“Dad….?”

Alec took a hesitant step forward, wanting this to be real and not part of some dream. He had feared that his father would never get over the effects of the potion he was under. Seeing his father sitting normally, although slightly pale, gave him the hope that the man had finally been cured.

“Why don’t you and Miss Granger take a seat and begin explaining what happened to you.” The Headmaster motioned towards the available seats.

Hermione immediately began the tale of how she found the diary. She’d seen the confrontation between Malfoy and Alec earlier that year and grabbed the forgotten journal. She claimed that she intended to return it but curiosity caused her to open the book first.

The Gryffindor first year went on to explain how this Tom Riddle became her friend while other students continued to shun her for her knowledge. Tom Riddle was the perfect friend and managed to manipulate her into doing things that she never wanted to do, for example, killing the roosters.

Hermione brought up the blackouts that she experienced as well and seeing as she was rather intelligent, it didn’t take long for her to realize that they all happened at the time someone was attacked. She was going to ditch the diary or tell someone when it managed to possess her that last time. After that, she recalled waking up to Alec in the Chamber with the giant dead Basilisk nearby.

Alec then took over the story, starting with accidentally overhearing the professors’ conversation about the school closing. He told them how he couldn’t let that happen and also that Slytherin’s portrait had informed him about Moaning Myrtle. The Ravenclaw then explained the incident between him and Lockhart, leaving out the part of the defense professor learning he was Harry Potter. He quickly skimmed through the event of the Chamber, Tom Riddle, and the Basilisk.

Severus’ face clearly showed his displeasure over Alec’s little adventure, but it also expressed pride over Alec’s defeat of the Basilisk which he would surely harvest later…

After both students relayed the full events of their stories, Hermione was sent off to the Infirmary to be checked over by Madam Pomfrey. Alec remained behind, waiting to finally hear the story of his father’s cure.

“Are you okay?” Alec asked his father tentatively.

“That should be my question!” Severus roared as his son scooted further back into his seat. “What were you thinking pulling a stunt like this? You could have died down there! In fact, you almost did if it wasn’t for Fawkes saving you!”

“I had to do something! The school was going to close and you were ill and the headmaster was gone-”

“Professor McGonagall would have listened to you! Or your own head of house! You should have contacted them immediately!” the potions master bellowed.

Tears welled up in the corner of Alec’s eye. He furiously scrubbed them away, not wanting the headmaster or his father to see them. He hated seeing his father so upset with him when he was just trying to do the right thing.

“If I told them, they wouldn’t have let me go down-” Alec began.

“They sure as hell would have been right!”

“But then they wouldn’t have been able to save Hermione!” Alec shouted back. “A Parselmouth was needed to gain access to the chamber itself and seeing as no one else can speak it, I would have been helpful to them by going with you!”

Severus looked ready to continue ranting but the Headmaster chose to step in. “Gentlemen, please. What has happened has happened. There is nothing else to do about it. Once things cool down, I believe you should both talk this over again. Until then, I believe Alec would like to hear what has happened to you Severus.”

A slight pink tinge rose on the potion masters check after getting lightly scolded by the older wizard. He lowered himself back into his chair, since he had stood up earlier when ranting.

The Headmaster turned towards Alec, who was looking down shamefully and embarrassed. “You helped save your father today as well, Alec.” This caused the boy to look up. “By discovering the source of the potion in your father’s system, I was able to counteract it.”

“What was it?” the Ravenclaw asked curiously.

“It was an obscure one called the ‘Mevtrel potion’. Essentially, it disturbs and enhances a person’s emotions to the extreme. For example, a depressed individual could very well become suicidal after ingesting this substance. In Severus’ case, his anger increased and he became agitated at the slightest annoyances.”

“Not that I’m insulting your intelligence sir, but how come you didn’t know this until now?” Alec wondered.

The Headmaster gave him a slight smile. “I have been alive for quite some time now and I am afraid that some things slip my mind. I didn’t recall the ingredients to this potion so I was unable to determine exactly what it was. Once you sent me that bottle, it came to me and I immediately began the counter agent, which hardly took any time to brew.”

“Thank you sir,” Alec said gratefully. The headmaster gave him a smile with his blue eyes twinkling merrily. “You two aught to head to the Great Hall since dinner begun a short while ago and I will be joining you shortly. Afterwards, I suggest you go to the infirmary to have Madam Pomfrey check you over.”

“Yes, sir,” the second year responded. “Bye,” he added as he left the office with his father following him.

Just before they reached the Great Hall, Severus stopped his son.

“Alec.” The boy stopped walking and turned to face his father with an indecipherable look on his face.

“I-” the potions master cleared his throat. He wasn’t very good at expressing his apologies. “I wanted to say I’m sorry.” He managed to get out.

Alec looked puzzled. “For what?”

“I apologize for my behavior in Albus’ office. I did not mean to yell at you but I was worried about you,” he admitted. “I also wanted to apologize for treating you the way I did,” he added, referring to the time he practically shoved his son from his lab.

“Don’t apologize for that. You were under the effects of that dreadful potion,” Alec stated adamantly. He leaned forward and gave his father a hug. “I’m glad you are back to normal now though. I really missed you,” he whispered.

Severus tightened his arms around his son. “Go on inside, brat,” the older man said affectionately. “Eat up and when you are finished, I’ll escort you to the infirmary.”

Alec gave a mock glare. He knew his father just wanted to make sure he made it there since chances were Alec would probably not enter the infirmary willingly. He left his father embrace and headed towards the open Great Hall doors. They had just stepped inside when they heard shuffling behind them. They turned to see Lucius Malfoy kicking his house elf to the ground.

“Dobby!” Alec whispered to himself. He turned to his father and saw the man’s face purpling with rage. He really hoped that particular look was never directed towards him.

Severus rushed forward and slammed a fist right at Malfoy’s face. The older blond man had just caught sight of the fist and managed to dodge the incoming blow, but it still caught his cheek.

“What the hell-? Severus?” Malfoy asked, feigning innocence. “What in Merlin’s name is wrong with you?”

Severus pulled his fist back, ready to hit the man again, but froze once he heard the Headmaster’s call.

“Severus!” the potions master lowered his fist but immediately pulled out his wand. The fighting scene had caught the attention of the students and staff in the Great Hall, and they all stopped eating to watch.

“Dumbledore,” Malfoy spat. “I see that you are back. Perhaps you should have your potions master’s health checked over since he just assaulted me. I will obviously be pressing charges unless you fire him.”

Alec gasped. His father could get charged with assault and knowing the Malfoys, they were liable to pay off the jury to get his father in the most trouble possible. Getting his father fired was not much better of an alternative.

“I assure you,” Severus began coldly. “That I am perfectly healthy thanks to the fact your potion has left my system.”

“What potion?” the blond man asked innocently. No one believed he was innocent though; just by looking in his eyes you could see the rage burning in them.

“I, Severus Snape, formally challenge you Lucius Malfoy to a duel to be held right now!”

Lucius paled slightly, but brought his arrogant mask back up. Severus was quite the dueler in school and he would have refused except for the fact that the entire school was watching from just inside the Great Hall.

“Gentlemen-” Dumbledore began.

“I accept.”

Dumbledore sighed wearily. Once the duel had been accepted, there was nothing further he could do. “Please at least take this outside,” he stated wearily. The two men nodded and headed towards the doors. The entire student body quickly jumped from their seats and abandoned their meals to watch the duel between their potions master and Malfoy Sr.

“Do either of you wish to have seconds?” Dumbledore asked.

“No,” was the simultaneous answer.

“Very well. Students, stay back behind this line.” The Headmaster flicked his wand and a line appeared. He raised a barrier along that line to keep the students protected from wayward spells.

Severus shrugged off his cloak and it dropped to the ground. Lucius did the same and he also tossed aside his black gloves carelessly. One of the gloves was flung right at Dobby, who caught it on instinct, not that the blond man noticed at this time.

Alec noticed and smiled encouragingly at the elf whose face lit up with glee. The elf was kind of weird but he was glad it was free from the wretched Malfoy man.

“No Unforgivables nor dark spells of any kind. Begin on three, gentlemen,” Albus instructed. “One- Two- Three!”

Spells were flying with amazing speed towards each opponent. Both duelers were dodging, shielding, and calling out spells with incredible speed but neither managed to hit the opponent yet. Severus was faster though and more knowledgeable in spells therefore he was able to hit Malfoy with a cutting curse which lightly nicked the blonds shoulder.

Malfoy took the hit and began tossing back spells with renewed vigor. He didn’t want to lose in front of his son but Severus was an astonishing dueler and his chances at winning were slim. He still gave it all he had and managed to hit Severus with a blasting charm that knocked the other man off his feet.

Severus murmured the invisibility charm and disappeared before everyone’s eyes. Lucius pulled up a shield and looked around frantically trying to find out the potion master’s location. His shield protected him from most spells but it did nothing to stop physical attacks, which he wasn’t expecting. An invisible fist suddenly slammed into his nose, and blood began seeping from it as it broke. Knowing that Severus was right in front of him, he incanted the spell to end the man’s invisibility charm.

Before Malfoy could bring up another shield, he was hit with a barrage of spells. One banished him away, causing him to slam into a tree. The other spell was a Conjunctivitis Curse, which caused his eyes to crust over. He longed to cast darker curses but seeing as the entire school and Dumbledore were watching, that wouldn’t be a good idea.

Malfoy quickly jumped to his feet with an enraged look upon his face. Severus was standing there smirking, purposely riling him up in hopes of causing Lucius to slip up and make mistakes.

The spells continued to fly backwards and forwards at a rapid pace. Severus looked to be enjoying himself since he hadn’t had such a good duel in quite some time. Lucius appeared to be getting more and more frustrated. His spells were getting sloppier and not as focused on his intended target.

Malfoy suddenly turned his wand on himself and incanted the same charm Severus used earlier to turn himself invisible. Severus turned his own wand on himself and said the spell that allowed him to detect body heat, even if the person was invisible. Not a well known spell, but it worked in this case and allowed him to find Malfoy. The blond invisible man was standing right before him and before he could raise a shield he was hit with a silent spell.

Gashes spread across his chest and Severus knew immediately what spell was used. It was one that he had created himself to use on enemies. He quickly said the spell to stop the bleeding and as the still invisible Lucius came closer to deliver the final blow, he kicked his foot out. Lucius gasped and lost his footing, once again not expecting such a muggle style attack. Severus used that moment to summon the other mans wand, therefore ending the duel.

Severus slowly got to his feet, feeling dizzy from the blood loss. He looked around for Malfoy Sr. who was still invisible. The potions master searched frantically around to find where the blond disappeared to. He had to cancel the body heat charm because he couldn’t distinguish Malfoy from the entire student body standing on the side. Once his eye sight readjusted, he looked towards the audience. He saw his son standing foolishly outside of the protective barrier. It appeared that the boy had rushed out when he was hit with that curse, but the Headmaster had held Alec back.

Severus’ frantically looked around, unable to determine Lucius’ location. He turned sharply when he heard a gasp of surprise. He saw Lucius Malfoy, now visible, holding his son’s wand and a knife to Alec’s throat. If it was just the wand, he could have summoned it away before Malfoy got a shot at his son, but the knife complicated matters.

“Lucius,” Severus growled tiredly. The blood loss was affecting him but he didn’t let it show. “Leave Alec out of this. I won the duel fair and square. Admit defeat and leave this school.”

“Give me my wand back and I just might let the boy go,” Malfoy Sr. demanded with an arrogant smirk. He knew that this boy was the ticket to getting back at Snape for embarrassing him with this duel.

“You will not harm Mister Snape’s son!” a voice shouted from behind the blond. He turned slightly to see his house elf, holding his glove. It dawned on him just then, that he had accidentally freed his own servant by carelessly tossing aside his glove.

Before anyone could act any further, the elf blasted his old master away, not knowing nor seeing the knife held to Alec’s throat. The blond was blasted away but the knife that was securely in his hand managed to cut Alec along the bottom of his jaw up to his ear. Severus practically apparated to his son’s side, no longer caring about his own wounds, bent down to examine Alec’s face. The cut wasn’t too deep, but it was lengthy and bleeding rather freely. With the amount of adrenaline running in his system, he was able to scoop the twelve-year old up and rush him to the infirmary.

The rest of the school stood there in shock until the students were jostled out of their stupor. The professors shooed them back inside while the Headmaster made sure Lucius Malfoy was escorted directly outside of the gates and then returned the wand to him. Malfoy immediately apparated away from the school. After assuring that the gates were locked from further intruders, Albus made his way to the infirmary.

He entered and saw both Snapes were currently residing on separate beds, most likely on the Medi-witch’s stern orders. The said woman appeared to be currently lecturing Snape.

“-and apparently you forgot that you are not a teenager!” Poppy huffed as she bustled about. “You certainly were not setting a very good example for your son either.”

Severus just scowled and let the woman continue ranting. After she was finished scolding him for once again ending up in her care, she proceeded to clean him up. She handed him several potions which he downed instantly, seeing as he knew exactly what they were since he made them all.

The Headmaster, seeing that they were okay, decided to let them be and exited the infirmary. After Madam Pomfrey left both Snape’s alone, Severus got out of bed and pulled a chair to his son’s bed. Alec had a bandage running along the side of his face. Poppy had stopped the blood flow and applied a cream to the cut which would heal it overnight.

“How are you feeling?” Severus asked his son quietly. He felt guilty that Alec was involved with his revenge on Lucius. He knew from past duels that he could beat the man easily but he hadn’t counted on Lucius taking the loss badly and resorting to use his son as a hostage.

“I’m fine. What about you?” Alec asked worriedly. “I saw that last spell hit you and I just got you back and well I was worried that it hurt you badly.”

“I’m fine. I countered the curse so there is no need to worry,” Severus assured him. The potions master looked around suspiciously, gave his son a mischievous smirk and leaned forward to whisper. “What do you say we ditch out of this dreadful place and head back to out rooms?”

“You will do no such thing Severus Snape!” Madam Pomfrey hollered from her office.

“Busted,” Alec replied with a smile.

“Last one out of here gets left behind.” Severus said before striding towards the door quickly. Alec jumped from his bed and dashed after his father. As they darted down the hallways outside of the infirmary, they could both hear Madam Pomfrey threatening them to come back.

“Weren’t you just telling me earlier you’d make sure I went to the infirmary?” Alec asked cheekily.

Severus smirked. “That was before I wound up on the bed next to you.” Alec smiled, glad to have his father back.