Snape boarded the plane thinking of how devastated Mel looked. It reminded him of the look in his mother's eyes when he had told her portrait that he had chosen to become a death eater. Mel was definitely the kind of woman who could nurture a village of children if they allowed her to. He looked over at Harry who was looking out the window at the lights below. He looked forward to arriving back in the United Kingdom, even with all of its problems, it was home.

"Looking forward to getting back Harry?" he asked forgetting about how Harry probably didn't even remember the look of his own home.

Harry's mind immediately flashed to the Dursleys..Back? He's sending me back? Oh no! What did I do? Harry fruitlessly thought about the last few days that he had been at Mel's place with Snape, even of the rescue that he made. This man had allowed for him to think of him as a father and yet now he was going to send him back? Harry curled up close towards the window and tried not to cry. There he allowed himself to wait, thinking of the Dusleys, and how they had taken him for this surprise trip, the way that they had treated him when he lived with them, if he went back there he would probably have to go back into his cupboard. But he deserved it. He was a freak and he knew it.

"Harry, calm down, I know the flight is uncomfortable, but we shall be getting dinner soon and you need to have something," Snape stated.

"No thank you, I'm not hungry," Harry stated, besides he knew that he didn't deserve food and he'd have to get used to it when he got back to the Dursley's.

"Oh no I don't think so young man," Snape stated, "you shall either choose something off the menu or I shall choose for you!"

The paper Snape had been reading stated that the flight was catered for and the menu would be delivered promptly at 7. Being in first class they were bound to get something nice.

"It's ok sir, I don't need food," Harry stated.

"Don't be ridiculous son, of course you need food. So either you order something or I will order something for you and you may not like what I give you!" Snape stated frustrated.

Harry looked at the menu seeing several things that he wouldn't mind having, but he didn't want to be any trouble after all he would be back with the Dursley's soon and would need to learn how to handle not having food. Uncle Vernon seemed to feel that food was a luxury not afforded to freaks. Harry remained quiet. So when the flight attendant came Snape happily ordered some food for himself and for a very reluctant Harry. Harry was happy to see that he had the option of quite a few movies through a head set and settled comfortably in front of The Lord of the Rings movies. He seemed to relate to the magical element shown through Gandalf, proclaiming to Snape "I think he must be a wind wizard like Mel!"

But half way through the second movie Snape suggested that maybe it was time he got some rest. Of course Harry protested,

"but it's the last movie! I promise I won't watch anything else afterwards. I'll get some sleep honest. Please?" Harry felt so scared when he asked for permission to finish watching the movie, could this be the one thing that upsets Snape so badly that he takes him off the plane straight to the Dursley's?

As the rolling credits showed for the movie Snape put his hand on Harry's stating "get some sleep son, when we get there it will be the middle of the afternoon and I don't think your old enough to stay up all night yet."

Harry obeyed. Try as he might he struggled to sleep.

"Harry stop fidgeting and go to sleep!" Snape stated frustrated.

Harry could take it no longer.

"Please don't take me back to the Dursley's!" he stated quite scared.

Snape was quite taken back by that statement! "Don't be ridiculous Harry I'm NEVER going to send you back there!" he stated exasperated, "however I might have to take you over my knee on an aircraft full of people if you don't get some sleep. The only place that we are going when we get off this aircraft is home to our place and we shall discuss everything else then."

Harry looked at him delighted…"So Im not going back?"

Then Snape realised what he had said and how it could have so easily been misinterpreted under the situation that Harry had found himself in.

"No Harry, you're never going back to the Dursley's, no matter how naughty you are, you are my son and you are not getting away from me that easily," Snape chuckled to show that he was making a joke.

Snape…chuckled? How unusual! But sometimes we do certain things to take the edge off a situation.

"Now sleep Harry, or I'll give you the spanking of a lifetime both here and when we get home!" Snape stated determined.

"Yes sir," Harry stated.

Before Harry fell asleep Snape could have sworn he heard his boy state, "Dad, I need you."

"It's alright Harry, no matter what happens in life you will always have me," he stated before allowing sleep to take him for a while.

When he awoke it was to an overhead speaker stating, "we shall be landing in Heathgrow airport in fifteen minutes, please put away your trays and buckle your seat belt when the sign comes on,"

Wow Snape had slept through breakfast? That was unusual for him! But then nobody could really blame him it had been an exhausting couple of days. Harry was snoring loudly beside him, probably due to the way that he was sitting as the boy rarely made a sound whilst sleeping. Snape gently woke him.

"Come on son, do you need to go to the bathroom? We shall be landing shortly," he stated gently.

Harry and Snape both visited the lavatory and freshened up a little ready for the decent down to London. Snape looked forward to finally having this misadventure over with for a while. He still had to find the culprit of who would dare take his son, but he would be sure to ensure Harry's safety carefully before any further outings with himself, or others.

"Please fasten your seatbelts and prepare for the descent in London. The time is currently 2.00pm Saturday 23rd August. Thank you for choosing Air New Zealand and enjoy your stay in London."

The airplane landed and Snape and Harry were able to get off without any further problems. Snape spotted a quiet area of the airport where he apparated Harry and himself back home to Prince Manor.

Harry was amazed by the mere size of it, like the biggest house he had ever seen in his life!

"Do many people live here?" Harry asked curiously.

Snape had to bite down on his tongue hard to stop himself from any sudden and possibly frightening reactions to the boy, "No Harry, just us."

As Snape opened the door he heard Harry mutter, "this is just like it was in my dream!"

But he chose to ignore it, the boy must be terribly confused after all that he had been through. "Harry, go upstairs and take a shower, you need one after that long flight," Snape stated. He went straight to the lounge room where there was a steaming cup of tea sitting beside his chair.

"Pawrir heard you arrive home Master, Pawrir is so glad to see you home! And with young master! Well done! I have told Thistle and the other elves about the…um….problem," she stated happily, "is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No Pawrir, that will be all," Snape stated settling down into his comfortable arm chair with his cup of tea. Harry soon came into the room rubbing his hair with a towel.

"You can find your way to the library son, I shall be back shortly," Snape stated as he finally accepted his decision of having a nice relaxing bath. He allowed himself the luxury of a bubble bath thinking that it could help soothe some of his aching muscles.

Meanwhile Harry had found his way rather promptly to the library, which was remarkable considering the fact that he thought that he had never set foot in the place before. At least, not as much as he could remember. But it reminded him of so many dreams he had recently, especially the one last night in the airplane. He sat down on a comfortable looking arm chair just thinking of that dream.

He dreamed he was laying on a luxury king size bed, he was laying on his stomach looking over some papers and making some marks in a book. He had taken out a stick and had been practicing making different colours appear, which made certain things happen, like…he screwed his eyes up trying to remember…like there was which green light…which….he felt himself start to panic as he heard a female scream.

"Harry?" he heard a gentle voice say from what felt like far away state, "Harry welcome home boy!" he opened his eyes to find an incredibly beautiful looking woman in a portrait talking to him…but wait a minute…portraits don't talk…do they?

"I was so worried about you! When Severus told me that you had gone missing, but I knew your father would find you. Nothing stops a Prince once they get going!" She stated happily.

"Um…hi….um….thanks!" Harry stated confused. But something in this woman's eyes made Harry feel like he could trust her…like she had always been a part of his life, "I'm still trying to get used to things you know."

"Oh of course my dear child, it must be so hard for you! Well if you need any help please come and talk to me I would be more than happy to help," she stated.

The woman reminded him a little of Mel, only she looked so much like the man who was telling him that he could call him father.

"Harry there you are," Snape stated coming into the library, "good man,"

"How are you feeling?" He asked gently.

"I'm fine," Harry stated, "this place looks great!"

"That's wonderful son," Snape stated gently, "I thought today I would just peek into your mind, and see where we need to start your studies. I would like it for you to be in third year at Hogwarts when we get back to school. You have friendships there pretty well forged and I know that if you needed to go back to an earlier class a lot of questions would be asked. So what I need you to do is sit still and drink this," he gave Harry a nice cup of hot chocolate which he had always enjoyed. "I am going to look through your memories, and see what you need to learn," Snape stated.

He produced his mind and stated "legilimens" very gently Snape looked through Harry's mind, looking at the dismal way that his relatives had treated him and how scared he'd been up til he turned 10 years old but then…it was like….after 10 years old...everything was lost in a midst. It was like there were areas of the boys mind that he was trying to hide from him.

"Harry, open your mind please and allow me to look through what I need to," Snape stated.

"But…I am sir, those memories of the Dursleys…you don't think I wanted you to see that did you? To see what a bad boy I was and how I deserved to be treated like that!" Harry started to cry.

Snape dropped his wand which cancelled the spell and gathered his son up in his arms. It didn't really matter after all he had discovered what he needed to.

"Harry," Snape said reacting on basic instinct, something Snape very rarely allowed himself to do, "Harry nobody, I repeat NOBODY, deserves to be treated like that. Spanking a child, or having him stand in a corner, write lines, grounded from going out or using certain things, those are punishments. But making a child live in a cupboard? Hitting a child across the face so hard he collapses? The only place that is ok to touch a child is discipline is on the bottom. It's not a nice experience but that's what punishment is. It is never done in any kind of anger and never scaring a child until he is terrified to live! Starvation and that chore list was ridiculous! You shall be expected to do some chores around here Harry, but you are not a common house elf! You are not expected to look after everything in this home. That is my duty. Harry, do you understand Harry, son?"

Harry looked at him completely confused. "but I deserved it," he stated.

"No Harry, you didn't," Snape stated, "nobody deserves that."

"I don't know why you are making so much fuss about me, I'm just a freak," Harry stated.

"A what Harry?" Snape stated.

"I'm a freak. I do…freakish things…I can't control myself," Harry stated.

"That control will come as you age Harry, you are a wizard not a freak, you are no more a freak than I am," he stated.

"Yes I am…that's why my relatives treated me that way, cos I'm a freak!" Harry stated.

"You are not a freak son and don't you dare talk about my precious son that way. If I ever hear you talk about yourself like that again I shall turn you over my knee on the spot! And I don't care if its in the middle of the grand hall in front of over a thousand students and teachers. You understand me? You are not a freak!" Snape stated, "I suggest you find something to keep yourself busy with. I have a couple of letters to write. I shall see you in time for dinner."

Snape walked away to ensure that he could get himself to calm down from that conversation leaving a very confused Harry behind him.

"He's right you know," the kind female portrait stated to him, "why don't you start with a muggles guide to magic? It might help you remember some things."

Harry quickly located the book and sat down to read it. His last thought before he opened the book was…"he really doesn't think I'm a freak?"