Potions and Snitches
Snape and Harry Gen Fanfiction Archive

Chapter 19: Strained Meetings

Harry released Mrs. Weasley and stepped back. He lowered his head. His cheeks pinkened with embarrassment that he was clinging to Ron’s mother. 


Before he could open his mouth to apologize to her, Molly cupped the child’s face in her warm hands, lifting it so she could look into his emerald-green eyes. 


“I am happy you are here, Harry,” Molly cooed. “You need not feel shame at wanting comfort. And anytime you need a hug, I’ll be here.”


Harry nodded, looked around, and noticed they were the only two in the room.


“They’re getting their winter robes,” Molly said. 


Harry’s brow furrowed. Why would he be invited to come over if they were going to leave? Did they want him to clean their house? Harry looked around the sitting room and saw it was clean, and a knitting needle was working by itself, making a scarf.


His safety said he wasn’t a freak. But his Professor wasn’t there. Maybe Ron found out he was a freak and told his mum. 


“Come on, Harry,” Ron yelled as he ran down the stairs.


“Stop that yelling,” Molly chided. “How many times have I told you to stop running down the stairs? You’re going to hurt yourself one day.”


“Sorry, mum,” Ron mumbled, but it wasn’t a contrite tone. He went to Harry’s side. “Are you ready?”


“Ready for what?” Harry was totally confused. They were leaving but asking him if he were ready. 


“We’re going to get a tree,” Ron said excitedly.


Before Harry could respond to Ron’s statement, more footsteps were coming down the stairs. It sounded like a herd of cattle was descending towards the sitting room.


Harry remembered Ginny when they first met and helped him cross the wall to the train station. And he remembered Bill from when he came to the school the other week. He also was at the reading of his parents’ will. But there was one that he didn’t recognize. He was a little taller than the others and was more muscular. His hair was long and tied back with a jeweled string. He had a few piercings in one of his ears. Aunt Petunia always said men with piercings were always up to no good. Men shouldn’t have piercings. Harry disagreed. 


“This is my brother, Charlie,” Ron introduced to Harry, bringing Harry out of his internal musings. 


Charlie walked over and rubbed his hand in Harry’s hair. “I hear you’re now the best Seeker now.”


Harry grinned. “Yeah, it’s a lot of fun.” The worry and fear eased out of the boy. He loved that he was included. 


“So,” Bill called out. “Are we ready?”


There was a chorus of ‘yeah’ as the younger Weasley children and Harry walked out of the house. 


“We’ll be back soon,” Charlie said to their mum after kissing her on her cheek as he walked past her.


“Be careful with my babies,” Molly ordered. 


“You can trust us,” Bill reassured her. 


Charlie left to catch up with the others. Molly held Bill back for a moment.


“Keep an eye on Harry,” Molly spoke softly to her oldest. “There is more to that child than I think the world knows.”


Bill kissed his mum on the cheek and winked at her before leaving and catching up with the others. 


___000___000___000

The small group was out for a couple of hours trying to find the perfect tree. Each one argued the tree they picked was the best one. Each tree was greater than the previous one. After much bargaining and settling, the small group settled on the perfect tree. 


After Charlie cut the tree down, Bill decided to apparate back to the Burrow, so they wouldn’t have to worry about carrying it back.


On the walk back, Charlie went over to where Ron and Harry were talking. He put his arms around the eleven-year-olds shoulders.


“So, Harry,” Charlie said. “I hear you’re a pretty great Seeker.”


Before Harry could reply, Ron spoke up, “Pretty great? He’s wicked. He caught a remembrall. 


“Really?” Charlie was impressed. A remembrall, though larger than the Golden Snitch, was harder to see since it was mostly a clear ball with a few gold rims.  “How would you like to go against me?”


“Yeah, Harry,” Ron exclaimed. “The two best Gryffindor Seekers paired off against each other.”


Since Harry was so nervous when he first arrived, he didn’t catch on that Charlie standing next to him was THE Charlie everyone was talking about. The best Seeker for Gryffindor.


“What’s going on?” Fred asked when he looked back and saw Charlie talking to Ron and Harry.


“Yeah,” George agreed. 


“How about it, Harry?” Charlie asked. “You want to go against me to see who can catch the Snitch?”


“Wicked,” the twins said together.


“Do it,” Ron encouraged while nodding his head.


Harry was feeling a little overwhelmed. But he liked that they wanted to include him. And the idea of testing his skill against Gryffindor’s first and best Seeker, Charlie, would be wicked.


“Okay,” Harry accepted. 


“I want to challenge the winner,” Ginny pipped in. 


When they returned to the Burrow, the small group walked to the make-shift Quidditch pitch. Fred and George went to the small cupboard and gathered all the Quidditch supplies.


“What’s going on?” Bill asked as he walked out of the house.


“Competition,” Percy said, shaking his head. “Between Harry and Charlie.”  


“Well, let’s see,” Charlie challenged. “Fred,” he called out, “get the Snitch; I want to see how good Harry,” wrapping his arm around Harry’s shoulders, “is.” 


“Yeah,” Fred cheered. 


“Here you go, Harry,” Ron said, giving Harry his broom.


“Alright,” Charlie said, bringing Harry back to the game.


Ron went to Harry’s side. “It’s a practice Snitch,” he told Harry. “It won’t go as high as the one at school, but it’s still pretty fast.”


“Thanks,” Harry said, climbing on his borrowed broom.


“Alright, you two,” George called out. “In the air.”


Charlie and Harry looked at each other. Charlie winked at Harry and jumped off the ground. Harry smiled and saw the twins and Ron nodding to him, and he took to the air. 


“One….Two….Three,” George counted off. 


Fred let go of the Snitch, and the two Seekers took off. 


___000___000___000

Azkaban was a cold, dreary place. No self-respecting witch or wizard would voluntarily elect to come. Once a prisoner was dropped off, there would never be visitors to the small island. Traveling through rough tides was treacherous, trying to get to the stone prison. No matter the weather, there was a constant storm cloud over the triangle-shaped building.


The warden of Azkaban was confused when he received an owl stating a visitor was coming and that it would be the Headmaster of Hogwarts. The warden, Seamus Diggs, who grew up in Australia, only heard about the great Albus Dumbledore through the papers. He wondered why someone as renowned as Professor Dumbledore would want to visit Azkaban.


The elder wizard exited the small boat and headed up the small walkway towards the main door. There was no need to knock as the door opened once Albus stood before it. The warden greeted Albus. 


“Professor Dumbledore,” Seamus said, giving a slight bow. “It’s an honor to meet you.”


Albus didn’t reply; he only nodded. 


“Please follow me,” Seamus said, turning down a darkened corridor. 


There was nothing pleasant about this place. It wasn’t meant to be. Only the worse of the worst were sent here. There was no leniency or parole. Anyone that was sentenced to Azkaban was there for life. 


Albus knew before he left today that the belief of people sent to this prison would change. The Headmaster didn’t know how things would turn out. He knew after leaving here that he had to speak with Severus. He could have told him the day before, but he didn’t want to ruin his outing with his godson. Severus didn’t want to admit it, but he enjoyed spending time with Harry. Albus was brought out of his musings by the Warden’s voice.


“I set up a place for you to visit with the prisoner,” Seamus said. “We don’t usually have people wanting to come by. So forgive the crudeness of the place.”


“Don’t worry yourself,” Albus said softly. “I know this is unorthodox. Just bring him to me.”

 

Seamus nodded and was about to turn when Albus called him back. 


“Oh,” Albus continued, “you’ll get his papers ready while I am with him. He’ll be leaving with me.”


Seamus gaped at Albus. The idea of a prisoner leaving was unheard of. He didn’t know if there were papers to be filled out. After gathering himself, Seamus nodded and walked out of the small room. 


As Albus waited, he thought back to his unorthodox request to Amelia Bones. He had to do a lot of convincing to get the proper paperwork required for this meeting. 


“Albus, no offense,” Amelia said, “but have you lost your mind?”


“None taken, my dear,” Albus assured. “Things have been revealed that a great disservice was done to a wizard. I need to make it right and get to the truth.”


“What information?” Amelia asked, becoming more intrigued. 


Albus waved his hand around Amelia’s office, ensuring their conversation was private. “There was an addendum to the Potters’ Will. I believe that Sirius Black is innocent of murder.”


“But he confessed.”


“Yes,” Albus agreed. “But I’m not sure what he was confessing to. He was never given a trial.”


“That’s not possible,” Amelia rebuffed. “Everyone was given a trial.”


“Not Sirius.” Albus shook his head. “He was taken straight to Azkaban.”


Amelia stood from behind her desk and started pacing. “This is not good.”


“No, it’s not,” Albus agreed. “That’s why I need release forms for Sirius. Several things need to be cleared up.”  


“Professor,” Amelia said, turning to face the Professor. “If this gets out that a wizard was sent to Azkaban without a trial, there will be backlash.”


“My dear,” Albus said, standing up. “There are a lot of things that have been happening that shouldn’t have. I believe when this is straightened out, there will be a whole different outlook on the Wizarding community as a whole.”


Amelia was very good at her job. She was promoted to the Head of Magical Law Enforcement after the first war. She credited herself as someone who kept her emotions in check. But hearing Hogwarts’ Headmaster’s cryptic statement, she knew something significant was about to happen.


Albus didn’t sit. His nerves were on edge. He couldn’t believe what had and hadn’t occurred these last ten years. And most of the blame stopped at his feet. Again, all it would have taken was checking into Severus’ living quarters, both home and school, checking into Harry’s home life to see if he was being cared for. Now, genuinely learning what happened the night James and Lily died.


The door to the small room opened. Albus turned to see a shell of a man slowly walk inside. A guard and two dementors followed him. The man’s shoulders were slumped. Albus had seen that stance before. He didn’t like it when Severus first came to him. He didn’t like it when young Harry did it. Once again, his hatred with seeing the man before him doing it. The man before him used to be full of life. He always had a smile on his face. He was easy to find mischief. And he was devoted to those he called friends.  


“You can wait outside.” The command in Albus’ tone let the guard know that there was no question of what he wanted. “Take the dementors with you.”


“But-” the guard tried to protest.


“That was not a request,” Albus said. “Nor was I asking for your opinion.”


The guard left, followed by the two dementors. For a moment, there was not a word spoken. Albus walked over to the haggard man before him. 


“Sirius,” Albus said softly.


___000___000___000

“Time to eat,” Molly called out from the doorway.


Harry and Ron sat on a hay bale, watching Charlie and Ginny battling for the Snitch. Harry won against Charlie and then against Ginny. Harry was worried that Charlie would be angry when he beat the older Weasley. But Charlie just laughed, rubbed his head, and congratulated him. After that, Harry started to calm down and enjoyed himself. 


When they heard Mrs. Weasley call for supper, the group of seven boys and one girl rushed into the house. They all went to separate bathrooms to clean their hands and faces before sitting around the table. 


Harry was the last one to arrive at the kitchen. He saw everyone piling food onto their plates and eating. Harry was unsure what he was supposed to do. He didn’t want to impose on his friend’s family meal. But he was rather hungry. 


The sounds of the plates being scraped by utensils brought Harry back to a time he rather not remember. The smell of good food. Food freaks like him weren’t supposed to have. Freaks were only to serve but not eat with normal people. Seeing the food already on the table scared Harry. He didn’t put the food there. That meant he was in trouble. Harry started wrapping his fingers in his shirt as he tried to make himself as small as he backstepped towards the wall. 


“I’m sorry, Uncle,” Harry mumbled quietly to himself. “I’ll be better.” 


Harry continued his mumbling mantra over and over. 


The Weasleys continued filling their plates and conversing between themselves. At first, none of them noticed the rising panic attack that was happening in the corner of the kitchen. 


Bill was about to ask Charlie a question but noticed that Charlie’s attention was elsewhere. Charlie trained his ears so that he could hear the faintest of sounds. Being around dragons, knowing when a dragon would attack was vital. Through the conversations going around the table, Charlie heard Harry’s mumbling. Bill caught Charlie’s serious look. 


“Quiet,” Charlie ordered. Everyone around the table stopped what they were doing. 


The elder brothers looked at each other. The mumbling words, though they weren’t understandable, could be heard. Bill looked over and saw Harry cowering in the corner. He remembered how Harry acted when the Potters’ Will was read. How timid he was. Bill got up and walked over to the small black-haired boy. 


Bill knelt in front of Harry and tried to grab his cloth-trapped fingers. “You okay, Harry?”


When Bill touched Harry, the poor child started screaming his apologies, tears streaming down his cheeks. Harry curled himself into the corner. 


“I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” Harry cried. “I’ll do better. I won’t ask for food. Freaks don’t get food. I’ll be a good Freak. I won’t eat. I’m not worthy.”


Several gasps could be heard in the room. 


Bill looked at his parents. “Maybe we should call Madam Pomfrey?”


Molly quickly gathered herself and went to the floo.


“Poppy,” Molly called out into the green flames.


Poppy’s face appeared. “Oh, hello, Molly. What can I do for you?”


“We have Harry,” Molly stated. “He’s having some sort of panic attack. I thought maybe you had something that could calm him down.”


“You said, Harry?” Poppy said with urgency in her tone. 


“Yes.”


“Leave your floo open,” Poppy said. “Someone will be over.”


Before Molly could ask who was coming, the matron’s face disappeared from the flames. Molly stood to get out of the way of whoever was coming through. Out of anyone, the last person she expected to see walked through the floo. 


As if on a mission, Severus walked through the floo and went straight to where he heard the cries of his godson. He was in the middle of gathering ingredients. He thought he could use the time Harry was away to work on the list of potions Poppy needed for her stores. He always prided himself in being able to react calmly in the face of a crisis. His lack of emotions helped him survive his time as a spy. But hearing that Harry was in the middle of a panic attack put all his training on the back burner. 


Severus followed his godson’s voice and found him curled up in the corner. The Weasley children surrounded him. 


“Let me through,” Severus ordered. 


The Weasleys were shocked that Professor Snape was there. Their shock stance had them complying with Severus’ demands. When everyone stood back, Severus knelt in front of Harry. 


Severus shook his head at what Harry was saying. His anger for Harry’s relatives grew every time he heard the child’s despondent cries. 


Severus cupped the child’s face and moved it so Harry looked at him. 


“Harry,” Severus said quietly. “Harry, look at me.”


Severus had to say that several times before Harry’s facial features show his acknowledgment of Severus’ request. When Severus knew he had Harry’s attention, he said, “There’s my spider monkey,” freeing the child’s fingers and pulling off his glasses.


Hearing his safety say his nickname, Harry jumped up and wrapped his arms around Severus’ neck. When he got a good grip on the boy, Severus stood up and faced the shocked faces of the Weasley clan. 


Harry wrapped his legs around Severus' waist, not caring about where he was or who was around. Being in his Godfather’s arms relaxed the child. He didn’t know how exhausted he was until he was in Severus’ arms. He laid his head in the crook of Severus’ neck and closed his eyes. Feeling Severus’ hand rubbing his back was soothing, causing Harry to fall asleep.


“Thank you for letting me know,” Severus said, addressing Arthur and Molly. “I’ll handle it from here. Thank you for allowing Harry to come over.”


“Anytime,” Arthur said, coming out of his stupor. “Hopefully, he can come back over.”


“I’m sure he would like that,” Severus said, walking over to the fireplace. Without another word, Severus walked through the green flames back to Hogwarts.


___000___000___000 

Sirius could not believe his luck. The last person he thought he would see was his former Headmaster. For ten years, Sirius lived with the guilt that he killed his best friend. The biggest reason he didn’t fight for having a trial. But meeting with Dumbledore proved that his guilt, though real, was misplaced. 


He was out of Azkaban. Seeing the light of day was amazing. Growing up, Sirius took walking around different places whenever he wanted to for granted. Now, the fact that he was walking on free land was a treasure. 


Now free, he would make up his time away from his godson. His other regret. He let his temper take over and left Harry all alone. Well, he won’t be alone anymore. Sirius was going to take his rightful place and care for his godson.


Sirius was in the Infirmary at Hogwarts. Albus told him that he needed rest and looking after. Poppy helped clean him up, giving him fresh pajamas and a healthy meal. He couldn’t remember the last time he had fresh fruit and vegetables. It was heaven. Poppy had to keep reminding him that he should slow down eating, so he didn’t get a stomachache.


Feeling clean and satiated from hunger, his weary body could finally get the rest he so richly deserved.

 

___000___000___000

Poppy was surprised by her newest patient. She was on her way out of the castle when she got a message from Albus, asking her to stay for a few more days. She knew it had to be vital for him to ask. Not really having plans, she agreed. 


When she saw the haggard man shuffle into the Infirmary, she had no idea who he was. Surprised wasn’t the word that adequately described her feelings towards the man before her. At first, it was fear because of the charges Sirius was arrested for. Under He Who Must Not Be Named, Sirius was up there with the most dangerous of wizards. The Potters’ murder was one of the most horrific acts that night. But after speaking with Albus and reading the scroll he received from Bill Weasley, she set aside her feelings and judgment for the patient and did her best to help get Sirius Black comfortable.


Poppy walked over to the cot where Sirius was lying. She carried a tray filled with potions and ointments and began her work of healing Sirius. 


It took a couple of hours to heal Sirius of his many wounds completely. He would have to have frequent, small meals to help build up his stomach to take a healthy serving of meals. After she finished and gathered her supplies, she vanished the tray and simultaneously had a tray of soup, bread, and warm milk appear.


“I know you must be starving,” Poppy said, placing the tray on Sirius’ pillow-covered lap. “But I need you to try and take your time and eat. If you eat too fast, you’ll make yourself sick.” She patted Sirius’ shoulder before turning away.


“Madam Pomfrey.” Sirius’ voice was weak from non-use.


Poppy turned and looked at her patient. His long black hair, which used to have volume and natural soft curls, now looked oily and limp, blanketing his taut face.


“Thank you,” Sirius said. 


Poppy had a slight smile while petting Sirius’ covered foot. “Try and eat. Then get some rest. Call me if you need me.”


___000___000___000

Albus stepped through the floo, entering his adopted son’s chambers. He was about to call out for Severus when he looked around at how the rooms were decorated. The Headmaster was in awe at the number of decorations lined the walls. There wasn’t an empty spot that didn’t have some form of Christmas decoration. Well, except Severus’ chair. Albus could just see in his mind’s eye the possible conversation between Severus and Harry to keep his chair plain. Albus was brought out of his inner thoughts by the chamber door opening. 


Severus walked in with Harry lying limp in his arms. Seeing Albus in his chambers, Severus knew he wouldn’t hear the end of it about how the rooms were covered from ceiling to floor with all those gaudy decorations. He didn’t want this mess in his chambers, but considering how his godson looked while they shopped and decorated, Severus couldn’t begrudge the child for having the Christmas he wanted and deserved. 


“Why are you here, old man?” Severus snarled as he carefully came out of his outer robes without jostling Harry.


“I needed to talk to you,” Albus said, “but I’m glad you’ve decided to join us in the Christmas spirit. The place looks festive.”


Severus rolled his eyes as he walked over to the sofa and sat down with Harry still against his chest.


“This place looks obnoxious,” Severus sneered. 


“Stop it,” Albus said, sitting down in the only undecorated chair. “You cannot tell me that you didn’t enjoy putting up these decorations.”


Severus didn’t say anything.


“As I recall,” Albus started, “you gotten upset when you thought-”


“Is there a reason you’re here?” Severus asked, cutting Albus off.


Albus couldn’t help chuckling at his adopted son. After a beat of silence, Albus’ mood changed. 


“I did have a reason,” Albus said solemnly. “I wanted to let you know that Sirius is out of Azkaban. I went to pick him up.”


Severus, again, said nothing. He didn’t look at Albus. The only movement he did was slowly rubbing his hand up and down Harry’s back.


“This changes nothing, Severus,” Albus said.


“If you’ll excuse me, Albus,” Severus said, standing up. “I need to put Harry to bed. He’s had an emotional afternoon. You saw yourself in here; you can see yourself out.” 


Before Albus could say anything, Severus walked down the small hallway that led further into his chambers. Albus hated that Severus was feeling like this. He wished he could implore his son that just because Sirius Black was first named Godfather to Harry didn’t mean that Harry would be taken away now that Sirius was free. Because Harry was eleven, he was old enough to decide who he wanted to be with or even if he wanted either one in his life.


___000___000___000

Harry woke up and looked around. He didn’t recognize where he was. It was dark where he was. There was a small orange glow that barely lit the room. Harry was used to being in a room with little light. Not wanting to get caught by his uncle, Harry curled into a fetal position. He tried to make himself fall asleep, but two things made themselves known that prevented him from falling back asleep. He had to use the toilet, and he was hungry.


Harry knew his punishment would be awful if he got caught sneaking out of his cupboard. But his body’s needs outweighed his fear of punishment. He didn’t want to get in trouble, but he also didn’t want to explain why he soiled his cupboard up because he didn’t go to the bathroom before he was put in his cupboard. 


Harry held his breath and tried to listen for any movement. He’s snuck out before and learned a few tricks so he wouldn’t get caught. He didn’t hear anything. Biting his bottom lip, Harry silently climbed out of his bed. 


Harry crept to the door and slowly cracked it open so he could peep through it. The outside was dark. He could hear nothing. A small smile curved the boy’s mouth as he opened the door just enough so he could slip through. He slowly crept down the small hallway towards the bathroom. When he made it inside, Harry couldn’t contain his grin. He quickly did his business and cleaned his hands. He knew flushing the toilet and running the water could be loud, so he tried to work quickly. If the bathroom lights were off, Uncle Vernon usually would think it was Dudley. That has worked for Harry a few times. 


___000___000___000

Sirius Black was out of Azkaban. There was no love lost between the two wizards. Their animosity between the two was mutual. Sirius would bully Severus during their time in school, but Severus wasn’t a chump. He gave as good as he got. It was never just Black when it came to the bullying and pranking. Potter and Lupin would join in as well. Pettigrew would be there but didn’t do much. When Severus had Lily on his side, it even the score. Lily Evans was an extraordinary witch. No one could surpass her in spells and jinks. 


Severus felt himself remembering the past. The small joys. The pitfalls. The good and bad decisions. And his greatest failure. It was amazing that just hearing a name from your past could bring back so many things. Severus did not like dwelling in the past. Though it had small good things, his past wasn’t the best to reminisce about. Guilt, rage, and sorrow were the only things that could be found if Severus went down memory lane.


The sound of the toilet flushing brought Severus back to the present. That let him know that Harry was awake, and even though it was a little late for dinner, Severus would expect the child to be hungry. He slept through dinner. 


Severus looked up when he saw the child at the end of the hallway. He was shocked at what he was seeing. It wasn’t that the child was up but that he was actually tip-toeing towards the kitchenette.


“Planning mischief, Mr. Potter?” Severus said. “I would think you wouldn’t be so fool-hearted as to think it would be a great idea to sneak around in a professor’s chambers.”  


Hearing a male voice, Harry jumped in surprise and landed on his knees. 


“I’m sorry, Uncle Vernon. I’m sorry,” Harry cried. “I’ll go back. I promise. I know Freaks aren’t supposed to be out this late. I wasn’t going to steal anything.”


Severus's teasing feeling quickly morphed to concern, hearing the child’s pleas. He rushed out of his chair going to the child curled into a ball on the floor. When Severus put his hand on Harry’s back, he could feel the child’s muscles tighten. He began rubbing the child’s back, hoping to soothe the boy. 


“Harry,” Severus called out, using a soothing tone not to frighten the child any more than he already was. “Harry, listen to me. I need you to wake up.”


Harry’s apologetic mantra continued as if Severus didn’t say anything. Having lived a familiar life as Harry growing up, Severus knew the signs of a night terror. This was no ordinary nightmare. 


Severus gripped the child under his arm and picked the boy off the floor. He carried Harry to the couch and placed the child on his lap. The Potions Master wrapped his arms around the small child and comforted him until Harry seemed to come out of his caged terror. He figured when Harry didn’t feel any of the beatings he imagined would come, he should calm down. 


Severus tightened his arms to give Harry good pressure to assure the child he wasn’t alone. He slowly rocked from side to side and hummed an old lullaby he learned from Lily when she helped him when he had trouble sleeping.


Lily and Severus would sneak to the Room of Requirement after curfew. She knew Severus had problems sleeping. So, some nights they would sleep in the Room of Requirement. She would sit at the head of his bed and sing a lullaby to help calm him down so he could go back to sleep. Maybe some memories weren’t so bad, Severus thought as he rocked his godson in his arms. 


___000___000___000

“I’m sorry, Professor,” Harry said softly.


Severus lowered the morning’s edition of the Daily Prophet. The two wizards were sitting at the table in the kitchenette, eating breakfast. 


“I have told you, Harry,” Severus sighed. “You did nothing wrong. It was a night terror. You couldn’t help it.”


“But I didn’t mean to keep you up all night,” Harry pleaded. 


“Mr. Potter,” Severus said. “If you must know, you did not keep me awake. I fell asleep. And you, being the spider monkey you are, you didn’t want to be alone. It is fine. It is not the first time you’ve attached yourself to me, and I promise it will not be the last time.”


“So,” Harry whispered, “you’re not mad?”


Severus raised the paper back up, so the child didn’t see him smiling. “I am not. Now finish eating. I would like to see Madam Pomfrey before she leaves for holiday.”


Severus and Harry made their way to the Infirmary. Severus promised that nothing would happen to him. It didn’t mean that Harry wasn’t worried. He liked Madam Pomfrey. She was always nice to him when he was there, so that should be a comfort. But it still didn’t calm that nagging feeling in his stomach that something terrible would happen. 


Severus looked down at his godson and saw the tension rolling off the child in waves. He hated that Harry’s relatives planted those horrid ideas in his head about doctors. 


“Harry,” Severus said, putting his hand on the child’s shoulder. “It will be fine. You’ve been with Madam Pomfrey since the beginning of the year. You know she will take care of you.”


Harry looked up at Severus and nodded. He agreed that the medi-witch would be nice. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He could do this. 


Severus opened the Infirmary doors, and the man and child walked in.


Severus saw Poppy was by one of the further cots. His brow furrowed, wondering who could be on it. The students were home. And there were few professors left. 


“Poppy,” Severus called out. 


Poppy turned towards the Infirmary doors and smiled at her new visitors. She knew she would be giving Harry a full check-up. 


“Good morning, Severus,” Poppy said. “I should–”


“SEVERUS!”


A tray fell to the floor, phials smashing against the floor. Poppy was roughly moved to the side. She almost lost her footing, leaning against the cot. 


“SNIVELLOUS, YOU DEATH EATER SCUM!” Sirius yelled. 


A squeak came from Harry as he ducked behind Severus’ back, plastering himself against his Godfather. Harry grabbed handfuls of Severus’ cloak, pulling it to his face. 


Severus felt hurt and betrayed by seeing Black in the infirmary. Why didn’t Albus tell him he was in the school? Severus wouldn’t have stayed if he had been privy to that information. He flicked his wrist, freeing his wand. He kept his arm down as he didn’t want the off chance of Poppy being in the crossfire, but he would be damned if he would be unarmed with Black around. 


Poppy regained her footing and waved her hand, sending out her Patronus.


“GIVE ME MY GODSON!”


TBC

                   


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