Snape showered Shaved and changed in record time, not wanting to be away from the infirmary for to long. Forgoing his usual black robes, after all there were no students to intimidate, he dressed casually in black jeans and sweater, for although the day was warm the thick castle walls kept the temperature inside cool. Deciding to floo back to the ward he grabbed the small pot of powder from the shelf and stepped into the green flames.

Arriving in the matron’s office, he heard the gentle murmur of voices, thinking that Harry had awoken whilst he was away he rushed onto the ward to find the headmaster sitting in a comfortable armchair talking quietly to Madam Pomfrey and Ron Weasley.

“When did you get back Albus?”

“About ten minutes ago and Poppy has graciously filled me in on all the details here,” he replied.

“I understand you had quite a eventful evening.”

“It was Albus but we managed to get it under control.”

Snape took a chair and placed it at the bottom of Harry’s bed

“How has he been?”

“Tossing and turning a bit sir,” Ron said, “and mumbling in his sleep but he hasn’t woken up again.”

“Poppy have you re- scanned him?”

“Yes Severus and everything is still healing well, though the bruising is going to take some time to diminish even with the salves.”

Snape then looked at Dumbledore

“So what about your evening was everything sorted that end?”

“I’ll fill you in on all the details later, but I do have some papers for you to sign, maybe we could use your office Poppy?” Dumbledore turned to the matron.

“By all means Albus”

“Severus shall we?” He said standing up and gesturing to the office. “The sooner we do this the better.”

Snape followed the older wizard through the door and sat down.

“So they signed then.”

“Made them an offer they couldn’t refuse”

“I bet you did”

“Will he have to see them again?”

“Harry will have to see them again when they go to trial.”

“Are you ready to do this?” Dumbledore asked as he passed a piece of parchment over to Snape.

He signed and passed it back “Yes.” 

“What happens when this gets to the ministry there’s no way they are going to allow it?” 

“It’s not going ministry first, it’s going via Gringotts” 

“What’s that going to achieve?” 

“Well the goblins will seal it and goblin magic will make it harder for the minister to interfere with.” Dumbledore leaned in conspiratorially. “And the goblins really don’t like the minister.” 

Snape laughed. 

“Errity!” Dumbledore called and a small creature with enormous brown eyes and bat ears appeared with a pop. 

“Yes sir Headmaster Dumbledore sir, you is calling Errity?” 

“I need you to take this to Gringotts and place it into the hands of goblin Tollett. He is expecting you. Do not give it to any one else. And when you return come and find me as I have another job for you.” 

“Right away Mr headmaster sir,” and with another pop the creature was gone. 

They heard a small knock and Ron’s red head appeared around the door. 

“Professors, Harry is awake.” 

“Right, thank you Mr Weasley we will be right out,” said Snape 

Ron stepped away. 

“Ready to tell him my boy?” 

“Not really, I would rather face the dark lord.” 

“Courage son that’s something you don’t lack, come on things will work out fine for all.” 

And Dumbledore stepped out of the room Snape close behind him. 

“Well good evening my boy how are you?” Dumbledore went straight to Harry’s bed. 

Madam Pomfrey was already there, checking Harry’s temperature and running a scan. 

“Everything alright?” Snape asked her as he joined them. 

The matron smiled. “Everything is healing nicely, but I still want you to rest Mr Potter ok, do you have any pain anywhere?” 

“Not really.” Said Harry. 

“Harry if you are in pain you need to tell us so we can give you something for it; I do not want you in any discomfort at all.

So I’ll ask you again do you have any pain anywhere?” The matron asked firmly 

“Um, my legs and ribs hurt and my throat is still sore.” 

From a cabinet in the office Snape accioed two potion bottles. 

“Harry I need you to take these for me please” 

“What are they?” 

“Just a pain potion and a relaxant 

“Right ok thanks,” Harry said accepting the bottles from Snape, and drinking them grimacing at the taste, “you couldn’t make them taste any better?” 

“Now then,” said Madam Pomfrey, “I am going to escort Mr Weasley there down to the kitchens where we will both have something to eat because if I have to listen to his stomach growling anymore it is going to drive me insane.” 

Ron blushed, his face bright red,

“Thank you Madam Pomfrey I am hungry,” he said.

“And my mum should be bringing my clean clothes soon so I can have my shower.” 

“Right Harry I am sure the professors have things they need to discuss with you. So I am going to leave you in their capable hands.” 

“Actually I have a couple of things I have to attend to in my office but Professor Snape has a something he wants to tell you Harry.”

If you two are ready perhaps we will walk part of the way together gesturing to Madam Pomfrey and Ron.  

Dumbledore looked pointedly at Snape. “And I will see you later.” 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* 

Snape sat down next to the bed. 

“I have something to tell you Harry he said and I would appreciate you hearing me out.” 

Harry knew what ever it was Snape had to tell him he wasn’t going to like it. 

“How much do you remember about what lead up to you being brought here?” 

“Not much really sir I can remember being in the garden of my aunts house and the sun was really hot. Then I was in Dudley’s second bedroom. And the next I was waking up here.” 

“Well it seems your owl delivered a letter to the Weasley’s informing them that you had been injured….” Snape went on to tell Harry what had happened up until he had woken up in the infirmary. 

“So you see Harry, Professor Dumbledore and myself had to make a decision about you about who would take care of you, as the Dursley’s have been arrested for what they have done, and with any luck will never see the light of day again, but they had to sign guardianship over to someone else, if they hadn’t they could still have control over what happens in your life. They could have tried to stop me taking you away to get you treated, I would have turned them into pond dwellers if they had tried but it would have been an unnecessary complication. So Dumbledore got them to sign the papers. But the other thing is we don’t really want the ministry of magic or for that matter the minister himself looking too closely into things as that will complicate matters and complications are not what is needed now, Albus assures me that the matter in hand…. 

“Sir! “Harry said completely confused are you trying to tell me that I have a new guardian that I won’t be going back to my aunts?” 

Snape realised he had been rambling, “yes Harry that is correct.” 

“Who is it?” Harry asked quietly having a feeling what the answer was going to be but needing to hear it all the same. 

“Me Harry, I’m your guardian.” 

“No, why you? You don’t like me. Last year you made my school life hell. Most of the time I didn’t deserve it.  You look at me and all you see my dad, so why would you want to be my guardian?” 

“Now listen to me please,” and Snape took Harry gently by the shoulders.

“I agree my behaviour towards you last year was reprehensible. I admit when I looked at you I saw your father and I should have looked deeper and for that I am truly sorry.” 

Harry looked into the deep black eyes and held the gaze. 

“I heard what you said earlier you know, about breaking your promise to my mum what promise?” 

“I knew your mother when we were growing up. We were both eight when we met.

I was the one who told her she was a witch, she was muggle born so she didn’t know that all the strange little things that had been happening around her was magic. I saw her and your aunt in a park near our homes one day and your mother did a bit of accidental magic so I introduced myself. We became the very best of friends.

We would spend all our time together talking about magic and what great witches and wizards we would become. Your aunt was incessantly jealous of your mother and myself and would undermine us in every way.

She hated me. And she hated magic. She would call us freaks and unnatural.

In due course our Hogwarts letters arrived. We travelled to school together on the train and that’s where we first met James Potter.

I got sorted into Slytherin and your mother into Gryffindor along with Potter and his friends.

But we still managed to remain friends despite the best efforts of Potter and his friends.

That is until our sixth year when your father and his friends did something to me and I took it out on your mother and called her something I bitterly regret to this day.

We did not talk again until after we left school, by which time she was with your father and I had made the second biggest mistake of my life.

Your mother had not long found out she was expecting you and came to see me. She had forgiven me for what she called my schoolboy error, but I was finding it hard to forgive myself. But your mother was an incredibly stubborn and had decided that she wanted me back in her life.

She persuaded me to go and a see Dumbledore, as she knew I had gotten into something that I wanted out of and he was my only hope.

As you know they had to go into hiding not long after you were born.

But I got to see her once more before they did and she made me promise that if anything were to happen to her and Potter that I would protect you. I would be there for you.

When your parents were killed, you got placed away from the wizarding world. It was believed at the time that it would have been of greater benefit to you to grow up away from the nonsense and hype that surrounded the events of that night.

Then last year when you came to the school, and all I could see under that ridiculous mop of black hair and those glasses was your father and I forgot about my promise and how much your mother meant to me.” 

“But my mum died before she could really get to know me, so I don’t think she would hold you to that promise now.” 

Snape sat on the bed next to Harry. 

“Do not for one minute believe that. Your parents died to save your life they both loved you very much.” 

“Sir how much of my life do you know about? Harry asked, “You know with the Dursley’s” 

“I am aware that their treatment of you was less than adequate.”    

“I deserved all of it sir.” Harry murmured. 

“What exactly do you mean by that?” Harry Snape asked softly.

“I’m a burden you see on good hard working people, a freak and a good for nothing. A drain on my family. My aunt once told me that I should have died the same time as my parents and then there would be one less freak in the world.”

Harry was crying, silent tears falling freely down his face the emotions of the day finally breaking through. 

Snape took him in his arms.

“You are not a burden you are a child who deserves a proper life not one where you are continually berated, beaten and starved you are certainly not a freak.”  

 Harry pulled himself tighter into Snape’s embrace, sobs shuddering through him.

Snape wrapped his arms tighter around Harry’s small body tucking his head under his chin rocking him gently. 

“Hush now everything will be fine I promise you. Calm yourself,

if Madam Pomfrey came in here now and saw you like this she would feed me to the giant squid.” 

Harry gave a small laugh and for the first time in a long time he felt safe, he had a feeling of belonging. 

Snape could feel Harry settle so knowing he wouldn’t be moving anytime soon swung his long legs up onto the bed. 

“What you doing?” Harry asked 

“Getting comfortable, go to sleep Harry” 

“k, you still be here when I wake up?” 

“Well with you laying on me I’m not exactly going to be able to go anywhere am I? But yes child I will still be here when you wake up. Snape could feel Harry’s weight shift as the drifted off to sleep. He smoothed the messy hair gently thinking to himself, ‘I can do this, I won’t fail you again Lily, I will be there whenever Harry needs me.’ And settling back into a more comfortable position against the pillows Snape listened Harry’s gentle breathing and soon his eyes were too closed. 

When Dumbledore came to check on his boys some time later he smiled.

“I knew I had it right this time,” he said to himself, as he took a blanket off another bed and placed it over the sleeping forms.

“Pleasant dreams the pair of you.”

He said as he turned and left the ward closing the door quietly behind him.    

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* 

Harry had been in the infirmary for two day’s and although his injuries had been healed, he was still weak. He had begun to eat small meals and to take supplementary potions.

Snape rarely left his side and if he did Ron was there. 

Ron had refused to leave Hogwarts with his mother had when her services were no longer required.

He and Mrs Weasley had a long, loud argument outside the infirmary door much to the amusement of Dumbledore, Snape, Harry and Madam Pomfrey, who heard every word, especially the reference to Harry being bored with no one but a bunch of relics to keep him company and the resounding crack that followed.  

It was on the morning of the 31st of July and Harry’s 12th birthday that Madam Pomfrey decided that he could leave the hospital. She could see no real need for him to continue to be in bed any longer and had started getting him up and walking around the ward. 

Harry was dreading this. He felt safe in the confines of his hospital ward but what was going to happen now? Nothing had really been explained to him. He still felt unsure about the fact that Professor Snape was now going to take care of him,

What exactly did it mean, where was he going to go when he left the infirmary?

Harry began walking around the ward straightening the already tidy beds, a habit he had gotten into when something was bothering him. 

Snape had noticed this so sitting down he pulled Harry to him so that he was standing leaning against his legs. 

“Now then, are you going to tell me what’s bothering you, or are you going to remake all the beds before I guess?” 

Harry gave a small snort, “Well you know I can leave here today?

He looked at his guardian.

“I was just wondering where will I be going, will Ron and I be staying in the tower until school starts?” 

“No that won’t be suitable I don’t think that even the Gryffindor tower could withstand two twelve year olds left to their own devices. Harry you will be staying with me in my quarters until school starts, the castle has added an extra room to my chambers so there is plenty of room ok.” 

“Yes sir.” Harry felt a wave of relief wash over him. 

“Now then if you are ready, perhaps you would like to go and see where you will be sleeping?” he held out a hand to Harry as he stood up and pulled him into a hug.

“I told you I would look after you Harry and I Meant it.”

“Right, I think it is too far for you to walk on your first day out of here down to the dungeons,” Snape carried on a little more “briskly so we will use Madam Pomfrey’s fire.” 

And he led Harry into the office. 

“I’ve never done this before sir.” He told Snape 

“I didn’t think you would have but not to worry I will take you through its only an internal trip after all” 

Snape lifted down the small pot of floo powder off the shelf. 

“Sir you were wrong earlier you know?” 

“Oh yes Harry when?” 

“When you said about two twelve year olds in the tower, I’m only eleven.” 

Snape hoisted Harry into his arms and threw some of the powder of into the fire. 

“Snape’s quarters.” he said and stepped into the green flames. Harry closed his eyes. 

When they stepped out the other side Harry heard calls of: 

“Surprise!” 

“No Harry I was quite correct you are twelve, today is the 31st of July. Happy Birthday.” 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*