Severus slowly opened his eyes and nearly rolled out of bed at the sight of Harry Potter sleeping at his side. He had nearly forgotten about the events of last night. Sitting up in bed, Severus rubbed at his face and stared down at the peacefully sleeping boy. Well, it was best to take the boy home today. He’d have to investigate the injuries Harry had later, perhaps back at Hogwarts. Unless Harry had received them some other way, if there was abuse going on in Harry’s home, then no matter how many times Albus sent him back, Harry would always find a chance to run away. And Severus had to at least report the abuse to authorities – it was the right thing to do. Even if no one acted upon it, he would at least feel as though he did what was right and tried to help.

               Standing, Severus pushed the curtain aside and looked out the window. It was still pretty dark out, even though the clock said 7:15am. Snow still fell heavily to the ground.

               Severus went to the bathroom and splashed his face with water to wake himself up a bit more. After performing his morning duties and changing his night clothes back to day clothes, he went back into the room.

               Harry was awake now and sitting up on the bed, fiddling with Severus’s wand that was left on the bedside stand, running his fingers along the ebony wood and twirling it in his fingers.

               “No!” Severus snapped, coming around the bed and standing in front of Harry. “Give it to me! Now!”

               Harry’s eyes watered and his lower lip trembled as he handed the wand over to Severus. No, the man thought as he accepted his wand, not the tears again!

               “You don’t have to cry,” Severus said desperately. “It’s just . . . this isn’t a toy you can play with and it certainly isn’t safe for you to be messing with. Okay?”

               Harry nodded his head, still pulling a sad face. Severus sighed.

               “Okay then,” he began, pulling Harry off the bed. “You’ll have to get dressed. I’m taking you home whether you like it or not.”

               Harry just looked at his bare feet.

               Severus found the clothes Harry had worn last night. They were stiff from the cold last night, but Severus thawed them with a spell and patched up the tattered pieces. He shrunk them down to the boy’s size.

               “Here,” he thrusted the clothes at Harry. “These should fit much better now. And you’ll need socks and shoes.”

               Harry squinted at the clothes before trying to fit his head through an arm hole. Severus frowned and pulled the shirt away

               “What are you doing? You know how to change yourself, correct?”          

               Harry nodded and squinted at the shirt again. A thought struck Severus and he snatched the shirt away and held three fingers in front of Harry’s face.

               “How many fingers am I holding up?”

               Harry squinted at him before shrugging. How had Severus missed it last night? Yes the boy had been near frozen and had probably not had the facial muscle to squint, but once he had warmed the child up – ah, yes, he did most of the work for Harry and everything else was habit – like brushing teeth.

               “Do you wear glasses?”

               Harry nodded.

               “Where are yours?”

               Harry shrugged and pointed to the window. Severus sighed, figuring Harry must have lost them in the snow last night. Great – the boy was as blind as his father was. Severus pulled at a thread on his shirt and transfigured it into a dark pair of frames. He found a glass cup in the bathroom and (casting a muffling charm) broke he glass and used a couple pieced to transfigure into lens. He banished the broken glass away and handed the glasses to Harry, who set them on his face, squinting through the lens. Severus pointed his wand at the lens.

               “Tell me when you can see clearly.”

               After a couple seconds, Harry smiled and nodded.

               “Good, now get dressed.”

               While Harry dressed in the clothes, Severus searched the hotel for things to transfigure. He might as well as go with the towels again. He hoped he wasn’t billed for missing towels. He ripped a smaller towel in half and transfigured them into socks. Then, using the best of his transfiguration spells, he turned two hand towels into small winter boots. They would have to do.

               Harry handed the nightshirt to Severus as the man returned with the socks and boots.

               “Put these on,” Severus commanded as he took the nightshirt and turned it into a winter coat for the boy. “There. You should be much warmer now.”

               Severus grabbed his own winter coat and pocketed his gloves for now. He wished he had some more towels to make gloves and a hat at the very least for Harry, but for now, what he’s done will have to do.

               “Are you ready?”

               Harry shrugged, studying the nice black boots he now had on. The boy looked miserable. Who could blame him, Severus thought. Severus knew he wouldn’t want to return home if last night’s evidence was what was waiting for him.

               “You’ll be okay,” Severus said. “Now let’s go.”

               Severus led Harry to the elevator and to the front desk, where surprisingly the same lady was standing. She smiled at them as they approached.

               “Why,” she cooed at Harry. “You look so much better! How are you feeling?”

               Harry stared at her, then shrugged.

               “He doesn’t talk much,” Severus said. “Shy kid.”

               “Oh, how sweet!” the lady smiled. “Well, is there anything I can help you with. My shift technically ended thirty minutes ago, but we do have more staff trying to work out a schedule and accommodate everyone. We are overbooked at the moment and more people seem to be flying in.”

               “Yes, yes,” Severus interrupted. “I need to check out.”

               “Check out? I really can’t recommend that you leave. The storm has gotten worse and there’s already two and a half feet of snow out there. We are expected to get hit with six to eight more inches of snow by this evening! And the roads – snowplows have been getting stuck out there. No one should really be on the streets or sidewalks.”

               “No, no,” Severus groaned, covering his head with his hands as he leaned on the desk. “I have to get back to work. I can’t be stuck here.”

               “Work? I feel sorry for you, sir, most businesses closed to wait out the storm. But don’t worry, by tomorrow it should blow over. For today, we are stocked on extra food and warm beverages. We have a swimming pool downstairs nicely heated for the weather and . . . it has a water slide!”

               The lady smiled at Harry, who just stared up at her.

               “And there’s a hot tub. Good to relieve that stress I know you must be feeling.”

               “Tell me about it,” Severus muttered.

               “I really am sorry, sir. It’s only seven fifty so our complimentary breakfast should be open. Better get it while it’s still hot and before the rest of the hotel wakes up. You two are early birds – I guess its true what they say, father like son and all.”

               “Right,” Severus commented, pulling Harry away towards the dining area.

               Harry offered a small smile to the lady as he was dragged away.

               “I can’t believe this!” Severus growled. “Albus owes me big time for this.”

               Severus paused as he saw a box full of winter attire that said: Free gloves, hats, scarves, and winter coats. Please take what you need.

               “Go pick out a few things,” Severus told Harry, ushering the boy towards the large box. Harry stared down in the mess before looking back at Severus. Sighing irritable, Severus stepped forward as well and dug through the box, pulling out a red scarf and draping it over the boy’s neck. He looked for small gloves that would fit the boy. He found a black and blue designed pair and handed them to Harry. Then he grabbed a black hat and dropped it on Harry’s head. The boy seemed amused by Severus’s actions and adjusted everything on him.

               Harry whined and tugged on the winter coat.

               “What?” Severus asked. “Use your words.”

               “Hot,” Harry whispered.

               Severus rolled his eyes and helped Harry take everything off, taking off his own coat as well. He set everything down at a small table and led Harry to where a breakfast buffet was laid out. Severus handed Harry and plate.

               “What would you like, Harry?”

               Harry stared at all the food then looked at Severus.

               “C’mon, Harry, what do you want?”

               Harry shrugged.

               Severus growled under his breath before just dishing up a bit of everything on Harry’s plate: scrambled eggs, sausage, ham, yogurt, fruit, and a chocolate chip muffin. Severus added scrambled eggs, ham, yogurt, and fruit to his own plate. He poured himself coffee and poured Harry a cup of milk. He balanced the cups on his own plate and walked Harry back to their table.

               Harry just sat and watched Severus start eating his own breakfast. Severus grew once more uncomfortable with the staring before pausing and glaring at Harry.

               “Eat, Harry,” Severus demanded.

               Harry picked up a fork and took a nibble of the scrambled eggs. Severus watched Harry now. The boy nibbled more at the eggs before setting his fork down and looking back at Severus. Shaking his head, Severus reached across the table, lifted Harry’s fork, and shoveled a good amount of eggs on to it. He held the fork up to Harry’s mouth.

               “Eat right. You need more food in your system than that. You will not be picky.”

               Harry opened his mouth and swallowed the eggs forcefully. His face turned a bit green and Harry made a face.

               “What is wrong with you?” Severus frowned.

               Harry just looked at Severus, his lower lip starting to tremble. Severus rubbed at his head which was starting to grow a migraine. He thought back to last night when he had given Harry a bath. The boy was thinner than a twig. That could mean he wasn’t used to eating large meals like this. But that meant that the boy’s relatives . . . 

               Sighing, Severus reached glanced around to make sure no one was watching before summoning his emergency kit. He knew he had something that will help. He dug through it and pulled out two vials and a syringe. These potions could be combined. He noticed that Harry was already making a face as he drew up some appetite stimulating potion and an antiemetic potion. Severus had taken these himself before, which was why he had them on hand. Severus held the syringe to Harry’s mouth.

               “Now, don’t fight me on this. One is to help you feel hungry and the other is so you don’t throw up what you eat. Open your mouth. Let’s make this quick.”

               Harry scrunched his face and closed his eyes as he obediently opened his mouth, though just enough that Severus could squirt the potion in. Harry swallowed the potions and looked sick before the potions kicked in. Severus speared a strawberry and held it to Harry’s mouth, who eagerly ate it.

               “Good boy,” Severus said.

               Harry smiled happily as he accepted the fork from Severus and speared a sausage link. Who knew two words could have such an impact on a young boy. Severus watched Harry eat the link before saying:

               “I would like you to finish all your fruit and drink all of your milk. And at least half of everything else. You need the sustenance. You’re nothing but skin and bone.”

               Harry nodded and ate another strawberry.

               Severus returned to his own breakfast after shrinking and pocketing his kit. Once he was finished, he sipped at his coffee and watched Harry eat at the food ravenously. The boy had almost polished off the entire plate. Perhaps he gave a little too much appetite stimulant. Oh well, it wouldn’t harm the boy. In fact, the boy could do with extra food in his system. Once Harry was finished with his food, Severus motioned to the glass of milk. Harry chugged it down quickly, wiping away the milk mustache that remained. He smiled at Severus.

               “Well, let’s head back to our room. It seems we are trapped here till tomorrow.”

               Harry’s smile seemed to grow bigger and Severus frowned at that but led the way back to their room. He sent another patronus to Albus explaining that he was trapped in the hotel until the storm blew over and that Harry was still with him.

               Severus looked at Harry who was sitting on the bed once more staring at him. Great. He’d have to find the boy something to do for the day or Harry would just stare.

               “So . . .” Severus began, trying to think of something to say. “What do you like to do, Harry?”

               Harry shrugged.

               Severus looked at the television and turned it one, flipping through the channels.

               “Do you like TV? Cartoons?”

               Harry shrugged again.

               “Why don’t you talk?” Severus snapped as he kept flipping through the channels. It was hard to tell what may be on what channel when everything was on a commercial break. “Cat got your tongue or something? You know, it’s disrespectful to shrug all the time.”

               Harry resisted shrugging and this time whispered, “Freaks shouldn’t talk to normal people.”

               Severus froze and stared at Harry, ignoring the television. Freaks? Normal people? What on earth was that about? Severus had a feeling he knew where the boy got such a terrible idea and he felt like murdering those damn Dursleys. But what should he say now? Harry believed himself to be a freak – how terrible.

               “Do . . .” Severus stumbled on what he wanted to say. Then an idea hit him. “Do you think I’m normal?”

               Harry nodded. Really? Severus lifted his hand and conjured a wandless and wordless non-corporal patronus in his hand, keeping the silvery form floating above his palm.

               “How about now?”

               Harry stared in awe at the magic before smiling and slowly shaking his head.

               “Then I believe you have every right to talk to me. And anyone for that matter. You are no different than I. Would you call me a freak?”

               Harry’s eyes widened, and he shook his head aggressively.

               “Then you shouldn’t call yourself one.”

               “But,” the boy was speaking again, “I make freaky things happen.”

               “Like what?”

               Harry scrunched his face in thought. Severus realized Harry did that a lot.

               “Like Aunt Petunia cut off all my hair but I made it grow all back in one night.”

               “Accidental magic. That happens sometimes. It is not in your control and usually your emotions have an influence on it. It’s completely normal for a young wizard.”

               “It is?” Harry tilted his head. “I’m not a wizard. Magic isn’t real.”

               You’ve got to be kidding me, Severus thought.   

               “I can assure magic is very real and you are in fact a wizard,” Severus said as he pulled out his wand and waved it over Harry’s head, causing the boy’s hair to grow even longer, ending at his shoulder. Harry touched his hair and smiled. “See? I can make hair grow just as fast as you did. Your parents were wizards. Well, men are wizards, women are witches. But they were both very talented and I expect you will be as well.”

               Harry smiled at him, still playing with his longer hair before frowning.

               “Why does Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon call me a freak, then? Do they know?”

               “They might not understand magic,” Severus explained. “They are muggles, people who don’t have magic in them. They may not like what they don’t understand. It might scare them, so they take that fear out on you.”

               Severus decided against telling Harry that it might just be out of hatred. Pure disgusting hatred and dislike for this small child that was burdened on them years ago. Severus had known Petunia when he was younger, and he wouldn’t put t past her to treat Harry as she had treated her own sister. Sighing, Severus flicked his wand, returning Harry’s hair length back to what it was. Harry felt at his hair and pouted. Severus snorted.

               “Does accidental magic happen a lot?”

               “It depends on the child.”

               “I ended up on my school roof once.”

               “Now that is quite a feat. Don’t worry, as you grow, your control over your magic will. You are still very young.”

               “Can freaki- I mean magic be punished out of me?”

               “Excuse me?” Severus frowned.

               Harry shrugged and just stared at Severus expectantly. Severus sighed and rubbed at his face.

               “What do you mean punished?” Severus felt his stomach clench as he had a vague idea what those bruises last night might have been inflicted for. He was going to kill those Dursleys.

               Harry just shrugged again.

               “Don’t shrug at me! What did I just say about shrugging? It’s disrespectful. Now answer my question!?”

               Harry’s eyes watered and his lower lip trembled. Great, here we go with the tears again, Severus growled in his head. He really needed to reign in his temper around this kid. Clearly he wasn’t going to get much else out of the boy. 

               “Well, why don’t you watch the TV while I go see if there’s anything more exciting to do here.”

               Harry nodded and said, “Swimming.” 

               “I have no swimming trunks for us and we are out of towels. Let me go find someone to restock us. Stay in this room.”

               Harry nodded before hesitantly touching the television, looking at Severus for confirmation before flipping through the channels for cartoons, staring in awe at the screen. Severus guessed that the boy wasn’t allowed to watch TV at his relatives.

               Severus left the room and walked aimlessly though the hall. He momentarily wished that he had brought some work along with him. That would give him something to do. On the first floor, he nearly ran into another person who was rushing past him.

               “Why, hello again, sir!” the lady from the front desk greeted, holding a handful of towels.

               “Shouldn’t you be resting?” Severus asked. “You were awake all night.”

               “Well,” the lady smirked, “between you and me, no one came in between two am to five am. I fell asleep at the counter for a bit. I know it’s not much, but I can run on little sleep. And the hotel needs all the help it can get right now. We are on a shortage of towels and blankets . . .”

               “Funny. That’s exactly what I’m looking for.”

               “Oh, here, just take these.” The lady passed the towels she was carrying to him.

               “Are you sure? These aren’t needed for anything are they?”

               “No, just room 305. That miss there hasn’t used any of her towels yet, but she insists on more, so she can draw herself a warm bath. She’s had more complaints in one night than all the guests here put together. I feel as though she’s forgotten the storm. But policy is all guests come first. But you are a guest here as well. I’m sorry, but the room cleaners are doing their best to restock what they can.”

               “Thank you. This is very kind of you. Just a quick question – my . . . son wants to go swimming, but I really didn’t pack bathing suits with the weather and all as it is. I’m just wondering if you might –”

               “Yes, yes! We have a whole stock of bathing suits, just in case. Right in here, follow me.”

               Severus followed the lady down the hall and into the laundry room.

               “Here we go, you can pick any sizes you’d like in case one doesn’t work.”

               Severus knew he could resize them if they didn’t fit so he grabbed two trunks – one for himself and one for Harry. He figured a small would work and if not – fixable.

               “You’ve been a great help,” Severus commented. “Thank you so much, Mrs. . . .”

               “Wright. But just call me Lacey.”

               “Lacey. Again, thank you.”

               “Don’t forget,” Lacey called as Severus left the laundry room and headed back to his room, “lunch and dinner are also complimentary while the storm is still strong.”

               After a quick lunch or roast beef sandwiches (Harry needed more appetite stimulator and antiemetic), Severus brought Harry down to the swimming pool. The boy was smiling happily at the sight of the large water slide. The pool was full of other guests – adults and kids alike. Severus found an empty chair to leave their stuff on and immediately found his way to the hot tub. Harry sat down next to him. Severus felt himself relaxing in the steamy, bubbling water. He needed this.

               “Why don’t you go down the water slide, Harry?” Severus suggested.

               Harry looked over at the large slide and smiled. But didn’t move.

               “Go on,” Severus encouraged. “I’ll be right here when you come back. And be careful of your glasses.”

               At that, Harry obediently climbed out of the hot tub and ran over to the water slide.

               “Cute kid,” a woman in the hot tub said. Severus looked over at her. She was snuggled against a man and Severus figured they were a young couple. He inclined his head at her comment, not bothering to correct them.

               Severus looked back over at the water slide, but he figured Harry was standing in line. How did he get talked into this? He just had to indulge the boy, didn’t he? Severus finally saw Harry at the top of the water slide and smiled as Harry slid down it. Harry was running back to him when another boy stopped in Harry’s way. Severus studied the interaction closely.

The boy showed Harry the pool noodles he was carrying, jabbing them around like swords as he chattered away. Then, the kid handed Harry a noodle and jabbed at Harry’s chest. At first, Harry just stared at the boy. Then a small smile grew on Harry’s lips as he jabbed back at the boy, who blocked Harry’s attempt and jumped into the pool, daring Harry to come after him. Harry looked at Severus.

Severus motioned to the pool with his head when Harry met his eyes. Harry smiled again before jumping in after the boy. Even without words, Harry had found himself a friend to play with.

After spending an hour and a half at the pool area, Severus led Harry to the dining area for the complimentary dinner of cheese ravioli. When they sat down at the table, Severus reached for his shrunken kit for the potions, but Harry began eating on his own immediately. Severus smiled and began eating himself. A television was on and a weatherman was talking on the screen.

“Still expecting about three more inches through the night,” the man was saying, indicating an area around Surrey on the large map, “but tomorrow’s forecast is looking clear. Snowfall is expected to stop, and roads will be plowed early morning. It is recommended to stay indoors until the roads have been cleared.”

               Severus was glad that tomorrow would be his last day in the hotel. He finished eating and allowed Harry to pick out a dessert. The boy decided on a large hot chocolate, very fitting for the weather. Severus watched as Harry drank his drink happily, covering his lips in whipped cream. After the boy was finished, he set the cup down and yawned, rubbing his eyes.

               “Alright,” Severus said, standing up. “I think it’s bedtime. Ready?”

               Harry followed Severus back to their room and Severus changed Harry’s winter coat back into a nightshirt. Harry changed and brushed his teeth and crawled back into the bed, snuggling into the blankets and pillow. He watched as Severus flipped the television to the news station. Severus sensed Harry’s eyes on him and looked back at him.

               “What is it?” Severus asked.

               “Goodnight, sir,” Harry smiled.

               Severus stared at the small boy, the words taking a moment to register. He nodded his head and said, “Don’t forget to take off your glasses.”

               Harry pulled his glasses off and set them on the bedside stand. Harry patted the other side of the bed. Severus frowned.

               “I’ll go to bed in a bit, okay? Go to sleep.”

               Harry smiled and closed his eyes. Severus sighed again as he stared down at the boy. He’d have to take Harry back tomorrow. He’d have to return the boy to that dreadful place. Could he? Should he? Harry didn’t deserve his relatives’ poor treatment. But what could Severus do? He wasn’t really allowed to interfere with the personal lives of his students, forget a child on the streets. But he couldn’t do nothing. He needed a way to report this abuse to at least muggle authorities. Perhaps Harry could be placed in a foster system where a nice family would adopt him. But then what if no one ever adopted him? How terrible would that be. Conflicted and confused, Severus sighed and left to the bathroom to prepare for bed himself.

               When he was set himself, he stared at the space next to Harry. It wouldn’t hurt to sleep there for just one more night. Besides, it would keep him warmer than lying in a chair. Severus resigned to his fate and slid in to the bed, lying on his back and closing his eyes.

               The bed shifted, and he felt a weight against his side. He looked down to see Harry curled up against him. Severus carefully slid his arms under the boy and slid him over to the other side of the bed before settling back in and closing his eyes.

               The bed shifted once more, and Severus sighed as Harry curled at his side once more. He tried to move his arm to slide it under the boy, but Harry had wrapped his own arms around Severus’s. Severus tried to wiggle his arm out of the boy’s grip, but Harry didn’t loosen up the slightest.

               “Harry,” Severus gently shook the boy’s shoulder, but Harry tightened his grip and snuggled in to Severus’s side, his eyes remaining closed.

Groaning irritable, Severus laid back in his pillow and stared up at the ceiling. Wonderful. How was he supposed to sleep with a seven-year-old latched to his arm? Severus must have figured it out because he fell asleep quickly staring up at the ceiling with Harry against him.