Start of time by Hopeless Wanderer
Summary: a respond to Spring Fic Fest! "What makes the little bastard think I don't care about him?"

That was the question that Severus Snape asked himself everyday since last week. The question that revolved around his son's latest temper tantrum since last week. And the same damn question that didn't leave him alone no matter what he did.
He even woke up with the thought swirling in his mind. What had he done to make Harry think he was being neglected?
Categories: Healer Snape, Fic Fests > #22 Spring fest 2017 Main Characters: .Snape and Harry (required), Arthur, Hermione, James, Molly, Other, Remus, Ron, Sirius
Snape Flavour: Snape is Angry, Canon Snape, Snape Comforts, Snape is Kind, Snape is Loving, Snape is Mean, Out of Character Snape, Overly-protective Snape, Snape is Stern
Genres: Angst, Drama, Family, Hurt/Comfort
Media Type: None
Tags: Adoption
Takes Place: 0 - Pre Hogwarts (before Harry is 11), 1st summer before Hogwarts, 1st Year, 2nd summer, 2nd Year, 3rd summer, 3rd Year, 4th summer
Warnings: Abusive Dursleys, Physical Punishment Spanking, Neglect, Out of Character, Profanity, Romance/Het, Violence
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 20 Completed: No Word count: 129608 Read: 50836 Published: 14 Jun 2017 Updated: 05 Sep 2018
Chapter 7 by Hopeless Wanderer
Author's Notes:
Sorry, forgot the author note, just a few warnings though.
Warnings for ; extreme language, child abuse, medical descriptions and etc...
Read and enjoy ;)
Chapter seven.

/"Lily?" a foreign voice called from the kitchen entrance, Harry's ears peaked at the sound, painfully, he grabbed his ribs, and sat up on his cot.

He was confused, mommy locked him here last night, and has not talked to him ever since, Harry had wailed, punched the door and called mommy and Daddy at the top of his lungs, but no one paid him any attention.

He was hungry, he hadn't had a breakfast yet, and he missed his mommy's hugs, he thought maybe he was bad and mommy was angry at him, but even if she was, she had never locked him in the cupboard before, he wasn't bad. Harry was a good boy, Daddy had told him that many times.

"Thank merlin you're here Jan." he saw Mommy embrace the other red head woman, relief evident in her voice. The small boy stiffened, pressing his face to the filters.

"I got your owl last night. Are you alright?" the woman looked a lot like his mommy, except she was shorter and had longer red hair, and her eyes weren't green like Mommy. Harry didn't like her, he knew that the instant the woman had called his Mommy.

"No. No, I'm not." Mommy's voice suddenly was dark, and she was frowning, ushering the woman into a seat, mommy sank down next to her.

"I tried what you suggested last night. It didn't work though, I don't know what else to do with him, Jan." her muffled voice reached Harry's perked ears, and he curled into himself. Crying in shame. He knew exactly who mommy was talking about.

"Not even a pinch? Are you really sure that he's a squib?" the woman exclaimed, her not green eyes wide as saucers. Mommy nodded miserably, and Harry felt something hot coil in his tummy, he /was/ the reason why she was so sad. It was Harry's fault.

"There is nothing else, Aiden displayed accidental magic when he was only two months old. Harry is four now, Jan. It's too late for a burst."

Aiden. Mommy always compared him to his little brother Aiden. How Aiden was energetic and he wasn't, how Aiden was prettier and he wasn't, how Aiden had more magic and Harry didn't .

Even in that young age, and nativity, Harry knew mommy loved Aiden more than Harry.

"Maybe he wasn't provoked. He always seemed like a quiet child." the woman looked mildly disturbed, her lips were curled like she had swallowed a lemon and her nose was pinched.

"He was provoked, I'm certain that he has no magical abilities." mommy reassured the woman, and Harry winced, clutching his ribs. He had no idea what provoked meant, but he knew that it should be painful, since his ribs really hurt where Mommy had kicked him last night just so Harry could get into the cupboard.

"He could be a late bloomer, I heard the Longbottom child has the same problem." the woman was getting frantic, and so was Harry. The place was dark, confined and small. Harry felt like he couldn't breath. Mommy had yelled at him, and told him to be really quiet, or she would never let him out again. But Harry was scared, and trying his hardest not to cry. His lip was quivering with effort and his small hands were fisted on the cot.

"I don't know anymore. Lately, I just don't want to have anything to do with him. He was always odd, even as a child. He never cried Jan. What if he's retarded or brain damaged?" Harry didn't understand the half of the things Mommy said, but she said it with such a hateful tone that Harry knew she was talking about him, and she was angry.

"I can't say, I only seen him twice as a child." the woman replied back, and sipped from her cup. Harry licked his lips again. He was getting /really / thirsty.
"Why don't you take him to a healer though, I know someone from Mungo's..."

"No, I can't. James is already under duress from the sacred twenty eight as it is, the last thing we need is a squib scandal. Specially with /him/ ."

"If you really don't want him anymore, You can put him up for adoption, or send him to a muggle facility, the W.A.N.D covers squib protection too." he saw mommy stand, looming over the other woman and yelling angrily.

"Don't you get it?! I don't want a scandal on our hands! with all the boasting and gloating about Harry being the prodigy child who conquered the dark lord... And now this...James is going to lose all of the vaults Jan. I can't risk that."

"How much money are we talking about here Lily?" the woman whispered, but Harry could hear every word, his eyes glazed over with tears and he quietly hiccuped .
"Countless vaults filled with Gold Jan. Not just Galleons. /Gold/, jewelry, States in different parts of Scotland, beyond anything I've ever seen in my life. And with Charles Potter dead, the inheritance would be transferred to the Potter's first born."

"Harry."

Mommy nodded, and sat down, her nails tapping on the table impatiently.

"He's a squib. The inheritance will be divided by the sacred twenty eight... And we can't have that! You can't even fathom how much gold I'm talking about here, you just have to see it to believe."

"What happens now? Can't you just disown him or something? That way the money goes to your second son, right?" Harry gave a small sob. Absolutely /terrified/. Here they were, with Harry locked in a cupboard, listening to his mommy and another woman talking about /him/, in a tone that Harry didn't like at all. He wondered when Daddy would get home and scold mommy for scaring Harry like this. He sniffed.

"It's not that easy, he's too young." they were going to get rid of him. Harry could gather that much from the mommy's strange words. He understood some of the words that sounded familiar to him. Even at the age of four, the small child knew what 'Squib' meant. It meant that he had no magic like mommy and Daddy did. He cried harder, unable to stop the never stopping flow of tears as they scrambled away by his fingers.

"The Blacks hid Ann Black for nearly a decade though." the woman took out her wand and set it on the table, Harry couldn't be more scared than he was now. He prayed anyone, anyone to come and help him. Mommy was acting weird and he didn't like it at all.

"How can we do that? Everyone knows about him."

"You really don't want this to get out, do you?" the woman shook her head sadly, and pulled her red flaming hair into a high ponytail.

"No. The scared twenty-eight has eyes on James's states in new Hampshire too. The last thing we need is a scandal, and something this big."

"There is no other way Lily. Either you keep him or you give him away, I'm sure you're just overreacting though. He's most likely a late bloomer like Longbottom."
"He's a squib. I just know it Jan, I can see it in his face, the oddness. It's disturbingly clear. Aiden was never this creepy." Mommy had this criticizing tone again, the one she often used to brag about bratty Aiden to other Moms and Harry's very few friends.

"Let me check him over, second opinion never hurts." Mommy got up hesitantly, and looked at the cupboard, her hate filled eyes catching Harry's, she slowly nodded with deep regret.

"I agree, and I think there's no other solution, we have to keep him. Petunia might take him for a few months, but we have to keep the boy." Harry shivered, scooting away as Mommy started to come in his direction, he loved his mommy, he really did. But she was going to hurt him, Harry knew it.

"It'll be alright. Where is he?" the other woman stood as well, just in time for Mommy to yank the door open and grab Harry's wrist firmly.

"Mommy!" he bawled, he shrieked, he /begged/, only to be backhanded by Mommy again. And it /hurt/.

"Shhh!" Mommy hissed, and dragged him back to the kitchen, Harry clamped his eyes closed, his eyes not welcoming the intense sun, and the other woman's presence with him.

"But mommy..." he protested, trying to get himself free of the painful clutch. Her nails dipped in his shoulder and Harry whimpered.

"I said silence! Be a good boy Harry." Mommy warned him and pulled him closed, the small boy sniffles but shut his mouth. He would tell Daddy later, he promised himself. And Daddy would take him away. Daddy loved him. He didn't care that he was a /squib/.

"Is that him? He's so tiny." the sweet voice exclaimed, and Harry felt hate recoil in his chest. He /hated/ her. Everything about her. He didn't know her, he couldn't even see her face clearly without his glasses, but he knew that he hated her.

"Can we just get this over with?"

"Alright, I'll leave some pamphlets on the table for you though, adoption is always an option."

"Magicis Revealio." Harry felt something cold poke him in the chest, like a warning hand and bit his lips. He didn't like it. It burned and he didn't like it at all.

"This can't be right...." the woman mused after s few seconds and Harry opened his eyes experimentally.

"What? What is it?" Mommy clutched his shoulders and dragged him closed with her own body.

"It's blank Lily. Even if he was a squib there should be a blue halo around his head." the woman scrutinized him and then shook her head.

"So he's not?"

"He can be, I had never studied cases like him before. But chances are that he is a squib. Don't get your hopes up."

"I never did. Was that all?"

"Pretty much, here are some adoption and charity pamphlets, contact me if you changed your mind."

"I can't say I ever will. Thanks Ja. This really means a lot to me." /

It was /her/. All her.

Harry could see it now, clear as the day. He had /just/ woken up, to his Dad's frantic face swimming in his vision, he screamed at the top of his lungs, his throat gave out with the sheer effort. He didn't hesitate to mull over the facts he already knew, he clamped his hands down on his ears just screeched.

It was a deafening sound, the sound of his utter despair mixed with the sound of his blood rushing and pounding, demanding to be freed. He remembered it all now, it was all her fault, everything was her fault. She was in on it, on everything, he was so confused before, so naive, that now, he was almost blind with the clarity, so disturbed that he couldn't even conjure words to describe his state, to /count/, to yell and scream at his Dad, tell him who she really was. He could hear her fumbling in the living room, above his own screams. He screamed louder, because he wanted her to hear him, he wanted that bitch to know that he knew who she really was. But then his Dad rushed out of the room and Harry cried in fright, flashes of his former life disrupted with his reality, and for a second he forgot where he was. He scratched his ears, hard and swift to feel the blood flow out of the thin lines and trail down his hands.

He cried in distress, Dad had to come to him now, he needed Dad NOW.

As if hearing his prayers Dad rushed back in with /Her/. Looking disheveled and distressed as Harry was, his stoic face marred with expressions Harry thought he'd never see on his Dad's face. Because of /her/ not him. Harry was like this because of /her/. He dug his nails deeper, and the blood thickened.

She had the nerve to kneel over him, her face etched with concern, like she was /mocking/ him. Harry resisted the urge to sneer, to rage and beat her with his bare hands. He wanted to wipe that face out of existence. He didn't want to inflict damage. He wanted to /kill/. Kill her and that Bastard growing in her, because he knew that wasn't a fluke, he didn't know how, but he knew that she was pregnant, and he was going to kill her.

".... Never happens before. Never... " his Dad insisted in his fit of denial, his hands aching to touch Harry. And Harry cried, he tried to warn him, he opened his mouth, he tried to conjure words, to beseech his Dad, to get away from /her/. Get away from her.

"....Do something Severus. " she demanded, once again within his reach. Yes, she was right, do something Dad, run away! Dad run away!

But Dad didn't, he grabbed his hand lying on his ear and turned back to the monster lurking behind him. He said something fanatically and turned to Harry. Harry could not hear or process what was said but she got out. She got out and Harry already felt calmer, the hands pressing on his chest were lighter now, and he could breath. His bliss did not last long when he was suddenly attacked.

He could tell it was his Dad from the smell. But that was no proof, everyone was a suspect, and Harry didn't trust anyone or anything. He screamed and trashed, tried to get Dad with his nails, to draw blood, when his body suddenly went rigid.

He fell back boneless and limply on his father's chest, unable to count, to move anything. And all that panic and fear was trapped /inside/ his chest. He wanted to burst, and scream, his chest heaved as he felt deadly calm. His mind and heart clashed, both wanting the same thing as his body was unable to do so. He was lowered down on his bed, his eyes instantly drawn to his Dad's desperate gaze.

He wanted to tell him, he needed to tell Dad everything. Before she came back, before she ruined everything again. He almost felt his heart give away when something teared into his mind, painful and sudden, and he gasped as loudly as he could manage.

What he saw was not his own. It wasn't what he wanted to show Dad, it was Janet, and his Dad, /his/ Dad gazing at her mark, his Dad kissing her /birthmark/. Realization hit like a train, Swift and hard. He had no outlet for his pain or fear, he couldn't move a limb, he couldn't scream, and tears rolled down like droplets of rain.

He gave in when the lightening struck and the images stopped. His eyes were as wide as it got and his breath stuck in his chest, Dad was all over him, kissing and apologizing, sounding like he wanted to cry himself, but Harry felt numb. He couldn't even muster up enough shame when he felt something trickle down his legs again. He was horrified.

Dad knew. He knew who she was, he was /kissing/ her. He was kissing /his mark of doom/. That was the woman who ruined his life and Dad knew it, and Dad let it happen. Harry was alone. She was here, with as much power she had over him when he was a child, eleven years later, and this time, Dad was involved. Like mommy.

His eyes were immediately on her the moment she entered the room with someone. He panted, feeling disgusted with himself, with his Dad who looked shell shocked and drenched in guilt. He was disgusted of humans, of their cruelty. How could they? Was this a game to them? To her?
She got knocked up by his Dad, she entered /their/ lives deliberately.

/"I knew what I got myself into the moment the moment I knew you were Harry Potter." / that bitch meant what she said that night in the park.
Harry knew that out of spite the woman would name the child Aiden, cause it was a joke, wasn't it? His heart slowed down against his will, but his mind didn't, he had this sudden urge to laugh.

In fact he would have laughed if it wasn't for the matron paralyzing him again. He knew that for some reason it hadn't worked though, he could already move his fingers. A sudden calm that had nothing to do with the healer washed over him. His mind was entirely on auto pilot and he knew what to do.
His chest heaved with anticipation, excited as he heard the rolling sky just near his ear, the rain pelting against his window

They went out eventually, not quick enough, but late enough for him to regain his limbs. He got up slowly, and soundlessly. Scenes played out in his mind over and over again like a movie, but Harry suppressed them. He could cry, as soon as he was away. Now he needed to /run/. He was right when he said that he wouldn't let them throw him out. He was an idiot for believing otherwise.

He would run, and he would disappear, he wouldn't let anyone hurt him anymore. Already buzzing with excitement, he smiled slightly and tore out a page off his book, he vaguely noticed the title and felt tears brimming in his eyes again.

Great expectations. How disappointing.

His hands closed around his glasses and as fast as a bolt he was writing on the paper. He was not capable of much in his state. He was too disoriented and dizzy for a hateful speech. So he left the only sentence that made sense to him at the moment.

I hate you.

And for the first time in his life, he did mean it.



XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX


/"Did you pack the clothes I bought for Harry?" Severus kissed her, lavishing the peace and content feeling in his chest. Janet smiled and returned the cherished affection.

"Yeah, all packed. Although I have no idea why Harry needs that blue scarf for. It's summer." she shrugged her shoulders, holding up the scarf. Severus frowned.
"I don't know either." Harry had just thrust a list of clothes to his chest before they left, much to Severus's shock, without a goodbye and headed for grimmauld place. Just like that. Must be teenage hormones, he reasoned with himself.

"Don't you think you're spoiling him a little?" Janet raised her eyebrows, stuffing the scarf back in their suitcase.

"Harry is not spoiled Janet, far from it. What you saw last week was entirely different from typical Harry. I wonder if something's wrong." his musings came to a halt when he caught his girlfriend, grimacing, her hands wringing nervously.

"Is something wrong?" he noticed that Janet was anxious whenever Harry's abuse came up, she must feel uncomfortable talking about it, but her reactions seemed to get more noticeable as time passed.

"Yes actually. You think we can talk a little Severus? It's about Harry." she sat on the bed, and licked her lips timidly. Severus narrowed his eyes and obliged, his eyes bore into hers intensely.

"You know my relation to the Potters, Severus." she started, sighing. Severus nodded grimly, his face lost all expressions.

Janet hesitated, closing her eyes. "There's something I never told you though.... Something I feel like you should know." Severus's heart sank and his blood ran cold.
"What is it?" Janet shook her head.

"I need you to know something first... I was young Severus... And naive! You have to believe me when I say that I regret everything I have done...." she rambled wildly, her eyes panicked and deep with sincere regret. Severus stilled, showing no emotions on his face, he patiently waited for her to get on with it.

"When I was younger, freshly graduated, I.... I visited Lily quite frequently...." she sighed and pursed her lips.

"I knew what she was doing to Harry." she blurted out and Severus saw red.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Name, sure name, date, relation, age, weight...

It was all there, on the empty form the potion master was handed to fill out. The clipboard and the quill was still in his hands, lying limply on his lap. The florescent lights shone down on his face, reducing his skin to a sickly pale white that Severus particularly abhorred.
He had no idea of the time, or the place, other than the fact that this was a hospital, somewhere...

People came and went, rushing in the room, some scowling, some pitying, and some even sympathetic like Albus. Although all Severus wanted to do was to kill the man, rather than having him seat next to him and offer him sweet nothings. That's what they were, sweet nothings. True that he couldn't even hear most of his speech but he still could tell. They were pointless, both knew that. Harry was as good as gone, the child had basically froze to death and then burned to a crisp, no amount of magic can fix that, even merlin himself couldn't bring him back.

It was his fault, he knew that now. It always was, he had been so selfish, so cruel and ignorant of his own son's needs, to satisfy his own. He was a horrible parent. A horrible person above that for dating his son's abuser in the first place, honestly, what kind of father was he? He always claimed to be /the/ perfect parent, the best role model, and the best discipliner in the parenting field, he prided himself on his progress with his son over the years, achievements that wouldn't have been possible without Severus. And now, the child was dying, because of /him/. With his last words being, one of hate and disgust towards his own Dad. Much deserved words that the potion master will never forget.

Why hadn't he told Harry? He knew what Janet was, he knew what she had done, and he believed himself fully aware of the consequences, shall Harry find out about his relation to her. /This/ was not the one he had foreseen. Nor was the one back at the world Cup, Harry almost died both times and was in a danger of dying now, and instead of telling him the truth? He just went ahead as if nothing was wrong.
He wiped the traitorous tears away hastily.

But that wasn't all. He thought with loathing. The self loathing, however rooted in a different matter entirely. He knew that this could never work out, now that Harry knew who his soon to be step mother was, he would never live with them, never love them back, or never be a part of their family as he always wanted. The solution was clear, wasn't it? Breakup with Janet. It was long over due, but not necessarily a good thing. Severus loved her, more than anything, and she was having his child, they were engaged, and Severus was unwilling to let her go.

He hated himself, for not being able to choose between his own son and fiance, in am after of life and death, even as his own son was wasting away, he still sat there pondering, this decision should be easy, he had promised Harry that he loved him more than he loved Janet, that he would let her go if he wanted him to. Then why couldn't he?

"You have to fill out the form Severus. We need to get Harry checked in." her voice snapped him out of his catatonic state, pulling him back to the surface. He stared at her dumbly. He saw her lips moving but had difficulty hearing the words.

"What?"

Janet bit her lip, her hair a disheveled mess, not much unlike his own actually.

"We need to check him in, I think they need to graft his skin." he had no idea what that was but nodded anyway. she pushed the quill back into his bandaged hands and sank down next to her fiance, rubbing her face. Severus vaguely noticed that she was still in her night robe, not even bothering to get changed, now that he noticed, so was he...

Mechanically, he went through the form, his mind never lingering on the blank space below each question.

"What are you doing here?" a sharp voice barked, and Severus closed his eyes. He did not need this. Not in a hospital anyway.

"We're his parents. What are you doing here mutt?" he sneered, the quill clenched in his white knuckles hands. Remus and Sirius stepped forward, faces hard as steel.

"You get the bill Sirius." the wolf pushed his partner down the hallway to the information desk and crossed his arms, all of them too tired to fight. Sirius went unwillingly, glaring back at them all the way.

"The aurors are gone, and the Weasleys parents went to tend to the kids."

Lupin quietly reported, his eyes on the blank form lying limply on the potion master's lap.

"I was just going to get the bill. There's no need for charity wolf." he snarled, but was too tired to get really riled up about it.

Remus returned the sneer, not able to fully muster it on his gentle face.

"It's not for you. It's for my cub." he barked.

"And by the way, We're filing for adoption. As soon as Harry's out of the woods. Just thought you should know Snape." he continued, and looked over Sirius, who was taking Harry's drug bill.

"Did you get it?" Sirius nodded, putting the prescription check in his pocket. Janet bristled in her seat, her teeth bare in a snarl.

"You really are a jerk, only a monster would say something like that to a father whose child could be dying..." she spat, Severus who stayed mostly quiet through the ordeal grasped her arm firmly, and pushed the clipboard in her hands.

Standing in his black sleeping robes, singed at the edges and covered in soot, the pissed off parent swiftly walked to the pair and narrowed his eyes.
"You will never touch my son, not even over his rotting corpse, werewolf. " he grinded his teeth, and turned around with a loud growl of anger, Albus snapped out of his nap, sensing the tension hanging around the hallway.

"Remus? Is everything alright my boy?" he readjusted his glasses, his hand in his robe pocket to get out his tin of lemon sherbet, undoubtedly.
Remus's face went blank and Sirius turned and headed to the medication department.

"Yes headmaster. Everything is fine." he then turned and briskly followed after Black, his scarred face screwed in a glare.

After that, everything turned into blur again, no healer came out of the emergency room, and it has already been a few hours, Severus has been keeping count with the empty plastic coffee cups Janet had, Albus had gone to the ministry, and the Weasleys had returned for a few hours, mostly talking to Janet or following around healers who never offered any answers.

Janet insisted that they should go too, they had children of their own to take care of, but the Weasleys were adamant on their decision, and Severus had a stinking suspicion, that they stayed to prevent any other arguments between them and the canines, also lingering in the hallway.

The storm still raged on outside, and exhaustion dawned upon him, he ached everywhere, and if his sensitive hands (freshly healed) were anything to go by, he would need a numbing potion soon. He had the first dose three hours ago, so it must be around five in the morning now...
Still, no signs of a healer.

He was getting more anxious, Harry's burned body and that awful smell kept coming to the front of his mind, no matter how hard he pushed it out, the scene just replayed again like a movie, clear and vivid.

His son was as good as dead, and Severus had just stood there, flabbergasted and unresponsive, until the /Aurors / got his son to a hospital. It was pathetically clear that Severus had freaked out, he was still freaking out and the fear growing in his chest did not die out after his occlumeny shields came up, if anything, it only seemed stronger.

"Did you talk to Johnson?" he heard Janet ask Arthur, who nodded somewhat jerkily.

"He didn't say anything though, just rushed back into the emergency department. I wonder what is taking them so long. Burns should be fairly easy to deal with." Severus agreed and disagreed with the man.

Third degree burns might be painful to heal, but were fairly quick, hypothermia would take a while but not this long, and they had magic for Merlin's sake! That had to count for something. But to give the healers some credit, he also knew that it wouldn't be /that/ easy, Harry had practically drained his core trying to hide from them, the tree was significantly far and deep in the woods, but not impossible to inspect by the search parties. Harry must have something to do with it, thus exhausting his core when he was already distraught, and with poor magical core potions and spells took longer to heal....

He let go of his train of thoughts, fighting the urge to cry. There was no way that he'd give up on his child. Harry will pull through. He had to.
"Mr. Snape?" his head whipped to the sound and he surged to his feet. Black and Lupin soon followed with the crowd, gathering around the tall bald man with a floating clipboard hovering next to his shoulder.

Questions bombarded the poor man, badgering him so rapidly that the healer didn't know which one to answer.
"Please! This is a hospital! Please keep your volume down or I'd be forced to call security." the man scolded sternly, but Severus brushed him off.

"Is he alright? Did he pull through? Why did it take you so long?" he only prayed to every God out there, that there wasn't any complications. Please, let him be okay. Please.

"The danger seems to be passing, and he is better now. We will transfer him to a room as soon as he's more stable." sighs of relief filled the hallway, but Several knew better, he could read the anxiety radiating off the healer.

"What about his injuries?" he asked sternly, his eyes squinting.

The healer swallowed thickly. "the frostbite will heal in a week or so, but he has to be really careful with his fingers, and legs, those were the most damaged areas from the cold. He had some nasty cuts on his upper chest which I think is the result of branches and twigs most likely, and a very bad concussion. That was what we are mostly worried about."

"Head trauma?" he heard his own voice ask.

The healer shrugged. "It's hard to tell, but the burns to his face and head were the most sever. And detecting a brain trauma with his skull and head burned so badly is hard."

"What about now? Is he alright? Will he recover?"

The healer shuffled uncomfortably and did a one over, scrutinizing the group.

"Is there an immediate family member here?"

"I am. His father." he gulped down the bile of vomit gathering in his mouth and followed the healer, not paying any mind to Black and Lupin protesting. They could die for all he cared, something was wrong with Harry, and Severus just knew....

The healer led him to a vacant room and put a silencing charm for protection. Severus found himself more scared than he was when he was being marked by Lord Voldemort himself.

"What's wrong with him?" even to his own ears, his voice sounded chocked, forbidding.

The healer sighed. "I'm not going to scare you Mr. Snape, and I need you to know Harry is really strong and will pull through."

"What is it?" he emphasized on each word.

"I will be honest with you Sir. We done the best we could, but magic can only heal so much, if he were a muggle, he would be dead by now...."

"Get to it!"

"It's just that, There might be some.... Deformities, and complications. As I told you, his scalp and face was completely burned, including all his hair, and neck. We grafted his skin, and thankfully he reacted well to the treatment."

Upon seeing his lost gaze the healer cleared his throat to explain.

"Grafting skin, is when we cut out undamaged skin out of the body and replace it with the damaged part, thankfully the donated parts were immediately healed, but as I've said, his face and head... Might take longer than expected."

"His face? Is he alright?" it was a stupid question, but he was so dumbstruck and in shock, that he couldn't think he could come up with a better one. Words swirled in his head, skin donation, disfigurement... Oh god.

"What about ointments? Balms? I'm a potion master."

The Healer paused. "It might, but the skin is too sensitive for any kinds of operation. Normally we would graft skin from his legs, where it's thicker and more convenient for treatment. But with his legs already damaged that wasn't possible, we could try treatment later. But he might not make it to the school in time."

"What is the problem now? Only his face?" that couldn't be the only reason why the healer called him here, there must be more to it. His heart wanted to give out but his logic won over and knew that there was something else.

"He was electrified, the lighting exactly struck the tree, and as trees are a strong conductive...

The sheer power of that lighting alone was enough to zap twenty people within seconds, and somehow Harry had survived. The thing is... Electrification is a destructive injury on itself, hence the other set of burns on his body and some damage to his nerve tissues. Those however... Are not my main concern. Electrification cases often suffer from Ventricular fibrillation, which means that the heart might beat irregularly due to the shock. If not treated straight away... It might be permanent."

Severus swore, his determination shattered as the healer uttered those words. Permanent damage and disfigurement, on Harry. His Harry, his perfect, beautiful son. /his/ child, his angel...

Severus praised himself for staying strong by his son for years as they passed, so he was fairly familiar with signs of incoming panic attacks and hyperventilating and how to comfort in case they happened in any situation, but never knew that he would ever have one himself.

It felt like dying. That was the simplest way he could put it. He couldn't breath, he couldn't think and he was pretty sure that his lungs were screaming in exhaustion. The words heart problems, permanent and deformity all in one sentence with his son. It was a nightmare, the whole thing was a nightmare. And he wanted to die.

"Sir? Are you alright?"

"Take me to him." it was the only thing he could say, he had to see Harry, with his own eyes and try not to die of the lack of his breath supply. He could die after seeing Harry, right now his son needed him. Harry needed him.

"Mr. Snape...."

"Now! Or I rip you and every fucking healer in half and find him myself." he felt terrified and enraged at the same time, as a teacher it was a good combination to get the job done, and as a pissed off father, even more.

The healer nodded grimly and waved his wand. Severus did not know how he got to the room, or what happened in between, but he was fairly sure that he had yelled along the way and cried a fair amount of moisture too. His face was /soaked/ in tears and his three hurt, but finally he was there.
He didn't wait for the healer to open the door for him, and didn't pause by the window, he just barged through and strode to the bed.
For the fourth time that night he felt nausea rushing his senses as his eyes fell on Harry. He tuned every other sound out and watched his child. Severus has seen many things in his life as a deatheater, a spy and Harry's father. But this was... Torture. Simply and utterly the most devastating sight any parent could ever see.
Because Harry might as well be dead.

He didn't recognize the child anymore, no hair, and red angry scalp, his face a puzzle of mismatched skin and his heart clearly not beating on his own. Small and innocent, lying in a bed that big, Severus was idly reminded of the times Harry snuck in his room, looking lost and so small in the huge four-poster bed, lost in tangles of duvets and quietly talking to his stuffed rabbit. His messy mope of black hair sticking out, and spoiling his chances at hiding behind the blankets effectively.

A new wave of tears hit him out of no where, the mere thought of this child being like this, being the same seven year old son sneaking in his room and playing tent was unbelievable. He hated it, believing Harry to be like this, wired up to protective spells and drugged to the brim.
The same Harry who rolled up his pancakes with sausages and devoured them like a sandwich, as if it was the normalest thing or playing outside, muddy from head to toe. And now lying here half dead.

He grabbed the limp hand lying on the bed. It was bandaged heavily, and Severus figured that it must be the frostbitten part. He couldn't bear to look at the face, so he didn't. Instead he took a deep breath and cried himself out.

At some point, maybe when it was already morning, a nurse came and told him they wanted to move Harry, Severus did not respond, but /politely/ inquired that he needed more time with his son. It was at eight in the morning when he figured that this wasn't a dream and it really hit him.

"It's all my fault."
To be continued...
End Notes:
That was informative, huh? Well it's about to get better and worse. Poor Harry.
Tell me what you think and stay tune people :-P


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