As Snape and the others approached the castle with Aurora, Harry tried not to glare at his mum's mother in the mean time. The twelve-year-old really couldn't help it. The blond, sapphire-eyed witch was a bitch. She was even worse than Lily, which Harry had never thought possible. He was quite glad to know, though, that he wasn't the only one who was glaring at Syra. Professor McGonagall was glaring daggers at the woman as well, looking like she was envisioning murdering the woman in fact. If his professor needed an alibi in order to get away with murder, Harry would happily give it.

So far since Syra had been there, she had been reading her daughter's medical file silently. McGonagall hadn't really been happy about that, but Pomfrey stated that Syra needed all the answers they had so far, so the young boy guessed it made sense. Well, actually it didn't really make any sense, but who was he to argue with adults?

"Interesting," Syra mouthed, shaking her head slowly.

"What?" Harry said, ever curious. He huffed when she only glared at him and turned away. He couldn't help it. He made a rude face behind her back and just barely restrained himself from flipping her the bird. Nasty hag.

"Do you think he found her yet?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"Probably," answered Draco with a shrug. "Or Pomfrey would be going nutters right now."

Harry had to agree with the blond. He swung his legs again, which Syra had harshly commented earlier was an annoying trait of a brat. He didn't know why, but he felt like everything would be all right now. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but he liked to believe it regardless. He was just about to kick the ground in boredom when the doors burst open suddenly. His green eyes darted to the doorway, and a grin spread wildly across his face.

"Dad!" Harry shouted happily, hopping up and rushing towards him and his mum. Only when the young boy got closer and saw his mum, he stopped dead in his tracks. He gasped and made a strangled noise. "No . . ."

"She's alive, Harry," announced his dad, gently setting her atop of the nearest cot.

Harry watched Madam Pomfrey and Syra swiftly move to either side of the cot, their wands moving over his mum as they completed their scans together. Both witches had intense looks on their faces. He glanced at his dad, noticing him sit down in one of the nearby chairs. Harry's eyes then darted to his grandparents as they approached.

"Is she all right?" the young twelve-year-old asked. No one replied, though. "Is she going to be all right?" Harry repeated, his voice shaking slightly. Still, no one answered. "Please."

"Quit your sniveling, brat," Syra snapped, not bothering to look at him. "Your tears won't do her any good anyway."

"Kindly hold your tongue when you're speaking to my grandson," Eileen hissed. "Or I shall make sure that you never speak again."

Syra remained silent for a long while, which only added more to everyone's unease. Her wand moved methodically over her daughter before she paused. Her cold sapphire eyes flickered to Harry suddenly with a concentrated look on her face. She seemed to be working something out in her head.

"My daughter performed the Martyr's Gift last year on you, didn't she?"

"She did," Madam Pomfrey answered, cutting Harry off before he could answer. "Why?"

"Of course. I'm such an idiot." Syra shook her head sharply as if she had all the answers now. "It's not a sickness that's ravaging her."

"Then, what is it?"

"You assumed it was a complex illness based on increased production of leukocytes, correct?"

Madam Pomfrey nodded slowly.

"Normally, that'd be a correct assumption to use as a starting point. However, I'd imagine you found no bacterial or viral evidence in her blood?"

"None. But something is clearly affecting her."

"Agreed." Syra's frown deepened. "However, it's not what you thought. When she performed the Martyr's Gift last year on the boy, she essentially swapped her life force with his. Therefore, I'd imagine the boy is quite gifted when it comes to charms, but pathetic when it comes to concentration."

"Hey!" Harry glared at his mum's mother.

"Keeping that in mind, if anything harmful was inside of the boy, it would have transferred into her during this moment."

"But Mister Potter was fine, though. Severely underweight because of his atrocious Muggle guardians, but we were correcting that."

"Something you couldn't see on any of your scans, Madam," Syra gently corrected.

"I don't follow."

"His soul." Syra sighed heavily. "I'll assume since you are skilled in the arts of healing and not in the dark arts that you have no prior knowledge of Horcruxes."

Harry watched his dad start instantly at that strange word.

"Horcrux?" Harry's dad repeated quietly, blinking once.

"Yes. Your former master, it seemed, created one, Mr. Snape, by using your son's Muggleborn mother's murder. The container, I would imagine, was your son's soul. However, when my daughter went against the very laws of nature and practically sacrificed herself for your son, she absorbed the Horcrux into herself. In other words, the Horcrux is the sickness affecting her. It would seem that the active bits still inside her from the serum are attempting to—for the lack of a better word—destroy it. However, that is next to impossible to do, so her energy is all behind this task."

"Can you remove it?"

Harry watched Syra close her eyes and quickly felt his gut clench. Whatever her answer was, he had a feeling it wasn't going to be good. He swallowed and waited with an abated breath.

"There are two options to removing a Horcrux. The first is highly unlikely. It would require Riddle to repent for killing the boy's mother." They glanced at the unconscious man far from them.

"Fat chance of that happening," Harry's grandpa drawled. "Next?"

"The other option is to damage the vessel beyond all repair."

Harry's bright green eyes narrowed on the blond witch in confusion. For the first time since he had met her, the young boy could hear remorse in her voice. He glanced at the adults in the room who were now strangely silent.

"What does that mean, Dad?" Harry asked softly, glancing at his father.

"It means if Aurora's the vessel, she has to die in order to remove the Horcrux."

"What? No! There can't—that can't be it!" Harry felt his panic overwhelm him. His mum had to die? That was absurd and stupid and a list of other things. "There has to be some other way. Couldn't someone else do the thing she did last year and take this Hore thing?" His eyes flickered to each silent adult, feeling his grief bubble up inside him. It couldn't end like this. It just couldn't. Not when his dad and he were so close to having a family.

"There may be another option," Syra suggested several minutes later. "It would definitely be a Slytherin approach, but it could work."

"Name it," Harry's dad demanded.

"If I'm correct in my understanding, you and my daughter share a link between each other now."

"A very chaotic and unstable one," Madam Pomfrey chimed in.

"That may be, but it is a link nonetheless, Poppy." Syra closed her eyes and sighed, the tension rolling off her before quickly returning. "You've not finished the link, however. Likely why you and she become so drained upon awakening. If it is the link I believe you are creating, a binding of your souls, it could perhaps be used to save her."

"How?"

"Theoretically, to destroy a Horcrux you just need to destroy the vessel beyond all repair so it has no power to draw off from anymore. In Aurora's case, destroying the vessel would be with her death. However, there have been cases shown where individuals have been medically dead for fifteen minutes before they were successfully revived."

"Are you suggesting we kill your daughter and bring her back to life later?"

"Yes," Syra said with a confident nod. "You know as well as I do, Pomfrey, of the documented cases that I speak of. It can be done."

"It's been done a handful of times. And all solely through some sort of divine intervention."

"That may be the case, but we can at least attempt it."

"Attempt it?" shrieked the matron. "You're insane. Certifiably." Pomfrey pressed a hand to her chest, shaking her head fiercely. "Have you forgotten our oaths to do no harm since you've retired?"

"I haven't. I am well aware of the consequences if this does not work. However, I am choosing to put my faith in Severus."

Harry and his dad both blinked.

"Put your faith in me? I don't follow."

Syra slowly turned to Harry's dad. "You claim to love my daughter."

"It's not a claim. I do love Aurora," Harry's dad firmly countered.

Harry couldn't help but grin before he quickly hid his excitement. He felt like cheering and doing a little dance of glee. His dad loved his mum. Of course Harry knew this because his dad had shouted it twice to Grandmum and Grandpa, but it was always nice to hear again especially with his dad actually saying his mum's name.

"Now is your chance to prove how much you love her, Severus." Syra looked horribly concerned now. Her eyes had lost their usual coldness and adopted a sadder look to them. Her voice had lost its usual hardness as well, being replaced by worry. Maybe she did love her daughter after all. "If you truly love her as much as you claim, then we shouldn't lose her."

"Go on."

"Your minds join when using the link, so for a bit you share a consciousness. It is possible—all theoretical of course—for someone such as you to latch onto her consciousness, onto her soul during that time. It would be difficult, mind you. You'd likely feel her being tugged away at times. But if your link is strong enough and your love for her is powerful, you may be able to hold onto her for the necessary time needed to allow us to remove the Horcrux from her."

"You would kill them both, Syra," interrupted Madam Pomfrey.

"No. Only if his feelings for her aren't real. They've already started the link, Poppy. Instinctively nonetheless. With no conscious thought in making it. You said as much in your report. If that doesn't prove his love for her being strong enough, I don't know what would."

"Yes, but it doesn't make sense how they started it. First, they had only been dating for three months prior to her kidnapping. And second, they didn't make a conscious choice in it."

Harry watched his dad think for a moment before the older man cleared his throat.

"The conditions are met for us, Poppy," Harry's dad quietly said. "I would consider Aurora to be my best friend. She certainly knows more about me than anyone else. She was there with me the night Lily died, in fact." He paused, glancing down. "When I'm around her, I don't feel so angry, so hurt, so conflicted as I usually do. She just calms me somehow. She makes me want to be a better person by showing me that my grave mistakes of my youth doesn't define me or control my fate today. I do." He ran a hand through his hair. "She's always been by my side. I just never noticed it before this year." He shook his head slowly. "She's accepted every part of me, good and the bad with no judgment or feelings of spite. And she believed in me when I didn't even believe in myself." He gave a soft laugh. "In fact, she'd write me a damn letter every summer, telling me she hoped I got the Defense position that year. And each year when it was published that it wasn't me, she'd send me a bottle of Firewhiskey with a short message. I never read the messages, of course. I'd toss them away and just enjoy partaking in the liquor instead. She sent one this summer actually, and I didn't bother to read it."

Harry's grandmum's exasperated sigh instantly drew the boy's attention away from his dad. His eyes narrowed on his grandmother when he saw her staring at his dad with a frown.

"Amor vincit omnia," Syra quietly spoke.

"Love conquers all things," translated Harry's dad, glancing at the blond witch.

"Indeed." She nodded slowly. "If we do this, it must be done soon so it's on our terms."

"What do I need to do?" He held up a hand to silence Madam Pomfrey instantly. No doubt, the matron would be headstrong against it, whatever it was.

"Center yourself and then use your link to find her. When you do, hold onto her as long as you can. No matter what, do not let go of her. The rest will come naturally to you." Syra paused. "We will take care of our end. You take care of your end now before she doesn't have enough strength left."

Harry watched his dad jerk his head before the man closed his eyes and sat back. Whatever it was that his dad was doing, he hoped it worked. The young boy stood off to the side, horribly unsure of what to do now. His eyes observed Syra slowly pass her wand over his mum, a whitish glow trailing the tip of her wand. He frowned at this sight, knowing that it had to be a result of some spell she was casting on his mum. But which spell he had no idea. He hadn't heard her say a word.

At the sudden movement of his dad, Harry's eyes darted to the chair. His brows furrowed when he saw that the chair had now been transfigured into a cot with his dad now lying down. He turned to Syra and Madam Pomfrey in confusion. It was his grandmother who answered, though.

"It's to make him more comfortable, dear. Nothing to worry about."

Harry nodded. He supposed that made sense. His dad likely would have gotten a stiff neck trying to do whatever it was he was doing sitting like that for a long period of time. The twelve-year-old hovered close to his parents, biting his lower lip. He wanted to help somehow, but it looked like everyone had it well in hand. He'd just wait, then.

"Eileen?" Syra said suddenly, glancing towards his grandmother.

"Yes?" Harry could hear his grandmum biting back her annoyance.

"You're aware of blood magic, aren't you?"

"Some, yes." His grandmother nodded slowly. "Why? Are you planning on us performing the asinine ritual I think you're thinking of?"

"It would be the easiest on them."

"Perhaps it's escaped your notice, Syra," his grandmother bitingly stated, "but unlike you, I don't make a habit of hurting my son."

"He needs all the help he can get."

"Agreed, but that is by far the most stupidest—"

"Do you have a better option?" Syra interrupted, huffing.

"No."

"Then, logically, we do everything we can to give him the best chance of success. Correct?"

Harry glanced at his grandmother, noticing her disgusted look. She clearly didn't like whatever Syra was talking about. Then again, he didn't blame her. Syra enjoyed others' pain for some reason.

"Correct?" Syra repeated.

"I'm not five," his grandmother growled, crossing her arms and frowning deeply. "It's an asinine ritual based on idiotic logic from the bloody medieval times."

"But it works, Eileen."

"How much more could these two possibly be bound together with? Honestly. They'll be bound by magic, by soul, by you name it. And you want to add blood on top of that."

"I assure you it's not an option I'm particularly thrilled in suggesting, but it is something that could make it easier for them."

"Why? Because you're a complete dunderhead who believes the pureblood propaganda about—"

"Oh, please." Syra rolled her eyes, scoffing. "This has nothing to do with your son being a half-blood, and you know it, Eileen."

"Well, it surely can't be about not hurting your child, because it sounds like you've never given a damn about her since before she was born."

Harry winced, glancing at his dad. In a way, he envied his father right now. The man wasn't there mentally to hear the witches' bickering. He frowned, wanting to reach for his dad's hand but not doing so out of fear that it'd startle him.

"Fine! I'll do the stupid asinine goddamn ritual with you! But only because it'll help my son."

"Thank you."

Slowly, the young boy turned back to his grandmothers. He winced. Was he truly thinking of Syra as his grandmother now? That was a horrifying thought. Looking on silently, he watched the witches make identical cuts to his parents' palms.

"Join their hands together, dear," his grandmum instructed. "And send them all your love."

Harry nodded sharply before he placed his mum's slender hand into his dad's calloused one. Closing his eyes, he gave them every bit of love he had. Please let this work.

~FKTF~

Darkness didn't greet Severus this time, unlike all the times before when he had used their link. Instead, he found himself standing on the lush grounds of Hogwarts near the lake's edge. He quickly glanced around his surroundings, searching for her. With a faint smile, he noted the large mossy boulder with the lone white clad figure perched atop it. He strode with purpose towards her as she silently looked out onto the white capped lake, seemingly not noticing his presence at all.

"Aurora," he whispered, quickly kneeling in front of her when he reached her. Her warm eyes flickered to him for a brief moment before she returned to watching the waves. "I see you found our boulder," he drawled, attempting to add some levity to the situation at hand.

Their first time together was against this mossy soft boulder. Not against the real boulder on the grounds of Hogwarts, of course. But on Halloween after he had met his father face to face and spoken with the man in the tunnels, his and Aurora's temporary bedroom created for them that night a replica of this exact spot, mossy soft boulder and all. He had drawled at the time that it was clearly her fantasy the room was attempting to recreate, since he wasn't one for shagging outdoors or under the stars for that matter usually. However, he'd admit now that it was the most perfect night he'd had.

"We have waves like this at Windsor some days," she divulged emotionlessly. "They crash against the cliffs and make such a horrible sound. Like a hundred glass vases shattering repeatedly."

He nodded slowly, watching her stare out with a blank expression in her eyes. She seemed . . . empty now. As if every bit of her had been removed and all that remained was a shell. That thought caused him to shiver.

"When I was little, I used to be terrified hearing it. I was convinced the waves would break through the cliffs and send us into the sea one day." She swallowed slowly, drawing in a shallow breath. "That one day I'd find myself drowning, staring up through the water as I died alone."

He quickly pulled her against him, wrapping his arms around her and holding her tightly.

"I won't let you drown, Aurora. I promise." He watched her eyes dart to his before she looked away again. He could see the unshed tears in her eyes and resisted the instinctive urge to wipe them away. He wished there was a way to help her. To let her know that everything would be all right. But he couldn't because he wasn't even certain himself that it would be.

"Oh, Severus," she whispered. "You can't promise that. No one can." She sighed quietly. "It's odd, you know?"

"What is?" He couldn't shake how withdrawn, defeated, and lost she seemed now. He'd make sure she would be all right in the end. She wouldn't be another witch he lost.

"Realizing you're dying," she answered flatly, staring blankly out at the crashing waves.

His breath caught in the back of his throat. He held her tighter in his arms. He wouldn't let her go. He couldn't let her go. Not like this. Not when they were so damn close to happiness, true happiness.

"Can you hear them?" she asked quietly, not turning away.

"Hear whom?" The only things he heard were the roaring waves and her talking.

"The voices." She paused. "I can't make them out, but I can hear their whispers out there."

He closed his eyes tightly. It scared him to hear her words. He wanted desperately to tell her to fight against it, but he recalled her mother's words. The vessel needed to be damaged beyond repair or the Horcrux wouldn't be destroyed. As long as he held onto her, though, she'd be fine. Theoretically.

"Hey, don't be sad," she breathed, a hand cupping his cheek lovingly.

He glanced at her. His words again were failing him. He turned into her palm, holding her eyes. He wished he could tell her what they were doing. Let her know that he wasn't giving up on her. That they were going to save her. That they would outsmart the Horcrux. But he couldn't. Not unless he wanted to jeopardize the plan.

"It doesn't hurt. It's actually kind of soothing, I guess. Like falling asleep."

The waves kicked up then, slamming harder against the quickly eroding shoreline. Where there had been grass once, there was now sand and rocks. Swaying violently in the sudden wind, many of the trees in the distance bent and touched the ground, nearly snapping in half. Water sprayed up over them as the waves reached the boulder every now and then.

"Stay with me," he begged, his voice cracking as he felt her being tugged away from him. No . . .

~FKTF~

Harry cried openly when he heard Madam Pomfrey state that his mum's heart had stopped. His green eyes looked on horrified, watching the witches quickly transfigure his mum's and his dad's cots into steel tubs before they filled it full of ice packed around his parents. He felt arms encircle him, but the young boy couldn't bear to look away.

"It'll be okay," Harry's grandfather quietly whispered, embracing Harry.

"Severus's heartbeat is now slowing as well," Pomfrey informed, glancing towards Syra.

"So I see," Syra replied with a nod, her eyes reading the floating numbers above the couple's ice baths. "As long as we keep their core temperatures down, though, we shouldn't run a risk of any permanent damage."

Both witches added even more ice until his mum and dad were completely covered with ice. Harry had to look away from his mum at one point when he saw the bloody ice cubes. Didn't they see that? It couldn't just be him that was seeing it.

"Why aren't you doing anything?" Harry demanded with a shaky voice.

"There's nothing we can do at this point, Mister Potter, except keep their core temperatures low," Madam Pomfrey answered, glancing at him with a somber look.

"Mum's bleeding, though!"

"We're aware, Potter."

"If you're so damn aware, then why aren't you doing anything?" Harry shouted, glaring at Syra and Pomfrey. How could they be so calm right now? His parents were dying!

"Hush," his grandmum lightly scolded, turning him away from the sight.

"They're dying, Grandmum," Harry cried. Why wasn't anyone helping them? Why were they all just standing around doing nothing? He trembled, wrapping his arms tighter around himself. He was finally going to have a family. A mum and a dad for once. Who loved him. Didn't they understand that? Didn't they care? His world was coming apart at the seams, and they just stood there. "Do something!"

"Come on. Let's get you—"

"NO!" Harry screamed, wrenching himself out of his grandfather's arms when the man tried to steer him away. "I'm not leaving them!"

"Enough, young man," admonished his grandmum, who gave him a deep frown of disapproval. "We understand this is difficult for you to watch. It's difficult for us to watch as well. But that does not give you the right to act like this. Now, you either control yourself or we'll—"

"It's my family!" Harry shouted.

"It's mine as well, you brat," snapped Eileen. "He may be your father, but he's my son."

"I love them, and they promised they wouldn't—"

"Oh, dear Merlin," his grandmother groaned loudly, glancing upwards in annoyance. "Of course they promised they wouldn't leave you. However, you acting like this won't make that promise be kept any better, will it?" Her eyes hardened when Harry glared at her. "If I were you, I'd best direct that glare elsewhere, young man, before you find yourself with a sore bottom," she threatened.

"They promised!"

"They're not dead yet, you insufferable brat!" Eileen huffed. "If you had bothered to listen to what Syra had said earlier, you'd know that we have at most a half an hour window to work with before permanent damage sets in. Meaning that we have a half an hour before they stay dead forever. So before you start thinking that they lied to you and whatever else that's going through your foolish head, realize that the time is not up yet."

"Mum's heart stopped beating!" Harry angrily threw back, swiping at the fat tears on his cheeks.

"So? Look at her." His grandmother pointed at his mum. "She's in an ice bath. Completely covered. Which means that the rate of decay and tissues dying is slow. They can still bring her back once the Horcrux is destroyed. They're just fooling the Horcrux into believing that she's dead. That's it. You'll still get your mother and father. Or did you truly think that your mum means that much to your dad that he'd allow himself to die with her?"

Harry frowned grumpily. He didn't like this at all. It sounded like a dumb idea. Like a Gryffindor idea in fact. He huffed, kicking the ground. When he had his parents back for good, he was grounding them for life for this.

Green eyes darted to his parents a moment later. His brows furrowed instantly when he saw his parents glow, his dad's glow shades darker than his mum's. He whirled around and looked at Pomfrey.

"What's going on?" Harry asked with an edge to his voice. "Why are they glowing like that?"

"Their magic is combining because of their bond."

"But they're dying."

"Their minds are still linked, though." As if to prove her point, Madam Pomfrey pointed to the floating identical squiggles above his parents. "Those lines represent your parents' cerebral activities currently. They're identical as you can see."

"So, Mum's heart stopped, but not her mind?"

"Something like that, yes." Syra nodded slowly, picking up where Pomfrey left off. "Your father is a Legilimens, someone skilled in the Mental Arts. As such, he is able to penetrate others' minds. So, while her body continues to shut down, her mind being the last thing, he is drawing her consciousness into his mind temporarily."

"Won't the Horcrux notice that and stop it?"

"No. Not as long as your dad doesn't make it noticeable what he's doing. Considering that he is also an Occlumens, someone who has disciplined his mind in a way not to allow others to see his true thoughts, that shouldn't be an issue with him."

"So, Dad's lying to the Horcrux?" He caught Syra and Eileen's faint smiles.

"In a way, yes."

"What is this thing anyway? This Horcrux?"

"It's extremely dark magic. Darker than the Unforgivables even. It goes against the very laws of nature itself, not to mention morals since you have to murder to create one. But if you create a Horcrux successfully, then you cheat death and cannot die. A piece of your soul latches onto an object and acts as an anchor basically for you."

"I had a piece of his soul in me?" Harry shuddered, grimacing as he felt his stomach lurch.

"So it would seem. However, when my daughter last year performed the Martyr's gift on you, she swapped your life force with hers in essence and absorbed that dark magic. It does not appear to have latched onto hers, though."

"You can see people's souls?"

"We can see traces of magic that latch onto it. The darker it is, the easier it is for us to see."

Harry nodded. That made sense. It was sort of like how people could tell at night when driving how far away the nearest city was. The lighter the sky was the closer a city was up ahead.

"So, when will we know when the Horcrux has been removed?"

"When a giant dark mass comes roaring out of her," Harry's grandfather answered quietly.

"Excuse me?" Several of the witches turned to him, raising their eyebrows at him. Harry even looked at him in shock. Since when did his grandfather know about things like this?

"Uh, well, you see," his grandfather stumbled saying, rubbing the back of his neck. "According to Dumbledore, that diary was one." Harry's grandfather shrugged. "I had it down there in the chamber with me when I slay that giant snake, and, well, as far as I know, not a lot of books bleed when you stab them with a Basilisk's fang."

"You stabbed a book, Tobias?" His grandmother sounded horrified.

"Well, yeah, but it was an evil book, El."

"It was still a book."

"A soul-sucking evil book," his grandfather argued.

"If you stabbed Mum now with that, would it be faster than waiting like we are?" Harry chewed the bottom of his lip. Normally, he was against violence like this, but he hated waiting. He swallowed when everyone's eyes, including Draco and Hermione's, stared at him. "I was just asking."

"It would be faster, yes," Syra replied hesitatingly. "We would likely need a phoenix to remove the venom later, though." She sighed, shaking her head. "However, it would be overkill, and likely result in us not being able to revive her later."

"Oh." Harry sighed. "I was just wondering."

"And to think, I thought you were bad, Syra," Pomfrey remarked quietly, slowly turning away from Harry to glance back at the floating vitals.

The young Gryffindor frowned. It was just a question. It wasn't like he actually stabbed his mum with a fang. His eyes darted to his parents, noticing that their glow was gone. He guessed that meant they were now bound magically to one another. He then looked at the squiggles Pomfrey had pointed out earlier and narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"Mum's squiggle is gone."

"Look at your father's."

Harry did and pulled his head back in surprise. His father had two squiggle lines now.

"So, Dad has a hold of her consciousness now?"

"For the moment." She paused. "We'll need massive doses of Blood Replenishing."

"Agreed. Invigoration draught for both of them might help as well," Syra replied quietly.

"It'll be months before she'll be strong enough again. And who knows what sorts of mental trauma she's gone through? I'm finding—"

"I'm seeing the same readings as you," Syra interrupted, frowning.

Harry slowly approached his parents, chewing even more on his bottom lip. His grandparents hovered close by for some reason, but he did his best to ignore it. In fact, everyone else including him seemed to be ignoring the fact that there was some strange unconscious man tied up on a cot at the far end of the hospital wing under Shacklebolt and Dumbledore's watch and not asking questions.

The young boy raised his arm to rest his hand atop of his parents' before he gasped as a large black evil cloud thing roared out of his mum's chest. Green eyes watched in horror as the black screaming mass shot through the ceiling and disappeared. That was the Horcrux? He couldn't move. He couldn't breathe. He trembled before screaming his delayed panic. Hands suddenly seized him and wrenched him back even further. That was the thing that had been inside him? That black evil blob? He hugged fiercely whoever grabbed him, hearing Syra's commanding voice behind him.

"Seal her wounds first, Pomfrey. Then, we'll concentrate on the revival spell."

~FKTF~

Many minutes prior to the Horcrux's destruction, Snape saw everywhere he looked the white capped waves crashing around them in their shared connection. Hogwarts was destroyed in this dream-like state. All that remained was them atop of the boulder, the crashing waves, and the ominous skies.

Pulling Aurora further up their boulder, he tried to keep her from the violently churning water. His arms, still tightly around her, held her against him with every bit of strength he had. More than a few times he had turned them away as the angry waves slammed into the boulder's sides and sent up the foamy spray.

He couldn't go through with the plan. Not anymore. They could find some other way to remove the Horcrux from her. He wasn't going to lose her. He wasn't going to risk it. Not this time. He had risked so much already. Lily. Harry. Himself. His mother. He was going to play it safe. Keep her safe.

"Shh, love," Aurora whispered. It had been her chant for the past few minutes after he had begged her to stay with him. "It'll be all right."

"No. No it won't. You belong with me," he argued fiercely, his usual emotional detachment long gone. The metaphorical mask he had hid his softer side behind over the years was breaking. More jagged pieces broke off and allowed Severus to be peek through the rough harsh metaphorical Snape mask he had worn to protect himself from heartbreak. "I can't live without you," he admitted with a crackling voice. He didn't want to imagine a world where he raised his son alone. Not when he'd had a taste of what it was like to be a real family. He had enjoyed coming home to see Aurora and Harry laughing over some shared joke. He had grown accustomed to being curled around her at night, to the morning breath that sent them into a fit of giggles, but most of all to being loved back for once.

"You don't love me."

"I do."

"No you don't. You love Lily. Not me." She rubbed her thumb against his lips. "You can't love me when your heart already belongs to another."

"That's not true." He watched her glance away. The waves were increasing again, churning the water even more. He held his breath and braced them when a large wave hit the boulder and sent up a high surge of water. "You can't give up. Not yet. Harry needs you. I need you." Once he'd have thought snidely how pathetic he was for begging a woman, but now he didn't give a damn about any of that. She was his, and he was hers.

"You'll find someone who is worthier of your—"

"No! Listen to me, witch!" He just barely held back from shaking her. "My son needs to have you as his mother. Someone who loves him unconditionally and shows him time after time that you will always love him no matter what." He felt his insides quiver slightly. "You connected with him long before I ever did. You made him feel loved before I did. You did everything; every damn thing a mother does for her son. You protected him. You loved him. You cared for him when he was ill. You helped him with his schoolwork for Felix Felicis' sake." He felt the tears slid down his cheeks. "Please. Please don't let my son lose another mother. Lose you!"

"You don't understand," she cried back, her voice shaking.

"Don't give up on us, Aurora. Please. We won't give up on you. I promise. Harry and I, we'll be right there with you every day you recover. We'll fetch you the morning paper." He half-laughed, keeping the horrible sobs that wanted to erupt out of him at bay for a bit longer. "We'll bring you breakfast in bed. Whatever you want. No complaints. I swear. Hell, I'll move into your tower just so you're comfortable, at ease. Just please, please don't give up on us. We need you. I need you, Aurora."

"You don't—"

"Next year, I promise you that it'll be us on the platform at King's Cross. We'll help Harry get all settled in, just like a family. You and me waving like pathetic parents, me trying not to—" His voice broke suddenly, but he inhaled sharply and tried to continue. "Trying not to be emotional like all the other damn fathers who sent their children off years earlier. You punching me in the arm." He laughed, clenching his jaw tighter as he kept from breaking down right there with her. "Telling me that I've grown soft. Harry smiling and telling us to knock it off, that we're embarrassing the little brat. That's what awaits us. All you need to do is fight. Fight for us, Aurora. Please!"

"He did something to me," she cried, her body shaking in his arms. "He did something to me. I don't know what it is. But I felt it . . . I feel it even now."

"We'll get past this," he firmly stated, kissing the top of her head and closing his eyes. "We will. We'll move past all this crap that's happened as a family. Together."

"I-I don't feel right anymore," she continued, sniffling. "I don't feel—he did something to me. Something other than torturing me. I screamed. And screamed. And screamed until I couldn't anymore. I felt him. Felt the blade. I tried to fight. I did!" She openly sobbed against him. "I couldn't, though. Fudge—I saw him."

He stiffened instantly. The Minister of Magic was there? His dark eyes darted down to her as she continued revealing the trauma she endured.

"Leonidas showed me off to him, to Fudge. He called me his little pet. I tried to call out to Fudge, to beg him to help me. I couldn't. Every time I tried, something shot through me, keeping me quiet. He put something in me, Severus. Something to make me comply with his orders."

"Fudge's?"

"No. Leonidas's. He showed me off to Fudge. Ordered me to, to—There was so much blood. I, I don't even remember what happened. One moment I hear Leonidas order me to, to . . . and the next I'm covered in blood. Fudge smiled at me. He told Leonidas that he wanted more like me, more to use."

"Why?"

"I don't know." She shook her head, inhaling with a soft whimper. "He did something to me."

"We'll fix it. Whatever it is, we'll fix it."

"You can't," she cried, suddenly trying to pull herself out of his arms. She struggled against him, trying to reach the water. "No. Let me go! Just let me go. Please? Just let me go. It'll be . . . let me go. I don't want to hurt you or Harry. Please."

"Enough! It'll be fine. I promise you!" He tightened his hold on her and wrestled to keep her in his arms. She was trying like hell to reach the water. "Aurora, stop it!" She didn't, though. Thrashing wildly in his arms, she tried numerous times to break free of his hold.

"No. Please. Just let me go. Let me die in peace!" she pleaded through tears.

"Never!" he fiercely replied, pulling her back from the water's edge. He wouldn't let her go no matter what. He wouldn't fail this time.

"I'm broken now."

"Then, I'll put you piece by piece back together until you're whole again."

"Dad, you really shouldn't tell lies like that," a familiar voice spoke from the waves.

His head whipped towards it, feeling Aurora flinch instinctively. There standing in the violent water was his son. Only Harry's recognizable green eyes were replaced with red. He glared at the image of his son, knowing that it was just a representation of the Horcrux inside Aurora.

"Harry," Aurora breathed.

"You left me, Mum. How could you leave me after promising you wouldn't? You never loved me, did you? You're just like her, just like Lily." The Horcrux-Harry scoffed. "Actually, you know, I think I would rather have her as my mother than you. At least she doesn't betray me. Doesn't lie to me."

"I haven't, sweetheart. I promise. I haven't," Aurora replied, shaking her head as she held Horcrux-Harry's angry red eyes.

"Aurora, it's an illusion. It's not Harry," Severus whispered, blinking as he stared at the boy.

"I bet Dad prefers Mother over you as well. Probably thought of her when you two were together in fact. You're just a distraction. He'll toss you aside for my birth mother any day."

"No. That's not true," Severus argued, shaking his head.

"Tsk, tsk. Grandmum wouldn't be too happy with you for telling lies, Dad." Horcrux-Harry laughed sinisterly, his eyes darkening. "Just do it, Mum. Do us all a favor. Let go and stop hurting us. Unless you really think Dad could ever love you once he knew your dark secret."

He felt Aurora stiffen again. Dark secret? What dark secret? He then shook his head. Whatever it was he didn't care. He'd stay strong and keep holding onto her.

"Maybe I should tell him. Save him the heartbreak."

"No . . ." Aurora begged, crying and trembling.

"Go ahead. It won't change anything," Severus stated, raising an eyebrow. He quickly readied himself for whatever this dark secret of hers was. He'd love her no matter what. It wouldn't change anything. He wouldn't let the Horcrux win and take her from him.

"What do you say, Mum? Do you want to tell him or shall I? I'm sure Dad is just itching to know the real reason why you were at St. Mungo's the night of my birth."

The black eyes narrowed as Severus thought back on Aurora's medical file. She was admitted for three days. The reason, however, had been heavily redacted. He could hear in his head Pomfrey saying "And no matter what happens, you'll always love them. Nothing can ever change that." It wouldn't change anything. He'd still love her no matter what the Horcrux said.

"Well, go on then. Tell me already." He wouldn't let the Horcrux gain any more power.

"Mum was pregnant the same time Lily was, Dad. With a Death Eater's child. She wouldn't get rid of it like any other woman would do in her situation. She wanted a child that badly. At the first sign of trouble with her pregnancy, she went to St. Mungo's and begged them to save her bastard child. The Marauders were there already because of me being born. So, when Sirius Black saw her, he went off to be with her, to support her since she was all alone. She held his hand, Dad. Willingly. And cried on his shoulder when the healer told her that she had miscarried."

Severus closed his eyes tightly and hugged Aurora even more against him. He brushed off the mentioning of his childhood tormentor and found himself focusing solely on the fact that she had miscarried. She'd have been a year younger than Lily at the time. A young woman herself. Did anyone else know this other than Pomfrey and Black?

"No wonder she slipped into your—"

"ENOUGH!" she yelled, wrenching partly out of Severus's arms to fling her arm towards the dark image of their son. A bright white light shot from her and slammed into Horcrux-Harry. A horrible scream then erupted before the now black blurry silhouette of Harry exploded, pieces sailing off and vanishing soon after. Her body slackened instantly, the energy zapped from her.

Severus took more of her weight, keeping his firm hold on her. His eyes watched the water lap over the boulder. He frowned, pulling her towards the center of the rock. He had to keep her from the water, keep them away from it. His eyes widened when he saw the hands coming up from the waves.

"Oh, lovely," he mumbled. He tried to reach for where his wand usually was in his sleeve, frowning openly when he didn't feel it in his familiar black billowing robes. He supposed he should have guessed that on second thought. Having a wand would be too damn easy. His eyes glanced down at Aurora before he inhaled slowly as he noticed more of her attire.

Her feet were hidden underneath the many long folds of nearly transparent material. It didn't so much flow around her legs as float, the thin material catching even the smallest breeze underneath it. The thin material hung loosely below her belly button, leaving the soft skin of her stomach exposed. Her full perfectly rounded breasts were barely covered by the same white material, but pressed up against him so he could feel her fully. He wondered how the thin material could hide anything underneath it. It wrapped snuggly around her upper chest, but pieces hung loosely down the sides, touching the tops of her hips, and blending with the bottom material. The sleeves, attached just barely to the top, loosened significantly around her elbows. By the time it reached her wrist, the sleeve was so broad and loose that it blended flawlessly with the many transparent folds of the skirt. Dressed like a goddess one would say.

"Inferi," she whispered, the creatures slowly crawling towards them.

"I know." He couldn't use his magic to keep the Inferi back since they were only products of their shared link. Not wanting to risk being pulled from her, he crossed off physically pushing them away. So that left only one option, holding her as long and hard as he could.

"Severus," she murmured, her eyes starting to close as she became even limper in his arms.

He brushed back her long dark curls. He had to finish their link now. She was getting even weaker. Not to mention, the Inferi were now all around and grabbing them to pull them to their deaths.

"Amor vincit omnia," he spoke loudly and firmly. He noticed her confusion and repeated. "Amor vincit omnia." He thought how badly he needed her to finish it.

"Et nos," she swallowed "cedamus amori."

He nodded. Warmth spread through him, demonstrating their bond was stabilizing finally. There was something else he felt now, something indescribable. He wrenched them back from the Inferi that pulled them into the water and kept his focus on her. A soft light had surrounded her now.

"Amor vincit omnia." Love conquers all things.

"Et nos cedamus amori." So let us too surrender to love.

He kept repeating the phrase with her while the Inferi continued to grab and try to pull them apart. He tightened his hold around her. They'd not split. He'd stay with her until the very end. She would not drown alone.

He wrestled to break them free of the deadly grasps that pulled them even deeper into the murky water. The light above them slowly faded, his strength waning as well. They were falling even deeper, death likely imminent now as they were dragged closer to it.

With his son in his mind and his witch in his arms, he fought against death dragging them to the depths of hell. His son would have parents. Harry would not lose them. They deserved a happy ending. They deserved to be a family. All of them. Harry, Aurora, him, Tobias, Eileen, hell he'd even rope Syra the bitch into his family someday.

Severus would have that crazy arse family that he had always wanted. He would be loved and love them just as much. He would pull a Lucius Malfoy and walk around with Aurora on his arm. He'd be one of those doting fathers as well, going on about how perfect his son was. He'd cheer his goddamn head off at the next Quidditch match for his son. The way it should have been from the start!

He could feel them being propelled up to the surface. He kept thinking about all the things they would do now as a family once they returned—and they would return back to the waking world. They could go whitewater rafting for all he cared. Hell, he might even get another tattoo and add to his lily with stars one he already had! This wasn't the end. No. It was the freaking beginning to something amazing. He was Severus Tobias Snape, and by Felix Felicis he would get his well-deserved happy ending even if he had to destroy the entire world for it.

He was rambling and not making sense and acting like a Hufflepuff. But there were worse things in the world. He would have his second chance and make the most of it. Wedding, babies, everything.

~FKTF~

Harry watched his father sleep silently. His mum was in a private room now so Pomfrey could deal with her injures, but she too was fine. They were both fine. His parents had kept their promises. The young boy had sighed in relief when he had heard that his parents were stable a few days earlier.

For the hundredth time since arriving to the hospital wing that morning, the young Gryffindor had to remind himself of his age. He couldn't shake the overwhelming urge to get in beside his father like a little kid and wrap the man's arms around him so he'd feel safe once again.

The Horcrux had been destroyed two days earlier, and Harry's dad still hadn't woken up yet. Pomfrey had stated this was normal since his father was physically drained from whatever magic they cast to get rid of the dark magic thing. It just scared him to know that neither one was awake yet.

"He's still not awake?" Harry's grandmother remarked with a loud sigh as she suddenly appeared by his side. He hadn't heard her approach.

"No. She thinks he should wake up soon, though." He watched his grandmother nod slowly before she fixed him with a hard stare.

"Shouldn't you be taking your end of year exams?"

"The headmaster announced yesterday at breakfast that he had cancelled them." He swore he had told his grandmother this already, but maybe he hadn't. The past few days seemed a lifetime ago to all of them. "He didn't find it fair for the Petrified or for the rest of us who had our schooling interrupted."

"Ah." Her eyes flicked back to Harry's dad. "I think it's long past time he woke up, don't you?"

Harry frowned. How was his grandmother going to wake him up? He then caught her wand and saw her flick it at his father. His mouth dropped at the sight of the shooting jet of water. The young boy squeaked his surprise when his dad suddenly shot up from his cot, coughing and sputtering. The grey nightshirt Pomfrey had changed his dad in was now drenched.

"There we go," Harry's grandmother said in satisfaction as she looked down at her son.

"Mother," growled Harry's dad, his black eyes flashing at the older woman.

"Well, you weren't waking up any other way. So I provided a little incentive." She shrugged. "A little cold water never hurt anyone, though."

Watching his dad, Harry noticed the man open his mouth, likely to snarl something, only to have his face morph from anger to fear.

"Aurora—" his dad started, clearly worried.

"Is asleep in the other room," Eileen answered rather bored. "In fact, she's currently getting a sponge bath, I believe."

"She's alive?"

"Well, it's my understanding that dead people don't usually get sponge baths, dear. So yes."

Harry bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. He definitely could see where his dad got his wicked sense of humor from. He watched his grandmother catch his eye before she looked away.

"She's all right? The Horcrux is gone?"

"She's as well as one can be."

His dad nodded slowly before thinking for a moment. He turned his attention back to them soon after. "Did Pomfrey find anything inside her? She thought Leonidas put something in her."

"Her mother removed two objects from her, yes. One was in her back, and the other was in the back of her neck. You'd have to ask Syra for further details."

"Where is that bastard anyway?" His dad's voice was low and deadly.

"Being dealt with appropriately away from here." Harry's grandmother sighed quietly. "The last I saw of him, Syra had just finished pouring an entire bottle of magic suppressant down his throat."

"He was stripped of his magic?"

"Yes. We thought it was the best course of action since we don't know if Riddle made more Horcruxes or not. The suppressant traps Riddle inside Leonidas. If I understood correctly, he's being kept heavily sedated so he doesn't wake up. Yet, it's my understanding that Albus has used Legilimency on him several times to learn what he can about the Horcruxes so we can deal with them."

"Good."

Harry gave his dad a faint smile when the man glanced at him. He couldn't help but think that his dad seemed different now. Then again, he supposed he was different now for nearly dying himself last year. Throwing caution to the wind, he fiercely embraced his father, loving the fact he could hear his father's steady heartbeat.

"Easy. It's okay," his dad said quietly, rubbing Harry's back gently.

It would be okay. Now. They'd have to focus on his mum of course, but everything would be fine again. Leonidas was dealt with. His mum was back. His dad's heart was beating. And there weren't going to be any exams this year.

The young boy felt the waterworks burst from him, but he didn't care anymore. He sobbed against his dad, burying his face into his dad's shoulder. He could hear his grandmother say something above them, but he couldn't make it out over the roaring in his ears.

"Shh. It's okay. Everything's fine now. I'm here, son."

"Mum's heart stopped," Harry cried. "And then they put you both in ice baths. Covered you in it. And Mum was bleeding. They didn't even try to stop it," he rambled, hiccups forcing him to pause every now and then. "So there were bloody ice cubes. And then Mum's squiggles disappeared. And they pointed that you had Mum's squiggle." The twelve-year-old sped up as he went on, everything bursting out of him. "They talked back and forth. I went to put my hand on you guys to help . . . and this big black weird thing shot out of Mum. And it was so—It roared out of her chest. She went limp then. And they worked on you both, pushing me out of the way. And—and—"

"Stop," his dad instructed firmly, pulling Harry back from him. "Take a breath, and calm down."

"I can't. You—I thought lost both of you. I thought you two broke your promises. And I was so angry with you." Harry sniffled. "So angry with myself for believing I could have a happy ending. Could have a family of my own." He angrily swiped at the tears falling down his face. "I heard them state that both of your hearts stopped then. And your squiggles were lessening, and so were Mum's. So I thought it was the end. That you two would be taken from me like James and Lily. But I knew it'd hurt more. So I begged and I pleaded. And I did everything I could, Dad. I don't want to lose you. I don't want to lose either of you. Promise me that you two won't do it again! Please!"

"We won't, my silly boy." His dad pressed a kiss to the top of Harry's head.

"Promise me, Dad."

"I promise we won't scare you like that again, Harry."

"Good. Because you're both grounded."

Harry heard his father's deep chuckles instantly followed by his grandmother's snort. He was serious. He wasn't going to let his parents out of his sight ever again. Well, maybe sometimes to like take showers and that, but other than that—he was going to make sure they wouldn't go anywhere without him ever again.

"I mean it!" Harry glared at his father who only chuckled more. It wasn't funny. He did mean it. With all his heart he did.

"You don't have to worry. We won't be going anywhere for a very long time. You're stuck with us. For life."

"Good."

Harry glanced away and out the window. There were so many things he had thought of over the past few days that he wanted to tell his dad. But now that his dad was awake, not a single one of them remained in his mind. He frowned, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

"Feel better now?" his dad questioned with a faint smirk.

"I have a headache," Harry admitted softly, glancing down. He hated when he started blubbering like that. He always got horrible headaches afterwards.

"I can't imagine why," his dad replied with a snort. "Come on. Let's go see Aurora."

"Unless you want your son to see a thirty-two year old woman's naked body, I'd not recommend that," Harry's grandmother pointed out.

"Thirty-one," his dad corrected before sighing. "Aurora's a year younger than me."

Harry noticed his dad's mood somber. The older wizard had to have remembered something just then. The young boy glanced down before he hugged his dad tighter for a moment.

"It's going to be all right," the little Lion softly whispered to his dad.

"It is," his dad replied firmly, carding Harry's hair affectionately.

Harry opened his mouth to say something, but promptly closed it at the sound of approaching footsteps. He didn't feel like turning around to see who it was. He'd find out soon enough.

"About time you woke up. Any longer and I'd have married that pretty little lass of yers," Tobias joked. "You good?"

"I am." Harry's dad sighed heavily, tensing against Harry for a moment.

"What is it?"

"Fudge was there at one point. He knew where she was the entire time."

Harry's eyes widened. He heard numerous gasps around him.

"Are you shitting me?" Tobias growled before scoffing. "Bleeding coward."

"Oh," Mrs. Weasley cried in horror somewhere off to Harry's left side. "Albus sent him an owl just a few hours ago about Aurora. He's on his way here."

"Does he know we have Leonidas?" Harry's dad inquired, his heart beating faster for a second.

"No. We kept that quiet," Mr. Weasley answered. "Kingsley and Albus thought it'd be best if we didn't let that known just in case." He paused. "There's something you need to know. According to Kingsley, that room we found Aurora in was taken out by the blast. Cornelius has been dealing with that lately, telling the public it was just an accidental mishap and to keep their faith in the Ministry."

"Any deaths reported?"

"None."

"Albus asked some Bones lady to come with Fudge, though," Tobias stated. "Guess he figured Fudge was in on it as well or something."

"When are they supposed to be here?" His dad rubbed Harry's back gently, his mind already working out his next plan of attack clearly.

"Little less than an hour," Eileen responded.

"Good. Then, we have time to plan the Minister's warm welcome," his dad growled. There would be hell to pay.

~FKTF~

Exactly an hour later, Severus sat in a transfigured armchair with his arms folded across his chest. Fudge was late. His eyes remained trained on Aurora, who lay unconscious in front of him. He tried to overlook how sunken in her ashen cheeks were now, but he couldn't. Every single physical change he saw on her made him just angrier than before. She had been beaten, starved, shocked, carved into, implanted with foreign objects, and even more gruesome actions than that. It was difficult not to Disapparate and murder Fudge right then to be done with it all. But murdering the current Minister of Magic was punishable with Azkaban, so for his son and Aurora he fought against that urge and waited.

Leaning forward, he gently brushed back one of her stray dark curls. Harry and he would certainly have their work cut out for them this summer, he mused. Aurora's physical injuries were already starting to heal according to Pomfrey. However, she would need months of physical therapy to retrain her either atrophic or badly damaged muscles. He didn't even want to consider how long it'd take for her to recover mentally. They'd work through it all together as a family, though.

"Back here you say, Madam?" the cheerful voice of Cornelius Fudge rang out behind Severus.

His wand hand tensed for a moment before Severus forced his turbulent emotions back. He needed to stay calm. At least for two minutes or so.

"Ah, there we are." Fudge chuckled before quickly clearing his throat when he likely saw Severus sitting next to Aurora. His earlier cheerfulness was now replaced by seriousness. "I see you found her, Professor. Congratulations. Has she, well, has she said anything yet?"

"She hasn't woken up, I'm afraid," he replied, glancing towards the plump man. His dark eyes flickered from the tea cup in Fudge's hands up to the man's face as Fudge took a drink from his cup.

"Ah." Fudge nodded slowly, his eyes looking her over. "I've asked the Aurors to continue their search for Leonidas, but there's been no such luck yet."

Severus forced a polite smile to his face. "Thank you."

"Of course." Fudge nodded before he took another sip. "Has there been any indication when she might regain consciousness?"

"A week or more according to Madam Pomfrey." It was getting harder not to reach up and throttle Fudge. Honestly he decided that he must have had nerves of steel not to kill the minister right then and there. A minute had passed. One more to go. He could do it.

"Hopefully then we find out what really was going on. I must say, this whole debacle with the purebloods is most confusing."

"From what Syra has divulged, Leonidas was a former disgruntled assistant of hers when she worked on a Ministry-funded project years back. They were working a serum that would alter a person's genetic makeup and correct any deficiencies." Severus shrugged, glancing away to look at Aurora.

"Is that so?" Fudge had paused and took a bigger sip of his tea, then. "How . . . fascinating."

"For some reason, Leonidas recently started kidnapping purebloods over this past year in hopes of finding one that had taken this miracle potion. She believes that he took Aurora solely because Aurora is Syra's eldest daughter."

"Ah. Does her mother have any other insight into this matter?"

"Yes. She believes that Leonidas had to have had help. The bombings seemed to be distracters so that these purebloods could be taken without too much notice. They were written off after all as rogue Death Eater attacks."

"Oh, yes. I recall them." Fudge nodded slowly. "I had to make daily speeches to keep the public at ease after those terrible events."

"Your approval ratings rose after that, didn't it, Minister?" Severus smoothly asked. He noticed Fudge's blink of surprise.

"Uh, well, yes they did, but the polls didn't matter much to me in light of those events." Fudge's eyes narrowed. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason. Just something I recall." Severus shrugged, sighing. His eyes watched Fudge like a hawk when the man then stepped towards Aurora's bedside and placed the flowers he brought into a vase on her nightstand. He resisted the urge to flick his wand at the flowers to incinerate them. He'd do it later after Fudge was dealt with.

"I do hope Leonidas is caught and brought to justice. It's always such a shame to see one of our fine citizens harmed in such a way."

"Of course." He inclined his head. The words then flew out of his mouth, just the way he wanted them to. "However, it would have been better if the Ministry had—" When Fudge instinctively tensed, Severus sighed heavily, feigning remorse. He pinched the bridge of his nose and glanced down. It was a long standing fact that Slytherins were always the best actors. "I apologize, Minister." The lie left his lips freely. "It's been a trying few days."

"No, no I understand, Professor." Fudge awkwardly shifted his weight. "Continue. Please."

"I'm afraid I have nothing more to say to you, Minister." His dark eyes then watched the relief flood Fudge's face before the man turned away and headed for the door. Severus waited five seconds before he stood up and quickly followed.

Upon walking out of the private room into the main area, Severus noted Amelia Bones, a ranking Ministry official, talking quietly with the three Aurors: Shacklebolt, Mad-Eye Moody, and Nymphadora Tonks. The stage was set. Action had been called. It was show time.

"Actually, I do have something to say to you on second thought, sir," Severus loudly announced, feeling all eyes dart to him instantly. He was improvising, but he wouldn't have ever forgiven himself if he didn't take this chance. Knowing that he was being watched carefully, he cleared his throat. His mother's eyes were the most piercing of all the others' in the room.

"Oh? Well, spit it out then, Professor Snape," Fudge spoke.

Giving little notice of what he was about to do, Severus's fist slammed hard into Fudge's face a moment later. A sickening crack echoed dramatically throughout the main area followed by gasps. However, he wasn't quite finished yet. As Fudge sputtered and brought his hands to his nose, Severus's hands snatched a hold of the man's robes before he slammed the man back against the nearest wall. He growled, sneering at Fudge and exposing his teeth like a rabid dog.

"Consider yourself lucky, Fudge, that I've changed my ways," Severus spat out. "Otherwise, I assure you that you'd have been found slaughtered in a landfill, unidentifiable." He tossed Fudge from him, then, and glared down at the shocked man.

"That's my son," Eileen proudly stated.

Fudge quickly scrambled to his feet, though, pointing at Snape. "Arrest him, I say! Arrest him!"

"Afraid we can't comply with those orders," Moody gruffly grunted, his magical eye trained on Fudge as the others' wands did the same.

"What? What's going on here? I am the Minister of Magic! I am the, the, the—what's—what'd you do to me?" Fudge's voice quickly lost its edge, slurring as his eyes rapidly dulled. He stood there, back against the wall for several moments just blinking silently.

Amelia Bones, the department head of Magical Law Enforcement, drew in a slow breath before she took several steps past Severus. Her eyes were hard as she stared down at Fudge. Severus knew that she had been made aware beforehand that they had planned to interrogate the minister by use of Veritaserum, so she didn't seem all that shocked to see Fudge's unfocused gaze.

"What is your real name?" Madam Bones asked firmly.

"Cornelius Oswald Fudge," the minister answered flatly, staring straight ahead at a wall.

She glanced towards Dumbledore who silently approached as everyone else looked on. She clearly seemed uncomfortable interrogating Fudge, but it needed to be done. They needed to know what Fudge's real reasons for this were to ensure the safety of the wizarding world as a whole. She frowned and continued soon after.

"What event brought you into politics?"

"The rise of Grindelwald," Fudge replied, blinking with a peaceful look on his face.

She nodded slowly and glanced back at Dumbledore. Fudge's identity had been confirmed. They could continue asking more direct questions. Like what the hell he was thinking for one.

"Were you aware that Aurora Sinistra was being held at the Ministry?" Madam Bones inquired.

"Yes."

Severus clenched his jaw but remained silent. He knew that Fudge's interrogation was being recorded by the Aurors, so he needed to ensure that nothing occurred to jeopardize Fudge's conviction of his crimes. He would pay for what he did.

"Did you at any time see her at the Ministry while she was being held captive?'

"Yes."

"How many times did you see her while she was held captive?"

"Five times."

Severus could hear his teeth grinding together. He wanted to murder the man, rip him limb from limb apart. He glared at Fudge, envisioning that exact fantasy as he waited for Bones to continue.

"Were you aware the location of the other purebloods before they were found?"

"Yes."

"Did you see the other purebloods while they were held captive at any point in time?"

"No."

"Were you aware of Leonidas Montgomery's obsession with finding the serum he and Syra developed years back?"

"Yes."

"Did you want the serum to use for your own personal interests?"

"Yes."

There was no other way of putting it. Fudge was a complete bastard who deserved a slow painful death. He knew where the victims had been and said nothing. It did all lead to the obvious question of why. What was the point of all this in Fudge's mind?

"Were you responsible for releasing twelve supposedly reformed Death Eaters?"

"Yes."

"Did you make an offer to any of these individuals before you released them?"

"Yes."

"What was the offer?"

"I would release them only if they agreed to assist Leonidas Montgomery for a time."

"What sort of assistance did Mr. Montgomery require?"

"He needed people who could kidnap the pureblood women without being caught."

So Fudge provided twelve former Death Eaters to Leonidas, Severus thought. He shook his head. This whole thing was sickening to watch. Honestly. Where had the man's morals gone?

"How did you meet Mr. Montgomery?" Madam Bones asked sharply.

"One of my assistants brought me the wrong file from the lower level. So, when I went to read the file, I found that he had given me Project Unicorn's file instead. I read the entire folder that night and was fascinated by the serum's possible uses. The following morning I asked Leonidas to meet me in my office and stated that I would provide assistance to him in exchange for him injecting the serum into a select group of Aurors. He agreed. I signed twelve individuals over to him soon after."

"So you were aware then that he would kidnap the pureblood women?"

"Yes."

"Who decided to kidnap these women?"

"I did."

Severus heard gasps all around him. He frowned, though. Why? That kept coming back to him. He watched Bones nod slowly before she closed her eyes and sighed.

"When did you decide this action?"

"Leonidas stated in our meeting that he needed access to the women in order to test them. He suggested we wait for them to come in for their annual physicals, but it would've taken too much time and would have run a great risk of others finding out what we were doing his way. So instead, I informed him that I would provide twelve former Death Eaters who were experienced in this sort of action. It would be quicker. He agreed reluctantly."

"What promise did you make to these twelve Death Eaters in order to keep them loyal to Leonidas?"

It was a valid question. Most former Death Eaters would have fled the moment they were free and started their lives over. Or at the very least, the former Death Eaters would have returned to their sordid ways and killed again. So there had to have been something Fudge promised to keep them in line.

"I told them that they would be given the serum if their performance was satisfactory."

Power. That was all it ever boiled down to. An idiot's quest for power. Severus himself had fallen for that once long ago, and he had paid for that mistake dearly.

"Were the bombings at King's Cross, Muggle London, Birmingham, Manchester, Hogsmeade, Cokeworth, and elsewhere in the Kingdom over the past year planned?"

"Yes."

"Were they carried out by the twelve Death Eaters you released earlier?"

"Yes."

"Who ordered the attacks?"

"I did," Fudge admitted blankly.

Severus grabbed his dad's arm when the man went to seize Fudge and likely beat him to a pulp. He shook his head sharply at Tobias and frowned. They couldn't. Not while the Aurors were still recording the interrogation. Maybe after they could.

"Why did you order the attacks?"

"My ratings with the public were slipping thanks to that Quibbler hit piece. I was seen by most as being a bumbling idiot, especially when it came to public opinion on safety. Not to mention it was rumored that I drowned goblins for fun," Fudge answered matter-of-factly. "The public had all wanted Dumbledore as their minister the year before, you see. I knew it. Barty knew it. We all knew it. So, I ordered the attacks, knowing that if I came out and told the public that the Ministry would stop at nothing to catch the murderous thugs who did it, I'd come out as appearing tough on terrorism. And it worked beautifully. Leonidas kidnapped a few of his purebloods, and my ratings soared for a time."

So Fudge accidentally found out about Project Unicorn and the serum Syra developed, realized that the serum's potential, and decided to work with Leonidas. He gave the man twelve former Death Eaters who were all promised a bit of the serum in exchange for their loyalty. When his ratings dropped, he orchestrated a series of attacks around England and allowed Leonidas to have his kidnapped pureblood women. It was sickening.

"Why did you want the serum?"

"So I would have a method to defend myself and the Ministry when Dumbledore attacked."

Severus's eyes narrowed in confusion. When Dumbledore attacked? Why would Dumbledore attack the Ministry or Fudge for that matter?

"What do you mean?" Madam Bones replied with a frown.

"It was obvious with Dumbledore's fierce refusal to run as Minister that the sly old man had other means in mind to gain that seat. It would only be a matter of time before he struck I knew." Fudge paused for a moment before he continued. "For a time I thought it was paranoia on my part, my lacking self-confidence. But then I learned that he had gone alone to Nurmengard to speak with Grindelwald over the summer, and I knew right then that I had to defend the Ministry against Dumbledore."

That stupid idiot. Instead of sending an owl to Dumbledore to ask what was going on, Fudge automatically assumed that Dumbledore was plotting to take over the Ministry. In reality, Dumbledore had gone to Nurmengard over the summer to speak with Grindelwald to see if the dark wizard knew where Severus and Harry were since they were missing at the time.

"Did you ever send an owl to Headmaster Dumbledore to ask him what was happening?"

"No," Fudge answered.

"Why didn't you?"

"He'd have lied in his reply."

"So because you were convinced that Headmaster Dumbledore was plotting to overthrow the Ministry, you decided after accidentally reading the Unicorn files one night that it was acceptable to orchestrate bombings all over England in order to kidnap our citizens and torture them just to prevent a supposed overthrow from occurring?"

Fudge paused for a moment, clearly trying to fight against the Veritaserum. However, the truth came out a moment later.

"Yes."

The last nail was hammered into the minister's metaphorical coffin. The three Aurors frowned deeply and glanced towards Madam Bones, awaiting their next orders. Madam Bones stared at the former Minister of Magic for a few moments before she shook her head fiercely.

"Your actions have caused considerable harm to the citizens you were sworn to protect. And for what reason did you do all this damage? Because you allowed your paranoia to control you instead of using your common sense. All of this could have been prevented with a stupid owl to Headmaster Dumbledore. Instead, though, you ordered attacks on our innocent citizens, tore families apart, and destroyed lives. Do you have anything to say for yourself?" She stared at the blank man in front of her.

"I did what I had to in order to ensure that Ministry would remain strong. Dumbledore goes on about how much of a threat You-Know-Who is, but Dumbledore's the bigger threat. You-Know-Who only wishes to save us, Amelia. It's Dumbledore who is the dark wizard, not You-Know-Who."

"What?" Bones shouted, as others cried the same. "Have you lost your mind?"

"Dumbledore worked with Grindelwald in hopes that they'd find the Deathly Hallows. It was only when the public's cry for help could no longer be ignored that Dumbledore stepped in. We always thought it was because he was good, but he's not. He just hides his evilness better than most. He wants power just as badly as Grindelwald did. And he needed to get Grindelwald out of the way to do so. So the Deathly Hallows would be his, only his. You-Know-Who has only been trying to help us, but we didn't listen. We took the Great Albus Dumbledore's word. Is it so wrong to have a world free of Muggles? Tell me. They murder. They rape. They torture. They slaughter animals for fun. They pollute. They care nothing but about themselves. They're like a disease. And they will destroy us if we don't act soon. We are the future. They are just relics of the imperfect past."

Severus clenched his fist by his side. Fudge's rant sounded like one of the Dark Lord's propaganda speeches that Severus had been forced to listen to in his younger years. The blasted idiot.

"Aurors, escort Mr. Fudge to Azkaban. I believe there's a cell with his name on it," Bones announced frostily before she turned away.

He watched the three quietly surround Fudge before they pulled him to the fireplace and used the Floo. Severus closed his eyes at the sight of the green flames dying down. It was over. Finally.