“This is all Longbottom’s fault,” Draco muttered, slouching in his seat. He had never spent much time in the hospital wing, only needing to be taken there a handful of times during his years at Hogwarts. One of those times was solely Potter’s fault, something Harry himself agreed with, and now this time the blame rested solely on Longbottom’s quivering shoulders. “I mean, he survived a war, he stood up to the Dark Lord, and Potions class is what makes him lose it?”

Harry could agree, to a point. After everything they had seen and done, including Neville defying Voldemort and the Carrows as well as single-handedly destroying a Horcrux, it was a bit unbelievable that he was still afraid of Snape. Still, he had to defend his friend. “Snape’s picked on him in Potions since first year, Malfoy. It’s pretty much a conditioned response for Neville to hate Potions. He was only in there because Professor Sprout sent him.” Even after the war, there was no way Snape would accept Neville into a NEWT-level Potions class. He didn’t even like having Harry and Ron there overmuch.

Draco conceded the point, but kept up his grumbling. “It was a simple assignment, Potter. Even you could’ve done it. Go to Professor Snape, ask him if he needed any ingredients from the plants Sprout had her eighth years tending today. He had to wait ten minutes while Snape discussed his new Wolfsbane Potion with Lupin, and not go anywhere near the table where Snape had his experimental potions brewing. So what does the clumsy idiot do? Blunder into the table and upset a cauldron full of experimental potion over both Snape and Lupin. We don’t even know what happened to them! For all we know, McGonagall wants us here because you’re the closest thing Lupin has to family and I’m the same for Snape, and we have to start working out funeral arrangements.”

Harry shuddered at the thought. Post-war, relieved of the burden of spying and mostly recovered from the effects of Nagini’s venom, Snape was fairly tolerable. He mostly ignored Harry, aside from his rather formal thanks after Harry helped to keep him out of Azkaban, and that was something Harry could handle. Remus had been given the job teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts , on the condition that Snape once again brewed Wolfsbane for him, and Harry tended to spend time when he didn’t have class with him, as the professor was as close as he had to a father-figure anymore. The thought of either of them dying now, after surviving so much during both wizarding wars, wasn’t something Harry wanted to think about. Especially with the guilt Neville would feel if he was responsible.

Before Harry could say something to either convince Draco to stop talking like that or to point out that keeping an optimistic view of the situation would be the best, Headmistress McGonagall stepped out from the door near where they had been sitting. Draco informed him that it was where the professors were treated if they were ill, something he only knew from things he’d heard from older students over the years, so it had made sense to both of them that Madame Pomfrey had brought the two there after Neville had called for help.

“Mr. Malfoy, I think you will be relieved to know that your godfather is still among the land of the living,” the headmistress said, clearly having caught Draco’s last comment. “And Mr. Potter, Remus is still in good health as well.” Best to get that out of the way first, she thought, but although Harry seemed immediately relieved, Draco was still suspicious.

“So, if they’re both healthy, why aren’t they telling us this?” Draco demanded. “Do you really expect us to believe that you called us here for nothing? And if you did, that Snape wouldn’t be telling me what an idiot I am for thinking Longbottom could kill him that easily, and Lupin wouldn’t be here reassuring Potter?” Now Harry’s expression changed as well, worry taking the fore again as Draco had made a good point. If Snape and Remus were fine, both of them would have come out personally, not sent McGonagall in their place.

“I said they are healthy, Mr. Malfoy, I didn’t say they were ready for visitors yet,” Headmistress McGonagall said, eyeing the outspoken Slytherin severely. Her expression softened after a moment, seeing the same worry, albeit hidden, that she saw on Harry’s face. “Both Severus and Remus are physically healthy, perhaps even in better health than they have been in for many years. However, as a result of the experimental potion that was spilled on them, there is a…complication.”

“What complication?” Harry asked, beating Draco this time. Whatever it was, it had to be something bad if McGonagall was taking this long to tell them.

Sighing, Minerva beckoned the two young men to follow her, opening the door and ushering the two inside. It was smaller than the main infirmary, of course, as the number of injured or ill students usually outnumbered the faculty. Now, as well as the normal cabinets full of medical supplies and the beds fitted with crisp, clean linens, there were two cots under one of the windows in the room. They had been hastily Transfigured by Minerva herself, as there hadn’t been a baby in the castle in many years.

Both young men were about to ask why they were there, before a small sound from one of the cots drew them closer. Both were occupied, the one nearest to the door containing a fairly skinny three month old, black hair and pale skin contrasting with the light blue babygrow that the baby was wearing. As the child was sleeping on it’s back, both Harry and Draco could see that the clothing was magical, as there was a duck splashing in a small pond on the front of it. The other baby was dressed similarly, although the clothing had a puppy chasing it’s tail and was yellow instead, while the baby seemed more healthy, not as pale and with a more healthy amount of baby fat, and it had light brown hair.

“You can’t be serious,” Draco said, startling Harry out of his examination of the babies. He had been trying to think of any of the teachers who could possibly have children that young. He knew they couldn’t belong to any of the students at Hogwarts, the rumor mill would have ensured everyone knew before the kids were born, let alone this old. The only teachers who would be young enough to have children would be Snape and Remus, and he knew for a fact that neither of them did. “Longbottom managed to de-age Lupin and Professor Snape?”

That definitely got Harry’s attention. “What?” Looking back at the babies, he couldn’t deny that there was a resemblance. They were asleep, so there was no telling what their eye color was, but the one baby had hair as dark as Snape’s, and his skin was just as pale, while the other baby’s hair was the same color as Remus’, minus the grey streaks. “How are they babies? They’re almost forty!”

“Quietly, Mr. Potter,” the headmistress rebuked, but she sighed. “I have questioned Neville intently, after Madame Pomfrey dosed him with a Calming Draught. Severus had three cauldrons on the lab table. One was nearly finished and only needed to steep, Remus’ Wolfsbane potion-”

“How could Longbottom tell you that?” Draco cut in scathingly. “He was the worst student in the class.”

“He didn’t, Mr. Malfoy,” Minerva replied, frowning at him. She could understand that the boy, young man really, was worried about his godfather, but that didn’t give him an excuse for rudeness. “He allowed me to view the memory in the Pensieve, with Madame Pomfrey’s assistance. She has a rudimentary knowledge of potion making, it was necessary for her Mastery. She confirmed that Severus was nearly finished brewing his improved Wolfsbane potion. Another two cauldrons were on either side of the central cauldron. One was merely sitting until the contents were cool enough to be bottled, as Severus had brewed more Pepper-Up for the infirmary. The third cauldron, however, is entirely unknown. We have a sample to test, but as it was an unknown potion, we have no idea as of yet how to return them to their proper ages.”

“You mean they’re stuck like this?” Harry asked. “Who’s going to take care of them? Remus said his parents were dead, and Snape’s…”

“His parents are dead,” Draco continued when Harry trailed off. “Uncle Severus told me years ago that his mother died right before he graduated, and his father drank himself to death not long after he got his Mastery.”

“Uncle Severus?” Harry asked incredulously, completely bypassing the rest of the information that had been shared. Given what he had seen of Snape’s memories, he didn’t think that the man had mourned his parents’ passing overmuch.

Draco rolled his eyes. “He’s my godfather, he visited a lot during the summers even if I never saw him during the school year.” It was one reason among many that he hadn’t been able to wait to attend Hogwarts, because he would be able to spend more time with his godfather, at least when the man wasn’t busy and he didn’t have class. It hadn’t happened as often as he liked, but after the war it had been easier.

“Which is why you are both here,” Minerva replied, causing both young men to look at her. “Harry, you likely know that Remus has no living family. Draco, you know the same of Severus, as well as the fact that the man has few he would consider close friends. Even fewer that he would trust his life with.”

Both nodded, because neither of them could deny that their Potions Master was stubborn and paranoid, but it was what had kept him alive this long.

“I would like to ask you to both care for Severus and Remus until an antidote is found,” Minerva continued, causing Harry and Draco to gape at her. She couldn’t be serious. As their headmistress continued, they both realized that she was entirely serious. “We have already prepared a set of rooms for you both, so that you will have privacy, and your teachers will be notified of the changes.”

“What about class? We can’t take two babies along to all of our classes,” Draco pointed out. That could be downright dangerous in Potions and Herbology, possibly Care of Magical Creatures as well. The rest of the classes would be safe enough, but it would still be difficult. That did raise the question of who would teach Potions class now. Would McGonagall try to convince Slughorn to come out of retiring again? And who would be working on the antidote? The most brilliant Potions Master in Britain was currently asleep in a cot, and Draco knew that, when a potions accident did happen at Hogwarts, Severus was usually the one called upon to brew up whatever potions were needed to fix the damage, sometimes even creating entirely new potions.

“Madame Pomfrey has agreed to watch Severus and Remus when you have Potions, Herbology, and Care of Magical Creatures,” Minerva replied. “If she is too busy, or there is another reason why the boys will not be permitted in the infirmary, then I will watch them.”

Draco had more objections, but Harry tuned out the Slytherin’s complaints and the headmistress’ answers. Remus had been kind to him, and had been almost a surrogate father once the war ended. Snape hadn’t always been kind, but he had nearly given his life to make sure that Harry lived. He owed the man a life debt many times over by now, although Snape seemed to count freedom as enough of a repayment.

“I’ll do it,” Harry said, interrupting Draco and Minerva and causing them to look at him. He ignored them, looking at the two infants who were, formerly, two men he respected, even loved, in Remus’ case. “I’ll take care of them.”

Well, if Potter agreed, Draco refused to be outdone, and so, with a bit of muttering, he agreed to the headmistress’ plan as well.

He just hoped the antidote was found soon, since he though Potter was underestimating how much work a baby could be.