Harry Potter didn’t think he had ever been this cold in his entire life.

Even when he had lived with his Aunt and Uncle, spending the winter months in the draughty cupboard under the stairs had not been as bad as this.

Truth be told, his plan hadn’t been very well thought out, and once he’d arrived in the Forbidden Forrest, it occurred to him that he didn’t quite know what to do next.

It had quickly grown dark, and Harry didn’t much like the scary noises coming from the deeper parts of the forest, so he had quickly taken cover in the narrow space beneath a large rock, which was jutting out of the ground, creating a ledge.

And he had been huddled as far back as he could go ever since, watching the shadows pass by and listening to the horrible noises.

It was cold. So cold.

Harry was starting to feel sleepy…

And that was when he heard it: footsteps, growing louder and louder.

 Pulling his knees up against him, Harry hid his face and held his breath, hoping that whoever – or whatever – it was would go away.

Closer… closer…

And then they stopped. Right in front of him.

Harry tried to make himself as small as he possibly could, and he tried to be really, really quiet.

Silence for a moment.

And then somebody reached out and touched him.

Harry recoiled, whimpering and shaking his head, too afraid to look up.

 “No… no… leave me alone. Want my Daddy…” he whispered.

 “I’m here,” said a soft, silky voice.

Stealing himself, Harry slowly lifted his head up, and his breath hitched in his throat. For there indeed, crouching on the floor outside of his little shelter, just out of reach, was his Daddy.  

 “Harry?” he said, gently.

Daddy’s voice sounded funny – a little shaky, kind of how Harry’s did when he was scared.

But his Daddy wasn’t scared of anything… was he?

 “Can you come out of there?” his Daddy asked.

 “P…please don’t send me b-back… Please. I’ll be a good boy,” Harry pleaded, his voice barely above a whisper. “I can be a big boy. I can.”

 “Please come out,” Severus urged.

Cautiously, Harry stood up and edged his way out from beneath the large rock – deciding there wasn’t much he could do now that he’d been found anyhow – and came to stand in front of his father.

His Daddy immediately took off his big, warm cloak and wrapped it around Harry’s shoulders, drawing him a little closer.

 “Please…” Harry murmured again, shivering violently now.

 “Listen to me,” his Daddy began, calmingly. “I don’t want a ‘big boy’, or even a boy who’s good all of the time. I only want my son, Harry, just exactly as you are.”

The little boy watched him for a moment in confusion, as if trying to decide whether this was some kind of trick.

 “But, Peeves said…” he began.

 “What have I told you about Peeves? He is an implacable, heinous whisp of air, and whatsoever he says should be taken with a pinch of salt,” Severus reminded him. He had repeated it so many times – it still surprised him that Harry could so easily forget.

 “But… but Dean Fletcher–”

“–Is my student. That is all,” he told the boy. “I’m sorry if you felt pushed out, or that I was spending more time with my students – that was never my intention.”

 “I like it when it’s just us,” Harry told him, softly.

 “As do I.  And I will never, ever send you back to your Aunt’s house. You belong here at Hogwarts, with me,” Severus assured him. “So, if you are agreeable, I would like to take you home and warm you up. Unless of course, you would rather stay here in the Forbidden Forrest?”

Harry shook his head, shuffling a little closer to his father. “It’s scary here. But I tried to be brave Daddy, just like you are.”

Exhaling, Severus pulled the boy against his chest and cupped a hand to the back of his head.

 “I did not feel very brave today, when I thought that I might never see you again.”

Burying his face in his father’s robes, Harry melted into him, choking back a sob.

Severus scooped the boy into his arms, standing up, and Harry held on tight, settling his head in the crook of his Daddy’s neck.

“Come on,” he said softly. “Let us go home. And perhaps, if you are done with being a big boy for now, we can read a book together before bed.”

 “The one about the winter elves?” Harry mumbled, referencing his favourite book of all.

 “The one about the winter elves,” Severus agreed. “And perhaps some hot cocoa, to warm you up.”

But Harry shook his head now.

 “No?” his father enquired.

 “Not cocoa. A cup of tea,” Harry whispered. “And Daddy? Can you make it? Not the kitchen elves. I like how you make it. With lots and lots of milk.”  

Severus nodded his head, the corner of his lip turning up into a rare smile.

One cup of milky tea coming up.

It was good to have his little boy back.

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