“Oh, guess what!” Ron exclaimed as he passed the green beans over to Sirius. The gang was at Grimmauld Place, having dinner after a day of cleaning and remodeling the old residence.

“What?” Harry replied, feeding Severus a forkful of noodles.

“Hermione got Head Girl!” Ron declared proudly.

“Ronald!” Hermione blushed as the entire table applauded and bombarded her with congratulations.

“That is such a surprise, Hermione.” Ginny joked with a smile before turning back to the infant in the high chair next to her.

“I knew she’d get it.” Sirius said. “Who else would Dumbledore give it to, I ask you? She’s the most brilliant witch of her age.”

“Here, here!”

“Alright, that’s enough about me, Sirius.” The group laughed as Hermione covered her flaming cheeks with her hands and endeavored to change the topic as quickly as possible. “Did you all read the press release Dumbledore issued to the Prophet and the Quibbler yesterday? It came out this morning.”

“I believe Dumbledore already went over it with both Harry and me.” Remus replied, passing the sweet potatoes to his wife. 

“Did he?”

“Well, I haven’t read it.” Sirius answered, motioning for Hermione to pass him the paper.

“It’s just a standard press release, Padfoot.” Tonks said. “It’s kind of boring.”

“I’m interested in whether or not either of you has been getting any mail about it.” Hermione interjected.

“Of course you would be.” Ron rolled his eyes.

“Oh, hush!”

“I haven’t.” Harry shook his head, “Have you, Remus?”

The werewolf shook his head as well. “I think Dumbledore’s been taking all the mail regarding that issue.”

“Oh, really?”

“I believe I remember hearing quite a few howlers yesterday evening—that’s for sure.” Ginny chuckled.

Remus’ shoulders sagged. “I bet I can tell you which one of us those howlers were about.” He said glumly.

“Oh, you’d be surprised, Moony.” Ginny replied, “I remember hearing quite a few howlers regarding Harry’s teaching position as well.”

“A lot of pure-blood parents—the ones who supported Voldemort—don’t like the fact that I’ll be teaching their kids this coming school year.”

“That’s typical.” Ron scoffed.

Bffffffft!

“I agree with Severus.” Sirius added, folding up the newspaper and pushing it aside.

“I don’t think either of you should let it bother you much, really.” Tonks put in. “I mean, Dumbledore’s the one who controls everything in school anyway. Plus, Kingsley’s the Minister of Magic.”

“Dumbledore’s back as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot as well.” Ron added.

“There we go! There’s nothing any of you should be worried about.” Tonks grinned.

“Of course, there is also the fact that Lucius Malfoy is on the Board of Directors of Hogwarts.” Hermione pointed out.

“So? What does that have to do with anything?” Ron’s eyebrows furrowed.

“If Malfoy’s on the Board of Directors, he has influence over them and can have Dumbledore removed or any teacher dismissed if he wants that to happen.” Hermione explained.

“That’s rubbish!”

“It’s not, Ronald!”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about Malfoy.” Sirius piped up. “He’s all bark and no bite, that man. And besides,” an evil smirk appeared on his face, “I happen to know that the Malfoys are in serious financial trouble.”

“Yeah, remember the war board in the DA room?” Harry nodded. “Thirty years, Milford said.”

“Who’s Milford?” Remus raised an eyebrow.

“Milford was the DA’s spy inside the accounting office at the Ministry.” Ginny answered as she fed Severus another forkful of spaghetti. “He’s the one who first informed the Army that the Malfoys were in financial trouble.”

“Wow! You guys were good!” Sirius chuckled, impressed at how much intelligence Dumbledore’s Army was able to gather.

“Padfoot…” Remus rolled his eyes. He, unlike Sirius, was not impressed in the slightest.

“Anyway, as I was saying, you don’t need to worry about Malfoy too much.” The evil smirk reappeared on Sirius’ face. “His family is in financial trouble, which means the one thing he is going to be relying heavily on from now on is his ‘good’ name.” He drew quotation marks in the air. “And his ‘good’ name depends greatly on his wife’s good name, and his wife’s good name happens to be—”

“Black.” Harry grinned along with his godfather.

“And the Head of the Family of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black happens to be—”

“You.” Everyone said at the same time.

Sirius cackled. “Me.” Then all of a sudden, the grin disappeared, his eyes turned dark, and the spark of madness Harry had seen there in their first meeting shone through in his gaze. “And I swear this—if any Malfoy steps out of line, if any Malfoy even so much as toes that line, guess whose names will be blasted off that tapestry next.”

“Ouch.” Harry snorted.

“I will publicly disown them; I will take all property of theirs which is rightfully mine—including their mansion—”

“Don’t you think that’s a bit harsh, Sirius?” Hermione raised an eyebrow.

“No.” Sirius, Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Tonks answered simultaneously. Remus shrugged.

Severus, for his part, giggled. “Mo, Mimi.”

Half the table cracked up. “There you see!” Sirius pointed at the infant with a grin, “No, Mimi!”

“Oh, shut it, Padfoot!” Hermione rolled her eyes.

“Kingsley has them on a Ministry watchlist anyway, I think.” Tonks chimed in. “Just because they turned back to our side at the last minute doesn’t excuse them of everything they did beforehand.”

As the group discussed Kingsley and his various Ministry watchlists, a head popped in through the kitchen door. “Hello! Oh, there’s where everyone is!”

“Mum!” Tonks exclaimed, pushing her chair back and getting ready to stand.

“No, no, no, don’t get up, dear!” Andromeda Tonks waved her daughter down. “Don’t worry. I just wanted to let you all know that Minerva and I are back from shopping and we had dinner at Diagon Alley already, so you lot don’t have to worry about saving us some. We bought some ice cream from Florean’s shop, though, and when you lot are done with the main course, I just wanted to let you know there’s some ice cream here in the living room.”

“Well, I’m done!” Sirius declared with a grin, throwing his napkin onto his empty plate and pushing his chair back excitedly.

“Oh, you!” Andromeda shook her head at her younger cousin and walked back into the living room.

“Eyes cweam!” Severus squeaked, bouncing in his high chair and pointing in the direction of Sirius’ retreating back. “Uh! Eyes cweam!”

“Sorry, kid.” Sirius answered, a slight gleam in his eye. “Can’t really sneak you one this time.”

“This time?!” Ginny’s eyes widened at the animagus and her nose flared. “What do you mean ‘this time’?!”

“Nothing!” And with that, the mischievous canine disappeared through the swinging door, trailing laughter in his wake.

“Uh! Eyes cweam! Eyes cweam!” He flashed a wide-eyed, puppy-dog look in Harry’s direction.

Harry snorted. “Hey, I’m all for it. Don’t look at me.”

With that, Severus turned in the other direction and before Ginny knew it, she was met with matching puppy-dog looks—a cute one on Harry’s face and an irresistible one on Severus’. “Oh, for Merlin’s sake…” Ginny muttered as she shook her head. “Last one.” She said, holding a forkful of spaghetti for Severus to eat. The infant opened his mouth as wide as it could go and as soon as the food was inside his mouth, he began bouncing in his high chair once again.

“Eyghwhsth cwhehghaeam!”

“Oi!” Harry frowned, pushing away from the table, “No talking with your mouth full, Severus.”

“Mmmm!” Sev signed a ‘sorry’ against his chest and reached up in the universal sign to be picked up. “Mmmmm!”

“Alright, alright, come along.” Harry carried the infant into the living room where he found Professor McGonagall chatting with Andromeda on one of the sofas while Sirius was stretched out on the couch across from them, lazily enjoying his ice cream. “Hello Nana, Mrs. Tonks.” He greeted politely.

“Oh, hello, Harry!” McGonagall replied. “Hello, Severus.”

“Hi.” Sev waved shyly before spotting the ice cream with a gasp. “Eyes cweam!” He then began his excited bouncing once again.

“Alright, alright, okay!”

Half an hour later, everyone who had been in the dining room had migrated over to the living room for dessert and eaten their fill of ice cream. Harry had settled himself on the floor, leaning against the couch Sirius occupied, with Severus in his lap. Remus and Teddy were leaning against the couch next to him, which Tonks, Ginny, and Hermione had settled on; while Ron was lying in the middle of the living room floor, halfway into a food coma. The conscious half of the group had resumed their previous conversation regarding Kingsley, the Malfoys, and watchlists, while the less-interested part (mainly Severus and Teddy, which meant Harry and Remus as well) occupied their time with much more interesting activities.

“Mmmm…wamp up!” Sev cried, pushing Harry’s hands away and crawling forward slightly.

“You want what?” The teenager raised an eyebrow.

“Up! Me…up!” Severus settled somewhere near Harry’s knee and began leaning against the teen’s outstretched leg.

Harry froze and just watched the infant through wide eyes. “You mean…you want me to pick you up? Or do you want to get up yourself.”

“Mo! ME!” The infant replied, scowling at Harry as if that should have been obvious. “Me go up!”

Ginny gasped. “Oh! Sirius! Pass me the camera—it’s on the table above your head.” She ordered excitedly.

The animagus merely rolled his eyes and snickered. “Why would you want me to pass you the camera so that you can take the pictures over there, while when I’m lying here, directly behind Harry, with a better view than you?”

“Get UP then!” Ginny exclaimed, smacking Sirius on shin.

“OW!” The animagus cried, shooting upwards and directing a scowl in Ginny’s direction. He grumbled something unflattering under his breath as he pulled his feet in and stood up, switching places with the teenager.

“Thank you.” She replied, immediately making a grab for the camera.

“You’re bloody welcome!” Sirius snapped, delighting in the frustrated look she sent his way.

Severus, meanwhile, was using Harry’s leg as a brace to help him get to his feet. One step at a time, cub! One step at a time. Harry’s voice coached him internally.

Sev felt the urge to roll his eyes and met Harry’s steady gaze. If I could take a step, I would, wouldn’t I?

Metaphorically speaking, cub. Harry replied dryly.

Of course he was. Sev sighed and pushed down on Harry’s knee in order to give himself enough leverage to tuck his feet under his bum.

“Attaboy!” Harry murmured encouragingly, holding his right arm out so that Sev could use that as his next brace. “Very good. Come on…Come on…”

“Oh! He’s learning to stand!” He heard someone whisper excitedly behind him. “Wait ‘til I tell Albus later.”

Sev took a breath and pushed against Harry’s leg in order to reach his arm. The teenager lowered it slightly so that the infant could get a firm hold. And when he was properly latched on, Harry began pulling his arm upward.

“Mo!” Sev cried. He wanted to do it! He wanted to be the one to stand! “Me!”

“Yes, yes, yes, you!” The teenager nodded complacently, “I’m just trying to help you.”

“Mo!” Sev scowled at Harry. “Mo hewp!”

Harry peered at him dubiously. “A little help. Come on, cub. A little help!” He then threw in his patented puppy-dog eyes look for good measure.

Severus grumbled under his breath. Much as he wanted to, he couldn’t resist that particular look. Ginny sometimes swore he picked up his own puppy-dog look from Harry. “Okie.” He muttered.

“Thank you.” Harry brought up his left hand near Severus’ back but he didn’t dare touch it. He merely kept it there for support. “Easy does it, cub.” Put one foot flat on the ground and then push up. He instructed the infant through their mental bond.

Easy for him to say. A voice at the back of Sev’s mind grumbled. He already knows how to walk!

Ignoring the annoying grumbling, Severus bit his lip and followed Harry’s instructions. He put his left foot flat on the ground and pushed up with his right knee, using Harry’s arm to support him as he stood on one knee. A hushed cry swept through the room and Sev stiffened. Just as he was about to turn around to check if anybody was staring at him, Harry called his name.

“Sev!” The infant’s head shot around to face him immediately. “Come on, cub. You can do it!”

“Mmmm!” Sev whimpered. He felt like he was being watched. In his nervousness, be put his mouth to Harry’s sleeve and began chewing on the fabric.

“Come on. Push up, my boy. Easy does it.”

The hairs on the back of Severus’ neck stood on end and he lifted his head and began to turn around once more.

“Severus!” Harry called immediately. Sev turned to face him once again, wide-eyed and confused. “Come on! Do you want me to pull up my arm?”

“Mo!” Sev cried in indignation. He was supposed to do this on his own! By himself! “Me!”

“Okay! Okay, you.” Harry nodded and signaled for him to continue.

Sev bit his lip. Okay…last stretch. Latching onto Harry’s sleeve with an iron grip, Sev used all his muscle to haul himself up. He supported himself momentarily with Harry’s arm until both his little feet lay flat on the floor.

An even louder cry swept through the room this time and Sev tried to turn once more to see who was staring at him. However, Ginny called his name and before he knew it, he was facing a camera and being told to smile. Severus grinned.

“There we are, sweetheart! Look at you!” Ginny smiled.

“You’re standing, cub!” Harry praised, his smile just as bright at Ginny’s.

A wave of excitement flowed through the infant and he began bouncing on his wobbly legs excitedly. “Ah! Ah! Ah!” He was standing! He was standing! He was standing on his own two feet once again!

“Yeah! Look at you!” Harry chuckled, moving his left hand just a little bit closer just in case.

“AH! AH! AH!” Sev giggled and grinned some more. A round of chuckles moved through the room but before Sev could properly investigate, Ginny called him back for another round of photographs. It was then that another idea hit Severus. He wanted to stand alone—by himself—without Harry’s help! Perhaps he should try that now.

Whoa! Are you sure about that, cub?

Sev turned and flashed Harry a pleading look. He wanted to do this! He needed to do this! He needed to stand!

“Alright. Okay.” Harry nodded and then opened his legs wider so that Sev wouldn’t trip over his legs once he was standing on his own. “Easy does it, cub.” Harry slowly moved his arm so that Severus was only holding onto his hand and he leaned forward slightly, ready to catch the child should he fall. “Gin, he’s going to try standing on his own.” He muttered over his shoulder.

“On his own?”

“By himself.”

“Without you?”

“For just a second.”

“Is that wise?”

“Me!” Sev cried, gripping Harry’s thumb with a vengeance as he bounced on his wobbly legs and peered at Ginny with pleading eyes. “Me! Me! Peas!”

“Alright, sweetheart.” Ginny agreed, getting the camera ready for another round of photographs. “Go ahead, baby. When you’re ready.”

Easy does it, cub. Harry instructed mentally.

Severus nodded. He was still wobbling back and forth on his feet and his knees felt like jelly, but he figured he could handle it well enough. Perhaps if I spread by feet a little wider... Still hanging onto Harry’s hands, Sev peered down at his sockless feet and spread them a little farther apart. First the left foot and then the right. He dug his toes into the soft living room carpet and pushed up against Harry’s hand until he felt he felt his balance come back and his knees lock in place.

“You ready?” Harry asked softly.

“Uh-huh.” The infant murmured, slightly unsure of himself.

“Alright, here we go.” Harry moved his left hand to support Severus’ back. “Let go of my hand right now…and then I’m going to support you between my hands…and then you can spread your arms for balance…and then I’ll let go. Okay?”

Sev gulped and then nodded. Leaning back onto Harry’s left hand, the infant released the teenager’s hand and spread his arms to the side, moving them back and forth as he tried to find his balance. Harry, meanwhile, was sandwiching the infant between his two hands, but he wasn’t holding on too tightly at all. He was merely supporting the infant as he found his balance once again. When Severus stopped wobbling, he took a second to catch his breath before peering at Harry curiously.

“I’m going to let go now, alright?” The teenager warned.

Sev bit his lip and then nodded. He watched Harry’s hand as it slowly moved away from his body and the infant’s eyes widened when he realized he was still standing up! He was still standing up! He was still STANDING UP!!!

This time, a loud cheer erupted through the room and Sev looked up this time to find everyone in the house staring at him! With a gasp, he turned in Harry and Ginny’s direction.

“You’re doing it!” Harry praised, a gigantic smile on his face. “You’re doing it, cub! Look at you!”

“Smile, sweetheart!” Ginny said as she snapped a picture.

A myriad of emotions suddenly flashed through the infant’s brain. The standing was making him nervous. Harry’s praises filled him with pride. Ginny’s doting made him blush and smile. The camera flashes were disorienting him. The loud claps and shouts were starting to scare him. The crowd of onlookers was making him self-conscious. All of a sudden, Harry’s hand looked too far away. His knees felt like jelly once again. His toes were no longer touching the carpet!

“Whoa there, cub!” Harry’s amused voice filled his ear and Sev opened his eyes to find himself wrapped securely in the teenager’s arms once more, one arm against his chest and the other underneath his knees. “That was a good job!” He praised. “An excellent job!”

“He stood a whole three seconds, Harry.” Remus added with a smile.

“I know!” Harry laughed, dropping a kiss onto the infant’s head.

“He’ll be walking in no time. Won’t you, Severus?” Andromeda interjected next to Minerva.

“Teddy will too, Mrs. Tonks.” Harry chuckled.

“Oh, Lord, when those two start walking together.” Andromeda threw an evil grin in Minerva’s direction.

“All I’m saying is that I had better not have two more Marauders terrorizing my house ten years from now.” The old professor replied.

“Don’t worry, Nana, you won’t.” Ginny assured her.

“Yeah, it’ll be about eleven years from now.” Sirius muttered under his breath.

“What was that, Mr. Black?” Minerva shrieked.

“Yeah, what was that, Mr. Black?” Ginny repeated, her eyes narrowing at the animagus.

Sirius threw a charming grin at both ladies and gave them a noncommittal shrug. “Nothing.” He replied in a voice laced with mischief.

“You better not be talking about corrupting my son, Sirius.” Remus growled, though there was no real anger in his voice.

“What corrupting? I don’t corrupt!”

As the two old Marauders (plus Ginny) bickered about the ethics of corrupting impressionable young minds, a great white snowy owl came swooping out from the hearth to land softly upon the knee of Harry’s outstretched leg. Severus giggled and began bouncing on his bum excitedly. “Heg—wee!” He squealed, immediately reaching out to touch the snowy owl on the chest.

“Slowly, cub. Don’t scare her.” Harry said, holding the infant back just slightly.

“Heg—wee!”

“Hedwig.”

“Heg—wee!”

“Hello there, my feathery friend.” As Severus occupied himself with petting the same spot on the owl’s soft chest over and over again, Harry dug in his pockets for an owl treat and fed it to his familiar before untying the small, leather-bound packet of papers attached to her leg.

“Heg—wee!”

“What you got there, pup?” Sirius piped up, his earlier conversation immediately forgotten.

“I don’t know.” Harry frowned at the odd-looking leather-bound packet, inspecting it for any sort of label or seal—anything to tell him who the package was from.

“Perhaps you should run a diagnostic on it, first thing, Harry.” Remus suggested.

The teen nodded and with the passing of a finger did just that. “It’s clean.” He declared.

“Heg—wee!”

As Harry passed his finger over the spot where the laces came out of the leather, he felt a slight bump where one shouldn’t have been. Bringing the spot closer to his eye for further inspection, Harry found, to his delight, a tiny familiar seal etched into the leather. “It’s from the Ministry!” He announced, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

A loud gasp resounded from behind him and before Harry knew it, his girlfriend’s arms here wrapped around his neck from behind and her head rested on his shoulder. “Well go on! Open it!”

“Heg—wee!”

With jittery fingers, Harry did just that—untying the laces and unfolding the heavy flap of bound paper. He was so nervous, he couldn’t think straight. What if he said something wrong during the interview they gave him last week? What if they found him unfit to be Severus’ legal guardian? What would happen to the infant then? What if they didn’t approve of the way he was parenting the child? What if they wanted to take Severus away from him?!

Harry’s heart clenched and his palms began to sweat as he gulped, took a deep breath, and lifted the flap open.

Dear Mr. Potter…

Harry’s heartbeat was pounding in his ears. The words on the page started to blur. He scanned the document quickly, looking for the five words he wanted to see the most—the five words that would spell out everything he needed to know.

…guardianship has been approved. Congratulations!

“YES!!!” Harry whooped joyously, raising his arms up in celebration. Ginny’s exultant laugh immediately began ringing in his ear.

“What?” “What is it?!” “What’s happened?!”

Harry leaned back against the sofa and lowered his raised arms so that they were wrapped around his girlfriend’s neck. She in turn tightened her arms around his and the two then shared a short, ecstatic kiss.

“Heg—wee!”

“Harry!” Sirius called, his tone laced with impatience. “What does it say?!”

“I’m approved!” Harry replied, grinning at his godfather like a mad idiot. “They approved my guardianship! I’m—”

“Heg—wee!”

All of a sudden, Harry turned to the one person in the room he wanted to share the news with the most. “Hey! Hey, Sev!”

The infant peered up at him curiously. “Heg—wee?”

“No.” Harry chuckled, lifting Severus off the floor and settling him on his other knee. “No, no, no, forget about Hedwig for a second, cub.”

“Guess what, darling.” Ginny said, tears glistening in her eyes.

“Look at this, cub.” Harry flipped open the guardianship papers and held them out for Severus to read.

The infant frowned in confusion and leaned in to squint at the tiny writing on the page. He didn’t get it. Was this story time? Already?! Sev didn’t even remember having a bath yet! Harry wanted to read him a book already?

Fine by me. A voice at the back of his mind croaked.

Pointing at the packet of papers, Severus turned his confused frown up at Harry. “Stawy?”

A snort resounded from somewhere in the room, followed by a loud slap and an ‘Ow!’ “No, no, no, cub—they’re…guardianship papers.” He replied, the corners of his mouth twitching from holding his smile for so long.

Guardianship papers? Sev frowned. That didn’t sound like an interesting story. Harry was losing his touch. “Wead, den!” He cried, pointing at the leather-bound packet and bouncing on Harry’s lap impatiently.

“I—” Harry began chuckling nervously. “Er…” He looked down at the packet of papers and began to read the cover letter. “Dear Mr. Potter, We are pleased to inform you that your request for guardianship has been approved—”

“Mo, mo, mo!” Sev interrupted him, shaking his head with a frown. “Stawy!”

Once again there was a snort and Sev glanced over in time to see Ginny cuff Sirius on the shoulder. “Pup, if the cub wants a story, you’ve got to give him a story!” The animagus said between chuckles. “Ministry letters are far too dry for people with our mental prowess and imagination to understand.”

“You’re such a child, Padfoot!” Hermione rebuked beneath her breath.

But his godfather’s suggestion had given Harry an idea. “Okay…” He nodded, readjusting Severus on his knee so that they were in the position they usually resumed during story time. “Let’s see…what’s this story about, eh?” Harry completely unrolled the packet of letters and held it out in front of Severus as if it was a book he was about to read. As per story time tradition, Severus stared down at the page with the thumb of his left hand in his mouth and the fingers of his right hand on the corner of the page, getting ready to turn should Harry give him the word. After clearing his throat, Harry began to “read”:

“Once upon a time, there was a brave and valiant knight—a dark knight, if you will. This dark knight’s name was Severus Snape.”

“Me!” Sev cried excitedly, pointing to his little chest with a smile.

“You. Exactly.” Harry nodded.

“Now…although Severus Snape was a brave man, he was also a very sad man who had lived a sad life.”

“Uh-huh.” Sev agreed with a solemn nod.

“So one day Sir Snape decided to restart his life. He decided that he didn’t want to be an adult anymore and so he drank a potion that turned him into a baby.”

“Me Me!” Sev squeaked happily, pointing to his chest and bouncing up and down in excitement.  

“You You.” Harry nodded with a chuckle.

“And then later that day, the King of the castle—King Dumbledore, AKA Mr. Albus—came into Sir Severus’ rooms and found a tiny infant lying on the floor, not a single sign of the room’s original occupant in sight. It was as if his dark knight had vanished, and in his stead was this precious little five-month-old gift from God. Now…King Dumbledore wasn’t a king for nothing. He was a very smart man! He knew exactly who this precious gift from God really was.”

“Me!”

“It was Severus.” Harry nodded, dropping a kiss onto the infant’s soft hair. “It was his dark knight, only in miniature form. Now…King Dumbledore knew that he was much too old and much too busy to be able to raise a child properly. Thus, he carried the child through the castle and brought him to the quarters of one of his younger knights—Sir Henry and his wife, Lady…” Harry glanced at his girlfriend and her eyes narrowed at him, daring him to say her full name out loud. “…Ginny.” Harry smirked. “And the moment Sir Henry and Lady Ginny laid their eyes on this precious little bundle of joy, they knew they could never turn him down.”

“Uh-uh.” Severus shook his head lazily.

“No. So they took him in. They introduced him to the family and gave him everything he needed—love and affection, most especially. And then one day, Sir Henry and Lady Ginny decided that they wanted to make sure that no one could take Baby Severus away from them ever again.”

“Ebew, ebew?” Sev peered up at Harry curiously.

“Ever, ever, as-long-as-they-still-breathed ever.” The teen nodded. “And so they went to the…” Harry exchanged a look with Ginny and she shrugged. “…King of all the land—King Shacklebolt—and they asked him if he could make that happen. They asked him if he could help them make sure that Baby Severus was never taken away from them ever again.”

“Wha happ?” The infant asked, hanging off the edge of his seat.

“Well, the king agreed and…he…assigned one of his...court members to take care of Sir Henry’s case. And so the court member talked to Sir Henry and Lady Ginny and then went off to discuss matters with King Shacklebolt. Then one day, while Sir Henry and Lady Ginny and Baby Severus were sitting in their living room, along with the rest of their family, King Shacklebolt arrived at their doorstep. And everyone bowed and greeted him properly and such and such and then…King Shacklebolt gave Sir Henry and Lady Ginny the best news they ever heard in their lives: their request for guardianship had been approved.” Harry smiled.

“Wha meam?” Sev asked, a bit confused.

“Well…turn the page, please.” Sev squealed in delight and slowly turned the page he had been holding for the past few minutes. More tiny writing met his eyes. “It means that Sir Henry and Lady Ginny now have full custody of Baby Severus. That they have the responsibility—which they accepted with pride—to love him and care for him and to keep him safe and happy for as long as they both shall live. And that now it would be pretty darn hard for anyone to take him away from them. If such a thing should happen, it means that Sir Henry and Lady Ginny have the right to hunt said kidnapper down, reclaim their child, and ruin said kidnapper’s life.”

“Hear, hear!” Sirius exclaimed with a smirk.

“It also means that should anything happen to Sir Henry and Lady Ginny, another one of King Dumbledore’s knights—Sir Remus—would then have full guardianship of Baby Severus.”

“Moomy.” Sev murmured around his thumb, leaning back onto Harry’s chest, his eyes closed.

“And that’s because Sir Henry trusts Sir Remus with the most precious thing in his world.” Harry leaned down to plant a kiss on the child’s head. “And if anything should happen to Sir Remus, Sir Sirius would have the honor of loving and caring for Baby Severus…” Harry smirked and peered at his godfather from the corner of his eye. The animagus looked rather uncomfortable. Harry grinned internally. “And after him, Molly and Arthur Weasley would have that honor, etc, etc.”

Sev snuggled into Harry’s robes, shifting to find a more comfortable position before settling down. He looked to be on the verge of sleep. “Wha meam?” He murmured once again, his words slurred through the thumb in his mouth.

“It means, cub,” Harry started, lowering his voice to a hypnotic murmur, “that in the eyes of the law, you are our son in all but name.”

And just like magic, a smile blossomed on the face of the half-sleeping babe. “Happeh…stawy…”

Harry tipped his head back and smiled at his girlfriend over his shoulder. “Very happy story, sweetheart.” She replied, leaning over her boyfriend’s shoulder to plant a kiss atop the infant’s head. “Very, very happy.”

Soon enough, whispers of congratulations and well wishes floated about his head, stealing away the infant’s consciousness and lowering him into the waiting arms of sleep.