He hated Thursdays.

Thursdays were always terribly days, bound to be certifiably dreadful from start to grisly finish. He had four double potions classes on Thursday, one after another, and besides that he had mostly Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs on Thursday. The lower years. Something, if not everything, was bound to go wrong , terribly, terribly wrong, and he’d be left to clean it all up. It was designed to kill him, he was sure.

At least he had had a good Wednesday. Harry had demanded cuddle time. He had no problems acquiescing, since the boy had to deal with Dumbledore (he’d offered to step in and tell the old geezer where to stick his punishments but Harry had mystified him with a stubborn “No.”) and so he’d spent most of the previous day acting as a human pillow and blanket for one small teen with a weakness for treacle tart (He’d brewed teeth preserving potions beforehand. Harry’s teeth were not going to be ruined). He’d monitored his classes from the couch by use of an enchanted portrait that hung over the chalkboard, and after assigning the first dozen detentions via enchanted chalk had been pleased that the little brats worked even better than if he were actually in the room. If he used that as incentive to spend more cuddle time with the Brat-Who-Was-His, than whose business was that but his?

Nerissa had stopped by the previous evening as well. Apparently she’d taken to charming Neil’s files to hide from him, nothing important, but enough to annoy the man. Severus told her she was beautiful. They’d had tea and biscuits. He found out she was ticklish. It was glorious.

But Thursday had dawned, and Severus knew from the start that it would be bad.

The morning had gone perfectly, which was indicative enough to have him eyeing his roast beef lunch suspiciously. He wouldn’t put it past fate to have a poisonous mushroom in the meal so he’d be up for the rest of the week brewing antidotes. And it’d be a particularly stubborn strain, too. He didn’t even want to eat, nervous as he was, though he’d never admit it to anyone. McGonagall clucked at him from his left, Corbin sneered at him from his right, and Severus dearly wished he hadn’t been reformed because he’d dearly love to curse them both.

He felt the chill before he saw the cause. He shivered, even as the glass all fogged over and crystallized. Some excitable child screamed “Dementors!” which started a minor panic and Severus sneered as Dumbledore rose to his feet, a wave of calming magic coursing form him. Severus pushed it off though, because something was nagging him, something at the back of his mind, something he should have paid attention to…

He blamed his potatoes. There were speaking to him.

And then Harry burst through the double doors, three feet off the ground, a silent, invisible wind whipping around him and through the room, sending hair and robes and other debris swirling through the air. Severus thought a simple retrieving spell would free the cutlery from the whirl, but the knives – they were all knives – all stayed, swirling around and around, glinting in the candlelight like a school of fish, rocketing over to the Ravenclaw table and diving down, down, down…

Dumbledore’s shield blocked the attack, but the damage had already been done. Panic reigned, children screaming, spells rocketing around the room as terrified children tried to shield themselves and accidental magic rolled through the air. Severus was moving, though, signaling to his prefects that they keep all the snakes at their table and calm, and headed towards his son, who’d risen higher into the air and whose magic was an angry tornado with him at the center.

The boy’s mind was a blur of disjointed, angry thoughts. Furious thoughts, thoughts so coated with blind rage that they choked the potions master even as he pushed through the crowd of screaming children and tried to understand just what had set his son off this time.

A child. Slytherin first year. Attacked by a sixth year Ravenclaw. That would explain the knives. Merlin, but his child was furious. There wasn’t even the thin veneer of disassociation that was usually a part of the child’s episodes. Harry was fully conscious, and fully in control of his magic. He hadn’t thought so, truthfully hadn’t thought it possible that the child could control all of the power at his disposal without years of training, but Harry had proved him wrong.

He watched in awe as Harry ripped through the Ravenclaw table, a bowl carving a name into the surface. He couldn’t read the name from where he stood, but he did realize that Harry hadn’t simply gone mad. Something, something had happened.

Behind him, the great hall doors burst open again, The Granger followed closely by Draco skidding to a halt, the tables of the great hall all jumping into the air and dissimilated into teeny, tiny pieces. Dumbledore stood in the middle of the room, ineffectually casting containment and even distracting spells at the small teen – Merlin, Harry was tiny – even as the table shards, tiny slivers of wood, swirled through the air like a wave and dived at a tall, dark haired teen hurriedly casting shield spells. Dumbledore magicked an iron dome into being at the last second, deflecting Harry’s attack, the impact reverberating around the room like the sound of hail on a steel roof, and the sound shook Severus from his stupor. Harry wanted to kill someone. This was no time to gawk stupidly.

He reached into the recesses of his mind and pulled the boy’s consciousness to him. Harry did not stop, sweeping the center of the room clear but for the tall Ravenclaw, the force of the boy’s magic hard and resolute, shoving him and everyone else backwards. What seemed like a shimmering dome of water separated the two of them from everyone else, and Severus felt an insane thrill of pride at his boy’s prowess.

FOCUS! Three shrieked.

He gave Harry’s mind presence a tight squeeze, only to receive a mild head-butt to the chin in return. ‘Stop it, child. This is not the road you want to go down, I promise you.’

Harry seemed to shudder, both in their minds and in the air. ‘He beat up a first year. Left him in the dungeons to die. Doesn’t he deserve the same? Doesn’t he deserve something?’

‘It is not up to you to exact justice, little one, or revenge.’

‘Who will, then? Dumbledore?’

At the side of their little meeting between their minds, Severus felt Dumbledore making an effort to batter down Harry’s dome. It frightened him, the ferocity with which Dumbledore cast; if Harry collapsed from exhaustion – surely his little body couldn’t take much more – the old man’s spells would obliterate him.

‘Yes, Dumbledore. I know he hasn’t been fair to you, but a child has nearly died. He must take it seriously. Give him a chance.’

What felt like a sneer crossed Harry’s mindscape, and then the Ravenclaw was expelled from the dome, tripping over a fallen bench and slamming into a wall. In his place went Dumbledore, sucked through the wall he’d been casting at without ceasing. The elderly wizard rolled to a stop in a heap of robes, then used magic to right himself. His eyes, used as they were to twinkling, blazed with a fury Severus had never seen. He looked on from Harry’s point of view and felt the boy’s magic give what could only be described as an annoyed huff.

‘Let the aurors in. And don’t let Scopeton get away.’ Before he knew it, Severus stood in his own body, and there was a mighty wail from the wards.

He had never thought much of his position as the secondary ward holder, but feeling the full weight of the school’s wards, Dumbledore’s share somehow having been shunted from him, left him staggering and panting for breath. So the old man wasn’t as frail as he thought he was.

“Expelliarmus!”

Through a thick haze covering his vision, Severus saw the Granger disarm Scopeton, whose wandwent fling into the air. With more effort than he though necessary Severus sent a blast of enegy at the airborne focus,sending it away from the girl’s outstretched hand. The look on her face was one short of murderous, and Severus truly didn’t trust her not to  snap he wand in two.

“You-a I-a bind-a now-is – “

“Granger what are you doing!” Draco screamed. “That’s a student!”

“Yes, but he’s not alone. Come-is out-is him-is now-a.”

Severus spun, swearing loudly, shoving the Hogwarts consciousness out of his mind and dropping ever one f his shields, letting the wards drop as he raced to correct the girl’s blunder. A pitch black frothing mass of magic ash rose from the shuddering Ravenclaw like a legion, forming a hollow disembodied skull over the amassed students.

Granger staggered back, her face pasty white before he reached her, casting his own containment and binding spells. Stupid girl! She should have known better. There were students here, children. Dark magic was not cast in the presence of children, not unless they were to be corrupted, or sacrificed. It was not done. To cast a Dark spell amidst children, young or old, terrified or not, prime vessels for the angry spirit shouting obscenities over their heads was enough to warrant a cell in Azkaban. Did she want to end up like Bellatrix Lestrange? Had she learned nothing? Was she truly the next Dark Lord?

And then Severus gave a small, smug smile, the heady, euphoric rush granted by casting Dark Magic overwhelming his senses. His thoughts calmed in one fell swoop, and with a saunter that would make Lucius Malfoy weep, he crept forward. He was all powerful. Unstoppable. Indisputably magnificent. What had he to fear?

The spirit above writhed in his hold, bucking and twisting in rage and Severus laughed, amused beyond reason at the absurdity. This shade, this flimsy imitation of life, of magic, sought to best him? He chuckled anew, twirling his wand between his fingers as he absently banished his outer robes to his rooms with a thought. “You will bow, Legion. And then you will taste death.”

The spirit screamed, throwing itself against his hold. “I am and I will be! The blood in my veins arks me as ruler supreme! You cannot kill me, fool! I cannot die! I am! I am!”

Severus chuckled again, genuinely amused. Why had he waited so long for this? Denied himself his true worth, his full potential, what for? With a sharp downward twist of his wand, Severus dragged the spirit forward, its furious raging mixing with the terrified screams of the children nearest him in a glorious cacophony of grace.

With a bang, the great hall doors burst open behind him. There was a swear and then a reducto aimed at his back, followed by stunners. Severus sneered, neatly sidestepping the first volley of attacks and negligibly doing away with the spirit. It took a few extra twists, since he wasn't about to use the spell aloud and have the Aurors nail him for dark magic, but it was done, and with a screeching and wailing and gnashing of teeth the loathsome Legion was gone, the air bereft of screams and filled with shouts of "No!" "Stop It!" "He saved us!" It took a moment, a spare one, in between the curses and stunners he had to avoid, to see that the children were yelling at the Aurors, and that less and less of the wizard police were firing at him.

At long last it was only one still firing, before Bones emerged from the recesses and yanked his wand arm down. Severus gave the man a smirk over the approaching stunner, standing still and letting the spell's magic wash over him...and dissipate. 'My,' he thought to himself, 'I do love being powerful.'

Bones, though, had questions. Damn. "You say he saved you?"

A Hufflepuff, a tall, trembling Hufflepuff, stood from the mass of students huddled against the wall. "Y-yeah. He saved us from the...thing. We'd be dead if he hadn't stopped it."

Bones looked between the student, Snape standing calm and collected and the glimmering dome still separating Harry and Dumbledore, before refocusing on the student. "What exactly happened here?"

There was a cacophony of gibberish as all the frightened children fought to get their words in and Severus sneered at Bones genially. She should have known better. It was another minute of futile shushing before she finally had to bellow "ENOUGH" at the little snots, and then the single Hufflepuff spoke.

"Uh, we were having dinner, same as usual, and then Harry floated - "

"Floated?" Bones asked, eyes flicking again to Harry's weaving form.

"Uh, yeah. HE wasn't touching the ground at all, and he made everything spin and the knives dive at that one kid, from Ravenclaw - "

"Scopeton. His name is Scopeton." Draco said neatly, absently readjusting the cuffs of his shirt. "You may want to write that down, Madame Bones. And bind him."

The Hufflepuff nodded, and with a flick of her head an Auror moved to bind the student where he sat limply against a wall, shivering. "GO on."

"Ah, well, Harry came in completely furious and tried to kill Scopeton, but Dumbledore got in the middle of it and then they started fighting, only Harry put up this barrier so none of us would get hurt, and - "

Bones eyes were narrowed. "Did he say that?"

"N-no, no, but - "

"Please, Aunty, we could feel it." Susan Bones shuffled into view, slightly pale but unharmed, and Severus couldn't help the wave of satisfaction as his mind and magic sought out the students around him. Terrified, a little hungry or put off their food whatsoever, but none of them hurt, not a inkling of dark magic on them. Damn, but he was good. He tuned in again when Bones seemed to be getting angry. Better pay attention.

"We had a student attack the headmaster, and you're telling me it's not his fault?"

"Please, Madame Bones - "

"Harry isn't in his right mind, Ma - "

"He had a reason. "

Severus felt his stomach clench at that voice, and turned despite himself to the Great Hall doors. There, an impossibly small bundle held in his arms, stood one red-haired teen by the name of Ron. It bothered Snape on a deep emotional level that his mind refused to call the child Weasley.

"I'm not saying it was a good reason, but Harry's not dumb, and he's not off his rocker" this was said with a glare in the Granger's direction. "But Scopeton did this," he said, gesturing gently to the bundle in his arms, "and I can't blame him for wanting to take it out of his hide."

"You think he should have attacked Dumbledore?"

"Harry attacked Dumbledore?" Ron's red eyebrows were lost to his bangs. Auror Bones motioned to the dome, and those dark blue eyes widened in shock. "Bloody hell, mate."

"Launguage, Mr. Weasley."

"Uhm, should I finish saying what happened?" The Hufflepuff seemed confused, and that was only fitting. He was supposed to be recounting the events of what had happened over dinner, but the fog was starting to clear from Severus' mind, and  he was glaring straight through the brat's head. The imbecilic child took that to mean he should get back to the story. That was the problem with the Puff's. They couldn't read his silent looks like his snakes could.

"Yes, please do. This is going to take a whole lot of paperwork, and I may as well get the full story."

"Uh, well, while Professor Dumbledore and Harry started fighting, Scopeton was trying to run away, only Granger pointed her wand at him and said - "

Here, Severus lost all pretence of caution. He glared so hard at the trembling Puff that even the students behind him felt it, shuffling and looking anywhere but at him. The stocky boy gulped, and floundered. "She told him to stop, but he didn't, and this huge black things came out of him and - "

"Mr. Donahue! I am shocked at you!"

Severus felt his heart lurch. "Minerva, do shut up! The child has been through an ordeal and has seen enough. Let him finish, lest we all have to suffer for his inability to do anything correctly and I commit an act worthy of Azkaban." He hoped to look he gave her was meaningful enough, but he doubted it. There was something to be said for Gryffindors, and reading between the lines was not it. Still, she subsided, and Donahue completed his tale.

"Uh, yeah, and the black thing was gonna get us, except Professor Snape stepped in and caught it in a webby thing, the spell was wicked fast, and he fought it, and banished it just now." His grey eyes flicked between Bones and Snape. "He did good. It was coming right at us, and I don't know what it was, but I'm pretty sure it could have hurt us."

"Worse. Scopeton was being possessed, and had the spirit touched any of you it would have split into separates and possessed only Merlin knows how many of you. You'd have been dead in minutes. Thank you, Donahue. One hundred points to Hufflepuff for the preservation of justice. I assume, Madame Bones, that you are done with the children?"

Her eyebrows in her hair, Bones nodded. "I am. I may need to summon Donahue again for more details, but for now - Good heavens, child! what is wrong?"

Severus swore to high heaven in his head, for Granger had fainted. Still conscious, yes, but deathly pale and bleeding heavily from her nose. He should have known. In two strides he was knelt by her side and shoved away a trembling Draco, supporting her head and weaving a restoration spell over her disguised as a diagnosing charm. "Over worked. Magical core depleted. What stupid thing have you been doing behind my back, Granger?"

He gave her a glare fit to flay a dragon beneath the curtain of his hair, ready to stun her unobtrusively lest she try to be noble. "I was, I tried to get into the dome?" Merlin, but was she asking him? "I wanted to try to calm Harry down?"

Thankfully, everyone around took her questioning tone for head damage, and Madame Pomfrey had bustled her up into a stretcher and out of the hall before Severus could think of a way to let the child know that her cover story was sufficient but that he was going to murder her as soon as she was well enough. Madame Pomfrye and the other members of staff were all giving him looks though, and Severus couldn't decide if they were pleased, proud or predatory. It made him irritable. Thankfully, that was fine.

"Prefects! Gather your house-mates and retire to your common rooms. There will be no deviations. I want a headcount completed in fifteen minutes and reported via house-elf to me no less than a minute after that. Dinner will be completed only after that, so do. Not. Dally. Dismissed."

With perfect calm, he sauntered over to where the teachers and aurors were gathered, uneasily noting that several aurors peeled off and followed the children out the door. Corroborating the story. clever. It tied his stomach into knots. Ron and the tiny child were gone, Severus assumed to be bustled over by Poppy, and he gave a silent sigh at the night he was about to have. "Madame bones, I request an hour before I peacefully follow you to the Ministry. The child's name must be obtained and his parents notified and collected. It seems as if Dumbledore will continue to be occupied for some time," here he paused to look over his shoulder, where his son and the Headmaster seemed to be having a staring contest, but he wasn't that naive, "so it falls to me to see this done."

"To you, Severus?" Minierva asked.

"Unless I am mistaken, in which case feel free to correct me, please, but as the holder of the wards, since the headmaster is indisposed, I am the pseudo headmaster until he can be reinstated. If the Hogwarts by-laws have been altered since I was employed please do tell me. I'd rather not deal with parents." He sneer was completely genuine.

Minerva smiled a little too knowing. "No no, you're correct. My mistake. I would have thought the wards would have been passed to Filius."

"Heavens me, Minerva. I don't have the magical fortitude to hold them!" Flitwick beamed up that them, an extra twinkle thrown Severus' way and the wizard glared right back. "After Albus, Severus here is the only one who has the capacity to hold them in stasis, let alone reinstate them after they'd fallen."

And that gave Severus pause, because he hadn't remembered reinstating the wards. He remembered a barest sliver of thought as he faced the aurors and the spirit was gone that he should close the school up lest some idiot think to invade them, but beyond that... was he truly that powerful?

"Professor Snape, while I would love to take you into the Ministry to file your statement, there is no need to, as that can be done here, or in your office. If you don't mind I'll be taking your statement personally, due to your history - "

"Am I not to be arrested?"

Amelia Bones had the temerity to smile at him. Severus was too confused to glare back. "For using dark magic? No." At Severus' suspicious look, she grinned. "According to the law, the Headmaster, even pseudo-headmaster, can cast any magic deemed necessary to ensure the safety and security of his staff and students, up to and beyond the Unforgivable Curses."

Severus stared, dumbfounded.

It explained so much! Dumbledore's disregard for people's well-being, his blatant use of spells, all of it, even the way he played with people's lives, he could justify by saying it was to protect his students. As a matter of fact, the damned old wizard did justify it that way. 'The greater good' suddenly made sense. And to think, he thought the man was untouchable, only to find he actually was.