Summer after first year, Cokeworth.

“Lily, Petunia, please come into the living room for a moment”, Mrs. Evans called up the stairs. Both girls came down from their rooms not long after, curious as to why their mother was calling them. “I just received a phone call from your aunt Susan. She has invited the two of you to come and stay with her for a few weeks. What do you think girls?”

Lily was delighted. Her aunt Susan owned a lovely farm in the Lake District, where she had a flock of Herdwick sheep. Lily always enjoyed going there. “Do we have to?” came the whining voice of Petunia. She didn’t like her aunt Susan, the woman never put up with her attitude, and Petunia really disliked the sheep and dogs that were part of the farm. Mrs. Evan sighed. “No Petunia, you do not have to go if you really do not want to, but it’s very rude as you haven’t seen your aunt in nearly two years now.” Petunia scowled. “I agreed to spend time with some of my friends. Besides I don’t want to get stuck in the fields with those sheep of hers. They smell. I want to go shopping, and go on a trip to the seaside. Yvonne promised me I could come with her when she goes next week.”

Now it Mrs. Evans turn to frown. “I do not like you accepting invitations without informing either your father or me first. But if you are really so against going, you can stay here.  Will you go, Lily?”

Lily nodded, pleased about the unexpected invitation. Sure, it bothered her a bit that Petunia wouldn’t come too, but perhaps… She had a marvelous idea. “Mum, could I ask Severus to come with me? His family never goes on a holiday, and I’m sure he would really like it.” She could see her mother hesitating. Mrs. Evans liked Severus Snape well enough, and his mother Eileen was not too bad either, but his father on the other hand... She couldn’t stand the man. Both Mr. and Mrs. Evans had hinted to Eileen that they would help her if she decided to leave the man, but Eileen wouldn’t hear of it. “We’re married in good and bad times”, she’d reply. “I’m sure the good times will come again.” Mr. and Mrs. Evans didn’t think it likely, but decided to just help Severus when needed. “I’m not sure Lily. I would have to ask your aunt if she’d mind having a boy coming over, and we can’t be sure Severus is allowed by his parents.” Seeing Lily’s face turn sad, she quickly added “but I will call your aunt right now and see what she has to say, dear.” Lily smiled and waited in the living room, Petunia huffed and stalked upstairs again, to do whatever it was she was doing there. Lily suspected her of reading fashion magazines.

It didn’t take Mrs. Evans long to complete the phone call. “Lily, you can go over later today with your father and invite Severus along for the trip. Aunt Susan was disappointed that Petunia will not come, but she is very happy to see you bring along a friend. I have told her your father will bring you in two days’ time, so you’d better start packing some of your things and cleaning up your room.” Lily bounced over towards her mother and hugged her fiercely. “Thank you, mum. I will start straight away!” She bounded up the stairs, and not long after that her mother could hear her rummaging around.

Later that day.

“Dad, do you think we can persuade his parents to let him come?” Lily asked. Mr. Evans looked down on her. “I think we can, and otherwise, we’ll just take him, won’t we?” he grinned at her. It was their own little joke; going back to the days that Lily had enjoyed her father reading her a pirate bed time story. She gripped his hand and squeezed gently. Even though she had returned from Hogwarts just last week, she rather looked forward to visiting her aunt, together with Severus. She could show him around the farm, and they could go swimming in the lake or becks that were close by. By now, they had arrived outside the slightly rundown house that was on Spinner’s End. Her father stepped forward and knocked on the door. From inside a voice could be heard shouting “Get the door, you lazy sod!” Lily pinched her lips together, and Mr. Evans frowned. It seemed Severus’ father was home.

The door was opened by Severus himself. He was scowling slightly, until he caught sight of both Lily and her father. “Lily! Mr. Evans, ehm what are you doing here?” he asked. “My aunt Susan has invited us over for a visit this summer. And I was wondering if you wanted to come too?” Lily asked excited, but also slightly nervous. What if Severus didn’t want to come? Right now however, he just looked very surprised.

“Who is it Severus?” a soft feminine voice asked from the hallway. “It’s Lily and Mr. Evans, mum.” Severus answered. The door was opened wider and Eileen appeared from behind. She smiled slightly at the two visitors. “Hello there, what brings you two here?” she asked. Before either of them could reply Severus did so for them. “They’re inviting me for a visit to their aunt.” Only those that knew him well enough could hear the slight disbelief coming through in his voice. Eileen smiled wider, before looking over her shoulder into the living room. “That’s very kind of you. Where does your aunt live, and for how long would the visit last?” she asked quickly. Mr. Evans replied “Susan lives near Windermere, in the Lake District. I would be bringing these two there in two days’ time. They can stay for two and a half weeks, before I pick them up again.”

Eileen wrung her hands slightly. “Two and a half weeks might be a bit long” she started to say, but was interrupted by Mr. Snape coming up behind her.

“So, you’d be willing to take the damn little bastard, huh?” he said. It was obvious he’d been drinking. Mr. Evans subtly positioned himself in front of Lily. Perhaps it was a bad idea to bring her along, but she had been so excited about this that he let her come.

“Yes Mr. Snape, we would be willing to take Severus along. He is Lily’s best friend after all, and they will be well looked after by Aunt Susan.”

Mr. Snape just grunted. He didn’t seem to care if Severus was looked after properly, as long as he was away from the house, that stupid sulking boy with his freaky powers. “Go ahead and take him then. In fact, you can take him tomorrow already; get him out of my hair.” With that, he turned around and walked back into the living room.

Eileen and Severus both looked surprised. Then his mother smiled again and agreed. “I will send him over tomorrow with his stuff. I’m sure you will have a lovely time at the Lakes.” Mr. Evans agreed, and both he and Lily walked home again in silence.

Two days later.

Lily and Severus had their bags packed for the holiday. After some debate, they had decided to bring their Hogwarts homework with them; after all they had to finish it sometime.  By now it was time to get into the car and make the few hours journey to Troutbeck, which was the small village near Windermere, where Aunt Susan lived. Mr. Evans would stay the night, so he could catch up with his late brother’s wife, and he would drive back the next day.

Petunia had gone to visit a friend, so she wasn’t there to wave them off, but Severus didn’t care. He never liked Petunia, and she never liked him. Only Lily was sad that her own sister would be so mean. Mrs. Evans was waving from the doorway, and then they were off. Both children didn’t mind sitting quietly in the car, and Severus rather enjoyed looking at the changing landscape.

After a few hours the hills seemed to become higher, and the grounds greener. It seemed they were nearing their destination.

“Look children, we will enter Windermere in about five minutes.” Mr. Evans said.

Curious Severus looked out of the window. He noticed some large houses on the left side of the road, in the characteristic grey stone with a slate roof on top. “Those people must be very rich to be able to afford such houses” he murmured.

Mr. Evans agreed “yes, but quite a few have been turned into hotels or guest houses, so it can be deceptive.”

Severus just nodded.

After several more minutes they came at a small roundabout, where Mr. Evans turned right up a smaller lane. “This leads further into the valley, and on a side road is Troutbeck. Then we just have to take the right exit straight onto the driveway of Evan’s Farm.” Just over a small stone bridge there was a lane on the left leading up the hill. Mr. Evans drove up the road, where Troutbeck was situated nearly at the top. He passed through the small village, which consisted of a post office and a pub. Then he turned right onto a long driveway.

“How big is this farm?” Severus asked.

“I think it’s about 16 acres” said Lily. “Quite a lot of the land is down in the valley, where Trout Beck runs through, but she also owns quite a few fields that are further up the hill. It takes at least five more minutes to reach the actual house.”

Impressed Severus was quiet. And it was indeed around five minutes before he could see the house. It was a two storey building, made of the traditional grey stone with the slate roof. It had a bay window on the left side, with a similar bay window above it on the first floor. The other windows looked out over the fields in front of the house. There was a large stone barn next to the house, and in front was a courtyard where they could park the car. A border collie came running up to them once they opened the door.

“Hey Sam!” Lily shouted, and she bent down to pet the dog. He was very happy to see Lily and Mr. Evans again, and he took his time smelling the newcomer aka. Severus.  Severus wasn’t used to dogs, and he didn’t quite know what to do, but once Sam left him alone, he eagerly followed after Lily. Before they could knock on the front door, a side door was opened and a small delicate looking woman came rushing out.

“There you are! I’ve been expecting you for the last half hour.” She was smiling broadly when she said this, so she couldn’t be too annoyed. “Hello dear” she murmured when giving Mr. Evans a big hug. “And how you have grown my dearest Lily”, smiling she embraced the red headed girl. Severus wasn’t sure what she would say about him, in his old ill-fitting clothes that were obviously second hand, and his slightly greasy hair. “And you are Severus, the very good friend of my lovely niece.” Aunt Susan looked at him, and gave him a gentle hug, which surprised Severus, but he soon relaxed. This woman looked as if she wouldn’t hurt a fly, and she was only a head taller than he was.

“Hello ma’am, thank you for letting me stay here as well.” He said.

“It is absolutely no bother, dear. And please, its aunt Susan, not ma’am. Now come along you three, let’s put your bags away and I will show you your rooms.” She led them into the surprisingly bright house from the side door. They walked through the boot room into the hallway and took a staircase upstairs. She pointed out the bathroom as they went along, mostly for Severus’ benefit. “I’ve had this installed two years ago, as I was getting sick and tired of using an outhouse or the old downstairs bathroom. This is much easier and more comfortable. Now, Lily you can still use the bedroom that you stayed in last time, here on the right. I know you like looking out over the valley. And Severus, this will be your room during your stay. I didn’t know what you would like, so I gave you the room that looks out over the hills and garden at the back of the house.” She opened up a door on the left and led him in. The room was a comfortable double, with a single bed along the wall, a desk and chair, a wardrobe and a large window with the lovely view she just told him about. This room was so much nicer and even bigger than his own bedroom; Severus just knew he was going to enjoy his stay here if for no other reason that this bedroom.

“Thank you, aunt Susan.” He added after a slight hesitation. The bright smile she returned let him know this was the right answer.

It would be several more years before Severus Snape would meet Aunt Susan again. Unfortunately the occasion would not be a happy one. Severus would often remember the time he spent in the Lake District as one of the happiest holidays he’d ever had. Lily and he had helped with the sheep, had gone fishing on Lake Windermere, go tramping through the valley and up towards the top of The Tongue, lazing around near Trout Beck and play with some of the other children in the village. The tricky moment had come when Aunt Susan had seen their homework, and wondered just what sort of school made you write with quills and on parchment. They had decided to tell her about magic and Hogwarts. Aunt Susan had loved it, and the children had delighted in telling her about the hidden world. Now however things had changed. Severus had ruined his friendship with Lily. They had both graduated from Hogwarts, and Lily had been married to that awful Potter boy a few months before. And now here they were, gathered in the cemetery.

Severus was all the way back, on the outside of the crowd. He didn’t want to be seen by either Petunia or James Potter. He wasn’t entirely sure if being seen by Lily would be a good or a bad thing. He could vaguely hear the vicar going on and on about the tragic accident which had taken two good people from this earth, but all he could think about were the kind and loving people that had always tried to help him and his mother Eileen. It had been pure luck that he even knew about the funeral of Mr. and Mrs. Evans.  His own father had passed away last month, after drinking himself in a stupor and never waking up. Not that he cared all that much. Not after his mother passed away a few years ago. But Severus had needed to sort out the house, the dreaded house that was now rightfully his. Having stayed in Spinner’s End to clean it up, he caught sight of a headline in the local paper, when he was going out to the corner store. It had drawn his attention for some reason. ‘Drunkard kills beloved couple’ it had said. On purchasing the paper and reading the article, he had felt sick. It appears that Mr. and Mrs. Evans had been in their car driving back home, when a driver who was completely drunk had swerved into their lane, killing them on impact. The drunken man died later in hospital. There would be no justice for the couple. After he had recovered from the shock, Severus had made inquiries about the funeral. And so here he was, lurking in the back of the crowd.

Once most of the mourners had gone, Severus carefully stepped forward to the freshly dug grave. He had brought with him a white lily and a rose, the two flowers they had loved the most. Dropping them on the caskets, he was about to turn away when a voice came from his right. “I’m glad to see you again Severus. It has been entirely too long.” Even after several years, he still recognized her voice. “Hello Ma’am. I’m also glad to see you, though I wish it wasn’t at this occasion.” She gently squeezed his arm, turning him around. And there she was, Aunt Susan, still small and delicate looking, her hair nearly completely grey, and several age lines added to her face. “What have I told you to call me, young man?” she smiled, although Severus could tell it was slightly forced. “To call you Aunt Susan. But I figured you might not want me too, not after my fight with Lily.” “Pfft, Lily should come to her senses eventually. And she is not my owner, I can decide all by myself who I like or dislike, and who gets to call me aunt. Besides, Sam has never judged a person wrong before in his life.”  Severus managed a small smirk in memory of the Border Collie that had greeted him at the farm. “Is Sam still around then?” he asked her. “No, my dear boy. He passed away last year. But I have one of his sons, called Sammy who is doing fine in his stead. Now come and join me on this bench here.”

She led Severus to a bench that was tucked out of the way, probably meant for mourners to come and sit in the cemetery. “Shouldn’t you be with Petunia and Lily? After all you’re a close family member.” Susan sighed and seemed to pale a little. “I’d better wait for a while before doing so. Petunia would rather not see me at the moment, if ever again. She blames me for this you know.” Severus raised his eyebrows. “How could she do that? I read about it in the local paper, it was a drunk driver who killed them, not you. How could you possibly be responsible for that?” Severus noticed he was getting angry. He’d never liked Petunia and now she was hurting her own aunt. “Well, she feels it’s my fault as they were going home after visiting with me. They’d been over for a few days and were going back home when the accident happened.” Aunt Susan sat in silence again, her face showing just how hard this accusation was hitting her. “I always knew Petunia was an idiot, this just proves it even more.” Severus growled.

Susan put a calming hand on his arm. Slowly he felt himself relax again. She had managed to do the same to him when he was staying on her farm. At one point a ewe had managed to really hurt him, and he had wanted to hurt the stupid animal back. Aunt Susan had just placed her hand on his arm, calming him down. Sometimes he felt that she had a magic all of her own. “Eventually she should realise this as well Severus, but she is just as stubborn as her sister, and it could be several years before she comes to this realization. Just as Lily will eventually patch things up with you dear.” Severus stiffened. “Do you know what I said and did to ruin our friendship?” he quietly asked her. She nodded. “ My dear brother in law told me a while ago. They mentioned the fact that you still had the courage to visit them the summer after it happened. How you had waited until both Petunia and Lily had gone for the day, and then showed up on their doorstep nearly in tears.” Severus tried really hard to control himself, but could feel his cheeks heating up slightly. He had been desperate for Mr. and Mrs. Evans to hear him out; although he’d been terrified they would throw him out of the house on first sight. “They told me the story from both Lily and your perspective, and we agreed the both of you could have handled things differently, but that it was up to you to reconcile. I just hope that with that awful war going on in the magical world you will be able to do so in time.” Severus twisted his head around in shock. “You know about that?!” She just looked at him as if he was the idiot. “Of course I do. Do you honestly think Lily wouldn’t tell us?” Severus just shook his head.

“Now, before I go back to all the people that showed up, I want you to promise me something.” She looked Severus firmly in the eye. “Promise to let me know what is going on in the wizarding world, and promise to keep in touch, just so I know that you’re still alive. I’d like your address too, so I can contact you if I ever need to.” Severus agreed quickly, and wrote down his address at Spinner’s End. “My mail will be magically forwarded to me, so don’t worry about how to send it. If I can I will send you an owl, or otherwise I will use the Royal Mail.” “Good.” With that firm word Aunt Susan stood up. She shook his hand, and then gave him a quick hug. He watched her walking away, towards the gates of the cemetery where he caught a glimpse of Lily’s red hair. Blinking back the tears in his eyes, he softly apparated away.

To say Aunt Susan was angry would be an understatement. In fact, she was extremely angry. It had been bad enough to not learn about Lily and James’ death until six months after it had happened, but to find out that all this time the young boy she considered her grandson, had been living with that awful niece of hers was just unbelievable. She paced angrily around her living room, not quite knowing what to do next. Then she stumbled and only just managed to catch herself on the table. “Better sit down Susan” she said to herself “you’re not getting any younger.” Then she snorted softly. Great, now she was talking to herself. Before you know it old age really caught up with her. Even though she was still very angry, she decided it would be better for her health to just sit down for now.

Susan thought back to four years ago. She had known Lily and James had gone into hiding, as they had told her so themselves. She also knew that it involved some complicated spell work she would never understand. The one thing she did know was that she could not keep in touch with her niece and the young boy that she considered to be her grandson. And she missed them very, very much. Then, sometime in April she got a letter from Severus. In it he stated that he was sorry for the loss he caused her, and for the damage he’d done. Of course, she had no idea at first what he was talking about. But when Susan read the rest of the letter –or perhaps confession was a better word- she had turned pale and had nearly fainted. Severus told her how he had overheard a prophecy (she had snorted in contempt at this bit) and told that creepy dark wizard Voldemort (really what sort of name was that anyway?) about it. Then Severus wrote how he eventually realized this prophecy could potentially harm Lily –she noticed he didn’t write much about James or Harry- and how he had gone to Dumbledore who asked him to spy. Really, spy! As if Severus shouldn’t have gotten the hell away from that dark wizard, the other old wizard made him go back and spy. If she ever saw that Dumbledore man, she would have a thing or two to say to him.

Susan forced her wandering mind back to the letter that had come to her. Severus then told her how he was sorry that it was partially his fault Lily and James had died. This had really shocked her. She hadn’t known about this. When had this happened? She had quickly scribbled back a reply asking for when and where the funeral was going to be, and could Severus please pick her up if it was very far away.
The reply Severus had sent her took some time to come. In fact, it was almost two weeks later before she heard anything from him again. In his letter he explained that he was now a teacher at Hogwarts and hadn’t been able to redirect his mail yet. He then apologized profusely stating that he thought she already knew about it, as Lily and James had been buried six months before. Susan had been so angry at the wizarding world for forgetting to inform one of the last living members of Lily’s own family and for Severus’ role in their deaths that she hadn’t written anything to Severus in months, no years. The shock hadn’t been too good for her health either, as the doctor told her she was having some heart problems. Enough of a problem to relax slightly with all the work on her farm, and perhaps come in for a checkup a bit more often. Grudgingly she had obliged.

Over the years she had hired some decent families to work for her on the farm. They managed all the sheep and land, whilst she still owned it. She had changed her will after realizing Lily had died. She had to change it once before after Petunia had made it clear she didn’t really like sheep or the farm. Now Harry was the sole benefactor of the farm. She had always figured that little Harry was growing up nicely with his godfather, this Sirius Black that she hadn’t met. She knew that this had been Lily and James’ plan, as she was already getting on in years. According to Lily, Harry’s godmother Alice would keep an eye on them both. But now Susan had received another letter –again sent by Severus- that had made her realize little Harry was not growing up with his godfather or mother at all! In fact, he had been staying at her niece’s house. She shuddered slightly. Goodness knows what Petunia did with a magical child. Petunia had cut of contact with Lily because of magic after the death of their parents, something Susan still could not comprehend. How could she just cut of her own family? Then again, she hadn’t contacted Susan either in years. And it wasn’t as if Susan was magical.  

Severus had bashfully enquired in his letter if she would ever forgive him, and how was she handling life with a young boy. Susan realized that she had better forgive Severus if she wanted to keep up to date of the happenings in the wizarding world, and that really, leaving the young man to suffer for several years was quite enough. But the fact that he enquired after Harry in his own roundabout way made her realize Severus thought she was looking after the child. After having come to this conclusion, she had quickly deduced that Harry lived with Petunia. If he had been left in the wizarding world, Severus would have known about it after all. Susan finally decided on the action she wanted to take. She called her solicitor, Mr. Johnson. His father had been the Evans’ solicitor for years before finally retiring two years ago. His son had taken over, and was doing a wonderful job. In fact, he and his father were good friends of hers.

“Mr. Johnson speaking. How may I help you?” She sighed in relief; good he was at his work. “Peter, it’s me, Susan. I need your help. Can you come over to the farm shortly?” Peter knew something serious was up if she asked him to come to the farm on such short notice, and replied “Of course. I don’t have any appointments this afternoon, so I will come in about thirty minutes.” “Good” she said, and uncharacteristically she hung up. As quickly as she could she climbed the stairs and started packing a small bag. “Better get me some extra clothing, although I’m not sure how long I can stay there. Hmm, my purse and my medication too.” Mumbling to herself, Susan was finished in no time at all. Luckily for her, it turns out Peter Johnson was quick too, for as she was climbing down the stairs she heard him enter the kitchen. “Susan! I’m here. Where are you?” Just as she was about to call him, he entered the living room and spotted her at the bottom of the stairs. He took in the small bag she carried, and the slightly pale look on her face.

“Ok, tell me what’s going on. But you’d better do it sitting down in your favorite chair whilst I get you a cuppa.” Smiling slightly she did as he suggested. “It’s about little Harry” she stated bluntly. “Harry? The son of Lily?” She nodded. “I just found out he is not living with his godfather or -mother, but most likely with my niece, Petunia Dursley. And I can’t help but worry as to the life he lives there.” Peter frowned. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but if he lives there, why hasn’t she ever told you this, or called you or something?” Susan frowned. “I don’t know. For some reason she has cut not only Lily but also myself out of her life. I do know that Lily and James never planned for their little boy to go to Petunia. So how he ended up there I do not know. I want to go there as soon as possible and visit him. If I call ahead Petunia will just leave or make up some sort of excuse not to see me, but if I show up at the start of the weekend, there isn’t much she can cover up, now is there?”

Peter smirked slightly. “Sometimes you scare me, my dear lady Susan. But I do think it’s a good idea. And I’m assuming that you need someone to get you to wherever it is she lives?” Susan had the good grace to blush slightly. “You know I can’t really travel by train, nor can I drive such long distances.” Peter coughed and mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like “no driving license anyway” but Susan decided to ignore this remark. “So yes, I would be very pleased if you could drive me to Surrey. I have managed to keep up to date with Petunia’s address, so I know where she lives. Though goodness knows why she had to move so far south. It’s as if she even wants to forget she is from more up north.” Peter at least knew when to keep quiet. “Well, if you let me go home and pack a small bag. Hmm, perhaps my wife would like to come along too. A short unexpected trip south would probably please her, especially if I explain what the cause if, and promise to go shopping with her.” He grinned. “Come along then, and let’s go.”

Several hours later in Surrey

“Do you think it’s too late to drop by unannounced Peter?” Susan asked. Even though she wanted to surprise Petunia (and not in the friendly way) she felt that coming by after nine o’clock in the evening may be pushing her luck. “Frankly I don’t see the difference in coming by now or incredibly early tomorrow. You just go over there and see that niece of yours. Tell her you will be back tomorrow to spend the day with young Harry, and in the meantime we will park the car here and call around to see if they have any rooms left.” Peter’s wife nodded and smiled. “I’m sure you’ll manage Susan. And if not, just yell and we’ll be there in a minute.” Susan laughed. “It’s almost as if I’m planning some grand robbery instead of a visit to a young boy.” Then she got out of the car and walked up the path to number four Privet Drive. She could hear the car moving over slightly.

When she rang the doorbell it sounded very loud to her, but that was probably because the rest of the street seemed to be deserted. It took some time before the door was opened, and Susan was just considering ringing the bell a second time, when Petunia herself opened the door. “Hello Petunia. Nice to see you again, considering it has been a few years. Tell me, are you looking after young Harry?” Susan decided to come straight to the point. Petunia at first just looked at her gaping stupidly. Then she seemed to come to her senses. “What are you doing here? And why are you asking after that boy.” She spat the word boy so hard, Susan was immediately suspicious. “I recently found out that Harry was not staying with either his godfather or -mother as Lily and James had planned. Then I realized you must be the one taking care of him. And I want to see him.” Petunia drew herself up. “Oh, really, you come all the way to see her son, but mine doesn’t interest you in the slightest does he?” Susan frowned. “Seeing as how you cut of contact with me before he was even born I do not know how interested I would be in seeing your son. If he behaves just like his father, than no. If he behaves more like your own parents, than yes I would like to see him.”

Petunia kept quiet and skirted the issue. It was clear to Susan however that her son was most likely behaving like his father and mother combined. “You cannot see the boy right now. He is asleep and will be impossible to handle if I wake him up now.” “That’s fine. I will come back tomorrow morning around half past nine to pick him up. I will spend the day with him and return him after tea. Have a good evening Petunia.” And then she turned around and walked to the car. She heard the door close behind her, it wasn’t a slam, but it was close. She smiled, somethings never changed.

The next morning, a very well rested Susan, Peter and Emma were on their way back to Privet Drive number four. They had spent the night in a nice B&B where they would stay for the next two nights as well. The lovely lady who ran the B&B had suggested a large playground with a café and petting zoo to Susan, so she could spend the day with Harry and make sure she wouldn’t get too tired out either. Peter and Emma would drop them off and pick them up after they had finished their shopping trip. “I am looking forward to seeing your grandson for the first time” Emma said. She had never met Lily and James, so only knew them from a few non-magical pictures Susan had kept in her house.

“The last time I saw him was a few days after he turned one year old. They had come by my house, and he was so adorable.” Susan smiled slightly thinking back to that day. Little Harry with his unruly black hair and amazing green eyes had definitely won her over. He could stand on his own by then, but wasn’t quite brave enough to walk anywhere, unless of course his dear dada helped him along. Lily had proudly told her all about the first accidental magic he had performed the day before. It seemed Harry had wanted his cuddly dog to sleep with him, and had summoned it over to his crib from the shelf. Lily had seen it, as she had been coming upstairs to see why he was being so fussy.

Susan pulled herself back to the present. Now was not the time to think back, but to look forward to spending the day with Harry. He would be turning six next month, and she was planning on doing something special for his birthday. “We’re here Susan. Shall I walk with you or do you want to do it alone?” Peter asked. “I can manage on my own, thank you.” And with that Susan opened the car door and walked up to the front door of her niece’s house. Before she could even ring the doorbell the door was opened by a huge man. ‘Vernon’ her mind supplied. He scowled at her and was about to open his mouth, probably to say something rude, but Susan beat him to it. “Just let me have Harry for the day and I will be gone. We will probably stay away until around seven, so he can be in bed on time.” Vernon grunted something and then said to her “you don’t bring him back until tomorrow. Petunia and I have made plans to spend the weekend with our little tyke, and he will just be in the way.” Then he turned around and closed the front door. Susan frowned at the door, wondering what was going on behind it. She didn’t like this one little bit. Through the door she could hear Vernon calling “Boy, get over here right now. You are to leave and we don’t want to see you until tomorrow. You will not do any freaky stuff and you will behave yourself.” Shocked, Susan was about to call out to Peter when the door was opened again. Vernon pushed a small dark-haired boy out of the door and without saying another word closed the door once more. This was how Susan got her first look at young Harry in four years’ time.

His big green eyes were somewhat hidden behind large rather ugly glasses. His black hair was even more unruly than it had been when Harry had been a little baby and eerily reminded her of James. The clothes he was wearing were ridiculously large and baggy and Susan wondered about the financial situation of her niece if this is how she dressed the children. Realizing she was making Harry nervous, she smiled softly, knowing that any discussions with Peter or Petunia would have to be held at a later time. “Hello Harry. It is wonderful to see you again. You certainly have grown a lot over the years. Did Petunia or Vernon explain to you who I am?” Harry shook his head and carefully looked her in the eye, and then he smiled softly. “How do you know me?” he asked her. Gently she lead him towards the waiting car. “Well, I am an aunt of both Petunia and your mother Lily. So basically I am your great-aunt. I hadn’t known that you lived with Petunia otherwise I would have visited you much sooner. When I found out I travelled as quickly as possible to this place and today I can spend the day with you.” She smiled wider. “I am very much looking forward to getting to know you again little Harry. I have missed you very much.” She carefully reached out her hand, and after hesitating only a little Harry took her hand.

“What should I call you then?” he asked her softly. “I would like it very much if you can just call me aunt Susan. That’s what your mother and father called me, and that is what you will do to I hope.” Harry nodded quickly. In his other hand he had a small backpack, presumably filled with extra clothing, pyjamas and a toothbrush. Susan hoped she could arrange this unexpected stay with the B&B, but she didn’t see much of a problem. Her bedroom had an extra bed in there, and Harry would probably behave himself.

Peter had gotten out of the car and opened the doors for them. “Hello there Harry. It’s nice to finally see the grandson of Susan again. I’m sure you will have a lovely day together.” Susan thanked Peter and once Harry was seated in the car explained what had just happened. “They just dumped him on you for the weekend? That is ridiculous. Don’t worry though, I will call the B&B and explain the situation. The lady who runs the place already knows you haven’t seem him in years, and I’m sure she will be accommodating for one night. And if not, then we just find another place to stay for the evening.” “Thank you Peter. I don’t like having to make you go through all this trouble, but Petunia certainly hasn’t changed for the better over the years. Now, we’d better go to this playground, and you will go shopping before the day is over.” Laughing they both got into the car. Susan was sitting in the back near Harry who was looking interested in pretty much everything when they drove away.

“I hope you will like the place I’m taking you to” Susan said. “The lady from the B&B told me it was the most popular playground in the area, and if you like we can go into the petting zoo. We will definitely have lunch in the café though, as I don’t have any food with me.” She laughed lightly, hoping to open up Harry. After all, to him she was virtually a stranger, and she wasn’t used to dealing with young children any more. “You’re really taking me to the playground?” it sounded as if Harry had never been to one before, but Susan felt that she must be imagining this. “Yes I am. And we will stay there until Peter and Emma here, who were kind enough to drive me all the way here, have come back from their shopping.” Harry gaped at the two in the front. “You drove all the way over here? Did you come from very, very far away, like, like Greater Whinging?” to Harry this other town must seem like a huge distance and Susan laughed. Peter replied “Oh no, we didn’t come from Greater Whining, but from even further away.” Harry squeaked. “Even further away? Did it take you days to get here then?” He didn’t understand why the adults were laughing again. “It took several hours and we came from Windermere, which is in the Lake District in Cumbria” Peter explained. To Harry he might as well have said he came from a foreign country. For a boy that had never gone far from his aunt and uncle’s house –at least that he could remember- Windermere was very far away indeed.

By now Peter had managed to find a parking spot opposite the playground. It was already starting to get more busy, so he quickly helped both Susan and Harry from the car. “Have a nice time, and see you later!” he called out. Then he quickly drove off to go to the shoppingcentre Emma wanted him to go.”

Susan held Harry’s hand again when they made their way to the entrance of the playground. Susan paid the entrance fee and they walked in.

Harry couldn’t believe his luck. When aunt Petunia woke him up this morning he had thought he would spend the day doing his usual chores around the house, but instead his aunt made him pack some things in a backpack and told him to be ready to leave after breakfast. Being a good boy he’d done just that, managing to ignore Dudley’s temper tantrum, because the large boy hadn’t had his usual three slices of toast next to his plate. Aunt Petunia made him wait in his cupboard and didn’t tell him why he was to be ready, or where he was going. Somewhat nervous Harry had sat in his cupboard hoping this wasn’t the day he would go to an orphanage. When the doorbell rang he had anxiously tried to listen, but he couldn’t hear things very well inside his cupboard. It didn’t surprise him when uncle Vernon came to open his door, after all the man was hard to miss due to his weight.

“Boy, get over here right now. You are to leave and we don’t want to see you until tomorrow. You will not do any freaky stuff and you will behave yourself.”

Harry quickly nodded and walked over towards the front door. Uncle Vernon grabbed him by his neck and pretty much pushed him out of the door. When Harry was outside, his uncle closed the door, leaving Harry on the front step with a strange lady.

He was a bit scared to look up at her, until she spoke to him in a friendly voice.

“Hello Harry. It is wonderful to see you again. You certainly have grown a lot over the years. Did Petunia or Vernon explain to you who I am?”

The lady sounded nice, even though Harry didn’t know who she was.

“How do you know me?” he risked asking, hoping she wouldn’t be angry at him. After all the first rule in the Dursley household was to not ask any questions.

“Well, I am an aunt of both Petunia and your mother Lily. So basically I am your great-aunt. I hadn’t known that you lived with Petunia otherwise I would have visited you much sooner. When I found out I travelled as quickly as possible to this place and today I can spend the day with you.”

Harry was in somewhat of a shock. A family member he didn’t know about, someone who had known his own mother, and she was taking him away for the weekend! It seemed that sometimes he could be a lucky boy. Looking at the lady he noticed she had a kind smile. Tentatively he smiled back.

“I am very much looking forward to getting to know you again little Harry. I have missed you very much.”

She then reached out her hand, clearly expecting him to hold hers! Wow, his day was off to a great start already. Aunt Petunia never liked it if he wanted to hold her hand, so he had quickly learned to walk by himself. Checking her face, to make sure it was alright, he then took hold of her hand. It wasn’t as soft as he’d imagined, in fact the hand felt somewhat rough in places, a bit like his own hand perhaps. And she had wrinkles on her hand, which Harry thought looked quite funny. Then he realized he didn’t know what to call the lady. Would she be offended if he did it wrong? Better to ask then.

“What should I call you then?” he softly asked her.

When she smiled again and replied “I would like it very much if you can just call me Aunt Susan. That’s what your mother and father called me, and that is what you will do too, I hope.” Harry knew that he would probably love this lady very, very much.

By now they had reached the car and a man was waiting outside holding the door open. Perhaps this was her son, although they didn’t really look alike. But after the man –Peter- introduced himself and got Harry settled into the car, he quickly realized they probably weren’t related. After all, Peter would probably call her mother or something. And if Emma was the daughter she would have used this word. Neither of them did so. Even though Harry was only five (nearly six!) he was quite smart, especially when he needed to figure people out. It was an important skill to learn when living with the Dursleys, after all if he could gauge their mood, he knew when to stay out of the way or when he could risk asking for something.

Harry had been amazed these people had driven their car for several hours just to see him, and he vowed to remember this always. Of course, as a young boy he was eventually more interested in the playground they were heading too. It was a pretty new one with an interesting concept.

Once he and aunt Susan had gotten out of the car and inside the playground his eyes grew wide. There was so much to see and do in here, where would or could he possibly start? His newly found aunt must have seen the look on his face, as she then said.

“Let’s go and have something to drink inside the café. We can then have a look at everything you can do here.”

Harry just nodded. They made their way to a building that was on the side of the playground. Strangely enough it was much, much bigger on the inside than it appeared on the outside.

“Oh, what’s all this then?” his aunt asked.

A kind lady that worked at the playground overheard her, and came to answer the question, recognizing a customer slightly out of her debt. “Hello madam, and you, young man.”

Harry was blushing slightly at being called a young man. This lady was also very nice.

“Am I right in saying this is your first time coming to our playground?”

Aunt Susan and Harry both nodded.

“Let me explain things then, to help you out. As you can see we have a large outdoor play area, not just with all the swings, seesaws, monkey bars etc.  but we also have several large trampolines and a track where you can either cycle with one of our bikes, or you can get on a go-cart, which is easier for you to handle as it’s got four wheels instead of two. Knowing the British weather, we also have a very large indoor play area with inflatable obstacles, slides, and area for very young children and some more challenging play things for the older children. There is the café in a central position, so the children can play as everything is enclosed, and you can enjoy a cup of tea or coffee. Outside we also have the petting zoo that you’re allowed to go into, and if you like you can buy some food for the animals at the café. Once you’re a few years older, we also have a tree climbing obstacle course, but that’s really for kids aged 8 or older. Oh yes, toilets are also provided in the hallway beside the café. I think that’s everything we have. Do you feel you can find your way now?”

Aunt Susan looked slightly overwhelmed, and so did Harry but they nodded anyway.

“Thank you, dear, “ aunt Susan said.

The lady smiled and walked away to clear a few tables. Harry followed Aunt Susan to a table and sat down after she did.

“Well Harry, I believe we should be able to enjoy ourselves for several hours in here, don’t you think so too?”

“Yes Aunt Susan. I think so. There is a lot to do in here I think.” Harry was looking around; he really wanted to go on the slides, or maybe the swings. The ones indoor were made of rope and had old tires tied to ends. The ones outside looked like some sort of birds nest, and he could see children actually laying down in them. It all looked so exciting. He was quite keen to try out the go-cart too.

“Would you like some lemonade, Harry? And perhaps a chocolate biscuit to go with it?” his Aunt asked him.

Harry smiled at her. “Yes please, I really like chocolate biscuits.” Not that he had a lot of opportunities to try them, because if he wasn’t careful Dudley would eat his share, if aunt Petunia even gave him anything. And lemonade, he only had that at school once because the school had celebrated the birthday of the principal this year.

His aunt went to the counter and ordered their snacks and drinks. When she came back she gave Harry his lemonade in a tall glass which even had a funnily shaped straw in it. The chocolate biscuit was very big, and Harry wondered if they would share it. But then he noticed aunt Susan had her own biscuit too.

“Eat up Harry, and after that you can go and play.”

Harry didn’t need telling twice and enjoyed every bite and every drop of it. In between sips and bites he kept looking around, trying to decided where he would start. How could he pick something, and would he be able to do everything he wanted today?

Aunt Susan laughed at his face. “Relax Harry. You will have plenty of time to try everything out today, and we will have lunch here too. I don’t think Emma and Peter will be back before three at least. Emma rather likes shopping after all.”

“Okay aunt Susan, but it’s just very hard to decided where I want to start. That’s all.”

Aunt Susan smiled in that lovely way again, and reached out to pat his hand. “I know, Harry. Why don’t we start outside, as the sun is shining and it’s dry. Perhaps we should start all the way at the back of the playground and work our way towards the café. By the time we want lunch we’ll be very close by after all.”

His aunt sure was smart. That was a brilliant idea, and also meant that Harry could start with the go-carts he’d been told about. So grabbing their stuff they walked all the way to the back where there was a nice circuit you could ride. It even had pedestrian crossings, roundabouts, crossroads, traffic lights and everything. Like a real street, except then as a playground. Some larger kids were riding bicycles, but Harry picked a go-cart and after aunt Susan helped him adjust the seat so he could reach the steering wheels and the pedals, he started pedaling around the track. This was great! Aunt Susan even decided to join in by crossing at the pedestrian crossing, so Harry had to wait for her, or she would press the button at the traffic lights. When they turned green Harry tried to go fast very quickly, but it was pretty difficult. Harry and Aunt Susan stayed on the circuit for quite a while, until it got busier. Harry saw that one of the little girls was waiting for a go-cart and having sore legs, decided she could have a go.

“That was very kind of you,” said his aunt, when they were making their way to the swings that looked like a birds nest.

“I just thought she looked as if she wanted to have a go, and my legs were getting tired.”

“Still, not everybody would have even noticed her” Aunt Susan sounded proud.

Once Harry climbed on the swing, he lay down on the roped that formed the nest. His aunt started pushing the swing, and Harry enjoyed it very much. Aunt Petunia never pushed his swing if they were in a park. It was always Dudley who got the attention, unless of course Harry had done something wrong.

After the swing, Harry had a go on the monkey bars, but found them a little scary, so after that they made their way back to the café, where aunt Susan ordered them both lunch. It came in a brightly coloured box for Harry, and contained two sandwiches with cheese, tomato and cucumbers. There was also a small red apple, a fruit drink, a small biscuit and a surprise! The surprise was wrapped in plastic, so Harry couldn’t see what was on the inside, but he sure was curious. Aunt Susan had a grilled cheese sandwich, an orange juice, apple and a small biscuit too.

“You can open the surprise after you’ve finished your sandwiches.” His aunt said.

Eating the sandwiches was no trouble at all for Harry. They tasted great, and he was rather hungry after playing so much. He even ate his apple in one go, before trying to open the plastic. This was very difficult for his small fingers, and eventually Aunt Susan managed to open it. Inside was a little plastic figurine of a dragon. Carefully Harry traced the shape with his fingers. The little dragon was a dark brown with some golden hints of color on his belly and under his wings. It was about the size of his palm and it would be wonderful to play with.

“Shall I keep it in your bag for now Harry? That way we won’t lose it here in the playground.”

Harry nodded and gave her the small dragon. He watched as she put it in his old backpack, knowing he could probably play with it tonight.

“Now then, do you want to feed the animals in the petting zoo, or do you just want to pet them?”

“Could we please just pet them aunt Susan. I don’t want them all to come over like they did with the other boy we saw.” Just before coming in for lunch they had passed the petting zoo where a boy was feeding the animals. Unfortunately the young goats he was trying to feed were all coming over at the same time and had pushed the boy over and then grabbed the bag of food. The boy had been crying, and his mother had quickly taking him out of there. Harry didn’t want the goats to push him over too!

So, in they went to pet the animals, and Harry decided it was very nice. The goats obviously had enough to eat by now, and let him pet them without trying to push him over. But Harry really liked the small and very soft rabbits. He had even lifted one up and held it in his arms! The rabbit had floppy ears, and was brown and white colored. Harry loved it very much indeed.

“Too bad aunt Petunia doesn’t like animals, or we could have had a rabbit too.” Harry said to his aunt.

“As it happens, I have a farm with quite a lot of animals there. I have a lot of Herdwick sheep, and some of the children of my farm workers have their own rabbits as well. Then there’s the Border Collies that need to herd the sheep and some cats to keep the mice away.”

Harry could hardly believe it. This Aunt Susan was so different from his aunt Petunia. And to have a farm, and so many animals. How he wished he could live there.  

“Perhaps you can come and stay sometime, alright Harry? I do need to arrange it with Petunia, as I can’t just take you with me without asking.”

This pretty much crashed Harry’s hopes of ever seeing her farm. Aunt Petunia wouldn’t agree if it meant that Harry would be enjoying himself. Of course, he conveniently forgot that she had let him go on this outing.

After the petting zoo Aunt Susan said she was getting a bit tired, and took up a table at the café from which she could easily see the indoor playground. Harry went and played on the swings inside, took a turn on the trampolines (which had inflatables around it so you always landed softly) and eventually was too tired to do anything else. That’s when he made his way to his aunt. And it was also around the time they saw Peter waving at the entrance of the playground. It appeared that this part of the trip was now over with. And Harry couldn’t be happier. This was truly shaping up to be a very, very lucky day for him.

That evening a tired, but very happy Susan, came down the stairs to join Peter and Emma in the lounge area of the B&B. Sighing, she lowered herself into a comfortable chair.

“He’s settled in then?” Peter asked.

“Yes, he took a short shower, brushed his teeth, we tried to comb his hair, but that’s a hopeless case if I recall his fathers’ hair, and I told him a bed-time story. He went to sleep quit happily. But goodness, I am tired.” Susan exclaimed.

Emma and Peter laughed. They too were rather tired, as it had been a long day. At first Emma and Peter had wanted to go and watch a movie in the cinema this evening, but they eventually decided not to, as they still had to drive for several hours the next day.

“I very much liked this day, and I am sure Harry loved it too. What did you think?” Susan asked Emma and Peter.

Emma replied: “ I rather enjoyed our shopping trip, I bought several new clothes, and as you noticed, we also bought Harry a few somethings. We also picked out some new furniture for our house, as the old furniture still belonged to Peter’s dad, and we really wanted some furniture that reflected our own tastes. And of course I rather liked our dinner this evening.”

Susan nodded, it had been a nice dinner. When Peter and Emma had come to pick them up, both Harry and Susan had been glad to sit in the car. Arriving at the B&B Emma had surprised the both of them, by presenting Harry with a plastic bag and stating that it was a present for him. Only when Susan had shown Harry her approval of the gift, did he take anything out of the bag. Emma had purchased some clothes that she thought might fit Harry. So he received several new shirts, and two new pairs of trousers. Also included were some new socks and underwear. At Susan’s urging he had tried everything on (well, apart from the socks, they were fine). One shirt was a little bit big, but he would probably grow into it. Amazingly enough the other clothes fit very well. Harry had looked very proud in his new clothes, especially when Susan told him they looked very good, and that he should wear them for dinner.

The lady of the B&B had been very accommodating, and had let Harry stay in Aunt Susan’s room. She even changed the sheets from the flower pattern into one which had cartoons on them. Harry loved this too. Susan had helped him pack his new clothes into the old backpack, and when she was also freshened up, they went downstairs to join Peter and Emma again. The Johnsons had decided to treat the two to a nice dinner in a nearby restaurant that also served up nice children’s menu. By the look on Harry’s face when he entered the restaurant, it had been clear he had never experienced such an outing before. All three adults had been slightly angered by this, but knew there wasn’t much they could do. Petunia was Harry’s legal guardian as far as they knew.

After dinner –Harry had even managed a small ice-cream dessert- they had gone back to the B&B and Aunt Susan had put Harry into bed. She would join him in the room shortly, as she was very tired as well.

“I have decided I want Harry to spend his birthday with me, on the farm. If I can arrange it with Petunia, I would like him to come over for a week or two. It’ll do him good to be out and about, plus the more time spent away from Petunia and her husband, the better off he will be I believe.”

Peter nodded, but Emma frowned slightly. “How do you want to convince Petunia then? From all that you have told me about her, she would probably delight in making both you and Harry miserable by denying you. I think she would actually rather be miserable having him around, than sending him away knowing the both of you will have a good time.”

“That’s actually a valid point” Peter joined in. “I hadn’t thought about that. Perhaps you can try to find out if Petunia is planning a holiday, and then present it as taking Harry out of their hands?”

Susan and Emma both nodded. That was a good idea. “Perhaps I will also need a back-up idea in case that one won’t work. Perhaps we can threaten with child protective services?”

Peter laughed. “I would like you to, but I think that will need to be a last resort. Although, picturing her face when you do so, makes me laugh.”

“When is Harry’s birthday actually? You never told me.” Emma said.

“It’s next month, the 31st of July. He’ll be six then, as he proudly informed me. And he will start learning his letters and numbers apparently. Harry said he’s already started, just to try and showed me by counting the tiles in the bathroom. He came up to 20 and then he got confused, so I just told him he did a wonderful job, and perhaps now was the time to sleep. It worked, as he then went to bed.”

“Let’s go and sleep too, I am much too tired to stay up late today.” With that everyone said goodnight to each other, and they went upstairs. Peter and Emma went into their double bedroom, and Susan carefully opened the door of the room she now shared with Harry. She only put on the bedside lamp on her side, so hopefully Harry wouldn’t wake. It worked, as she could get changed and go to the bathroom while the young boy curled up underneath the blankets just slept on, oblivious to what was going on around him. Finally Susan was in the lovely bed, and when she put out the light she softly whispered “Good night Harry” and went to sleep.

The next morning

After a wonderful breakfast, where everybody ate too much, as is often the case when you’re not eating your regular breakfast, the four left the B&B after thanking the hostess profusely. She had been absolutely wonderful with her tips on where to shop, where to take Harry and even letting him stay there rather unexpectedly. 

They were unsure when the Dursleys would be back home, but decided it would probably be later in the afternoon, which gave them some time to spend together. Instead of going to the playground, Susan, Emma and Peter had decided they would go and visit a castle that was nearby. Normally this would probably not interest a young boy of nearly six, but this case was a bit different. This weekend the castle organized a large tournament. There would be ‘knights’ coming in from all over the country, and they would battle each other. Then there were the children’s game that all children could play, for instance dressing up as a knight, sword fighting (with wooden and plastic swords obviously), a treasure hunt and demonstrations with birds of prey. Harry was pretty much bouncing around being able to do so much cool and fun stuff in one weekend. Normally he would spend the time either in his cupboard, or doing chores in and around the house for the Dursleys. Now he was allowed to join in the fun activities, he got the occasional treat and he had had a sort of sleep over too! He repeated the thoughts of yesterday. He really was a very, very lucky boy indeed.

Susan, Peter and Emma had a great time at the castle too. They enjoyed seeing Harry so excited, but also likes the activities themselves. Peter confessed that he wouldn’t mind a sword fighting lesson either, but quickly backed out when Emma told him this could be arranged, and started to go for the instructor.

Around three in the afternoon they finally came back at Privet Drive. After all, they still needed to drive all the way back to Windermere, and Peter had to go to work the next day. Luckily (or in Harry’s case unluckily) the Dursleys were also back home. Petunia frowned when she opened the door and took in some of Harry’s new clothing.

“Hello Petunia. As you can see we bring Harry back in perfectly good health. He behaved himself very well, and we enjoyed getting to know each other again.” Before Susan could continue, Petunia interrupted.

“Why is he wearing different clothes? You do realize he will just ruin them very shortly.” She said this whilst looking as If she had bit in a lemon.

“Emma gave them to Harry. If you are that worried about Harry ruining his clothes, than you can let me take them along, as I am expecting Harry to stay at the farm for a week or two, next month.”

Petunia looked angry, but Susan cut her off. “Think about it Petunia. You won’t have to deal or even see him for a week or two, and you can enjoy the time that you have with your husband and son. Perhaps you were planning a holiday that you can take?”

Petunia mulled this over in her head. If she said no, they would have to dump the boy at that crazy Mrs. Figgs house, and she would have to deal with both the crazy lady and her nephew. But if she said yes, she could enjoy her holiday without the boy and without Mrs. Figg involved in any way. The downside was that it would please her aunt and the boy very much. What to do…

As it turned out, her husband made the final decision. “What’s this I hear? You would be willing to take the boy of our hands for a few weeks? Done, but don’t come complaining when you have enough. We won’t take him back before his two weeks are up. We can finally have that holiday in Majorca that we’ve been talking about Pet.”

Petunia hadn’t even thought about that bit yet. Then she smiled slightly and said “Very well then, you can have the boy for two weeks next month. You will be responsible for picking him up and dropping him off though.”

Susan had already anticipated something like that, and so she agreed. Behind her back she put a thumb up, to let Peter and Emma know how it was going. “Very well then. I will call you to finalize all the details, as it’s a bit hard to plan ahead for so very long. Can you write down your phone number so I can call?”

Grudgingly Petunia wrote down her number on a scrap of paper, and handed it over to her aunt. “Boy, come here!” she shouted.

Susan tried not to react to that stupid word Petunia used, but it was hard. Couldn’t she even use her own nephews name to call him?

“Harry, we are leaving now, but I will call your aunt to let her know when and how I will be picking you up to spend a week or two on the farm. It will be next month though, so you can start counting down the days, alright?”

She then gave Harry a small but firm hug. He returned it quickly, very much aware of his aunt Petunia looming behind him. Then he went into Privet Drive number four and as Petunia closed the door quickly, Susan slowly walked towards the car.

“She agreed; now let’s go back home and start planning.” Susan said.

Susan had been very busy at home. The day after she came back from Surrey she cleaned out the guest bedroom. Over the years she had used it as a storage area instead of a guest room. Luckily some of the teenage boys whose families worked on her farm were eager to lend a hand in exchange for some extra pocket money. So they did all the heavy lifting and moving, whilst Susan cleaned the place up and provided them all with drinks and lunch.

In the afternoon she had gone out into town to buy some of those sheets that had cartoons on them, because Harry had so obviously enjoyed them at the B&B. Then she made a visit to the local toyshop and bought a few new toys. There should be more toys up in the attic at home, but she could always have Harry help look for them. They could treat it as a treasure hunt or something of the like.

Susan also had a look through her photo albums, as there were quite a few pictures of a young Lily in there, and the few pictures of Lily and James together. Harry would love those as well, she was sure. Eventually she had sat down to rest, as Harry wouldn’t even arrive for another few weeks, but at least the hard work was done for the moment. If she thought of anything else she had plenty of time to get things ready. Tomorrow she would focus on the running of the farm. Most of the lambing season was now over, so she could focus on which fields the sheep would graze for the next little while as the weather got warmer this close to the summer.

The next day Susan had sat down with the families that she hired to help run the farm. The Holmes’ family did all the fencing and repairing the walls, whilst the Thomas’ family mainly looked after the sheep themselves. The Shaw family was a very small family who were a little older by now, and they kept up the buildings on the farm and lend a hand when it was needed, especially during the lambing season and the roundup in autumn. They all helped her keep track of the health of her sheep and made it easy to keep the farm. Susan was afraid that otherwise, she would’ve had to leave the farm some time ago and live in a retirement home, which she was not planning on ever doing! During the meeting she also told them of the planned visit from little Harry and they were all delighted for her. Only the Shaw family actually knew Lily and James, but the others had heard so much about them over the years that they too felt they knew them.

Unfortunately Susan’s happiness was not to last. That evening, as she prepared to go to bed and was just putting everything away in the kitchen she felt a sharp pain in her head. Then she saw the ground rushing up to meet her before everything went black.

A few days later

“I think she’s waking up Emma. At least, that’s what it looks like.”

Susan was wondering where that voice was coming from, and why in the world someone was talking next to her bed. As she tried to open her eyes, she realized that she could not move properly. Distressed she wanted to say something, but that too proved to be difficult.

“Susan? Please stay calm alright? You’re in hospital and have been here for a few days already. Just take your time waking up and let the doctor have a look at you.”

She was quite sure it was Peter who was talking to her, but why would she be in hospital? Hadn’t she just been going to bed at the farm? Finally she managed to open her eyes, and she looked around the room blearily. It definitely looked like a hospital room, and not like her own bedroom a t the farm.

A man came up from the right and started talking to her. Susan decided it was probably best to actually pay attention.

“Hello Mrs. Evans. I am Doctor Rice and I will perform a very quick check-up with you whilst you are awake. “

She tried to tell him he should just call her Susan, as hardly anyone ever called her Mrs. Evans anymore, but found the words didn’t come out of her mouth.

“Mrs. Evans you have had a stroke, which has left your left side paralyzed. This means speech is also very difficult for you. Do not worry too much however; as we will begin your therapy very soon and this will increase your chances of recovery.”

Whilst Doctor Rice was telling her this, he was also prodding and poking her body. She could feel everything on the right, but not much on the left. Sometimes it felt muted, other times she didn’t feel anything. In the meantime her brain was starting to wake up as well and she was getting somewhat frustrated at not being able to reply.

The doctor continued speaking, seemingly oblivious to her growing distress. “Unfortunately due to your fall after you had your stroke, you also broke your right leg. This mean you will stay in hospital a bit longer before we let you go to the rehabilitation center. Everything else however seems to be perfectly fine. Any questions for me at all?”

Then the doctor winced slightly realizing that was a rather stupid thing to ask to someone who couldn’t speak at the moment. “I apologize ma’am. It’s such an automatic question to ask. We will soon arrange something for you so you can make yourself heard. Let me just get your visitors back in and let you enjoy your rest after that.”

The doctor left and in came Peter and Emma. Susan was quite happy to see them even if she couldn’t talk to them at the moment.

Peter and Emma sat down next to her bed and just looked at her for a moment. “You are incredibly lucky that Mr. Thomas came back from the pub late and saw your late was still on in the kitchen at one in the morning. If he hadn’t gone to check up on you, you wouldn’t have been found until the next morning and it might have been too late.” Emma said, tears gathering in her eyes.

Peter nodded. “You were rather cold when they found you. After all, the kitchen floor isn’t a very warm place to be. And we were really worried when you wouldn’t wake up. I am just glad to see you awake right now.”

Somehow she managed to portray her worries about the farm and other things to Peter and Emma with a look.

“Yes, your farm is looked after properly. We’ve closed everything up in the house, and once a week someone will be in there cleaning it up a little. All the families on the farm know what they have to do the upcoming weeks, as you’ve just had that meeting. The only thing we now have to do is inform Petunia that you’re in hospital and see if we can get her to come over with Harry.”

Susan privately thought Petunia would most certainly not do this, but she could always hope. It didn’t look like Harry could stay over anytime soon however. And this made her rather sad, as she had promised the boy a visit, and he’d been so thrilled by her invitation.

“I’ve just had an idea,” Emma said. “At the moment you can’t properly communicate with us because of your paralysis. However, there is nothing wrong with your right hand. Now I saw these wooden boards with letters on them, that way you can point us the letters of the things you want to say to us. And I think it might just be possible for me to take out our old computer and bring it here so you could even type whatever it is you try to make clear.”

Susan tried to smile, but felt it came out rather a grimace with her mouth not fully co-operating. This was a good idea, and it would make communicating everything so much easier. After all, her mind seemed to be working just fine, apart from the tiny defect that caused her to be half paralyzed.

“We’ll come back tomorrow and talk to you then. For now visiting hours are over, alright Susan?”

Peter and Emma squeezed her hand and then they left. Tired, Susan fell asleep quickly.

Harry had been delighted by the visit from his unexpected aunt Susan and he was still on a high several days later when he came back from school. He had carefully worn the new clothing he’d received and didn’t feel like a sloppy person in class. At the Dursleys he was careful not to wear his new clothes as he knew his aunt didn’t like them. He was sure she wouldn’t mind an excuse to get rid of them.

When he stepped foot into the house, he quickly realized his aunt was both happy and upset, a combination that never boded well for him. Silently he put his bag in the cupboard and walked into the kitchen intent on getting some water.

“Boy, get over here.” His aunt said from the living room. Harry quickly obeyed.

“I have received a phone call from that man that was with you this weekend. Peter or something.” Petunia nearly sneered, and Harry wondered why she pretended not to know Peter’s name. His stomach was clenched tight not really wanting to hear what Peter had to say.

“It seems Susan can’t keep her promise after all. I knew she would tire of you boy. Of course she doesn’t want you to come over, so much trouble as you always bring.”

Harry’s eyes widened. He couldn’t come to the farm? Not go to his nice aunt Susan? That was terrible!

“I don’t know why they try to make it such a pitiful story. He talked about how she had a stroke and is in hospital. I know he is lying. It’s her way of taking revenge, wanting for me to travel all the way up there to go to the hospital and taking you along. I told that man I would not do it, and I will most certainly not go through all this trouble just so she can laugh about it!”

Harry felt like crying, either out of happiness or sadness he wasn’t sure. It sounded as if there really was something wrong with aunt Susan, but aunt Petunia would never let him go visit her, that was for sure.

“Stop looking like that you miserable boy. Now what are we going to do next month. After all I have just booked our holiday to Majorca, and you are not invited. I will not cancel my hard earned holiday for a brat like you. Typical of Susan to not think of anybody else but herself.  You had better hope Mrs. Figg can put up with you, or else you might have to stay in the cupboard for all I care!”

Harry just looked at the ground, hoping that the last option wouldn’t happen. He didn’t want to stay in the cupboard on his birthday.

“Hmm, as you are not seeing that woman again I think we can finally get rid of those stupid clothes that they gave you. Boy, get them out of your cupboard and take off the clothes you’re wearing.”

Harry’s eyes widened in panic, she was going to take his nice new clothes. The ones that fit so nicely and that Emma had picked out for him. The clothes he had been so careful and proud of! But he knew protesting wouldn’t work, so sadly Harry went into his cupboard to change into Dudley’s cast offs and take the new sets of clothes to his aunt. When he handed them over she grimaced and dumped them in the bin. Then she threw what was left of yesterday’s pasta all over it, so that his nice looking clothes had pasta sauce all over them.

“Get in your cupboard and don’t get out until Vernon gets home.” Petunia told him.

Harry was glad, as she wouldn’t be around to see the tears in his eyes that started to fall down.

When Vernon came home that evening he was angry, although he too was pretty sure Susan wouldn’t make up a story just to get revenge on Petunia. He was however wise enough not to point this out to Petunia. Luckily Mrs. Figg was able to take Harry for the week they would be going to Majorca, so they could still enjoy their holiday. And that was all Vernon cared about.

Severus was enjoying the quiet of the Great Hall so early in the morning. Tomorrow the school year would end and all children would go home on the Hogwarts Express. He was quite looking forward to it. It would mean that he didn’t have to teach for nearly two months, and after stocking up the hospital wing he could enjoy a well-earned holiday. Just as he was sipping his second cup of coffee to get through the day a house elf came up to deliver an envelope. It was obviously muggle in looks, and addressed to his house on Spinner’s End. Severus sighed, until he realized it wasn’t a bill or anything and that he didn’t recognize the handwriting. Quickly he slid open the envelope, aware of the curious gazes of his two colleagues, Albus and Minerva.

As his eyes took in the words that were written on the paper he paled and then re-read the letter again. Abruptly he stood up and announced “I have to leave. There’s been a family emergency. I do not know when I will return. Albus will you look after my Slytherins today and possibly tomorrow? Once I know more I will contact you.”

And he stood up and quickly exited the Great Hall. Stunned both Albus and Minerva looked at his retreating form. “But I thought his family all died.” Minerva managed to say.

“So did I.” said Albus.

Severus meanwhile was making his way out of Hogwarts to reach the edge of the wards where he could apparate. He didn’t trouble himself with packing any of his things, as seeing Susan was more important. Once he made it through the gates he composed himself, concentrated on the Evans’ farm and with a soft pop he was gone.

Nearly instantly he appeared in a secluded corner of the farm. Susan had helped him pick out this spot, as hardly anyone came there unless they had an urgent need for old tractor parts. He remembered just in time to change his robes into more Muggle looking clothing, and quickly walked towards the main house. The letter, written by Peter the solicitor, had told him to call from the house so he could be picked up and brought to the hospital. Severus wasn’t sure what was wrong with Susan, but for her to end up in the hospital and for him to be called, he knew it must be serious.

At the kitchen door he looked underneath a small pot and removed the key that was always under there. Once in the kitchen he called the number that was mentioned in the letter, and waited anxiously until someone picked up at the other end.

“Mrs. Johnson speaking.” A light female voice sounded.

“Hello, Severus Snape calling. I am at the Evans’s farm right now, I believe your husband sent me the letter and asked me to come here and give you a call. It’s about Susan.”

The lady at the other end sounded relieved to hear him. “Oh thank goodness. We weren’t sure how long the letter would take to reach you, or how long it would take you to get to the farm. I will send my husband to you straight away. He’ll probably be there in about ten minutes, and he will update you on Susan’s condition when you’re on the way to the hospital. By the time you will get there visiting hours will have started, so you have great timing. I expect I will see you later today. I am assuming you do not have a place to stay just yet?”

Severus was a little overwhelmed by this kind woman, but told her that yes, he hadn’t arranged anything.

“Good, you will stay in our guest room then. I will prepare it now. Goodbye.” And with that she had hung up.

Bemused Severus stared at the phone, but quickly hung up once he saw a car coming towards the farm at the end of the drive way. That was the good thing of being in the kitchen. It was positioned just so, that you could always see people coming towards the farm.

He stepped outside and returned the key to his hiding place, before straightening up and trying to look less panicked than he felt. After all, if they had to keep to visiting hours it might not be so bad after all. Wasn’t it true that on the ICU people were allowed to stay longer? He thought he’d read something like that once, although to be fair it had been a long time since he had seen a muggle hospital up close. The last time had been when his mother had fallen ill.

Standing in front of the farm waiting for the car to arrive seemed to take ages, but in reality only took a few minutes. Once the car stopped the door was opened by Peter, a face that Severus felt looked familiar.

“Ah, now I remember!” said Peter. “We played together a few times the year you and Lily came to stay here. I think we managed to swim in the very cold lake once or twice, isn’t that right?”

Severus thought back to that lovely summer and realized he did indeed know this Peter. “Aren’t you the son of Mr. Johnson the man with the gray hair and who always smoked a pipe when he came over?”

Peter laughed, “Yes, I am. Gods that smelled pretty bad didn’t it?”

Severus smirked slightly. “Yes, this is why I still remember it so well.”

They shook hands and Peter gestured to the car. “Best get in so I can fill you in on what’s been going on here. We will go to the hospital and visit Susan, she’ll be pleased to see you, as she insisted on me writing the letter.”

Severus was curious as to what Peter could be referring to, but kept quiet for now. He was also unsure if Peter knew about magic or not. Wasn’t there something about that summer that he should remember as well?

“Before we start anything else, I just want you to know I do know about magic. Lily managed to make a rose grow in a few seconds that summer, and trust me, I will never forget it. Susan has told me that you work as a teacher for the magic school, and that was why I couldn’t just call you on the phone.”

Now Severus remembered. Lily was always doing things like that when they were younger, and even once they had started Hogwarts. Growing flowers was something she enjoyed doing, and Peter had indeed seen it once. They hadn’t been very good at keeping Magic a secret that was for sure. Lucky the ministry wasn’t as controlling as they were now over magic performed during the summer holidays.

“I only received the letter this morning, and I came here straight away. Could you please tell me what happened?”

And so Peter explained about Susan having a stroke and being on the kitchen floor with a broken leg as well. About how she was now –hopefully temporarily – paralyzed on the left side, although doctors thought they saw an improvement in her face. And he told about how they had seen young Harry and Petunia’s reaction on the phone.

Severus snorted. “Her reaction does not surprise me one little bit. She was always jealous over the attention Lily received, and the fact that we had magic and she didn’t. Then there is the fact that Aunt Susan didn’t take kindly to her attitude, and look and behold, she doesn’t like Susan either.”

By now they were nearing the hospital and Peter was busy looking for a place to park his car. Finally he found a spot and they quickly walked inside. As Peter knew exactly where they were going they avoided the queue that was standing in front of the information desks.  Severus became slightly nervous the closer they got to Susan’s room. After all, he had only been exchanging letters with her since a few months again. The last time he had seen her was at Mr. and Mrs. Evans funeral. And now she was affected by a stroke. He didn’t know what to image there, as wizards and witches didn’t have strokes. Their magic protected the brains from damaging in such a way.

Peter softly opened the door to a ward on the second floor. He gestured for Severus to come inside before closing the door behind them.

“Hello Susan. I brought you a guest that you’ve wanted to see quite urgently I believe.”

Peter stepped up to the single bed that was in the room. Susan was facing the door and her sharp eyes lit up when she spotted Severus. She tried to smile although not all of her mouth was working just yet, and held out her right hand in a clear invitation.

“Hello Aunt Susan.” Severus said, and he stepped forward.

Severus had settled down on a chair next to the hospital bed. “It’s good to see you again Aunt Susan” he said.

Susan smiled at him, or at least she tried to. Then she gestured to Peter and Severus noticed he had a computer set up next to the bed.

“We can use the computer to communicate more easily with her. At least you can still use your right side so you can type, right Susan?” Peter addressed Susan at the last bit, knowing she would hate to be talked about while she was right there.

Susan nodded, and reached out with her right hand to the keyboard. It was slow going but she eventually made it clear that she had asked Severus there to ask him something.

“You want me to what?!” he shouted after he read the text she had typed. “Susan, I think that stroke must have addled your brain more than the doctors thought. How can I be responsible for such a task, and with the Potter boy no less?”

Susan had typed that she wanted to change one more thing in her will. Harry Potter was going to inherit the farm already, but she was afraid that if she died while he was still a minor, the Dursleys might get the farm and either sold it, or demolished it and Harry would probably not receive a penny. To prevent this she had created a trust fund for Harry. Severus, Peter and Emma would be the trustees that oversaw everything, with Emma and Peter doing most of the work during the year. But the condition was that both Severus and Harry spent at least four weeks a year on the farm together.

“I don’t see what’s so bad about staying at the farm for at least four weeks a year, Severus. And Harry is a rather sweet young boy, who reminds me of Lily to be honest.” Peter added. He didn’t understand why Severus reacted so strongly. This was a great way to secure the farm for Harry, and with the three of them they could easily manage it until Harry could inherit the whole thing once he turned eighteen. Of course, he rather hoped it wouldn’t be necessary to do this, as he wanted Susan to live a long and happy life, but the doctors had warned them that Susan might be prone to more strokes, or her heart condition could worsen as well.

“But he’s Potter’s son, Potter who was a bully and who strutted around like he owned the place. No good will come of that.” Severus all but snarled. However, he forget for a moment who his audience was, because Susan then managed to tip her cup of water all over him. While Severus was trying to dry his pants without using magic, he looked her in the face and realized her eyes were blazing. She was angry at him alright.

Sighing he settled down on the chair again, and after checking no nurses were nearby, he quickly used a drying charm on his pants.

“Fine, I’ll do it. Perhaps I can salvage the boy from being an arrogant brat like his father.”

Susan was angrily hitting the keyboard. Severus read; ‘He is his mother’s son, and you had better like him! The Dursleys don’t treat him right, that I know.’

Severus closed his eyes in thought and not a little frustration. Rationally he knew he was overreacting, and hadn’t Peter told him in the car how Harry and Petunia had behaved. It’s not like he didn’t know Petunia and her stupid attitudes, but it was just so hard to ignore who the father of the boy was.

“Very well, I will try to remember. When do you have to make the papers?”

Peter smiled. “That’s the easy bit. Most of the will was already written and validated, however, as I am now one of the trustees I can’t change the will, but my colleague can. He has already started a draft and we just need to add an incentive to persuade Petunia to send her nephew of for four weeks, and we are all set.”

“How will you entice Petunia to do that? I am sure she would rather try to get the farm and lands, so she can either sell it or have her holiday home there or something.”

“It appears that Susan’s husband, John Evans, had set up a fund for both of the girls when they were babies. Lily received her money once she graduated from Hogwarts, but as Petunia wasn’t finished with school at that time, she didn’t. Later on she cut contact with Susan, and one of the stipulations was that she keep in touch. So the fund has been sitting in the bank for quite a few years. It’s about £25.000 by now. Of course, to ensure she will let Harry come each and every year until he’s eighteen, she will only receive a part of it yearly, depending on how old Harry is when Susan dies. And I personally hope that will take many more years!” Peter added quickly.

Severus smiled slightly. That would entice Petunia. No need for her to know she could have had that money years ago if only she had kept in touch. On the other hand, it would be fun to remind her of this fact. While Severus was getting lost in the thoughts of Petunia scowling at this news, Susan was slowly nodding off again.

“There is something I will do tomorrow that can speed up the recovery of Susan for a little bit” he told Peter. “I can brew a potion that will work on a Muggle. It won’t heal her leg very quickly, as that would be a bit suspicious to the doctors here, but it will shorten the time she needs to have it in a cast by several weeks. Unfortunately I can’t give her anything for her stroke or heart. Most potions require the patient to have a magical core of their own, plus brain damage is always tricky. Even magic can’t heal everything. But I can provide her with the potion for her leg. I can apparate to Hogwarts and brew it either this afternoon or tomorrow morning. Either way, I will bring it with me tomorrow when I come to visit again, alright?”

Peter stood up and walked with Severus to the exit. “That’s a good idea. I will annoy my colleague and make sure he has the altered will here tomorrow as well, so we can all sign it. I know I’d feel much better with it in place, especially as Susan is not so healthy as we all thought.”

They shook hands, and after looking for a quiet and abandoned corner of the parking area, Severus apparated away, back to Hogwarts.

The Christmas holidays are nearly there

Harry could hardly wait until school was let out for the day. He had been excited ever since his uncle Vernon had picked up the phone earlier in the week. As it turned out, Aunt Susan did want to spend time with Harry! He was asked to come and stay for two weeks during the Christmas holidays, and Peter and Emma would pick him up from school this afternoon. Harry had been able to hear some of the phone call that Uncle Vernon had had, and he was sure Aunt Petunia had lied to him when she said Aunt Susan made up a story about having a stroke. Even Uncle Vernon had been angry enough that he argued with Petunia about it.

“Harry, please pay attention now. Tell me, how much is 3 plus 4?”

Harry forced his attention back on the lesson, but oh, it was so hard to do. This morning Aunt Petunia made him pack some clothes, his toothbrush and a comb in his old backpack. Then she had brought both him and Dudley to school, only telling him to not come back too soon. Harry hadn’t cared that she had fussed over Dudley for ages, exclaiming how they would have a nice family Christmas this year, and wouldn’t Dudley enjoy his stay with Aunt Marge for the weekend, so that she and Vernon could go away for the weekend. Harry knew Dudley only enjoyed it because he knew he would get presents from both his parents and Aunt Marge for staying with her. But Harry was getting his own present; he was going away for two whole weeks!

Finally the bell rang and all the children happily got up to enjoy their Christmas holiday. Harry picked up his backpack and went to wait on the curb outside. When he left the school however he was called over straight away.

“Harry! Here we are. It’s good to see you again.”

Peter and Emma were already waiting for him. Harry smiled and ran up to the couple, enjoying the hug he got from Emma and the handshake from Peter.

“Hello Peter and Emma. I’m very happy to see you too.” He said politely.

They smiled at him and gestured for him to climb into the car. His backpack was put in the back as well.

“All right Harry, it’s going to be a bit of a drive, so we’ll stop a few times along the way for a break, and depending on traffic, we might get some dinner too. Do you need to go to the toilet first, or shall we go?”

Harry shook his head, he’d just been to the toilet, and he was too excited to leave and finally see Aunt Susan again.

“It’s a good thing your school only had a half day today because of the holidays. This way we can hopefully be back so you can still see some of the farm in daylight. You just relax and look out of the window, and we’ll be off.”

They’d been driving for a while now, having stopped once so everyone could stretch their legs and visit the toilet. Harry had been looking at the changing landscape in amazement. He’d never been very far from Surrey, and now the hills were changing, and the roads were quite busy too.

“Harry, how much do you know about what happened to Susan this summer?” Emma asked him.

“Aunt Petunia said she just made up a story and didn’t want to see me anymore. But I think she was really in hospital. Uncle Vernon thinks so too.”

Peter and Emma looked shocked to think that Petunia, a niece of Susan, would go so far as to say Susan would not want to see Harry anymore. It was completely ridiculous. It was good to hear that her husband didn’t believe the woman however.

“Oh Harry. That’s certainly not what happened. Susan was so looking forward to your visit this summer, she’d redecorated the guest room, she was all set for you to come, but unfortunately she suffered a stroke which caused her to be in the hospital. Because of the stroke she also fell down and broke her right leg. There was no way she could let you come, as she spent several months getting therapy to make sure she could live on her own again. When you see her, you will notice that she’s not able to walk very well anymore. Also, when she is tired or doesn’t focus enough her speech might become a little slurred. The families that work for the farm have set up a system to check in on her, and we come by quite regularly as well, so she is fine right now, but you need to be aware she isn’t quite the same as she was this summer.”

Harry looked worried and slightly stricken. “What is a stroke” he asked.

“Sorry Harry, I didn’t realize you might not know this. A stroke is a bleeding in the brain. The cause for it can vary, but don’t worry! The doctors and all of us keep a close eye on her. You just enjoy your holiday with her, all right?”

Harry nodded, feeling somewhat relieved and eventually fell asleep in the car.

After a while he was woken up by Emma. “Harry dear, we are just about to enter the farm. Will you not wake up and have a look, it’s dusk but you can still see some of it.”

Slightly sleepy Harry started looking around. It appeared they had entered a valley, because he could see the outline of hills on either side. The road was somewhat narrow and bendy. Then they took a turn to the right. The road became even narrower.

“This is where the farm starts Harry. There are fields on either side of the driveway, but we don’t have any sheep in them at the moment, as it’s winter.”

Harry looked over the hedges and stone walls into the empty fields. He thought he could see a stream on the right side, but he wasn’t sure as it was getting darker. Too bad it was winter and it got dark so early, otherwise he would have a lovely view, he was sure of it.

“Where is the house?” he asked after several minutes of driving. It seemed to take a long time before they were there.

“The house is a few more minutes away from here. The farm is rather large, so to get to the house we need to pass quite a few low lying fields first.” Peter replied, his attention on the darkening road.

Wow, Harry was very impressed. His aunt must be very rich to have such a long driveway. Most people with a lot of money had long driveways he had decided, after having watched several movies in the past.

Finally he could see lights on in the distance and a house started to form in the darkness. Curious he was wide awake by the time they pulled up to the farmhouse. The door was pulled open as Peter turned of the engine, and Aunt Susan came walking out of the house.

“Aunt Susan!” Harry cried happily. He struggled to undo his seatbelt, until Emma helped him. Then he flew out of the car and into Susan’s arms.

“Oh Harry, I’ve missed you so much little one.” Susan said to him, while she gave him a big hug.

Harry carefully squeezed her back, noting that she did seem a little wobbly sometimes. He’d best be extra careful with her he decided.

Then Aunt Susan pulled back slightly to look at his face. “You have grown a bit over the last few months Harry. And you are looking very happy. Are you hungry, because I made dinner for all of you.”

She then led the three into the house. Harry was trying to take it all in, the wooden beams on the ceiling to many windows and the rooms they passed, but it was very difficult because well, he was only a little boy who was tired and hungry.

Aunt Susan let them into the dining room, where a table was set for four. There was a small fire going in the fireplace, making it nice and comfortable to be there.

“Do you want any help, Susan?” Emma asked her, whilst helping Harry into a seat.

“Yes please, if you could put some of the dishes on the table that would be fine.”

Emma carried a few of the dishes in, and helped serve everyone. They had a lovely bangers and mash meal, and Harry ate quite a lot. For dessert they had a small pudding, which Aunt Susan confessed, she had bought in the supermarket as she was no good at making pudding. Grinning Harry had eaten the whole piece he received.

When the adults were enjoying a cup of tea, Harry was slowly starting to nod of. He’d hardly slept the night before, as he was so excited, and after travelling for so long he was ready to go to bed. Noticing this, Peter offered to carry him upstairs, and slowly following them was Aunt Susan, who still had some trouble with the stairs. She refused however, to have a chair lift installed.

Peter brought Harry to the guest room and was laying Harry down, when he woke up enough to go to the toilet first, brush his teeth and put on some pajamas.

“Harry, where are the pajamas we gave you this summer. They were slightly too big, so you should still fit them?” Aunt Susan asked.

Very sleepily Harry didn’t realize what he said when he replied “Aunt Petunia was angry and didn’t like my new clothes. So she threw them inna bin and put pastasauce over it.” Then he turned over and fell asleep.

Susan was ready to blow up at her niece, but calmed down enough to pull the covers over Harry’s sleeping form and carefully walk out of the bedroom. Peter, Emma and herself would discuss this when their fourth guest would come on Christmas day.

Harry was enjoying his holiday immensely. Every day there had been something new to discover and explore. The first day he had spent indoors because of the rain that came down, but after Aunt Susan had presented him with his own set of wellies, a sturdy winter coat and an overall that he could put on over his clothes, he had spent nearly every day since then outside. He’d gone feeding the sheep with Mr. Thomas and his sons (having a favorite sheep he named Molly), played with the youngest daughter of the Thomas’s who was about his age, went into Windermere with his aunt to do some shopping, met the locals in Troutbeck when he was allowed to join Mrs. Shaw up the hill to the post office and local shop, baked cookies with Emma and Susan and generally kept himself busy.

This morning when he woke up he felt strange and it took him a while to realize the cause. Today was Christmas Day! Happily he jumped out of bed and opened the curtains to look outside. Imagine his surprise when the world outside was white! It had snowed, in fact, it was still snowing. Harry pressed his face to the window looking at the farm in awe. It looked magical with the white snow clinging to the roofs, and lying down on the fields. He couldn’t wait to go outside, and maybe build a snowman!

He trotted into the bathroom for a quick wash and picked out some of his new clothes. He pulled on his nice warm socks, a woolen sweater Mrs. Thomas had knitted for him and his sturdy trousers. The socks and sweater were made of wool that came from the farm, so Harry always felt he was carrying Aunt Susan close to him.

Harry pulled on his house slippers and walked down the stairs. He had to be careful as they were a bit steep for him still.  Judging from the smells coming from downstairs Aunt Susan must be up already making breakfast. When he walked into the kitchen, he saw that he was right.

“Good morning Aunt Susan. Do you need any help?” he asked her.

“Good morning Harry. I don’t need any help, especially not when we will be eating in the living room. Merry Christmas, dearie.” Aunt Susan gave him a hug.

Harry liked her hugs, they always made him feel safe and very loved. “Merry Christmas Aunt Susan. Why are we eating in the living room? You always say that we should eat at the table.”

Susan laughed. “Well, I can hardly keep you from your presents, now can I?”

He looked at her in amazement. Presents? For him? Having been told over and over again that Santa Clause did not exist, and that the Dursleys wouldn’t buy him anything, he hadn’t expected presents this year either. Clearly he was wrong.

“Come along Harry, let’s take our plates and sit down. I already put down a mug with hot chocolate for you on the side table.”

Harry followed his aunt into the living room, his plate filled with some toast, a lovely and warm bun, scrambled eggs and some jam to the side. Inside the living room a Christmas tree had been placed in the corner next to the fireplace, which was lit right now. Harry had been overjoyed when Aunt Susan had asked him to help her decorate the tree. Even more wonderful had been the moment Mr. Thomas had lifted him up so he could place the star on top of the tree.

Now, on Christmas morning with his breakfast in his hands, the tree seemed even more wonderful than before. Underneath the tree was a small pile of gifts, and Harry was rather eager to see who they were for.

“Now sit up on the couch, and eat some of your toast and scrambled eggs. If you have finished two pieces, you can start opening presents, alright?”

Harry agreed quite readily. He loved eating breakfast with Aunt Susan so it was no hardship to wait a little longer for a present. Aunt Susan however noted that the two pieces of toast as well as the scrambled eggs had never gone down so quickly before.

Harry went to sit next to the pile of gifts, looking questioningly up at his aunt. “Where do I start?” he asked her.

Susan smiled and said “Just take one and read the label. We’ll see whose it is then.”

Harry took out a present wrapped in gold colored paper and read the tag. “It’s for you” he said and handed her the present.

Susan opened the present carefully and found a book that she had wanted for quite some time. The next present was for Harry, and it turned out to be a book as well. The book was about King Arthur and Merlin. And so on it went, one present for Susan, one for Harry. The biggest present Harry received was a LEGO Castle. His eyes lit up when he saw it, and Susan laughed at his face.

“Yes you can build it during the holidays. We’ll put it up in your room when it’s time for you to leave, alright?” Smiling Harry continued handing out the presents. There weren’t many left, a drawing for Susan that Harry had made, and two presents in dark green wrapping paper.

Susan loved the drawing Harry had made for her. It showed Molly the sheep, the house and two figures who were obviously supposed to be Harry and her. Susan was sure she had a frame somewhere in the house, and planned on framing it and putting it up somewhere.

“There is one present left for each of us.” She said. With that she handed Harry one of the packages with the green paper.

Harry watched as she opened her first. It contained a box, and inside the box was a nice bottle with something in it. It didn’t look very nice, Harry admitted, but Susan seemed pleased with it.

Then Harry opened up his own present. It contained a book that looked old. It was called ‘Tales of Beedle the Bard’. Harry wondered what it was about.

“Oh that is a lovely present Harry. I think Severus gave you the copy he lent to your mum when they were young.”

Harry had been told that the fourth guest they had been expecting was unable to come. Harry had been amazed to learn that a man named Severus knew his aunt, had been friends with his mum when they were younger and now teaches at the boarding school they had attended together. Severus was supposed to come and stay a week, but unfortunately a lot of his students had decided to spend their Christmas at the school, so he could not leave either. Harry was sad about this, as he hoped the man could tell him a lot of stories about his mum, stories Aunt Susan didn’t know about. On the other hand, he now had a book that his mum had also read! Harry decided he’d make a nice drawing for Severus too, and Aunt Susan could then send it to the man.

After cleaning up both breakfast and all the wrapping paper, Harry was slightly torn about either playing inside and build his castle, or going outside and making a snowman. The decision was taken out of his hands, when Peter and Emma arrived and Peter jut put him outside.

“I can’t believe you still haven’t started a snowman. So let’s get to it.” He said, and the both of them got started.

Somehow the snowman turned into a snow family, and a snowball fight, but that was okay too. Finally Harry was tired, and getting a bit cold, so luckily Emma called them in for hot drinks. They settled in the living room again, where Harry got his second mug of hot chocolate, but this time they also contained marshmallows. The day before he had helped Emma bake cookies, and they each got one to nibble on. There would be no lunch, as Christmas Dinner was a big meal and would start a little earlier than normal.

After warming up Harry started on his castle, in a corner of the living room where it wouldn’t be in the way. His feet were close to the fire, and as he was carefully making his way through the instructions the castle took shape before him. It was only half finished when he was called to freshen up for dinner. Harry was sure that tomorrow, he could finish the castle.

He quickly went upstairs for a wash and changed into the slightly fancier sweater and trousers he’d gotten. Then he went to the dining room. Emma had helped set the table and there was a nice red tablecloth on it, candles in the middle and plates set out for the four of them. Harry moved to his own place and watched as the soup was brought in. It was a hearty vegetable soup, as Aunt Susan didn’t keep with those fancy Christmas dinners that would still leave you hungry. After the soup followed the traditional roast, with vegetables, mashed potatoes and gravy sauce. Emma had put a little cranberry sauce on his plate, but Harry didn’t really like it. To finish the dinner they each got a piece of Christmas pudding.

Filled to the burst, Harry enjoyed sitting on the couch afterwards, leaning against Aunt Susan. She was softly talking with Emma and Peter, aware that Harry wouldn’t stay up much longer. When she realized he was about to nod of on the couch, she woke him up enough so he could say goodnight to everybody, and get himself upstairs. She tucked him in, and leaving the door slightly ajar, she went back downstairs.  

It was only half an hour later that a knock sounded at the front door. Surprised the trio looked at each other, not expecting anyone at this time of day. Peter went to the door and opened it a little. When he saw who was on the other side, he opened the door wide and grinned. “Come on in Severus. We certainly didn’t expect to see you here.”

Severus shook the snow of his cloak and stepped inside. “I didn’t think I could get away either, but luckily my students all fell asleep quickly, and I thought I should at least visit for a little while.”

Susan came up to give him a hug. “Thank you Severus, for the potion. It really helps with the stiffness I am experiencing in this cold weather.  And also, thank you for the present you gave Harry. He really likes it.”

Severus nearly blushed. “It was nothing, and the potion was no trouble either.”

He was let further into the living room where he spotted the half-finished castle in the corner. “Another present, I presume? Unless of course Peter here has regressed in age and feels the need to build his own castle?” he said smirking.

Peter huffed. “At least I had fun making a snow family this morning. Harry was very enthusiastic about playing in the snow.”

“Yes, I spotted those. Nearly apparated on top of one to be precise.”

Now it was both Emma and Susan who snorted with laughter. They could imagine it now. Severus all stern looking, appearing full of snow in front of the house with possibly a carrot for a nose.

“Glad I am of some use to you ladies.” The man said. Then he sat down on the couch, and was given a glass of mulled wine.

“So how are things going with Harry here?” he asked.

Susan started talking about Harry’s joy in staying at the farm, and how he had named one of the ewes Molly (Severus snorted, especially when he realized she was the most dominating, awful ewe on the entire farm). “Yes well, she seems to like Harry for some reason and hasn’t head butted him even once, while she does it all the time to everyone else.”

However, the mood turned more dark when Susan told Severus about what happened in the summer, how Petunia told awful lies to Harry and her own husband, and how she had thrown away the clothes they had given Harry.

“I take it the clothes and presents he gets now, won’t be returning to Surrey then?” Severus asked, his face grim.

Susan confirmed. They would let him take the winter coat, as next winter he probably wouldn’t fit it anyway, but most if not all other things would stay on the farm.

“Can I see him for a moment?” Severus surprised himself as well when he asked this.

Quietly they walked up the stairs and opened the door to Harry’s room even further. Underneath the blankets was a little boy curled up, the most that was visible was his black hair that stuck up every which way.

“He sure has the Potter hair” Severus whispered. Susan nodded. “But the Evans’ eyes.” She replied.

After all, her own husband had green eyes, and Lily had had them as well. Severus silently conceded the point.

“Let’s get downstairs again, before we wake him up. You can tell us what your students have been up to this year.”

Together they went downstairs where Severus managed to entertain the others with some of his students exploits. When it was nearing midnight however, he stood up to leave. He had to get up early again the next day after all.

“Wait Severus, I nearly forgot.” Susan said, as she walked over to her desk. On top of it was a drawing.

“Harry wanted to thank you for the present, and he drew this today. I was going to send it by mail, but I might as well give it to you now.”

Touched, but slightly unsure how to respond Severus took the drawing, before making his way outside and leaving for Hogwarts.

Once in his own quarters, he opened the drawing and laughed. On it was Molly the sheep, Harry and Susan and what he guessed was supposed to be him. Harry didn’t know what he looked like, and had apparently used a mirror because in the drawing Severus’ hair stuck up all over the place, and it seemed he was now wearing glasses. Grinning slightly despite himself, Severus took the drawing and put it into a photo album he had. Then he went to sleep.

The summer holidays are nearly upon us once more.

Harry rushed home from school. His aunt wanted him to weed the garden so he had to be quick. Despite the chore waiting for him, he felt happy. Summer holidays were two days away, and next week he would go back to the farm and Aunt Susan. This time he was allowed to stay until after his seventh birthday, nearly four weeks! Harry could hardly wait; especially after the wonderful Christmas holiday he had had a few months ago.

Upon arriving at Privet Drive he walked up to the back door and softly opened the door. His aunt didn’t like him making much noise when he came home from school. Of course, it was different if Dudley came home. He was allowed to make as much noise as he could. Walking into the hallway Harry put his backpack inside his cupboard. When he turned around to go outside however his aunt was suddenly behind him. She looked strange. Almost as if she couldn’t decide to be very happy or very angry.

“Boy” she started saying “I have just received a phone call from this man called Johnson.”

Harry paled slightly. Johnson? That was the last name of Peter and Emma.

“It seems Susan Evans died last night. We are supposed to show up at the funeral and for the reading of the will. Apparantly you are to come as well. I have contacted the school, at least my dear Duddikins can start his holidays earlier, and you can start working. You had better pack our bags. I expect to be staying at my new house tomorrow.” It seemed that her greed got the upper hand, for although she detested the farm the thought of now owning it nearly made her smile.

Harry stared at her in shock. Aunt Susan was dead? No, he didn’t believe it, he wouldn’t. Aunt Petunia had lied before after all, he was sure she did it again this time. She just wanted him miserable.

“Get on with it boy! Don’t look so stupid standing there. I told you to pack our bags, and you had better get to it. We will have to leave early tomorrow, and the funeral is the next day. The will reading is the same afternoon. Make sure you pack my black clothes, the fancy ones.”

She then left to go in the living room, where she turned on the television. Harry was left looking pale and confused in the hallway. Eventually he made his way up the stairs into the attic, where he retrieved the suitcases the Dursleys always used. Up there in the attic the reality set in. His aunt would never go up to the farm if there was a chance Aunt Susan was still alive. Which meant Susan must really be dead. Finally, the tears started dripping down from his eyes, and trying to keep quiet so aunt Petunia wouldn’t hear, he let himself cry.

Even though he was crying and feeling very alone and sad, he managed to pack most things into the suitcases. Then he went outside and did the gardening, worried that aunt Petunia would be upset with him if he didn’t. After dinner that evening he curled up inside his cupboard and cried even more.

The next day

After having driven for several hours Harry saw the outlines of Windermere. Apparently the Dursleys could not stay in the farm as it was locked up until after the reading of the will, so they had to book rooms in a hotel. Harry was not looking forward to staying there, and was therefore very relieved to see Peter and Emma waiting outside the hotel when they arrived.

Aunt Petunia sniffed upon seeing them. “Honestly, those two are just waiting to get their hands on some of the inheritance, I am sure of it.” She muttered to Vernon, who only grunted slightly in agreement.

“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, thank you for coming over.” Peter said formally, but Harry detected the tone of irony behind it. “We wanted to ask if Harry could come and stay at our place tonight. We have missed him these last few months, and know you would like to spend some time together as a family instead of with your nephew.”

Before Petunia could reply, Vernon did so. “Yes, yes, just take the ruddy boy. We will see him at the funeral tomorrow. It was in the local parish church in Troutbeck was it?”

“Yes, it is. It starts at ten o’clock, but family is allowed to be there a little bit earlier of course.” Peter nearly frowned at the careless way Vernon gave up time spent with his nephew. It was a good thing he had been counting on this.

Harry meanwhile had taken out his little backpack, and went to stand next to Emma. She gently took his hand and gave it a squeeze. The Dursleys then went inside the hotel to check in, not even saying goodbye to Harry.

When they were out of sight Emma and Peter gave Harry a big hug. “We are so sorry Harry. It all happened so suddenly, she was fine a few days ago.”

Held by these people who liked him, and who had cared a great deal about his aunt, Harry felt it was okay to cry again. They bundled him into their car and took him home.

He was allowed to see Aunt Susan at the funeral home that day. She looked different lying there, he decided. As if she wasn’t there anymore, as if her body was just an empty shell. He touched her hand, and it felt a bit cold. Not totally unpleasant, but he’d rather remember her hands when she was alive. After standing for a bit and having told her about what happened the last few months, he left.

The day of the funeral

Peter, Emma and Harry had been up early to have a light breakfast (Harry didn’t feel like eating anything at first) and to get dressed in their nice clothes. Emma had anticipated Harry not having any nice clothes, and had gone and bought them. So now he too was wearing dark pants, a white blouse and a blazer. They had gone to the church early, and as Harry had never been in a church before, Peter and Emma explained what would happen. Harry did like the large glazed windows that were in the church, especially because the sun shone through them in a very pretty way.

The minister, who had known Susan very well, was pleased to meet the young child, having heard quite a lot about him and having seen some photos too. He also knew about the Dursleys never having visited before, but how they were there now. The man didn’t say it, but Harry realized the Dursleys were not well liked here in this community. It also showed in the fact that everyone came to offer their condolences to Harry, Peter and Emma, but once the Dursleys arrived (at five minutes before ten) nobody went up to them to do the same.

Harry had been placed quite upfront and sat with the Johnsons. Also close to them were the families that worked on the farm. Behind them the entire village of Troutbeck sat, and on the other side of the aisle were the Dursleys and some friends and other people who knew Susan but hadn’t seen her very frequently. Unbeknownst to most people, Severus Snape had also entered and sat in the back. He had only just received the news in time, as he had still been at Hogwarts. He had been shocked to receive the news, but glad that he could make it to the funeral and the reading of the will.

Harry felt the service was very nice, although he didn’t have any experience in this sort of thing. He cried a little more during it, always making sure the Dursleys did not see. At the end they all lined up outside so the coffin could be taken outside into the graveyard. There, only a small group of people waited for the coffin to be lowered and some final words to be said. Everyone else waited at the edge of the cemetery. The Dursleys, having decided the service had taken up enough of their time (and Dudley starting to complain about being hungry) left to go back to the hotel. They were unaware about the angry mutterings and disapproving frowns on everybody’s faces.

Eventually Harry too had to leave. They were to have some lunch and rest for a bit, before the will was read. Normally it wouldn’t be done so quickly, but due to the circumstances an exception had been made. Severus had quietly approached Peter and had then made his way to the farm for a quick change of clothes. Although the farm was closed up, he could still get inside using magic, and he had some more appropriate clothes in there.

Several hours later everyone who was to be at the reading of the will, gathered at the office of the solicitor who would handle it. As a beneficiary Peter couldn’t handle this himself, so his colleague did.

The Dursleys seated themselves at the front in the office, with Harry, Peter and Emma taking up seats just behind them. Then they waited for a little while. Eventually, just when Petunia was going to ask how long it was going to take, the door opened one more time. Everybody looked up to see who was also joining them and the look on Petunia’s face was quite a sight.

“You! What are you doing here Snape?!” she nearly shrieked.

Severus calmly took a seat. “I too have been invited to the reading of the will. Especially because I have kept in touch all those years. I am not sure the same could be said about you, was it dear Petunia?”

Harry looked at the scene with wide eyes. So this was the Severus Snape that couldn’t make it for Christmas, the one who used to be best friends with his mother and who had given him such a lovely book for Christmas. The man didn’t look the way Harry had imagined him, he was much taller, looked a bit scary, had longer black hair and very dark eyes. Still, there was something about him… Not least the fact that Aunt Susan had liked him a lot.

The solicitor cleared his throat, wanting to begin. He had been warned there might be trouble brewing, and just wanted this to be over.

“As you are all gathered here I will read to you the last will and testament of Susan Evans.”

The man then proceeded to read the first, rather standard bits of it. However when he came to the part of who was inheriting the farm the tension seemed to raise.

“I leave Evans Farm, all the belongings and holdings that come with it, to my grandnephew Harry Potter. The Farm is to be held in trust, and as trustees I appoint Peter and Emma Johnson as well as Severus Snape. I know I can fully trust these three to manage the farm properly until Harry can take over as soon as he turns eighteen. There is a stipulation to this however. Harry is to spend at least four weeks every year at the farm.”

“What?!” Petunia shrieked. “How dare that woman give away my inheritance to that stupid boy! How dare she, the farm was to be mine, and mine alone.”

Everybody looked at her as if she was insane, even her own son and husband.

“Ma’am will you at least let me finish reading the will before you start yelling?” the solicitor asked rather gruntled. My goodness, that woman really was a harpy.

He continued with the will “To my niece Petunia, who didn’t want anything to do with me or the farm, I leave a sum of 25.000. The stipulation to her receiving this is that she will allow Harry Potter to spend four weeks a year on the farm. In return she will receive part of the money each year.”

It looked as if Petunia was ready to yell again, but Vernon clamped down on her arm and kept her quiet. 25.00 pounds was a nice amount of money after all, and he didn’t want to ruin his chances on getting it.

“To Severus Snape, I leave some of the books from my collection. They are marked and you will recognize them. To Peter and Emma, I also leave the small cottage on the edge of Windermere lake. I know you have always wanted to improve it and make it a home.”

This the three persons hadn’t known and they were touched and surprised Susan left them this.

The will reading concluded the solicitor closed the papers. “I hope this was clear to everyone, and that there will be no more shouting in my office?” he gave a pointed look to Petunia.

“I hand the keys of the farm over to you three, and trust you will look after it properly. Mr. Potter, I wish you the best of luck, and my condolences on the loss of your great aunt.”

Harry didn’t really know what to do other than to just nod.

They left the office, standing outside a little dazed. Severus decided to take charge.

“As we are all here now anyway, I suggest Mr. Potter will start his stay at the farm for this year straight away. It doesn’t make much sense to have him go back home only to return later this summer. I believe you will not have any issues with this?” he addressed Vernon.

The man was so stunned he could only agree, and then he was dragged away by his wife.

Severus turned to look down on young Harry Potter. The boy looked a little lost standing between Peter and Emma. “Come along then Harry. We will go to the farm and see what we can do these next four weeks.”

With that they walked towards the car, got in and drove off to the Evans Farm.

Severus walked around the farmhouse feeling a little unsettled. It felt strange to be here without Susan present. Looking at the little boy sitting on the couch, Severus knew he wasn’t the only one. Emma was sitting next to Harry reading him a story. Severus walked up to Peter who was making coffee in the kitchen.

“Could you tell me, how did Susan die? I thought she was doing okay?” he asked.

Peter sighed. “ We all thought she was doing very well, and in fact, I only saw her earlier in the week and she was fine. Looking forward to this summer, and Harry’s visit, plus she was planning on having you come over for a week or two as well. Unfortunately two days later she was found in her bedroom by Mrs. Thomas. She did her daily check-up and noticed Susan hadn’t come down yet, so she went upstairs and found Susan in her bed. According to the doctors she must have died in her sleep from a severe stroke. She wouldn’t have noticed anything, which I suppose is a good thing. She hated having to rely on others after her stroke last year, so at least she was spared that bit.”

Severus sighed. Yes, he could see why he should be glad Susan died in her sleep, but he wished she hadn’t, wished she was still here. It felt that now, there really was no connection left with his past. Mr. and Mrs. Evans died, then Lily and now Susan.

Soft laughter coming from the living room reminded him of the fact that there was a connection to his past still alive in the form of a young boy. Lily’s boy, he reminded himself. It helped to think of him like that instead of Potter’s boy. Also, the stories he had heard from Susan had changed his mind.

“Let’s join them in there and see how we will handle the coming weeks, shall we?” Peter suggested. He handed Severus a mug filled with coffee, and carrying two other mugs walked into the living room.

Severus followed behind him and settled himself in the comfy chair that he always used when he visited. Peter put down the mugs of coffee. “Do you want some lemonade Harry? I think there is still some of that self-made lemonade that Susan made for you.”

Harry looked up and nodded. “Yes please. I like lemonade”

Severus observed the young boy. He had his mother’s eyes, but unfortunately they were somewhat hidden behind glasses. His hair was stuck up all over the place, even though he had seen Harry try to comb it earlier in the day. Smirking slightly he realized the Potter hair was just untamable.

“Sir” Harry addressed him “will you tell me about my mum sometimes? I wanted to ask you in the Christmas holidays, but well, you couldn’t visit then and Aunt Susan said you would know lots of stories about her. And I would really, really like to know more about her.”

Severus looked up at the request. Talk about Lily? That was a hard thing to do, but when he realized that Petunia certainly wouldn’t have done so (the stupid harpy, he thought) he mellowed slightly. Of course the young boy wanted to know. It’s not as if he knew his own mother.

“I will, but not today. Today we should think about our plans for the upcoming weeks. I left rather unexpectedly at school, so I should return tonight to end the school year and finish some of the work I need to do. This should take me at most a week, and then I can come and stay here for four weeks or so.”

Harry chewed on his bottom lip. “Will you stay with me in the house then? I think I would like that. Aunt Susan said you used to sleep in the guest room that looks over the garden, and that I sleep in my mum’s old room at the front.”

Severus hadn’t known this, but he readily agreed. The room was a nice one and he certainly didn’t want to sleep in Susan’s old room. That should be left alone for now.

“Perhaps we can let you stay here during the day for the first week Harry, and sleep at our place. Otherwise we all need to move for the week. After that, once Severus has finished at school, you can stay here fulltime and we will visit whenever we feel like it, seeing as how we do need to work. What do you say?” Emma asked.

Harry smiled. “I’d like that very much.”

A silence followed, but it wasn’t an uncomfortable one. The four people in the room where all thinking about the upcoming summer, about how much they would miss Susan, and how their lives might change due to her death.

Having finished his lemonade Harry asked “Can I go outside and play? I think I saw Molly in the field, can I visit her?”

Peter agreed and let Harry go outside. The adults would use the time to discuss all the practical issues for this summer, and the years to follow.

Severus wondered if Harry knew about magic, for how else was he to explain his ability to travel so quickly and without a car in sight.

“Does Harry have any clue about magic?” he asked Peter and Emma.

The couple looked at each other and started laughing a little. “Oh yes. After you left on Christmas Day he was here for another week. On one of the days he saw two of the rams challenging each other and thought they were really fighting. So suddenly they were floating in the air apart from each other. Of course, then Harry was completely scared he would be punished, but Aunt Susan explained that both his parents and you too could do it too. He was scared at first, because apparently those Dursleys have even forbidden the use of even the word Magic in their house. Be prepared to do some demonstrations though.”

Severus sniggered. It was good to know that he didn’t have to explain magic, and the image of two floating rams was a funny one.

“Did anyone else see this happening?” he asked, recalling there were some families living on the farm as well.

“Yes they did, but it’s okay. Turns out that the Thomas’s have a nephew who can do magic too. Susan explained to them there is a school that will teach them, and they immediately called their family to tell his mother, because she didn’t really know what to do with it. And the Shaw family had seen Lily do magic sometimes too.”

Satisfied with their reply he considered the Statue of Secrecy. He didn’t think it was broken, otherwise the Obliviators would have shown up when Harry did magic, so there must be some clause in it that he didn’t know about. It would be worth looking into, so he would know who was allowed to know about magic and who wasn’t. He’d never had any need to research this, especially not after his father died.

“Very well, I believe I will leave now, so that the Headmaster won’t worry too much. I will send you an owl to let you know when I can return here.” With that Severus went outside to apparte away to Hogsmeade. Just before he left he saw a little boy running around in a field chasing a sheep.

He thought he heard a shout of “You’re it Molly!” before he turned around on the spot and disappeared.

At first Harry hadn’t been too sure about Severus Snape. The man looked imposing and very strict, which contrasted with the stories Aunt Susan had told about the man. He had laughed a lot when she told him how Severus had ended up in the Beck when he and Lily had gone fishing one day. Harry had felt sorry for Severus when Aunt Susan told him how Lily and Severus had had a row at school, and that his mum had been very stubborn about making up again and how she had then died before they made up. Harry had decided then and there that if he ever had a good friend and if he would ever fight with that friend he would also make it up.

Now he got to know the adult Severus Snape. The first week Harry stayed at the farm Severus had been away to the school, but he had come back to the farm on Friday evening. Harry had been right about the man being strict. He had to keep to his bedtime, and eat everything on his plate at every meal. Severus also wanted him to keep his room tidy and help with some small chores in the house or on the farm. Harry found however that he didn’t mind too much. After all, at the Dursleys he would’ve had to work much harder and he would get less to eat. Here he could enjoy the use of a proper bedroom, whilst at Privet Drive he would sleep in the cupboard. And Severus was very clear on what he expected out of Harry, not like Vernon or Petunia who would suddenly change their own rules.

The second week of his stay had practically flown by. Harry and Severus had worked together on the farm, they went shopping in Windermere, Severus had taken Harry swimming at the local swimming pool and he let Harry play with his castle in the living room.

Peter and Emma were regular visitors as well. They would often come and join in either for lunch or dinner. Emma had finally told them she was three months pregnant, and that Susan had known about it. Harry was rather looking forward to the baby, as he wanted to pretend to be the little ones big brother. Maybe it would be a baby girl, although a boy would be fun too he decided. Harry loved spending time with people who cared about him. Yes he missed his Aunt Susan lots, and they went to visit her grave several times a week, but he had not known the woman for very long, and it was easier for him to overcome the sadness than it was for the adults around him.

At the end of the third week of the holiday Harry felt the adults were behaving strangely. They would be talking and suddenly stop when they noticed he was close by. Harry ended up helping to move the sheep into new paddocks because he got so annoyed with the adults. Besides, sitting on the quad and ordering the sheepdog around was a lot of fun. Molly the sheep had apparently decided he was an okay little boy and she would even come when he called her. Mr. Thomas decided he’d not have the heart to tell Harry it had probably more to do with the treats the boy carried around for the sheep.

Without realizing it Harry’s birthday was upon him. And so, on the morning of the 31st of July he was awoken by Severus, Peter and Emma who sang him ‘Happy Birthday’. Harry felt this was the best way of waking up ever!

Then they all went down to eat breakfast together, and then Harry received his presents. From Emma and Peter he got some more LEGO’s to go with his castle, and some new clothes. Severus however gave him something even more precious. The man had been rooting around in the house for the last few weeks and had managed to unearth several pictures. He had created a lovely photo album which contained pictures of Susan, her family, the Evans family, Lily and Severus when they were visiting the farm and even two new pictures of a baby Harry with his mum and dad. It had been hard for Severus to put the album together, but he had decided it wouldn’t do to dwell on the past for so long. The look on Harry’s face more than made up for it anyway. Still, it surprised Severus when Harry had flown out of his chair to give the man a bear hug.

Later on in the day the other families visited, just in time for drinks and cake. They too sang the birthday song and Harry was allowed to blow out the candles. He received even more presents, including a book, a puzzle, some more LEGO and a new pair of wellies (this was from Mrs. Shaw). Then Harry and the other children went to play tag whilst the adults enjoyed the relative peace and quiet.

At the end of the day Harry was feeling tired, but very pleased with this birthday. He went to sleep quite happily.

The last week of his stay on the farm flew by and before he knew it, it was time to return to the Dursleys. He had packed all his things, and Severus was ready to leave as well, seeing as how he needed to prepare for the upcoming school year.

“Can I please stay with you Severus?” Harry asked.

Severus sighed. Harry had been asking this for the last hour or so. “I’m sorry Harry but you can’t. Your aunt and uncle are your guardians, and I am not. However, we will spend four weeks a year together at the farm, and I believe I can write you sometimes. Remember what we spoke about, if you are the first to get the mail every day, you can hide the mail you receive from me. I will include a stamp and envelope so you can always reach me.”

Harry nodded against his leg, as he had taking to hugging the man tightly. Since Harry was aware of magic they were being spared the hours of driving, and would just apparate to Privet Drive. It was easier and quicker, plus it meant that Harry could spend a few more hours running around on the farm instead of sitting in the back of a car. The Dursleys were not expecting him back until late in the day after all, so why not take advantage of it.

“I am not sure if I can leave for Christmas, but be assured I will see you again in the summer. Peter and Emma have already told your aunt you can stay at the farm for Christmas, as they will be there, so you will see them pretty soon,”

Of course, Severus had forgotten how long a few months were for a boy of seven, so Harry didn’t think he would see them very soon at all.

“I’ll miss you, lots and lots.” He mumbled.

Severus was just happy that both Peter and Emma had already headed home, because this was starting to get a bit embarrassing. It was a good thing his colleagues at Hogwarts couldn’t see him now.

“I understand Harry, but now it’s really time to leave. Just hold on tight, and we will be at Privet Drive really soon.”

With that he took a firm grasp of Harry’s arms and apparated the both of them away. The Evans farm stood silently, waiting for them to return.

When Harry woke up he didn’t immediately realize where he was. It took him a moment to recognize the Gryffindor dorm he had stayed in for several years. Then it all came rushing back to him, the flight on the dragon, the fight on Hogwarts’ grounds, the death of so many people, and the defeat of Voldemort. He closed his eyes in pain when he recalled the deaths of Remus, Tonks, Fred and especially Severus.

Over the years they had grown close. Severus had told him how he would be treated at Hogwarts, and what Severus was expected to do if Voldemort ever returned. He still didn’t know how they had managed to fool everyone in Hogwarts on their real relationship. The times that he served so called ‘detentions’ only to spend the day on the Evans Farm to meet the requirements of staying for a minimum of four weeks each year.

He recalled how Severus had helped him shear his first sheep (even though the man hardly knew what to do himself) and the fact that the sheep had looked rather funny, until the professional shearer took pity on the beast and did a better job himself. Harry smiled slightly in remembrance. Then his eyes opened wide. Had they actually recovered the body of Severus out of the Shack, or was it still there? He didn’t know and yesterday he had been too tired to think about it. It wasn’t the end he wanted for Severus, in fact, he had been looking forward to spending some more time on the farm with the man, even after he turned eighteen.

“Kreacher” he said out loud.

With a pop Kreacher appeared. He looked a lot cleaner than he did last night. “Master called?”

“Yes Kreacher. Can you tell me if Severus’ body has been taken anywhere or is it still in the Shrieking Shack?”

“Snape’s body is in a room in the dungeons Master. Kreacher helped put him there. He is safe from the mean people.”

Harry frowned. “What are you talking about, what mean people?”

Kreacher twisted his hands. “People who wants to hurt dead bodies Master. They is looking for bodies with the Mark and then hurt the bodies.”

Harry bit his lip. He could understand people being angry at the Death Eaters, but to take out that anger on dead bodies seemed a stupid and also immoral thing to do. They were dead; it’s not as if they were going out to kill more people.

“Thank you for telling me Kreacher. I will go and see to him later. Is there any chance of some cleaner clothes in the mean time?” His own looked rather awful with blood, gashes and tears in them.

“Yes Master. I has taken your clothes and washed them. They is all clean in your bags sir.”

Harry smiled, it seemed that Kreacher was going to be a very valuable ally to have. Not that he didn’t prove himself the day before in the battle.

“Thank you Kreacher. Why not go and get back to what you were doing.”

With a pop Kreacher had gone. Harry took some of his clothes and decided to check out the showers and see if they were serviceable. As it turns out, they were and he enjoyed a lovely warm shower, got dressed in his clean clothes and decided to brave other people to get some sort of breakfast.

As he was walking down the castle he saw that there was quite a bit of damage done to the interior. Paintings had been damaged or broken, there were scorch marks and stones lying on the floor, suits of armor had chunks missing or looked as if they had taken a few hard hits. Still, the magic in the air seemed cleaner to him, not as oppressive as it had been yesterday.

Coming down to the Entrance Hall Harry braced himself for what he would have to face. He could hear many voices coming from the Great Hall and he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to enter. The choice was taken from him however by someone coming up behind.

“Harry! I’m glad to see you’re awake. Ron thought we should let you sleep longer, because you definitely looked as if you needed it, but now you can join us for breakfast.” Hermione said.

She too had changed into cleaner clothes and although she looked somewhat sad, she smiled at him. Harry smiled back. They had been through so much this last year, and she had stuck by him the entire time, even getting tortured for her efforts. She could have run to Australia with her parents, and instead she had joined him. Without her he wouldn’t have come so far.

“Hermione you’re looking better as well. I’m not the only one in need of rest you know.” A plan slowly started to form in his head.

The two linked arms and walked into the Great Hall together. As soon as people noticed them, or more specifically, Harry they went quiet. Harry started to feel uncomfortable. This was exactly what he had wanted to avoid. Just when he wanted to turn tail and run the people started to clap.

Flitwick guided him over to the front of the Hall, and it seemed he would have to make some sort of speech. He hated giving speeches. As soon as he was in position and turned around to face the Hall it went quiet.

“Ehm, I didn’t expect this when I went to look for some breakfast.” He started. People sniggered and somewhere in the crowd he heard “I bet he didn’t”

“I just want to thank all the people who helped during the last year to fight against Voldemort and his Death Eaters. It had been a hard year, with so many of us losing someone or something close to us, whether it was your wand, or a family member, or a good friend.” He sighed, this was really hard.

“What nobody here knew is that I had help from the early age of seven. The man who helped me is someone many of you will despise right now. I hope to change that image, because he doesn’t deserve it. He didn’t deserve to die, just like many others we knew didn’t deserve to die.  I am talking about Severus Snape.”

Gasps and shouts filled the Great Hall, making it hard for Harry to continue, until McGonagell cast a spell to quiet everyone.

“Thank you Professor.” She gave him a small nod, looking intently at him.

“Everyone knows I grew up with my aunt and uncle when my parents died. As it turns out, I also had a great aunt. One summer both my mother and Severus stayed with her for a few weeks. This was after their first year at Hogwarts. My great aunt found out about magic, and loved it. She lost touch with Severus for a while, but regained it when my grandparents died and he attended the funeral. Eventually when I was nearly six years old I met her for the first time. This was caused by an enquiry Severus had made in one of his letters. I loved spending time with my aunt Susan. Unfortunately she died a few weeks before I was to turn seven. She had appointed three people as trustees for my inheritance, and Severus was one of them. This is why I spent a total of four weeks each year with him. I know for certain that not even Albus Dumbledore knew about it!

Severus was the one who taught me about magic, about Hogwarts and why he would need to act mean towards me. Dumbledore had always suspected Voldemort not to be truly gone and wanted Severus to be ready to spy again.”

Harry had to pause there, as most of the Great Hall reacted in shock at this news. Snape was a spy and Dumbledore had known?

Harry raised his voice slightly “Yes, he was a spy, and he was a damn good one because Voldemort only killed him believing it necessary for his victory. If only we had had the anti-venom with us then he would still be alive today. I know he was Headmaster here this year, and that it wasn’t the best time, but looking back on it, how often did he intervene between you and the Carrows?”

Several students seemed to be thinking about this, and it was Ginny who reacted first “If he could get away with it, he would take over the detentions, or assign us detention with someone else. I had thought it a bit strange, but figured he just didn’t like not giving out detention anymore.”

Harry laughed out loud at this. “Yes, you would think so, wouldn’t you.”

“Now please, I want to give him a decent burial, near where my aunt is buried, and I ask you to let me do this without much trouble. There are Death Eaters around who deserve your scorn and anger, but he isn’t one of them. Thank you for your time and attention.”

With that he quickly went and sat down at a table. Hermione and Ron came to sit next to him in support. He knew they would want to know more, but he really didn’t feel like talking about it right now.

The rest of the day was spent helping repair Hogwarts and arranging for families to come pick up their children, or their deceased. Andromeda Tonks appeared with little Teddy. She broke down upon seeing her daughter’s body, and Harry quickly took hold of Teddy, who seemed to like him, as his hair suddenly turned into a black untidy mess. Once Andromeda had collected herself slightly Harry had taken her apart and invited her to come stay for a while. He told her he had a nice house out in the countryside, not anywhere near other magic users and perhaps it would be good for her and Teddy? She agreed nearly straight away and after promising to owl she left again.

Most of the deceased where taken away by their families to be buried, including Fred Weasley. George looked heartbroken, and Harry hoped he would be okay eventually. He wasn’t too sure on what else he could do there, as Hermione had also left with the Weasleys.

He eventually got hold of some parchment and a quill and wrote a letter to Peter and Emma. They had known he had been on the run, and he even managed to update them somewhat by muggle post, even if the message sometimes just said ‘Still alive’. He would have to let them know the battle had been won, but that Severus had died. He hoped they could talk to the minister at Troutbeck parish, so Severus could be buried there. The man had once told him that was where he wanted to be in the end. He would also tell them he would probably be at the farm in a few days’ time, as he wanted to clean up first at Hogwarts and attend the funeral for Remus, Tonks and Fred.

Having written the letter it was now a matter of sending it of by owl. Harry still missed Hedwig but he would see about getting a new owl later this summer. For now he would use a school owl. Having sent the message off he finally went into the room Severus had been placed.

He frowned at seeing the man still looking exactly like the day before. Obviously a preserving spell had been cast over the body, but the blood was still there and Harry didn’t like it one bit. So calling Kreacher, he asked for some water to be sent and he set about cleaning Severus up himself. He told the man all about what had happened during the last year, how much he missed his time with Severus and had been looking forward to going back to the farm with him. He told Severus about the moment Ron left, and when he came back. Harry poured his heart out, and in the end Severus’ body looked very presentable.

Kreacher had anticipated Harry’s request for he brought clean robes that could be spelled on the man’s body. Now he really looked fine, if not for the fact that he wasn’t alive anymore. Placing an alarm spell on the door Harry left to go to sleep.

The next few days passed by in helping clean up the castle and attending several funerals. Remus and Tonks had been buried next to her father and Andromeda had asked him when she would have to be ready to leave for a little while. He told her he would pick her up in a few days.

Fred’s funeral took place on a plot of land behind the Burrow. George was held up by his friend Lee and Angelina, which seemed to do him some good. Harry knew however that it would probably be some time before George could really smile again. Ron had appreciated Harry being there and invited him to come and stay, but he politely declined, saying he had his own place and would contact them in a few days. Then he went back to Hogwarts and collected the body of Severus. He went back to the Evans Farm.

Peter, Emma and little Suzanna were waiting for him. They had contacted the local funeral home and arranged for a coffin to be brought to the house. Harry placed Severus in it very carefully. Then he went and hugged Peter and Emma hard. Emma shook with silent tears. “I’ve been so worried about the both of you this last year. And every time something came on the news that we were sure was caused by magic, we got even more worried.  I am glad to see you are okay and that you managed to send us notes from time to time, but it’s been very hard.”

Harry had to swallow back a few tears as well. “It was very hard, and very dangerous, but I am glad to be back here. I just wish Severus could have returned alive as well.”

They pulled back when Suzanna drew his attention. “Uncle Harry, I want to have a hug now.” She said.

Suzanna was nearly ten years old and saw Harry as her own uncle. She was named after Suzan Evans, and seemed to like the idea very much. Harry gave her a big hug too.

“The other families will be here this evening as well Harry. They were very glad to hear you were okay, but sad to hear Severus had died. So they will keep vigil too.” Peter said.

Tomorrow Severus would be buried in the local cemetery. Peter and Emma had arranged things with the minister and had sent out the message to the locals, who had all really liked Severus. Harry had left instructions with Kreacher to give several of the teachers and Order members the letter with the location and time of the funeral. He would see tomorrow how many would actually show up.

“Thank you” he just said, and that seemed to be enough.

That evening the farm became rather busy with all the families crowded into the living room and kitchen for the vigil. Every one of them told a story about Severus, or just a story that seemed to fit the mood. Harry felt it was funny, that he could actually enjoy this moment.

He nodded of around three o’clock and they let him sleep, he looked as if he needed it.

The entire group left the farm at the same time for the funeral. Most of the village had also shown up at the church, which pleased Harry. The real surprise came when he saw who else had shown up. All the Hogwarts professors where there, as well as the remaining Order members, the Weasleys and Hermione. He gave them a small smile and was also very pleased to see they had dressed (more or less) as Muggles. Harry, Emma, Peter and Suzanna were at the front of the crowd.

The service was very nice and reflected well on Severus as a person. Harry felt it fit the man. When they went outside he was very pleased to find Severus was placed in a grave next to Suzan. He was sure the man would’ve liked this (even though he would pretend not to). Once all the Muggles that didn’t know about magic had left, the Professors and Order members gathered round to cast the spells that would give Severus the magical burial, and which would include the new tombstone as well. It turned out to be a light grey stone, with white letters carved into it. It simply read

‘Severus Snape
may you be loved
forever and always’

A white Lily had been carved out in the stone as well. Harry touched it lightly. “Fitting.” He said.

Of course most people stayed for a bit and Harry showed them the farm they had managed to keep secret. Hermione was very impressed and gave him a knowing look. Figures she would know he would go and live there permanently within seconds of seeing the property.

It felt strange to be alone on the farm once everyone had left. Harry wasn’t entirely sure what to do with the quiet and the time he now had for himself.

“Kreacher” he called out. Kreacher appeared with a pop and looked curiously around.

“How do you feel to making this farm your new permanent home, Kreacher?”

Then something happened Harry wasn’t sure was actually real.

“Master wants Kreacher to stay here on the farm? Kreacher used to live on a farm, with sheeps and woollies around when Kreacher was a little Elfling. Before Masters died and Kreacher served the Great and Noble House of Black. Kreacher loves farms!”

With that the elf actually reached out and hugged Harry’s knees. Surprised Harry could do no more than pat his shoulders. “Oh no Master, Kreacher is sorry, I shall not hug you again.”

Harry took gentle hold of Kreacher’s shoulders. “No Kreacher, if you are this happy about it, you’re allowed to give me a hug. It just surprised me, that’s all. I thought you would prefer to stay and clean up Grimmauld Place.”

Kreacher shook his head “No, no, this much better. I will stay here and clean Grimmauld Place when you want me too Master.”

Shaking his head slightly in exasperation Harry decided he would never understand House Elves. “You can make your own room upstairs. There is a small bedroom in the attic, and I think it would be perfect for you Kreacher. It has a nice view over the farm as well.”

He was sure Kreacher would burst out in tears, but luckily he didn’t. “Tomorrow I would like you to help clean up the guest rooms. It’s time I took the master bedroom, and Andromeda and Teddy will be staying with us for a while, so they need the guestrooms. Anything that belongs to Severus you can put in the master bedroom, or in the downstairs study. I will sort it all out later.”

Harry knew that the sorting out would be a difficult task to do, but he’d rather not have Andromeda or Teddy stay in a room that was still full with Severus’ personal belongings.

That night, before he went to sleep, Harry had a lovely day dream. In it he could see himself a bit older than he was now, with his wife and was that two? No three children. Two boys and a girl. They were living together on the farm and the kids loved playing in the fields. Sometimes they were joined by a boy who could change his hair or face. From time to time they would go down to the cemetery and leave flowers on two graves. The kids would know exactly who it was they owed their peace too.

With this lovely dream of the future in mind, Harry fell asleep. He would face the future one day at a time.