mean? He supposed that was somehow the Maurader’s doing. They had often teased Severus of his name back in school and perhaps this was just something repressed coming to the surface now.

“Well, Sevvy is a wonderful name.”  Remus praised.

“What’s your real name, though?” the little boy grinned. “Does it begin with an M?”

“Close…I’m a few more letters down though,” Mooney teased, playfully. “My name is Remus Lupin.”

“You have a nice name too.” Severus said, though his words were muffled a bit by a small yawn.

Harry smiled, Severus was experiencing something many children went through after eating candy, and that was sugar withdrawal. Sevvy was no doubt ready for a nice nap…finding his room without Sirius biting his head off though, that was the challenge.  He really wanted his God-father to be nicer to Severus, after all Dumbledore had made him Severus’s keeper, he just had to be nice!

“Would you like a nap, Severus?” Albus asked, he could see his young lad beginning to doze against Harry’s shoulder.

“Am I allowed? S’not bedtime yet…” he said softly.

Albus shook his head; he did not like the idea of Severus going without a nap and trying to force himself to remain coherent. That would make for a grouchy little boy, and Albus was sure that everyone wanted to avoid a grouchy Severus Snape.

“No, but you are allowed to have a nap…I’m sure Sirius has a room already made up for you.”

Sirius sighed, and crossed his arms over his chest.

“You will have to ask Remus about that, he’s the one that picked out the room and cleaned it.”

Remus nodded.

“It’s the first room on the second floor…right across from mine and beside Sirius’s.”

Harry nodded and adjusted little Severus in his arms once more.

“I’ll just tuck him in then…” Harry said, dismissing himself from the group of men downstairs.

“Harry?” he heard a little voice coo. “I hafta go potty first.”

Harry felt his cheeks flush a bit but he nodded, of course Severus would eventually have to use the loo. It was only natural, it was just something that Harry didn’t expect to have to deal with when it came to Severus Snape. Then again, Harry also needed to remember that this small boy wasn’t Severus Snape: Potions Master at Hogwarts…he was Sevvy Snape…a very sweet little boy with a large heart that was still intact and uncrushed by the sins of his past.

“Okay, Sevvy,” he said gently patting his back. “I’ll take you to the loo.”

Closing his eyes and resting his head on Harry’s shoulder he felt himself begin to drift away. He was just so tired and he knew that sleep would be a nice reprieve to such a long day. He could not wait to snuggle down in his cool bed sheets and just dream the day away. Only rather than waking up in bed, he found himself being put down on a cold tile floor.

“Okay Sevvy, I’ll wait out the door while you go and do your business.”

Severus nodded and yawned once more before closing the bathroom door behind him. Harry leaned against the wall beside the door and yawned himself. He was starting to feel a bit tired as well, chasing after Severus for even a little bit had worn him out. He was sure that he would sleep tonight, nightmares be damned. Listening as the toilet flushed and the sink turned on he could not help but smile. Severus really was a precious little kid…how could his parents ever stand to mistreat or abuse him? The door opened and Severus knuckled his eyes and yawned once more.

“M’sleepy Harry,” he yawned. “I wanna go to bed.”

Scooping down so he could pull the little tyke into his arms he yawned as well.

“Hey,” he said, gently poking Sevvy’s tummy. “Don’t do that…it’s contagious.”

As a pair of small arms wrapped around his neck he chuckled and continued to his new bedroom. He supposed he could get used to carrying a little Sevvy around. He wasn’t all that heavy and in all reality he was a child that just attracted love and tenderness.

“You can take a nap too Harry,” Severus whispered, his words starting to heavy with sleep. “I’ll share my room with you.”

Harry smiled as he continued down the hall to the door Remus said would meet them. Gently pushing the door open he smiled and had to roll his eyes a bit. Of course Remus would want to decorate the entire thing in Slytherin memorabilia…to keep Sevvy as close to home as possible. Still, it was a nice room…winter green walls and a nice hard wooden floor. He wondered how long this had taken his past Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor to do all this. With magic, probably mere minutes…but it was still an impressive feet none the less.

Walking past the large fireplace he pulled back the deep green comforted on Severus’s bed and helped him snuggle down into a set of warm, clean, sheets. The bed was fairly large compared to Sevvy’s size and it looked almost as though it might swallow him whole! That poor little boy, so tiny…just like Harry had been at that age

“Harry?” Severus whispered, groggily. “Don’t leave me…I’m still scared.”

Smiling Harry brought a chair over and gently took Severus’s hand. He wasn’t going to leave until he was sure his little buddy had fallen asleep and was off in dreamland chasing unicorns or something. Gently stroking his hair so it was out of his face, Harry smiled as Severus yawned once more and snuggled deeper down into his pillows. Remus had really done a good job, he would have to get Headmaster Dumbledore to come up and see as soon as he was free with whatever it was he was doing.

“You aren’t going to leave…are you?”

Severus hated being alone at night, or whenever he was supposed to sleep. He had bad dreams about scary men and his father. He did not like them at all and they made his tummy feel all gurgly and roll around uncomfortably. If Harry left he knew he would have another bad dream and nothing would bring him back. Even when he had a bad dream, his mummy couldn’t come and help him. She was too busy taking care of daddy…now that Severus had someone that was willing to stay he didn’t want them to leave him…not ever.

“I will be here Sevvy, I promise.”

“Cross your heart?”

Harry smiled and took a little hand.

“Over and over again, Sevvy.”

Chapter Five

  Harry had come back downstairs as soon as he was certain that Severus was in a deep enough sleep for him to leave him. The little boy really had him wrapped around his pinky. Harry had always wanted a sibling; he had thought Dudley would be that for him but Merlin was he wrong! Now he had a chance to have a little brother! If Severus accepted that is, and with how well they got along Harry felt confident that he did. Making his way downstairs to the kitchen, he was able to find Sirius sitting on the steps sulking a bit. Continuing down the stairs he took his place next to him.

“Did you piut Snape to bed?” Sirius sighed, coldly.

Harry cocked his eyebrow at his God-father and nodded.

“Do you have to call him Snape? He really doesn’t like it…it makes him think you don’t like him.”

Sirius smirked and nodded, that was the point. He didn’t like Snape, young or old he would never like Severus Snape.  And if he had to prove that point to all of them then he would. He was only doing this because Albus was making him, not because he wanted to. He had been forced into this charity and he absolutely refused to even act like he enjoyed it.

“I don’t like him Harry, young or old he is still Severus Snape.”

“No, Sirius, he isn’t…he’s Sevvy Snape,” Harry said firmly. “A scared little boy that isn’t aware of what his life had turned him into. Why can’t you just accept that?”

“How can you?!” Sirius snapped. “All the Hell he put your through as a student, and here you are lecturing me about forgiving him!”

“Because it’s the right thing to do Sirius! I hold no grudge against a little boy that hasn’t done anything to me! And whatever Snape did to me during school…it doesn’t matter now!”

“Why?!” Sirius spat, facing him. “How can it all of a sudden not matter? He made you cry your first year, humiliated you in class, and tried to give me to Dementors!”

Harry stood, his green eyes piercing and narrowed into slits. He was so sick of people telling him how he needed to feel that he could just barely stand it! Why couldn’t people just let him believe what he wanted to believe and be happy about it?! Especially his God-father, the one man that he had grown to love and look up to!

“What do you want me to do Sirius? Do you want me to become cold and hold a grudge forever? Do you want me to turn bitter?! Because I’m not doing it! Sevvy is a nice boy and I will not treat him any differently because you have a grudge against how you both behaved in school! You need to let it go! You really do!”

Sirius glared at his God-son and looked away. He wasn’t going to let it go, he had been forced to take care of someone he hated, had been imprisoned a guilty man, while Snape walked free, and had almost been turned over to a Dementor’s Kiss because that madman wanted to hold onto HIS grudge! Why was Sirius expected to be the better person?!

“Dad would not let you act this way,” Harry said standing up. “I may not know him well…but I do know that he saved Snape’s life…he put aside his differences to keep Snape alive…are you even willing to be like your friend to preserve his memory? Don’t you think my dad would look past his past to take care of Sevvy?”

Sirius sighed and looked away. Why was it Harry had to make so many good points? James was probably turning in his grave…but he just wasn’t sure that he would be able to let this grudge go. There had been so many things between him and Snape that Sirius was sure those wounds would never heal. Snape got lucky; he forgot all of his torment…but Sirius? He was forced to remember his day in and day out. He was forced to live in his Hell, Snape? Apparently his was gone and he was getting a second chance. Sirius wouldn’t be surprised if he had planned this entire thing out.

“It’s too hard, Harry…you just don’t understand.”

Harry sighed and rolled his eyes. He couldn’t help it, this just seemed so ridiculous! How could someone be so stubborn as to just dismiss another person without even a second glance! Was this how Sirius was in school? Did he judge everyone by appearances…had this been why Snape and him had hated one another back then?

“No…no I don’t,” Harry said sadly. “I don’t understand how you can be so cold as to not even give him a chance. You won’t recognize him Sirius; if you would just let yourself forget the past and heal…you really won’t recognize him.”

Sirius looked away, unable to listen to the sadness in his God-son’s voice. He didn’t want to hurt Harry, he really didn’t…but he could tell that him treating Snape like garbage was not going to help his and Harry’s relationship. And if he wanted the trust back that he had clearly damaged through this ordeal, he was going to have to put his best foot forward and try and at least act civilly around Snape.

“I’m not saying him and I will have the best relationship…” Sirius whispered, dejectedly. “But…I suppose I can be a little more civil to him.”

Harry smiled a small smile; he knew that was about as far as he was going to go at the current moment. And even though that wasn’t where Harry wanted him to be he knew that after a day or two around the cute little toddler upstairs everything would just play out as it should. Harry was a firm believer in that, and if it didn’t happen…he would tell Remus and his past Professor could deal with his stubborn God-father.

“That’s all I ask, Sirius…” he said, wrapping his arms around him. “And that you not call him Snape…he doesn’t like his name.”

Sirius had to refrain from rolling his eyes…he really did…but then again he supposed if his nape was Severus Snape he wouldn’t like it much either. It was a great name to make fun of though, he almost wished Snape had been turned back into a teen…he could relive some of his better pranks. Although he wasn’t sure how much fun they would be in his early thirties.

“So what do I call him? I can’t call him…Sevvy…it makes me want to-

-Sirius…” Harry warned. “Then just call him Severus…Or maybe Sev…but calling him by his last name hurts his feelings.”

“Alright…Severus then…” he pouted. “How long of a nap is he taking?”

Harry shrugged, he wasn’t a parent…he didn’t know how long naps lasted. Maybe an hour or so, he knew that a real long nap so close to the evening wouldn’t be smart. Severus wouldn’t sleep then and when a child didn’t go to bed he was sure they found mischief…at least that was what Harry did at Hogwarts.

“I’m not sure…he looked pretty tired though…we should wake him up when supper is ready.”

Sirius nodded, and watched his God-son…he couldn’t help but feel that he was staring directly at James. His friend also had a gift with children. They all adored him, and he adored them. James had been born to be a father; Sirius more or less didn’t want children of his own. He was much happier borrowing his God-son for a day to spoil and love. And then James and Lily could deal with the repercussions of his coddling later.

“I think Remus is the one making supper…” Sirius said standing as well, and brushing off his pants. “Let’s go see if he needs help.”

“Sounds good to me.” Harry said with a nod.

“Anything with food sounds good.” Sirius winked, draping his arm around his God-son’s shoulder.

“You think Sev will be okay, if he wakes up? Your house can be a bit creepy…” Harry said gently.

Sirius shrugged, if he woke up he was sure the kid would have the common sense to wander downstairs and find someone. After all he could smell Remus’s lamb stew all the way up on the second floor.

“He’ll find his way downstairs, I’m sure.”

OotPOotPOotP

Severus tossed and turned in his new bed, sweaty locks of hair sticking to his pale forehead and his small cries filling the room. He wanted to wake up, he really did! He knew that he was dreaming, his body just kept fighting him and wouldn’t give him the luxury of leaving the horrid depths of his mind. He kept seeing strange things…a man with no nose and slits for eyes…he was pale and looked very slimy looking. He didn’t know what to make of it! And then he saw another man, one with long black hair…and a hooked nose. He looked like Father…a lot like Father. But when he spoke, he didn’t sound like Father at all. He sounded scared, and tired.

Sevvy tried to help him, tried to call his name as the slimy man raised his wand…but no sound left his diaphragm. It was almost like he was frozen, frozen and forced to watch as this Father replica squirmed and begged in pain. Who was he?! Why did he just stand there and let the snake man hurt him?! He had a wand too, he needed to use it! He needed to stop the pain…stop the pain!

“STOP!”

Eyes flying open Severus sat up and began frantically looking around. His chest heaved up and down and his hands clutched the green comforter that he had, somehow, twisted all around his body. His eyes moved from object to object and corner to corner of his room before he dared to try and get out of bed. And with tears in his eyes he began to cry…Harry had left him! That’s why his bad dream had come! If Harry had stayed the dream wouldn’t have been like that, it would have been of him playing with his best friend…or eating chocolate frogs.

What if Harry had left like mummy did? And didn’t want to say goodbye?! He needed to run and try and beat Harry to the door. Pushing the heavy door open he bolted down the steps and stopped after he reached the ground floor…he could hear voices, maybe Mooney was still here and would know where Harry was! Following the voices he tried to wipe his tears away the best he could, before entering the warm kitchen. He could smell food, and although it made his tummy grumble he was far too frantic to ask for any. His eyes scanned and scanned until finally they met up with a pair of emerald orbs.

Tears filling his eyes once more, he raced as fast as he could to Harry and latched around his waist…completely unaware that he had nearly toppled over Sirius and Remus on the way.

“Oi! Watch it Sni-…umm…Sev…”

Severus buried his face in Harry’s stomach and began to cry softly. Harry couldn’t leave him…not without saying goodbye! He needed him to keep his bad dreams away and eat candy with! Harry just could not leave, he was his best and only friend!

“Hey, Sevvy,” Harry cooed, gently. “What’s wrong? Didn’t you have a nice nap?”

“N-No!” the little boy sobbed. “Y-Y-You left me! And…and…I…I had a nightmare!”

Harry immediately felt guilty; he should have stayed upstairs with Sevvy until his nap was over. This house was new to him, and no doubt didn’t help him calm down when he woke scared out of his mind. Pulling Sevvy up onto his lap he held him close to him and shushed him gently. He knew how awful it was to wake up after a bad dream and have no one there to make it better. He didn’t want Severus to feel that way.

“Shh…it’s okay…” Harry cooed. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Severus shook his head, his sobs slowly turning into cute hiccups. He really wanted to forget what he had saw, he wanted to forget all of it and just move on with the evening. It would go away and soon the dream would be nothing more than a memory. He didn’t know what the point had been of it to begin with; he had never even seen either of those men before. Surely the dream had to be brought on by something else, maybe when they were walking from Hogwarts he saw a teacher that looked like them…maybe that was it.

Looking up at Harry he sniffled and swiped at his cheeks, hoping to remove any evidence of his tears he had. He really hated crying in front of people, but sometimes it just happened. He couldn’t always help it, but usually he could sense when he was about to cry. His chin would quiver and usually the corners of his eyes would start to burn and itch. And when he was aware that the waterworks were about to begin, he would excuse himself to the bathroom…or his own bedroom…just somewhere no one could see him.

“Are you hungry, Severus?” Albus said from the other end of the table. “I think Remus has supper ready.”

Severus sniffled and glanced up from Harry’s chest. He was hungry, his tummy had been growling all day. And whatever it was Remus had been making smelled absolutely wonderful. He wasn’t sure how much he would get, but even a spoonful would be nice.

“I am…it smells really nice, Mooney.”

Remus smiled and gently ruffled Severus’s hair.

“Why thank you Sev,  we need to get some meat on those bones.”

Severus cocked his head…they wanted to make him bigger? He felt like he was a pretty big boy, compared to some little kids his age. But he supposed compared to Remus and all the other adults that more muscle would be a good idea.

“Okay, Mooney,” he said with a nod. “Can I help?”

“Would you?” he beamed.

Remus smiled and pulled Severus up into his arms. He really was far too light…even at four he felt that Severus should weigh more then what he did. Taking him to the stove, he pulled a wooden spoon from the counter and brought a small amount of the warm liquid up from the pot. He blew gently, sending a small cloud of steam in the opposite direction.

“Severus, would you be my official taste tester?”

Severus smiled.

“It is a job that one cannot take lightly! An important job that I can only entrust you with.”

“I can do it, Mooney!” the little raven hair boy laughed. “See? Ahhh!”

Opening his mouth he waited for Remus to tip the spoon back into his mouth, and when he did he closed his eyes with happiness. It was so good that his tummy growled even louder. If this was how Remus cooked he never wanted to eat anything else again. It was so yummy that Severus even licked the spoon before Remus took it back.

“How is it Sev?”

“Life changing…” the little boy said softly. “Can I have more?”

Chapter Six

Dinner had gone very smoothly and Harry could not believe how much stew he and Sevvy had eaten. The pot in the kitchen was actually so empty that there almost wasn’t even a morsel to clean from it. Remus clearly was an ace at cooking and Harry had determined that he was going to live at Grimmauld Place forever just to be able to have his lamb stew in the evening.  Looking back at Severus he smiled, he was so sweet after a nap…but then again he was sweet before his nap too.

Sirius still looked rather deadly though and for a moment Harry wondered just what it would take to get his God-father to come around. Maybe if he sat with Severus more or got to talking to him a bit he would realize that he really isn’t a bad person. He was surprised that he couldn’t realize it now, but he knew that no amount of shoving would make Sirius see reason any faster. Scooting down a bit so that he was closer to his God-father he cleared his throat.

“Well?” Harry said, gently elbowing him. “Any difference of opinion?”

Sirius sighed, “Harry, that’s not going to help the situation.”

“Oh, c’mon!” Harry whined. “Now you are just being stubborn Sirius…you know that he’s good…just admit it and be nice to him.”

“Me being nice to him doesn’t change what he has done in his past-

-what about your past Sirius? Are you proud of absolutely everything you did before now?”

Sirius sighed…why did everyone insist on bringing that up? He supposed that in a way it made him a bit of a hypocrite. However it was different…he had never killed anyone…he had not even meant to make an attempt on Snape’s life back in school. And yet people continuously threw it into his face like it was all his fault. It wasn’t just his fault…it was Snape’s own fault for nosing around where he did not belong.

“Umm…scuse me…”

Sirius’s eyes darted downward to a small hand that was gently tugging his pant leg. He narrowed his eyes down at the little boy in front of him and watched as the large, ebony, orbs stared back. What was he looking at? Had he something in his nose? Or maybe he forgot to wipe his mouth after supper?

“It’s rude to stare, kid.” Sirius said, sternly and watched as Snape quickly withdrew his gaze.

“I…I wanted to know…if…if you wanted this…”

His hand shaking slightly he held up a small pentagon shaped box. The blue on the outside and gold border let Sirius know that it was a chocolate frog. Pursing his lips a bit he for a moment tried to resist the gesture... but he really did like chocolate and Remus had made him skip out on dessert because of how much of a prat he was being.

“Are you sure, you don’t want it?” he asked, his tone slightly more gentle.

Severus looked up, his eyes still big and dark as ever. Was Sirius talking to him? He knew that he could get him to be happy in this house! All he had to do was be patient and everything else would just work itself out. Smiling slightly at the man in front of him, he shook his head.

“I had one today…you can have this one.” He gently shoved the box into his hand and smiled. “I got Albus earlier today…maybe you’ll get someone just as cool.”

Sirius smirked; he wouldn’t be surprised if he got Dumbledore again. The man had a very common card when it came to the chocolate frogs collection. But he could sense the excitement radiating off of Severus and didn’t want to, strangely, burst his bubble.

“I don’t know if I can beat that…Albus is pretty amazing.”

Severus smiled and taking a seat next to Harry, rested his head on his shoulder. He was starting to feel sleepy again, but he really didn’t want to go back to bed. The dream he had earlier was still plaguing his mind and he honestly wished that he could find out who the snake man was, and why he had wanted to hurt whoever was with him. Severus didn’t like hearing people scream…not in pain or in any way that made loud noise. He swore that when he became an adult that he would never, ever raise his voice. He would be nice and loved, just like his mummy was.

“Harry, maybe you should take Severus to bed?” Sirius asked, cocking his eyebrow.

Severus’s eyes widened and he quickly sat up and shook his head. He didn’t want to go to bed yet, not before he was certain what room Harry would be staying in. Looking up at his best friend he gently, slipped his smaller hand into his large one. He didn’t want to be by himself tonight, but he also didn’t want other people to tease or make fun of him for being afraid. Sevvy wanted to be brave, he really did…but it was harder to be brave at night when there were no lights on and no one was there to be brave with you.

“I’m not…sleepy…” he whispered, his words betrayed with a yawn.

“It’s getting late Sevvy,” Harry said looking at a grandfather clock that was in the corner of the room. “I think it is bedtime…you don’t want to be tired in the morning do you?”

Feeling his chin quiver and eyes begin to burn in the corners, he looked down at his bare feet. He really didn’t want to get into trouble for arguing so sniffling softly he nodded and allowed Harry to take him upstairs. It was cold in the house now, at least that was how it felt to Sevvy…and it seemed even darker then when he had woken from his nightmare. Sitting on his bed he felt his heart beat rapidly against his ribcage. He was so scared that he wasn’t even sure if he would be able to move again for the rest of the night.

“Sevvy?” Harry asked gently. “You still with me?”

Severus’s eyes broke away from the corner of the wall he had been staring at and he nodded vigorously. He had no idea what he was agreeing too, but he trusted Harry to do what was best for him. His best friend only wanted to help him and keep him safe…and that’s what made him Sevvy’s friend.

“Did you hear what I asked?”

He blushed, and glanced down at the floor once more. He really needed to try paying attention more, he didn’t want Harry to be upset with him.

“Sorry, Harry.” He whispered, his voice cracking a bit with emotion.

Harry frowned and sat down next to the little boy. He seemed so scared over absolutely everything…how could this little boy turn into the frightening man he had become in the present? What had happened to Snape to turn him into that? Because at the present moment he only saw a little cherub that apparently wouldn’t say “boo” to a mouse.

“Hey,” the emerald eyed boy cooed. “What are you apologizing for? I lose focus too…it’s okay. I just wanted to know if you wanted a night light in here.”

“A night light?” Severus sniffled. “Am I allowed? W-Won’t Sirius get mad?”

Harry shook his head, he really doubted Sirius would care at all…and it almost killed him inside to hear Severus even ask such a question. Maybe Snape had more reasons for being bitter then just hating his father, he almost wished that he knew more about his past instructor. Talking to a little boy about the injustices of his home was too difficult…most children weren’t even aware that they were unjust actions to begin with and transformed them in their mind as unique way their family chose to show love.

“No, Sirius won’t get mad at all,” he said smiling. “And if he does, you just send him to me or Remus.”

Severus nodded and smiled slightly at Harry. He really didn’t want to have to tell on something. His father said that there was nothing worse on this planet than a snitch. And Severus didn’t want to be considered a snitch where Sirius was concerned. He had just got the man to start being nice to him and Severus was determined to keep it that way for as long as he could.

“Professor Dumbledore said it was okay for me to cast spells here at because it is so well protected from the outside world…and I think I have the perfect charm for you, Sevvy.”

Gently pulling up the little boy so that he was on his lap he took out his wand. Hermione had taught him this trick while they were on the train. He had been bored and looking through a spell book on his way home when Hermione had taught him how to conjure stars.

“I can do a couple…but not too many…”

He wasn’t nearly as good as Mione when it came to casting this spell, but he was decent enough that he could make them and they would keep Sevvy’s room illuminated. Muttering the spell under his breath, so as not to tempt Severus to try it should he ever find an unguarded one he watched pleased as a few stars left the tip and began floating around the room. Smiling he watched as a small gasp entered the room and Severus’s little hand reached up to grab one of the stars.

“Harry?” he asked softly. “Are one of those mummy’s? She’s in heaven right? With the stars?”

Harry felt his voice get lost in his throat for a moment, and leaning back against the headboard of Severus’s, new, bed he snuggled his little brother. He would not be like Uncle Vernon or his bloody Aunt Petunia. He would let Severus hope that his mother lived among the stars and angels of heaven, because he knew that he would find comfort and solace in that notion.

“Yes, Sev,” he smiled. “Your mummy sent those stars to watch over you and protect you.”

Closing his eyes smiling gently, Severus curled up on Harry’s lap. His mummy was watching him from the stars Harry had made. He never wanted to sleep, all he wanted to do was watch them twinkle and think about how beautiful they were…just like mummy.

“Harry?” he asked softly. “What’s your mummy like?”

Harry froze and his eyes burned slightly. He didn’t know how to answer that, he really didn’t know his mother all that well. Remus, the Headmaster, and Sirius all told him that she was beautiful and wonderful… but he really had no details or stories to tell Severus. Gently taking stroking the top of Severus’s little hand he sighed and looked up at the stars that were still glittering above them.

“Well…I don’t really know my mummy, Sevvy…she went to heaven when I was a baby.”

“Oh…I’m sorry Harry…” Severus said gently. “But maybe your mummy and mine are friends in heaven?”

Looking down at Severus he didn’t realize the moisture that had filled them. Smiling through his tears he gently nodded pushed several locks of black hair behind Severus’s ears. How was it that someone he hated before become the person he seemed to adore now? It made Harry regretful of not trying to push past Snape’s ice walls before…but hopefully when they changed Severus back, if they changed him back, he would remember all that had happened today.

“I’m sure they are, Sevvy…” he said gently. “Best friends…”

“Like us, right?” he yawned, burying his head into Harry’s stomach.

“You bet…” Harry yawned. “They probably talk about us and how proud they are we turned out so epically awesome.”

Severus chuckled and yawned back.

“We’re awesome.” He repeated with a small, tired, giggle.

Harry nodded, “Completely.”

“Do awesome people go to bed this early?”

“When they are this tired they do.” Harry said, his eyes closing.

“Oh…”

Closing his eyes Severus, rested his head against Harry and began to doze. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to go to sleep completely, but it was clear that his body did because before a minute could even tick by he was out like a light and wandering through dreamland. 

Chapter Seven

The house really wasn’t going to clean itself, at least that was the assumption Harry came to as he threw another dead Cornish pixie away. However every time they got close to what he thought was finished another room would appear out of nowhere and be covered under about three to four feet of bloody dust and grime! This house had no end to its filth and Harry could not see ever being able to live in such a dark, disgusting, place. But it wasn’t so bad, he could use magic now and that was a plus…also Sevvy liked watching him clean…he thought it was funny when he would make a ratty piece of cloth zoom away into the waste basket. Or when he would charm bubbles to appear on the table so it could be cleaned. Severus was also a big help, just like Harry he was not shy to house work. It was sad really, but at times like these it came in handy.

“Harry?” Severus called from across the hall. “What’s this thing here?”

Harry dropped his bottle of disinfectant and left the room he had been assigned by Remus to clean. Severus really hadn’t been given a room, but the little one wanted to help and Harry didn’t see the harm in letting the little guy walk around with a feather duster for a while. Going into the room he looked to where Severus was pointing and cocked his eyebrow. It looked like a normal wardrobe…he didn’t see the problem…had Severus’s father been that awful that he wouldn’t even give his son a place to put his clothes?!

“It’s a wardrobe, Sevvy…where people keep cloth-

-I know that Harry, I’m not completely thick…” he said snidely. “No…I mean…it had moved while you were in the other room.”

Harry felt his cheeks flush for a moment and could have sworn that was more Snape then Sevvy then he had heard in a long time. Then again…Sevvy wasn’t a normal child. He was very smart and well-read which did not surprise Harry at all. Snape always seemed to know things that could baffle the normal mind.

“It moved?” he repeated. “Maybe there’s an animal trapped inside.”

“Oh no!” Severus gasped. “Harry! You have to let it out! You have to!”

Harry nodded and went over to the wardrobe. Grasping the cold metal doorknob he began to wiggle and turn it back and forth…but nothing happened. It was locked down and needed a key. Maybe Sirius had the key, they would have to go find him if they wanted to know for sure what kind of creature was inside. And now that he thought about it, setting a mysterious creature loose with a four year old in the room might not have been the brightest thing he could have done.

“Okay,” he said, his hand gently resting on top of Severus’s head. “All we need to do is get Sirius and he’ll open the cabinet. Okay?”

Severus nodded; if there was an animal in there it needed to be freed. Unless it was a rat, Severus detested rats. Disgusting little creatures that did nothing other than plague the world with wretched disease and filth. He had found one in his room once and it had bit his toe when he had tried to be nice and give it food, well needless to say he ended that friendship and fast.

“I’ll wait here and watch it Harry…” Severus said with a small smile.

Harry nodded and with one final look at the wardrobe, raced off to find his Godfather.

Severus watched the wardrobe, wondering what could have gotten locked inside or if anything had gotten locked inside at all. Maybe it was cursed with dark magic and that’s what caused it to wiggle. That would be dangerous, but oh so cool to see what it does. Severus thought all types of magic were interesting, light or dark it really was just magic. The only thing light or dark was the wizard that chose to use or abuse it. The wardrobe wiggled again, this time making the floor shake a little bit. He wished it would open; he wanted to see what was inside! However he knew better then to do something so dangerous and even if he wanted to he had no wand to unlock it anyway.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity on Sevvy’s part, Sirius and Harry returned. He watched curiously as Sirius walked around the wardrobe, poking and prodding it with his wand and fingers. But nothing happened and the thing didn’t even twitch or shudder. Was it trying to make him out to be a liar? He glanced up at Sirius who came back to the center of the room with them.

“Well I suppose we need to open it to truly see what’s inside.”

He took a few steps back, and Sevvy watched as his wand pointed to the door and he flicked it. There was a distinct click and the nob turned slowly. But what came out was not a furry animal crying for help…no…no what he saw was something far worse and more frightening.

“F-Father?” he whimpered.

The man had long dark hair and black as night eyes. He wore long black, billowing, robes and had an expression of cold fury behind his face. Falling to his knees in front of the man his entire body began to shake. How could father be in that wardrobe…what kind of magic was this? Tears filled his eyes and hiding his face in his hands he began to sob.

“No-no-no! Father…I…I…I’m not a freak! Please…please…”

He could hear the cold voice inside his head telling him that he wasn’t worth the space he occupied on the floor. That his existence had no meaning and that the world would eat him the moment he stepped outside of the protection of his home…all bitter, evil, truths that Severus had grown up with.

“Father! Father! Please!” he begged. “Please!”

Severus felt sick, he couldn’t see anything behind the mess of tears that continued to fill and dribble from his eyes. And his head was swimming with the words his father spilled in through his ears. He was going to drown soon, he just knew it. Soon it would all end…it would all end.

Sirius had backed away before the boggart could throw his greatest fear back in his face, but when he looked to see if the creature had retreated he saw that Snape had not been so fortunate as to get out of the way. His eyes moved up to the figure that stood in front of the little boy and for a moment could not understand… and then it hit him like a bludger in the middle of a Quidditch match. Snape’s greatest fear was himself…only as a boy he did not recognize who he would turn into as the years of his life continued on.

Moving in front of Severus he closed his eyes and yelled, “Riddikulus!”

And no sooner than a second later, the body of his god-son dying was turned into one of him riding a small broom stick he had as a small boy. Not the funniest image in the world, but it did the job when he was faced with that fear over and over again. Sealing the boggart back into its prison he glanced back at the small, crying, ball that was at his feet. Before today he had no idea how much Snape detested himself and the life he led. He had always thought his rival to be too smug and happy to be under Dumbledore and Voldemort’s thumb. But it was clear…if not a little blinding…that Snape was miserable, or he had been before this recent potions accident.  Sirius stooped down so that he was sitting on the floor, and very gently he coaxed Sna-Severus onto his lap.

“Shh…” he hushed. “He wasn’t real…just a nightmare, Severus.”

The poor boy hiccupped and looked up at him with swollen eyes. He could not believe how wrong he had been, it was almost embarrassing to him…but he would never be able to admit to adult Snape that he was wrong. The young one, yes, the older one…there just was no way. Snape never did take apologies well and Sirius was too impatient to make him try.

“F-F-Father…” he cried softly, his little face finding its way to his chest. “W-Why….why….”

Sirius hushed the little boy once more and pulled him up into his arms. This room wasn’t a good room for children, none of them were. Excluding the rooms Remus had repainted and cleaned for Harry and Severus. Those were the only ones that were fit for human inhabitation. They would go to the kitchen and Sirius would give him a calming draught to help him relax. Sirius had much experience with traumatic events and knew that sometimes magical remedies were the only thing that helped.

Severus couldn’t stop crying, he just couldn’t get the voices to leave his head. He felt so sick with grief that he didn’t know what to do with himself. He almost wished his Father was there to smack him around a bit. The pain usually distracted his emotions enough for him to calm down. But right now all he could focus on Father and the words that were spinning around his brain. Turning to Harry who was following close behind, he weakly reached out his hand.

Harry’s eyes were trained on the floor….he was trying to keep his own emotions in check so he would not cry. Sirius’s greatest fear was him dying? Was he really loved that much by his God-father? And Sevvy…he was scared of who he would grow into? How awful was it to be scared of the inevitable? Harry saw Dementors when it came to boggarts, even with the spell Remus had taught him he was still terrified of them. When he dared to look back up he smiled somewhat sadly at Severus and took the little hand that was held out to him.

“Hey, Sevvy,” he said softly. “It’ll be okay…I promise there is nothing to be afraid of. That man will never hurt you again…I swear.”

Squeezing the little hand he watched as more tears slide down onto Sirius’s shoulder. He wasn’t sure how much more of the crying he could take before he began breaking down as well. Harry usually was very good when it came to his emotions and not letting people see them, but it seemed that Severus could access his heart the way no one else could.

“Alright Severus,” Sirius said, setting the crying boy down on the kitchen table. “I have some medicine for you to take to calm you down and help you nap.”

“No-o…” he sobbed. “No nap…I…he…he…will…co-come…ba-ack…”

Sirius frowned, and turned to the cabinet behind him. Remus and him had everything stocked for the worst case scenario. And Calming Draughts were definitely something they both used often when things around Grimmauld Place became too stressful. The vial held a teal liquid and the dose was so powerful that it would no doubt knock Severus out until the next morning. And somehow Sirius could not help but think he needed that. He wasn’t an expert when it came to children, but he knew that four year olds were not supposed to have dark circles under their eyes.

“Severus,” he said a bit sternly. “You need to take this before you cry yourself sick.”

Severus took a large gulp of air to try and prove that he could calm down on his own. Only whenever he got close to calming himself the tears just kept flooding back with Father’s voice.

“Alright kid, you’ve been out voted.”

Removing the cork from the vial he gently brought the vial to Severus’s quivering lips and helped him swallow the dose in a couple of short gulps. And instantly he felt a little body sag against him and a sort of peacefulness took over.

“I feel so awful about letting him stay in there…” Harry whispered. “I should have made him wait outside for us.”

Sirius shook his head.

“Harry, none of us knew what was in there, and you are not the parent. I should have made you both stand in the hall while I took care of it. Merlin, if Remus hears about this he is going to skin me alive and use the hide as a carpet in the living room.”

Harry nodded and reaching over, pulled Severus into his arms.

“He keeps calling himself Father…” the green eyed teen sighed.

“I know…” Sirius said back. “I know he does.”

And then there was silence on both their parts, because they really didn’t know what to do. They could never explain to little Severus that the man he feared as his father was really what he would turn into in thirty or so years…and if Severus changed back with no memory of this ever happening where did that leave them. Harry wasn’t sure he could go back to just hating Snape, not after seeing into his heart and mind…but if Snape went back to hating him…he wasn’t sure if he would be able to handle it.

“I’m sorry Harry…”

Harry’s head shot up when he heard his God-father break the silence that had consumed him. Was he apologizing for what he thought and hoped he was? He would never know what that meant to him, now if only he could do it while Severus was conscious.

“I…should not have judged Severus as I did Snape...” he said, not looking up. “You were right…it was cruel and I am ashamed that I had.”

A smile spread across Harry’s face and still holding Severus he wrapped his one arm around his God-father as well.

“I knew you would come around Sirius,” he grinned. “It just took the proper kick in the right direction.”

“Yes well,” Sirius smirked, ruffling his God-son’s hair. “I make no promises for when Severus turns back, understand?”

“Yessir.” Harry smiled.

“Good boy, now take the tyke up to bed…he’s looking worse for wear as it were.”

Nodding Harry adjusted his little brother in his arms and made his way upstairs. Despite the trauma it put Sevvy through; he could not help be happy that it had happened. It had been just the thing to make Sirius see how different Sevvy was. He could only hope that it had no lasting effects on the little boy in his arms, he was so damaged already…Harry couldn’t imagine adding any more pain to the little boy before he just shattered into pieces before them all.

 Chapter Eight

Sirius had been right when he said that Remus would not be happy when he heard about what had happened to Sevvy. Harry had never seen the man so upset, but the wrath was quickly evaded when little Sevvy came into the room looking for Sirius. It had shocked Mooney to no end, and soon the thought of Severus being submitted to a boggart faded away. Thankfully it had also faded away for little Severus as well. The Calming Draught Sirius had given him had knocked him out till early the next morning…but none of them complained, the little one seemed less on edge after his extended nap.  However as the day continued Harry, Remus, and Sirius had all come to a rather embarrassing conclusion…Severus only had about two outfits in his entire wardrobe.

“Well,” Sirius sighed, taking his hand through his dark hair. “You and Remus will just have to take him clothes shopping…I’ll give you the key to my vault and you can make a withdrawal.”

“But I don’t know what size Sevvy is…” Harry said, after taking a bite of toast. “And Professor Dumbledore shrunk the outfits Severus has currently…”

“Well then just have him try on a bunch of clothes; I’m sure he won’t mind.”

Harry nodded, “How about toys as well? He doesn’t have anything to play with.”

“I trust you Harry, buy him whatever he needs.”

Harry nodded, he would be sure to buy Severus mostly the bare essentials…but that didn’t mean his little brother didn’t deserve to have some things that he wanted as well. Children’s wants generally equaled their needs. At least that was how Harry looked at it. Children did not know the art of manipulation or selfish tendencies…not children like Sevvy or himself. So if Severus wanted something, basically that meant he needed it as well.

“Okay…should we leave now?”

“Yeah, that would be ideal…I can get lunch around while you are all off doing the shopping…where is Severus, anyway?”

“He’s in my room; he found some of my school books and has had his nose in them all day. Which is why I think we need to get him some toys. He doesn’t know how to act like a kid.”

“He never knew how to act like a kid,” Sirius grumbled. “As a teen he was the same way. His nose buried in a different book each day, I sometimes wondered if he had gone through every book in the library at least once.”

“He was smart.” Harry said, somewhat proudly. “Still is…he was asking me questions that I haven’t even thought about myself.”

“He always was a brainiac, answering questions, doing extra credit…part of the reason him and Lily got on so well. They both could have these intellectual conversations, and no one had a clue what they were talking about.”

Harry stared at his God-father a bit shocked. With the hatred he had expressed to have when it came to Snape harry assumed that he knew absolutely nothing about him, but now that he was hearing Sirius talk about it he could have sworn that they were friends at one time.

“I thought you and Sev hated one another?” he asked, his eyebrow rising slightly.

Sirius smirked and nodded.

“Oh, we did…I think we hated one another more than James and him did. However that didn’t change the fact that I knew he was smart, he just lacked social skills, big time.”

“Did you make fun of him?”

Sirius nodded, his face sort of turning into a frown.

“More than once I took it too far, but I was young then…we both were. And Snape always retaliated… sometimes getting me back better than when I first got him.”

Harry shook his head, that didn’t make it right. He wasn’t saying that Severus was right in attacking back, but Harry detested bullying and it almost made him sick to think that the man in front of him and his father had all been that way. It just seemed so juvenile and immature and it seemed that none of them had done anything to make amends.

“So…you and dad were bullies…”

“Not…really-

-why did you pick on Snape? Or start to, Sirius? I mean…you sound like Malfoy!”

Sirius’s face went cold as he watched Harry stand and shake his head. He never thought that he would have family that actually took pride in being a jerk to those that did not deserve it. He couldn’t see Snape going out of his way to start a war with his father, the man was so closed off…and if what Sirius said was true, he mostly spent his time in books anyway! He was so angry and disgusted that he wasn’t sure he would be able to stay in the same room as Sirius without blowing up.

“Harry-

-I’ve got to go and get Remus…” he hissed. “We’ll be back later.”

Turning on his heel he stormed up the steps as quickly as he could and flopped down on his bed, completely forgetting that Sevvy had already been occupying it. Turning over so that he could look up at the little tyke reading he tried to smile and gently pulled him onto his lap.

“What book are you on, Sevvy?”

“Your Potions Book…” he said with a sigh. “Some of these facts are wrong though…they didn’t do enough research.”

Harry smiled and gently tickled Severus’s sides.

“Well maybe you should write a potions book when you grow up Sevvy…yours would be brilliant.”

Severus turned to Harry with a large smiled and nodded. That’s what he wanted to do when he grew up. He wanted to write books and discover amazing things that would make everyone in the world notice him. He wouldn’t be hiding anymore and have millions of friends that loved and wanted to be around him, just like his Harry did.

“Will you read it Harry?” he asked, closing the book and setting it on the bed.

“Absolutely! I’ll even use it in class to show off how smart my baby brother is!”

Severus’s eyes lit up and he found himself hugging Harry very tight. Harry had called him his brother! He finally had a family member that loved him and wanted something to do with him; someone other than mummy to care for him and keep him safe.

“Well Sevvy,” Harry said gently. “What do you say to us going to the store?”

“I can go too?” Severus asked, his black eyes shimmering with hope.

“Of course…you need some clothes…and I think a couple of books, seeing as you went through all of mine.”

Severus smiled and nodded; the thought of having new books just made him so happy. His mummy only bought him one or two books a year and those were for his Christmas and birthday. If Harry was going to buy him some books of his own, he might be able to get more than just one. He would be polite though, he knew better than to ask. His father said that beggars can’t be choosers and that he should be grateful with what he got…and he was…he was very grateful…but there were just sometimes that he truly wanted a new book…or something other than his spider friends to play with.

“Is Remus going to come with too?” Severus asked, closing Harry’s book and standing from the bed. “Cause he needs some medicine for his boo-boos.”

Harry held his breath for a moment. Remus’s injuries always looked angry, but that was the price paid when it came to having the curse of being a werewolf on one’s head. He really ached for his past teacher and current friend, but he knew that he had to be cautious when it came to discussing this with little Severus…one wrong word or turn of phrase and Remus would be in the very, uncomfortable, position of having to explaining to a four year old why he changes into a doggy at night.

“Well we can buy Remus a present and that should make his boo-boos feel better.”

Scooping the little boy up into his arms he moved the book back to his trunk and moved Severus so that he was straddling his hip. He would never be able to believe how light Sevvy was for his age, however Harry supposed that if someone had held him when he was a child they would have had the same reaction. Harry had always been very skinny and lean, but it was only when he spoke to Hermione did he learn how dangerous that actually was.

They went downstairs and found that Remus was already down there to greet him and he had a shopping bag in his hand. Harry smiled and gently nudged Severus so he could see. Harry knew it was for his little brother, the fact that the bag was winter green with black tissue paper was just a dead giveaway. Severus rested his head on Harry’s shoulder and eyed the bag curiously.

“Harry lookie,” he said gently. “You got a present!”

“Actually Severus,” Remus said warmly. “This present is for you…I hope you like it.”

“I have a present?” Severus gasped, his eyes growing wide. “But…it’s not Christmas…and it’s not my birthday either.”

Remus smiled and shook his head, he never thought that he would see the day Severus Snape had accepted a present. When Christmas had come around while Remus was teaching, he had tried to give Severus a present, just to be friendly and what not…needless to say it was a battle to get the bloody thing into the room! Finally Remus threatened him with Dumbledore and he managed to get Snape to open his gift…which he found his past colleague to actually take great pleasure in…never underestimate the value of a good bottle of muggle scotch.

However, for this present, Remus had to admit that it was fairly easier to go shopping. With Severus being four he knew that it was always safe to buy him toys. And with Severus having horrible nightmares, according to Harry, Remus had settled on something that he would always be able to use as a comfort when Harry could not come to his aid straight away.

“It’s a gift for being such a good little boy,” Remus said smiling. “I hope you like it.”

He handed the bag to Severus and watched as the little boy, gingerly, reached into the bag and felt around. He hoped that Severus didn’t suspect him of foul play; really, Remus did not want to ever hurt this boy. Even as teenagers he regretted not speaking up more when it came to Severus’s abuse.

Severus could feel something soft and plush in the bag…was it a toy? No…that couldn’t be right. Bad boys didn’t get toys…even if Remus said he had been a good boy, he knew that wasn’t true. However, when he pulled the soft, stuffed, animal his eyes widened. It WAS a toy, and it was the most beautiful toy he had ever seen! It was a silver wolf with, beautiful, blue eyes! How had Remus known that he liked wolves? Hugging the toy close he smiled at Remus.

“Do I get to name it too?” he asked, hopefully.

“Of course!” Remus grinned. “He is yours…you may name him whatever you wish.”

Severus had to think of the perfect name for his new, silver, friend. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to name if after a potion ingredient or something in the Latin range. His mother loved Latin, she said it was one of the languages that people took advantage of…but that didn’t help Severus…he could only remember a few words in Latin, and they weren’t very flattering.

“I’m gonna name him…” he paused. “Dittany…that’s mummy’s favorite potion ingredient.”

Harry frowned a bit as he held Severus, he felt so horrible when Severus spoke of his mummy. It wasn’t a jealous feeling, or an angry feeling, it was just a sad feeling. Severus had  clearly loved his mother, he just wished he knew how old he had been when she died, it might explain one of the reasons Snape became so bitter as he grew older.

“That’s a wonderful name Sevvy,” Harry said softly, when he noticed the little boy eyeing him with those black orbs of his. “I’m sure your mummy would love Dittany. Now what do you say to Remus?”

Severus turned to Remus and smiling, hugged his stuffy, and then gave Remus a gently pat on the shoulder as well.

“Thank you Mooney…I love Dittany.”

“You are very welcome, scamp.”

Remus smiled and ruffled the young boy’s hair, he was so happy that the little one loved his toy. Now they could go out shopping and Remus and Harry could splurge on him more. That was the main objective for today, how many stores they can clean out in London before it gets close to dinner time.

Turning to Harry he gently wrapped his arm around him and led them to the door. He did not want to take the Floo to Diagon Alley, especially when most of Severus’s clothes would have to be bought in muggle London. He was sure that Harry would enjoy it regardless, and he had heard that Severus wasn’t very fond of the Floo Network or apparation.

“It’s pretty warm outside, and rainy,” Remus sighed. “But I don’t think we can postpone getting Severus new clothes any longer.”

Harry nodded in agreement and adjusted Severus on his hip, he wasn’t sure he would be able to carry him the entire time they were shopping, but he was sure that Severus would want to explore and look around on his own…and that thought made Harry very nervous…he would never forgive himself if he lost the little boy in his arms. As a matter of fact….Harry wasn’t sure he could imagine his life without Sevvy Snape.

Chapter Nine

The rain wasn’t as bad as Harry thought it would be, really it was actually a cool relief to the humidity outside. This had to be the hottest day of the year, and Harry had to refuse holding Severus directly because the heat was just driving him to the point of infuriation. So Remus had taken care to hold him and keep him from running off. They walked in silence for quite a bit, the only sounds they were really listening to was the ones of those around them.

He wondered if Remus was nervous about walking around in the open like this…especially with a deaged Severus. Granted, the fact that the little boy was so tiny and cute right now, made him almost unrecognizable as the past snarky Potions Master. It was still the fact that Harry stuck out like a sore thumb in a crowd. People always stared at his scar, and with the Ministry making him a laughing stock in the wizarding community, he felt more irritated with their stares than ever.

“Harry,” Remus called to him, realizing that he had actually walked a bit farther ahead of them while in deep thought. “Here’s a nice clothing store…why don’t we start here and get Severus some clothes?”

“Oh yeah…sorry…” he sighed, jogging back to Severus and Remus.

“I don’t like clothes shopping,” Severus grumbled, his head resting on Remus’s shoulder again. “Father picks ugly clothes…I never get to pick.”

“Well you get to pick this time, Severus,” Remus said, stroking his black hair back. “Whatever you want, it is yours.”

Harry watched as Severus nodded and couldn’t help but think he saw a great change in his mood. A couple minutes ago he was happily playing with Dittany, but right now he seemed sluggish and a bit tired. He probably just needed a nap, Harry found that his little brother got fairly cranky when he didn’t get the chance to nap in the day.

“Alright…let’s start in the shorts little one,” Remus said gently. “You need a bit of everything…some for the summer, some for the fall, and a couple jackets for winter…oh and pajamas.”

Harry could not help but smile at Remus, he couldn’t tell who was more excited…Severus or his past teacher. He adored that Remus loved Sevvy so much; it just made his heart swell with happiness. Sevvy was getting a family, and Harry couldn’t help but feel that he was getting one too…this was just a great situation.

“Let me see…you would probably be a size…three…you are so tiny for your age.”

Harry watched as Severus smiled a small smile and felt his worry increase a bit…Severus was quiet normally, but he was just starting to scare him. Maybe his father had trained him to behave this way in public…yes, that had to be it…maybe after a couple more stores Severus would come around…Harry hoped he did.

They had gone to over ten stores, and had more than ten fifteen bags of things for Severus. They had depleted a lot of the gold in Sirius’s vault, but Harry had said he would compensate for it. It was around three when they finished, and Harry decided that now would be a good time to head back so they could have lunch with Sirius.

Severus seemed pretty fond of that idea, granted he remained practically comatose the entire walk home. Harry, however, could not stop complaining about the heat! It was utterly pathetic, he could actually SEE the heat waves radiating off the streets!

“How can you not be hot, Remus?” Harry groaned as they made it onto their street. “It’s bloody screaming out here!”

Remus chuckled and pulled Severus’s hair back so it was no longer sticking to his tiny face. He had a low body temperature regardless; it came with being sick most of the days of his existence. Whether like this felt wonderful to Remus, he adored summer…it was winter that usually bothered him the most.

“I’m sure it’s nice and cool in Grimmauld Place,” Remus said gently. “It’s usually a bit drafty in there.”

Opening the door so that his past professor and little potions master could go inside he sighed with relief the moment a cool gust of air rushed up his back and against his face. It felt so wonderful and Harry had to do all but remove his shirt right then and there and just bask in it.

“I heard a door!” Sirius called from the kitchen. “Harry, Remus, is that you?”

“Yes, Sirius,” Remus called back. “Is lunch ready? It smells divine.”

Sirius came into the room, brushing his hands off his pants and nodded. He had worked very hard on their lunch, mostly to repay Remus back for all the cooking he does regularly. He had realized, though, that while he was cooking…he really didn’t know what Severus liked and didn’t like. He felt that any normal kid had to like macaroni and cheese; it had been one of his favorites at the Potter’s. Sirius could only hope that the kid wasn’t lactose intolerant; that would have made this a big waste.

“It’s Mrs. Potter’s recipe,” he said winking at Harry. “Your grandma was a great cook Harry; I can’t wait to spoil you with all of her treats.”

Harry smiled back and sniffed. It smelled amazing and the more the aroma wafted in and out of the rooms the more Harry’s stomach growled with want. He looked to Severus who still seemed pretty down, maybe a few bites of food would help him cheer up. Harry knew that there weren’t many little kids that could pass up comfort food.

“Harry, why don’t you take Severus to wash up,” Remus said handing the little boy over. “We’ll get the table set.”

Harry nodded and smiling warmly left with his, sleepy, brother.

“So, how’d it go Mooney?” Sirius asked as he led the way into the kitchen. “Did you break the bank?”

“I believe we came close to doing so,” he chuckled setting the bags down. “Severus didn’t seem to enjoy the shopping all that much…he was very quiet and tired.”

Sirius had to resist rolling his eyes; he just felt that the kid should be more grateful about getting a ton of toys and clothes at his expense. He supposed that he didn’t really like shopping either, but it was still the thought that counted, he would talk to Harry about talking to Severus regarding his manners later.

“I think it was the heat, he was fine until we got outside.” Remus continued pulling out some of the clothes and folding them neatly on the kitchen table. “Sirius, you should have seen him in some of these clothes…he was simply adorable.”

Sirius rolled his eyes, the brat had only been there for a day and already Remus has fallen in love. He supposed that was how Remus always was…he always loved children and wanted to be loved by them. It was just the warm heart he possessed, it was truly a beautiful thing.

“I’m so sure.”

“You’d be surprised,” Remus continued, folding a pair of light blue pajama bottoms. “He doesn’t like just black and grey…as a matter of fact, the only thing I got him that was black are his winter jacket and a pair of dress shoes.”

“Wait…you bought him a winter jacket?” Sirius asked, turning from the stove. “Just how long do you think he is going to stay this way, Remus?”

Remus smiled warmly, and without missing a beat said, “It doesn’t hurt to plan, Padfoot, old friend.”

Sirius sighed, why did Remus had to be so kind? Had he been anyone else, he would have seriously laid into him. All of this money for clothes and toys that Snape might not even need! Then again, there could be a slim chance that this planning would prove beneficial later…not that he was saying he would keep Snape if that were to occur…just that…oh, he wasn’t even sure what he was trying to think or say anymore.

“I will take your word for it, Mooney.” Sirius said with a sigh.

Remus nodded and after folding the clothes sent them off with a flick of his wand to the dresser Sirius had found for Severus’s room. Little did Sirius know that was only the first bag…Remus had not been joking when he said that he had practically broke the bank shopping for their new little guest.

“Did Harry enjoy the shopping?” Sirius asked, pulling the macaroni and cheese from the oven. “He seemed a bit agitated.”

“It was the heat,” Remus laughed. “That boy really could not stand it, but I’m sure he is better now that he is cool and washed up.”

Sirius nodded once more and wondered what could possibly be taking those boys so long to wash their hands. Maybe Harry wanted to give Severus his bath before dinner. He had seen the tyke when they came in and he did look a bit peaked. A nice, cool, bath would probably help with Severus’s mood and, hopefully, make dinner easy to get through.

Harry had helped Severus wash his hands and washed his own, he could tell that Severus was still tired, but upon suggesting a nap before lunch the little boy shook his head. Harry wished that Severus was more vocal with everyone, he really didn’t need to hide from them all…but Harry supposed that saying such a thing would be highly hypocritical, as Harry got the same complaint from all of his friends and teachers as well.

“Ready to go eat, Sevvy?”

The little, raven haired, boy nodded at him and sluggishly headed downstairs. Severus didn’t really want to eat, but he knew that it was disrespectful to refuse a meal. Besides, he had heard what it was and Severus really liked macaroni and cheese. No one could make it as good as his mummy, of course, but he was sure that after a couple bites the yucky feeling would disappear. He didn’t like thinking that he was sick…if that happened then he got in a lot of trouble. It was best to just say it was in his head and then wait it out…his head would make him better later.

Crawling up into his chair beside Remus he leaned back and wiped some of the sweat that her accumulated on his forehead. He just needed to make it till nap time, then after that he would be able to lay down and sleep this all away. One plate of macaroni and a small cup of juice…that was usually what his mummy would give him to eat…father ate the rest.

“Severus are you hungry?” Remus asked gently, his eyes taking on the young boys, pale, features.

“Yes…” Severus said softly. “Can I have something to drink too?”

Sirius brought Severus his plate first and then served the rest of his family. He had always thought it best to serve the younger ones first. It was just a matter of manners and priorities…not that he was saying Snape was a priority in his life. Just that he remembered Mrs. Potter always doing it when Sirius and James wanted to eat.

Harry licked his lips as his supper was placed in front of him and didn’t even wait to receive permission to begin eating. He watched Severus briefly and saw the little boy put a single noodle in his mouth. That had to have been a habit continued on to adulthood, Snape always seemed like a finicky eater when he was at Hogwarts too.

“So Harry,” Remus said gently. “I trust you are ready for your OWL’s this year?”

Harry nearly choked on his pasta…well that was unexpected. It wasn’t that he minded talking to Remus about school, it was just that Harry felt that he made an idiot out of himself when he revealed he was not ready. Apparently, this was the year that students also planned out their futures. Harry felt that he didn’t have much of a future ahead of him. Not if Voldemort was involved…so it was needless to say that Harry really didn’t take the time to plan it. What would be the point?

“Umm…I guess…” Harry shrugged. “I haven’t really given it too much thought just yet.”

Sirius nodded, “And that is understandable, you still have time to think.”

“Yes, but it is always good to have an idea.”

Harry sighed and took another bite from his pasta, swallowing it down with a sip from his glass of pumpkin juice. He had considered a couple things that he wanted to do after he graduated from Hogwarts. One of the big things was to become an auror, that seemed to be his ultimate calling, since he was always so good in Defense Against the Dark Arts. The other one he really didn’t like sharing with people was that he wanted to be a teacher at Hogwarts. At the moment the only problem was that he couldn’t decide on a subject. With the DADA position being cursed, Harry didn’t want to risk being killed or sacked at the end of the year. He truly got enough of that from a day to day basis.

“I have an idea,” he said with a sigh. “But I’m still not sure about it yet…let’s talk about something else.”

Remus could sense that Harry was a bit uncomfortable when it came to the subject of his future, and he sort of felt guilty for bringing it up. He just wanted to encourage Harry to continue to live, regardless of this whole Voldemort mess mucking it up. However, he wouldn’t pry anymore; Harry would come to them when he was ready…just as James had when he was young with his own folks.

Sirius felt that this dinner was slowly turning into something awkward and a bit unpleasant. That meant but one thing; time for him to lighten the mood with a joke or story of old. Sirius hated when things were made awkward and uncomfortable…it really made him feel out of place. He had dealt with it far too much when it came to his own parents and he would be damned if it happened again under his own roof.

“Well,” he said clearing his throat and smiling. “I know James was no better…I swear, that man was dead set on being the star of his own national quidditch team.”

Harry smiled gently.

“He even informed his father and mother…I swear I had never seen a woman turn so ash white in all of my life. Then after a long scolding and push, James decided on something a bit more realistic.”

“Really?” Harry asked. “Like what?”

“Oh, he became an auror.”

Harry felt his chest swell with pride and his eyes glowed. His father had been an auror! That was just the push he needed! Harry knew exactly what he wanted to be now…just like his father…an auror. He took another bite of his pasta and glanced over at Sevvy for a moment, a frown slowly forming on his face.

He had forgotten that Severus had been eating with him he was just so quiet. There was something that didn’t look quite right about him though. His face was very pale now and it almost had a green…hinge…to it. Severus looked sick, but he couldn’t think of anything that would make him that way.

“Sevvy? You okay?”

The little boy didn’t answer, but merely looked up at him with an apologetic expression, and turned to be sick on the floor a moment later.

Chapter Ten

Harry felt like the worst older brother in the world. How could he have not noticed that Severus was sick while they were walking through shops? Now that he looked back on it, it seemed so obvious! He hated being sick at the age of fifteen, but he could only imagine how bad it would be for a small child that wasn’t used to being taken care of.

They had gotten Severus upstairs, into bed and Remus was with him while Sirius flooed the Headmaster and asked if Madam Pomfrey would be allowed to come and check on him. His God-father had a hunch that it might be heat exhaustion Severus was suffering from, but him and Remus wanted to be absolutely certain before they began filling him up with potions.

“Poppy, how would I know what color his urine is?!” Sirius snapped. “I don’t stand over him while he’s in the bathroom!”

Harry had to keep from laughing and shaking his head made his way back upstairs to Severus’s room. The little boy just looked so miserable. Severus was laying close to the edge of the bed with a light fan on him. He was sweating profusely, and Remus said that they needed to find a way to keep him cool. The only drawback was that Severus wasn’t feeling hot, he was actually cold. So they had to wrap the little one up about twenty times to keep his teeth from chattering clean out of his head.

 Taking a seat on the bed, Harry gently pushed several locks of black hair away from his tiny face. He looked so pale and weak, how had Harry mistaken this for just a normal case of fatigue. It was clear that he needed to take better care to monitor the little boy’s body language. Tired and quiet could mean, “I’m sick, stop being a twit and bloody take care of me!”.

“Harry…” Severus croaked softly.

“Hey Sevvy,” Harry cooed. “How are you feeling?”

Severus cringed as he tried to think of an answer to this question. He knew that saying he felt okay would be a lie, an OBVIOUS lie, but saying that he didn’t feel good might make Harry frustrated that he wasn’t getting better fast enough. So he decided to do the next best thing, distract Harry with something else so he forgot his original question.

“Is Sirius mad I threw up on his floor?” he whispered. “He swore.”

“Oh Sev,” Harry smiled. “He wasn’t mad, that’s just how he reacts to unexpected things.”

Adjusting the blanket around Severus he positioned himself so he could lay next to his little brother and hold him properly. It was just a bit of a shocker to see that Severus actually shied away; maybe he thought that Harry was going to hurt him.

“Hey, it’s okay, Severus,” the teen assured. “I just want to hold you…I promise you aren’t in trouble.”

That seemed to help him relax, and he gently rubbed Severus’s back while he rested his head on his chest. He could feel his fever through his t-shirt and it just made Harry ache for him. It would be okay soon though, Madam Pomfrey would come and she would fix him up. Harry didn’t like feeling so helpless though, and when he heard Severus whimper softly it just broke his heart over and over again.

“Where’s Remus, Sev?” Harry whispered. “I thought he was up here with you?”

“He went to get me some soda water.”

Harry nodded and yawned himself. He could definitely use a nap too, but he didn’t want to fall asleep until he knew what was wrong with Severus. He was sure that with a master hand like Madam Pomfrey’s it wouldn’t take too long, but it was the fact that they had to wait with Severus in misery until then.

“Harry…” Severus whispered frantically. “I feel like I might be sick again.”

Harry quickly moved so Severus was laying slightly over the bed. He didn’t know what else to do other than to rub the little boy’s back and wait. He wished Remus or Sirius would hurry the Hell up; he was so scared of caring for Severus alone.

Finally Sirius came up the stairs with a glass of charged water for Severus, this was good…it meant that his godfather might be able to have some time to bond with Sevvy. He really wanted him to see how wonderful Severus could be. He knew that he was getting slowly better at accepting it, but it was still not going fast enough for Harry’s liking and he was scared Severus might start to feel unloved.

“Okay,” he said gently, setting the glass of water on the night stand. “Madam Pomfrey says he has a mild case of heat exhaustion. We have to keep him cool, hydrated, and rested…really tyke, you scared us all to death. How about a warning next time you feel sick?”

Severus blushed and moved his face so that it was a bit hidden under the blankets. He didn’t know that he could tell Sirius that he didn’t feel good…at the beginning he didn’t think Sirius liked him at all. Maybe Harry said something to him to make him nicer, that didn’t bother Severus though. It made him feel less of a burden.

“Yessir…” Severus whispered. “I’ll warn you.”

He watched Sirius’s face take on a bit of a saddened expression, most likely from being call “sir”. Harry could never see Sirius being a sir, not even if he was a Professor at Hogwarts. There was just this sort of air to Sirius Black that kept a person from feeling so on edge, and Sirius knew that himself.

“You don’t have to call me sir, kid,” Sirius offered. “You can just call me Sirius…or Padfoot. I’m not so old though that you need to call me sir.”

Severus looked up at Sirius and nodded, a weak smile forming on his pale lips. He could tell that he was trying to be nice, and it made Severus feel a little bit better. Not better to the point that he was going to get up and start playing again…but a kind of warm feeling in his chest that he didn’t feel when he first moved in with his new…family.

“Where’s Remus?” Harry asked, sitting up from the warm bed. “He never came back up.”

“Remus is…taking care of some personal business tonight,” Sirius worded carefully. “He sends his love and will be back as soon as he can.”

Severus felt the corner of his eyes burn, but he couldn’t tell if he wanted to cry or if it was just because he was sick. He decided to go on the notion that he was sick, crying just made him look like a baby…he didn’t even cry when he threw up, big boys never cried.

“Alright Severus,” Sirius continued, gently bringing the water towards him. “I know your stomach probably hurts, but Madam Pomfrey said that you need to drink some water.”

Severus wrinkled his nose a bit at the water. His stomach did hurt, and when that happened a person did not want to risk putting anything in it. Especially when a couple seconds ago he had felt on the verge of throwing up again. He wanted to say no, but he could see that there would be no room for refusal. So with a sigh he took the glass in a pair of shaky hands and sipped from it.

“Good boy,” Sirius praised. “Not too fast…that’s it…here, I’ll take it.”

Setting the glass down, Sirius helped Severus lay back down and turned to Harry. Everyone looked so out of it and tired, maybe an early night wouldn’t hurt. It was only about eight o-clock, but it never hurt to turn in early after a long day. Sirius had to clean up the kitchen anyway and he really didn’t want to worry about his god-son and new charge getting into mischief.

“Harry, I think you should go and get ready for bed.”

Harry yawned and nodded, that was actually a very good idea. As much as he loved Severus, he really did not want to fall asleep in his jeans. Standing he stretched to the point that he could hear his back crack. Merlin did that feel nice; he hadn’t been aware how stiff he was.

“I…I have to be alone?” Severus whispered. “Harry…you will come back right?”

“Of course.” He beamed.

How could anyone say no to that, even if Sirius told him NOT to go to Severus he would still have to sneak back later in the evening. He hoped that Sirius wouldn’t do such a thing, but his godfather had not been practicing the best behavior lately. Gently, Harry tucked Severus in with his stuffed wolf and followed Sirius out into the hall.

“I think you should take a shower before you spend the rest of your night with the kid,” Sirius said as they began making their way down the hall. “You look worse for wear, scamp. Who gave you permission to play dad here?”

“When you decided to play a spoiled teenager,” Harry smirked. “If you keep being nice to him I’ll take it easy.”

Sirius found himself almost shocked by the cheek he received from his godson, but rather than reprimand him like any normal parent would he just laughed. Just like James…one to always speak his mind. That was what Sirius loved about Harry; he was more like his father than he would ever know.

“I suppose I will have to make it up to you,” he teased. “I’ll think of something while you bathe…no go, you smell like a troll.”

Harry stuck his tongue out at his godfather as he made his way upstairs. He didn’t think he smelled like a troll, as a matter of fact he had showered that morning before leaving with Sevvy to go shopping. Though, he had been running around quite a bit afterwards. A troll, ha, Harry didn’t smell like a troll…oh God, was he really so tired that he was actually having an inner monologue on his, personal, scent?!

Taking his hands over his face and through his hair he walked into the bathroom off of his bedroom and began readying his bath. The steam had filled the room almost instantly and Harry didn’t waste a single second outside of the water. Oh God, this is heaven.

Closing his eyes Harry leaned against the porcelain wall, just allowing the droplets of water to beat down against his shoulders and back, his mind drifting far away from Grimmauld Place and everyone around him.

Severus didn’t like being left alone while he was sick…he truly felt worse when there was no one there to comfort him and make him feel better. He wished that Sirius wouldn’t have taken Harry with him, even with Dittany to comfort him it didn’t make his stomach hurt any less and the water wasn’t doing him much good anymore either.

He tried to close his eyes and focus on something other than how yucky he felt. Sleep he just needed to sleep, everything went away when he fell asleep. Father went away, discomfort went away, and his mummy came back. Sometimes Severus wondered why he even bothered to wake up…well he guessed that nightmares weren’t something he wanted to stay in, but the good dreams were the ones he welcomed to engulf him.

Nothing was working! No matter what he did, Severus just could not fall asleep feeling this way! He decided that he would take matters into his own hands. He would find Harry’s room and crawl into bed with him. He didn’t want to say that Harry had forgotten about him, but it was definitely starting to feel that way. Grabbing Dittany and the blanket Remus had given him to keep warm, Severus began making his way down the hall.

The only challenge that was facing him at the moment was remembering where his older brother’s room was. He knew that Remus had said something about it being across the hall or next door…which one was it? Severus really wished that he had been paying better attention. Well…when in doubt…guess.  He pulled his blanket up a bit more so he wouldn’t trip over it and opened the door that was to the left of his room. The door almost didn’t want to open and when it did he was a bit shocked to find someone inside of it, but that person wasn’t Harry.

“Oh…” he squeaked. “I…I’m sorry…”

“What are you doing out of bed, tyke?” Sirius asked, standing from his bed. “Did you get lost on your way to the bathroom or something?”

Severus wanted to nod, but he had been told by his father that lying was not something he did to those that did nice things for bad little boys. Even though Sirius had been mean to him to begin with, he wasn’t going to disrespect him with a lie.

“I…I’m lonely…” he whispered softly. “I was looking for Harry…my tummy hurts too bad for me to sleep.”

Sirius was almost taken back by what the little Snape had said, and was even more shocked by the fact that he was unable to turn the kid away. So maybe Harry was a little right in saying that Snape was a cute kid. Standing there in his blue pajamas, looking sick, scared, and sad, Sirius wasn’t sure he could bare to say no.

“Would you like to come in here with me?” he offered, patting a space on the bed. “I can keep you company and you can try and fall asleep.”

Severus wasn’t sure if this was a joke, but something told him that Sirius was actually being genuine with him. He walked in and gingerly crawled up onto the large bed. He fixed his blanket around him and shivered weakly, clutching Dittany to his chest.

“Severus,” Sirius said softly. “You don’t have to be so…tense. I promise you are okay here with me, you are safe.”

“I am?” he whispered. “But…but you don’t like me…”

Sirius frowned; he really should have taken better care to be nicer to Severus. Harry had been right, this kid didn’t know what Severus Snape was like…and Sirius almost hoped that he never did. His own childhood hadn’t been ideal, but Sirius had friends that made it better…really, who did Severus have? He had tried to hold onto Lily, but even she fell through his fingers.

“I do like you, Severus,” he said gently. “I was wrong to be so mean to you, and I am sorry. How about we start over tyke? Would you like that?”

“Yes please,” Severus said eagerly. “Does that mean you will start calling me Sevvy now?”

Sirius, seriously, did not like that nickname for Severus. It was cute for Harry to call him that, but for Sirius it just felt wrong and rather creepy. He had known the boy in school, and the idea of calling him Sevvy just made him feel a bit sick inside. Maybe they could come up with a different kind of nickname for Severus. He truly liked tyke for Severus, but he could understand him wanting something more personalized than that.

“I’ll think of one just for you, tyke,” he said with a slight yawn. “For now, I think you really need to lay down and go to sleep.”

Severus pouted and crawled into the warm sheets of the bed, he really didn’t want to go to sleep. It wasn’t that he wasn’t tired; it was just that he felt yucky.  Looking up at his new guardian he inched closer to him and rested his head against his side. He was sure Sirius wouldn’t mind…he had said that he wanted to start over after all.

Chapter Eleven

Severus was so bored lying in bed all day, but Sirius and Harry said that he had to stay in bed until they were absolutely certain that he wasn’t sick anymore. Severus had tried to assure them that he felt great, but he went ignored because he wouldn’t eat breakfast. It wasn’t that he didn’t like breakfast it was just that it was too much for Sevvy’s stomach to handle. Really…if they had just let him have oatmeal like he had asked he would have been fine.

Tossing and turning in Sirius’s large bed, he sighed loudly. Maybe he could convince Harry to take him outside so he could play. He had heard his older brother talk about inviting some of his friends over, maybe that would give Severus a chance to make more friends as well! Harry had told him that his friends would like him; he hoped that that was true. Then again…Harry had said that Sirius would like him and that turned out to be a lie in the beginning.

“Hello Sev,” Sirius said coming in with a small tray of food. “I brought you some lunch.”

“Thank you,” Severus said pulling himself up from the covers. “Is Harry still here? Can I go play with him now?”

Sirius glanced down at the little boy that looked up at him with big, onyx, eyes. He really didn’t want to risk Severus getting sick again, and so far the best way to protect him was to keep him in bed. Though he did understand how bored a person could get laid up, maybe they could work around it.

“Okay…” Sirius said taking a seat with him. “How about I make you a deal, tyke. You eat more than half of your soup and drink your juice…if you can do that I will call Harry up here and we’ll play cards. Does that sound like a game plan?”

Severus pursed his lips in thought, that sounded like something fun they could do. He used to play cards with his mummy all the time. She and him would bet cookies, and Severus won almost all the time. He never kept all the cookies to himself though, no, he usually made sure his mummy was able to have half of them. He wished she hadn’t left for heaven; Severus had never missed someone as much as he missed his mummy.

“Okay…deal.”

Lifting his spoon Severus began sipping from the warm broth. It tasted really good, better than Severus had had in a long time in fact. He would have to ask his mummy to learn to make soup this way. Granted, they never really had a lot of food to put into the soup when she usually made it. Father said that it was a waste to spend so much money on a single pot of soup.

Sirius watched as Severus ate the soup carefully, he almost couldn’t tell if he was eating like that to inspect it for poison or if he just never had soup before. He didn’t say anything though, really, if the boy was eating Sirius didn’t care how long it took. He took a seat not far from the bed and pulled out a copy of the Daily Prophet. He knew it was nothing but a rag of bullocks, but it was his best way to keep in the know when it came to what was going on with the Ministry and the corrupt trolls that were in it.

“Sirius?” Severus called softly. “I’m full…”

Severus wasn’t sure if this was half the bowl, but he thought it was a lot more than what he usually ate. Sirius had given him a lot of soup after all; he had never had a full bowl before. It was just too much and how did he expect him to eat all of the broth and then the crackers? Severus was sure he would explode!

“Already?” Sirius asked looking at the bowl. “Severus it doesn’t look like you even touched it.”

“But I did!” Severus said sternly. “You were too busy reading the paper to notice!”

Sirius cocked his eyebrow at Severus as he began throwing a mini-tantrum. He had wondered when this would happen, or if it would happen at all. Was it bad that Sirius actually found it kind of funny? The little Snape just looked so cute with his eyebrows furrowed and his arms crossing over his chest. To think that this little tyke had at one time scared an entire class of students.

“Now now, Severus,” Sirius scolded lightly. “That is not going to get you anywhere with me.”

Severus pouted and lay back down against his pillows. It wasn’t fair that he wasn’t being listened to properly. He really had tried to eat all of his soup, but it was just too much for him! Clearly Sirius had been wrong to give him so much; he wished that he could show him that.

“Humph.”

“Severus…” Sirius warned. “I mean it…you are too old to throw tantrums.”

Severus didn’t want to cry like a baby, but for some reason Sirius’s refusal to let him have his way was causing his eyes to burn. He didn’t like that Sirius didn’t believe him, but he decided that it couldn’t be helped and he supposed that he would just have to finish the bowl to prove that he wasn’t a liar. Picking up his spoon he sniffled softly and took another bite.

The soup was cold now and felt so heavy as it made his way down to his tummy. He didn’t want to throw up again, but if he kept eating the way he was it would become inevitable. Looking up at Sirius with pleading in his eyes he sniffled and let his chin quiver.

“I wanna play cards…” he sniffled.

Sirius looked at the bowl and then back at the little boy in front of him. He supposed that would be enough for right now, he really did not want to be responsible for making the kid even sicker. Harry would probably turn him into a dog-skin rug if he did that. So taking the soup back he summoned Kreacher and sent it away with him.

“Harry is downstairs, I’ll go get him and then we’ll play cards, alright?”

Severus nodded and adjusted himself in Sirius’s bed. He was so excited to play cards and have something to do! He had read all of the books Remus and Harry had bought for him. He couldn’t help but wonder what Harry had been doing all morning without him, maybe sleeping, that seemed like the most popular thing to do at the moment.

“Harry?” Sirius called. “Up for a game of Egyptian Rat Screw?”

“What?” Harry asked from the fireplace. “Egyptian…what?”

“Egyptian Rat Screw.”

“Sounds illegal…” Harry snorted. “Is it like Poker or….Scum?”

“What’s Scum?”

“Never mind,” Harry smiled. “Yeah, I’d love to play…but I’m waiting for Ron and Hermione…they said they would be coming over today.”

“What about Severus, Harry?” Sirius asked taking a seat at the kitchen table. “Are they going to be okay with their current Potions Professor in this form?”

Harry shrugged, he really didn’t care if they did. Harry would not let them hurt Severus, but he knew that Hermione and Ron would fall in love with him. Sirius had….granted it had taken a bit longer than he would have preferred, but there was also a longer divide of hatred between the two of them. He knew that Ron and Hermione never thought very positively of Snape, but his friends were very forgiving. Well Hermione was… Ron had the tendency to hold a grudge.

“I think they’ll be okay…” Harry sighed. “And if they aren’t they’ll just have to deal with it…I love Sevvy.”

Standing, Harry went to the fridge and poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice. He really hoped that Ron and Hermione would be nice to Severus. It seemed like they had only recently made up after a fight regarding the Triwizard Tournament.

“And if you came around,” Harry teased. “I’m pretty sure I won’t have to deal with them being angry for long.”

Sirius rolled his eyes playfully and stuck his own tongue out before summoning himself a glass of pumpkin juice. He was still in mild disbelief that he liked Snape now, it almost seemed unreal. It had only been a couple weeks that he had the kid, and he already seemed to be…in love…with him. He would never be able to live this down if Snape turned back into his slimy self.

“Yeah, yeah, you don’t have to keep reminding me,” Sirius smirked. “I already admitted that you were right about the kid.”

Harry smiled; it still pleased to hear him say so. He loved his new family and he wanted to keep it for as long as he possibly could. He hoped that Dumbledore wasn’t rushing to turn Snape back to normal, if a cure was never found it would be no skin of his bones. Harry actually wasn’t sure what it would be like if his potions master re-aged. Would he be mean? Would he even remember any of the past few weeks? Harry wasn’t sure he would ever be able to look at the man the same way again, and he would always crave the little brother he had currently.

“Sirius…” he whispered. “Do…do we really have to change him back? I mean…he’s happy the way he is.”

“Harry-

-I could take care of him, Sirius…and he could live here, couldn’t he? He’s really smart and…and I’m sure that we could win the war regardless.”

“Harry,” Sirius said sternly, placing his hands on his God-son’s shoulders. “It isn’t that simple…Severus is vital for the Order of the Phoenix. He needs to be an adult-

-no he doesn’t!” Harry insisted, his eyes burning. “It’s not fair to turn him back into that­! He hates himself, he’s all alone, and I don’t want that for him!”

Sirius frowned as he watched his god-son. He knew that Harry didn’t want Severus to have to be unhappy, but some things could not be helped. Severus was a spy for the Order, and he needed to be an adult in order to continue with that façade. Harry didn’t understand that because he wasn’t permitted to know the full extent of Severus’s loyalty, but they could all be in serious danger if Sevvy didn’t revert back.

“I know it’s hard, Harry,” Sirius continued gently. “But he chose this, he chose to do this for Dumbledore, and I don’t think Dumbledore is willing to let that go. We can give Severus happiness until that day, and maybe he will remember when he turns back…but if he doesn’t you will just have to accept it.”

Harry felt tears form in his eyes, and it was the first time he was able to cry in a long time. He didn’t want to accept that it could all revert back to how it used to be. He didn’t want Snape to hate him again, he wanted him to love him and remember that Harry loved him as well. Harry wanted this relationship more than anything; he would give up anything to ensure it.

“There is another way,” he growled firmly. “You are all just too…inconsiderate…to figure out what it is. It’s easy to throw away, Snape’s life isn’t it? Because he’s the one that hates himself enough not to care if you all do it. Everyone is willing to sit back and watch him suffer…no one is willing to do anything about it.”

Before Sirius could even give his two cents, Harry turned on his heel and stormed up the stairs to Severus’s room. He wiped his eyes quickly and turned to his little brother.

“Harry,” Severus smiled. “You came back…want to play cards with Sirius and me?”

Harry felt his lips quiver and he forced another smile onto his face as he crawled up onto the bed with his little brother. He didn’t want Sevvy seeing him upset, or to think he was crying.

“I would love to, but I don’t think Sirius is going to come up and play…we can start without him.”

Going over to the nightstand he took the small box of playing cards Sirius had left out. He didn’t care how rude he had been to his godfather; he would not accept that there was nothing that could be done for Severus. Harry would find his own way if they were determined to sacrifice his brother…maybe Hermione would be able to help, maybe there was a way to save him.

“Harry?” Severus called. “Want me to teach you how to play Spit?”

“Spit…” Harry repeated shuffling the cards.

“Yeah…” Severus smiled, sitting up. “It’s a lot of fun…mummy and I would play it all the time while I was sick. You get five sets of cards…one up, then one down one up, then two down one up, three down one up, and then four down one up…then you set your remaining cards face down in a deck to the side. We both set one card down at the same time…and then we try and get rid of all our cards by going in numeric order…get it?”

Harry smirked, “Oh yeah…sounds simple.”

“Okay good!” Severus smiled. “Split the deck in half and give me a half.”

“Umm Sevvy,” Harry chuckled after doing so. “I really have no clue how to play this game.”

“I could explain it to you again,” Severus offered, laying out his cards on the bed. “First you lay down your cards-

-why don’t we just play a round and go as slow as we can.”

Severus nodded and smiled as he finished setting out his cards.

“Now you lay yours out, just like I did mine.”

“Okay…like this?”

“No, not like that.”

“How else would I lay them out?”

“You aren’t supposed to see them.”

“Oh, okay…” Harry said, turning them all over.

“Well you need to be able to see at least one of them, Harry.”

“Like this?”

Severus smiled and giggled.

“What? I can see one of them!” Harry grinned.

“Not the one in the middle!”

“Oh, fine, so picky…” Harry winked.

Severus giggled and just as he was about to lay down one of his cards, he noticed that they were no longer alone.

“Umm…Harry…” he said softly.

Harry turned and smiled widely at his two friends in the doorway.

“Hey guys, want to play cards?”