Potions and Snitches
Snape and Harry Gen Fanfiction Archive

Chapter 7
Throughout the next few days, things gradually started getting back to normal as more witches and wizards were brought in to repair the castle. Some of the staff stayed to oversee the work while others returned to their normal duties. Harry and Hermione showed Severus around some parts of the castle that were safe.

Fortunately, the greenhouses were one such area and Harry found Neville and Professor Sprout working their way through greenhouse 1 which was the first greenhouse in which students worked. Severus looked around in astonishment, he'd never seen inside a real greenhouse before let alone one with such an amazing variety of plants. They were both tending to the plant's needs but soon approached when they spotted them.

"Hi Professor, I hope you don't mind some company, but I thought Severus would like to see the greenhouses."

"Of course not dear, you're always welcome. So you like plants do you?" She asked kindly, bending down to talk to Severus.

"My Mum says they're really useful for potions. I've never seen any magical plants though" Severus explained looking around in fascination.

"I see, well we can soon fix that, how about I show you some of the plants I can always use an extra set of hands" she told him offering him his hand.

"Ok" he said shyly accepting her hand as she started explaining to him about all the different plants.

Harry and Neville stood at the end of the greenhouse watching them until eventually, Neville broke the silence "so that's really Professor Snape then?" he asked as they watched Professor Sprout showing him how to pot up some of the Puffapod plants.

Harry turned to him sighing, it was really getting a bit tiring going over the same ground, not that he could begrudge his friend asking "he's not Snape Nev, he's just a kid."

"I know, sorry that didn't come out right" he said apologetically.

"It's ok, I get it"

"It's just ..."

"What?"

"Well" he said turning to him, as Harry motioned for him to continue, "it's hard to reconcile the Snape I remember with the man you described. This past year's been well like hell, after the way he treated all of us we all hated him even more particularly when we heard that he'd killed Dumbledore. I don't know what to think anymore"

Harry looked at him sympathetically. Of course, it would be hardest for Neville to adjust, Snape had bullied him about as much as he had Harry, it had made him even more nervous which had led to him being more accident-prone in class. On top of that Neville had had to endure a year under his leadership leading the resistance when he'd thought Snape had been a loyal Death Eater.

"Yeah it really messes with your head, doesn't it?" He nodded "he was a good actor, though he had us all fooled that's what kept him alive as a spy. Between him and Dumbledore I really believed he'd killed him and turned traitor, I absolutely hated him for a long time, turns out Dumbledore engineered the whole thing and planned for him to kill him, presumably to prove his loyalty to Voldemort"

"But you don't now?" Neville asked, looking for confirmation.

Harry shook his head "no I don't" Neville looked at him waiting patiently for him to explain further, he sighed " something changed seeing Voldemort kill him so callously. I couldn't hate him much as I wanted to, it was like he was seeing me properly for the first time. He showed me his memories, that changed everything. He may not have been an exactly nice man but he cared about my mother and by extension me, he did a lot of things against his will because of his guilt and a promise he made to Dumbledore including protecting me. It's hard to stay angry with someone who's experienced so much loss and risked their life so many times to protect you, to protect all of us, in some ways he wasn't even free to live his life all because of one big mistake he made as a teenager"

Neville listened intently, digesting what he said, he nodded before turning back to watch the boy who was intently watching and listening to Professor Sprout's instructions, she appeared to be showing him how to plant some seeds, one of the safer jobs he supposed.

"He really is different isn't he?" Harry looked at him "I mean there is a resemblance, I guess he's got the same hair and those eyes are hard to miss but he's so well different like he's been stripped bare."

"Like I said he's just a kid, a lonely scared kid who needs a lot of love and a family, I don't think he's ever had that, not really, his parents didn't exactly seem like they cared much about him."

"And you want to give him that don't you?" he asked for confirmation.

Harry looked at him and smiled wryly "yeah I guess I do. Ironic isn't it, after all, we went through and how much we hated each other, who'd have thought, the little guy really knows how to tug on your heartstrings though" he said smiling.

"He's something all right, he certainly seems to have taken a liking to you"

"You think?" Harry seemed surprised by his comment.

Neville laughed, "Have you seen the way he looks up at you? He practically idolises you"

"Hm" Harry replied looking thoughtful, they stood watching them for a minute, "so you thought anymore what you're going to do next?"

"I think I'm going to stick around a bit longer. A lot of people I think are considering coming back and repeating the last year, it's not as though we learnt much last year, well except how to resist unforgivable curses and learning how to defend ourselves" he said bitterly remembering being the target for many of those curses when he refused to cast them. "I want to continue my studies in Herbology as well, maybe apprentice a master. Professor Sprout's keen for me to get more experience she says I'm a natural, I think she may even want to train me up to replace her at some point"

Harry was thrilled for him. Neville had really come out of his shell the past few years and proved himself to be a brave and loyal friend, a leader even, but he'd always had a green thumb and a real talent for Herbology "that's great Nev, I'm sure you'll make a great Herbologist, if anyone can take over from her I'm sure you can."

"Maybe it's quite different actually teaching something though" he replied blushing "what about you, have you thought any more about what you want to do next?"

"Well, Hermione's been telling me and Ron how she thinks it's important that we come back and complete our education. Ron's not all that keen but I think she might be right in this instance. I was planning to join the Aurors but now I'm not sure, I think I may have had enough of battling dark wizards for a while besides which now I've got him to think about" he said gesturing to where Severus was still helping Professor Sprout.

"Yeah, I guess you've got a bit more to think about if you're taking on a little one, can't just be putting yourself in danger constantly" he nodded his agreement, the thought had certainly crossed his mind, Severus had already lost one set of parents, he didn't want him to lose another person who had pledged to protect him.

"You know you did a really good job teaching the DA the other year, have you ever thought about teaching?" Harry looked at him and shook his head, "I think you'd make a great teacher, far better than some of the other defence professors we've had and if anyone would be able to break the curse I bet you'd be able to" he said encouragingly.

There was a thought he'd quite enjoyed teaching people but was he good enough to do it for real? It would certainly be fulfilling and something useful teaching children how to defend themselves "hmm I'll certainly have to think about that, guess I'll have to talk to Professor McGonagall and see what she thinks"

"I'm sure she'd support you, you'd be really good at it I'll bet" Neville encouraged him.

"I think Hermione's thinking about a career in teaching as well but she's not decided yet you know what she's like and there are so many subjects she's good at"

"I can see her as a teacher you know" Neville replied and they shared a knowing look, remembering all the times she'd tried to teach them and encourage everyone to study.

As they were talking, Professor Sprout and Severus made their way over to them "hey Severus been having fun?"

"Yeah, Aunt Sprout showed me some of the plants and let me pot some Puffapods and some herbs up. She said she could help make me my own herb garden just like my Mum always wanted full of plants for potions" he explained excitedly.

"Really that's great Sev" he smiled at seeing his face light up and him talking with such enthusiasm, he turned to Professor Sprout "are you sure that's alright, it's not any trouble is it?"

"Of course not, it's a wonderful idea actually to have our own herb garden it'll be a great space to help him relax and he can learn while he's tending to the plants. He's been a big help today, I've no doubt that he'll be a great student in a few years' time" she said causing Severus to blush at the praise, "now then this is Neville Longbottom, he's one of my best students."

"Hi" he said smiling and lifting his hand shyly.

"I was thinking that perhaps you'd like it if he gave you a tour of some of the other greenhouses while I tackle some of the more dangerous plants"

"Me?" he asked started, she nodded encouragingly.

"Go on Nev, I'm sure you'll be fine" Harry encouraged "besides it'll be good practice if you do decide to become a teacher"

Neville looked down at Severus who was looking up at him as though unsure what to make of him and if he wanted to trust this new person. Up close it was easy to see that he really wasn't like Snape, just a shy and nervous child more like he and indeed Harry had been as first years, he remembered what that was like when everyone had teased him for being awkward and clumsy and accident-prone, and felt a sudden urge to help and protect him.

"Uh ok if you're sure" he said fixing his gaze on the child "hi Severus nice to meet you, I'm Neville. Would you like that to have a tour with me? I can show you some of my favourite plants" he said kneeling down to talk to him before getting up and holding out his hand. He looked up at him cautiously with solemn eyes, clearly weighing up whether to trust him or not before eventually nodding and taking his hand, a tentative smile on his face.

"You'll be fine" Harry encouraged them both, and Professor Sprout nodded her agreement.

They watched as the two headed off Nevile awkwardly explaining about some of the plants before getting into his stride and talking animatedly showing him how to dodge the Venomous Tentacula. He turned to Professor Sprout "you think they'll be alright?"

She nodded, she'd seen the protective glint in Neville's eyes when he looked down at the boy "I think it will do them both good. He's come a long way, I remember when you were both shy, awkward first years not unlike him. I know you're very protective of him and that you want to distance him from his past but it's not so easy for those of us who remember him as a student"

Harry looked at her curiously, interested to hear what she had to say "I remember him as a first-year, scrawny little thing, very wary and constantly alert, ready to lash out at the slightest provocation. He was very advanced for his age, quiet and thoughtful but not very good with the other children, such is the curse of being gifted." she said with a sigh "there was always one person who could make him smile" he waited with bated breath having an idea who it would be, she caught his eye and smiled "that's right dear, it was your mother, he and Lily were quite the cute little couple, his face lit up when he was with her, a lot of people disapproved but they made it work"

She paused, lost in her reflection "you shouldn't judge him too harshly, he wasn't a bad child, just got caught up with the wrong crowd, hardly surprising really underneath the cold front that he put up, I think he was desperate for someone to show him attention and acceptance, it made him an easy target for the older students. I know I speak for Minerva and Fillius when I say that if we could go back and change things I think we'd do a lot of things differently"

Harry felt for her and put a hand gently on her arm "hey we may not be able to change his past but we can change his future, Severus will never have to go through that I'll make sure of that"

She smiled and nodded her agreement "we all will dear, I'm just glad we have the chance to be a part of it this time."

As they were talking Neville and Severus returned with the boy babbling happily, he immediately ran over to Harry when he saw him "Harry!"

"Hey Severus, you have fun?" he asked.

He nodded his head vigorously "Nevile showed me the Venomous Tentacula, they were so slimy and gross, oh and the Puffapods and the Flutterby Bush, it was amazing"

Harry gently interrupted him "that's great, Sev, it sounds like you had a great time with Neville. Say why don't we go down and get some lunch and you can tell me all about it" Severus nodded his agreement, he'd worked up quite an appetite but it had been an incredible morning "you coming?" Harry asked the other two who were smiling watching the exchange.

Later in the week saw Harry leading Severus down the hill towards Hagrid's hut, which had been much restored since he'd last seen it. He knew that Hagrid had been informed about what had happened to Severus and was eager to meet him and he hoped that the encounter would prove to be a good distraction for Severus.

As they approached they saw Hagrid hard at work fixing up his garden, he looked up from his work and spotted them walking over to greet them "alright there Harry and this must be little Severus" he said to the boy who looked up at him with wide eyes, he shifted a bit closer to Harry for safety choosing to peek out from behind his leg "I was wondering when you'd be coming round, how's Hermione?"

"Good, she said she'd join us later" he turned to Severus "it's alright this is Hagrid Severus, he may look big and scary but he's harmless, he's been waiting to meet you, why don't you go say hello" he said giving him a nudge forward.

"Hello" he greeted nervously as Hagrid beamed down at him and offered him a giant hand to shake, he looked at it in awe, one finger was as big as his whole hand.

"Nice to meet ya, Severus, why don't you two come and have cuppa tea while we wait for the others, I baked some rock cakes specially for ya" he said opening the door before anyone could react a black furry mass came running out aiming straight for Severus and knocking him down. Severus gave out a yelp of fear and surprise as the dog leapt on him before he realised that he was licking him. Shock and fear turned to giggles as his wet, rough tongue tickled him

Harry and Hagrid were so surprised froze for a minute before Hagrid moved into action, pulling the dog off of him "down boy get back in there" he ordered to the boarhound who was hanging his head, and whing miserably "sorry about that Fang's a big softie, but he can be a bit over-eager. You alright?" He said, offering him a hand up.

He nodded, wiping the slobber off his face, as Harry helped him to his feet and checked him over for injuries, he hadn't exactly met many dogs before in Cokeworth. He followed them in looking around the cabin. With Hagrid there, the space felt much smaller but cosy with a warm fire in the hearth, a giant-sized table and chairs in front of them, a stove with a whistling kettle on the other side and a giant-sized bed that appeared to be covered in patchwork quilt just visible in the corner and tools hung and stacked haphazardly in various corners.

He climbed onto one of the chairs as Hagrid puttered about stoking the fire and putting the kettle on all the while making conversation with Harry. Fang approached them somewhat more placidly, this time earning himself a good scratch behind the ear from Harry before coming over to Severus and giving him sad puppy eyes as a way of making up for earlier he thought, Severus, copied Harry's example and petted him.

Soon enough he looked up as Hagrid placed giant mugs of tea down in front of him along with a tray of rock cakes which he offered them, Harry politely refused, saying he wasn't hungry. Severus took one, it felt quite solid he thought examining it wearily before cautiously taking a bite. He was glad he hadn't bitten down too hard into it that thing was hard enough to break his teeth on. He looked at the mug of tea considering dipping it in then at Fang and decided to subtly slip it to him under the table, he sniffed it and pawed at it before turning away apparently even Fang knew better. Harry watched him out of the corner of his eye and smiled, remembering doing much the same on many occasions, Severus caught him smiling at him and suddenly wondered if Harry was more Slytherin than he'd first thought.

Soon Hermione joined them and they exchanged warm greetings. Now they were just waiting for one more person, Harry thought. He'd been growing increasingly concerned about Severus's persistent nightmares and he'd thought that maybe it was time to get an outside perspective and if there was one person who might be able to help it was his old friend Luna Lovegood.

Luna always had a very unique outlook on life and in spite of outward appearances, she was surprisingly perceptive and often picked up on things that no one else saw. Perhaps unsurprisingly relations between Luna and Hermione were at times strained as the two had quite different ways of thinking and Luna's outlook tended to conflict with Hermione's decidedly logical ways of thinking, fortunately, they had learnt to overcome their differences and work together and they all valued her as a friend.

A knock on the door announced Luna's arrival, Harry opened the door and everyone greeted her warmly, except for Severus who sat quietly looking at her "hi Luna, this is Severus, Severus this is Luna, she's a good friend of ours" Harry said by way of introduction.

She tilted her head to one side and looked at him curiously, smiling with that kind of faraway look she so often wore "yes he does seem a lot like Professor Snape doesn't he" she announced to no one in particular, as though she'd been having a silent conversation with someone else. Everyone else looked at her in shocked silence and Severus looked increasingly wary of her.

Harry noticed his discomfort and moved closer, squeezing his shoulder for reassurance "uh Professor Snape's dead Luna" he reminded her. He really liked Luna and though he had come to value her unique perspective there were times when she could be well a bit blunt. Not that he held it against her as she knew she didn't mean any harm and probably didn't even realise the effect of her words but it wasn't exactly creating the best first impression.

She turned to him "oh no he's definitely still here, I can sense his presence, it's only very faint mind you but he's definitely here."

There was an awkward silence after that as no one quite knew what to say, finally, it was Hagrid who broke the ice: "Well, if everyone's here, why don't we get going? One of the Thestrals gave birth just the other day and I thought maybe you'd like to see" he said enthusiastically.

"Uh yeah that sounds good Hagrid" Harry replied ushering Severus out.

Severus hung back while the others walked ahead before looking up anxiously at Harry "what did she mean when she said I was like Professor Snape?" he asked.

Harry sighed, he knew he'd have to tell him more about Professor Snape at some point but he wasn't sure that he was ready to place that sort of burden on such a young child's shoulders "nothing you need to worry about, she just meant that you look a bit like him" he still looked dubious "hey don't worry about it LUua can be a bit odd but she's really nice once you get to know her, now why don't you go see Hagrid, he knows a lot about magical creatures and I'll bet he'll tell you all about Thestrals if you ask him" Severus considered before running up to where Hagrid was chatting enthusiastically with Hermione.

Once Harry was certain he was ok with Hermione he caught up with Luna "hey Luna, I was just wondering what you meant earlier when you said that you felt Professor Snape's presence?" He asked, curious to get to the bottom of this.

"Oh yes, I can sense it but there's something interfering as though it's tangled up, it's only weak mind you almost as though he's lost or confused" she said looking in Severus's direction.

"I was actually meaning to ask you about something, you see Severus has been suffering from terrible nightmares ever since he arrived. We've tried everything we can think of to help him but nothing seems to be working, even the potions aren't having any effect. We were wondering if you might have any ideas?"

She looked thoughtful "I did sense a lot of Wrackspurts around him, they definitely seemed agitated, it's like there was another presence. The nightmares could be a manifestation of that, the only way to solve it is to remove the source of the problem"

It took Harry a minute to catch up and interpret what she was saying "you mean that he's got a part of Professor Snape inside him that's responsible for his nightmares?"

She gave him a wain smile in return which he took to mean that he was on the right track and replied mysteriously "I sense that he's haunted by his past" she siad mysteriously.

Their conversation was cut short as Hagrid as they followed Hagrid into a secluded glade that he'd never noticed near to the border of the forbidden forest. They'd all stopped and were watching the thestrals, there was a whole herd grazing nearby in the longer more open grass but what had caught everyone's attention was a lone mother and her young calf who was not more than a few days old and were stood just in front of them.

They both moved to stand beside Severus "do you see them?"

He shrugged "I can see something like a black winged horse but it's fuzzy" he explained.

Harry frowned at that wondering what that could mean. Meanwhile, Hagrid walked over to the Thestrals who'd been watching them with interest, the mother approached Hagrid who held out his hand. The Thestral appeared to sniff it cautiously before allowing him to pet her and rubbed her head against his hand. The new foal cautiously followed his mother's example as Hagrid fussed over him as well.

Hagrid turned back to them "would yeh like to have a go Severus?" he offered "uh" Severus replied hesitantly, clearly still a bit nervous of them "it's alright they won't hurt you" Hagrid said beckoning him.

"He's right" Luna added causing them to look at her startled, "people think Thestrals bring misfortune because of their appearance and the fact that only those who have experienced death can see them, but they're really quite gentle and very intelligent" she continued in her strange manner before approaching and petting the adult Thestral.

The foal looked at them curiously before calling out a strange high pitched noise, it looked up at its other who nudged it forward and it approached Severus who was watching looking mesmerised and just a little apprehensive.

"She's right, I thought they were a bit scary the first time I saw them but they were really a great help to me, they even let me and my friends ride them" Harry confided remembering the events of his 5th year with a twinge of sadness. Severus looked up listening to him before looking back at the small Thestral.

The foal stopped in front of Severus and called out again before butting its head up against him looking at him with eery white eyes as though asking him to pet it. Severus cautiously put his hand out and rubbed its bony head and it made an appreciative purring kind of sound and he smiled as he stroked the soft black mane.

Up close Severus could discern some more detail. The foal was a gangly thing, with thin limbs and an almost skeletal body with a strange head that was reminiscent of a dragon skull and bat-like wings which were still soft and flapped about awkwardly as though the foal had not quite got used to operating them.

"Well, look at that, I think he likes yer" Hagrid commented. He was right Severus thought it was kind of spooky looking but it was hard to be scared of something so gentle when it was allowing itself to be stroked and petted much like a normal horse.

He reflected that it had been quite a strange day as they walked back to the castle. He was still a bit puzzled as to how he could see the Thestrals as he was certain he'd never seen anyone die, well he supposed he kind of had but that was just a dream right? He didn't think that counted unless it was because his parents were dead but he wasn't sure that seemed right either.

He was so lost in his thought that he didn't notice someone beside him until she spoke up "you miss her don't you?" he startled and looked up at the strange girl Luna who was looking down kindly in his direction. "I miss her to my mother that sometimes, I feel very sad when I think of her but then I think of all the happy times we had together and I think that it's not goodbye forever, one day I will see her again."

Severus looked at her in surprise then looked down at his feet "I hope she's alright" he tried not to think about all the things which she hadn't been so good at, it wasn't her fault she was depressed and stuck with his father with little money to raise her son, he tried to focus on the good memories "she taught me all about magic and Hogwarts"

"I think she'd be happy for you don't you?" he looked at her surprised "you've got a new family and you're happy now, right?" He'd never thought about it like that, perhaps she was right, he hoped so.
Chapter End Notes:
Maybe some can determine where I'm going with the dreams if not I'm not going to drop any hints as all will be revealed in the next few chapters as the plot thickens. I wanted to introduce Neville and give a bit of a different perspective on things as he tries to understand and accept things. I think even though Neville, Harry and Severus all have very different experiences and backgrounds growing up they are somewhat similar in some ways like they're all a bit shy and awkward and all know what it's like to be the odd one out and be bullied so I thought he'd be an interesting addition as he continues his won journey growing and developing and building on the confidence and leadership skills he's developed while Harry's been away.

Hope people like Luna as well, it was a bit of a late addition but I thought she may be able to offer a unique perspective on Sev's dreams even if she can be a bit blunt about it as she often picks up on things others can't. I'd planned on having Severus meet Hagrid and the Thestrals at some point so this seemed as good a time as any to do it.

I hope I've got the Thestrals right, there's not a lot about the foals or what sort of noise they make but I figured it wouldn't be the same sort of shrieking noise as the adults. As for why Severus can only sort of see them while that's kind of related to his past and his dreams, it will all make more sense in a few chapters but I basically figured that since he as a child hasn't experienced death first hand he wouldn't totally be able to see them.

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