Privet Drive was known for two things: perfect lawns and utterly average families. Every yard was manicured to perfection, every hedge trained and trimmed into perfect shapes, every garden blooming with flowers of every color during the spring and early summer. The men worked their perfectly average office jobs, the vast majority of the women were house-wives, and all of the children went to the various private secondary schools in the area.

All of the families and all of the children were normal except one.

The Dursleys tried very hard to be normal, to fit in, to not draw attention to themselves. All of that had shattered though when they had taken in their nephew. For years, they had shouldered on, determined he wouldn’t be a drug addict like his parents. Petunia made sure he was fed and dressed, and Vernon made sure he was well disciplined.

But around the time the young Potter boy turned nine, he started to struggle. It wasn’t obvious at first, but eventually the neighbors began to get worried.

He had always been much smaller than his cousin, Dudley. Now Dudley, that was a fine young lad. While he was massively overweight, he was routinely seen out with his friends riding their bikes and playing with his cousin. The Potter boy was always finding himself in some sort of trouble and Dudley was always there to help him out. The Potter boy obviously looked up to his cousin greatly, even going so far as to refuse to wear clothing that fit him in favor of wearing his cousin’s cast-offs, which unfortunately for him made him look so much smaller.

When he started to become ill, these clothes helped to cover it quite well. As his cheeks began to become sunk in, that’s when it became apparent the child was not as well as he appeared.

While he had previously been able to complete much of the yard work on his own in one day, he was noted to have to sit down frequently while doing tasks. He was often seen wobbling on his feet while walking to the porch to sit. He started to have to come out later and later in the day to avoid the heat, yet would still be found gasping for breath and sweating with even the simplest activity.

As he began to go outside less and less frequently, his skin began to lose its golden tan. His eyes also began to lose their luster, the emerald color which enthralled the women of the neighborhood dimmed and dulled into a murky and dull grey-green.

By the time the Potter boy was around ten, he was hardly ever seen outside. He was never seen doing any chores, but would occasionally be seen sitting on the front step at odd hours of the night.

Then one night, the neighborhood was awoken to the sounds of ambulance sirens. The Potter boy was being taken away on a stretcher with Petunia riding pursed-lipped in the back of the ambulance as well.

Agnes Tuttle, the neighbor in Number 2, had stopped by the next day to “check on things” and found that the Potter boy had indeed had to be admitted for multiple tests. He had apparently been found barely breathing, having passed out on the floor by the cupboard under the stairs. He had almost no blood in his body when they poked him to get access.

“It’s probably cancer,” Agnes could be heard telling Margaret of number 5 over tea. “Poor boy was trying so hard to make his aunt and uncle proud of him, he kept pushing himself to work even if he wasn’t feeling well.”

After word of the Potter boy’s ‘cancer’ spread, the neighborhood banded together in their pity and support and would periodically bring over food or various baked goods. This was especially the case when the Potter boy finally came home from hospital.

He still did not look well, but his cheeks were certainly more rosy, and that alone was enough to give hope to the neighborhood that he would pull through. And pull through he did, though he would periodically have to go to hospital for infusions and eventually was seen with a tube in his nose.

“It’s for feeding,” Petunia had explained when questioned at book club. “If he can’t keep food down, he may have to get one put in through his stomach.”

And when the tube finally did disappear from the boy’s nose, it was obvious to the keen observer that was exactly what had happened.

‘Poor boy’ was a common phrase heard around the neighborhood for months following the revelation he was unable to eat.

The Dursleys were saints for all they put up with with that boy.

---

“I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOU BOY!” Uncle Vernon roared, ripping open the cupboard under the stairs and looking at his bleary-eyed nephew.

Harry struggled to sit up, gingerly rubbing where his GJ-tube sat. Thankfully it hadn’t leaked last night. It did that sometimes, leaving bile colored stains on his clothing and bedding.

“Wazz-it?” Harry mumbled, trying to stop his head from spinning.

“YOU LAZY FREAK!” Uncle Vernon continued to yell as he snatched Harry out from the cupboard. “YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ALMOST DID?! YOU ALMOST LOST ME MY JOB!”

Harry blinked in confusion trying to track the conversation. Being rudely awakened and screamed at was not something he was physically or mentally able to track. The doctor had said he may have some difficulties with comprehension when his haemoglobin levels were low, but he hadn’t been to a followup appointment in months and had no idea how low they were now.

“Vernon, what has the boy done now?” Petunia said, looking at her rather limp nephew in disgust.

“There was a specially ordered drill which was made incorrectly. The only reason it could have been made so badly was if someone had interfered with it!” Vernon continued, shaking Harry until Harry started to turn rather green from the dizziness.

“Wha-?” Harry tried to ask, swallowing the acrid bile that rose in his throat. “What happened?”

“You did something freaky, didn’t you boy?!” Vernon growled, picking Harry up and slamming him into the cupboard door.

Harry weakly shook his head. He was still extremely unsure as to what was happening.

“Who knows what he’s been plotting,” Petunia sneered. “He’s been awfully quiet today.”

Harry just shook his head mutely. He hadn’t done anything ‘freaky’ for years, not since he started to get sick. That didn’t stop his aunt and uncle from blaming any mishap on him. In fact, it was almost like they expected him to do something ‘freakish’ at any given moment.

“This is the last straw, Pet. I can’t risk him ruining my career,” Vernon said, opening the cupboard door and throwing Harry back inside not caring when Harry’s head made contact with the underside of one of the stairs. “Sod being watched by the freaks.”

“He’ll be turning eleven in July and we’ll be rid of him by September. We can wait…” Petunia started before Vernon cut her off.

“Now. I want him gone NOW!” he roared, before stomping into the kitchen. “Now where is my bloody whiskey?”

Petunia just scowled at the door to the cupboard before following her husband into the kitchen. If it hadn’t been for all the attention and affection the neighbors had given them since the boy had first gotten ill, they would have gotten rid of him long ago.

Quickly, she penned a brief missive to the school of the freaks, what was it called again? Warthogs? Oh yes, Hogwarts. She was certain Albus Dumbledore would want her freaky sister’s son back.

Angrily, she folded the letter and shoved it in an envelope. Now to find a way to mail it to the man. Finding an owl was never an easy task.

Severus Snape was in a rather jovial mood. He had finally done it. He had finally found a short-cut to the brewing of Wolfsbane which would shorten the brewing time by two weeks, use half the ingredients, and make the potion significantly more affordable for the damn wolves that haunted his nightmares.

It had only taken four years of research, hundreds of hours of experimentation, and the vast majority of his savings account to do it. Sadly, his salary as a professor was continuously stretched thin as Hogwarts did not provide funding for research and as a former Death Eater he was unable to receive funding for any and all experimentation.

But those were all problems of the past. He could now focus on relaxing, teaching the dunderheads of Hogwarts their last lessons of term, assigning summer homework that would be impossible to complete, and enjoying his summer. In all likelihood, he would come across another potion which would need its brewing process streamlined and his work would begin again. For now, however, he would enjoy the feelings of freedom.

Removing his heavy, black, brewing robes and switching to a far more comfortable and casual robe (still black), he sat heavily in his navy armchair with a glass of dry red wine and his latest book purchase from the apothecary in Hogsmeade.

Celebrations were in order.

He was only halfway through his glass of wine and a chapter into his book, however, when the fire roared as a visitor flooed in.

Severus sighed, his mood immediately ruined. There was only one person who could floo into his quarters, and his arrival was bound to bring more trouble than it was worth.

“Ah, Severus my boy! Just the wizard I was wanting to see!” Albus Dumbledore said, casually transforming a feather into an additional (pastel pink) armchair and sitting himself on the other side of the briarwood coffee table.

“You are in my quarters, who else would you expect to see,” Severus growled, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Yes, yes,” Dumbledore said. “Now my boy, I have a request from you.”

“No,” Severus immediately said. “I am not your errand boy.”

“I need you to come along with me as I go retrieve a … future student… from their house. There apparently have been some… problems… with this student.”

“I am also not a baby-sitter, security officer, or whatever other nonsense you want me to be.”

“Severus,” Albus looked over his half-moon spectacles, eyes devoid of their normal mischievous twinkle. “It’s Lily’s son.”

Severus immediately froze. That was a low blow. The boy was not just Lily’s child, but also the spawn of the damned James Potter.

“Why would the son of James Potter need to be retrieved from his doting relatives,” Severus sneered slamming his book shut.

“Severus, please,” Albus stated, voice devoid of all its normal playfulness. This got Severus’s attention. “His aunt sent a letter. The boy is ill and she is afraid he may pass away.”

“He is faking it,” Severus attempted to dismiss these statements.

“Per her letter he has been in and out of the muggle hospital for several years, yet there is no diagnosis.”

Severus’s blood ran cold. A wizard having to go to a muggle hospital? No diagnosis? What in Merlin’s name was wrong with the child?

“Fine, but you owe me another bottle of wine,” Severus sighed, pulling his boots back on and grabbing his cloak.

Albus rose from his chair and with a flick of his wand transformed it back to the feather it had come from.

“What information did Petunia give you in the letter?” Severus asked as they left his quarters.

“Something about his blood, I wasn’t sure I understood. Also severe malnutrition despite having a feeding tube placed. Again, I am not too sure I understand, but he has been getting progressively weaker over the last two years with no true diagnosis. And his accidental magic has been causing rifts in the family to the point of endangering their safety.”

“And have you notified Poppy?” Severus asked as they quickly walked past the Slytherin common room.

“Naturally.”

Severus knew he must have looked utterly terrifying as he and the headmaster sped through the dungeon and out of the large front doors of Hogwarts. Students were parting like water on the Red Sea and were staring at them as they passed, whispers of confusion and worry followed them until they left the grounds.

Albus grabbed Severus’s arm and side-long apparated to the alley behind Privet Drive.

As soon as they landed, both men started walking around the corner to Number 4. As they passed Number 2, a set of beady eyes peered out from behind the curtains and watched as they approached Number 4.

‘Oh dear, the poor lad!’ Agnes thought to herself, tearing up slightly. ‘That priest must be coming to give him his last rites. Though I wonder who the other man is?’

Once they reached Number 4, Albus knocked politely. Almost immediately, the door was flung open and Petunia was beckoning them inside.

“You want the neighbors to see you?” she admonished them quietly.

“Hello to you too Petunia,” Severus sneered. He could’ve swore she muttered ‘freak’ under her breath as they entered the house.

“He’s in here,” Petunia said, leading them to the living room.

Upon seeing him, both Severus and Dumbledore let out an involuntary gasp.

Lying on the sofa was likely the most emaciated child they had ever seen covered in a thick blanket. He appeared no more than seven years old despite being nearly four years older than this. Nearly every bone was visible with the skin stretched taut over them. His hair, while it certainly would have been wild like his fathers, was shoulder length but tucked into a blue knitted cap that was pulled over his ears. Sitting on a table next to the child was a small machine which occasionally would make a small whirring noise and had a tube running from a bag of light brown fluid into the machine. There was a matching tube which ran from the machine under the blanket.

Severus quickly cast a diagnostic spell on the boy. It took all of his willpower and spy training to not gasp in shock at what he saw.

“Petunia, how long has this been going on?” he asked in a low voice.

“Long enough, get him out of here,” she responded curtly. “We can’t take care of him any longer.”

Tears could be seen in Albus’s eyes as he too cast a diagnostic spell on the sleeping child.

As calmly as he could, Severus reached down and picked the boy up, shocked at how light he was. Even with the blanket he couldn’t have weighed more than 3 stone. The boy’s skin was as cold as ice and small tremors wracked its frame.

As Severus picked Harry up, Petunia poked a few buttons on the machine and momentarily uncovered Harry’s stomach to undo the tube from the machine from the tube coming out of Harry’s stomach. She quickly clamped the tube and capped the tubing from the machine. She then put the machine and its tubing into a pre-prepared bag then handed it to Dumbledore.

“These are his belongings,” she said briskly. “Get him out of here.”

“Thank you for caring for him all these years, Petunia,” Albus said.

Petunia just sneered at the two men.

“Albus, I’m afraid he may not be stable enough to apparate,” Severus said, gingerly holding the small child against his chest. The boy was so weak he could hardly hold up his head.

“We will go to Arabella’s. Quickly!” Albus said, exiting the house and walking at a pace that belied his age.

Severus followed suit, noting the child in his arms moaned slightly as they exited the house and entered the sunlight street.

Mercifully, it was a very short walk to the cat-loving squib’s house. Even more fortunately, she saw the child in Severus’s arms and let them use her floo with no offers of tea or photo albums of cats.

“Floo directly to the hospital wing, I’ve set up an emergency ward,” Albus said, wiping his eyes. “I did not know he was this bad.”

Severus nodded in agreement and tightened his grip on the small boy in his arms.

“Hogwarts Hospital Wing,” Severus called out as he threw his pinch of floo powder in the flames. As he and Harry spun, he felt himself instinctively hold tighter to the bundle of blankets and child in his arms.

Quite quickly, Severus found himself being spat out of the floo network into the empty Hospital Wing of Hogwarts.

“Poppy!” he called as he felt the blanket shift. Gingerly he sat the bundle of blankets and child on the bed. “Where are you, woman!”

Harry felt as though he were in a fog. He could hear voices around him but try as he might he couldn’t respond. He could feel himself being lifted by someone with a deep and quite soothing voice. He could feel when the tube feeding was turned off. He could feel the burning of the sun on his pale skin. But he couldn’t rouse himself.

Until they started spinning that is. The position he was being held in kept his body near the center of the spin and his head further away. It was just enough force to pull what little blood he had to his brain.

“Poppy! Where are you woman!” the deep voice called out as he was laid on the bed.

Unfortunately, the spinning had another side effect. Nausea.

Harry wasn’t new to nausea. He’d had nausea ever since he’d first noticed he’d started getting ill. This nausea was something new. He hadn’t been moved in such a way in years.

Feeling the bile start to rise in his throat, Harry used what little strength he had left to roll onto his side to avoid choking on his own vomit.

It wasn’t much that came up, but it hurt for his stomach to jolt in such a way. If he had had the strength and wherewithal, he would have just used his tube to drain his stomach, but that required so much effort.

As consciousness began to evade him once more, he briefly opened his eyes and looked around.

Ah, another hospital.

---

A weak retching and an angry potions master were what greeted Poppy Pomfrey as she walked out of her office. Dumbledore had warned her to expect a severely ill child, but he had not stated when nor had he warned her of Severus Snape’s presence for any of this. Severus was by far the worst patient to have. He was almost worse when he was acting as a head of house and had someone else under his care.

Poppy glanced briefly at the pile of blankets, thinking they were just that, before realizing there was a human wrapped in them.

“Severus, what…” Poppy started as the floo roared to life again and Albus stepped out and quickly dusted himself off.

“Poppy, this is the child I told you about,” Albus said.

Poppy quickly cast a diagnostic charm, gasped, and immediately cast a more advanced version.

“Severus, I need a blood replenisher,” Poppy barked. Severus immediately ran to the potions cabinet and grabbed a vial of the requested potion while the matron cast a warming spell over the bed and the boy on it.

Gently, she pulled off the blanket and cap. She then cast a charm which allowed her to see continuous readings of the child’s vital signs. She sighed in frustration as she looked at the numbers. Blood pressure: extremely low. Pulse: dangerously low. Oxygen saturation was ok, but he still looked almost blue. Respirations were also very low.

Most of these could be countered with one thing. Blood. The child needed blood in his system. Looking briefly at the lab results the previous scan had brought up, she almost started crying as she looked at the emaciated figure in front of her.

Haemoglobin: 35. Barely enough to sustain life. He simply had no blood in him.

Quickly, she spelled a bubble of oxygen around the boy’s mouth and nose. He needed all the extra oxygen he could get.

Severus quickly returned with the potion then paused as Poppy spelled the shirt off the young child. There were bruises all over the boy’s torso, but no active bleeding had been shown on the scans. The feeding tube also stood out like a beacon on the concave stomach.

Poppy and Severus looked at the tube momentarily, looking at the three small ports at the end of the larger tube. Poppy quickly read each label and sighed in relief.

“He was on tube feeding?” she asked quickly.

“Yes, he was receiving a feeding when we picked him up,” Severus said quietly.

“Were there any syringes?” Poppy said, looking between the men.

Albus pulled out the tube feeding machine from the bag he had been given then unceremoniously dumped the rest of the bag’s contents on the bed next to Harry’s.

“Aha!” Poppy exclaimed, pulling out a syringe and drawing up the potion into it. She then quickly attached it to the port labled “J” on the tube and pushed the potion into it. She then conjured some water, drew that up as well and flushed the rest of the potion into the boy’s stomach.

They waited thirty long seconds, then Poppy recast the spell to see the boy in front of her’s labs.

Nothing. No changes. Nothing had happened.

“What in Merlin’s name?!” Poppy exclaimed, frantically drawing up another dose of the blood replenishing potion and giving it in the same manner.

“What is it?” Albus asked worriedly.

Poppy didn’t answer him until the next thirty seconds were up with no changes to his lab results.

“He needs a muggle blood transfusion,” Poppy said, not answering the question she had been given.

“But his magic…” Albus started.

“His core is diminished to the point his magic is nonexistent,” Poppy snapped. “He can’t reject someone’s magic because he doesn’t have enough of his own to reject it with.”

Quickly she cast one spell to check the boy’s blood type quickly followed by another to check the blood types of the adults in the room.

“Severus, I hate to ask this of you, but can you donate? You are a match,” Poppy asked quietly.

Severus stared at the child for a moment then nodded and rolled up his right sleeve.

It took only a few minutes for the blood to be donated, but the blood itself would have to run much slower as it was going into its new recipient so as to not shock his system.

“Why didn’t the blood replenisher work?” Albus pondered as they all sat and watched as the blood slowly dripped into the young boy’s vein.

“The only explanation is his body doesn’t produce red blood cells any more,” Poppy said.

“What would cause that?” Severus pondered out loud.

All of the adults sat in quiet contemplation for a few moments, each lost in their own thoughts. It was obvious the boy was only alive because he had been using his magic to sustain him. But as he tried to grow, he was expending more magic that he was able to recuperate. If they hadn’t picked him up when they did, he would have surely died.

Had blood magic been performed on the child? Severus hadn’t picked any up when he initially scanned the child. What could possibly have caused his blood to be unresponsive to a blood replenisher?

“Poppy? Why didn’t you spell the blood replenisher into his stomach?” Severus asked suddenly.

“The scans were showing little to no movement of this stomach, or really any of his intestines. But the stomach doesn’t absorb nutrients, the small intestine does. When I spell potions into someone, they go directly into the stomach, not the intestines. But if there is no movement in the stomach the potion wouldn’t make it to his intestines. His tube has one port for putting things in his stomach and one for putting things directly into the intestines.”

Severus sat there pondering this development for a minute before looking at the face of the sleeping child.

“Does he have any facial deformities you can see on your scan?” Severus asked, obviously operating on a hunch.

Poppy did a focused scan on his head and shook her head slightly.

“Only impacted canines.”

Severus went over to the still sleeping boy and gently lifted his upper lip to expose his canine teeth. Gingerly he felt around the gumline of the canines then jumped back slightly to the surprise of the others.

“I know what’s wrong, but it will bring more questions than I care to answer.”

“Well?” Poppy stated, rather perturbed she missed a diagnosis. “What do you think?”

“Vampire. He is a vampire with no sire to train him.”

“Excuse me? A vampire?” Poppy gasped, looking back at the boy.

“Possibly.”

Poppy looked horrified at the child laying in front of her.

“Albus?” She asked when she finally snapped out of it. “Who is this child? Why did you have to bring him here and not St. Mungo’s?”

Albus had quietly walked over to the head of the bed and was gently stroking the boy’s hair. It was long enough it had covered the scar well. And with his current state, he looked nothing like either of his parents.

Albus quickly warded the hospital wing and looked his trusted healer in the eye.

“Poppy, what I am about to tell you does not leave this room,” Albus said with an intimidating timbre to his voice. Poppy nodded.

“This is Harry Potter. The Boy-Who-Lived.”

The fog of Harry’s mind was slowly getting less dense. He could just make out bits and pieces of a conversation going on around him. Something about “relatives” and “vampires” and “the Dark Lord.”

But Harry had more important things on his mind. Like how cold it was. And if he had the strength to get to the bathroom rather than soiling his clothes again.

He felt as though he were suffocating; something cold was covering his face. He could breathe fine, but the feeling was unlike any oxygen mask he had ever had on. His arm was also rather sore from where the IV had been inserted.

Harry knew all of these feelings too well. Even in his slightly delirious state, he knew one thing was for certain: he was back in the hospital. Again. This would be the fourth time this year and it was barely June. Or it was last time he could remember anything. It had been early June when Uncle Vernon had thrown him into the cupboard.

How long had it been this time? How many days had the Dursleys left him unconscious in his cupboard before they finally brought him in? How many days had it been since he had last been conscious?

How much longer did he have?

Every hospital visit was worse than the last. His body was simply giving up. The tube feeding wasn’t helping, it was only making him feel worse and giving him horrible stomach cramps. The only thing that helped was when he would be given blood transfusions, but those were only when his haemoglobin was less than 70.

Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were not ones to want to take him to his follow up appointments though. The paediatric haematologist was in London and that was far too far away for them to take a freak like him. The tube feeding could be sent to the house, but the blood was a different story. Besides, the longer he was in the house and the sicker he got, the more attention the Dursleys received. When he would go to hospital, the neighbors would fret for a while, but eventually they stopped coming by with their gifts and ‘support.’ When he was home, however, he was easy to put on display.

Groggily he reached out and tried to grab for a blanket. He was so cold all the time, why couldn’t the nurses remember that? It wasn’t like he wasn’t a regular at this point. And who was touching his hair?

As he reached out, his fingers trailed along the sheets. Odd, they were much softer than normal. The mattress itself was also much nicer than he was used to, softer than his mattress in the cupboard and with none of the normal indentations the normal hospital beds had.

Harry moaned softly as he groped around for a blanket. He was too tired for this. He was tired and he could tell he had been given tube feeding recently as his stomach was beginning to cramp and he was cold. Even the tips of his ears were freezing. Where was the cap he had been given? It wasn’t much but it helped keep his ears warm.

Harry finally gathered the strength and opened his eyes.

This wasn’t the hospital.

‘Hospice,’ he thought to himself sadly, tears filling his eyes. He was finally dying. He had felt in his heart that this day would be coming soon. No doubt word of this would already be spreading through Privet Drive.

“Oh, the poor dear!” Mrs. Tuttle would say as she poured yet another cup of tea for herself. “You know, my Augie loved working for hospice…”

She was always on about “her Augie” and how wonderful of a son he was.

He moaned again as the stomach cramps wracked his abdomen, interrupting his thoughts of home, and weakly tried to roll to his side and pull his knees up. He didn’t have his glasses on so he couldn’t make out very well what was going on around him, but he was fairly certain there were two people standing a few feet away speaking in low voices to each other.

The hand touching his hair pulled away and started gently rubbing his back. It felt good to have someone actually seeming to care for him.

“Harry? Can you hear me?” a voice said from behind him. Possibly from the person rubbing his back?

Harry just moaned in response as the cramps came and went. God how he hated those cramps.

Both of the people who had been talking to each other stopped speaking and rushed over to his bed.

“Are you hurting Harry?” a female voice said, coming from the maroon colored blur standing in front of him.

Harry swallowed thickly and clutched at his stomach as another cramp hit. The cramps always made him feel so cold, even colder than normal, and cold made the cramps worse. If he could just find a blanket.

“Cooooooold,” he moaned, pulling the thin blanket over him more and trying to conserve as much heat as his stick-thin body would allow. Violent shivers were beginning to wrack his body due to the temperature.

The maroon colored lady grabbed a thick blanket off the end of his bed, a blanket he recognized as the one he was allowed to use at the Dursleys, and waved what could’ve been a stick at it before gently lowering it onto his shivering frame. It was much warmer than expected, though he still felt quite cold.

The person in black then handed the maroon lady something which she then waved her stick at, and gently helped Harry lift his head to slip on. It was his hat. At least now his ears wouldn’t freeze.

The maroon lady waved her stick again and started muttering something under her breath in another language. Harry felt a tingle race over his skin followed by a warming sensation in his gut. He suddenly felt… empty. He didn’t feel like he needed to go to the toilet any more, and he was extremely thankful for that. He didn’t know what happened, but it helped. Now that his stomach was empty, the cramping started to die down and he could uncurl himself slightly.

One more wave of her stick and she nodded in approval.

“Much better. Still not out of the woods, but much better than he was,” the lady said.

Harry was confused, if he was at hospice why were they working to make him better? He was certainly feeling much stronger than he had for quite a while, but why? He knew he hadn’t kept up with the medication regime the doctors wanted him on, and it was hard to convince himself to do his tube feedings when he knew he would get sick if he did. So then, where was he?

“Wha-” Harry tried to speak, but his mouth was so dry it was hard.

“Hello, Mister Potter,” the man in black said, his deep voice matching that of the man who had carried him out of the Dursley’s house.

Harry squinted at the dark man, trying to make out his features. Without his glasses it was a struggle for him to see much. In a brightly lit room, it was even worse as he found he could hardly make out the differences in shades when they were washed out by light. And as he had gotten sicker, the vision problems had gotten worse. He was fine with this, however, because he was unable to work outside during the day anyways and the Dursleys hadn’t liked him using the electricity in the house.

“Hello, Harry,” the woman said. “My name is Madam Pomfrey. Right now you are in the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts.”

This statement didn’t help Harry’s still sluggish brain. Hogwarts? What kind of hospital was Hogwarts?

“I don’t think he understands what’s happening, Albus,” Madam Pomfrey’s voice said. “I’m not seeing any obvious brain damage on any of the scans, but who knows how many times he has been like this in the past. He may need more time to recover.”

“Are you warm enough now, Harry?” the man’s voice from behind him said, continuing to rub his back comfortingly.

Harry shook his head slightly. Warmer, yes. Warm enough, no.

Suddenly, the temperature around him increased. It was like magic. One minute he was cold, then next he was warmer than he had been in years. Finally comfortable, he found his eyes beginning to droop closed.

“Rest, child,” the dark man’s deep voice said as Harry drifted off to sleep again, comfortable for the first time in years.

---

Once Harry’s eyes drifted closed, all the adults in the room let out a collective sigh of relief. Severus’s blood was doing the trick.

Poppy cast the diagnostic spell on him again. Blood pressure was increasing to a more normal level, heart rate was actually quite rapid but that was to be expected as his body was no longer on the verge of dying, oxygen was still stable. As the blood finished running into the tiny child’s body, Poppy set a timer.

“He needs his haemoglobin rechecked in half an hour,” Poppy said, explaining to the two confused looks she received.

Both men nodded and continued looking at the small boy in front of them. This was the saviour of the wizarding world, emaciated and almost dead.

“Poppy, do you still have the screening potions I brewed for you?” Severus said, heading to the matron’s potion supplies.

“Top shelf. I can’t say I’ve needed to test any students for vampirism the entire time I’ve been here. A few Veelas and one werewolf scare, but those were the only ones I’ve ever had to use.”

Severus quickly found the potion he was looking for. As Poppy stated, there were very few of the screening potions that were used with none of the potions testing for vampirism having been used.

Poppy conjured a pair of tweezers and lifted the boy’s hat and plucked one of his long hairs as gently as possible. The hair was then added to the vial and a few minutes later the potion began to turn from a milky white to a dark, blood red.

Poppy closed her eyes as tears welled up in them.

Positive. The test was positive for vampirism.

It was no surprise then why the boy was so sickly. The vampire who attacked him must not have known he was a wizard and would be changed if not completely drained of blood. It was surprisingly easy for wizards to be changed, but it was rare for a child to be attacked and bitten. They were too small to be considered more than a snack for a hungry vampire.

But as he had been living in a muggle neighborhood, a vampire may very well have done just that to him. A small little pick-me-up en route to wherever the vampire was going.

It was well known that vampires would need their sires to be around them to teach them how to hunt and how to manage their new bodies so as not to die.

Vampires were classified as magical creatures afterall, but they straddled the line between human and creature even more than the humanoid Veelas or even the werewolves as they were constantly in a pseudo-creature state. They were magical beings, though few would consider themselves wizards as they were not frequently able to tap into their magic in the same way.

While sunlight would not kill a vampire, it would rapidly drain their magical core and reserves. And without a magical core, any magical creature would be more vulnerable to any kind of … degradation. Biting another being was the way a vampire received its nutrients and magic, which it then processed and removed a small amount of life force from the victim.

“He didn’t have a sire,” Severus said, his face stoic but sadness creeping into his voice.

Albus nodded his head sadly. Clearly some crucial details had been missed by Arabella during her yearly reports on the boy’s well-being. If they had known of this … development… there was a chance they could have found a surrogate sire to help the child through the transition. Few vampires existed in the world and even fewer were registered in Britain. Fewer still had been willing to side in the war against Voldemort, and even that single one had cut all ties to Dumbledore following Voldemort's defeat.

“Severus, in your opinion, what would your former associates do if they knew about this?” Albus asked, knowing in his gut what the answer would be.

Severus looked the headmaster in the eyes and shook his head slightly, lips pressed into a thin line.

“You know exactly what would happen to the boy, Albus. Don’t even try to feign ignorance on that.”

Albus nodded, looking every bit his age. Then a small twinkle came into his eyes as he looked at the sleeping child barely visible under the covers.

“What if he wasn’t Harry Potter?” Albus asked.

“What are you getting at, Albus?” Poppy responded, knowing from the look in his eyes he had formed a scheme already.

“What if he was the child of someone else,” Albus said, looking directly into the potion master’s eyes.

“You can consider this my resignation then,” Severus said, raising an eyebrow. “I can barely stand the brats I teach here. I don’t need, want, or desire in any way a child of my own.”

“Severus, did you or did you not just finish your version of Wolfsbane?” Albus said, continuing to smile slightly.

“I did, but I don’t see how this has anything to do with my completion of that project.”

“You’d have a vampire living with you. You’ve already done such a great service to the werewolf community, why not assist the vampires next?”

“Albus, no. Absolutely not. I do not want to take care of a child! Let alone a vampiric one!”

“Severus, please. It would keep him safe. And after all he’s been through, it would be nice for him to have a father.”

Severus glared at the barmy old man in a way that could easily melt through steel. He was certainly not fatherhood material, what with his own loathsome upbringing. Not only that, but he also had the law to contend with. If he were caught with a dark creature, especially one as potent as a vampire, he would immediately be placed in Azkaban.

“But would you be able to keep me safe, Albus?” Severus asked, dropping his voice. “Would you keep me out of prison if I get caught?”

Albus immediately nodded, “That would be a non-negotiable part of the deal.”

“I do not wish to discuss this at this time, especially not with a key player in this being unconscious. ”

Severus stood up and began to stalk towards the door, knowing his robes were billowing behind him for effect. However Poppy stepped in front of him.

“Severus,” she said. “I normally do not care for Albus’s schemes, but I must admit I agree with this one a bit more. You are the same age as his actual parents, and quite frankly the only professor on staff who could feasibly pull off having a child. You are a known recluse who spends hours doing Merlin knows what in your private lab. It really wouldn’t be a stretch to say the hours you spent in the lab were partially you spending time with your ill son.”

Severus folded his arms across his chest and flared his nostrils.

“I do not approve of us forming these plans without Potter’s consent.”

“Is that a yes then?” Albus said, grinning.

“No, it is not,” Severus said. “I will not consent to any of this until it is discussed with him. We would be turning his entire life upside down. More so than what we will be doing already in informing him he is a vampire. He deserves to have a voice in this.”

Poppy nodded in agreement. Harry had had so much upheaval in his life, he deserved to have some form of choice in this matter.

“Fine,” Albus said, rising from his seat. “We shall discuss this matter further when Harry is awake and able to communicate his wishes with us. Poppy, if you would please notify us the next time Harry is awake or if there are any changes.”

Severus looked on the pile of blankets on the bed one last time before leaving the hospital wing. Lily’s child, a vampire. His heart ached at the unfairness of it. How could this happen to her child?

It was several more hours before Harry woke again, his head feeling much more clear than it had in over a month. He didn’t know which hospital he was in, but wherever it was they were doing a fantastic job. Normally he had to stay in hospital for several days to feel this way. Or had it been several days already and he didn’t know it?

Whatever the case may be, he felt stronger than he had in a long while. After moving his head experimentally, he found he was less dizzy as well. Nowhere near where he had been before getting sick, but it still was a drastic improvement.

Slowly, he sat himself upright. How odd, there were no bedrails to assist him. Nor was there a call light. Or an IV pump or pole. What an odd hospital this was.

“Oh good, Mr. Potter. You’re awake!” a voice sounded from a desk near the otherside of the room. The maroon lady from earlier came over. What was her name again?

“Whe-” Harry started hoarsely before swallowing and rubbing his mouth, trying to get some sort of moisture in it. “Where am I?”

“You are at Hogwarts in the Hospital Wing,” the lady answered, pouring him a very small glass of water and holding an emesis basin up for him to spit into.

Harry quickly rinsed his mouth, being careful not to try to swallow any of the water. The last time he tried to swallow any liquid, he found himself violently ill for several hours as his stomach simply did not want to move anything through.

“Hogwarts?” Harry asked, he’d never heard any of the doctors speak of such a place. They had spoken at length with Aunt Petunia about different specialists and hospitals around the nation when he began to require more frequent transfusions. She, of course, had turned it all away. She only wanted the attention and pity for herself, the sicker he was the better.

“Yes dear,” the woman continued. “You know about Hogwarts don’t you?”

“No, ma’am. I’m sorry. This is a beautiful hospital though.”

“No, no, darling!” she said, both sadness and mirth in her eyes. “This is a boarding school for people like you.”

“Hospital school?” Harry asked, continuing to be confused. He had briefly attended hospital school before, but that was in the hospital he was admitted to at the time. He had never even heard of a hospital boarding school.

“I’m sorry dear, for young witches and wizards,” Madam Pomfrey said, surprised when Harry immediately raised his eyebrows and looked at her like she was crazy.

“What?” Harry asked.

“Didn’t your aunt and uncle tell you about your parents? Or about yourself?” she gasped, covering her mouth.

“My parents were drug addicts who died in a car crash. I’m a freak who could easily go down that same path,” Harry recited, knowing his lines from memory after having had them beaten into him when he was very little.

“Oh my, no! Lily and James Potter were heroes who gave their lives to save you from the most evil wizard of the modern era! You are the boy-who-lived!” Madam Pomfrey exclaimed. How could this poor boy be so uninformed about his own past?

Harry shook his head in confusion, bracing himself as the dizziness raced over him for a thankfully short period of time.

“Harry,” Poppy was looking at him slightly concerned. “Are you ok.”

“Just a bit dizzy. I’m much better though!” Harry said, smiling slightly.

“Your eyes seem a bit unfocused.”

Harry looked around for a second, when he was unable to see the glinting of the light off his glasses frame, he looked back at the matron.

“Have you seen my glasses anywhere?” Harry asked quietly. “It’s really hard to see without them.”

Poppy quickly looked through the bag of medical supplies Harry had been sent with and was dismayed to find a pair of glasses which had been rather crushed under the cans of tube feeding he was sent with. Easy enough to fix, though the fit wouldn’t be right if the boy wasn’t wearing them at the time they were repaired.

“I’m sorry, they seemed to have gotten rather crushed. Put them on and I can fix them up for you!” Madam Pomfrey said, handing them over.

Harry took the glasses and looked at her in confusion before gingerly unfolding them and placing them on his nose as she pulled out the stick she had been waving around yesterday.

“Oculus reparo,” Madam Pomfrey said, flicking her wand right in front of Harry’s nose.

Harry’s eyes were so wide they looked almost unearthly on his gaunt face. Slowly, he removed the glasses and started turning them over in his hands.

“What?…. How?” Harry stumbled over his words as he put them back on his face and revelled in the clarity of having non-scratched lenses for the first time in years.

“Magic, dear. And soon you’ll be able to do that and more. We just have to get you feeling better,” the matron said, waving her wand over Harry’s body and casting a plethora of diagnostic spells.

“What did you just do?” Harry said in utter amazement. “Was that to make me better?”

“No, child. Those were diagnostic spells. They make it so I can know what your body is doing so I can make adjustments in your care.”

Harry nodded. Vital signs: he knew them well. He was just glad he wasn’t hooked up to a machine to get them done. He always hated when the blood pressure cuff wouldn’t read right and would keep puffing up. And the nurses would have to check them all the time. Day or night, if he were asleep or awake, they would come in and strap the machine on him.

With magic, however, it seemed he didn’t have to get woken up each time at least! And if it was that easy to fix his glasses, maybe it would be that easy to fix him!

“Are they ok?” Harry asked, hope shining into his voice.

Madam Pomfrey smiled, “They’re much better than when you came in. And your haemoglobin is now in a safe range. Your blood was essentially water when you came in.”

“Sorry,” Harry said, ducking his head. “Aunt Petunia doesn’t like taking me to my appointments unless I’m really bad off.”

Madam Pomfrey had to reign in her temper almost immediately. There was definitely something more going on than she initially thought. Severus would be good for the boy. He always had such a gentle touch with the abused and neglected children who came in.

“Harry, do you think you will be awake for a little longer, or do you want to go back to sleep?”

“I want to go to the toilet,” Harry said, blushing a bit. “But I don’t know where it is.”

“The toilet is all the way in the corner. I would prefer if you didn’t get up just yet, however. You are far too weak and I cannot keep my wand trained on you and help you walk at the same time,” Madam Pomfrey said, another flick of her wand and his lower abdomen had the strange sensation of suddenly being empty.

Harry gasped and looked down at his belly.

“Did you just...?” Harry asked, motioning at his groin.

“I made the contents disappear, yes.”

“They won’t reappear will they?”

“No,” Madam Pomfrey laughed at the thought. How miserable would that be?

Harry sighed with relief. He was worried as soon as she said the toilet was on the other side of the room. This ward was enormous compared to the other wards he had been in. There had to be at least twenty beds with plenty of space to move around each of them. He knew from experience that, even though he was feeling better, he would have to stop several times on a trip of that length in order to catch his breath. Walking was exhausting for him.

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but I don’t remember your name,” Harry nearly whispered.

“I am Madam Pomfrey,” Poppy said gently. “You were still quite confused when I first introduced myself.”

“Thank you, Madam Pomfrey,” Harry said, courteously. “I think I can stay up for a little longer. Can you make the bed so I’m not laying down? Sitting like this makes me tired, but I don’t want to go back to sleep yet.”

Poppy smiled sadly and with a flick of her wand, the head of the bed cranked itself to a more natural sitting position.

“Thank you,” Harry said, relaxing back and pulling the covers up to around his neck. He was starting to feel cold again.

“I shall return shortly. I need to call the headmaster and our potions master. They both want to speak with you about the future and your… illness. Please stay in bed.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Harry said politely as he snuggled down more into the blankets until only his eyes were visible between the cap and the blanket.

Poppy walked into her office and quickly sent a note via floo that Harry had finally woken up and was stable. No more than a minute later, both men were standing in her office. Quickly she filled them in on what she had learned from her brief conversation with Harry and what her beliefs were as to the Dursley’s treatment of the boy.

Albus had a grim look on his face when they finished and Severus was utterly flat in his expression, but one look at his eyes and you could see how enraged he was. How dare they treat this child like he was a free meal ticket! The fact Petunia had even sent the letter she had was a damn miracle.

“He can never return there,” Severus stated murderously.

“He isn’t safe here in his current state either,” Albus reminded him.

Severus sighed and rubbed his face. He had been up most of the night stewing over the idea of hiding the Potter boy in plain sight. It would work, Poppy was right about that. He was enough of a recluse to have hidden an ill child, especially during the years where he had been working so diligently on the Wolfsbane modifications. Not to mention the boy was so thin he really did look as though he had some Prince blood in him. The Potters and the Princes were actually quite closely related after all.

Taking a deep breath, Severus stepped out of the office and looked into the green eyes of the waif-like boy in the bed.

“Hello, Harry,” Albus said, exiting the office immediately after Snape. “My name is Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. I am the Headmaster of the fine school you are currently in. And this is Professor Severus Snape, our esteemed potions master. Welcome to Hogwarts.”

---

Harry was fighting to keep his eyes open by the end of the discussion, but he knew it was important for him to make a decision soon. The Headmaster and the Potions Master had spoken with him for a long time about everything that was going on. He was famous because he had survived a killing curse, his life was now in danger because of the man who killed his parent’s followers, and he was apparently a vampire.

It felt like he was in a weird dream, but pinching himself didn’t wake him up.

The Headmaster thought it would be safer for him to pretend to be the son of the Potions Master than to be his famous self because the Potions Master would be able to defend him better. Or something like that.

As crazy as the idea sounded, Harry rather liked the idea. He would have a father who could help him and would talk to him. Maybe not even call him a freak and punish him by making him clean until he passed out! Maybe, one day, they could even play catch together!

“Are you ok with this, sir?” Harry asked sleepily.

“I believe I may have to be,” Severus said softly. He still wasn’t 100% sold on the idea, but so far there had been none of James Potter which had shown through.

The boy in front of him was Lily through and through. He could clearly see the green eyes the boy had inherited from his mother, but the waif’s figure looked nothing like his brawny, Quidditch playing father. Sure he had the black hair, but it was hard to gauge the texture of it under the hat and it was unlikely to be the same Potter rat’s nest simply due to its length. He had been a quiet, respectful child as Albus explained who he actually was. He had asked appropriate questions when Severus was explaining how they discovered the vampirism.

It was much easier to swallow the idea of being the “father” of Lily’s child than it was to even begin to think about caring for James Potter’s spawn.

“Do I keep my name?” Harry asked as he yawned for the sixth time.

“It would probably be better if you didn’t. There would be less likelihood someone would make the connection that you appeared at the same time Harry Potter disappeared,” Severus said.

“Can you choose one for me? I’m rubbish at making up names,” Harry yawned again, eyes at half mast.

Severus was mildly taken aback. The boy seemed to have no qualms with the idea of having him as a parent. He felt a sinking feeling in his stomach as he thought of names. Why would a child be so willing to give up their family?

“Are you sure you want me to choose a name for you?” Severus finally asked, names running through his head that Lily had mentioned off hand as they had jokingly planned a future together the summer before their fifth year.

Harry nodded, eyes fluttering as he struggled against the sandman’s call.

Severus sat in silence for a few moments as he pondered the repercussions of names. It couldn’t be difficult to say, nor could it be overly simple to make fun of. Even if a cure for vampirism was found, he still would likely need to keep this name for an extended period of time.

“Julian,” Severus said quietly. “Julian Marcus Snape.”

“I like it,” Harry said, smiling at the professor’s emotionless face, before he lost the battle against sleep and dozed off for a moment. “I’m sorry sir.”

“Go to sleep, we’ll talk more tomorrow,” Severus said, removing the boy’s glasses and pulling the thick blanket up over his shoulders with a flick of his wand. .

When Severus looked up, he saw Albus smiling that horrible, twinkling smile.

“What?” Severus snapped.

“I believe, my boy, you are now the proud father of one Julian Marcus Snape. Congratulations are in order.”

Severus sneered, rolled his eyes, and stalked towards the door. This was not how he wanted to celebrate completing his passion project from the past four years.

Did he want to have a child? Absolutely not. The idea of Lily’s child being sent to yet another “family” following Albus’s manipulations worry him? Greatly. And it was that idea which spurred him into making this decision.

This was his chance to prove his worth. He couldn’t save Lily, but he had a chance at redemption in this boy.

Harry wrapped his threadbare, hand-me-down t-shirt around him as he desperately tried to stay warm. The temperature had dropped dramatically in the last few hours with dark clouds rolling in from the north-west. As the sun set, Harry could only hope the Dursleys would get home from their party soon. It wouldn’t be the first time they had locked him out in a storm, but he was already so cold.

Harry nestled himself against the back of the house and absentmindedly picked at a scab on his knee. Maybe, just maybe, the rain wouldn’t get him absolutely soaked. He knew he would dry off quickly once he got inside, but he was afraid to be wet and stuck outside for too long. If he got sick, there’d be hell to pay.

Looking into the distance, over the rows of houses whose back faced the houses of Privet Drive, Harry could vaguely make out the outline of a building… no, castle... hidden in the sky. Much of its walls and towers shrouded in the mist of the clouds that were boiling towards him. From the castle, he could hear the sound of a motorcycle flying through the air.

A sudden burst of green lightning shot from the clouds and struck the telephone poll up the street, the crack of thunder loud enough to make Harry’s ears hurt. Immediately, all lights in the neighborhood were lost as the power was cut. Turning instinctively to look at the now decimated poll barely standing out in the moonlight, Harry could see a pair of slightly reflective, animalistic eyes peering at him from the other side of the fence.

Another bolt of lightning flashed through the sky, temporarily blinding Harry. When his vision returned, the eyes were gone. Slowly, Harry stood and looked towards where the eyes had been. The eyes had been too far up to be an animal, even a large dog. And he could have sworn he had seen a human face surrounding those eyes.

But human eyes aren’t reflective like cat’s eyes.

A sinking dread filled Harry as rain began to fall, slowly at first then suddenly in a torrent. Another flash of lightning and Harry saw him. A figure in black, slowly weaving its way towards him as though drunk with eyes that reflected the flash of lightning. Harry tried to scramble backwards, but found he was frozen in place. He tried to scream, but couldn’t speak.

Tears rolled from his eyes as the thin, dark figure came towards him and gently stroked his cheek. The long, white fingers then ran under his chin and forcibly tilted his head to the side.

“I etur,” a dark, hoarse voice said. “Kaq i etur. Ju lutem. Gjaku.”

Harry tried to look at the figure holding him and found he couldn’t move his eyes. Suddenly, there was a sharp pain in his neck followed by a numbing sensation that travelled along his neck and into his face. His vision started to swim; the castle being swallowed by the storm clouds.

Another bolt of green lightning snapped overhead, jolting the figure into dropping him and running. The motorcycle roared through the sky towards him. A woman screamed as he fell.

He couldn’t move, he couldn’t stop the fall. A pit opened in the Dursley’s yard as he fell, its dark sides writhed with thousands of snakes. Down he fell, words whispered around him in a myriad of foreign tongues, snakes whipping out to try and bite him.

He could feel the ground rushing up to meet him. The bright light of the motorcycle following him into the pit. Seconds before he hit the ground, the motorcycle turned and a pale hand shot out from under a black robe and grabbed his shirt. His head snapped back.

Harry woke with a jolt and looked blearily around the Hospital Wing. His neck still felt numb and the lightning bolt scar felt as though it were on fire. Slowly, he flexed his fingers, relieved when he could move them. Sniffling slightly, he raised a hand to his neck. No scars were there, nothing physical remained of that night. He could still feel the fingers on his cheek and the teeth as they sunk into his neck however.

Vampire.

Harry slid down farther under the warm blankets and closed his eyes tightly. Tears seeped from under his eyelids, running down his cheek and onto the heated mattress below.

He really was a freak.

---

Harry was awoken the next morning by the sound of murmured voices in the room. They seemed oddly muffled, but it was definitely in the same room he was in. Opening his eyes, he could see the very blurred shape of Madam Pomfrey handing a red-headed child something while another red-head looked on. He could tell that the red-head who was standing was looking at him.

He closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep when suddenly the voices became much clearer and suddenly he felt that strange emptying sensation in his lower abdomen. All of the previous day’s events came rushing back to him: magic, vampire, fame, new name, new family. It was a lot to take in.

“Good morning, dear,” Madam Pomfrey called. He was caught. “Your glasses are on the bedside table.”

He opened his eyes back up and looked across the room at the trio of blurs. Reaching out from under the warm blankets, he was shocked at just how cold it was in the room and snatched his glasses from the bedside table. He let his hand warm back up a minute before he unfolded the glasses and slid them on.

The two red heads looked exactly the same! The only obvious difference was that the one on the bed was covered in a green goo that was proving difficult to remove without removing his skin.

Madam Pomfrey sighed and shook her head in frustration. Of course the Wesley twins would be the ones to have to come to the Hospital Wing for a potions mishap. Those two hellions were going to blow themselves up one day if they weren’t careful. She was thankful that Ha-Julian was stable and she wasn’t having to worry about stabilizing him as well as dealing with these two for the umpteenth time this year.

“What exactly had you added to your ‘portable bog’ before it exploded?” she asked, frowning.

“We had just added an adders fang to the mix to try when it started to boil over,” the one who was standing said. “We were trying to increase the maximum size of the bog.”

“That explains the sticking then,” Madam Pomfrey said before walking over to the potions cupboard and pulling out a variety of potions. “George, pour these two on the worst areas. Fred, I’m sorry, but the hair has to go for a minute.”

“Not my luscious locks!” Fred said in mock anguish from the bed. “How could you!”

“Hush, foolish child. I have a hair growth serum for you as well.”

Harry watched as George take the two vials of potions and begin pouring them on the globs of goo stuck to his brother. It took a few minutes, but the goo started to harden and flake off, taking Fred’s hair with it.

“Into the shower with you! And use this to get the rest of it off!” Madam Pomfrey said, handing Fred a towel and a slightly larger vial of potion. “What do you two need a portable bog for anyways?”

“A ‘You Missed Us’ present for Ronnie,” George said, straight faced. “Who doesn’t like a bog in their bedroom?”

Harry laughed quietly under his blanket. Those two seemed like a lot of fun to be around.

“Oh, don’t you start getting ideas! I can hear you giggling!” Madam Pomfrey said rather sternly, but Harry could still hear some amusement in her voice.

“Who’s the kid, Poppy?” George asked as Fred went to the shower.

“That’s Madam Pomfrey to you,” she responded sternly. “All you need to know about that child is a patient of mine.”

“Fine, Madam Pomfrey, why does he get all the extra blankets? You never give me any extra blankets!”

“You don’t need them, you just want to use them to stage an escape so you can go continue your hair-brained antics. I’m onto you, George Weasley!”

“Aww, but seriously though. What’s with all the extra blankets?”

“Because it’s so cold,” Harry rasped, his voice dry from having no water or mouthwash this morning.

George looked in shock at the pile of blankets. The voice under them sounded so dry it hurt his throat to listen to it. And the speaker sounded so young. He had seen the wrist and hand of the person under the covers, but he couldn’t make out anything other than the kid was painfully thin.

“It’s not cold out here, it’s actually kinda warm,” George said, confused. Summer was definitely on its way in and the hospital wasn’t as cool as it had been in months prior. Besides, there were climate control spells on many of the rooms to make them more comfortable. Poppy normally had the Hospital Wing on the cooler side, so it was nice not being in there when it wasn’t freezing.

“He gets very cold very easily, he can have as many blankets as he needs to stay warm,” Madam Pomfrey said, walking over to where Ha-Julian (she really needed to practice not calling the boy Harry) was laying. A quick diagnostic spell and she was satisfied with how he was doing. It had taken many long hours of slowly running blood into the boy, but his haemoglobin was finally comfortably in the 70’s range. It had, unfortunately, already begun to drop, however that was to be expected.

“Do you want to sit up, dear?” Madam Pomfrey said, once she saw his blood pressure and heart rate were stable for the moment.

Harry nodded; what he really wanted was a shower and to rinse his mouth out. And maybe a bit of tube feeding to get his energy up. It had been at least 48 hours since he had last had any form of nutrition and it was starting to catch up to him.

A flick of her wand and the back of the bed rose to a more sitting position. One more flick and a heating charm warmed the air around the bed to a much warmer temperature than was in the room.

George’s jaw fell open. The child on the bed couldn’t have been older than his younger sister, but looked like he weighed maybe half her weight. Every bone was visible, his face gaunt and eyes sunken in. Even though he was wearing a hospital gown, it was obvious every rib was visible. In his right arm, it looked like a small tube was sticking out of the elbow. The bright green eyes George had seen peeking out from under the blanket were slightly magnified by the thick glasses he wore, making them seem even larger than they already were. The thick knitted cap the boy wore covered his forehead but there was still some long black hair that stuck out from under it.

“George, don’t stare,” Poppy said as she helped the skinny child rinse his mouth.

Harry blushed bright red as the boy stared at him. He had never been the object of this kind of attention before. He swallowed instinctively as the last swig of water entered his mouth. Immediately, his eyes widened in fear.

He was going to vomit in front of someone.

As soon as the cold water hit his stomach he immediately felt his stomach clench and the stomach acid race back up his throat, burning it raw. He felt as though his stomach and throat were being ripped to shreds. He tried to swallow it back down but it wouldn’t stop.

Weakly he grabbed for the emesis basin Madam Pomfrey was holding and started retching, eyes immediately watering and nose beginning to run. The more he vomited, the more he started gasping for air, which caused him to cry more. It hurt so much to throw up, and he had done more than his fair share of it for the last two years.

As the retching finally slowed, he realized Madam Pomfrey was gently rubbing his back and supporting him so he didn’t topple over.

“Shh, you’re going to be ok. Just breathe through it,” she was whispering to him.

He continued to dry heave for a few more minutes before finally collapsing backwards into the bed, completely exhausted with tears trailing down his sunken cheeks. He continued to hold his stomach until he finally passed out from exhaustion.

George, for his part, had stayed silent through the entire thing. He had seen his siblings throw up before, but none so violently or painfully. In his fifteen years, he had never been as scared as he was watching this child gasp and cry as he vomited. He’d seen broken bones from Quidditch, concussions, and scrapes and bruises of every kind, but he had never felt like he was watching someone actively dying in front of him.

And he was terrified.

Madam Pomfrey quickly cast another round of diagnostic spells over the boy, sighing in frustration at the changes she noticed from before his vomiting episode. She then spelled his mouth clean and laid the bed back a bit, covering him up again with the blankets and making sure to cover his neck with them in the way she always saw him pulling them up.

“Is… is he ok?” George asked quietly, more subdued than he had ever been in her presence.

“He will be,” Madam Pomfrey responded before conjuring a patronus. “Go to Severus. Julian vomited. Not tolerating water. Will likely need another transfusion soon.”

George stared in awe as the misty patronus zipped under the doors to the hospital wing.

“What’s wrong with him?” George asked again, clearly worried about the small boy under the blankets.

“He is very ill and has been for many years.”

“He’s not contagious, is he?”

“He is no danger to you.”

George nodded and watched as the small boy breathed. There was so little movement, one would think the child had passed away. And maybe it was his imagination, but something about the boy seemed slightly familiar. Maybe it was just the long, black hair though.

“Alright! I’m all clean!” Fred’s voice came belting out of the bathroom causing George to jump out of his stupor.

Madam Pomfrey got up to see to her other patient and give him the hair regrowth serum leaving George to continue watching the boy breathe. Once Fred was sorted out, hair grown and cut to his liking, he came out to see his brother sitting on the bed across from blanket-boy and looking as though he had seen a ghost.

“What’s up George?” Fred asked, looking at how shocked his brother was.

George shook himself and smiled back at his brother. “Nothing much, the ceiling, the sky, maybe some clouds. The usual.”

“Well I’m ready to go, come on!” Fred said, pulling his brother off the bed and heading towards the exit. George followed, continuing to stare at the boy in the bed as Madam Pomfrey looked over the small child.

As they left the wing, George heard footsteps briskly walking towards them and pulled Fred into an alcove with him. Together they watched as the greasy bat of the dungeons flew into the Hospital Wing.

“Come on,” he whispered to his twin as he quietly stalked back towards the door.

“What’s going on?” Fred whispered back, only for George to hold a finger to his lips to silence him.

George snuck closer to the door and peaked in for a second. He couldn’t hear anything that was being said and quickly realized a silencing spell had been put up, but he had a sneaking suspicion what was going on.

He gave a jerk of his head to signal to Fred they needed to move out.

Once out of range of the Hospital Wing, George pulled Fred into another alcove behind a statue of a centaur.

“I think I know why Snape is always in such a foul mood,” George said.

“Because he smells foul?” Fred said, pinching his nose and laughing. He stopped when he saw his brother’s worried face however. “What’s wrong.”

“The boy under the blankets. I saw him,” George said, voice quivering. “He looks like a skeleton. Not an ounce of fat on him. Even his muscles were tiny. He looked like he would be killed by a strong wind. Then ….”

George turned a little green himself as he remembered the episode he had witnessed. Fred was starting to get worried now too. What had he missed while he was showering?

“He threw up,” George finally finished. “He had a sip of water, on accident because I was looking at him, and started throwing up. He could hardly breathe and he was too weak to sit up on his own so Poppy had to hold him up. He was gasping and crying and just couldn’t stop puking.”

Fred could only stare as his twin got more frantic.

“You know how grouchy Mum gets when she hasn’t slept in a while?” George asked suddenly.

“Yeah? What’s this got to do with the blanket boy?”

“Poppy sent a patronus to Snape telling him that ‘Julian’ had thrown up. I think… maybe… Snape is his father.”

Fred laughed for a few moments, thinking his brother was joking. Snape? A dad? He was a known child hater. He wanted nothing to do with any kind of children.

“I’m serious!” George said, no trace of humor in his voice.

“But he hates kids!” Fred exclaimed. “He despises every student who steps into his classroom. Slytherins less than others, but even they get on his nerves.”

“What if he hates what he can’t have?” George asked solemnly.

“What do you mean?”

“He hates kids because his kid is so sick. He has to watch us have fun and go to school and know his kid isn’t able to do that. He doesn’t sleep and gets exhausted and testy because he is up all night taking care of his kid. He doesn’t want anyone to know because he doesn’t want pity. Even the Slytherins say that he rarely sleeps.”

“I heard earlier in the year from some of the upper years that he has been working on some ‘project,’” Fred said, continuing to be skeptical.

“His kid is his project,” George said. “He’s trying to get him better.”

Fred stood in silence for a minute, a frown on his face. It seemed implausible, but at the same time everything fit.

“What do you think happened to his mum?” Fred asked.

“Dunno, weird to think of someone having sex with Snape. Maybe she died?” George said.

The twins stood there a moment pondering the implications of the idea. Snape was foul tempered, sure, but the Slytherins respected the man greatly for some reason. Maybe they knew more about his hidden life?

---

“Do you think he’d even be able to feed at this point?” Severus asked, looking at the small child in the bed. He had thankfully not been in class when Poppy’s patronus came bursting into the room. It would have been hard to explain and he wasn’t sure if he was ready for the students in the school to begin to find out of his “son”’s existence.

“I don’t know, Severus. I really do not know. We already know he doesn’t tolerate the tube feedings, which we expected. But to not tolerate water? We need to get nourishment and hydration into him. The blood transfusions helped, but those cells will die. The magic he got from your blood helped him quite a lot, but there was a massive drop in his magic levels in his core shortly after he stopped vomiting. His core. He has no reserves. None. His body is using his core as a last ditch effort to survive. But even that is beginning to fail because he simply doesn’t have the energy to survive.”

Severus sat on the bed next to the child he had been tasked to keep as a son. He had failed to protect Lily, he wouldn’t fail to protect her child.

“Is he somewhat stable for now?” Severus asked.

“For now, but for how long? He is far more unstable than I thought. I know Albus may fight this, but he may need to be moved to St. Mungo's.”

Severus nodded. “As his … father… now, I can override Albus’s wishes. Albus got me the paperwork ‘proving’ paternity earlier today.”

Poppy nodded. She hoped it wouldn’t come to that, but this case was rapidly becoming too dangerous to keep in a school hospital ward. If it had been any child other than Harry Potter who had come in in this condition, she would have immediately sent them to St. Mungo's. No question about it.

“Will he be stable enough for me to speak with my prefects for a bit?” Snape asked.

“He should be fine now that he is asleep. His magic is most stable in this state.”

Severus nodded and in a flurry of robes rushed out of the hospital wing. The halls were beginning to fill with students as they left one class and made their way to another. A flick of his wand and a small ball of green light shot down the hallways searching for the Slytherin prefects, the head boy, and the head girl. They would know it was an emergency when they saw it and would immediately report to Severus’s office.

Severus quickly made it down the back staircases to the dungeons and made it to his office just as the first of the prefects arrived.

Severus unlocked the office door and allowed the girl in. She was followed shortly by the other five slytherin prefects (several of which were panting as though they had run the length of the castle) as well as the Head Boy (a Gryffindor) and Head Girl (a Ravenclaw). Severus waited a minute for everyone to make their way into the office and find a good place to stand.

“Thank you all for your diligence in coming here so quickly and on such short notice,” Severus began, crossing his arms over his chest. He knew he could pull off a lie, however he hadn’t had much time to think about what he planned to say. “As many of you may know, I have been working on a personal project for the past four years. Unfortunately my project took a rather unexpected turn a few days ago. As such, I may be forced to leave my classroom at random intervals throughout the day. There may even be days where I am forced to use a substitute professor.

“Should this occur, I expect every one of you to continue holding all members of Slytherin house to the highest standard of behaviour. Should I not be in my office for an extended amount of time and it be necessary for you to speak with me about the behaviour of members of the house, please notify the Headmaster and he shall be in touch with me.”

All of the students in attendance nodded. This did not seem like an emergency call, but maybe something had happened and he only had a limited amount of time to speak with them? He didn’t seem frantic, but then again he never did unless a potion was in the process of exploding.

“Questions?” he asked, knowing if he didn’t pretend to answer their questions, rumors would start.

“What kind of project are you working on, sir?” Enida Tetcher, the Head Girl said.

“One which is of high personal importance,” Severus said, the bright green eyes on Julian's gaunt face coming to the forefront of his mind. “In its current state, it is highly unstable and could have disastrous consequences if not responded to in a timely manner.”

Every child’s face in the room paled a couple of shades at the seriousness of his tone.

“How long should we be on this state of alert?” Matilda Green, the 6th year prefect, asked.

“I would expect at least until the end of the year. Should this change, I shall inform you.”

Severus waited a few minutes for anyone else to ask a question. When none were forthcoming, he dismissed the students. As they walked out, he turned and sat behind his desk, steepling his fingers and pondering what he was going to do with the child … his child… in the hospital wing.

Hydration they could give him via the IV Poppy had placed when he first came in. A barbaric muggle device, but it worked to give blood and hydrating fluids in a pinch. Nutrition would be more difficult. If his stomach was unable to move the food through, there was no point in giving it to him. It would cause more harm than good. Potions, too, required a functioning digestive tract. Maybe the muggles had a type of nutrition they could use to supplement him?

If they could get his magical core stabilized, it would be more feasible to convince his core to heal his digestive tract. From there, they were much closer to being home-free. But a magical core was an energy sink. It would always try to protect and repair the wizard, but if there wasn’t enough energy to sustain it, it would pull from “non-essential” body stores to feed itself so it could protect what it deemed “essential systems.”

They needed liquid energy. Not a stimulant, but actual energy.

Severus sighed and opened his desk drawer with the intention of writing out possible potions they could use to increase his energy levels or could slow the degradation of a damaged magical core. He never pulled out a sheet of parchment paper, however, as sitting on top of all of his stationary was the answer to all of his questions.

A confiscated chocolate frog card.

Chocolate. Sugar. Glucose. Liquid energy absorbable through the mouth.

Severus quickly closed the desk drawer, summoning his money pouch and travel cloak from his personal quarters, and left his office in a rush. He ended up blowing past one of the prefects who was just in his office. She swallowed hard as she took in the look of determination on his face. Whatever happened to his project must have been bad for him to be leaving the castle in the middle of the day despite having afternoon classes. Four years of work for it to all go horribly awry, she couldn’t even imagine.

Severus walked as quickly as possible down the path to Hogsmeade. He needed candy and lots of it.

Rounding one of the many bends in the road, he found himself walking behind the friendly half-giant groundskeeper.

“Oh, hullo Profess’r Snape! I didn’t hear ya behind me!” Hagrid said, continuing to walk towards the village.

“Hello Hagrid,” Severus said, falling into step with Hagrid’s large strides.

“Why’re ya goin’ to Hogsmeade Profess’r?” Hagrid said, trying to strike up a conversation.

Severus was quiet for a moment, still thinking over the list of possible things he could get for Julian.

“I need to do some last minute shopping,” he answered quietly. “Hagrid, you enjoy magical creatures, correct? Tell me, what would you give an ill vampire if not blood?”

Hagrid thought about it for a moment, stroking his beard as he walked.

“Prolly a few blood pops. Or chocolate. Dark chocolate would be better. Blood would be best, o’ course, but chocolate is good too. Some of ‘em like dark red wine too, but not all of ‘em. Why, do ya have a vampire?” Hagrid asked rather excitedly.

“No, Hagrid,” Severus sighed. “It was just a theoretical question. There is very little information on illness within many magical creatures. They must get ill at some point.”

“An’ it is very hard to deal with. Special creatures, the lot o’ them. An’ the more magical they are, the more help they need. Take pixies, fer example. When they get sick, their friends will huddle ‘round ‘em and let ‘em feed off their magic. I dunno ‘bout vampires, solitary creatures they are. Do know they don’t go to muggle hospitals though!”

Severus walked in silence for a few minutes as he thought about what Hagrid had said. It made sense really. Magical creatures did tend to always stay near other magical creatures or structures. Muggles rarely saw them and not just because they were consciously hiding. They needed magic to feed off of. Vampire attacks were more common in muggle communities that bordered on magical ones. Reports from muggles of magical creatures in the wild were rarely far from major magical towns.

“Thank you, Hagrid,” Severus said sincerely. The man’s insight into magical creatures was always surprising and insightful in ways that belied his education level.

On arriving at Hogsmeade, Severus nodded his head in thanks to the groundskeeper as they parted ways. Hagrid continued on to the tavern while Severus turned and went to the high street, thankful that this was not a weekend and there were no students in town. It wouldn’t do well for his reputation to be seen going into a candy store.

Severus sighed as he stepped into the shop and was assailed by the smells and colors of candy of every shape and flavor imaginable. A quick scan of the shop and he found the rather untouched jars of blood pops in the ‘Unusual Flavors’ section. Few people enjoyed their flavor, but they were just what he was looking for.

Severus looked at the price and scoffed at how much they cost. It cost less for him to buy many of his potions ingredients than it cost to buy a single blood pop! He was going to have to ask the headmaster for a forward on his salary if he was to take care of the child over the summer. This was rapidly going to become an expensive endeavor.

Grabbing a few different dark chocolates and breathing a sigh of relief that they were nowhere near as expensive as the blood pops, Severus quickly checked out so as to avoid small talk with the owner. He had never spent so much on candy before in his life. Six blood pops and four small chocolate bars had cost him ten sickles!

Albus owed him a raise.

Poppy was sitting stroking the boy’s cheek when Severus returned from Hogsmeade, a few tears evident in her eyes.

“What happened?” Severus said, trying to see if the boy was still breathing.

“The poor child woke up for a minute while you were gone,” Poppy said, wiping her eyes and sniffling. “He asked if you had ever come to visit him or if you were just pretending.”

Severus closed his eyes briefly and sighed. He had never wanted to be a father. He had never thought about having a child. He had never planned to be any form of caregiver. But he also couldn’t let Lily’s child be left alone in the situation he was in. And he refused to be like his own father.

“I told him you had come to check on him but he was always asleep. He has so much hope, Severus. I can’t even imagine what his family put him through,” Poppy continued. “Where did you go, by the way. That was quite a long meeting with your prefects.”

Severus conjured a chair and sat next to the head of the bed opposite where Poppy was.

“I had a thought and I ended up discussing it with Hagrid,” Severus said. “He needs something to provide him with energy that he isn’t getting from food. If we give him the tube feedings we were given, he will continue to feel ill because they are designed for humans. Once he gets some form of energy his body can use to function, he can stop drawing from his magical core.”

Poppy nodded, “This is true, but his stomach is mostly paralyzed. We could give him blood, but even through the tube it won’t move very well and we’d risk the blood congealing in his intestines because he needs to feed on whole blood.”

“Exactly, but glucose can be absorbed orally. And Hagrid mentioned that magical creatures greatly prefer to be around other magical creatures when ill so they can draw magic from those around them.”

Poppy’s eyes widened in understanding as Severus pulled out the bag of candy.

“Severus, I hope you are right. His magic levels are already almost back to where they were when he was first brought in.”

“Is it safe to wake him, or should we let him wake naturally?” Severus asked, looking at the sickly child. His sickly child. He needed to accept he was now the father of this child or he risked breaking his promise to keep him safe.

“You can try waking him up,” Poppy said. “He may not stay awake for long though.”

Severus nodded and held the boy’s hand, shocked at how easy it was to feel all of the bones under the skin.

“Harry?” He called softly before switching to the boy’s new name. “Julian, can you wake up for me?”

Harry’s eyes flickered slightly as he struggled to pull himself awake. He didn’t feel quite as foggy as he had, but he felt so weak.

“Come on, that’s it. Wake up,” Severus continued, rubbing the back of the hand he held.

Harry blinked his eyes a couple of times before registering who it was standing in front of him. The man in black! Sev-something? What was his name? He had come back! He hadn’t just told him he wanted to adopt him just to get the headmaster to leave him alone! He actually came back!

“Hello, sir,” he said hoarsely, his throat still hurt from the vomiting earlier.

“How are you feeling, Julian?” Severus asked.

“Tired,” Harry said, eyes starting to droop again. He was tired, hurt, and struggling to put two and two together. Was the vampire thing a dream? Was he Julian? He was Julian, right?

“Julian, don’t fall asleep just yet. I need you to try something,” Severus said, pulling out a blood pop.

“Hmm?” Harry mumbled sleepily. “Whazzit?”

“Suck on this please,” Severus pulled off the wrapper and held it to the boy’s mouth.

Harry barely opened his mouth and something sweet was shoved in. It tasted kind of strange, almost metallic, but good. Slowly he sucked on it, trying to stay awake long enough to finish it. He almost nodded off a few times at first, but as he maneuvered it around his mouth more with his tongue he woke up a bit more.

“What is this?” Harry asked the man next to him.

“Do you like it?” Severus asked, handing the boy his glasses. “I have more if you want them.”

Harry nodded faintly. “It’s good. But what is it?”

“It’s called a blood pop. Don’t make that face, I thought you said you liked it,” Severus said, smirking slightly at the disgusted look on Julian’s face.

“Is… is it made with real blood?” Harry said, continuing to suck on the lolly regardless of what the answer would be.

“Unfortunately for you, no. It is just flavoured to taste like blood. But what you need right now is some sort of energy in your system so you don’t keep burning through your magic. Or in your case right now, the magic of mine you got through the blood transfusion.”

“Oh, so like my glucose jellies. I always feel less tired for a while after I use them, but Aunt Petunia doesn’t like buying me many. Says it’s too expensive for the likes of me,” Harry said quietly, hanging his head and pulling out the now empty lolly stick. “Could I have another?”

Severus gave him another and felt rather ill. His aunt had been denying him something that could legitimately help him? Severus had seen their house, he knew there was no way they were short on funds. Besides, they had been receiving a small amount of money to care for him since he was a baby. There was no way they couldn’t have afforded to get the boy the best medical care available.

“Poppy,” Severus asked, turning to the matron. “Could a room be set up here in the infirmary for us? I know you don’t want to come down to the dungeons every time you would need to check on him.”

Poppy smiled and nodded. “Of course I can do that. I take it you are not planning on going back to Spinner’s End this summer? The ward resets itself at the end of the school year if I don’t tell its wards to allow certain changes to remain.”

Severus scoffed. Of course he had planned on returning there, but now that was not going to happen. Maybe if Julian was stronger they would go visit the house and they could visit the house his mother had grown up in, but that would not be happening for a while. Possibly not this summer. Besides, there was nothing worthwhile to do there. It was such a dreary mill town, always had been.

“Not anymore. If we are to make it seem we are father and son, we need to get to know each other better. We cannot ever hope to achieve that if I am there and he is here.”

Poppy rolled her eyes at the rather snide comment and looked at Julian who was watching the adults talk. The hope in his eyes was almost palpable and it broke her heart. Prior to Julian coming into the hospital wing, she had been planning on having a rather bland summer holiday in the Hebrides then spending the last week before school with her daughter. While it was still a few weeks before the end of school, she was hopeful Julian would be stable enough by the end of summer for her to at least do the last portion of her holiday plans.

“I’ll put one off of my office so the door won't be visible to everyone who comes in here.”

“Thank you, Poppy,” Severus said, bowing his head in thanks.

“Thank you, Madam Pomfrey,” Harry echoed, pulling his blankets around him and shivering slightly.

Poppy smiled at the two and went to her office to notify the headmaster she would be modifying the wards to the infirmary.

Severus and Harry sat in silence for a few minutes, the only sound being Harry sucking on his blood pop. Neither one looked at the other for several long minutes before Harry finally broke the silence.

“What’re potions?” he asked.

---

Poppy stood in the door to her office listening to Severus gently explaining the basics of potion making to the child mostly hidden under the blankets. She had never seen Severus act this way in all the years she had been taking care of him. He was actually trying to be gentle with this child. It helped that the boy seemed to be equally interested in the topic and was asking decently thought out questions, but Severus being this caring was unusual.

Finally sensing a break in the conversation, Poppy stepped out of the door way and made her presence known.

“Alright, your room is all set up. It’s a bit cramped, but I had to work within the original wards of the Hospital Wing. Albus will be coming shortly to get it connected to the internal floo network,” Poppy said, walking over and grabbing the bag of supplies which still sat at the head of Julian’s bed.

Severus looked at the small boy he had been speaking to. There was so much he had to learn about the wizarding world, but if he approached every topic with the same drive he had just been questioning Snape on potions with, he would do extremely well.

“Do I have to walk?” Harry asked quietly as Poppy walked into her office.

“No,” Severus said. “But it would be easier for me to carry you without the blanket. It’s just a short ways into the other room.”

Harry nodded and pushed the blankets off of him. Immediately he felt as though he had been dropped in a bucket of ice. He was so cold! How was no one else freezing?

Severus bent down and lifted the small boy into his arms, instinctively cradling Julian’s head. Holding him for the first time without the blankets was disheartening. He could feel every bone in the child’s back: shoulder blades sticking out like wings, ribs so prominent they felt like a washboard, and down the middle of the back were all the lumps of his spinal cord standing out. It felt more like lifting a replica of a skeleton than lifting a child. Severus cut his musing short, however, when Julian began shaking as his body desperately tried to create heat to compensate for the lack of fat insulation.

Severus quickly strode to the new room off the office of the healer and stopped when he entered the room.

Cramped was a bit of an understatement, but it would do. The walls were a warm cream color with dark wood molding and the floor was a dark wood of the same color. There were no windows in the room, which Severus was fine with. On one side of the room was a rather small fireplace with a fire already glowing in it. On the other side were two beds, one was placed in a corner and the other placed so there was room to walk all the way around it. Between the beds was a bookcase full of books. There was an additional door on the other side of the room which led to a small bathroom, in which Severus could make out a toilet, sink, and very small shower.

Severus pulled back the covers on the free standing bed as best he could and placed Julian in it. He then spelled the head of the bed up slightly so the boy wasn’t laying flat and cast a warming spell on the sheets and blanket that were already on the bed. He then summoned the other blanket off the bed in the infirmary and tucked it around Julian as well.

“Thank you sir,” Harry said, looking around the room in awe, blood pop stick hanging from his mouth which was now blood red. “Are you really going to stay here too? It’s ok if you don’t want to.”

Severus could tell how hopeful the boy was that he would say he would be staying there and how much it hurt to say it was ok for him not to.

“I will be staying here most of the time when I am off. I still have my classes to teach and my duties of Head of House to attend to. However, I have already informed my prefects and the Head Boy and Head Girl that I may be called away at a moment’s notice and they should speak with the headmaster if I am unavailable.”

Harry nodded in understanding. He didn’t know what a prefect was, but it seemed like they were students who could help handle problems.

“What is a house?” he asked, removing the blood pop stick from his mouth and dropping it into the bin by his bed.

“There are four houses here at Hogwarts. Slytherin, which I am the head of. Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor. At the beginning of every student’s time here, they are sorted into a house which best suits them and their personality. Slytherins tend to be resourceful, cunning, and ambitious. Ravenclaws value intelligence, wit, and wisdom. Hufflepuffs: diligence, tolerance, and fairness. Gryffindors are considered to be brave, determined, and daring.”

“What’s a head of house?” Harry asked, yawning. This was the longest he had been awake in a long time.

“My job as a head of house is to look out for the students placed in my house and make sure they are behaving themselves, doing their homework, and not slacking off.”

“Do you like it?” Harry took off his glasses, placed them on the bookshelf next to him, and rubbed his eyes.

“Not in the slightest. All of them are dunderheads.”

Harry chuckled and yawned again. He wasn’t completely sure, but he had a sneaking suspicion he enjoyed calling people that.

It had taken more than a week of living on a diet of almost pure sugar for Julian’s magic levels to finally stabilize enough they were no longer dropping rapidly when he was awake. They had tried the chocolate after having run out of blood pops, however Severus soon found out that, while Julian’s stomach wouldn’t immediately revolt as it had done with the cold water, it was still too sluggish to properly digest the milk in the chocolate.

That was a long night, but it provided proof of concept. The energy in the glucose was providing his magical core with the energy needed to no longer try and cannibalize his body.

And as his magic levels stabilized, they were starting to notice other minor improvements. His vital signs were more consistently stable, he was able to stay awake for longer and longer periods of time, and he was feeling less cold consistently.

There had only been a few times where Snape had had to be pulled out of class due to a change in Julian’s status, a fact he was thankful for. Most of those times were Julian waking up from a nightmare and immediately vomiting, one of which required Severus to again be a donor as Julian had begun to vomit small amounts of blood after a particularly long episode. However, there was one time when he came rushing in only to find Julian and Poppy smiling widely.

“My stomach growled!” Julian had declared happily. “It’s starting to wake up!”

Severus had struggled to keep up his ‘mean professor’ reputation for the rest of the day. If Julian’s digestive tract started moving, they would be able start feeding him blood in the way he actually needed it.

Despite the improvement in his magical levels, every day was still filled with massive ups and downs. And with every change in his health, Severus was finding himself more and more impressed with the boy’s resilience, a trait he no doubt got from his mother.

Eventually, they fell into a daily routine. Severus would wake early and check the boy’s vital signs, if everything seemed stable, he would then floo to dungeons and get his classroom ready for the day. He would then go to the Great Hall and grab a small breakfast as he had found the smell of human food made Julian’s nausea significantly worse. After breakfast, he would go back to see if Julian was awake. If he was, they would talk about whatever Julian had questions about (generally what Hogwarts was like) until it was time for classes to start. Severus would teach until lunch, check on Julian once more, then he would teach until the end of the school day.

After classes, Severus would stay in the dungeons and spend time in Slytherin house. He still had to keep up appearances and this was essentially the same schedule he had had while actually working on the Wolfsbane. If he wanted to keep Julian a secret for the rest of this school year, he had to stay on a similar schedule.

Dinner was another quick affair, with Severus generally bowing out quickly so as to allow Poppy a chance to leave the infirmary and get some food herself. Julian would always try to be awake after dinner so the two could spend some time speaking with one another or reading through the various materials on the bookshelf in their room. Once Julian was asleep for the night, Severus would set up the monitoring charms to make sure he would be awakened himself should something go awry during the night. He would then use the infirmary’s office to work on grading the various assignments he had had returned that day.

For Julian, the days were spent sleeping for long hours, reading anything magical he could lay his hands on, and sucking on more lollies than he had ever eaten in his entire life. He had been incredibly thankful to find out magical candies would not cause tooth decay. He had been afraid his teeth would rot right out of his head at the rate he was being told to consume them.

It hadn’t taken them long to find out he wasn’t limited to just blood pops, though those were certainly his favorite. Severus had gotten a rather pained look on his face when he had told him he liked the blood pops the most, so he hadn’t pushed the issue and would happily accept any of the different flavours of lolly. Except grape. Those tasted too much like medication for him to enjoy them.

Madam Pomfrey would come into their room when Severus wasn’t around and she had no patients and, as he got stronger, tutor him on some of the more basic aspects of wizarding life such as writing with a quill or wizarding games. He was utter rubbish at Wizard’s Chest, but it was fun to watch the figurines fight and it was a good game to play while talking. On days when he wasn’t feeling well enough to focus on a lesson or play a game, Madam Pomfrey would read him stories from The Tales of Beedle and the Bard.

Writing with a quill was hard, but there was a secondary reason it was important he learn the skill: he had to practice writing his name. He had gotten much better at responding to the name ‘Julian,’ but it still felt unnatural at times. The more he practiced with the quill, read wizard stories, and played wizarding games, the more he was able to separate his new life as Julian Snape from his old life as Harry Potter.

His life as Harry had been one of sickness and neglect. Julian had a father, lived in a castle, and was a wizard. It felt as though all of his wishes had come true, though not in the way he expected. And with summer coming up, he had a feeling it was only going to get better.

Severus sat behind his desk in the dungeons rubbing the bridge of his nose and sipping on the strongest coffee the house-elves could find. Finals had finished and he was well and truly behind on his grading. He needed to create an antidote for an exploded potion which had doused the Weasley twins in a foul smelling slime that left them smelling like rotting fish and turned their skin green. And last night had been awful as they had attempted to give Julian a nutrient potion modified for vampires through his tube.

It had worked well enough, until they decided to increase the rate at which it was being given. Even after they had slowed the rate back down, Julian was still having such terrible cramps and nausea they had to stop. Six hours later, the cramps had died down enough he was no longer crying in pain at every spasm. But by that time it was nearly three in the morning.

And now this.

Severus sighed as he read over the letter he had received in the post. He had completely forgotten about Draco Malfoy’s birthday. While Severus and Lucius had never been friends in the traditional sense, Lucius had continued to keep in contact with Severus even after the war was over. While Severus knew this contact was more of a ploy to seem as though he were a spy as well, Severus also saw in the relationship an opportunity to perhaps prevent Draco from entering the same dark path his father went down.

Forgetting his birthday was an inexcusable error on his part, especially as Draco was in love with receiving presents. The boy truly had a good heart but was being spoiled beyond belief by his parents, namely his father.

Lucius, from the tone of the letter, was not pleased when Severus had failed to come to his son’s eleventh birthday party. Nor was he pleased when Severus had not sent any form of letter or card to the boy. Now, several weeks on from the event, Draco was beginning to believe Severus no longer wished to be his mentor.

Severus sighed once more as he cast a warming spell on his coffee. Antidote first, then he would worry about Draco and the massive piles of paperwork he had sprawled around him on the desk.

This was going to be a long day.

---

Lucius Malfoy glanced up from The Daily Prophet when the floo flared to life in his study. Only a few… select… individuals were allowed access to his home in such a way. Severus Snape, the spy, was one of them.

“You wished to speak with me?” Severus said, soot off his already black robes.

“You missed Draco’s birthday. He has been hoping since opening his Hogwarts letter to speak with you about classes and Slytherin house,” Lucius said coolly. “However, you have not once sent him a letter, a present, or any kind of explanation as to where you are.”

Severus looked at his previous mentor with tired eyes.

“I’ve been preoccupied with my work.”

“You have never been so preoccupied you forget something important. I know you, Snape,” Lucius sneered, throwing the paper onto the desk and striding over to where the potions master stood. “I know you have been grooming my child to go against his pure-blood heritage. I know what you are working at Snape. Do not forget, I can easily get your charges reversed. You break off your ‘friendly relations’ with me and the ministry suspects a thing, we both go down. So tell me, Snape, what part of your work has you so preoccupied you forget your other friends.”

“I’ve been working on a personal project,” Severus said tiredly.

“What kind of personal project?”

“One that, quite frankly, could land me in Azkaban for life if the ministry finds out,” Severus said, shuddering slightly

Throughout the time he was being tried as a Death Eater, Severus had spent several months in Azkaban as he awaited sentencing. Lucius had been there as well, though he had managed to buy his way out long before Albus had been able to get the majority of Severus’s charges dropped or lessened. Lucius had claimed to be a spy as well, claiming to have worked alongside Severus on many occasions. While not an outright lie, as the two men had routinely been paired for raids by the Dark Lord, it was also not quite the truth. But it was close enough Severus had answered a poorly worded question under Veritaserum in such a way that Lucius had managed to walk free as though he had been a spy as well.

“What have you done, Severus?” Lucius reeled back slightly, much of his fury dropping away.

Severus paused for a moment as he quickly tried to put together an origin story for the boy who was likely sleeping in the Hospital Wing. Albus had changed the date of the boy’s birth on the paternity paperwork to reflect the day he had been taken from the Dursley house rather than the actual day of his birth. 11 years and roughly 10 months before that, Severus had briefly disappeared from both the Death Eaters and from the Order of the Phoenix. He had tried to run away, but when Lily Potter’s pregnancy was announced, he knew he couldn’t stay hidden any longer.

“Remember when I disappeared for a few months in ‘79?” Severus asked.

Lucius nodded. It had been a strange time indeed. One moment Severus was there partaking in the revelry, the next he was gone. They thought he had been cursed, likely by Bellatrix. When he reappeared a few weeks later, they laughed it off.

“I ran away, a fact I am not proud of,” Severus said, carefully watching Lucius’s expression. “I ran away and attempted to start a life. However, it wasn’t what I thought it would be like, far too tedious. I had briefly found a girlfriend, however we broke up almost immediately. It wasn’t until a few years ago I found out she had tried to reach out to me and had never found me after I left.”

Lucius crossed his arms and glared at the potions master, nostrils flaring. They had needed him shortly after his disappearance, he was the best potions master in Britain no matter his age. Without him during those few months, several Death Eaters had been badly injured during a skirmish. His potion skills easily could have saved their lives.

None of this explained what he was risking his freedom for.

“She had gotten pregnant,” Severus continued. “I wanted nothing to do with the child, but when she passed away suddenly, I received a letter in the mail from his aunt and uncle stating I was the child’s next of kin and therefore should be his guardian. I turned it down initially.”

“I was told he was a sickly child, but I was sure I could cure him with a few potions. He had stayed with an aunt and uncle for a few years before I finally agreed to meet him. I was unaware of how ill he was. He was unable to eat, a fact I honestly thought they had been exaggerating. I tried every potion I could think of to help him. He kept getting worse, however. He then started showing some strange symptoms, and it finally clicked for me what it was.”

Lucius tried to look bored, but he was enthralled in the story. Severus had a child? He had been hiding a child? It sounded like all of the necessary paperwork had been filed, however, so what was the problem?

“I must reiterate, I did not know about this when I retrieved him. I honestly thought he had a stomach problem, but that was it,” Severus looked Lucius dead in the eye.

“What’s wrong with him?” Lucius asked, his interest certainly peaked.

“He is a vampire. But I fear he may have irreparable damage done to him from the level of malnutrition he has,” Severus said, continuing to look Lucius in the eye.

Lucius visibly recoiled. Vampires were dark creatures akin to dementors in that they could remove the soul of a being if they really wanted to. For Severus to be keeping one, even a child, he risked having all of the charges he had been exonerated of called into question. Lucius himself had dark artifacts stored within his house, but as they were family heirlooms it was considered excusable. The more modern evidence of his dark arts usage was hidden away.

But a vampire was a being which was inherently dark. As a known Death Eater, even a spy, being seen performing the Dark Arts, owning any form of dark magical artifacts, or ‘consorting’ with any beings which had been on the side of the Dark Lord was seen as an effort to bring about the rise of a new Dark Lord.

“Where, pray-tell, are you keeping him if he is so ill?” Lucius asked, wondering how this child was being hidden.

Severus smirked rather evilly knowing Lucius wasn’t going to like this.

“In the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts.”

“WHAT?!” Lucius roared, eyes wide in shock. “You are keeping a vampire in a SCHOOL?”

“Calm yourself, Lucius,” Severus said, glad to finally have the upper hand in the relationship. “He has no urge to feed yet, nor would he have the strength to do so.”

“I assume the barmy old man knows about this?”

“It was his idea to keep Julian in the infirmary. Albus has a penchant for trying to give all beings access to the same resources. If he were to get any worse, however, Madam Pomfrey has already decided she would send him to St Mungo’s for treatment. We all know what would happen to him if he were to be sent there.”

Lucius stood in silence for a moment, pondering his next move. The boy could not go to St. Mungo’s, that much was certain. If it were known that Severus had been harbouring a vampire, he would immediately be called to trial. And if Severus was arrested and his status as a spy called into question, Lucius would be tried as well.

“What sorts of resources do you need to keep this a secret?” he finally asked.

“As of right now, what I need more than anything is money,” Severus admitted. His bank account was still … rather shy on funds at the moment. He was thankful Julian could tolerate the more basic lollies as opposed to just the blood pops. “I have found myself woefully unprepared for having a child. I had presumed his relatives would at least send him with some clothing, however that was not the case. Add to that his… special dietary requirements and the fact I am having to do some experimentation in order to find potions which work to stabilize his condition.”

“Does the Headmaster know of any of this?” Lucius asked. “He knows the boy is on Hogwarts grounds and you are a professor at the school, has he not raised your salary at all to assist you?”

Severus sighed. Every time he had tried to bring up the fact that he was needing a forward on his salary at the very least so they could get by until he was able to start doing commissions for the summer, Albus made some sort of excuse or was called away on other business.

“Unfortunately, we have never gotten the chance to talk about this current financial situation.”

Lucius looked at the man in front of him flatly. He didn’t know what to think of the situation. Severus having a child. That child being a vampire. A child who was sickly to the point of needing higher care but not being able to receive it as he would then be marked and tracked like an animal. It all seemed highly improbable.

“I cannot provide you with funds outside of small gifts. Anything more than that and it will cause concern. I can, however, purchase some of the items you may need, particularly those of the more expensive variety,” Lucius said.

“Thank you, Lucius,” Severus said, bowing his head in thanks. This kindness was unexpected from the Malfoy patriarch.

“On one condition,” Lucius added suddenly, causing the hairs on Severus’s neck to stand up.

“Yes?” Severus asked hoping the condition wasn’t one requiring more work from him.

“I would like to meet the child,” Lucius said, picking up black and silver cane and summoning his travelling cloak.

“Now?” Severus said, trying to keep the shock out of his voice.

“Yes, now. I won’t be made a fool of. You say you have a child you’re keeping in the infirmary, I want to see for myself.”

“I would never try to steal your money Lucius. Nor would I intentionally put either of us in this situation.”

“Now, Severus. We go to Hogwarts now,” Lucius all but growled as he grabbed the man’s arm and apparated the two of them as close to Hogwarts wards as he dared.

Severus gasped on landing as the apparation was unexpected. The visit to see Draco had officially gone off the rails. He only hoped Julian was coherent enough to know he was in danger if he answered any questions wrong or let on that he lived with muggles.

Lucius followed behind Severus by several steps up to the castle. If anyone had seen them, they would have thought Severus was leading him in. Severus knew, however, that should he try any form of escape or to notify Albus of the visit Lucius would curse him immediately.

Albus met the two men at the front door as though he had been expecting them.

“Governor Malfoy, to what do I owe the honor of having a surprise visit?” Albus said rather happily.

“Good afternoon, Headmaster,” Lucius drawled calmly. “I have heard there is a young child staying here who is not yet a student. As it is not common practice for children of professors to stay in the castle, I felt it prudent to check on its well-being.”

Albus nodded and stepped to one side, allowing the men to enter into the building ahead of him.

“You don’t mind if I come with you to the infirmary, Severus? These old bones have been giving me fits, perhaps Madam Pomfrey has something which would help.”

“Not at all, Headmaster. However I do believe Lucius has prior engagements he needs to attend to.”

“Not to worry, Severus,” Albus said, coyly playing the part of the old man. “I’ll catch up.”

Severus nodded to the headmaster as he and Lucius strode down the halls, nearly running over Percy Weasley who was meandering slowly towards the library with his nose in a book.

“Five points from Gryffindor for not paying attention,” Severus snapped as the boy jumped to the side.

The two men continued through the halls to the hospital wing, garnering looks of both fear and curiosity. Some of the older students had seen Lucius Malfoy when the governors of the school would come and do a periodic inspection, however this time he was alone and with Professor Snape and they were both striding quickly towards the hospital wing. Immediately, speculation began to flow through the student body with a few even daring to try and sneak behind the men. These few students were not brave enough to follow the men when they did enter the hospital wing.

“Severus?” Lucius growled questioningly as they entered the empty wing.

“Do you honestly think me a fool?” Severus said rather exasperatedly as he continued towards Madam Pomfrey’s office. “Why would I keep a child I’m trying to hide in the hospital wing where he can easily be seen?”

Lucius huffed, he didn’t know which he should be more hopeful for. He couldn’t think of a good reason for Snape to attempt to dupe him into believing that he had a child, but he also couldn’t believe that a vampire was being hidden within the walls of the school. Either way, he followed Severus into the office and immediately noted the additional door.

“May I check to see if he is awake?” Severus asked, hoping Julian was up for having a visitor if he was awake.

“Do not shut the door. I don’t want you casting a glamour over whomever is in there,” Lucius said, continuing to not trust the spy in front of him.

Severus nodded. It was a reasonable enough request. He would have requested the same if the roles were reversed.

Severus flicked his wand and unlocked the door, a wave of dry heat escaped the room as he entered, making Lucius immediately back up a step. The heat, while not immense, would have been extremely uncomfortable to be in.

‘Unless you are unable to manage your body temperature,’ his mind reminded him. ‘Snape did say he was extremely thin.’

Lucius could hear some murmuring from the other room for a few seconds before Snape reappeared in the door and beckoned him in.

“Julian, this is Lucius Malfoy. He is one of the governors of the school and wanted to see how you were doing.”

Lucius stepped into the room and had felt his eyes immediately widen. Sitting on the bed before him was the most malnourished child he had ever seen. Even when he was an active Death Eater, he had never seen someone survive to be this thin. The boy’s magical reserves must have been the only thing keeping him alive, it was the only explanation.

“Hello, sir,” a rather meek voice snapped him out of his reverie.

“Hello, Julian,” Lucius responded, surprising even himself with how gently he said it. “How are you doing.”

“Better, sir. I can stay awake for much longer,” Julian said, smiling slightly. “It feels good to be able to read for more than a few minutes before needing to sleep.”

Lucius nodded mutely, trying to think of a follow up question. He had always prided himself on being prepared for every situation, but seeing the child in front of him shook him in a way he wasn’t prepared for.

“How old are you, Julian?” Lucius asked softly.

Julian thought about it for a moment. He had briefly discussed with his … father… his changed birthday. It had been strange to start thinking of himself as a totally different person, but he was getting used to it. If what his father had said was true, then he would have been extremely famous if he had kept his other name. He wasn’t too keen on that plan, he just wanted to be himself not some famous person.

Severus had also warned him of people trying to find out who he was and to be cautious around people who were asking questions or came to visit unannounced.

“Eleven,” he finally answered. “I slept through my birthday though.”

The same age as Draco.

It felt almost like a punch to the gut. True, Snape had been working on instilling ideals which went against what Lucius knew, but Lucius knew that in Draco would need to survive in a world where knowing all sides of an issue would help him survive. Severus missing Draco’s birthday had seemed like he had stopped caring, especially as he had broken off almost all contact with the boy for several weeks prior to Draco’s birthday.

Lucius would’ve done the same thing. His child’s life was more important than a birthday party. If it was Draco in that bed, Lucius didn’t think he or Narcissa would have been able to leave the bedside.

“I have a son who is your age,” Lucius continued. “He is going to be starting at Hogwarts in autumn.”

“I’ve yet to discuss with Albus the logistics of Julian starting on time, but if he is strong enough by September there is a possibility of him doing a partial schedule,” Severus explained.

“I just want to do potions,” Julian said, blushing and looking down at the book he held in his hands. “I don’t think I’m going to be much good at anything else.”

Lucius smirked slightly. Like father, like son.

“Did you get anything for your birthday?” Lucius asked.

Julian jolted slightly at the question. He hadn’t even thought about the possibility of receiving presents for anything. Besides, his real birthday was over a month away.

“I got to live.”

___________________________________

Albus and Poppy were speaking with each other in her office when Severus and a rather green looking Lucius Malfoy stepped out of the adjacent room.

Lucius briefly nodded to the two of them before continuing into the main infirmary.

“I’ll tell you later,” Severus said to the headmaster, following his former compatriot out of the office.

Lucius stood pensively in the middle of the infirmary, a million thoughts racing through his mind.

“You said he has no clothing?” Lucius said, hearing the door to the office close behind Severus.

“No, nothing other than that blanket and hat.”

Lucius just nodded.

“I apologize for threatening you,” he said. “I cannot begin to imagine the stress you are under at this time. I shall attempt to explain to Draco where you have been. I will not tell him of Julian until you inform me I may do so.”

Severus was shocked. Lucius never apologized for anything. And for him to look as shocked as he was now, something about Julian must have shocked him to his core.

“Thank you, Lucius. I shall do so when he is able to properly receive visitors.”

They stood in silence for a few more minutes before Lucius finally turned and walked to the door.

“Thank you for allowing me to meet him,” Lucius said, pausing once more at the door. “I shall see myself out.”

He then opened the door and left before Severus had a chance to say anything.

“What was that about, my boy?” Albus asked, having snuck rather quietly up behind the potions master.

“Lucius asked Julian what he got for his birthday and Julian said he ‘got to live.’ I’ve never seen Lucius so rattled at a statement, I honestly think he was thinking of how Draco is the same age and was imagining his own son in the bed saying that,” Severus said.

“He did seem highly disturbed,” Albus said.

Severus snorted. Lucius always had been disturbed, but he also valued family greatly and would do whatever was necessary to keep them safe. While many of Lucius’s morals were questionable at best, he truly did love having a child and would often brag about his son.

“I apologize, Headmaster. I had no intention of bringing Lucius here; he was insistent on seeing Julian once he learned he was the reason I had missed Draco’s birthday.”

“What is done, is done. No harm has befallen the boy, though greater care should be taken in the future,” Albus said, eyes twinkling subtly.

“I am dubious he will return for a secondary visit. He did, however, offer to assist with purchasing some items I will need for Julian’s care in the future.”

“Ah, yes, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that. I do believe you are due for a raise, as well as a cost of living adjustment. Especially now that you have a child under your care,” Albus smiled at the potions master.

“Thank you, headmaster. I’m afraid, however, I will be needing to request an advance on my next paycheck.” Severus said. The two salary adjustments would help lessen the burden of taking care of a child, but his money was still going to be stretched quite thin until he was able to start doing more commissioned work. And he wouldn’t have the time to do that until Julian was no longer requiring intensive monitoring. But it would help.

“I’m sure that can be arranged,” Albus said, smiling as though he had a plan in the works.
Severus sighed. Lucius’s visit was an hour of work time lost. He had so much paperwork he needed to get done and the term was almost complete.

He was going to need a lot of coffee.

Today was going to be a big day, Julian could feel it. It had been nearly a month since he had been taken from his relatives house and brought to this incredible place. It was still hard for him to even think about how much things had changed for him in the past few days, let alone the past month.

He was finally starting to feel … normal. A normal he had never felt as Harry Potter, the freak under the stairs.

Sure there had been some setbacks, but even those were trivial compared to how bad they had been in the past. He would still get sick from time to time, though even those periods were lessening. His blood counts were much more stable than they had ever been since he became a vampire, and he was tolerating the nutrient potions his … father… was brewing for him.

That was the biggest thing he was struggling with: having a father.

He could tell the potions master wasn’t used to having a child, but he wasn’t used to having a father. It felt nice to have someone actually seeming to care about his well being as he had never had felt that before. However, he often found it to be rather overbearing. Severus had all sorts of monitoring spells set up to notify him of any changes. However, those changes included sitting on the edge of the bed. Or laying in bed with his feet above his head. Or getting too excited about the book he was reading.

These past few days had been different though. The term was coming to a close for the students and Severus had been busier than ever with trying to finish the last of his grading and paperwork. This left Julian with plenty of time to do whatever he could while confined to his bed.

He had read through almost all of the books on the bookshelf between their two beds, though he tended to stray away from the fiction books. They didn’t really hold his interest as well as the more technical books on the shelf did, but mostly because they required a base knowledge of the wizarding world in order to understand them. Potions was rapidly becoming his favorite topic to study, and not just because Severus enjoyed talking about them. They reminded him of cooking and chemistry all rolled into one.

But today he wasn’t going to be getting time to read. Yesterday, Madam Pomfrey said if his magic levels remained stable and he was able to tolerate running his tube feeding they would try something he hadn’t been able to do in many, many weeks.

Today he was going to try to stand, and possibly walk.

Moving around on the bed was getting easier for him and he was ever so thankful this bed didn’t make his bum sore if he laid or sat in one position too long. But bed mobility was still not mobility. And after finishing Hogwarts: A History, he wanted to be able to explore the castle on his own. He wanted to meet the ghosts and see the Quidditch pitch and go up to the top of the astronomy tower and look at the ceiling of the Great Hall.

But today, he wanted to make it to the windows in the infirmary so he could watch the students ride away in the horseless carriages as they went home.

Julian was trying to focus on reading through the first year potions book for a second time and keep his nerves about getting out of bed under wraps when he heard the lock to the door click open. He looked up hopefully, thinking it could possibly be Madam Pomfrey.

“Good morning, Julian,” Severus said as he stepped into the room and saw the boy awake and reading as usual.

“Good morning, sir,” Julian responded quietly. He was still unsure what to call the man as calling him ‘dad’ seemed almost disrespectful to his real father. And the more he was awake around the man, the more afraid he was that he was going to mess something up.

“I know Madam Pomfrey is planning on having you walk today, but I have a surprise for you which may make it a little easier for you to get around,” Severus said, pulling out a fist sized box from his pocket.

Julian looked down at it confused for a moment until Severus flicked his wand and the box resized to a normal crate size.

“You remember Mr. Malfoy coming to visit?” Severus asked. Julian had passed out shortly after Lucius left, so Severus didn’t even know if he could recall the visit. Since that visit, Severus had received several letters from the man inquiring about Julian and his health, sizing, and if any special alterations to his clothing was needed.

Julian nodded timidly. He vaguely remembered the blonde haired man coming into his room, but he had been on the verge of falling asleep at the time. He didn’t seem too mean, just … concerned. He had had an air about him though that made him seem very arrogant.

“Lucius, Mr. Malfoy, was kind enough to send you some new clothes as your old clothing was … sub-par. It didn’t fit you at all. I received this box today. Lucius said he also included a few books for you on vampires as a belated birthday gift, though I would like to check them for curses first as it is hard to come by some of these books from a safe bookstore.”

Julian looked at the box in awe. Someone sent him a present? A big present? He didn’t think even Dudley had ever gotten a box this big.

It was too much. Why would anyone want to spend so much on him? Even if it was only a few books, books were expensive. And new clothing was expensive too, especially if it didn’t come from a second hand store. And Mr. Malfoy didn’t seem like the kind of person to frequent the thrift store. Did wizards even have thrift stores?

He was scared to open it. What if it was just an empty box? Or a prank.

“Julian?” Severus said, concern leaking into his voice as the boy made no move to open the box.

Julian continued to stare at the box, trying to decide what to do before finally asking, “Is this a prank?”

“No Julian, it’s not a prank,” Severus said quietly. He understood that fear; opening a box and having nothing be there. “What if I open it?”

After thinking about it for a moment, Julian nodded. If there was only an old coat hanger or a 20 pence piece, at least he wouldn’t be the one to see it first. It was easier to have no hopes than to have those hopes high and have them be dashed.

With a flick of his wand, the top of the crate disappeared. Inside, Severus could see a wide range of robes, pants, trousers, socks, gloves, and shirts. There were even a few knit caps similar to the one Julian was always wearing to keep his ears warm. Severus picked one up and found it to have a permanent heating charm on it and was fleece lined.

He looked over at Julian, who was trying hard not to look. The child didn’t want to have his hopes dashed so badly he was looking completely away from the box.

Severus smiled gently and handed the boy one of the hats.

“Julian, try this on.”

Julian’s eyes flickered to the hat in Severus’s hand. It looked incredibly comfortable and warm. Gingerly, he reached out and took the hat, holding it as though it would bite him.

It was warm! He could feel the heat emanating from inside the hat. It didn’t take him long to rip off his old hat and slide the new one in place, sighing at the heat that wrapped its way around his ears. The hat itself was a dark emerald green and while it wasn’t overly thick in appearance, it was the warmest hat he had ever owned.

“This is for me?” he whispered, continuing to be shocked at the box before him.

“Yes,” Severus said softly. “This is all yours.”

Julian looked into the box and pulled out a warm looking wool sweater. He could feel a bit of warmth coming off this too. Setting it aside, he reached back in and grabbed a pair of socks. Warm. Boots: warm. Pants: warm.

“They’re all warm!” He said, excitedly.

Severus smiled at the boy’s enthusiasm. The books must be in the bottom of the crate.

“Are you sure they are all for me?” he said, mood dropping immediately.

Severus rolled his eyes. “Of course they are. You don’t see me wearing clothing this small, do you?”

“And his son won’t want them back?” Julian asked, still worried about the possibility of having to give them up.

“Draco isn’t small enough to wear these either, Julian,” Severus said quietly. Julian had never been sensitive about his size, but he had likely not been around many people his own age for a very long time. Even if other 11 year-olds were his height, he was still extremely underweight.

“Are you sure?”

“Extremely. You’ll meet Draco soon enough. He is thin, but quite tall,” Severus stretched the truth slightly. Draco’s height was average at best, but he would still tower over Julian even if he slouched. “Now let's get you dressed.”

“Do they need to be washed?” Julian asked, making no move to put any of the clothing on.

“Bespoke clothing comes pre-laundered, Julian,” Severus said, continuing to remove items from the box and placing them on the end of the bed. “What would you like to wear?”

Julian watched in horror as the mound of clothing at the end of his bed coming from the box grew. All of these were for him? Why would he need so many clothes? Why would anyone need this many clothes? A jumper and trousers would have been enough, but no there were at least eight jumpers on his bed by the time Severus had removed all of the clothing from the box. There were also several robes of varying dark colors that reminded him of the robes Severus wore.

“Sir?” Julian said, panic creeping into his voice. “Sir this is too much!”

“Julian, it's fine. These are all yours. Do you not know what to pick?” Severus said, watching the boy’s eyes jump around as he looked at all of the clothing.

Julian shook his head. At the Dursley’s, he was always hearing Aunt Petunia making snide comments about how people dressed. He had never had to worry about it before, and now was worried he would look absurd.

Severus sighed. As if the physical health difficulties were difficult enough, the boy was starting to show the stress of being in a new environment. In some ways it was a good sign. The boy was awake enough to begin to process everything going on around him.

“Here,” he said, handing the child a simple pair of grey pants and black trousers. “Would you like help getting these on?”

Julian nodded. Just the idea of trying to pull his pants up was intimidating. It always took a lot of effort to lift his hips off the bed and standing was … shaky at best. And that was before spending over a month on bedrest. He was not expecting the pants and trousers to suddenly appear on him, nor was he expecting them to immediately shrink to fit around his waist properly.

Severus smirked at the boy’s expression and silently thanked Lucius for getting the clothing spelled to automatically adjust to the child’s size. It seemed Narcissa may have had a say in the clothing purchases as well, as the clothing all matched and would look good no matter what pairing was put together. Severus had never been great at creating clothing combinations that matched, and was thankful for this extra thought put in to make his life easier.

“Any preference on shirt?” He asked, looking at the piles of shirts and jumpers.

Julian was still looking at the trousers in shock, but shook his head. The trousers were higher waisted than he was used to, but they were surprisingly comfortable. He was a bit worried about the shirt though. Since his stomach had started to wake up and he was getting the nutrient potion, he was starting to notice a bit more drainage from around his tube. He wasn’t keen on the idea of getting it on the new shirts.

Severus grabbed a jumper which matched the new hat Julian was wearing and was surprised when a small ring of matching fabric fell out of the folds.

“What is this?” He muttered to himself holding it up.

Julian looked up, and immediately smiled. He knew exactly what it was and held out his hand. He had always wanted one of these, they looked so much more comfortable than using gauze.

Severus handed it over, still confused as to what the doughnut of fabric was for until Julian undid the small button on the side of it and slipped it under and around the feeding tube on his stomach.

He had explained in great detail to Lucius that a feeding tube had been inserted into Julian’s stomach while he was in hospital and it occasionally leaked. The man had kept asking about Julian’s health needs and modifications needed to the clothing. Severus knew he was more concerned about spells to prevent sun related problems, but those spells were easy enough for Severus to apply. The feeding tube, on the other hand, was far more prone to getting stuck on and in clothing.

They had tried simply covering it with a gauze pad, but that made it difficult to access. Sticking spells were great too, but they would frequently kink the tube if too much was stuck down or leave a loop in the tubing that could easily get pulled if too little was adhered. The clothing had to be made to accommodate the tubing being there, had to make it easy to access, and had to keep the tube securely in place.

It was crucial to keep the tube in place until he was able to feed enough to no longer require it. If that tube was lost, they had no way to get him the nutrients he needed. While his intestines were moving (albeit extremely slowly) his stomach had yet to have the strength to move things along. They had tried small amounts of warm water or nutrient potion, but several hours later they would find him violently vomiting into the trash can.

The seamstress must have done her research to figure out anything about feeding tubes.

Julian quickly pulled the dark green jumper over his head, immediately relishing in the warmth that encased his torso. While he wasn’t nearly as freezing cold as he had been, he still couldn’t get warm easily.

Severus smiled slightly at the boy on the bed in front of him before spelling all of the clothing into the drawers under the bed, making sure to leave out a pair of socks and the boots.

“What?” Julian said, rather self-consciously as Severus smirked.

“You look like a Slytherin,” he said proudly. “If anyone were to see you, there would be no doubt in their mind who you belonged to.”

Julian blushed and ducked his head.

A knock at the door sent both men’s heads flying up. It was time.

“You ready?” Severus said, spelling the boots and socks onto the boys feet and helping him sit on the side of the bed as Madam Pomfrey came bustling in.

“Oh, good! You’re dressed!” she said as she puttered around the room, making sure there were not going to be any trip hazards on the floor. “You look lovely dear.”

Julian blushed, but sat up a little taller.

“How long have you been sitting for?” she asked, looking at Severus sitting next to him.

“Just sat up,” Julian said, knowing she would check him over before allowing him to walk at all.

She let him sit for a few minutes while she and Severus talked about summer plans. Occasionally, Julian could see her flick her wand at him and he watched as the numbers over his head changed. His heart rate was staying stable and his blood pressure wasn’t plummeting, so after a few minutes, the decision was made.

It was time to stand up.

The floor suddenly seemed a long way down.

Gently, Severus helped lower the boy down so his feet were on the ground. The child's knees immediately started quivering as he held his own weight for the first time in over a month.

“How does it feel?” Poppy asked.

“Shaky,” Julian said, feeling like he was hanging onto Severus for dear life. “Really shaky.”

“Do you feel light headed?” Poppy asked, flicking her wand once more and looking at the vital signs floating above his head. Heart rate was up, but not worryingly so.

“Do you need to sit?” Severus asked, feeling the boy’s hands tighten around his sleeve.

“Not yet,” Julian said, trying very hard to stand up without hanging onto Severus’s arm. Every time he went to let go, he could feel his knees buckle.

Suddenly, his knees couldn’t take it any more and slammed together. If Severus hadn’t been there, he most certainly would have hit the floor. He had never gotten this weak before, but then again, he had very nearly died.

Severus lifted the now panting child back on the bed. “You did well, Julian.”

Julian just sat there and caught his breath. He most certainly did not do “well,” quite the opposite in fact. He could barely stand for two minutes! He had really been hoping to get to watch the students go home, but that seemed like a pipe dream now.

Severus watched as the boy’s eyes filled with tears. Julian had been so calm about most everything, but this pushed him over the edge.

“Julian, what’s wrong?” he asked quietly. “Are you in pain?”

Julian shook his head and tried to wipe away his tears with his sleeve, only to find that more appeared.

“I just… I dunno… I thought…” he started, stumbling through the words trying to find the best explanation. “I thought I could make it to the windows.”

“You want to go to the windows? In the infirmary?” Severus asked, pulling out a handkerchief to give the child.

“Thought I could walk there. I wanted to watch the students go home. I wanted to see the carriages,” he admitted, cheeks turning bright red. There was no way they would let him do that. They would want him to get back into bed.

“I think that can be arranged,” Severus said. “Poppy, a word?”

Poppy looked at him rather confused, but stepped into the corner of the room with him and through the quick silencing spell he had thrown up.

“Do you think he’s stable enough to go outside?”

“I don’t see why not. He would either have to be levitated or carried down. And it’s quite overcast today. He’ll need a cloak though. And no more than 20 minutes. And spell your watch to read his vital signs and magic levels.”

Severus nodded. It would do the boy some good to get out of the room, even for a little bit. He was weak, yes, but more stable than he had been in a long time. A few quick spells and Severus’s watch was showing a continuous reading of Julian’s vital signs.

Dropping the silencing spell, Severus looked over at the child who was looking at them sadly.

“The carriages don’t leave for another half hour,” Poppy said, smiling. “How about we do some leg exercises and stretch out your muscles a little, then you can go watch them leave.”

Immediately, Julian’s face lit up. They were going to let him out of the bedroom? He was going to get to watch the carriages go? It would be so nice to finally get out of the room!

Severus smirked at the matron, knowing she had deliberately left out the ‘going outside’ part. Julian deserved a happy surprise from time to time.

“Sir?” Julian asked as Severus approached the doors to the infirmary with the child in his arms. “Sir, the windows are over there.”

Severus snickered Poppy opened the door for them. Though excruciatingly weak, the boy had tried very hard with the leg and arm exercises he was given. He had been surprisingly well behaved, a fact which relieved Severus to no end. Despite being ill, despite the endless barrage of testing, despite everything he had been up against, Julian was proving himself to be a driven student.

He deserved a surprise.

“Sir? Where are we going?” Julian whispered, noticing the portraits on the walls moving and talking to each other.

“You wanted to see the carriages, yes?” Severus said, adjusting how he was holding the boy. Julian wasn’t doing much in the way of helping keep himself in a decent carrying position and his boneyness was making carrying uncomfortable.

Julian nodded, frantically grabbing onto the potion master’s robes as the man shifted him around. He wasn’t used to being carried and his legs and arms were already starting to feel sore from physical therapy. Occasionally, his legs would twitch involuntarily and he was afraid he might kick the man.

“We’re going to go outside and see them off.”

Julian froze, “Outside? But what about the sun?”

“It’s quite cloudy today, in fact it may rain later. Remember the spells I cast before we left? I made it so all of your clothing is spelled to help shield you from the sun, including your hat. Your cloak has a hood that we’ll pull up when we get to the ante-chamber of the Great Hall. And both Madam Pomfrey and myself will be there. You will not catch on fire, if that was even a remote possibility.”

Julian nodded, but definitely seemed unsure of the plan. Now that he knew what was wrong with him, he was scared all of the stories he knew might be true.

As they got closer to the Great Hall, Julian could hear the students chattering away to each other as they worked out who would be taking which carriage and if they were planning to see each other over the break. Their voices ricocheting off the walls and echoing around him. There had to be several hundred students out there!

His mouth immediately went dry as he whispered, “Are you sure I can go out there?”

Severus nodded then stopped briefly and shifted Julian around so they were face to face.

“I want you to understand a few things before we encounter any students or other professors. First, the only person on staff who knows you are here other than myself and Poppy is the headmaster. Second, if anyone asks who you are, you are my son. I doubt anyone will try to talk to you other than the professors, I … have a reputation with the students.”

Julian nodded and Severus maneuvered him onto his other hip. They really needed to get some meat on the child if they were planning on taking him anywhere else.

Severus took a deep breath as they stood outside of the antechamber. What was he thinking? They could have easily just taken the boy to the windows and let him watch the carriages from there! But it was too late now.

Besides, Professor McGonagall was already asking questions about why he wasn’t going back to Cokeworth this summer. Her questioning had only gotten more intense when Albus had told her to drop it. Her Gryffindor curiosity was peaked and she wasn’t dropping the topic any time soon. And she was spurring the other professors on to ask him as well.

Well, at the very least, this would get them to be quiet. It would also introduce Julian to the world before it became obvious Harry Potter was missing, and the students would most certainly be gossiping about the potion master’s child when they went home.

This was as convoluted as something Albus would come up with. The batty old man must be wearing off on him.

“Are you ready Severus?” Poppy said from behind the pair. “Julian?”

Both males nodded and Severus pulled Julian’s hood over his head, helping hide the boy from the masses as well as any errant sunlight.

Poppy opened the door and the cacophony of noise increased dramatically in Julian’s ears.

Severus entered the room with his normal long, sweeping strides, walking over to where the other professors were standing and chatting about nonsense while Poppy continued on through the throngs of students, checking to make sure no one was hiding an illness or injury that she could quickly take care of. .

Professor Sprout was the first to notice him. If there hadn’t been students around, he would have likely burst out laughing at the double take she did in seeing the bundle of robes he was carrying. Her mouth dropped open as she looked between the pale man and the exceedingly pale chile he carried.

“Oh. Oh. OH!” She squealed, abandoning the conversation she had been having with Professor Burbage and Professor Flitwick. “Severus!”

She was quickly followed by Professors McGonagall, Sinestra, and Madam Hooch.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Professor McGonagall said, admonishing the man.

“He had to be hospitalized and technically still is,” Severus said. “He’s been extremely ill for several years.”

All of the women immediately got looks of pity on their faces and began berating him for not taking time off.

“We could’ve helped you with your classes or grading, you stubborn man!”

“Or given you some time off!”

“Or helped you with taking care of him!”

“Absolutely not!” Severus said sternly. “I would like a classroom to come back to, not a crater in the dungeon! And while I appreciate the offer, none of you are trained even remotely in the healing arts and would have been unable to manage him should his condition deteriorated even in the slightest.”

“Well, are you going to introduce us?” Minerva asked, trying to get a glimpse of the boy under all of the robes and cloak. “You don’t get off with just bringing a child in and having us not ask questions!”

“Fine,” Severus said, shifting Julian around so he could look forward better.

Julian looked up and saw all of the professors staring at him, the women more than anyone, though there was one professor who was extremely short who was looking at him oddly. It wasn’t anger or malice he could see, it was just curiosity beyond what the other professors had. As if he could sense something about Julian.

“This is Julian. Julian, these are some of the professors of Hogwarts,” Severus said, pointing out each of the professors as he named them. “This is Deputy Headmistress McGonagall, Professor Sprout, Professor Burbage, Madam Hooch, Professor Sinestra, Professor Flitwick, and Professor Vector.”

“Hullo,” Julian said, turning rather pink and tucking his head back into Severus’s shoulder.

A quick look at his wrist watch confirmed Julian’s vitals were fine, he was just embarrassed or shy.

“Hello, Julian,” Professor McGonagall said gently, trying to get closer to him to see him better. Severus had said the boy had been ill for several years, but the poor boy looked awful, like he had never eaten a day in his life! “How old are you, dear.”

“I just turned eleven,” Julian said, trying not to look at the woman. He wasn’t ready for twenty questions.

Minerva’s eyes went wide and she looked at Severus who nodded in confirmation. There was absolutely no way this child was eleven. Maybe eight at best. If he was going to be a first year in the fall, the other students would eat him alive.

“Are you excited to come to Hogwarts in the fall?” Professor Sprout asked. The boy may be small, but she would protect him as one of her own if necessary. He would never be cast out of Hufflepuff, she would make sure of that. Though he did look like a proper Slytherin wearing all that green!

Julian perked up a bit at the thought, but he was a realist. He knew with hard work he would be able to walk again, but by the end of summer? He didn’t know if he would be able to make it all over the castle.

“I hope I can! I feel much better now, and I’m going to work hard, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it to all the classes,” Julian said, his voice fading out by the end of the sentence. He didn’t want to admit he was weak, but these professors seemed different from his primary school teachers.

“Of course you can make it to all the classes, dear!” Professor Sprout said. “You aren’t the first student who is intimidated by the size of the school.”

Julian blushed and laid his head on Severus’s shoulder.

“Pomona,” Severus said quietly, sensing Julian didn’t want to discuss his current difficulties on his own. “His fear of not making it to class is not based on intimidation of the size of the school but rather the physical demands of the size of the school.”

Professor Sprout looked confused at the statement, but a glare from her former student was enough to let her know to leave well enough alone. Minerva, on the other hand, took it as a challenge. Why was the boy’s ability to get to class a concern? What was wrong with him that made this a concern at all? She was going to find out.

“Ah, Severus!” Albus’s voice carried over the crowd. “Came to see off the students?”

Severus just scoffed as he readjusted Julian once more on his hip. Really, there had to be some sort of cushioning charm he could use. Julian was extremely small and light weight for his age, but he was certainly not an easy weight to carry.

“Good morning, Headmaster,” Severus said as the old man approached.

“Julian, my boy, how are you?” Albus asked, seeing what all the fuss amongst the professors was.

“G’morning, sir,” Julian responded quietly. “I’m doing well.”

“He was wanting to see the carriages and has been more stable in these past few days that he has been in a long while. I thought it better to bring him down here and let him see the carriages more closely.”

“Marvelous,” Albus said, eyes twinkling. “A very good plan indeed. And perfect timing too, the carriages are just about to leave!”

Minerva and the other professors’ jaws dropped. Albus knew about this child and hadn’t told them?

Slowly, the throngs of students meandered outside, urged on by the professors who followed behind the crowd. The occasional student would catch a glimpse of their potions professor carrying something, but not enough to be curious. Eventually, the entire student body was loaded into the carriages, leaving the professors standing on the steps bidding them farewell. As the students waved goodbye to their favorite professors and the school, many of them noticed their potions professor setting down the object he was carrying on one of the flat stone banisters on the stairs and wrap his arm around it almost protectively.

Molly Perkins said she saw a small hand poke out of the bundle of robes. Octavia Septer knew she had seen a pale face under the hood of the robe. Oliver Wood swore up and down that he saw Professor Snape smile. The Weasley twins confirmed they had seen the boy in the infirmary.

By the time the carriages were at Hogsmeade station, word had spread to all of the students: Professor Snape had a child.

“Good job, Julian!” Poppy exclaimed as she watched the young boy walk down the aisle between the infirmary beds. “Keep going!”

Julian panted slightly, but turned and made one more pass down the aisle before sitting on bed and catching his breath. This was the farthest he had walked to date. It had taken him nearly a month of exhausting work, but he was now mobile.

Sort of.

He could only make it so far before he had to stop and catch his breath. But every day he made it a little farther and didn’t have to rest for nearly as long. Naturally, there had been several days where things hadn’t gone to plan, but that was a fact of life everyone could understand. The frustrating thing was, however, that he had worked so hard but was still unlikely to be able to attend a full schedule of classes during the upcoming year.

It was still something to celebrate, and he now had people to celebrate with.

“How many was that?” he asked, looking up at the matron who had taken a seat on the bed across from him.

“You managed to walk the length of the infirmary twenty times. Fantastic job!” Poppy said, smiling at the boy.

Julian smiled brightly at his success. He was exhausted, winded, and slightly light headed from the effort, but he had done it! Soon, he could start exploring Hogwarts!

“Alright, laddie, let’s get you back to your room. Would you rather walk, or have me levitate you?”

“Let me rest a bit more, then I’ll walk it,” Julian said, determined to not require someone carrying him any more. Being carried made him feel like he was a baby, and while that was nice sometimes, it was becoming more humiliating as he got stronger.

“Alright, I’ll give you a few more minutes,” Madam Pomfrey said, beginning to putter around the ward. This would be the first time in many years she would have all of her pre-opening tasks done before the start of the school year. “Remember though, we are going to be working on stairs this afternoon.”

“I remember,” Julian said quietly.

Stairs made him shutter. He knew he shouldn’t be afraid of them, but the idea of walking up and down stairs made him more anxious than it ought to have. The idea of falling down them, or not having the strength to climb them was bad enough, but apparently there were moving staircases in Hogwarts. Getting caught on one sounded like a nightmare situation.

Thankfully, it didn’t take nearly as long to recover from his walk as he had thought and was soon able to make it back into the room off of the office.

He had scarcely made it into bed when a pain shot through his face. This was the third time in the last week it had happened and it was getting progressively worse. It shot from just over his upper lip, under his sinuses, and back into his jaw. It felt as though someone had taken a red hot rod and jammed it into his face. Immediately he felt his eyes water from the pain and his mouth started to water.

“Julian?” he could hear Madam Pomfrey saying. “Julian? Are you alright?”

He moaned slightly as the pain started to abate, leaving nearly as quickly as it had come. He was almost glad he still wasn’t eating properly; he didn’t think he would have been willing to eat anything after that.

“Julian, where does it hurt?” Madam Pomfrey said, trying to get any information out of the child. His vital signs were ok, if not a little elevated from stress. She could tell he was hurting, but the question was where was the pain coming from.

Julian breathed a sigh of relief as the pain disappeared. He had been through many different tests and procedures, but never had he had anything that hurt as bad as this pain that kept shooting through his skull.

“My face keeps hurting,” he said quietly, trying not to move his face as much as possible. “It’s gone now.”

“When did this start occurring?” Madam Pomfrey said, trying not to sound overly stern.

“The other day after you had me try the sip of deer blood.”

Madam Pomfrey nodded and sent a patronus to fetch the potions master from his labs.

It had been a long time coming for the young child to try consuming real blood for the first time. They had been hopeful he would tolerate taking it orally as his stomach had finally shown signs of beginning to move. The hope had been to give him some blood and maybe it would speed along the process of getting the child’s stomach to function properly.

Poppy wouldn’t say it backfired, but the poor child certainly didn’t tolerate it well. He had enjoyed the taste despite it being a small amount, but he certainly hadn’t enjoyed the cramping and nausea that hit him several hours later when the blood congealed in his stomach rather than moving on into his intestines.

And now the poor child’s face was having pain as well? Poppy was afraid she knew what was happening, and it was definitely not something they were wanting to have happen yet.

Julian’s teeth were finally starting to come in, and with that he would start having the drive to hunt and feed.

She had dealt with the aftermath of Remus Lupin’s monthly transformations. She had put up with hormonal Veela students. She had patched up Professor Kettleburn more frequently than she cared to admit. She wasn’t trying to get a full set of magical creatures on her resume. She was not looking forward to an untrained vampire being in the school.

A quick scan of his face brought confirmation to her fears. The canines which had previously been impacted within the gumline had begun to move downward with a small fluid filled pocket forming behind them.

Julian saw the scan results as well and rested his head on his knees. He knew what she was looking for, and knew she saw it. His teeth were coming in. He was officially becoming what Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia had always said he would be: a freak. He had just gotten a family too, albeit a small one. Would they want him anymore? Would they be scared of him and kick him out now?

They were shaken from their thoughts by the sound of the floo in Poppy’s office as Severus came through.

“What’s going on?” he said flatly, though concern was evident in his face.

“I do believe Julian’s teeth are coming in,” Poppy said. “He was complaining of some facial pain that is intermittent that started after the deer blood.”

Severus nodded and sat at the foot of the boy’s bed. Julian was resting his chin on his knees and hugging his legs to him, a position Severus had begun to despise the boy being in as he was less than forthcoming with any information.

“Julian?” Severus said quietly, noticing the slight flinch when the boy registered he was being spoken to.

“Yes, sir?” Julian said softly, running his tongue along the inside of his teeth. Nothing was loose yet.

“Are you still in pain?” Severus asked, not seeing any of the signs he had begun to associate with his child hurting. Lily’s child. Potter’s child. Not his child, he had no stake in that claim outside of a forged piece of paper.

Julian shook his head slightly. The pain, thankfully, had vanished just as quickly as it had come.

“Are your teeth loose?”

Again, a small head shake. Severus could see in the child’s eyes an underlying fear the boy was trying desperately to hide.

“Julian, what are you afraid of?”

Julian wrapped his arms around his knees and buried his head, only shrugging his shoulders in response. Severus could feel his ire rising, but wisely kept it tempered. He wasn’t going to be getting anywhere by yelling at the child; he had learned that quite early on. Julian was always on the defensive unless he was feeling too ill to move.

No, consistency was key with the child, and lashing out was not going to win him any favors.

Severus heard the boy mutter something into his knees and sighed. He was debating having Poppy check his hearing at this rate. Julian would routinely be talking quietly but his volume would continue to drop until Severus could scarcely hear him. When he would mention it to Julian, he would get a shocked look of ‘you couldn’t hear me?’ back.

Gently, he coaxed Julian’s head out of his arms and made him look up. The boy’s eyes were red with unshed tears and his cheeks flushed.

“Once more, please. I couldn’t hear what you said.”

Julian swallowed before answering softly, “You’re going to send me away. I’m too dangerous.”

Severus sat back and sighed. The more they got out of the boy, the more he loathed those muggles. It didn’t seem as though Petunia was truly acting in the boy’s best interest when she sent him away, but rather to make herself look good. It wouldn’t be the first time Petunia had acted this way; Severus could remember many times when he was growing up when she would turn over projects to her sister when they were too difficult. Generally she had only put in the minimal effort to get the project started then would make a show of doing her work before ultimately turning over a destroyed project for someone else to try to finish.

Severus could only hope Julian wasn’t going to turn out like all of the other projects Petunia had done this to in the past.

“You will be dangerous, yes. But this is not an unknown danger to us. We will work to find ways of managing this and mitigating problems before they arise. You are not going to be abandoned for something you can’t control.”

Julian sniffed and turned away from the man sitting next to him. He didn’t really believe what the professor was saying; he knew no one would really want him that badly. Who would really want to keep a freak around?

“Julian, look at me,” Severus said, trying not to let the boy fall into self isolation. “Do you know what I was doing before we retrieved you from your relatives house?”

Julian continued to stare at the wall opposite the professor. Severus had told him he was a potions master and worked with experimental potions during the summer, but hadn’t been overly specific on any of the details. Shaking his head, Julian continued to look at the wall. While he was curious about what Severus had been working on, he didn’t want to look at the man. Hope was poisonous and he didn’t want to feel the pain of rejection anymore. He had tried to be accepted with the Dursleys and had his hopes destroyed every time.

“I had just finished perfecting an alteration to an existing potion that prevents werewolves from attacking people. Before this alteration, the potion took nearly a month to brew, was extraordinarily expensive, and was not widely used.”

Julian frowned. He had read in one of the books in the room that werewolves were extremely dangerous. So much so they were not allowed to be around other people within one week of their transformation. But there was a potion to make them less dangerous?

“It is entirely within the realm of possibility to find a potion which would prevent you from becoming a danger to yourself or others should you be unable to feed for a period of time. And if there exists a possibility, an answer can be found.”

Julian pursed his lips and laid his head on his knees once more. There it was again: hope. He wanted so badly to believe there was a possibility of avoiding biting anyone, but he didn’t know how strong the hunger would be when it finally set in.

“Julian, how about we focus on making sure your teeth don’t cause you too much pain as they come in?” Poppy said, breaking the tension.

Julian nodded slightly, another sharp pain spreading across his face. He didn’t understand why they hadn’t gotten rid of him yet, but he was glad they were still offering to help him manage the pain. A flick of her wand and a small vial flew into the room.

“It’s not a potion, is it?” he asked, worriedly. If it was a potion, it could take hours to get into him depending on the amount needed. And some potions were just too thick to put through his tube.

“No dear, just a bit of clove oil. Rub just a bit on your gums and it should help with some of the pain. It’s nowhere near as strong as a pain potion, but it’ll do. Be careful though, it can make your gums rather irritated if you use too much.”

Julian nodded and put a drop on his finger. It didn’t take long for the oil to make his gums feel a little warm and numb; an odd sensation to say the least. But it helped.

Albus Dumbledore sat in his office pouring over the few applications he had for the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Another year had come and gone, and with it another capable professor. Poor Deirdre Smythe had gone mad shortly before the end of term and had required hospitalization. The cause of her madness was still unknown, but there was a hole in the teaching roster once again that needed filled.

This year’s application pool was different. A total of five people had applied for the job, that was three more than last year. The reason was obvious, of course. This was the year Harry Potter was to come to Hogwarts. Anyone capable of basic math would know that.

Severus Snape, of course, was right out. He had a child to take care of now, he was in no way fit to take on the famed curse placed on the DADA position. Of the other three, there was a retired giant snail breeder, a private tutor from Ireland with no discernible teaching credentials, and a request from a previous Muggle Studies professor to return to “any open position please if possible.”

‘Ah, Quirinus,’ Dumbledore thought. ‘Has it been a year already?’

Quirinus Quirrell had been an extremely bright student, particularly in the fields of Muggle Studies and Defense. He had been on staff for several years as the Muggle Studies professor, though his true passion was for the theory of the Dark Arts. Last year he had asked to take a short sabbatical to gain some first hand experience of the muggle world as well as study the many historical magical sites on the continent.

While Quirinus was a more than competent professor of Muggle Studies, he was an extremely meek man with a stutter that only got worse with stress. DADA was not a class for the meek, however for all that he lacked in confidence he made up for in knowledge.

Quickly skimming through the man’s updated CV, Dumbledore was surprised to see a mention of vampires in the Black Forest. Perhaps Quirinus had managed to learn more about the highly reclusive species? How beneficial would that be for Mr. Potter!

The decision was made then. Quirinus Quirrell would be coming back to Hogwarts.

A few short letters of rejection later (including one which read simply “No Severus”), Albus stood from his desk and walked over to the floo. Quickly saying the password and throwing in the floo powder, Dumbledore knelt at the hearth and stuck his face in the flames.

On the other side of the fire was Quirrell, sipping a small cup of Turkish coffee while sitting in the sitting room of a small concrete building. The man reached up and adjusted the large, purple turban atop his head before realizing Dumbledore’s head was in his fire and jumping backwards, knocking the coffee to the ground in the process.

“Good morning, Quirinus. I hope I find you well?” Dumbledore said, smiling. The man’s jumpiness had obviously not abated during his time off.

“P-p-p-professor D-d-d-dumbled-d-d-d-ore!” Quirrell stuttered, eyes jumping around the room. “H-h-h-h-how are you?”

“Quite well, actually. I have a question for you, my boy.”

Quirrell’s eyes continued to dart around the room suspiciously. He was going to be found out, he knew it. Dumbledore knew everything. There was no way this plan was going to work.

‘Silence, you fool!’ a voice hissed in his mind. ‘Answer the man’s questions. He’s here to offer you a job.’

“Y-y-yes, sir?” Quirrell said.

“You stated on your application for re-instatement that you would be willing to take any position, is that correct?”

“Y-y-y-y-y-yes sir,” Quirrell stuttered, struggling to control the twitch in his left eye.

“We do have an open position for the upcoming school year, mind you it is quite a bit more dangerous than Muggle Studies. However, it is the only open position at this time. Would you be willing to return to Hogwarts as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor?”

Quirrell could have cried with happiness. His master ought to be thrilled with this; a much more fitting position for the Dark Lord. And for him.

“Y-yes! Th-th-thank you s-s-s-sir!” Quirrell said, jumping out of his seat as the wind blew a window shutter open.

Dumbledore smiled. This year would certainly be an interesting one.

Four months. Four months it had been since Harry Potter had last been brought in. No one had heard anything from the boy and a few brief calls confirmed he had never shown up to his follow up appointments. Dietician, haemotologist, gastroenterologist: none of them had seen the boy.

Dr. Hardeep Singh was concerned. Extremely concerned.

He had last seen the boy in March when he had come in for yet another blood transfusion. It had been apparent at that time that the life of the child was beginning to come to an end. He wasn’t maintaining his body weight, had extreme muscle wasting, and most concerningly had completely ceased to be making any blood cells. Immunocompromised was an understatement: without a bone marrow transplant, survival was impossible.

If he was honest, the fact the child hadn’t gotten ill from an opportunistic infection or bled out from a simple cut was a miracle. An absolute miracle.

But that aunt of his. Something was seriously wrong with that lady. It didn’t matter how ill the boy was, she refused to take him in until the last moment. Sure, she played the part of doting aunt, but something about her really put him off. Maybe it was the way she held her jaw, or how she would grab the boy’s shoulder just a bit too tight. He couldn’t pinpoint it exactly, but something was wrong.

The problem was, there was hardly any evidence of any wrongdoing. The boy had bruises, sure, but so did the vast majority of the children with blood disorders. The child was shy when he was well enough to hold a conversation, but he wasn’t overtly fearful of adults. He never had broken bones, he never had any burn marks, and it was explained to Dr. Singh that he preferred to wear his cousins handoffs because they were softer and didn’t pinch.

But now they were well and truly into dangerous territory. Without functioning bone marrow, his blood cells would have all died by now. Dr. Singh was a religious man, but a rational one as well. He believed in miracles, but felt science was the biggest miracle of all. And four months with no blood to replace what the child had lost to normal cell death was a death sentence. Miraculous would be the only description for if the child was still alive. But he would have to find the boy first, dead or alive.

He had attempted to call the Dursley house several times, but was only met with an answering machine.

It was time. He had to do something. He could feel it in his bones, something had happened to the child and he didn’t think he would like the outcome.

Picking up the phone, he sighed and closed his eyes before ringing up the police.

“Hello, yes, I would like to have a wellness check performed. … Yes, Number 4 Privet Drive, Surrey. … Harry Potter.”

---

“That’s it, just breath child.”

Today had been a bad day. A really bad day. Julian had hoped he was past these, but apparently not.

His stomach was finally starting to wake up, and, as happy as that made everyone, it had some major drawbacks. Namely the acid reflux.

Madam Pomfrey had explained it as the valves to his stomach being weakened by everything and he could believe it. But it was horrible. And the more it burned, the more he wanted to drink something. Or eat something. Anything to keep the fire contained in his stomach and not lancing up his throat and making him cough.

Because coughing would make him vomit and then the cycle would start again.

They had tried an anti-nausea potion, but that had to go directly into his stomach. And it didn’t stay down long before his stomach revolted. Unfortunately, no one had remembered there was a small amount of garlic in the potion which, while not deadly to vampires, certainly made the nausea significantly worse. They had tried a cold compress on his neck, they had tried having him sit in front of a window, they had even tried using his tube to remove some of the bile from his stomach to see if that would help. Severus had even gone to the nearest muggle shops and picked up a small can of ginger beer.

None of it had worked.

He now found himself sitting on his bed shivering despite no longer having the cold compress on, belching ginger flavored burps, and retching violently into a bucket.

There was one thing that he was glad of though he found very surprising through the entire ordeal. With the exception of leaving to get the ginger beer, Severus hadn’t left his side. When he was feeling too weak to sit on his own, Severus would help hold him up. If his hair fell into his face, Severus was there to hold it back. Poppy had come and gone and given the potions master breaks in his vigil from time to time, but it didn’t feel the same and he found he was missing the man being around.

The man hadn’t left when he was on his deathbed. He had donated his own blood. He had gotten him clothing that fit, or at least reached out to a friend to help him get it. He had taken him to see the carriages off even though it wasn’t a necessarily easy task to do. He had held his hair while vomiting and even rubbed his back to make him feel better.

Was this what having a father was like?

Julian clung onto the bucket a bit tighter as another wave of nausea overtook him. No vomit this time, but the burning was still there.

“Just breath child, it will pass.”

Julian panted, open mouthed over the bucket, drool dripping from his mouth and snot covering his upper lip. He knew he looked terrible. He knew he wasn’t what someone wanted as a child. But for some reason Severus hadn’t left him. All of this, and he hadn’t left.

Maybe, just maybe, he would keep his word and not leave. Maybe he wasn’t scared of having a vampire for a son?

Try as he might to squash the hope that flared in his chest, Julian couldn’t do it. Harry Potter could remain the orphan, unwanted by his family and hated by his teachers. Harry Potter could keep his fame and fortune. Harry Potter could keep all of that.

Julian Snape had something Harry Potter had always dreamed of but could never have: a father.

“How is he doing, Severus?” Albus asked, removing another lemon drop from one of his many candy jars on his desk.

“He is not well, Albus. You know this,” Severus sighed, rubbing his hand over his mouth.

It had been a horrendously long night; neither he nor Poppy had gotten any sleep until Julian’s nausea had finally subsided. Unfortunately, the boy’s magical reserves had also dropped significantly as his body attempted to repair the damage done by the prolonged episode and the stomach acid racing up and down his esophagus. Once Julian was asleep, they had run a new formulation of nutrient potion through his tube which contained a much higher sugar content in hopes of helping his core recover faster. By the time the nutrient potion had finished running and they were starting to see improvements in his magical levels, the sun had already risen.

Severus was on the verge of falling asleep when a note from Albus appeared in his lap stating they needed to speak. The only reason he made it to the headmaster’s office was the four cups of strong coffee he had asked the house elves for.

Albus nodded, “I understand. But there is a problem. A wellness check was performed by the muggle police on the Dursley’s house. Apparently Julian’s physicians are concerned about his wear-abouts.”

Severus sighed. This was problematic. Muggles didn’t like magical healing practices. In the past they had been seen as devil-worship. Now, however, they were seen as pseudoscience. The few muggle doctors who had seen magical healing had believed they were witnessing either a religious act or that potions were simply herbal supplements.

Complicating Julian’s case was the fact he was no longer human. Getting him healthy was requiring knowledge of magical creatures, magical anatomy and physiology, and magical core creation and interactions.

“Petunia told them she had sent him away to live with another guardian. She mentioned your name. The Cokeworth Police Department was notified and will be doing their own wellness check. They also notified the doctor in question and he stated he was highly concerned for the child’s welfare.”

Shit. That house was in no way fit for a child to live there, let alone one as ill as Julian. Muggle police didn’t bother him, but if any news of Harry Potter being abducted or living with him reached the muggle news it was only a matter of time for magical news sources to pick up on the story. And Julian wasn’t ready for the fall out of that.

This had to be nipped in the bud immediately.

“How long do we have?” Severus asked tiredly. “That house is in no shape to keep a child in at the moment, let alone a sickly one.”

“The police should be arriving within the next two hours. I’ve already sent several house-elves, including the one assigned to your personal quarters and the hospital wing room, to make it presentable but also look lived in and suiting your needs.”

Severus sighed. It would have to do. The police would undoubtedly want to see the boy, which unfortunately would mean moving him. Which presented a problem: Spinner’s End was not attached to the floo network. At least he was now stable enough for apparation, which would hopefully not upset his stomach as much as other forms of transport. Hopefully.

Two hours. Probably less.

He was going to need more coffee.

---

“Julian, I’m sorry to wake you up, but we need leave. Immediately.”

Julian blearily blinked his eyes and grabbed his glasses off the bookshelf. As he was putting them on, he suddenly found himself wearing a jumper and long trousers as opposed to his nightclothes and was being handed a pair of thick socks. Clumsily he pulled them on trying to wrap his brain around what was happening.

“Where?” he tried to say, though it came out as more of a whisper. His throat was still raw from all the vomiting the night before. At least the burning in his chest had subsided to a low flame.

“We have to go to my house in Cokeworth. Apparently one of your physicians called for a wellness check on you and your aunt thought it prudent to tell the police my name and address,” Severus sneered before handing Julian a small tin of cream. “Rub this on any exposed skin, it’s just a simple suncream.”

Julian took the cream and rubbed it everywhere he could think would be exposed.

“Why? Couldn’t you just make them forget about seeing me or make them lie and say I was fine?”

Severus shuddered slightly at the implications of both. He needed to have a talk with Julian about the Unforgivables and Dark Magic soon. As a dark creature, Julian would be more prone to the addiction to Dark Magic Severus himself had suffered from. It was a terrible addiction, leaving you wanting more and more of the feelings of power but requiring you to commit terrible acts to achieve it.

But that was a conversation for another day. Right now, they had to get to Spinner’s End.

“Two reasons. One, we need Harry Potter to be alive and well in the Muggle world at least until school starts. The students have already seen you with me and have likely told their families that I had a child with me. We need Julian Snape and Harry Potter to exist in their minds at the same time in order for you to continue to hide safely. Two, we may need access to your muggle physicians in the future to help maintain your feeding tube.”

Severus handed the boy his cloak before quickly picking him up sans shoes and quickly walking towards the hospital wing exit. He never thought he’d be thankful Julian hadn’t gained much weight.

“Hey! I can walk now, you know!” Julian protested, squirming slightly. “Dad! Stop! Put me down!”

Severus stopped quickly and almost dropped the boy.

“What did you call me?” he asked, trying to make sure he heard him correctly. Had Potter’s son just called him that? Lily’s son?

“Sorry, sir,” Julian said, bowing his head. “Can you put me down?”

“Julian, I’m not angry. Just surprised,” Severus said gently before continuing to quickly stride towards the exit. “But no, we have to leave the castle grounds in order to apparate. It is quite a ways from the castle and while I do know you are able to walk, this would be pushing the limits of your current endurance even if you had gotten a full night’s rest and we need to move quickly.”

Julian blushed a light pink before relaxing slightly into the potion’s master’s arms. His father’s arms. That felt strange to think.

As soon as they reached the nearest door to the outside, Severus reached down and threw the hood of Julian’s cloak over the boy’s… his son’s… head and spelled a sun resistance charm on to the cloak before striding into the sunlight. Instantly, he felt Julian grab him tighten.

He strode quickly towards the edge of the wards, trying to ignore the boneyness of the child he was carrying. Finally reaching the edge of the wards, he went to set the boy down, only to find Julian was latched onto him and was now refusing to let go.

“Julian, I cannot apparate while holding you. I need you to stand next to me.”

Julian only tightened his grip and buried his head in his robes mumbling something.

“Julian, I can’t hear you when you do that. Now please, I need you standing next to me.”

As Severus tried to extricate himself from Julian’s grasp, he noticed something. The boy was shaking. It was minute, but it was definitely there. One look under the hood at the boy’s face and Severus knew why. Julian was terrified.

“What’s wrong, child?” he asked quietly.

“I can’t see. It’s too bright out, I can’t see!”

“What do you mean?” Severus asked, trying to look at the child’s eyes. He knew Julian was wearing his glasses, but why couldn’t he see?

“It’s really hard to see in bright lights. Don’t put me down, sir. Please. I can’t follow you!”

Severus sighed. Of course. Vampires are nocturnal. He was fairly certain if he checked the boy’s eyes, they would have the same reflectiveness to them that a cat’s eye or a dog’s eye would have. The vampiric distaste for the day was making much more sense now.

“Julian, I need you on the ground holding my hand. I will not let go of you. You will not get lost.”

Slowly, the boy extricated himself from Severus’s robes and allowed himself to be lowered to the ground while making sure to keep his hands on his father’s robes. Severus gently detached a hand from his sleeve and took it in his left hand.

“Alright, Julian. On the count of three I need you to take a step back with your left foot. Just one step, ok?”

Julian nodded shakily, swallowing his nerves and the bile threatening to rise up once more. One step, that’s all it was. Left foot.

“One.”

Left foot. Or was it right?

“Two.”

Definitely left.

“Three.”

Julian closed his eyes, stepped backwards, and immediately felt a slight spin and felt as though he were being sucked through a straw. It pushed all of the air out of his lungs and it felt as though his bones were going to snap. The sensation lasted only a fraction of a second, thankfully.

Opening his eyes, he found the sky to be much more overcast and he was able to see slightly better, though things were still quite washed out and muddled at a distance.

“Welcome to Cokeworth. More specifically, Spinner’s End.”

Julian would have said something about how the house looked nice or how he rather liked the old terrace houses, however as soon as he opened his mouth to say anything he immediately vomited.

Severus wasn’t surprised by this. Apparation was hard on the stomach for most inexperienced wizards, but it was much quicker to recover from than the dizzying effects of the floo or the pulling and spinning sensations of a Portkey.

“Sorry, sir,” Julian said, wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve. “Didn’t expect that.”

Severus flicked his wand and spelled the sleeve clean, “Come, let’s go inside. I need to see what Dumbledore has done to my house.”

Slowly, they made their way inside with Julian struggling only with the stairs to the front door. Upon opening said door, Severus was surprised to find his belongings had been left mostly intact with only a few obvious additions such as an extra muggle coat by the door and a pair of child’s size shoes by the door.

Julian was surprised at how quaint the house was. It wasn’t large by any stretch of the imagination and the wallpaper was peeling in places, but it was easy to see himself growing up and living in a house such as this.

As Severus led him through the house, he found it more and more to his liking. The living room was more of a library or study and had no TV. The kitchen was small with poorly hung cabinets and had a dining table shoved against one wall and partially covered with more books with two chairs arranged rather haphazardly against it. There was also a door to a back garden, however he couldn’t see out of the window to actually view the garden due to a window shade.

“Where would you like to wait?” Severus asked. “I’m sure the Headmaster has arranged for you to have a bedroom upstairs if you would rather wait there.”

A bedroom. He had a bedroom? It had never even occurred to him that he might have one. What did it look like? Did it have a bed? Did the door have locks on it?

“I have a bedroom?” Julian whispered almost pleadingly. “May I see it?”

Severus smirked slightly and led the boy to the stairs. Undoubtedly Dumbledore had asked the house-elves to remove all the storage from the small bedroom upstairs. The bedroom that had been his when he was a child which he had turned into a room to keep additional boxes of books and various potion making equipment.

It took them several minutes to make their way up the stairs as Julian wanted to go up them on his own with no assistance. The staircase itself was a beast built prior to modern muggle housing codes. While sturdy, they were extremely steep with quite narrow steps. Severus himself had nearly fallen down these stairs on many occasions and tripped going up them more times than he cared to admit. The fact Julian was able to climb them at all was surprising though quite promising.

Julian paused for a minute at the top of the stairs. He didn’t like those at all. The urge to go up them on all fours to make sure he didn’t fall was strong, but he didn’t think he would have been able to stand back up at the top if he had. He was definitely starting to see why Severus hadn’t wanted to take him here yet.

“Are you alright, Julian?” Severus asked as the boy leaned against the wall.

Julian nodded before pushing himself off the wall and wobbling slightly. Getting around the house was more difficult than he thought. But he had made it up the stairs!

Severus didn’t believe he was fine for a second, but they were close to the bedroom now. At least it was only a few more steps to get in there. Surely Julian could manage that. He hoped anyways.

Opening the door to his childhood bedroom, he was pleasantly unsurprised to find the clutter had been removed and the bed replaced with one not dissimilar to the bed Julian had at Hogwarts. The walls had remained the same dingy tan they had always been, but he books he had previously been keeping in boxes were now placed on newly made shelves which lined one wall. At the foot of the bed was a rather small trunk on which clothes were piled. A desk was shoved between the bookshelves and the head of the bed and had several open books laid on it as well as a mug full of various muggle writing utensils.

There were also signs that the child who lived in the room was ill. The curtains were pulled with only the barest amount of sunlight making its way in. A heavy, navy blue blanket lay across the bed; a bucket placed on the floor at the head of the bed. Most telling, however, was the presence of an IV pole awkwardly placed at the foot of the bed with the tube feeding pump attached to it.

Julian took one look at the room and his mouth dropped open. It was perfect. It wasn’t fancy, it wasn’t gaudy, nor was it completely sterile. He could easily picture himself living in this room, waking up to the sounds of birds outside, and reading the books on the shelves.

He had a bedroom. With a bed. And a desk. And books!

He walked into the room weak-legged and sat on the bed. He knew it was a stupid thought, Julian Snape wasn’t a real person, but it felt almost as if he were stealing someone else’s life.

A sharp rap on the door downstairs shook him back to reality.

“I know it’s small, but make yourself comfortable,” Severus said quickly. “Toilet is the next room over, my bedroom is across the hall, and, if they ask, you aren’t allowed in the basement.”

He quickly closed the door, leaving it cracked open ever so slightly. Julian could hear his feet pounding down the stairs as another set of knocks occurred.

He wanted to explore the room, but thought better of it. He was still quite tired from the night before, being outside in the sun, and climbing the stairs. He had a feeling they would be spending more time here eventually and he would have plenty of time to explore. Right now, a nap sounded better.

Kicking his shoes off, Julian snuggled himself under the covers. They weren’t as soft or as warm as the sheets he had become accustomed to in the Hospital Wing, but the bed was far better than his mattress in the cupboard under the stairs.

Julian took off his glasses and placed them on the desk by the bed. He could hear the murmurs of his father speaking to several men downstairs. He knew Severus could convince them he was safe. He actually felt safe around the man. Sleep was closing in on him when he heard several pairs of footsteps coming up the stairs. He tried in vain to stay awake until the footsteps made it to the room but lost the battle with sleep almost as soon as he heard the footsteps on the stairs.

“Good morning, Mister… Stape, was it?” one of the young police officers said, nodding his head slightly.

“Snape. Severus Snape,” Severus said, feeling extremely exposed in the muggle clothing he had transfigured for himself. He knew Julian was more comfortable in more muggle-like attire and rarely wore robes, but he hadn’t worn anything outside of wizarding wear for nearly twenty years. Trousers were almost a novel sensation.

“What can I do for you, officers?” Severus continued, acting unaware of the purpose of their visit.

“Apologies Mr. Snape,” the older officer responded. “We’re here simply to do a wellness check. Is a Harry Potter here?”

Severus looked confused. “Yes, who was wondering? His aunt made it perfectly clear she did not want him back. Did she have a change of heart?”

The police officers looked at one another rather uncomfortably. This was a rather convoluted case, if you asked them. A doctor calling for a wellness check wasn’t unheard of. But for a child to be handed from one guardian to another without the new party knowing of the medical needs of the child was odd. But it wasn’t their job to question it unless they saw obvious abuse. Something about it just struck them as odd.

“No, sir. The doctor seemed rather insistent that the child be found, and we would just like to lay eyes on the child so we can report to him as to the boy’s location and physical state. He seemed to feel the child may be deceased.”

Severus nodded grimly and ushered the men inside.

“He was very ill when I picked him up from his aunt’s, and still is, if I’m being honest. Her late sister and I were good friends, you see. And when Ju-Harry’s illness became too much for her and her husband to handle, they reached out to me to see if I could take the boy.”

The officers nodded as they followed the man into the living room. They were shocked by the sheer number of books in the room. There must have been over a thousand in just this one part of the house!

“Harry is currently upstairs, possibly taking a nap, I’m afraid we have both had a very long night. He was ill most of it.”

The older of the two officers nodded in sympathy. His youngest daughter had caught the stomach flu a few weeks ago. Miserable thing it was. Led to a number of very long nights for both him and his wife.

“All we need is to see the boy so we can report back,” the younger officer said rather cordially.

“This way,” Severus said, leading the men to the stairs. “Careful, they’re quite steep.”

Severus went up the stairs with practiced ease and waited at the top as the other men struggled their way up. It was mildly amusing watching the muggles struggle, if he were being honest with himself. And he hadn’t even spelled the stairs to be difficult for muggles to climb!

“Here is his room,” Severus said, knocking on the door softly and looking inside. As expected, Julian was out cold.

He stepped back and allowed the officers to look in as well. He felt oddly ... protective … over the boy at that moment. He felt as intruded upon, but his bigger concern was if they would wake the child up from a much needed nap.

Both of the officers were immediately appalled by what they saw. The boy was so extremely thin and pale, he looked like a concentration camp victim. It was almost nauseating. It was no wonder the doctor was so concerned!

Having fulfilled their duty, they turned and left the boy’s room.

“Mr. Snape, has he been to see another doctor since you took over his care from his aunt?”

Severus had been suspecting the officers would not like the state of Julian’s physical appearance. The boy had gained just shy of three pounds since coming to Hogwarts, a fact everyone involved with his care had been pleasantly surprised of. These officers didn’t know that, nor did they know of all of the struggles with nutrition they had been having. They were simply doing their job, and Severus could respect that.

“Yes. The boy’s aunt neglected to give me the phone number to his old physician or specialists and I assumed the doctors would speak to one another about his case. I must have assumed wrong.”

The officers nodded in understanding. The NHS was a confusing mess on a good day, and to have a child you had just taken over requiring what seemed like an absurd amount of additional doctors and appointments… Well, it was easy for them to see what must have happened. At least the boy was alive, unlike the doctor’s fears.

“Is there anything else I can do for you, sirs?” Severus asked, leading the men back down the stairs.

“No, thank you,” the younger officer responded. “We will let Dr. Singh know Harry has been found and is alive and … well.”

“Thank you, Mr. Snape. We apologize for the intrusion,” the older officer said, heading for the door.

Severus nodded tiredly. The caffeine in his system was starting to wear off and he felt as though he may soon join Julian in dream land.

Suddenly a thought crossed his mind.

“Would one of you be able to give me the number to Dr. Singh’s office? I would like to speak with the good doctor myself, just to verify some things about J-Harry’s care.”

The younger officer looked at the older officer questioningly.

“Ah, um, gimme a moment,” the older officer said, fishing his pen out of one of his pockets and pulling out a small notepad before radioing the station to get the number.

A few short minutes later, number in hand, Severus bid the officers farewell. As soon as their backs were turned, he quickly whipped out his wand and cast a timed compulsion spell on the two. As soon as they relayed the information to the doctor about Harry’s status, they would immediately begin to think of something more interesting they had done the day they visited Spinners End. No use obliviating the men if the needed to call the doctor back, but it was too risky to not spell them to somewhat forget the visit.

No one could know of Harry Potter’s illness in connection with Severus Snape.

Now to deal with the doctor.

But first, sleep.

Julian woke with a start. What time was it? Where was he? What happened?

The sun was now beginning to set, its rays shining brightly through the cracks in the curtains and illuminating a strange desk and bookshelves across from the flat bed he was lying in.

Oh. Right. He wasn’t in the hospital wing. The events of the day came flooding back to him as he grabbed his glasses looked at the pile of books on the desk. He wondered if the headmaster had chosen those books in particular or if he had whoever was helping him choose some random books.

The bigger question was what had woken him up. He didn’t think he needed to go to the toilet, nor could he recall having heard a loud noise. The nausea was still there, but it was manageable. He was still quite tired and was already thinking about rolling over and going back to sleep.

Yawning widely, it suddenly hit him. There was something hard sitting in his cheek. It was a very small object and hard as a rock. Feeling for it with his tongue, he knew immediately what it was.

A canine tooth. His left canine tooth to be exact.

Julian pulled it out of his mouth and looked at it in curiosity before experimentally wiggling the other one. It was loose too. Very very loose. So loose, in fact, he could slide his tongue between the tooth and the gum.

Feeling the empty spot in his teeth with his tongue, Julian swore he could feel a sharp tip of a new fang growing in. It felt strange having a blank spot in his teeth. He hadn’t had one of those in a very long time, not since he lost the last of his baby teeth.

But what to do with his tooth? Setting it on the desk, Julian stared at the tooth as it sparkled in the sunlight.

When he had lost his baby teeth, he would put them under his pillow in hopes that the tooth fairy would come and give him money for them. It didn’t take long for him to realize there was no such thing as the tooth fairy. Other children would come to school bragging about having gotten a few pence for their tooth. Dudley would get a pound per tooth and would immediately demand more money from his parents for candy. Harry had tried keeping his teeth under his pillow for weeks, until finally giving up and throwing them away.

There wasn’t any point to keeping this tooth, but it felt almost wrong to throw it away. It was a reminder he was losing his humanity. He knew he couldn’t put the tooth back, but part of him was terrified of having fangs. What would they look like? Would he be able to hide them? Would he even be able to convince people he was human?

He shivered slightly at the idea of being outed. Thoughts of vampire hunters coming after him ran through his head. Was it even safe for him to be out of Hogwarts for this long?

Was it even safe for him to be out of Hogwarts at all?

Leaving the tooth on his desk, he pulled his hat down more firmly over his head and climbed out of bed. Padding almost silently to the door, he was happy he was no longer feeling extremely unsteady on his feet.

Poking his head out of the door, he looked around and was surprised to find no one in the hallway. Even with all of the students out on holiday, Hogwarts was a rather busy place. House elves didn’t shield themselves during the summer and could regularly be found throughout the castle performing maintenance or cleaning. The ghosts would occasionally fly through the hospital on their way to one function or another. Even when there were no living beings around, the portraits were always there to strike up a conversation with, though the ones in the hospital wing rarely wanted to talk for long.

Here, however, there were no moving portraits, ghosts, or house elves. It felt eerily quiet.

Turning and padding down the hallway, he opened the door across from what he assumed to be the toilet. Inside was a sparsely decorated bedroom with a simple chest of drawers. A dark black robe hung from a hook by the door, but other than that there were few signs of habitation. The one thing that was missing, however, was Severus.

Turning back to the toilet, Julian listened for any sounds of running water. Nothing.

Walking as close as he dared to the stairs, he closed his eyes and listened intently for any signs of the man on the first floor. He heard a few cars going by on the street outside first, then a door opening and closing across the street. A few jingling keys. A cat meowing for food down the street. A can opener being used next door.

There it was! Very faintly he heard the sounds of boiling water. No, not water, it was too thick. Potion. Or soup. Could be either as he had never actually been around potions before. But the sound he was hearing was not coming from the kitchen, it sounded much too far away for that. Either way, the sound was coming from within the house.

“Dad?” Julian called softly.

When he received no answer, he inched closer to the stairs. They looked even more intimidating from the top of the stairs than they had from the bottom. Even if he hung onto the banister for dear life, there was no way he would make it down in one piece. Slowly, he lowered himself down onto the ground and slid to the stairs.

He could do this. He knew he could.

One step at a time, he lowered himself down the stairs. His arms and thighs burned from the exertion, his tailbone getting more and more sore from resting directly on the wooden stairs. He debated turning around and sliding down on his stomach, but he was afraid his jumper would ride up and his tube would get caught on a stair. And that would be hard to explain.

He made it to the bottom of the stairs after what felt like an absurdly long amount of time, arms on fire and legs shaking from the effort.

Sitting on the final stair, he called out once more trying to find Severus, however there was still no answer. He was much closer to the sounds of bubbling, however. He felt as though he were sitting directly over the sound, though there were no fumes he could see or heat of any kind he could feel.

Despite feeling completely exhausted, Julian pushed himself up and towards the living room couch he could see. He needed to find Severus. What if a vampire hunter came for him? He could hardly move, let alone defend himself. What if the cops came back to take him to an orphanage? Or if someone looking for Harry Potter had followed the cops here?

His mind whirled with the possibilities.

Severus had to be in the basement. The basement he wasn’t allowed into. Severus had only mentioned it, but Julian didn’t want to get into trouble by being down there. He didn’t even know where the entrance to the basement was let alone if he could make it down another flight of stairs.

Barely making it to the sofa, Julian couldn’t help but feel weak. It took all of his effort to make it down one flight of stairs. On his bottom, no less. Hogwarts wasn’t going to happen. He could feel it. He wasn’t going to be able to make it to class, even if he had a half schedule. And if he wasn’t able to attend class, he wasn’t going to learn to defend himself. Or learn to make potions. Or learn to create spells.

He was just going to be the sad, worthless, sickly, vampire child who couldn’t do anything for himself.

Pulling his knees to his chest, Julian looked at all of the books on the shelves. Maybe he could just stay here. He could learn to go up and down the stairs. He could read the books. He could teach himself. That’s what he was used to doing anyways. But who would take care of him then?

Pulling off his glasses and holding his now writhing stomach, Julian laid his forehead on his knees and rested over on the armrest.

“Severus?” he called once more, knowing it was in vain.

What was he going to do?

---

Severus had woken feeling surprisingly well rested after only a few hours of sleep. Assuming it was from years of practice waking up at odd times and sleeping when he could. A few hours of unbroken sleep was a rarity but cherished.

After relieving himself, Severus quickly checked on Julian. The boy was still sound asleep, curled into a small ball and holding his pillow as though it were a lifeline. His blanket had slid off his somewhat as he slept, but that was quickly remedied with a flick of the wand. Severus also noted the temperature of Julian’s room was somewhat lower than the boy was used to. If it hadn’t been for the permanent heating charms on his clothing, the child would definitely be shivering.

One heating charm and a vital sign check later, Severus was satisfied the child … his child… would be comfortable and asleep for a while longer. How long was a question, but considering the kind of night they had had the night before, Severus hoped Julian would sleep for a few more hours at least.

Severus sighed in frustration. In their haste to leave, they had forgotten to grab several nutrient potions for Julian. Whether they stayed here for the night or not, Julian was going to need at least two for the evening. If they stayed over night, that was another four. Thankfully, the variation of nutrient potion they found that worked required only a few ingredients and was quick to make. So quick, in fact, there was no point to apparating to Hogwarts and walking all the way to the castle when he had a decently stocked ingredients cabinet in stasis.

Quietly going down the stairs, Severus quickly spelled a slice of bread from the sparsely stocked kitchen into toast. He hoped the scent of toast was mild enough to not set off Julian’s stomach. That was another thing they had to add to the list of things to get under control before school started. If Julian was even going to stand a chance of acting as though he were a normal student, he would have to be present at meals periodically. Especially feasts such as the one at the beginning of the year.

Quickly polishing off the toast, Severus donned his brewers robes before removing the stasis spells from the basement.

The smells of the last potions he brewed prior to putting up the spells wafted up from the basement. Apparently he had been experimenting with the Wolfsbane at the time as the air reeked of monkshood and frog liver.

He quickly dispelled the scent before entering the makeshift dungeon. He knew Julian really wanted to study potions, but he was worried about how the boy would react to the smells. If food set him off, potions most certainly would. Every year there was at least one muggleborn first year who vomited during potions class.

The longest part of potions making was undoubtedly the prep work. Dicing ingredients to the correct size, attempting various knife skills on slippery elements, and bringing the base up to temperature all took time. Julian’s nutrient potions only required an oil base and ten ingredients, though heating the oil had to be done slowly to prevent it from burning.

Grabbing all of the ingredients necessary and setting the cauldron over a low flame, Severus started preparing the ingredients. It was easy for him to get lost in the process. Slicing, gutting, chopping, and mashing various ingredients had become so second nature it gave him a chance to think about other things.

Like Julian starting school.

There was no reason he shouldn’t be able to start school come autumn so long as he had a partial schedule as opposed to a normal full schedule. Obviously there would be some classes he would simply never be able to attend, such as Flying and Care of Magical Creatures, the latter of which wouldn’t be an issue until he was a third year anyways.

At the rate he was improving, it would be feasible for him to take morning and evening class at least for the first term of the year. That would allow him time to recuperate throughout the middle of the day. He would have the chance to nap, feed or run nutrient potions as tube feeding, or study if he felt able. It was certainly an idea. Of course he would have to discuss it with Albus before the school year started, as well as with Julian’s head of house.

He rather hoped Julian would be a Slytherin, but he also had to face the fact that, while he was becoming used to thinking of Julian as his son, Julian was actually the son of two of the most prominent Gryffindors in modern history. Could he stand the idea of Julian being a Gryffindor? Yes. Would he like it? Debatable.

Minerva would never let him live it down.

Thinking of Minerva’s glee at having his son in her house made him shudder.

He had managed to escape speaking to the other professors at length at the end of term about Julian or any of his health problems by sheer luck. The carriages had been pulling away from the castle with students leaning out of the doors and windows waving goodbye and craning their necks to see the small child carried by their horrible potions professor. Many of the professors were getting slightly emotional as their favorite seventh years were leaving for the last time, the other Heads of House included.

Julian had managed to watch the carriages pull away before Severus noted him starting to nod off. While the other professors had been engrossed with saying their goodbyes, Severus and Julian had slipped back into the castle.

Severus had then made it his goal to attempt to avoid the other professors who remained in the castle like the plague. Thankfully, only two professors had decided to stay on the castle grounds for the summer: Trelawney and Binns. Neither of which had lives outside of what they lived in the castle.

A brief conversation with Albus after Minerva had left assured him he had made the right decision to avoid them. From what Dumbledore had said, Minerva was “less than thrilled” that Severus had avoided telling them about his son for as long as he did. She had been demanding to know why he hadn’t said anything and forcibly offering her assistance.

As he added the first few ingredients to the potion, he swore he heard footsteps above his head. A quick check of the wards assured him no one else had entered the property. There was no way Julian was up though. Besides, there was no way he could have safely made it down those blasted stairs.

A few more ingredients made their way into the potion, and the temperature was decreased momentarily as Severus stirred the now viscous concoction. A few more steps and the potion would be finished. He would then have to strain, dilute, and bottle the solution. Those last few steps were not necessary for most potion drinkers, but for Julian they had been a life saver. Straining the particulate and diluting the potion had allowed for Julian to receive the potion through his feeding tube as opposed to attempting to drink it. The diluted version also allowed for him to receive more hydration.

Soon, however, they would have to start making some additional modifications to this potion. Once the boy’s fangs were in, he would start craving blood. There had been an initial thought to just modify the potion to have a higher iron content and leave it at that, but the more he worked with Julian and learned about how Julian’s body functioned, the more he realized that wouldn’t work.

He would need blood. Routinely.

While the books Lucius had provided had been informative, they had spoken more to vampire mythology and less to the nitty gritty of being a vampire. Even the books which were written by vampires were geared more towards explaining the basics of vampirism in a way wizards could understand it.

Removing potion from the heat and allowing it to cool, Severus pondered the possibility of writing a book about vampiric anatomy and the difficulties of raising Julian under a pseudonym. It could potentially help other sire-less vampires from suffering the same fate as Julian. It would also be very difficult to keep details out of the book as some of the problems Julian faced were very unique to him and unlikely to be experienced by anyone within the wizarding world.

Best to keep that idea under wraps. At least for a while.

Diluting the potion and straining it took maybe ten minutes tops with bottling the small amount of potion even less. It seemed a waste to use a large cauldron for this procedure, but the smallest cauldron he had which would accommodate the requisite ingredients and could potentially brew this potion properly was silver.

They would need to properly test all of the myths about vampires on Julian. He had already demonstrated an aversion to garlic, but none of the OCD tendencies some vampires possessed. And Severus had never tried to take his picture or stand him in front of a mirror.

More concerning, however, was how his magic would behave once he had magical reserves built up. They were getting close to that point, but he didn’t have a large or consistent enough reserve to safely and consistently cast spells. Now that he was consistently receiving nutrients, his magical levels had dramatically increased but they weren’t within a normal range yet. Beyond that, however, Severus was worried about the vampiric affinity to blood magic.

There was a potential for proper spell casting, however many vampires seemed to prefer utilizing blood magic as a replacement for more traditional spells. The vampires that Severus had seen in the Dark Lord’s army during the war had exclusively used blood magic for all their attacks. It was horrifying to watch.

The concern was that Julian would prefer to use this form of magic over others.

Finally finishing bottling the nutrient potion, Severus sat back and admired his work. That should be enough to last a few days should Julian choose to remain here rather than going back to Hogwarts.

Severus had originally only wanted to come to assuage the muggle police, but now that they were here he didn’t want to return immediately. Hogwarts was his home, but so was Cokeworth. There was something humbling about coming back here; a reminder that not everywhere in the world was a beautiful castle overlooking a lake. He certainly had bad memories from being here, but interspersed through these were the lovely memories of growing up and playing with the few friends he had down by the park.

He was fairly certain Poppy would be fine with them staying for a few more days. If Julian had been hospitalized in St. Mungo’s, he likely would have been sent home by now with follow up appointments scheduled.

He also would have heavy tracking spells placed on him, he’d be registered with the ministry, and would under no circumstances be allowed to attend Hogwarts.

Severus sighed heavily before carrying the cauldron to the wash basin and scrubbing it clean. He really hoped they could keep Julian’s condition under wraps. Having a muggle team of doctors on his case may actually help with that. Why would a vampire ever seek out medical treatment from muggles when they were so intrinsically magical? It made no sense.

A few more minutes of cleaning up the basement and he was done with his brewing. He debated putting everything back into stasis, but, if there was even a remote chance of staying a few more days, that was more effort than it was worth.

He had only been downstairs for roughly an hour, but was already feeling as though he should check on Julian. This was their first day away from the school and he wanted to make sure Julian was still comfortable. None of his wards had gone off saying the boy had gotten up, but he wanted to be sure.

The wards. Shit. In all the exhausted franticness of getting to the house and entertaining the wishes of the police, he hadn’t set any of the monitoring wards. Julian could be getting sick or be in pain and he wouldn’t know. Or he could have fallen out of bed.

The thought chilled Severus to his core. How could he have been so complacent?

Packing the nutrient potions in a small wooden crate, he ran them up stairs and placed them on the kitchen counter and quickly walked to the stairs. He was halfway up them when a small movement on the living room sofa drew his attention. There, asleep in a ball, covered in only a small throw blanket, was a very distinctive child.

Severus’s stomach dropped. What had prompted Julian to come down stairs? Had he been looking for him? Was he ok? Had he gotten ill?

Was this what it was like to be a father?

“Julian? Julian, wake up for me.”

Julian squirmed slightly and pulled the small blanket over him tighter. It wasn’t very warm, but at least it covered his feet.

“Julian?”

Blearily, he opened his eyes and met with the rather concerned face of his dad kneeling next to him. He blinked his eyes a few times and allowed reality to come back to the surface. The sun had gone down farther than it had previously, casting shadows across the room and making the room more comfortably dark.

“Dad?” he said, voice scratchy from sleep.

“Good evening, Julian,” Severus smiled slightly at how tired the boy still was. “What are you doing down here?”

“Lookin’ for you.”

“I apologize, I was in my lab. Did you need something?” Severus stood from where he had crouched down and stretched his back.

“Yeah…” Julian paused in thought, what was it he had come downstairs for? Oh, that’s right. “Are we safe here?”

Severus smirked rather evilly at the question. While the bloodwards around the Dursley’s house had been strong, the warding around his personal home was quite strong as well. With a few added curses and spells preventing those who wished him harm from getting away from the house in one piece. All of these were throwbacks to his previous life in the Death Eaters. Whenever he needed a place for quiet contemplation and isolation, this was where he would go. Many of the other Death Eaters knew he had such a place, but it’s location was one he had never given out.

“We couldn’t be much safer, Julian. What are you concerned about?”

Julian flushed a light pink as he stammered out his answer, “Vampire slayers.”

“There are very few people in this world who know of the location of this house. Fewer still know of your condition. And I can guarantee none of them want you dead.”

“Oh. How long are we going to be here?”

“I was actually hoping to speak with you about that. You have been doing very well and, while I know this was a rather unexpected trip, I was wondering if you would like to stay here for a few days. If you do not wish to, that is completely fine.”

Julian looked around at the house. His house. He had his own room here. He had more books than he could ever imagine and a father who cared for him. He felt much better than he had in years. This was a dream come true.

“I’d like to stay, if Madam Pomfrey is ok with it. But what about the potions? Did we bring any of them here? Or the tube feeding sets? Or the lollies?”

Severus looked sadly at the boy’s franticness. He had seen the child’s eyes light up at the prospect of not being in the Hospital Wing any longer, but that light immediately extinguished at the idea of being away from the supplies which had been keeping him alive.

“I am completely capable of brewing your potions here at the house. There is one tube feeding set in your room that was brought over by the house elves, as well as your pump. I can easily go down the street to the grocers and find some muggle lollies for you if you needed them.”

Julian hugged his knees tighter to his chest as he thought about it. It certainly seemed as though everything could be taken care of here, but he was still worried. What if something happened? Would Severus really be able to take care of him here?

Severus could see the wheels in the boy’s head turning. It was true there were some details which would need to be worked out, but it would do the boy well to be out of Hogwarts for a while. It would also give them a chance to check how stable his core was without the castle’s magic interfering.

“Two days,” Severus said. “We stay here two days, then we go back to Hogwarts if you’d rather. There are some tasks we need to do which are much more suited to doing in the muggle world.”

Julian nodded. Two days was doable. He could start perusing the books in his room!

“That sounds good,” Julian said, smiling.

Severus cocked his head slightly. Were his eyes playing tricks on him, or was there a tooth missing. He admitted he hadn’t really been paying attention to Julian’s mouth when they were talking. It didn’t help that Julian tended to tuck his head when making decisions.

“Now, I have two questions for you,” Severus said sternly. “How did you get down here?”

Julian immediately shrunk down on the couch. He was in trouble. He shouldn’t have left his room. It was probably the same rules as the cupboard under the stairs. Don’t leave where we put you, don’t make any noise, no whinging. He should have known this.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I shouldn’t have left the room. I was worried about being here and wanted to find you so I went down the stairs on my arse.”

Severus tried in vain to keep a stern face, but he had to admit he was impressed. He did not think Julian would have been able to make it down those stairs on his own. It was no wonder he fell asleep on the couch.

“Did you realize you were missing a tooth?”

“I’m not in trouble for leaving my room?” Julian asked confusedly. He had been certain he was going to be punished. He knew he wasn’t safe to be out on his own, but he hadn’t even been yelled at. Why?

“You are not confined to your room. You are allowed to come and go from there as you please. I was more impressed that you made it down the stairs at all. I was more concerned that you had fallen or been injured on your trek down them.”

“Oh,” Julian said, blushing. “No, my tooth fell out while I was asleep. It’s on the desk.”

Severus nodded, glad the boy hadn’t knocked it out from falling down the stairs. That was his worst nightmare. He would hate to have to explain that to Poppy.

“Is your other tooth loose as well?”

Julian nodded and picked at a loose thread on the blanket. He was starting to get cold again and his stomach ached as though he were hungry. As much as he wanted to dig into the collection of books on the walls, he also just wanted to go back to sleep.

Severus could see Julian’s eyes were beginning to glaze over. It was no wonder either, the last few days had felt like utter pandemonium.

“Come now, child. Let’s get you back to bed,” Severus said, lifting the small boy into his arms. There was no way Julian would have been able to make it back up the stairs.

Once in his arms, Julian fell asleep almost instantaneously. Severus then summoned two of the freshly made nutrient potions and pocketed them as he trekked back up the stairs with the sleeping vampire.

Laying Julian on the bed, Severus hooked the boy up to the nutrient potion with practiced ease. It was strange how quickly one could learn something so foreign from most people's minds so quickly. Soon, hopefully very soon, this would be a skill he no longer had to use.

While making sure his son was properly covered with blankets and that his beloved hat wouldn’t come off while he slept, Severus noticed a small white object sitting on Julian’s desk. The missing tooth. It sat still and silent, glistening slightly in the moonlight.

Severus stared at it for only a minute before grabbing it and wrapping it in a handkerchief. He didn’t know what he was going to do with it, but he certainly knew this bit of his son wasn’t going to be thrown away like a common piece of garbage. It certainly wasn’t every day that a vampire’s teeth grew in. Nor were human teeth readily available as potions ingredients; you’d have to go to Knockturn Alley if you wanted to get those. But would the vampirism have affected the tooth?

‘Or you could keep them like a normal parent would,’ Severus thought to himself as he pulled two knuts from his robe pocket and laid them on the desk where the tooth had been. The tooth was certainly worth more than that, but that was all he had in his pocket at the time. He’d have to pay the child more for the next one.

---

Severus was awoken the next morning by two things: an owl had entered his wards with a letter and Julian had let out some sort of high pitched squeal.

He was barely out of bed when Julian came stumbling into his room holding the knuts in his hand that Severus had left him for the tooth.

“Sir! Is she real?” Julian said, holding out the knuts as though Severus would immediately make the connection.

Severus blinked in confusion trying to make the connection. All he had done was pay the boy for the tooth. He felt it had been a fair trade for a valuable potions ingredient. What could Julian be talking about?

“Who are you talking about?” Severus finally asked, having completely missed the connection Julian seemed so insistent on making.

“The tooth fairy! Is she real?” Julian said, leaning back against the wall and continuing to hold out the knuts as though this would all make sense to Severus.

From somewhere in the depths of his childhood memories, the name sparked a recollection. The tooth fairy was something the other young children in his primary school had talked about coming for their teeth and leaving money. That was not a kind of nonsense the Snapes had the money to do. When he had asked about it, his father had slapped him for asking such asinine questions then slapped him again for asking for money.

Severus blinked at the child standing in front of him before chuckling slightly.

“Julian, the tooth fairy is a muggle creation. I paid you for the tooth as adult teeth are uncommon for potions ingredients. I only had a few knuts on me, however.”

Julian looked at the knuts in his hand and lowered it slowly to his side. He didn’t know how to feel about the revelation that the tooth fairy wasn’t real. Or about the fact that he had hoped she was a real being who had actually come to him for once.

“Julian, come here child,” Severus said, motioning to the bed where he sat. He could see the emotions flitting across the boy’s face.

Julian pushed himself off the wall and walked with halting steps over to the bed looking very much like a fawn taking its first steps. He yelped slightly when Severus lifted him up and sat him on the bed, more out of surprise than out of pain.

“What is wrong?” Severus said, looking the boy in the eyes. He didn’t even need to use Legilimency to see the child was upset and thinking about his own past.

They sat in silence for a few minutes as Julian slowly rubbed his fingers over the surface of the knuts. It was the first time he had ever been given money that he wasn’t required to spend on something for the Dursleys.

“I guess I just hoped… just thought that … maybe she had … forgotten about me. Or that she couldn’t get through the door. I dunno.”

Severus gently reached forward and lifted Julian’s chin to look him in the eye. It hurt to see such sadness in the child’s eyes. The bright green marred by years of distrust and neglect at the hands of his relatives. At this distance, Severus could see that, while similar to Lily’s in color, they had flecks of grey hidden amongst the green. These were not his Lily’s eyes, these were Julian’s. His son’s eyes.

“While I do not know everything that happened to you at your aunt and uncle’s house, nor do I truly expect you to tell me everything, I do believe you have been wronged in many ways. You are not a child to be forgotten. You are not a freak. You are not a meal ticket. You are a child, and one who needed and still needs help. Those muggles have done you a grave disservice, one I cannot hope to fully right. However, you shall never need to fear being abandoned, being alone, or being forced to raise yourself.”

Severus had scarcely finished his statement when he found himself with an armful of crying boy. Hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around the child and rubbed his back. He didn’t think a few knuts would lead to this, but it seemed as though this were a long time coming.

He sat for a few minutes with Julian on his lap before he couldn’t take it any longer. As much as he wanted to allow the boy to feel comfortable in this position, he was still too thin for it to feel comfortable for the other party.

“Come now, Julian,” he said, gently pushing the boy back onto the bed and summoning a handkerchief. “I do believe we have some mail to attend to. There is an owl who has been patiently waiting outside.”

Julian sat back and blew his nose, “an owl?”

“Yes, an owl. Have you not seen any of the owls at Hogwarts?” Severus asked, pulling a simple bathrobe on over his nightclothes before summoning a second for Julian to wear.

Julian shook his head. He couldn’t remember Madam Pomfrey mentioning them either, but then again she had been trying to run a hospital wing in a school, monitor his health, and tutor him somewhat at the same time.

“We use owls to transport our post. Many wizards have their own personal owl to use, but most families just share an owl between all family members. Owls are able to find a wizard anywhere and deliver post to them, so long as they are within a reasonable flight distance.”

“Oh,” Julian nodded. “Do you have an owl?”

Severus paused for a moment in thought as he resized a pair of house shoes for Julian to wear. He really didn’t want to have this conversation. He had only had Hermes for a few short months. The first gift his mother had ever given to him, and the Marauders had murdered him. Severus had caught them trying to catch the owl in the owlery. He had tried to stop them, but apparently Pettigrew had it out for his owl. He hadn’t immediately killed it, but he had hugged the fragile body to him too tightly and Hermes succumbed to the injuries.

“I haven’t had one in a very long time,” he finally said, clearing his throat to try and cover up the emotions. “I tend to use the public post owls available either at the school or in Diagon Alley.”

Julian nodded in understanding. He had lost a pet too and could see those same emotions in Snape’s eyes. Selly had been a good snake and fun to talk to, until Dudley got ahold of her.

“Now come we have some post to retrieve. I doubt the owl has stayed outside unless it needs payment or delivery confirmation. Either way, we don’t want the owl to be waiting too long. They tend to get a bit … cranky.”

Julian snickered quietly at the idea of a cranky owl waiting to be paid and flying after someone screeching at them like Aunt Petunia used to do to him when he didn’t clean the house fast enough.

Finally out of the bedroom, Severus slowed his pace for Julian so he could monitor as Julian maneuvered the stairwell. He found himself watching with bated breath as the boy first tried to go down the stairs on foot, then abandoned that idea a few steps in and went down the stairs the rest of the way sitting on each step until he got to the bottom. By the time he was down, he was rather winded and pink in the face, but triumphant at having managed to do it on his own for a second time.

Severus helped him to his feet, pleasantly surprised at the lack of unsteadiness as he stood.

“There is a jar of owl treats in the cabinet by the door,” he said, pointing at the aforementioned cabinet and watching as Julian opened the door and found the rat shaped treats. “Only one per owl, otherwise they start getting jealous of one another. I don’t need owls fighting on my property.”

Julian smiled as he handed the treat to his dad then went to sit on the stairs. As much as he wanted to see the owl, he knew the sun was starting to rise over the horizon. He would just end up feeling weak and sick and if it were too bright out there was no guarantee he could even see the owl.

Severus opened the door and found three letters sitting on his front stoop. Only one owl had breached the wards, so they must be from the same place. Looking at the names and addresses on the letters, he let out an exasperated sigh. Minerva had come back from holiday.

At least the damn letters were spelled to address themselves.

“Julian, you have mail.”

Julian looked confused. Why would someone be sending him mail? There were only a few people who knew him and would use owls to communicate. Why would they be sending him a letter here?

Severus held out two of the three parchment envelopes for the boy before opening the last which was addressed to him. Upon seeing what it was, he let out a sigh of relief he didn’t even know he had been holding. All of Harry Potter’s school fees had been paid prior to his enrollment and an inheritance vault had been set aside for the boy’s schooling. As guarantor of the account, Albus had begun making small transfers of money into Severus’s personal account from this fund to off-set the cost of the boy’s medical needs.

He hadn’t even thought about the school fees. Or the cost of robes, books, and a wand. Even with the reduced tuition due to him being a professor at the school, Hogwarts was not a cheap school to attend.

Folding his letter up and tucking it back into the envelope for safe keeping, he looked at Julian who hadn’t moved since getting the letters. Julian kept looking from one envelope to the other. Thankfully the room was rather dimly lit by the morning sun, otherwise the thin lettering would have been difficult for him to make out.

One read:
Harry Potter
Smallest Bedroom
Spinner’s End
Cokeworth
Lancashire

The other, while identical in shape, weighed slightly more as though it contained more information. It read:

Julian Snape
Smallest Bedroom
Spinner’s End
Cokeworth
Lancashire

Julian looked at Severus in confusion. Why would both of his names get a letter?

Turning them over, he looked at the seal on the envelope. They had both come from Hogwarts. But who would be sending him letters from there?

Severus sighed, “Just open them. If they aren’t at least opened by the end of the day, we’re going to start getting inundated with them.”

Julian opened both of the letters and pulled them out one at a time. They were identical with the exception of his name and both of them were signed by Minerva McGonagall.

“I got accepted?” he asked, not daring to take his eyes off the letters in case they disappeared. “I got in?”

Severus smirked, “No matter what your name is, you have been on the list to be accepted to Hogwarts since you were an infant.”

“So what do I do? Both of the letters want me to respond by July 31st. I can’t very well go to school as both Julian and Harry.”

“I will discuss with Albus what to do about ‘Harry,’ but you can respond to Minerva. I would recommend reading the entire letter to ‘Julian’ however. I believe Albus slipped something extra into that letter. It seems a bit thicker than your ‘Harry’ letter.”

Julian looked at the letters. So he wasn’t the only one that noticed that. Pulling both letters out in their entirety, he saw that the letter written to Julian did indeed include two additional pages. Both letters included a list of required uniform clothing, book list for first years, and ‘other equipment.’ The letter to Julian, however, contained a slightly different set of information as well.

Dear Mr. Snape,

It has come to our attention that you will be requiring additional services throughout your tenure here at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The staff at Hogwarts has had a long history of accommodating the various academic and health related needs of our students. Due to your health status, we are required to inform you that you will be mandated to have daily check-ups with our Mediwitch, Madam Poppy Pomfrey, for the first month. Should your health take a downturn or you are found to be unable to maintain your magical core, Madam Pomfrey may choose to remove you from classes until which point you are deemed safe enough to return.

Sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore (Hogwarts Headmaster; Order of Merlin, First Class; Grand Sorc.; Chf. Warlock; Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. Of Wizards)

The second additional page contained a list of additional rules and regulations for students who were “magical creature.” These rules included notifying staff if a space was needed for transformations, supplying the hospital wing with a list of potions required to maintain humanity (if such a potion existed), and that under no circumstances was attacking another student a forgivable offense.

Severus had sat down on the stairs next to Julian to read these letters with him and scoffed as he read the rules for students of creature heritage and blood, muttering to himself that ‘that must have been added since I was a student.’

“Well, Julian, congratulations are in order. Once you send in your confirmation letter, you are officially a Hogwarts student,” Severus said quietly.

“Dad? You have mail!”

Severus smiled as he got up from the desk in his office. After the success of having Julian out of the Hospital Wing for the few days they had spent in Spinner’s End, the decision was made to allow both Severus and Julian to move into Severus’s quarters in the dungeons. A decision both had been please about.

While Julian had done very well at Spinner’s End, his magic levels had steadily drained once away from Hogwarts. It had been a very slow decline, but it was enough that Julian was slowly becoming more lethargic the longer they were there. Without access to the floo, the situation could rapidly have become too dangerous and led to a regression in the progress Julian had made.

They both knew what would fix the situation they found themselves in, but Julian’s stomach resolutely refused to heal any faster.

Returning to Hogwarts, they had brought with them a new-found vigor. Julian was bound and determined to learn as much as he possibly could about the wizarding world while also becoming more physically fit so he would be able to manage the stairs and make it to classes. Severus, on the other hand, had stumbled across his next potion to experiment with. Or rather, series of potions.

The first and most important being the one he was currently developing: a blood based nutrient potion.

It wasn’t as simple as it seemed. Many of the ingredients which were essential for a standard nutrient potion immediately curdled easy sources of blood. If the blood was separated into its component pieces, it would be physically impossible for even a healthy adult to consume the amount necessary to have the most benefit of both the blood and the nutrient potion. At the rate Julian was able to run the feeding pump, he would have to be running various potions all day for five days straight to receive one proper drink's worth of blood.

The entire potion would have to be redesigned. And quickly.

Julian’s teeth had grown in rather quickly and with them an aching hunger which left him staring longingly at Severus’s neck on one too many occasions. It wasn’t until after Julian had sleep-walked into Severus’s room and stood at the head of the bed fangs bared that the gravity of the situation fully sunk in.

Julian was dangerous if left unfed by blood.

Standard nutrient potions would no longer suffice, especially if he was going to be attending school in the fall. Severus didn’t even want to imagine the carnage that would occur if he were to have another episode like that at full strength. Waking up to vampire drool was utterly terrifying, but, while Julian had apologized profusely for the incident, it was obvious how little control he actually had. That could not happen again.

He had searched through the few dozen books on blood based potions he had and had come up with a few ideas, but nothing concrete. And they were running out of time.

With only two weeks left before term started there simply wasn’t enough time in the day to do all the research necessary, so he had reached out to some fellow Potions Masters. A few refused to help due to the extremely dark connotation to blood magic and those that did were frequently reporting the same problems of volume, curdling, and even complete destruction of the blood itself.

Progress was being made, but even with several minds working on it, it would take several more months for a prototype to be ready for testing.

He had then begun trying to find which part of blood would satiate the feeding drive. He even reached out to the Care of Magical Creatures professor, Silvanus Kettleburn, who was more interested in how Severus knew a vampire and if he could convince it to be on display for a class. Severus rapidly denied the existence of a vampire he personally knew and made up a story about helping dark creatures, which Kettleburn enthusiastically agreed to assist with in any way possible.

It was shortly after the conversation with Kettleburn that he was contacted by one of his colleagues who happened to be muggleborn. Apparently her mother had been placed on iron tablets following a diagnosis of anaemia. The tablets couldn’t be crushed, however, there was a possibility this could curb the hunger drive at the very least.

Pure elements such as iron were not commonly used in potions making unless they were in the cauldrons themselves as they tended to interfere with the more magical ingredients of the potion. Severus recalled thinking ‘science and magic do not mix well’ when he first began experimenting with potion making.

Iron tablets could be gotten easily enough, but as muggles hadn’t formulated the tablets to be crushed and diluted nor was Julian’s stomach going to be able to handle a pill, a different source of iron was needed to even attempt relieving the blood hunger. If the muggles had made iron in pill form, it was a logical jump to assume that they would have a liquid form as well. The only issue was a prescription was needed for this formulation.

The muggle pharmacist had seemed quite put out when Severus had asked to purchase some. He had even asked nicely. A confundus spell wouldn’t have helped, however, as they did not do any of their own compounding and would need to send the prescription off to a compounding pharmacy to have it made. The muggle world was full of extremely frustrating bureaucracy.

Forging one posed its own challenges. While iron was not a drug to be abused, an incorrectly written prescription would be a major tip off that something was afoot. It wasn’t as simple as writing for potions ingredients.

He needed a muggle doctor to sign off on this venture, and he knew right where to find one.

It wasn’t until after he sent off the letter to Harry’s primary care office that he remembered he ought to have rang the office instead. In his defense, he had never had to do this for himself as he had been living solely in the wizarding world since he had turned seventeen. He hadn’t left a number contained within the letter to respond, choosing instead to leave instructions similar to what were given to new muggleborn first years on how to respond to an owl.

He decided to give it a few days. If the physician didn’t respond, he would have to go to the nearest muggle town and use a telephone to make an appointment for Harry/Julian. He greatly hoped for a letter though.

A stack of mail had appeared in its slot by the door to his quarters, which happened to be directly next to the couch Julian had claimed and had covered in books about the wizarding world.

Severus reached over the growing pile of books and grabbed the mail: only two letters and the latest copy of ‘The Practical Potioneer’ which he promptly added to one of his son’s piles of potions literature. If there were something interesting in that rag Albus insisted on buying for him, Julian would find it and ask him about it.

The letters, on the other hand, were far more interesting. One was written on very fine parchment and obviously from one of the Malfoys while the other wasn’t on parchment at all, but rather the stark, bleach white of muggle paper.

Opening the parchment first, he found a rather cordially written letter from Draco asking if he and Julian would like to come school shopping with him and his father. Per his letter, he was excited to meet Julian however Severus doubted this. Draco was spoiled despite his best efforts and would have likely landed himself in hot water on several occasions had it not been for his father’s deep pockets. Though there was a distinct possibility Lucius had spoken with him as there had been an addition of “if Julian is feeling well enough to join” at the end of the letter.

The other letter was far more anticipated, however was addressed as though going through muggle post. There was a small stamp in the upper right hand corner and the envelope was preprinted with the doctor’s office’s address and NHS logo. There was no evidence of it having gone through muggle post, however, and there was a small puncture hole from where an owl had grabbed the envelope.

Opening the letter, Severus read:

Dear Mr. Snape,

I thank you for reaching out to me. This is by far the most odd request I have received in my career. Had it not been for one of my nurses recognizing the stationary you use, I likely would have thrown away your letter.

I am pleased that Mr. Potter seems to have found his way to someone who seems to care about his health. Unfortunately, due to the ambiguity of you letter, the fact I cannot give out patient information to non-guardians (unless you are acting in loco parentis), and the severity of Mr Potter’s condition, I cannot give you the prescription you are requesting without first examining my patient.

Please call the number listed at the bottom of the page or come into my office if you are more comfortable doing so and we will set up an appointment for Mr Potter. Our office hours are 08:00am- 4:30pm (16:30) Monday-Friday.

Thank you,
Dr. Hardeep Singh

Severus resisted the urge to throw the letter in the fire. He did not want to take a fledgling vampire into muggle Surrey for a damn doctor’s appointment. That would be by far and away the most stupid thing he could do. Especially with the muggle penchant for drawing blood for every test under the sun. If they tried to draw Julians blood and he had not recently fed, he was liable to attack someone.

“Dad? Is that from my doctor?” Julian asked quietly, staring at the bright white paper Severus had partially crumpled.

“Yes,” Severus sighed. “I had hoped he would be willing to provide me with a prescription for you for liquid iron supplements to hopefully curb your hunger pangs, however he would like to examine you first.”

“Oh,” Julian said looking glumly back at his pile of books for a moment. “Can we ask him for something for the nausea?”

---

Severus sighed for what felt like the fiftieth time in an hour as he tucked his wand into the discreet holder hidden under his sleeve. A sleeve which felt much too large and untailored to ever be considered proper clothing. Lucius would have thrown an even bigger fit than he had when he saw Severus’s non-uniform wardrobe when they were in school had he seen what Severus was wearing.

“Grunge” was how Julian had described the style, and it was an accurate description of how he felt. He had wanted to make a good impression on the doctor by dressing like a muggle, however his knowledge of muggle fashions was as out of date as his knowledge of how to set up an appointment muggle-style was.

This could not be a fashion. There was no way.

Yet as he strode down the street towards the office of Dr. H. Singh, he found he did not stand out nearly as bad as he had feared. In fact, the clothing seemed to mix well with his surly demeanor and led to him being avoided by most people.

Striding through the office door, Severus was hit by the pungent aroma of disinfectant. It was nearly strong enough to make his eyes water. Looking around the small room, he noted several other families seated in a supposed waiting area. Behind a frosted screen, he could see the movement of a secretary going about her business and could hear the chatter of the personnel.

Wrapping his knuckle on the screen, he heard the murmured voices stop as the secretary slid open the screen and said none too politely, “Can I help you?”

“I need to speak with Dr. Singh,” Severus growled. “And set up an appointment for one Harry Potter, the sooner the better.”

“One moment please,” she said, sounding as displeased as they come as she handed him a clipboard and ball point pen. “Fill this out. Name, date, birthday, allergies, and what is bringing him in.”

Severus scowled at the woman, repeating, “I need to make an appointment.”

“Fill out the form, then I can put your child in the books.”

“He is already in your books, woman!” Severus growled, continuing to refuse to fill out the form and itching to draw his wand on the woman.

A vaguely familiar looking nurse in the back saw him and lost all color in her face as though she knew him. She raced over to the secretary and frantically started whispering in her ear.

“..... letter….. Potter…… school….”

Severus was rapidly losing his patience. How hard was it to make a simple appointment? Must muggles always make things so difficult?

“Professor Snape?” The nurse finally addressed him.

“Yes,” he growled.

“My name is Lisa Clearwater. You teach at Hogwarts School for the Gifted, yes?”

Severus glared at the nurse and cocked his head. That was the name given to muggle families of Hogwarts students, she must be a muggleborn’s relative.

“That I am.”

“My sister, Penelope, just finished her fourth year. She’s a Ravenclaw.”

Severus huffed impatiently. He just wanted to get this bloody appointment scheduled so he could get the necessary prescription to get the liquid iron supplement. And something for Julian’s nausea.

“Did you happen to bring guardianship papers for Mr. Potter?” she asked, suddenly business. She must have heard stories of the potion master’s notoriously short temper.

Severus pulled out the copy of the paternity paperwork Dumbledore had given him. Julian’s name was spelled on the paper’s to be Harry Potter for the time being. There was no point to trying to change the name on the muggle files to Julian as it was safer to keep one consistent name on muggle paperwork.

“Thank you. Would you mind if I make a copy of this?” the nurse asked, taking the paperwork to the copier without waiting for his answer.

Severus raised an eyebrow at the large machine. It was no surprise to him when the machine malfunctioned. It hadn’t been spelled to allow it to continue working when exposed to magic. Even without the spell on Julian’s name, the parchment would have caused great difficulty for the copier due to having been stored at Hogwarts for an extended period of time.

A few choice words later, the nurse and secretary gave up on the copier, claiming that it had been on the fritz for a while.

“Would you be able to provide a copy of this paperwork, sir?” the nurse asked, still rather frustrated at the copier’s failure.

“Certainly, though I will not be able to do so in this room.”

“Understood,” the nurse said, smiling knowingly. She hoped she was there to see it when he made a copy. Penelope had had bouts of accidental magic when she was younger, but she hadn’t been able to show them any of the things she had learned in school.

“Could you please take a seat for a few minutes? Dr. Singh is almost done with his last appointment for the day.”

Disgruntled at having to wait, but thankful that someone here knew what they were doing and who he was, Severus sat down in the corner of the waiting room. The room itself was quite bland with plain white walls with a television hanging from one showing some inane childrens show. There were a few magazines placed on a table in the center of the room, though none of them caught Severus’s eye as they all seemed to be geared towards women.

It was likely only about fifteen minutes before the nurse called Severus back into the back, but it felt as though he had been waiting a lifetime. He hated doctor’s offices and healer’s clinics more than life itself.

As she led him through one of the doorways from the waiting room to the rest of the clinic, Severus couldn’t help but note the compilation of chintzy artwork and medical posters which adorned the wall. It was strange to him to see such detailed diagrams as most magical diagrams continued to be hand drawn and lacked such detail until one began to study a topic more in depth.

Leading Severus to an office in the back corner of the clinic, she cracked the door slightly and poked her head in to speak with the doctor.

“Dr. Singh? Mr. Snape is here to speak with you.”

Severus heard some papers rustling around before a rather accented voice called out for him to enter. A spike of anxiety ran through him, however he quickly squashed that feeling. This had to be done for Julian’s sake.

Shivering slightly at the memory of waking up to the boy sleepily standing over his bed, mouth open and drooling while staring at his neck, Severus entered the office. Rows and rows of filing cabinets lined one wall with bookshelves stacked on top of them. The desk was smashed into the corner of the room and was rather clean and organized with only one, rather thick, folder open on the desk.

The doctor himself was a small, nearly bald, possibly Indian man. What little white hair he had was neatly trimmed and combed into place and he had dark brown eyes partially hidden behind a pair of gold framed wire glasses.

“Ah, Mr. Snape!” the doctor said, standing and coming around the desk to shake Severus’s hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you, though you look nothing like what I expected.”

Severus nodded curtly while shaking the man’s hand. He wondered what the doctor thought he ought to look like, though honestly he was relieved the man had agreed to meet with him at all due to the strangeness of the letter he wrote.

“It is a pleasure to meet you as well,” Severus said, closing the door behind him. “I’m sure you have many questions for me about Mr. Potter. I must admit, I was quite shocked when I heard the muggle police were looking for him. It is relieving to hear there was someone in this world who cared about his well-being.”

Dr. Singh frowned slightly at the word “muggle.” He wasn’t sure if that was a slur or not, but there was much he didn’t know about the man sitting in front of him.

Clearing his throat, Dr. Singh said, “Yes, actually. I have many questions. But first, do you have proof of guardianship?”

Severus pulled out the paternity paperwork yet again, glancing at it to make sure the charm was still working to disguise Julian’s name, and placed it in the doctor’s outstretched hand.

“Ah, very good,” Dr. Singh said, looking curiously at the parchment before reading the document. “His father?”

“Yes, I retrieved him after his aunt decided she no longer could care for him.”

“Thank goodness for that. He should have been removed from that house long ago. Do you have any… normal… paperwork?”

Severus looked at the paperwork the doctor was holding. He had never seen muggle adoption paperwork or paperwork proving paternity. For the wizarding world, the paperwork the doctor was holding would be more than adequate, especially with the signature of Albus Dumbledore on it.

“That is the paperwork I was given.”

“Interesting,” the doctor said, scratching his chin as he looked over the paperwork once more. “I have many questions about this ‘magic’ you spoke about in your letter, however I feel those be best kept for a later date. You said you had discovered the source of Harry’s many health problems and I, for one, am very curious about this.”

“Before I begin,” Severus started, knowing that none of this story would be taken seriously without someone bridging the gap and helping validate what he said. “I would like your nurse, Ms. Clearwater, to be in this room as well. She has some minor experience with the magical world as you already know.”

Dr. Singh nodded and went to the door to see if he could find Lisa Clearwater. If it hadn’t been for her insisting that her sister knew the man writing, that she had seen this type of paper before, and that every part of this was legitimate, he would have immediately assumed this was a scam of some sort. Magic was a preposterous idea and he could not wrap his mind around it without some form of proof it existed, and to make claims that a patient was having some sort of magical problem and that was the reason for their illness only compounded his disbelief.

Lisa happened to be standing just down the hall, as though she knew she would be needed for this meeting, and came over as soon as the door opened and Dr. Singh ushered her in.

Severus nodded to her as the doctor waved her to sit as well.

“In telling you what I will be telling you,” Severus began. “I will be breaking magical law if I do not spell you to prevent you from passing along any of the information you are about to hear. Should you choose to cut ties with Mr. Potter as his physician, I shall be required to wipe your memories of this entire encounter.”

Dr. Singh’s wiry eyebrows immediately shot to his receding hairline. What sort of secrets were they about to hear?

“The boy you have been seeing going by the name of Harry Potter is a wizard. There is an entire world of magic contained within your own. He, I, and Ms. Clearwater’s younger sister are a part of this world. For the most part, it is … well contained. However, roughly two years ago, there was an attack on a muggle, non-magical, community. Only one person was injured in this incident, and due to it being in a muggle community and the symptoms not showing up immediately due to an incomplete ritual of transformation, it was missed by the magical world.

“Harry Potter, was the victim of this attack.”

Severus paused momentarily as the doctor and nurse sitting in front of him mulled over what he had just said.

“An unregistered vampire came into a muggle community in Surrey, fed on Harry’s blood as he had been locked outside by his muggle relatives, and left. Had Harry been a muggle, this would not have been an issue and he would likely not have retained any memory of it. As he is a wizard, however, his own magic bound with the vampiric magic and began his transformation in order to save his life.”

“Are you saying Harry is a vampire?” Dr. Singh said rather bemusedly.

“I am. I know this may sound absurd, but magical creatures routinely walk among both our worlds.”

“Absurd doesn’t even begin to cover it. Do you have any proof of this ‘magic’ you speak of?”

Severus smirked in a way that made Lisa’s insides turn to jelly. She had heard stories from her sister of the aftermath of that smirk. Generally, it was related to the ‘loss of house points’ or ‘the worst detentions you could possibly imagine,’ but she got the feeling that the man in front of her had done some terrible things or had the potential to do so.

“If you would take the paternity papers I handed you and look through them once more. Make sure there are no duplications and no additional pieces of parchment shoved in between.”

Severus pulled out his wand as the doctor did as he asked, smirk still plastered on his face. There were many things he could do to provide the proof necessary for the doctor to believe what he was saying, but most of them could land him in trouble with the ministry more than what he was doing now.

“Geminio,” he said, tapping his wand on the parchment’s surface.

Immediately, the parchment quivered slightly then jumped apart into two identical copies for the same paperwork. Severus quickly checked to make sure the name on the copy read ‘Harry Potter’ and not ‘Julian Snape.’ Thankfully, the spell copied the incorrect name, thus allowing Severus to give the doctor an un-spelled version of the paperwork.

Both Dr. Singh and Lisa’s jaws hit the floor. Lisa, having only ever seen accidental magic, was just as floored by the display as the doctor.

A few more flicks of his wand and the door was locked and the blinds to the window closed. Severus noticed the light flickering overhead as he continued to use magic and stopped after removing the charms on his clothing which made them into that absurd muggle get-up.

Much more comfortably attired, Severus straightened his robes and relaxed back in his chair.

“How?… what?” Dr. Singh tried to articulate, however he was unable to form a sentence.

“Magic,” Severus stated, tucking his wand back into the holster on his arm. “Harry Potter is a vampire. Unfortunately for muggle technology, this affliction is not able to be tested for by any muggle means.”

“So, all of the testing he went through, all of the specialists who were baffled by his case, all of the pain and problems he endured were because we simply couldn’t see what we were looking for?” Lisa asked quietly as she personally had been the one to struggle finding a decent vein on the child when he would come in for blood work.

“Precisely.”

“So why come to us? If you are able to diagnose him and treat him in the magical world, why come and ask us for help?” Lisa asked.

“As muggle medical technology has advanced, it has surpassed wizarding abilities in some ways. True, had Harry been in the magical world when the attack occurred, he would have been diagnosed sooner, however I do believe he would not have been alive for nearly as long as he has been without a proper diagnosis if it hadn’t been for the sheer wit and determination of his muggle physicians.”

Severus nodded in appreciation to the doctor who was still sitting rather slack-jawed behind the desk.

“The iron?” Dr. Singh finally croaked out. “What was it about the iron?”

“You are aware that he has a feeding tube which was placed when his gut began to slow. As his intestines have begun to reawaken, we have been trialing different ways of getting the nutrients he needs as a vampire into his system. This included giving him blood orally, which his stomach still isn’t quite able to handle. We don’t want to give him blood through the feeding tube as he requires whole blood and it would likely clot within his tube at the rate we would have to run it. Unfortunately, oral blood consumption was what was needed to complete his transformation and he now is feeling the urge to feed on blood whether he can actually consume it or not.”

“And the iron will… stop that urge?” Dr. Singh said, catching on to what Severus was saying.

“That is the hope. The plan is to send him to school in a month, but if he is attempting to feed on their blood then this is not a viable option for him. As of right now, there are no potions which are compatible with the residuals of the nutrient potion we have been giving him through his tube which would curb this urge, nor are there any whole blood based nutrient potions in existence. We have found ourselves between a rock and a hard place and are rapidly running out of time.”

“And what happens if he gets held back?” Lisa asked.

“Tutoring is a possibility, however we are trying to keep him in the same age grouping as magical growth is stunted by being held back a year. It would greatly help his magical health if he is able to stretch and utilize his magic in a controlled environment.”

Dr. Singh nodded faintly. This entire situation felt surreal in a way he couldn’t put to words even if he tried. He had always felt there was something different about Harry, but always chalked it up to his family being overbearing and potentially abusive.

“Before I prescribe anything for him, I still need to see him.”

Severus nodded. He figured as much. If he had a client asking for a specific potion, he would require the same. No point wasting potions ingredients if the client didn’t know what they were actually asking for or an exact parameter required for safe potion administration.

“That is fine. Do you have any questions for me at this time?” Severus said. “Unfortunately, I am not able to give detailed information about the magical world without prior authorization by the Ministry of Magic.”

Dr. Singh shook his head, all of the questions he had thought of leaving his brain as soon as the man in front of him asked. He was still in awe of what he had just heard and witnessed.

“Before I leave, I will have to put you under a compulsion spell. You will not be able to speak about Harry Potter’s case with anyone outside of this room other than you know of him and any information you know of his case from prior to today.”

“Will it hurt?” Lisa asked.

“It may tingle slightly,” Severus said, pulling his wand out for the second time and casting the much more complicated compulsion charm over the two before re-transfiguring his clothing into muggle clothing. “Thank you for your time, Dr. Singh.”

“Thank you for your … explanation,” Dr. Singh said faintly.

“I make the appointment with your secretary correct?”

Dr. Singh nodded, continuing to look rather pale as he stewed over the information he had just received.

“I’ll go with you to speak with her. Marjory can be a bit… difficult… sometimes.”

“I noticed.”

Severus couldn’t help but groan at the latest letter from the Headmaster.

A puzzle involving potions? Really? What was he wanting, for the ingredients to be provided and the person having to brew something?

Of all the years for Albus and his ‘dear friend’ Nicolas Flamel to decide to hide something in the school, it just had to be the year Julian was set to start school. And putting it on the third floor rather than in the dungeons? Of course students were going to try and get in! There had to be something more sinister that Albus was playing at; even he wasn’t this foolish!

At least creating a puzzle involving potions was an easier task than the last one Albus had given him. That one was currently cleaning his bookshelves for the fifth time this week.

“Julian! Stop, child,” he said, pulling his son’s hands away from the shelf and ignoring the protests from the boy. “You need to get your evening potions started. Cleaning can wait.”

If Severus was nervous for what they were going to be doing, Julian was terrified. The hunger pains hadn’t gone away despite the few small sips of blood he had managed to keep down. If he smelled even the slightest hint of blood, he would immediately start salivating to the point of drooling if he wasn’t careful. If he let his mind wander for even a moment, he would find himself wandering closer and closer to where he had smelt the blood.

He knew he couldn’t feed, but the instinct to do so was still there. And as he got stronger, the more that feeling grew. In desperation to focus on something other than the voice in his head screaming for a drink, he had started cleaning. He knew how to do that well and it kept his hands busy enough that he couldn’t leave an area and wander. It had started out as a distraction and was now a lifeline. If he was feeling nervous, hungry, scared, or overwhelmed, he would find a place to clean.

And today he was feeling all of these, for today they were going out.

The previous week, Severus had gotten a letter from Lucius’s son asking if he could come school shopping on Wednesday. While Severus was initially leery of going, a newspaper article from the Daily Prophet reminded him of something he was surprised he had forgotten. While ‘Julian’’s birthday was in early June, ‘Harry’’s birthday was July 31st.

And Julian had stated he had never had a birthday before.

A quick check of Julian’s magic levels showed he was now keeping a small amount of magic in reserve. Enough that testing wands would not be an issue. Most all of the standard school supplies he needed could be ordered and sent directly to Hogwarts with the notable exception of two items: a wand and school robes.

As every wand was highly individualized, one could not be ordered premade no matter the circumstances. The robes, on the other hand, required additional spells be placed on them to be resistant to most potions, fire, and most basic spellwork. Unfortunately, these spells made it so the clothing could not have alteration spells placed on them to resize them to fit the wearer. With Julian being an odd size, his uniform was undoubtedly going to need significant alterations.

All things considered, a short trip to Diagon Alley was in order.

Severus had reached out to Lucius and explained that they would not be able to go during the height of the day, however they would be able to join the Malfoys in the late afternoon. While Julian had initially been excited for the trip and potential for his first birthday present ever, his nerves about the situation were starting to get to him.

They had thought through most of the technical issues prior to accepting the invitation. They would go in the evening so the sun would be lower in the sky. Severus would tint his glasses so they would function more like sunglasses so he would be able to see better. He would, of course, be wearing one of the hats provided by Mr. Malfoy so his scar would be covered. He would have sunscreen on any exposed skin but would still wear one of the sun resistant cloaks.

There was only one issue they couldn’t get around: Julian was supposed to be running the nutrient potion at that time.

It was barely over 150ccs of fluid, but Julian still couldn’t tolerate it running faster than 40ccs an hour. Anything faster than that and he would have horrific stomach cramps. And they couldn’t move the potions timing up without him being in pain while it was running followed by being lightheaded before the next dose was due.

With that timing rather hard-stuck, they were going to have to find a way to bring the feeding pump along with them. Thankfully, Albus had spelled it to work in spite of being around large amounts of magic and to work without needing a source of electricity. Still, Severus knew Julian still didn’t want to be seen carting around a machine with him; a bag of some sort was in order.

One quick search of the items left at the school later, Severus was in possession of an old, rather tattered backpack which could be modified to hold the pump. A small hole was placed in the bottom of the bag to run the feeding tube from the machine around to where Julian’s tube was placed, a grommet conjured to reinforce the hole, and a sturdy clip placed in the upper portion of the bag to hold the feeding bag upright and in place. It wasn’t a pretty job, but it would have to do.

All of the preparations had been completed days ago, now it was a matter of actually going.

As much as Severus wanted to avoid this trip, he knew it was inevitable that they would end up needing to go to Diagon Alley for school supplies. Both he and Julian would fit in better in Knockturn Alley, but venturing into the dark alley would have to be saved for another day. Severus knew Julian would be able to handle the majority of the trip, but he had his doubts about extending the trip any longer than necessary.

“Do you need any help with the bag?” Severus asked, watching Julian thread the now primed feeding tube through the hole and place the feeding pump into the bag.

“Um… hold on,” Julian mumbled as he clipped the feeding bag full of nutrient potion into place and attached himself to the tubing and started the pump. “Can you hold it up so I don’t slosh everything around trying to get it on?

Severus obliged the request, noting the pack was slightly oversized thus making Julian seem even smaller.

“Is it too heavy for you?” Severus asked, fully prepared to cast a lightening charm on the pack.

“I… think it should be ok for now,” Julian said, rolling his shoulders. The weight of it wasn’t bad, but he dreaded to think of carrying it around for longer than a few hours due to the size of the pack. The excess tubing hanging from under the back was also rather problematic, but was easy enough to coil up and tuck into his pants pocket.

“Have you put on your sunscreen?”

“Yes, dad. I even did the back of my neck and my ears just in case. And I went half way up my arms,” Julian said, pulling his cloak over the backpack and pulling the hood up so it shaded his face.

Severus nodded and added a glamour to the backpack. “Don’t want you to look like a hunchback.”

A few more quick spells to ensure clasps would stay done, zippers zipped, and hats wouldn’t come off unless the wearer removed them and they were finally ready to go.

The plan was they would floo to the Leaky Cauldron, meet the Malfoys at Madam Malkins, get Julian fitted for robes, go to Ollivanders and get both boys a wand, then Julian and Severus would go back to Hogwarts. It was a simple plan with as few moving parts as they could manage.

As he and Julian stepped into the flames, Severus was hopeful they would be able to make it through this with little to no difficulty. Julian had been walking well and managing to go longer and longer distances. He had been tolerating very small amounts of blood orally. He had only had to have one additional blood transfusion since coming to Hogwarts. His nausea was even more under control, though it was always much worse after consuming anything orally or if he had laid flat for too long.

Stepping out into the Leaky Cauldron, Severus was extremely optimistic when Julian didn’t immediately vomit. The smell of alcohol and bar food was overwhelming to even the most prepared person.

“Ah, Professor Snape!” Tom, the bartender called. “What can I get for you today?”

“Nothing today, Tom,” Severus said, quickly taking Julian by the hand. In the dim lighting, it was very hard to see the boy’s face, however his hands were more pale than usual and quite clammy. He could tell Julian was struggling to keep his composure.

Severus led Julian to the back alley as quickly as they could manage through the throngs of people in the bar. They barely made it out when Julian doubled over and vomited bile into the middle of the alley.

Severus quickly spelled the mess away and led the still gagging child over towards the two bins at the end of the alley.

“Deep breaths, Julian,” he said, helping steady the boy on his feet and rubbing his back.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” Julian kept mumbling between hiccoughs and gags. “I tried to keep it down.”

“I know you did. And you did an admirable job at doing so. The floo is not an easy form of transit when your stomach disagrees with you. Now, breathe child.”

Despite taking deep breaths and trying to focus on relaxing the tense muscles in his stomach, it still took Julian nearly ten minutes to finally regain control of his gag reflex. It was evident to Severus that, despite all the planning and precautions put into place, it was highly likely Julian would not make it through this trip without becoming exhausted. He could only hope Julian would be able to keep control of his mind as he got more tired.

“Do you need more time?” Severus asked as Julian’s breathing finally leveled out.

“No, I think I’m ok now,” Julian said rather hoarsely, slowly straightening up and rubbing his aching stomach.

“Follow me,” Severus said, leading Julian to the far wall of the alley. Taking out his wand, he quickly tapped several bricks in rapid succession then stepped back.

“Welcome to Diagon Alley,” Severus said quietly.

Julian’s eyes widened as the bricks began to move and form a large archway into the most busy alley he had ever seen. As they stepped through the archway into the brightly lit alley, he was extremely glad his dad had thought to spell his glasses to have a self adjusting tint to them. Even still, he noticed he was squinting slightly as some of the more brightly lit displays became a rather muddled blur. But he paid no mind to that, there were too many other things to look at in the alley that he could see. Like the dimly lit potions displays or the bookstore with its tottering stacks seemingly supported by nothing. Pet shops, apothecaries, candy stores, even a store selling broomsticks, the farther they walked down the alley, the more Julian became enthralled with the alley.

Midway up the alley, with Julian both panting trying to keep up and whipping his head back and forth trying to take in all the sights, they arrived at their first destination.

Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions was an unassuming little shop with a Hogwarts Uniform display in one window and a dress robe display in the other. Upon entering the store, Julian was surprised by how much larger the room seemed on the inside. Racks of robes of every color stretched from floor to ceiling with multiple patrons meandering through the rows of robes.

From the back, murmuring voices could be heard.

Taking Julian’s hand once more, Severus gently led the child to the back of the store. From his vantage point, he could just see the bright blonde hair of the Malfoy family. They must have waited for a while before finally allowing Madam Malkin to begin measuring Draco for his robes.

“He said he was coming, right? So where is he?!” Draco could be heard saying.

“Draco, quiet,” Lucius snapped, looking towards the door as he heard the chime go off once more. A familiar black figure was stalking through the racks of clothing towards them. “He’s here.”

“He is?” Draco said, trying to twist around and see only to be admonished by the stitch-witch for moving too much.

“I apologize for our tardiness,” Severus’s deep voice said flatly.

“Problems?” Lucius asked, looking towards the man and inhaling sharply when he saw a small pale hand grabbing the side of Severus’s robes. The owner of the hand had ducked behind Severus as soon as Draco had started moving around and was peering intensely at Draco’s neck from behind Severus’s back.

Lucius felt his mouth go dry. Julian was here. And he was hungry. Mentally he thought back on the past two weeks. Had Draco injured himself on accident? Was there any wounds the vampire was smelling? He couldn’t think of anything, but kept his hand on his wand anyways.

“The floo,” Severus said, noting Lucius’s paleness had increased when he saw Julian. “Julian, come here.”

Julian broke his gaze off Draco’s neck and stepped around his father.

“Good evening, Mr. Malfoy,” Julian said quietly, causing the hairs on Lucius’s neck to stand up. “Thank you very much for the clothing. I appreciate it very much.”

“You’re welcome,” Lucius said, surprised at how cordial yet off putting the child was.

Severus nudged Julian forward, “Go stand on the footstool next to Draco. Madam Malkin will start measuring you shortly.”

Julian walked forward and stood on the stand opposite Draco. Now that they were standing on equal ground, he could only think one thing: Severus had lied. Draco couldn’t be average height; he had to be at least a good head taller than Julian! He wasn’t that short, was he?

“No, no dear,” Madam Malkin said from where she stood by Draco. “I’m only doing Hogwarts students this week. Step off the footstool please.”

“I assure you, Madam, he is eleven years old,” Severus growled. “You will measure him as well as he will be attending Hogwarts this fall.”

“Does he have his letter?” Madam Malkin grouched, looking towards the door as another customer entered. This was her busiest week, she didn’t have time to deal with parents trying to placate their younger children by buying them robes to match their older siblings.

Severus sneered as he pulled the letter from one of his robe pockets. The nerve of the woman. He had never heard her ask for a student’s letter before! Looking over at Julian, he saw the child had lowered his hood in preparation for being measured. His face was bright red with embarrassment.

Sighing deeply as she looked at the proffered letter, Madam Malkin looked at the child in front of her. While she still doubted his age, she had nothing to prove otherwise. She could already tell her standard robes would not work for this child.

“Cloak off, please dearie, so I can measure you.”

Julian looked wide eyed at Severus as he slowly undid the clasp of his cloak. They were inside and far away from the few remaining rays of sunlight, but he was also worried about the backpack he had hidden under the cloak. He didn’t want to have to explain that.

Severus nodded and held out a hand to take the cloak from his son.

As soon as the clasp on the cloak was undone, the glamour over the backpack was cancelled, leaving Julian standing wide eyed and very much aware of how much smaller he was. He was thankful for the warmth of the clothing Mr. Malfoy had given him as he could feel the chill of the air once the cloak was off.

“Daypack too.”

Julian looked wide-eyed at Severus and didn’t move. Why couldn’t she measure him with his pack on? It couldn’t be that difficult, could it?

Severus could see the mounting panic in his eyes. The nutrient potion was nowhere near complete, but it wouldn’t cause any harm to pause it momentarily so as to allow him to remove the bag from his back. The issue was, if the potion was paused, it would begin to become sticky and could clog the tube if left paused for too long without properly flushing the line with water. The other option was for someone to hold the bag while he was measured, though the tubing would continue to be attached and could get pulled. Neither of them had foreseen this being a problem.

With shaking hands, Julian slowly took off the backpack and unfurled the additional length of feeding tube so the pack could be farther from his body. He had hoped he would be able to run the nutrient potion without interruption.

As Madam Malkin busied herself with Julian’s measurements, Draco pulled his main robe back on and turned to meet the boy his father had told him about. He was fully prepared to hate the boy. How dare he take away the mentor he had grown to see as a second father? How dare he make Severus miss his birthday?

Acidic comments immediately lost their potency as he looked at Julian. He looked less like a human and more like a mannequin; his skin white as snow, green eyes locked on Severus, and his hands so thin it made his fingers look abnormally long. He had a slight greenish tint to his face as he stood trying to follow Madam Malkin’s commands, arms quivering as he tried to hold them straight out to his sides.

He was supposed to be starting at Hogwarts this fall? An image of Crabbe and Goyle standing next to this child came to his mind; one wrong move and this boy would be crushed by either of those two buffoons.

“Hello,” he finally said, trying to judge the boy next to him. “Hogwarts, too?”

Julian frowned slightly but nodded. Though it was obvious Draco was attempting to be nice, Julian doubted he had ever had to be nice to anyone for anything in his entire life. Severus had mentioned Draco was an only child and ‘did not want for anything.’ Julian took that to mean he was spoiled, just like Dudley was.

“We just finished shopping, though we were waiting for you and Severus to get robes and get me a wand. Have you gotten one yet?” Draco asked, trying to get the small boy to talk to him. He was being friendly enough, wasn’t he?

Julian shook his head and dropped his arms to his sides as soon as he was told he could. He was certain Draco knew he didn’t have a wand yet; Draco had been the one hounding Severus about coming along to get one. He hoped Severus would bail him out of this conversation, but Severus and Mr. Malfoy seemed to be having a rather heated, yet whispered discussion.

“I tried to get my father to get me a racing broom, but he wouldn’t let me. He said I couldn’t have one until next year when I get on the house team and would have to ‘cope with my current broom’ for a few more months,” Draco sighed, rolling his eyes. “Do you have your own broom?”

Julian shook his head.

“Why not? You live at Hogwarts with Severus, don’t you?” Draco was astounded. How could someone live at Hogwarts, have access to a full sized Quidditch Pitch year ‘round, and not have a broom?

“I can’t go outside,” Julian said, quietly. “I can’t go in the sun.”

“Can’t go in the sun? Why can’t you go in the sun?” Draco said, astonished.

“I get really sick in the sunlight,” Julian said, quickly thinking up a probable lie. “I have a sun allergy.”

“A sun allergy? What kind of nonsense is that?!”

“Draco!” Mr. Malfoy snapped. “Have you no tact?”

Julian’s face turned slightly pink as he murmured. “It’s fine, sir. It’s not a common thing.”

“Do you like Quidditch at least?” Draco asked, still flabbergasted at the idea of not going outside.

“All done, dear,” Madam Malkin said, straightening up from measuring Julian’s leg length and just missing stepping on the length of feeding tube between the backpack and Julian.

“Thank you, ma’am,” Julian said, clambering off the stool as quickly as he dared. Standing still like that on such a small surface was harder than expected, but he was relieved he managed it.

One stop down, one to go.

“Well? Do you?” Draco demanded as Severus helped Julian back into the backpack and cloak.

“Do I what?” Julian asked, having forgotten the question.

“Like Quidditch!”

“It… sounds fun? I guess?” Julian mumbled. Quidditch did sound like an interesting game from what he’d read, but having never flown before, he couldn’t imagine what it was like to play. Maybe when school started, he’d be able to watch part of a game?

“You’ve never seen a game, have you?” Draco asked, eyes widening as a realization hit him.

Julian shook his head slightly once more. He had tried to learn about Quidditch, he really had, but the idea of balls trying to knock him off his broom and speeding around in circles while flying at high speeds was off putting to say the least. If the school had gym class, he would be chosen last even if it was played in doors. No one wanted someone as small as him on the team.

“Draco,” Lucius hissed as the group walked to the front of the store to pay. “Julian has not been well for several years. He has been in and out of hospital due to illness. While you and your friends were playing Quidditch and practicing flying, he was fighting for his life.”

Draco swallowed heavily and looked at the child standing next to Severus once more. He had only ever been in hospital once and that was due to Dragon Pox. A few days had been more than enough for him to know he never wanted to be back there. Being in hospital multiple times was an honestly terrifying thought.

“Why do you have a backpack on?” Draco said, trying to change the subject away from the hospital while the adults were preoccupied with paying for the robes.

“It’s got potions in it,” Julian said.

“Potions for what?”

“Me.”

“Why can’t Severus carry them?”

“Because I’m taking them right now.”

Draco frowned and looked at the small boy next to him. He wasn’t taking potions right now; there was no way that was possible. The pack was on his back and he had a cloak over it! Even if he took off the cloak, he would still have to open the pack to drink whatever potion was in there. Draco supposed there could be a way to spell the potions into Julian’s stomach, but not something that was automatic. And Severus was still arguing with Lucius about paying for the robes.

“You haven’t drank a single thing since you got here,” Draco said rather haughtily, he did not like being lied to.

“Couldn’t anyways,” Julian said, pulling his hood over his face and relishing in the shade it provided. The lighting at the front of the store was much brighter due to the rays of the setting sun bouncing off of the large white building across the way.

“Couldn’t what?” Draco said, anger seeping into his voice. Was this tiny child mocking him?

“I…. I can’t …. I can’t eat… Or drink,” Julian stuttered, stepping away from Draco. Draco’s attitude reminded him of Dudley before he would sick his friends on him in a rousing game of “Harry Hunting.”

“What?!” Draco said, taken aback, all anger leaving his voice. Was this why Julian was so small?

Julian nodded slightly and toed at a warped board on the floor.

“Why?”

“‘Cause I’m sick. Or I was. I’m getting better since I came to live with Dad!”

“But how do you eat? Or drink? How are you even alive?”

“I have a tube that was put in my belly to bypass my stomach.”

Draco cringed and rubbed his own stomach. He couldn’t even imagine. How sickly was Julian? Would he even…. He couldn’t go outside. He couldn’t eat. He couldn’t drink. He looked like he hardly slept. But above all, he looked scared.

Scared and determined at the same time.

“Come along, Julian,” Severus said, breaking the tension by nudging the boys out the door. “We need to get both of you a wand.”

---

The walk to Ollivanders wand shop was relatively quiet between the two boys. Occasionally, Draco would ask a question of Julian, but rarely would he receive an answer longer than a few short words. The more questions he asked, the more questions he had, but at the same time he was afraid to ask too many probing questions in front of Severus.

Arriving at the Ollivanders, they found the wand shop to be quiet and dark. The sun, having completely set, was no longer affording any light through the shop windows. Stepping in and removing his hood, Julian immediately saw a short, wizened old man lurking in the shadows.

“Good evening,” the man said softly as Julian sat on the single, spindly chair in the room, legs feeling like jelly from the walk.

The other occupants of the room jumped slightly, having not seen or heard the man prior to him announcing his presence. His eyes immediately went to the two adults in the room, looking at them as though they were friends he hadn’t seen in a very long time.

“Lucius Malfoy. Continuing to use your grandfather’s wand, I see. Elm, dragonheart string, good for elegant charms work, originally thirteen inches, though your family has a penchant for meddling with their wand. Very bendy, though I believe you Malfoy’s have attempted to make it more rigid over time,” Mr. Ollivander said, shaking his head rather sadly before looking at Severus.

“And Severus Snape. Ebony with a hawthorne handle and dragon heartstring. Excellent for defensive magic, though not used very frequently nowadays.”

Lucius scowled and crossed his arms while Severus remained impassive. Both men had experience with Ollivander’s memory of the wands sold in and by the shop and were surprisingly nonplussed by the man. Draco followed his father’s example and scowled while Julian sat wide-eyed.

“Young Mr. Malfoy, you must have had some problems finding a wand from your family's stash, eh?”

Draco fiercely blushed, scowl deepening. He and his father had spent hours going through the stash of family heirlooms trying to find a wand which would respond appropriately to him. Some would react to his magic, others would do nothing. The decision had finally been made to purchase him a wand when one of the few wands which did respond to his magic spontaneously combusted in his hand.

“Well, no matter. Let me see,” he said, pulling a long tape measure with silver markings out of his pocket. “Which is your wand arm?”

“Right,” Draco said, holding out his arm and allowing Ollivander to begin measuring him.

Julian watched in awe as the tape measurer jumped around and completed all of the measurements on its own, measuring Draco’s arm length, head circumference, and even distance between his nostrils. Mr. Ollivander himself had gone to the back of the shop while the tape measurer was completing its measurements and had begun to pull down box after box and bring them to the front of the store.

“That’s enough,” Ollivander said, commanding the autonomous tape measurer to cease.

“Try this one,” he said, proffering a wand for Draco to try. “Larch and phoenix feather, twelve inches, slightly whippy.”

Almost as soon as Draco touched it, however, Ollivander ripped it from his hand and placed it back in the box.

“No, no, that won’t do. Here, here, try this one. Red Oak, unicorn hair, nine inches, rather flexible.”

Again, Draco lifted the wand and gave it a flick. A few miniscule sparks shot from the end, though extremely lackluster. Yet again, the wand was removed from his hand and quickly replaced with another and another. Finally, after what seemed like a rather long period of time, a wand was found.

“Ah yes, hawthorn and unicorn hair, 10 inches, reasonably springy. I should expect interesting things from you, young Malfoy! Care for it well, and it shall care for you too,” Mr. Ollivander said, gently taking the wand from Draco and placing it in its box before wrapping it up and handing it back to the boy who instinctively cradled it.

As soon as Lucius had paid the seven galleons for the new wand, Mr. Ollivander turned his attention to the smaller child in the chair.

“Ah yes, young Mr. Snape,” he said, dragging out the last name slightly. “Yes, yes. I thought I ought to be seeing you soon, but I was worried I wouldn’t get the chance to meet you.You have your mother’s eyes. It was only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work.”

He leaned in closer to the boy, eyes wide and unblinking.

“I’m sorry to say the wands I have made have changed you in many ways. And I remember every wand I have ever sold.”

His eyes flicked first to directly above Harry’s eyebrow to where his scar lay hidden by his cap then to his neck where he had been bitten.

“Do you know who….?” Julian whispered, voice dropping off at the end.

“Sadly, I do not know the name of its current owner. All I know is that wound was sealed by a wand made by my very hand. As was your other wound.”

Julian swallowed and shivered, suddenly feeling very cold.

“I’m afraid my normal methods of wand selection will not work for you, child,” Mr. Ollivander said, standing up. “I do not wish to cause you harm, especially today. Follow me please. Not to worry, there is a stool for you to sit on.”

Julian slowly got up, legs aching from exertion. He was honestly glad he wouldn’t have to go through the same process of trial and error Draco had gone through. While his magic was returning, he only had one bout of accidental magic since coming to Hogwarts. It was a small thing, just summoning a blanket from the bottom of the bed, but he felt weak and shaky for several hours afterward. Finding a wand through trial and error would likely put him into a coma!

The back of the shop was a workman’s dream and an organizer’s hell. Different types of wood, wood chips, carving utensils, and designs lay throughout the room or pinned on walls. The smell of sawdust permeated the room as dust swirls could be seen in the rays of light streaming from the low-lit lamp on the desk.

“Now, Mr. Potter, or rather, Mr. Snape, if you will take a seat,” Mr. Ollivander said, waving to the chair at the desk. “There are several ways to find a wand. The simplest is what you have just seen: trial and error. For most, this is enough. For those who are ill or of certain creature descent, this method is seen as extremely ineffective. Especially as I have over eight thousand wands currently in my shop.”

Rummaging around in one of the many drawers, Mr. Ollivander pulled out a small blue and white stone, a piece of parchment, a quill, and a vial of ink. Handing the stone to Julian, he then took the writing implements and stood near the workbench.

“Take a deep breath, child,” Ollivander said, his voice taking on an almost hypnotic tone. “In through your nose, out through your mouth. We’re going to find a friend.”

Julian could feel his brain growing more quiet, his fingers, which had been fidgeting with the stone, quit their twitching. As Ollivander spoke, he could almost feel someone or something calling to him through a sea of voices. Ollivander mumbled a spell under his breath and suddenly the call was louder.

“Close your eyes now,” he said, waiting until Julian did so to continue. “Tell me what you see.”

Surrounding him on every side was a myriad of colored lines. Reds, greens, golds, purples: a whole rainbow weaving together around this very shop. Two of these stood out more than the rest, however, though one seemed much farther away.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as he described what he saw. The smells of wood dust and feathers permeated the room giving every breath an almost ethereal feeling.

Almost as soon as it started, Julian felt as though he had suddenly been dropped onto the stool.

“Curious,” Ollivander muttered as he left the room, parchment in hand. “How very curious.”

He came back not a moment later, single box in hand.

“Holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple.” he said, handing the box to Julian. “Give it a try.”

As soon as he picked up the wand, a sudden rush of warmth rushed over his hands. He raised the wand above his head, brought it swishing down through the dusty air and a stream of maroon and gold sparks shot from the end like a firework, throwing dancing spots of light on the wall.

“Oh, bravo!” exclaimed Ollivander, “Very good indeed! How very curious… very curious indeed.”

“Sorry, sir,” Julian said as he coughed, his mouth and throat feeling excruciatingly dry. “What’s curious?”

“I remember every wand I’ve ever sold, Mr. Snape. Every single one. It so happens that the phoenix whose tail feather is in your wand, gave another feather- just one other. It is very curious indeed that you should be destined for this wand when its brother- why it’s brother gave you the scar you must now hide.”

Julian swallowed and coughed several times, head swimming.

“Curious how these things happen. The wand chooses the wizard, remember… I think we must expect great things from you, Mr. Snape… After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things- terrible, but great.”

He stared unblinking at Julian, who didn’t think he liked Mr. Ollivander very much any more, for a few long moments before handing him the box the wand came in and assisting the boy to his feet.

Julian’s throat still felt quite dry, his limbs heavy, and his eyes felt as though they would close at any moment. He stumbled back to the front of the store, thankful it hadn’t decided to get any larger somehow. He barely made it back to the front of the store before his knees began to give way under him.

“Julian!” he heard Severus’s voice say as a set of small hands caught him before he hit the floor. “What did you do to him?”

“He used a kyanite stone to help find his wand. His magic was highly reactive to his wand and produced quite a display.”

Julian felt a zipper on his pack open and heard some rustling before a thick, sugary gel was squirted into his cheek. He then felt the hands switch and felt himself get picked up. A deep breath assured him it was Severus who had picked him up. Resting his head on his father’s shoulder, he could hear the exchange of coins and murmured voices.

Slowly, he moved the gel around his mouth, relishing in the moisture it provided and feeling his energy levels slowly rise. A rhythmic thumping and a sweet smell kept him from falling asleep. He wanted it. He needed it.

Severus had paid for the wand and was discussing additional books Draco could study to be ahead in his potions class, when he felt Julian shift slightly in his arms. Julian’s head had slid slightly closer to his neck. Immediately he quit speaking.

“Severus?” Lucius asked, noting the man’s eyes had gotten wide.

Severus ignored him in favor of readjusting the boy in his arms so Julian’s head was facing the other direction. Julian groggily lifted his head and tried to turn so he was facing towards Severus’s neck again. Severus gently turned the child’s head and laid it against his shoulder and held it down.

“Severus?” Lucius asked again, concern leaching into his voice. “Has his teeth ....”

Severus nodded, quickly applying a sticking charm to the boy’s head so he couldn’t lift it from Severus’s shoulder and turn it around. A soft moan came from Julian as he tried in vain to turn his head.

Suddenly, an absolute uproar was heard from down the street. Ministry Aurors began apparating in, wands drawn and rushing into the maelstrom that had become Gringotts bank. Roars and the sounds of crackling fire could be heard from within the walls of the bank, nearly drowning out the sounds of the spells the Aurors were yelling out. The goblin who had been standing as a greeter to the bank was looking into the bank in utter disgust and horror.

Julian shifted around in his arms, crooning increasing as the chaos in the street grew and he found himself still unable to lift his head.

“I apologize, Lucius, Draco,” Severus said, preparing to apparate away. “I am afraid I must cut this meeting short.”

Lucius nodded, continuing to stare at the struggling vampire Severus held and instinctively pulled Draco closer to him though Draco was more interested in what was occurring down the street. A moment later, Severus and Julian were gone and he released a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“Hey! Where did they go?” Draco pouted when he realized Severus and Julian were gone.

“Julian wasn’t feeling well,” Lucius said, turning and walking the opposite direction of Gringotts, pulling Draco along by his shoulder until they were able to duck into Knockturn Alley. “Listen well, Draco, and heed this warning. I have made a promise to not tell details of that child’s condition until given permission to do so, but I will tell you this: never let that boy within arms' length of you. Promise me this, Draco.”

“Why? He is so weak, he can hardly stand after one flick of a wand!” Draco protested, something in him desiring to protect the small boy he had just met. Julian was the first potential friend he had met that was not a ‘friend’ due to pure blood politics.

“Promise me!” Lucius hissed, grabbing Draco’s shoulders and slamming him against a wall.

“Fine, I promise,” Draco said hastily. His father’s ire was rarely directed at him, maybe there was a reason.

It was with great practice, patience, and copious amounts of coffee that Severus made it through the next few days. He had been completely unprepared for the reaction Julian had to using magic, even if it was only a swish of the wand. It was as though having a wand had unleashed his magical core and reminded his magic it was not having to solely support his health any longer.

Julian was getting more and more restless. His magic was demanding more and more energy as it recovered and flowed through him in ways it had not done in years. Accidental magic was becoming more frequent as his body demanded the one thing it couldn’t handle: blood. He was hungry; his body feeling as though it were starving once more. Cleaning was no longer acting as a good enough distraction.

In a desperate bid to help him, Severus had given him a few milliliters of blood via his tube. While it had helped initially, the amount of water needed to clear the tube fully so no clots could form made Julian feel extremely bloated and ill. Severus had even tried allowing the child to have some blood orally, but the following eight hours had been spectacularly bad.

It had taken only two days for Severus and Poppy to make a decision they had been trying to hold off on doing, but as Julian continued to decompensate, it became more and more apparent something drastic had to be done. With heavy hearts, they corralled the nearly feral boy into his room in the dungeon and sedated him. The child lying on the bed, unmoving and pale, looked nearly as poorly as when he had first arrived. A quick diagnostic spell confirmed their fears.

All of the weight they had worked so hard to put on the boy over the past few months had dropped off. His magic levels were continuing to climb, but his body was being consumed in the process.

Severus sighed as he looked at the unmoving child he had grown to care for. The problem they were now in was three-fold. As a vampire, he was more prone to heightened emotions and impulsivity when needing to feed. As a wizard, his magic would be more volatile during times of emotional stress, leading him to have episodes of accidental magic especially as he was young and untrained. Magic, however, led to him having a higher caloric need than what he had been requiring, making him feel the urge to feed more frequently. And thus the cycle was stuck on repeat.

The look of pure desperation in Julian’s eyes as he reached weakly for Severus as the sedation spells took effect nearly broke him. The fact he knew Julian was not reaching for him for comfort so much as to feed made it even harder to bear.

There had been some good news on the potions front: experimentation using newt kidneys was proving to lessen the amount of required dilution of separated blood products by half. It wasn’t much, but it certainly was a start. The final version of the potion was still months, possibly even years away.

They needed a more immediate fix. They needed to prevent the vampiric instincts from taking over whenever Julian was needing to feed as well as providing him with nutrition.

He needed to make a phone call. On a phone.

It would only take a few minutes, why was it making him so nervous?

Once he made sure Julian was stable and Poppy was prepared to take the task of watching the child and maintaining sedation, he began the trek out of the dungeons for the first time in what felt like months. The past few days had felt like an eternity and had nearly broken him.

Tiredly, he climbed the stairs from the dungeon to the ground floor. Julian’s appointment with Dr. Singh was scheduled for one week from now. Had Julian’s magic decided to remain interred in the same fashion it had been, this would have been fine. Now, however, they had only a few days before the sedation spells had to be removed or brain damage would occur. The only other options after the spells were using potions not designed for vampires or feeding tubes which could potentially kill him or using muggle sedation stolen from a hospital which would not be designed for wizards. Using such drugs for a prolonged time had the horrific effect of turning a wizard into a squib.

If they couldn’t prevent this cycle from occurring, it would be in Julian’s best interest to be made into a squib. He wouldn’t have access to his magic, but he would live. His stomach may never heal, but they could continue to use nutrient potions. Eventually he would be strong enough to hunt for himself, possibly live on the fringes of the wizarding world, and live what life he could.

The thought of doing that to a child, to his child, was soul-crushing. Resting all of his hopes in one basket was demoralizing. Knowing he would have to beg to a muggle was humiliating.

Severus had prided himself on having not cried since he was fifteen. As he exited the dungeons, he very nearly lost his record.

“Severus?” a familiar voice said as he rounded the corner.

Minerva. With all the chaos of the last few weeks, he had honestly forgotten she had come back to the castle. She had her pre-school year tasks; he had his. They rarely saw each other unless he came up for meals with the other staff members.

He hunched his shoulders in, unconsciously mirroring his teenage self, and trudged on towards the exit. It was a look Minerva hadn’t seen in the man in many years.

“Severus, what’s wrong?” Minerva said, shocked at the look on the man’s face. “Did something happen?”

Severus lengthened his strides, trying to escape the building and her judgement as soon as possible. He didn’t want to explain what was going on just yet. He knew he would have to disclose Julian’s status before the school year began, but he didn’t want to do so just yet. He wanted Julian to be stable, healthy, and ready to begin classes. He wanted Julian to have the same ease in finding friends the damn werewolf had when he was in school.

“Severus!” Minerva said, catching up with him and matching his stride. “Did something happen to Julian?”

A squib. That’s where they were currently. He wasn’t healthy. He wasn’t safe. He wasn’t ready for school. He was now a danger to everyone around him. If this iron didn’t work, he would be made a squib. Or he would die.

He had failed Lily again.

“Severus, is Julian ok?” Minerva continued to ask him. “Severus?”

“No! He’s not!” Severus finally snapped, his chest burning as he tried to prevent tears from welling up in his eyes. “He’s not ok. He is the exact opposite of ok. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to make a phone call.”

Minerva paused for a moment, taken aback by the man’s brusqueness. She had asked Albus about the boy as soon as she had returned from holiday, but he had said very little. She had been hoping to meet the mysterious child before the school year began, but neither he nor Severus had come to staff meals in the Great Hall. Severus had been more reclusive than normal for the past few years, but even this was beyond his normal. What was wrong with Julian?

“Severus, I’m coming with you,” Minerva said, continuing to follow the man. He looked as though he were running off to his own death.

“I need to go to the nearest muggle town,” he said, neither acknowledging or refusing her statement. “Do you have any muggle money?”

“No.”

“No matter,” he said, striding quickly out the door and onto the grounds towards the wards edge.

Minerva was nearly jogging to keep up with him, “Why do you need muggle money?”

“Phone call.”

“Who are you calling?”

“Julian’s primary care doctor. He is a muggle.”

Minerva’s eyes went wide as she nearly tripped over the hem of her robes. Severus’s dislike for the muggle world was well known. He had never been one to talk about his own experiences within the muggle world and only kept his muggle house as a memory of his mother and of his younger years with Lily.

For Severus to reach out to the muggles…

Minerva wisely remained silent until they were outside of the wards. Severus was wrapped in his own thoughts, dark circles under his eyes from the many hours he had been staying awake and frown lines gouging themselves in between his eyebrows.

Grasping the man’s elbow, Minerva took charge of the apparation. Severus looked too exhausted to not risk splinching himself; a risk she was doubtful he would take unless desperate.

With a crack, the two of them appeared behind a shop in a small muggle village nestled in amongst the highlands. Quickly transforming their clothing into more appropriate muggle clothing, Minerva followed Severus as he strode into a nearby pub and pulled out a small slip of paper from a pocket.

Severus strode over to a small box on the wall after a brief nod to the barkeep. A quick flick of his wand and he was in possession of several small muggle coins which he slipped into a small slot on the box after lifting what Minerva thought to be a handle of some sort which he held to his ear. After pushing a series of numbered buttons, he stood there waiting for a few moments. If she listened hard enough, she could hear a tone buzzing occasionally through the ear piece.

She must have looked overly fascinated as Severus looked at her with a raised eyebrow and said, “It is a phone, Minerva.” As if that answered any of her questions!

A few more seconds went by when finally a tinny voice could be heard on the other end.

“Yes, this is Severus Snape. … My son has an appointment with Dr. Singh on … yes, yes that one.... We need to move the appointment up…. Yes, it is an emergency, you daft woman… I cannot call … Let me speak with…What part of emergency are you incapable of understanding?!.... His nurse then…”

Severus was nearly growling by the time the tinny voice stopped speaking, one hand raking through his hair and pulling at it in frustration while the other white-knucke gripped the phone receiver. A few more seconds went by, during which Minerva could hear some rather obnoxious music from the phone. Had she not been concerned for her colleague and his mysterious son, she would have found the situation hysterical. Severus Snape using a muggle telephone! Lucius Malfoy would die of an aneurysm if he knew!

Severus looked at the phone in frustration as he waited for the nurse to pick up the phone. That damn receptionist! If she had tried to prevent him from talking to the doctor for any longer, she would have had to deal with an enraged Death Eater coming after her. And he would feel a greater joy in dealing with her than any time he joined in a revel.

“Hello, this is Lisa Clearwater.”

“Hello Ms. Clearwater,” Snape drawaled. “I need to speak with Dr. Singh.”

“What’s going on?”

Severus stepped more into the alcove and away from Minerva before hastily throwing up a silencing charm. He didn’t want her to know of Julian’s vampirism just yet, and that was the more minor of the secrets he was hiding.

“Harry’s condition has rapidly deteriorated. If we don’t find some way of controlling his vampiric urges, I am afraid the repercussions may be deadly for him. As of right now, he is requiring sedation in order to stabilize his magic and prevent him from attempting to attack anyone.”

He heard some rustling and rapid talking on the other end of the phone before it was handed over to another speaker.

“Mr. Snape? This Dr. Singh. Which hospital is he at? I would be more than happy to speak to his hospital physician about your theory…”

“He isn’t at a hospital,” Severus interjected. “He is currently under the watch of the Mediwitch at the school I teach at.”

There was a rather long pause as Dr. Singh tried to wrap his brain around this.

“He is not stable enough to move, correct?”

“It would be difficult.”

Dr. Singh sighed. He had been looking forward to a nice weekend off; no plans, no work, just him and the telly. This was giving him flashbacks to his time in residency: he doubted he would be getting any sleep if he did this.

“Can you take me to him? Would that be allowed?”

Severus looked quickly over his shoulder at Minerva. She would undoubtedly not allow him to go into muggle Surrey alone. As deputy-headmistress, she would also be needed to lift the spells on Hogwarts so Dr. Singh would be able to actually see the building and not a pile of rubble.

“Yes. I must warn you, however, for Harry’s safety we have changed his name. Outside of myself, Poppy Pomfrey (our Mediwitch), and the headmaster, no one knows his true name is Harry Potter. Please refrain from calling him this name.”

“What is his name now?”

“Julian Snape. How long do you require to be prepared to come with us?”

“I only have one appointment this afternoon. I can have a colleague take it though. How long will it take you to get here?”

Severus had to refrain from snorting. Now that he had seen the inside of the doctor’s office, he felt confident he would be able to apparate directly into the man’s office if necessary.

“It would take me roughly three seconds to apparate directly into your office,” Severus smirked, causing Minerva (who still couldn’t make out what he was saying) to lose the color in her face. “How long do you require to be prepared?”

Dr. Singh thought about it for a moment. While he doubted the claim that Mr. Snape could be there in such a short period of time, he couldn’t deny that what he had seen in his office was certainly compelling evidence that the man was telling the truth about magic. After Lisa and Mr. Snape had left his office, he looked everywhere for evidence of tampering with his belongings. Anything to prove everything he had just witnessed was a slight of hand.

Nothing. There was nothing to prove it had been anything other than a true act of magic.

“Fifteen minutes. Please give me fifteen minutes.”

“We shall meet you inside of your office. Please do not rearrange it,” Severus said, hanging up the phone and cancelling the silencing spell.

Immediately, he was accosted by Minerva.

“What was that about?!” she demanded. “What is going on?”

“We’re bringing his physician to Hogwarts in fifteen minutes.”

Minerva’s eyes got wide. It was a rare occurrence for a muggle to come to Hogwarts. Generally it was if a muggleborn or half-blood child had had an injury or illness and parents were demanding to see them before they were transferred to St. Mungo's. In her entire tenure at Hogwarts, she could count on one hand the number of muggles who had been allowed on Hogwarts grounds.

“We have fifteen minutes,” Severus said, rubbing his mouth. “I need a coffee.”

---

It had truthfully only taken Dr. Singh ten minutes to finish wrapping up his day, notifying his colleagues of the emergency he had to take care of, and calling the pharmacy down the street. If things were as bad as what Mr. Snape had said, it behooved him to not bring the iron requested with him.

As he waited for the pharmacy to send a runner, he had a thought. He hadn’t seen Harry in several months. If he was truly a vampire and was getting steadily more out of control, what would prevent him from getting bitten? He wasn’t a Christian, he had no crosses he could wear. He didn’t have time to consume copious amounts of garlic. He didn’t possess any holy water. Would a pencil work as a wooden stake?

He was literally going to be walking into a vampire’s lair. How did he know Mr. Snape wasn’t the vampire?

He remembered just over a decade ago there had been a rash of people going missing. No explanation had ever been found for the disappearances though some of the people who lived nearby had reported seeing figures in all black appearing seemingly out of nowhere.

Mr. Snape had changed his clothing into all black robes.

Hardeep sat down in his chair. What had he done? Had he invited a horde of vampires into his office? Was Lisa working with them? Why had he said ‘we’?

He had never been one for paranoia, but he couldn’t help but feel he had been set up and was walking to his death.

The pharmacy runner arrived a few minutes before Mr. Snape was set to arrive and dropped the bottle of iron supplement off at the front desk. Marjory tried to call him, but, when he didn’t answer, walked the bottle back to him and found him looking rather pale and frantically writing on a piece of white paper. She sat the iron on the desk next to him and walked back to her desk, turning up the radio slightly in an attempt to drown out the screaming children in exam room two.

No one at the front desk heard when a large crack occurred in the back office. Nor did anyone hear the surprised yelp of Dr. Singh shortly after as another crack occurred from the same room.

---

“Welcome to Hogwarts, Dr. Singh,” Minerva said as they popped into existence just beyond the wards.

Despite his tan skin, it was obvious all of the blood had left his face. He had not been expecting two people to pop into existence suddenly in his office. He had been trying to scribble a note out in case he went missing when all of a sudden a loud crack occurred. Looking up, he found himself looking at Mr. Snape, who looked as though he hadn’t slept in days, and a strict looking woman who was wearing robes not terribly dissimilar to those worn by Mr. Snape though in a royal blue with maroon trim. She had introduced herself as Professor Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts.

They had only been in his office for a few moments, only long enough for him to grab his bag, coat, and bottle of iron from the desk, before Professor McGonagall gently took his elbow and he suddenly felt as though he were being squeezed through a tube.

The sensation lasted but a moment, and suddenly he found himself outside standing on the side of a mountain overlooking a loch. Scotland. He was suddenly in Scotland. From where he stood, he could see the ruins of a small town down on one side of the loch and the ruins of a large castle perched on the side of the mountain. Its walls lay on the ground, holes in what few roofs it had left, vines, mosses, and various grasses had grown over the rubble. The burned husk of a hut lay near the border between the fields and the forest. A desire to turn around and walk the other direction hit him almost instantly.

“One moment please, sir,” Professor McGonagall said, flicking her wand over him and saying several words in latin.

The desire to turn around immediately left. Looking back towards the loch, he was awestruck by what he saw. What had looked like an abandoned town was now a bustling village, lights could be seen in the windows and he could just make out a ship leaving the harbor and making its way across the loch. Steam from a train could be seen puffing up from a small train station. Farther down the loch, he swore he saw a tentacle stick out of the water. Even the hut by the forest was no longer burned! In fact, if he looked closely, he swore he could make out a large figure moving around inside the hut.

His eyes then turned to the ruins of the castle. Instead of ruins, a magnificent building stood in front of him. It’s towers were no longer laying on the ground. Not a touch of moss could be seen on the building and the vines were no longer dry and dying but rather an integral part of the building. A series of greenhouses lined one side of the castle and what appeared to be a sports field of some sort was up the hill a ways from the castle.

“Come along, doctor,” Mr. Snape said, striding down the path they were on towards the castle proper.

“How?” Dr. Singh managed to stutter out finally, looking wide eyed at Professor McGonagall, who smiled at him.

“Magic,” Minerva said, by way of an explanation. Normally she would be offering the man a tour, though right now Severus seemed about to explode if he had to wait for them any longer.

Dr. Singh walked along the path quickly, trying to both keep up with Severus and take in the scenery at the same time. The closer they got to the castle, the more in awe he found himself. Finally, they reached the massive front doors to the castle which Severus pushed open with ease. The smell of baking bread and lamb chops immediately assaulted his nostrils, making his mouth water.

As they walked down the halls, Dr. Singh felt as though his head were on a pivot. The walls were lined with portraits, but the portraits kept moving; coming and going as they pleased. Some of them were even following him. A lanky cat with large orange eyes rounded the corner, saw the group, hissed and ran away up a stairwell which Dr. Singh swore started to move immediately after. A group of ghosts floated past them and through a wall as they ventured further and further into the bowels of the castle.

One turn and they were heading down a set of stairs into a dungeon, torches flared as they passed lighting the path ahead of them. A ghost who appeared covered in blood drifted lazily from room to room not caring that there was a proper hallway.

Suddenly Severus stopped in front of a portrait of a man with a large snake curled at his feet.

“Really, Snape,” the man in the portrait growled, glaring fiercely at Dr. Singh. “A muggle? First you bring a half-blood creature into my quarters, now you bring a muggle? How dare you, you mudblood loving traitor. What is he even, a …”

Severus quickly cut off the man’s increasingly vile diatribe by stating the password which opened the shortcut through the dungeons. He needed to speak with Albus about moving that horrible portrait elsewhere in the castle such as a fireplace during winter.

The portrait of Salazar Slytherin continued to scream profanities at him as he slammed the portrait behind the group and led them down a long hallway that was behind the portrait. One more set of stairs and they found themselves in a modestly decorated foyer with three doors. Severus completely ignored the first two on the right, instead pulling out a large, ornate, skeleton key and sliding it into the lock of the first door on the left and ushering Minerva and Dr. Singh into his personal quarters.

“Severus, what happened?” Minerva said, looking at the state of the quarters. Severus was always such a methodical man, bordering on obsessive when it came to organization and cleanliness. She had been in his quarters less than a handful of times since he had taken the post of Head of House, and had never seen them in such a state.

Books were everywhere. Pages and papers lay strewn about the ground. Vials had been shattered. Drawers appeared to have been pulled open and left.

“Were you robbed?” Dr. Singh asked.

“No, this happened immediately before we made the decision to sedate Julian. I haven’t had the chance to clean anything up. No, Minerva, I don’t want the house-elves doing it for me.”

“How did this happen?” Minerva asked as they continued on towards the bedrooms.

“Accidental magic.”

“Severus, you know as well as I do that accidental magic has a trigger. For a child to cause that much damage, it had to be a pretty major trigger.”

“What’s accidental magic?” Dr. Singh tried to interrupt.

“He was hungry.”

“So he tried to destroy your quarters? Severus, I know I sent the boy an acceptance letter. I know his letter contained the medical and creature addendums. You know you will have to disclose his condition to the rest of staff. Now tell me, why would he have such an explosive reaction to hunger.”

Severus’s nostrils flared in anger. She was right, of course. He knew he would have to disclose just enough information to keep the staff off his back. He had hoped Albus would have told her by now, at the very least.

“I have been experimenting on his nutrient potions with blood. He could smell it, but he cannot consume it due to his stomach continuing to be paralyzed. He is well enough now to begin using magic, but he is hungry because of it. Hungry in a way no nutrient potion invented yet will prevent.”

Minerva’s eyes went wide as she understood the implications. “Are you telling me you intend to enroll an unregistered vampire in school? One who is unable to feed?”

“That is why I currently have a muggle physician in my quarters, Minerva,” Severus growled, fists held so tight his knuckles were white. “Muggles have different potions, medications, which they use to treat different ailments. Their potions are extremely powerful, but I do not have access to them. I cannot get liquid iron from an apothecary, nor can I get it from a muggle pharmacy without a prescription. I have tried, but I am not a muggle physician. He is. But he needs to see Julian and obtain some measurements before he gives the prescription to me so I can get what I need.”

With that he turned on his heel and ushered the doctor down the hallway and into the bedroom where Julian lay, seeming to sleep.

“Dr. Singh, this is our resident Mediwitch, Poppy Pomfrey. Poppy, this is Dr. Hardeep Singh, he has been Julian’s primary care physician when he was living amongst the muggles.”

The two medical professionals looked at eachother, and with a brief nod, began speaking rapidly to each other. Lab values, vital signs, treatment plans, and the occasional explanation of different styles of treatment flowed from their lips. Together, they worked to formulate a plan and assess the situation at hand.

Dr. Singh was in his element. Before becoming a GP, he had worked for many years in the emergency room at a children’s hospital in London. Before that, he had been a military medic. And before that, he had been a volunteer medic for his home village in India. He had seen many wild things come through his doors, many bizarre injuries, and many strange homeopathic remedies. Looking back on them now, he wondered if he had ever inadvertently come across a witch or wizard while working in India.

Working alongside a Mediwitch was a whole new experience. Labs were instantaneous as were vital signs. There was no fear of oversedation or having the child suddenly collapse. In only a few short minutes, his assessment was complete and he felt as though he had more knowledge about the boy’s condition than he ever would have been able to gather without her help.

Poppy, in turn, was quite surprised at the sheer knowledge the muggle had. She had not expected a muggle to be as wise as he was, nor as adaptable or willing to accept magic for what it was. She had to admit she had fallen victim to the fears instilled in many young witches and wizards about the intolerance of magic by muggles.

As much as Dr. Singh wished he could continue bouncing terminology and ideas off of the Mediwitch, they were under a bit of a time crunch. Julian had been sedated for just over thirteen hours. After twelve hours, the spells began to lose their effectiveness and by twenty four they would completely fail if potions were not added.

Iron wasn’t the only issue, it was decided, as there were many other components to blood. Iron would likely help with the vampiric urge to feed, but the one thing the nutrient potions were missing was protein. The unaltered nutrient potion would have supplied a decent amount of protein, but even it was designed for a generally healthy person. The version Severus had created that Julian could tolerate replaced protein for glucose as they had been trying to stimulate his magic to regenerate.

It had been known the child was malnourished when he came in, so checking his protein levels was the last thing on their minds. When Dr. Singh asked Poppy to check it again, he found the poor child’s protein levels to be excruciatingly low.

“Albumin,” he said, looking over the labs that had just appeared on the parchment in front of him. “Protein will make him feel less hungry. Albumin is protein.”

“Where are we going to get that?” Severus asked, frustrated that they had overlooked something so critical.

“Would you be able to get me to Edinburgh?” Dr. Singh said, rising to his feet. “I have a friend who is an intensivist on a paediatric burn unit. He’ll be able to get us some.”

“Of course,” Minerva said, following suit and leading the doctor from the castle.

---

50 mL 20% albumin IV daily x3 days.
250 mL 5% albumin via JG tube daily.
150 mL revised nutrient potion via JG tube twice daily.
100 mL water via JG tube every 4 hours.
60 mg iron via JG tube twice daily.
2.5 mg metoclopramide orally up to three times a day 30 minutes before any oral consumption.
4 mg ondansetron under the tongue every 8 hours as needed for nausea.

Severus sat quietly next to his now sleeping son and kept reading over the list of medications he had been given. Minerva had taken Dr. Singh home hours ago and Poppy had gone back to the Hospital Wing shortly after.

It had been a herculean effort to wake Julian up safely. He was immediately wanting to hunt, but found himself restrained to the bed. Magical shields had been placed around the boy to prevent him from lashing out magically.

It had been the longest thirty minutes of any of their lives as the first dose of intravenous albumin was given and the iron was given via his feeding tube. Slowly, very slowly, he began to relax into an almost post-meal haze. Unfortunately, that relaxation hadn’t lasted long as Julian finally resurfaced from the vampiric instincts.

His sobbing and pleading for Severus to not abandon him had broken both women’s hearts. Even Dr. Singh could be seen wiping his eyes from time to time as the boy desperately tried to climb out of the bed and find comfort in his father’s arms. When it was finally determined Julian would not attempt to feed on Severus’s blood, the restraints were removed. Severus sat on Julian’s bed and lifted the boy onto his lap as the child continued to sob and apologize for his behavior.

Eventually the sobs gave way to hiccoughs and finally shuddering breaths as the child finally cried himself to sleep.

Everyone had waited on baited breath for him to reawaken and go back into a vampiric feeding frenzy. It wasn’t known if the combination of muggle and wizarding medicines would work, however as Julian relaxed into a more normal sleep pattern, the other adults finally found it safe to leave.

Dr. Singh had written an absolute plethora of medications for the child to take. It was still going to be necessary for Julian to be on the potions he had previously been on, but the hope was the muggle medicines would help wake his stomach up more as well as help control some of the other symptoms he was having.

Severus was thankful there were not more medications or potions on the list. The exactness of the timing on some of these medications seemed rather daunting, though not too dissimilar to many of the potions used at St. Mungo’s.

A soft knocking on his chamber door roused him from his thoughts. A quick look at Julian to ensure he hadn’t awoken, and Severus made his way to the door.

“What?” He said gruffly, looking out to see Minerva was standing there, a satchel of food from the kitchen in hand.

“I know you haven’t slept and I doubt you’ve eaten anything,” she said, pushing her way past him. “You need to take care of yourself too, you know.”

“I was going to go to bed,” he protested.

“Bollocks,” Minerva said as she pulled a whole roast and potatoes from the small satchel. “You were going to sit in that chair, trying to stay awake in case he woke up.”

Severus felt his face grow hot. She was right of course, that was exactly what he was planning to do. He couldn’t bear the thought of not being there in case Julian woke up.

“I’ll sit with him. You need to eat and get some sleep yourself.”

Severus nodded slightly in agreement before grabbing the plate of food she was handing to him and slowly beginning to eat. He was exhausted in ways he didn’t think he had ever been. Even coffee couldn’t fix this.

Minerva picked up the other bag she had brought with her and walked into Julian’s room. It had to have been his, though the number of books in the book cases gave her the feeling that it was actually a converted office. A quick look at the titles neither confirmed nor denied her theory that it had previously been an office. None of them were inappropriate for a child to read, just slightly more advanced than what a normal first year would read. And most of them were potions tomes, though there was a small section which contained a few books that had a darker aura to them. However, on closer inspection, they were all about vampires and vampiric lore.

The child was an enigma of the highest degree. How on earth had Severus managed to keep him for, what was it, four years? And no one knew?

A slight stir from the bed had her whirling around, however Julian hadn’t awoken, but rather turned onto his right side and buried his face farther into the pillows. In fact, he seemed to be cuddling the pillow.

Looking around the room, she was slightly surprised at the lack of toys. Every child deserved a toy! Though perhaps it had been the last thing on Severus’s mind when he retrieved the boy and due to his other obligations he didn’t have time. It had been only five years since Severus had chosen to be the Slytherin Head of House. She remembered it taking her years to get used to the responsibilities. Add a child like Julian into the mix, and she couldn’t even begin to imagine the stress he was under.

Still though, Julian deserved a toy of some sort.

Taking a piece of parchment from her bag, she quickly transfigured it into a small, black bear with a red ribbon around its neck. She was half tempted to make it a bat, but thought better of it. Severus was obviously trying to hide the child’s vampirism from the world, calling attention to the child’s differences, even with a plush animal, could easily undo that.

Smoothing the child’s hair behind his left ear, she was taken aback by just how thin the child was. It would be interesting to see what he looked like as he regained the weight he had lost. Now that she was closer to him, she struggled not to laugh. Thankfully whoever the child’s mother was had stronger genes when it came to nose shape than Severus did. It was hard to begin to guess who the mother was as the child was too thin to look much like either one.

If it weren’t for the fact she was absolutely certain Lily would never have cheated on James and had only had one son, she would have sworn she could see a little of Lily Potter in the boy.

Gently she lifted Julian’s tiny arm, being careful not to bump the small tube the muggle doctor had inserted, and tucked the bear in with the boy.

‘This year is certainly going to be interesting,’ she thought as she opened the novel she had brought with her. ‘Harry Potter is coming. Severus has a son, who happens to be a vampire. Albus is … Albus. And we are trying to keep that damn stone safe.’

---

“You damn fool,” a voice hissed in the darkness. “How hard is it for you to follow a simple direction?”

“I-i-i-i-i-i’m s-s-s-s-sorry m-m-m-my lord! P-p-p-please. P-p-p-p-please forgive m-m-m-me. I d-d-d-d-idn’t kn-n-n-n-now it w-w-w-was t-t-t-t-taken!”

“You know what you must now do.”

“P-p-p-p-please, sir. P-p-p-please!”

“Anima Corpori Ligaveris” the voice hissed, followed by a flash of bright purple light.

This was what it was like to be a father, he was sure of it. Immense pride at what his child had accomplished, unbridled joy at watching him achieve goals, overwhelming delight as he learned new skills.

And utter frustration at his complete lack of organization and timeliness.

Severus pinched the bridge of his nose in an effort to ward off the impending migraine. Julian had known for a week now that he was going to be riding the train with the other students. There was a whole list of stipulations for both his safety and for the safety of the other students, but Albus had agreed it was in the boy’s best interest that he have the most normal beginning to the school year he possibly could.

He would continue to live in Severus’s quarters until it was proven he was feeding appropriately and was not going to attempt to feed on students. He was going to be required to have a tracking spell on him at all times which would monitor his vital signs as well as his magic output. He wouldn’t be allowed to take Herbology or flying this year as both classes required he be outdoors during the day. He wouldn’t be able to attend more than one class per day for the first month so they could monitor how his body was responding.

There were so many things he wouldn’t be able to do and so many facets of his life which would austrocise him from his classmates, it seemed almost cruel to prevent him from riding the train to school with them. He would be indoors the entire time, he would sit with the prefects, and he would be watched. Professor Kettleborn had agreed to ride the train as well, though he knew not to interfere unless Julian lost control.

It wasn’t an ideal situation, but at least he could meet some of the other students this way.

The last requirement which was decided on for Julian to be able to ride the train was he had to be continuously running albumin through the entire trip. Which meant he had to pack and prepare to run an extremely sticky product on a moving train. And, as they had found via trial and error, he would also have to pack at least two bottles of water for the trip so he could flush his tube a couple of times on the trip. If he didn’t, the tube would get gummed up very quickly with the albumin and require quite a bit of work to get open.

Not something he wanted to have to deal with on a train.

Despite all of the preparations on other fronts, and the fact he didn’t even need to pack his trunk before leaving, they were still running rather behind. They would be apparating to the King’s Cross, where Julian would then get on the train. This meant a trip outside to the edge of the wards. Which meant finding the Sun Repellent cream. And his cloak.

And where did he put his boots again?

“Julian,” Severus groaned. “You’ve been doing the cleaning for the past how many weeks? How do you not know where things are?”

“I put them in a good place at the time!” Julian said, looking in the trunk at the end of his bed. “Ah! See! Found them!”

“Alright, now let’s go over the list one more time,” Severus said, ignoring Julian’s groan.

“Pump?”

“Check,” Julian patted the bag which hung from his shoulders and sighed. This would be the fifth time at least they had gone over the list.

“Two vials of albumin?”

“Check.”

“Two bottles of water.”

“Check.”

“How many syringes did you pack?”

“Six. Two for the water, two in case the pump stops working, and two for back up.”

“Did you pack an extra set of pump tubing?”

“Yes.”

“Sun repellent?”

“Check.”

“Sunglasses?”

“Check.’

“Gloves?”

“No, I’m not bringing the gloves. I’ll keep my hands covered when we go outside, but by the time we get back the sun will be down.”

“Put your gloves in the bag then.”

“I don’t want to bring the bloody gloves! It’s summer!”

“Fine. Hat?”

“Check.”

“Have you taken an ondansetron. We are apparating directly onto the platform.”

“Yup.”

“Cloak?”

“It’s on the rack. I have everything packed, Dad. I’m ready to go.”

Severus paused before nodding. Julian had only been living with him for a short period of time, and already he had managed to worm his way into Severus’s life. If Julian disappeared tomorrow, he didn’t think he would be able to go back to how he had been living his life before. Even now, the idea of having Julian away from him for even a couple of hours was nerve wracking.

“Come along then, unless you want me hoisting you over my shoulder so we can make better time.”

Julian smirked slightly at the thought. He was still slow on the stairs and had to stop frequently if walking long distances, but he hadn’t needed to be carried for the last two weeks. He had managed to make it up to the hospital wing and back down to the dungeons every day, and every day it was easier to make the trip.

If only the sun wasn’t so bright every time he needed to go outside. Even with the sunglasses on and the hood of his cloak pulled up, he swore he could still feel the sun beating down on his skin. Not to mention how washed out it made the world. While he had once enjoyed being outside as it kept him away from the Dursleys, he was finding it unbearable now.

“Why couldn’t I stay in the dungeons until the other students got here?” Julian sighed as they approached the edge of the wards.

“Are you wanting to go back? We can just explain to the headmaster…”

“No,” Julian interrupted. The man seemed slightly too excited about the idea. “I just want the sun to not be so bloody bright all the time.”

Severus snorted slightly as he placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder. While still painfully thin, the progress was evident to anyone who had seen him when he had first come to Hogwarts.

“Ready?”

Julian nodded, already feeling slightly nauseous at the idea of apparating, but he was excited to see the train and the students. The last time he had seen them was the first time he had been outside since coming to Hogwarts. He had seen them do double takes and had seen their stares. He was actually interested to see what they would think of him being on the train with them.

Together the two of them turned, apparating directly onto the designated apparation area at Platform 9 ¾. Other wizarding families were popping into existence around them as they walked out of the area and onto the platform proper.

“How are you feeling?” Severus said in a low voice, knowing Julian could hear him despite the din in the room.

Julian nodded. He was feeling a little nausea, but the nausea medication was working wonderfully to keep it at a low simmer.

As they made their way through the crowd towards the front of the train, Julian noticed they were already getting stares.

“Is that…?”

“Snape’s kid? It’s gotta be.”

“Snape’s not riding the train this year, is he?”

Severus ignored the murmurs as he led Julian through the crowds, instead he was keeping his eyes peeled for any of the Prefects. He hoped to find one of his Slytherins first, but a quick scan of the area and he was dismayed to find he couldn’t see any of his. He did see one Prefect badge though, as the owner of it was proudly puffing out his chest in his nice new robes and allowing his mother to dote over his appearance.

Of all the people to be made into Prefects….

Severus sighed as he led Julian over to the gaggle of red heads who had just come through the barrier. They must have had to find other forms of transportation to get there as a family as there were too many children in their family to make one apparation trip.

“Weasley,” he said, brusquely to the oldest boy in the group. “Which car are the prefects sitting in this year.”

Percy Weasley jumped slightly as the potion’s master's voice startled him. He quickly whipped around and saw Professor Snape standing behind him, looking just as menacing as ever in his normal black robes. But it was what was behind him that was the biggest shock, for behind him was…

“Blanket boy!” George cried out, ducking around his brothers and approaching the small, dark haired boy who was standing slightly behind his father. “Where are your blankets?”

“Left them in the Hospital Wing,” Julian said, smiling slightly. He was surprised the red-haired twin remembered him.

“You know him?” Severus asked, rather worried about his son’s safety if he was already making friends with the twins.

“Not really,” George said calmly. “He was in the hospital wing at the same time Fred was and had all of the blankets on him, then he threw up. That was about it.”

Julian nodded, resisting the urge to plug his ears as the train blew its whistle.

“Alright lads, let's get you on the train!” An older, slightly balding, yet equally red-haired man said, beginning to herd all of the red-headed children towards the train.

Severus and Julian followed suit, following Percy Weasley to the first car. Severus crouched down next to the child and began straightening his tie and school robes, ignoring the increase in the volume of whispers behind him.

“If anything happens, tell a Prefect to find Professor Kettleburn. He will be in the same car as you.”

“I know.”

“Don’t forget to take the ondansetron when you get to Hogsmeade.”

“I know.”

“Remember to keep the blinds in your compartment mostly pulled. And don’t forget to put more Sun Repellent on your skin.”

“Dad,” Julian said slightly too loud, ignoring the gasps around him. “I know. I’ll be fine. It’s a nine hour ride. I have more than enough of everything to last me.”

Severus smirked slightly at the boy’s attitude. “Fine. Behave yourself.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Julian said, grasping the hand rails which led up a small set of stairs to compartments. He paused momentarily before giving the man a small wave before disappearing into the belly of the train car.

Severus turned and walked away from the car to the back of the platform, ducking into the shadows. From his new vantage point, he could watch the pandemonium ensue as the train blew its final whistle. Students quickly hugged their family goodbye, mothers cried as their child left for a year, and under it all he could see the rumor mill beginning. He was glad the decision to put Julian in with the Prefects was made, he wouldn’t have gotten a minute alone otherwise.

Looking at the first car, he had a vague idea as to where Julian was as there was only one window which had the curtains pulled. If he looked closely enough, he thought he could just make out Julian’s silhouette in the window.

The train lurched forward once before steadily beginning to pull away from the station to begin its long trip north. Looking at the families surrounding him, Severus realized he could commiserate with the other parents. Even though he knew he would be seeing Julian in just a few hours, it was hard to let his child leave.

He had never thought he would feel this way about a child.

Julian wasn’t the perfect child by any stretch of the imagination, nor would he likely ever be. However, Severus couldn’t help but feel proud in a way he had never felt for any of his potions. The frail waif of a child he had retrieved from Lily’s sister had managed to survive the unthinkable for the second time. He had brought together two worlds in the most unexpected of ways. He had begun a line of deeper research by potion’s masters around the nation into humanoid magical creatures that many would benefit from despite never knowing he was a part of it.

He had a long way to go, but he had the resilience to make it. But as with everything, he had to take it one day at a time and boldly strive towards goals many would believe to be unachievable.

The train had long since left the station when Severus finally made his way to the apparition platform, relieved the majority of the throngs of people had already left. As he pulled out his wand to apparate, two realizations struck him.

A celebratory drink sounded very nice, and Albus still owed him a bottle of wine.