Harry never thought about how different he was. He thought it was weird that he would drink from his da and be fine with it. He never really thought about it. Fang was his friend. When he had a rough day, everybody thought he was seeing Hagrid, well, yes, he was, but his main interest was Fang. Petting Fang and roughhousing with him made whatever he was going through not a big deal.

Now, Fang didn’t like him. Hagrid said that he would, but when would that be?

Hedwig hooted, bringing Harry out of his musing. Harry forgot he was with Hedwig. He smiled at his owl.

“You still like me, don’t you, girl?” Harry said, rubbing her soft feathers. “You want to go flying?”

Harry raised his arm. He was surprised that she didn’t leave. Hedwig walked up his arm and stood on his shoulder. She nipped softly on his ear.

“You want to stay with me?” Harry asked his owl.

She nipped his ear again. Harry smiled and walked out of the owlery. After everything that happened, Harry wanted to spend some time with his da. He said that he could help prepare ingredients with him.

___000___000___000

Minerva didn’t regret what she said. She believed that Severus was wrong for what he did. After talking with Albus and seeing Remus’ reaction to what happened made her think that maybe she should have taken a different path on stating her disapproval.

Walking out of her chambers, Minerva heard a soft noise at the end of the corridor. When she got to the end, she saw Harry coming down the stairs with his owl on his shoulder.

“Harry,” Minerva called out.

“Hello, Professor,” Harry said.

“Can I talk with you?” Minerva asked.

Harry didn’t want to talk to her. He still remembered how she talked badly to his da. But he didn’t want to be rude, so he walked over to her.

“Yes, Professor.” Harry stood in front of his Head of House.

“I wanted to know how you are feeling?” Minerva said, softly.

“I’m fine,” Harry said. “I’m going to be with my da.”

Minerva grimaced with that statement. The poor child is doomed being a monster.

“I am so sorry that you have to go through this,” Minerva said, wrapping her arms around Harry’s shoulders.

Hedwig flew off Harry’s shoulder when Minerva got close to the boy. They started slowly walking down the corridor

“To know that you will be singled out because of your ailment,” Minerva said, sympathetically.   

“You mean more singled out than by being the only person that survived the killing curse,” Harry said, dryly. “Or being accused of being the Heir of Slytherin because I can talk to snakes.”

“You are loved by your peers and professors, Harry,” Minerva soothed. “It is just now things will change.”

“Why would it change?” Harry asked.

“You’re a monster,” Minerva said. “You won’t be able to spend time with your friends anymore.”

“I’m not a monster!” Harry said, angrily, stepping away from Minerva. “Why can’t I stay with my friends?”

He wouldn’t be able to see Ron and Hermione anymore. He wouldn’t be able to have fun with everyone in his dorm room. Neville, Seamus, and Dean had a mini tournament that they started first year. They were going to continue it when the term started. Ron promised he would bring some fun candies that they could have.

“Being a monster, you can’t stay with the other children,” Minerva said. “You might attack them.”

“I’m not a monster!” Harry yelled.

Harry could feel anger flowing in him. He could feel his canines growing. A low growl coming from his throat. What Harry didn’t know was his eyes were changing. The emerald orbs changed to blood red.

“I’m sorry, Harry,” Minerva said, somberly. She didn’t notice the changes in her student. “And you can’t stay with them. You will hurt them.”

“I would never hurt them,” Harry yelled, stepping away from his Head of House. Tears burning his throat.

“And Severus would never turn a child, but look what happened,” Minerva said in mock concern.

“This is the second time I had to stop you.”

Minerva and Harry turned and saw Remus standing at the end of the corridor. Remus looked at his cub’s eyes and knew Harry was on the verge of breaking.

“Come here, cub,” Remus said, soothingly.

Remus called Harry to him like he had to do for Severus when they were younger. Any threatening movements could make Harry attack.

“Harry,” Remus called again. “Cub, come here.” He knelt down on one knee.

Harry didn’t know what he was feeling. He was hurt. When he looked down the corridor, he saw Remus. Hedwig flew over to Remus. Harry ran to his uncle. When Harry got to the werewolf, Remus picked Harry up, holding him to his chest.

“I stopped you this morning,” Remus said. “Harry almost attacked you because you were harsh with Severus. Why are you not taking the hint?”

“Harry needs to know what he is,” Minerva said.

There was a low growl from the stairwell. Remus and Minerva turned to see Severus standing at the end of the corridor. Like Harry, Severus’ eyes were blood red slits. The vampire was out.

“What gives you the right to talk to him like this?”

Remus rushed over to his brother before he made it to Minerva. Remus sent an alert to their dad and thrust Harry into Severus’ arms before he could reach Minerva.

Harry being in Severus’ arms calmed down the vampire. His eyes were still red slits, but he wasn’t advancing towards Minerva anymore.

“What is going on now?” Albus said, walking down the same corridor that Remus came from.

Remus was standing in between Severus and Minerva again.

“Remus, take your brother to his chambers,” Albus said. “Minerva, dear, could you please join me in my chambers?”

“Right away, Albus,” Minerva said, turning to follow the Headmaster.

Remus waited until Minerva was out of sight before he turned and faced Severus. Looking at his face, Remus wanted to see how far he had gone.

“Are you alright?” Remus asked. His hand on the back of Severus’ neck, giving it a mild squeeze.

Severus took several deep breaths. Each time he breathed in he could smell his fledgling. Feeling his child breathing on his neck. Severus closed his eyes for a long moment. His brother’s hand on his neck helped calm the vampire. When he opened them again, they were back to the original color.

“Are you alright?” Remus asked again.

“Yeah,” Severus nodded. “Shh, shh,” Severus soothed Harry, rubbing his back, looking at his brother. “I can’t take this anymore.”

“Calm down,” Remus said.

“I’m calm,” Severus looked at his brother. “I think I’m going to go.”

“Yeah,” Remus said, stepping back. “Take Harry back to your chambers.”

“No,” Severus said, shaking his head. “We’re leaving the school.”

“You’re leaving?” Remus asked. There was hurt in his tone.

“I’m just going home,” Severus said. “You can always come. But I can’t stay here with Minerva attacking me or my fledgling.”

Remus knew that Severus was right. The only way to keep Minerva safe from both the wolf and the vampire was for them to leave.

“What about the potion list for Poppy?” Remus asked.

“I’ll do them at home,” Severus said. “Harry wanted to help, so I won’t be alone or cooped up in the lab.”

“You want me to come with you?” Remus asked.

“Stay with dad,” Severus said. “And there’s no reason to ask me that. It’s your house too.”

Remus stepped forward and planted a kiss on the back of Harry’s head. He looked up at his brother and gave him a comforting squeeze on his shoulder. Severus nodded then turned and made his way to his chambers, talking soothingly to his fledgling. Remus looked up and saw Hedwig flying down with them. Remus turned and headed back to his dad’s chambers.

___000___000___000

Severus walked in his chambers. Even though he wanted to start packing, he had to calm Harry down. Hedwig flew in and perched herself on the back of the chair. Severus walked over to his chair, sitting down, moving Harry so that he was sitting across his lap and not laying on his chest. Harry leaned over so that his head was on Severus’ shoulder.

The Potions Master waved his hand and conjured a warm flannel to wipe Harry’s face.

“Harry,” Severus said, lowly. “You want to talk about it?”

Harry sighed, shaking his head.

“You may feel better,” Severus said. “There’s nothing that you are going through now that I haven’t been through. I’ll understand.”

Harry looked up at Severus. “Do you think I’m a monster?”

Severus closed his eyes and sighed. That was a question that he had been struggling with since he was turned.

“I don’t know how to answer that and not lie to you,” Severus said. “If you ask Grandpa Albus, he would say that we’re not. If you ask your Uncle Remus, he would say no. I know that it’s a new thing for you and I couldn’t be sorrier than I am now. I put this burden on you. But you are not a monster.”

“I don’t blame you,” Harry said, playing with a button on Severus’ coat. “There’s nothing to be sorry for.”

“Harry,” Severus tried to find the right words. “If I had taken my potion before I came to check on you, none of this would have happened.”

“But I have a family now because of you,” Harry said.

He sat up on Severus lap so that he could truly look at him.

“Before you came, I was neglected and forced to do manual labor, living in a cupboard. My relatives didn’t like me. They didn’t really want me there. You want me. You saved me. You gave me a family. I have you and Uncle Remus and Grandpa Albus. I don’t think of what happened to me as bad. Like I said, you gave me a family.”

Severus cupped Harry’s face with both hands.

“You don’t hate me for what I did?” Severus asked.

“No,” Harry said, shaking his head as much as he could. “For the first time I feel loved.”

Severus pulled Harry to his chest and hug the child. Deep down he always thought that Harry resented him. To hear his fledgling say those words lifted his spirits.

“Harry,” Severus said, pushing Harry back so he could see the child’s face. “How would you like to see where you’re going to live during the summer and Christmas holidays?”

“You don’t stay here?” Harry asked.

“Not usually,” Severus said, smirking. “We were going to go home after I made the potions for the Infirmary, but I changed my mind on that.”

“Don’t you still have to brew them?”

“I do. But I can brew them at home,” Severus said. “If you still want to, you can help me prep the ingredients.”

Harry nodded. “I still want to.”

“Great,” Severus said, lifting Harry off his lap and standing the child in front of him. “I say after everything that has happen, I think we are due a change of scenery. Go pack,” lightly patting Harry on his bum, “we’ll say bye to Albus and Remus before we go.”

Harry grinned and ran to the room he slept in and started packing.

___000___000___000  

“Why are we having this same conversation again?” Albus said. He was sitting behind his desk. The usual twinkle that in his eyes were long gone.

“I just wanted to talk to Harry,” Minerva said. “I’m his Head of House. I had to inform him how it would be.”

Minerva was sitting in the chair across from Albus’ desk.

“Calling him a monster was informing him how it would be?”

“He needed to know that he would not be back in the tower anymore,” Minerva said. “He could attack someone.”

“Besides this incident here,” Albus said, “has there been an attack in this school?”

“No,” Minerva said. “But that doesn’t mean that Severus didn’t get close to attacking someone. There have been several times that Severus tried to attack me.”

“I wonder why that is,” Albus said, trying to keep his temper.

“Excuse me,” Minerva bristled. “Are you saying that this is my fault?”

Albus looked at Minerva over his half-moon glasses.

“I’ve done absolutely nothing to warrant such attack,” Minerva said.

Before Albus could reply, Remus walked into the chambers.

“How are Harry and Severus?” Albus asked Remus.

“They’re leaving,” Remus said. There was a hint of growl in his voice.

“Leaving?” Albus said. “Where?”

“They’re going home,” Remus said, looking at the Transfiguration Professor.

“You make it seem like it is my fault,” Minerva said. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”

Remus tried his best to keep Moony calm. It gets harder and harder the more he looked at Minerva.

Albus kept his eyes on his son. He knew if Remus’ eyes changed, he would have to restrain him, but there was a part of him that didn’t want to that. Albus thought for one summer, one lousy summer, he could have both his sons under one roof.

“Minerva,” Albus said. “Have you ever considered that you provoke Severus to anger? You know what buttons to push to aggravate him.”

“I’ve done no such thing,” Minerva said, standing up. “I’m going back to my chambers. I’ve done nothing wrong. But I’m telling you now, Harry Potter will not be allowed in the Gryffindor tower. I want him out of Gryffindor.”

Minerva stepped past Remus. She felt heat surrounding her for a second. She looked at her former student, she could see the outer rims of his eyes changing. She swallowed thickly and walked out of the office.

Remus turned to his father.

“Really!” Remus growled. “She can’t do that. Take Harry out of Gryffindor.”

“Calm down,” Albus said, getting out of his chair. He walked over to Remus and put his hands on his son’s shoulders. “No, she can’t. I have final say if someone is taken out of a House. The Hat put him in Gryffindor and Gryffindor is where he will stay. Now, let’s go to your brother.”

___000___000___000

Severus was getting the last of what he would need together from his desk when the fireplace turned green. He looked up and saw his father and brother step through.

“Were you going to leave without telling me?” Albus asked.

“No,” Severus said. “I wouldn’t do that. But I know I can’t stay here. If I do, because Harry’s so young, he could attack her. He has to learn to control his rage, especially when school starts.”

“She doesn’t want Harry in the tower,” Remus said.

Before Severus could react to that, Albus spoke up.

“She doesn’t have final say. You know this.”

Severus started pacing.

“She just wants to make it hard for Harry,” Severus said.

“I will not allow her to ostracize Harry,” Albus said.

Severus shook his head. “She’s doing this because of me. Not because Harry is a vampire, but because of me personally. She didn’t have a problem with Remus staying in her precious tower.”

“And she will have no problem with Harry,” Albus said, standing in front of Severus so that he would stand still.

“What about his friends?” Severus asked. “I don’t want Harry to continue his time here being alone.”

“He will not be alone,” Albus said. “I have faith that Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley will not abandon him. Have faith in them too.”

Severus sighed. He turned to call Harry to see if he was ready and stopped short when he saw that Harry was standing in the archway with tears streaming down his face.  

TBC