1994

“WHAT!” Sirius stood up so quickly that his chair fell over. Molly had cried out and burst into tears, while Remus nearly fell out of his chair from shock. “Albus, what the hell are you talking about?” the convict exclaimed. 

Sitting with his back straight, his face void of all emotion, the Headmaster looked around at the horrified faces before him. “Like I said, Harry was…was killed last night in a fire started by Death Eaters.”

“But that can’t be!” Sirius exploded. “No, no way! This isn’t true! You’re lying, now where is he?”

“Headmaster, why would they kill Harry?” Remus spoke up, placing a calming hand on his friend’s shoulder, not that it did much good. “I always thought that they wanted Harry alive.”

Slowly, Albus shook his head sadly. “I tracked the Death Eaters. They only seemed to be searching for a way Harry could get out. They found none. He’s dead.”

Molly wailed loudly at this, as Arthur tried his best to comfort his wife, but seemed to be having just as hard of time keeping his own feelings at bay. Tonks began to cry as well, but she remained silent in her grief, while Shaklebolt kept shaking his head, as though trying to think of how he had not protected Harry enough.

Sirius was beside himself in agonized fury. He began screeching and cussing, shouting and growling all in one. Beside him, Remus just looked tired. His amber eyes were clouded over with grief, and his posture sagged. It seemed unreal that the son of their fellow Marauder could die…but then again, James had seemed just as invincible as well.

“All that must be done now is to keep this as quiet as possible,” Dumbledore went on, staring at Minerva, who had tears streaming down from her eyes, and Filius, who looked green. “No one can know about this. Not even Ron and Hermione, I’m afraid.”

“Now see here!” Arthur spoke up, his wife still unable to do so. “Ron and Harry have been friends since their first day at Hogwarts, and Hermione just as long! I’m not going to lie to my family about this, Albus. They deserve to know.”

“You can’t hush this up anyway,” it was surprisingly Remus that snapped at the old wizard. “Everyone’s going to notice when Harry Potter doesn’t show up on the Hogwarts Express. And if you don’t tell them what happened, Headmaster, they’ll make up all kinds of stories.”

“But he can’t just tell the whole world!” Filius squeaked. “What do you think everyone would say! They’d all give up hope, and then what would happen? Hogwarts be overrun with Death Eaters?”

And the argument began, with Sirius voicing his opinion the loudest. The animagi fought violently to keep himself from crying, but it was becoming more and more difficult. At last the damn broke, and Sirius flipped over the table, Tonks, Shaklebolt, and Remus all having to scramble away quickly.

 “I don’t care what any of you say!” the man screamed, shameless tears streaking his face. “I’m going to find my godson!”

“But he’s gone,” Tonks spoke up when no one else would. “He’s dead. Who do you suppose has him then other than the angels?”

Panting like the deranged animal he had been, Sirius turned his murderous eyes upon the girl that had spoken against him. He truly was frightening when angry. “The Death Eaters have him, I know it!”

“And what makes you think that?” Tonks did not back down. Her grief always came out in argument. “Where will you start you search? You’re wanted too you know!”

Snarling, the dark haired man looked towards the door. “I’ll start in Scotland.”

“Why?” Molly looked up, hope shining in her watery brown eyes. “Do you think that this was all staged? What’s in Scotland?”

“Snape,” Sirius growled dangerous.

“Severus?” Minerva seemed to snap out of her shock. “Why would you want to find Severus?”

“Isn’t it obvious!” Black cried. “Snape’s the one that told the Death Eaters. He must have! He found out where Harry lived and then went crawling back to the Death Eaters and told them were my godson lived! It all makes sense!”

“No,” Minerva shook her head feverishly. “No, absolutely not. Not Severus,” she refused to let Sirius speak again. “I’ve gotten to know Severus quite well over the years and he would never betray us! He’s spent the last three years watching over and protecting Harry!”

“Minerva,” Filius muttered.

“I don’t care what I promised him then,” the Head of Gryffindor hissed, like the lioness she was. “I’m not going to stand by and let all of you taint Severus’s good name! And yes, he has been watching over Harry. He and I have worked quite closely the past three years in order to protect the child. He would never turn Harry in to the Death Eaters, no matter how much he dislikes Harry as a student!”

Not dissuaded in the least, Sirius only looked more determined. “So you think,” he snorted to his former teacher. “I know Snape, and I know he hates Harry. He probably saw this as an opportunity to get rid of him. Why wouldn’t he do it?”

“Because Harry is Lily’s son.”

The room fell silent as everyone looked towards the Headmaster. For his part, Albus sat calmly as he watched the other younger witches and wizards fight amongst themselves. Dumbledore had sworn that he would not tell anyone just how much Severus had loved Lily, and, indeed, he had known how much the younger wizard had loved the red-head, but he wished he could convey his trust in Snape through his eyes.

“Severus would never harm Harry,” the Headmaster spoke again, once the room was sufficiently quiet. “He loved Lily too much for that.”

“What?” Sirius looked absolutely appalled at the idea that the Potions Master was actually capable of love, and enraged that the slimy git would have the nerve to fall in love with the animagi’s best mate’s wife. “That completely-”

“That’s the truth,” Dumbledore cut in shortly. “And to put your mind at rest, Sirius, Severus actually did not want me to send Harry back to the Dursleys.”

“What do you mean back?” Remus was finding his temper was surprisingly hard to control. He was usually so easy-going.

With a great sigh, as though he had the weight of the world on his shoulders, Albus looked down at his folded hands. He did not want to tell them about his shameful neglect, or about how he had been proven wrong by none other than the generally nasty, short-tempered Potions Master, but there was no other way. After he had destroyed Severus’s marriage and forgot him in Azkaban, Albus had vowed never again to leave Severus alone and defenseless when he could not speak for himself. He wanted to keep that promise.

“When I had my meeting with Severus yesterday, to discuss what would happen to him, he had brought Harry along with him,” the Headmaster explained. “He seemed quite distressed by Harry’s... living arrangements.”

The whole room was dead silent, even Sirius, who seemed to want every detail. There was no mistaking the Gryffindor Black’s anger and it was clear that at any sign of trouble in the story, he was going to be gone and on the trail of a certain Slytherin. Next to Black, Remus keep close watch on his friend.

“He told me that he wanted to send Harry to the Weasleys,” Dumbledore nodded over to Arthur and Molly, who were looking quite ill. Molly began to sniffle again. “But I told him it would be unsafe.”

“Why?” Filius raised an eyebrow. “Why didn’t you want to send Harry there?”

Looking up, staring at all the impatient, grieved faces, Albus knew he could not delay much longer. “Death Eater gatherings have all been spotted, as you know, and I did not want to send Harry away. I thought the Blood Wards would be the best protection for Harry.

 “Severus, on the other hand, fought with me the whole way.” Dumbledore winced at some particular parts of his conversation with the Slytherin and realized now, too late, that he deserved Severus’s wrath. However was he going to tell the Potions Master about this?  

“He told me about what he suspected the Dursleys did to Harry over the summers, and why Harry always came back in worse shape than he went home,” Albus said softly. “I don’t know how long we fought about this,” the old wizard admitted. “But I would say at least two hours. He… he was quite clear in telling me that I was a fool. Only now do I see how right he was.”

Again, the story was met with silence as the Order members were all deep in thought. Sirius seemed to be having trouble digesting this image of his childhood nemeses standing up for the son of his best friend. The Weasleys, Tonks, and Shaklebolt also seemed to be having a little trouble with the thought of the normally snarky, bad tempered Potions Master standing up for one of his hated student. Remus had better acceptance of this after he had taught the year before and had seen just how close attention the Slytherin actually paid his children and how he even went out of his way to help them. It was Minerva and Filius who were nodded vigorously, grasping on to this information and good image of the prickly young Slytherin that had wormed his way into their hearts.

“See,” Filius spoke up. “I knew Severus would not turn Harry in. He was trying to protect the boy, Sirius.”

Shaking his head in disbelief, the animagi refused to understand. “No, no he must be playing at something. Sniv-”

“Shut up, Sirius!” Remus finally did lose his temper. He was tired and heartbroken. There was a pressure pushing on the back of his eyes and his head pounded, making him wonder if his brain wasn’t collapsing. “If Severus stood up for Harry, then Severus stood up for Harry. He’s not that bad.”

“How can you say that after everything he’s done to you?” Black spat, growling very much like a dog.

“He never really did anything to me,” the werewolf replied candidly. “He only ever did anything to me when I did something to him. He’s not evil, Padfoot, he only gives back what's given to him. That’s all.”

“But I know he’s up to something!” Sirius’s eyes took on a glint like a bloodhound just itching to get out on the trail. “Remember how he treated you last year? The way he got you sacked?”

“That’s none of your concern,” Lupin growled. “And further more-”

“Gentlemen! Gentlemen, please,” Minerva stood up, and barked. Both men shrank pack like the schoolboys they were in the past. “Enough of this. We shouldn’t be arguing about Severus and his loyalties. We all know he’s loyal to the Light,” she glared at the eldest Black brother. “We need to discuss what we’re going to be doing now that Harry’s…well…” she began to tear up.

“I’m telling Ron,” Arthur spoke up again, still hugging his wife. “He and Hermione, at least, deserve to know.”

“I, of course, cannot stop you,” Dumbledore said quietly. “But consider; they are both still young, and if they find out that their friend is dead, they will more than likely wish to express their grief to others. It would be a terrible silence to bear. The secret would not last long, I’m afraid.”

“And having them not know is better?” Filius spoke up. “Those two would set out looking for any clues at all about Harry. No doubt they would bother all the teachers about it before they went looking for trouble.”

Yet again, another argument ensued, but none could really believe that they were fighting over how to hide the death of Harry Potter. It was decided, after great length, that Arthur and Molly would tell Ron and Hermione, when she came over, and pray that the two would not inform the rest of the Weasley family; although Molly made no promises that the other children would not find out. And it was also decided that another meeting would be in order, one in which Snape had to attend so they could find out all the details from him about the summer.

It probably would have made them all sick to know that at the moment, Harry was safe and away in Llanfair, enjoying a delicious breakfast prepared by his father, Severus Snape.