Harry frowned as he looked around the black space that encompassed him, punctuated by what he now knew was the light of the prophecy. He'd been brought to this place several times and something about it felt different this time.

The prophecy itself had changed. It was pulling him in even more as though it had grown stronger and was becoming desperate to be claimed. Something had excited it. The power coming from it was strong and warm; it drew him in. It felt like it was going to lead him somewhere...lead him home. He approached the glowing blue orb, feeling its magic wrap around him and wanting to find what it could give him.

"A bond for the ages ... the lost will be found ... a power beyond any the world has seen ..."

It was similar words to the other times the prophecy had spoken, but still different and still incomplete. As he drew closer, the prophecy flickered strangely in a way it never had before. He frowned again and recognized what else seemed different.

He wasn't alone.

That in itself wasn't different. He was normally with others he couldn't see, others he'd learned were Draco and Snape as the prophecy reached for all of them simultaneously. This time, it wasn't them. There was someone new, someone...dangerous.

"You are each other's light," the same voice as the prophecy said, but Harry could tell these words weren't part of the prophecy. "You are each other's salvation. You will guide each other home."

It sounded hopeful, but that hope was dimmed with the prophecy. Harry tensed as he felt a new power slither around him, wrapping around him like a coiling snake and attempting to drive away the magic of the prophecy. He watched as sharp, deep black tendrils reached out through the darkness and began crawling across the orb of the prophecy like bolts of lightning, making it pulse brightly as it fought whatever was trying to consume it.

"I see you!" a voice hissed, echoing around the space.

Harry could do nothing but scream as it felt like he was torn apart from the inside.

Severus had to hold back his smirk of satisfaction when Dumbledore was unable to conceal his startled jump as he slammed the guardianship certificate on the desk in front of the old man. He watched the blue eyes scan the document before meeting his with no sight of their typical sparkle.

"Severus, what have you done?" Dumbledore said, his tone grave.

Severus cocked an eyebrow. "Me? Well, I've done nothing. Lady Magic, however..." he trailed off, tapping the document where Lady Magic's name was recorded.

"I told you to stand aside," Dumbledore said. "You cannot be this for them."

"Lady Magic disagrees," Severus said. "As do I."

"I cannot allow this," Dumbledore said.

"I'm not sure you have a choice," Severus said. "It is Lady Magic's will."

"That may be, but it will doom our world," Dumbledore said.

"And why is that?" Severus asked. "Because you cannot control them anymore? Or me? Because you can no longer send us to die for the war you helped create?"

The steely look he received was unlike any he'd ever gotten from Dumbledore before and took him aback.

"Because you have put your trust in the wrong people and I cannot trust you not to do so again at the expense of Harry," Dumbledore said coolly.

The words were like knives carving at his heart.

"Yes, I have trusted the wrong people," Severus said tightly, "including you."

"You made your choices," Dumbledore said. "I have given you your chances."

Severus shook his head. "No, there was never a chance in anything I have done for you. This," he stabbed a finger at the certificate again, "is my chance."

"You don't understand," Dumbledore said. "The prophecy-"

"Which one?" Severus interrupted and watched the old man's eyes widen ever so slightly. "Yes, Albus, I know about the second prophecy and its connection to Trelawney's. I know you have had me protecting and feeling guilty about the wrong prophecy all these years. I know, by doing so, you have left Lady Magic's Prophecy unprotected and now nearly in the hands of Voldemort by way of Lucius Malfoy."

Dumbledore leaned forward, clasping his hands on top of the certificate and dislodging Severus' hand. Severus' eyes narrowed as Dumbledore gazed up at him, his own eyes hard.

"Then you also know what it all means for Harry," Dumbledore said, "for you if I were to allow this to continue."

Severus placed his hands on either side of the guardianship document and leaned in himself. "It is not your decision. Harry will not be abandoned to deal with this on his own, regardless of the risk to me. He has been through enough because of you."

Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, bringing his clasped hands to his abdomen. "You knew I was never going to approve of this, so what did you hope to gain by revealing this to me?"

"I wanted you to know that, if you do anything to either of them, there is someone that will do something. I wanted you to know that you don't get to have your disposable soldiers anymore. I wanted you to know that the only reason I will continue to spy is so I know what danger these boys face. I no longer work for you and I will let this world burn if it means they are safe and happy," Severus said sharply. "I wanted you to know that the only reason I am not at least halfway across the world with them is because I refuse to make them live a life on the run when all they deserve is safety and happiness."

"They will never be safe while Voldemort lives," Dumbledore said. "And he lives as long as Harry lives."

"Maybe, but they can be a hell of a lot safer with me than you. I'm the one they can and will come to, not you, not anymore," Severus said. "You are the one refusing to help Draco despite the fact that only yesterday another student used a Cruciatus on him within this school. Yet, you'll do nothing. And Umbridge? Are you aware she is mutilating them?"

"Of course I am," Dumbledore said, almost sounding offended. "There is truly nothing I can do against the Ministry."

"No, there's nothing you will do because you want whatever Voldemort is planning to happen so Harry fulfills that damned prophecy and you get to walk away without a drop of blood on you."

"I think you forget who allowed this path to be an option for Voldemort in the first place," Dumbledore said harshly. "Once, you could think of nothing but your redemption and you were willing to do anything."

"Because, as you said, I put my trust in the wrong person," Severus said. "I chose you once, I won't do it again. I should have chosen Leif and Alexei back then, should have listened to them instead of you. This time, I choose them." He jabbed a finger at the document again.

"You are making a mistake."

Severus shook his head. "Not this time."

"You are forcing me to be your enemy. I will find a way to end this. I'm afraid two boys are not worth the fate of our world."

"Try it," Severus said threateningly. "You know what I was willing to do for a dead woman. Imagine what I'll do for the living."

He snatched up the certificate and stormed from the office.

Harry rubbed his temples with a grimace as he tucked himself into the sofa's corner, drawing his knees to his chest. It felt like there were tiny knives just skating around inside his skull and he wished he could put the blame solely on Occlumency, but the feeling had been constant all week, morning to night. He released his head to take the tea being held out to him, knowing it would have the standard Headache Reliever. He took a sip and leaned his head against the back of the sofa, holding the cup in his hands on top of his knees.

"Would you care to tell me what has you so distracted?" Snape asked, sitting in his usual chair with his own tea. "We both know you are far more proficient at Occlumency than you just displayed."

"I know, I'm sorry," Harry said, frowning at his tea as he absently dragged a nail back and forth across the cup's porcelain surface.

"You have been distant all week and distracted," Snape said. "What is going on? Is it Umbridge? I was unaware you'd had any detentions this week."

Harry shook his head. "I haven't, it's not her surprisingly. I...I don't think I've been sleeping very well."

"You are unsure?" Snape said. "Nightmares or visions?"

"I don't know," Harry said and sighed at the professor's raised eyebrow. "I don't remember any dreams, but I keep waking up feeling like I must have had one. I feel...off."

"How so?" Snape asked.

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "Like someone's watching me," he said. "My head's been killing me like you're constantly using Legilimency."

"Your potion has not helped?" Snape asked, referring to Harry's special Pain Reliever.

"No," Harry said and sighed again. "I don't know, I'm probably just crazy. A freak, like always." He pulled his legs closer to his chest, feeling the need to be small, a feeling he'd had all his life. If he was small, maybe he wouldn't be noticed and bad things would pass him by.

"Harry," Snape said disapprovingly but also gently and Harry looked up at him from under his fringe. "Not having an explanation for your experience does not mean your experience is not real."

Harry just shrugged a shoulder, unsure what to say.

"I cannot help but notice that these new developments seem to have come about alongside the guardianship," Snape said, sounding casual but Harry heard the pointedness of the comment. "Is there, perhaps, a connection?"

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, uncomfortable.

"Perhaps it has caused you distress," Snape said. "Perhaps it is not something you truly wanted."

"No, it is!" Harry said quickly, dropping his legs and sitting up. "How could I not want it? I never thought I'd ever..."

He trailed off, looking down into his tea.

"I thought I was going to be alone forever. I didn't think anyone would ever care," he finished quietly.

"Yet, I sense some hesitation," Snape said.

Harry frowned at his tea, slumping slightly. "I'm sorry. I'm grateful, I am, honestly. I might not have ever expected it would be you, but I couldn't ask for better and I know I don't even deserve a fraction-"

"Harry."

Harry peeked up at the soft tone interrupting him.

"You deserve so much more, child," Snape said. "There is no need to apologize. It is a unique and unexpected situation given our pasts. It is understandable to feel unsure. A lot has changed between us despite not full working through our pasts yet."

Harry just gave a slow nod.

"What is on your mind?" Snape asked.

"Dumbledore told you to protect me," Harry said eventually.

Snape hummed. "We have yet to discuss the prophecy. Is it something you are ready to talk about?"

Harry sighed and moved to put his now cooling tea on the coffee table before looking back at the professor. "I don't think I care about the prophecy, not anymore. I know you weren't the only one involved and, even though Voldemort still believes it, it made it invalid. Maybe it all saved me somehow, I don't know. I just want to know about the after. How do I know this is something youwant and it's not just redemption or whatever? How do I know this isn't all for Dumbledore after all in some sick way?" He paused for a moment. "How do I know you mean it?" he added quietly.

He wasn't sure what to make of the thoughtful expression Snape looked at him with.

"How about I show you?" Snape said and Harry looked at him in confusion.

The man stood and gestured for Harry to follow. He did so, being led to the blank wall that sat behind the desk. He was more confused at first until Snape touched a seemingly random stone and a door appeared. Harry slipped through as Snape held the door open and found a small den-like room. It was cozy with a soft grey lounge chair with a footrest in a corner and a small, round table with an intricately designed oil lantern to its side. The floor was covered in a fluffy auburn rug and the wall to the left was lined with full bookshelves. To the right, a cabinet was built into the stone wall, the doors a dark wood with long glass panels with inscribed delicate patterns that seemed to have some runes included.

He watched Snape close the door behind them and walk to the cabinet, pulling the doors open after the runes on the glass glowed white briefly. Inside, there was a stone podium with a familiar bowl of liquid set in the top. He looked at Snape in surprise, receiving a raised eyebrow.

"This is not the first Pensieve you have seen," Snape said.

Harry shook his head, giving the Pensieve a side-glance, uncomfortable. "Last year, I found one in Dumbledore's office. It was left out and I saw a memory. It's how I knew who Barty Crouch Jr. was and that you're a spy, though I'm not sure I believed it at the time, honestly."

Snape smirked slightly. "Not exactly surprising." He waved his wand and the podium slid out of the cabinet, making access for both of them possible. "What you may not know about Pensieves is exactly how they work."

"Um, you put a memory in and watch it?" Harry said, receiving an amused look at the simplicity of his explanation.

"That is their function, yes," Snape said. "There are two spells to remove memories. One removes the memories as they are remembered, meaning they are not necessarily accurate as memory easily changes. The other removes memories as they are with no biases, pulling details from the subconscious to accurately complete them."

"Okay," Harry said slowly, uncertain why Snape was telling him this.

"This allows memories to be seen without emotion clouding them or the passage of time changing them," Snape said. "It is very possible inner monologues can also be heard."

Harry nodded, thinking he understood why he was being given the explanation. It made him anxious as he watched the man slowly and carefully pull little white strands from his temple, placing them in the Pensieve. The explanation meant he could potentially see and hear things even Snape didn't remember and, given the nature of the memories, the unknown details could very well be upsetting. After just a couple of minutes, Snape finished removing memories and turned to him.

"After you," Snape said.

Harry took a deep breath and stepped up to the Pensieve. He gazed down at the swirling liquid, images of a younger Snape flashing briefly to the surface every few seconds. Steeling himself, he lowered his upper body until his face was submerged and he was pulled into the first memory.

He gazed around as he landed, taking in what now surrounded him. He was in Dumbledore's office. It looked nearly identical to how Harry knew it, if with a few less trinkets. Dumbledore was sat behind his desk and Snape was standing behind the chairs, leaning on one with his head bowed. He looked to his left as Snape appeared next to him.

"This is the night I learned the Dark Lord was going to target you and your parents due to the prophecy," Snape said. "I went to Dumbledore to ask for his help."

Harry turned back to the memory just as Snape lifted his head, dark eyes red and filled with pain.

"Severus, what have you done?" Dumbledore said, his tone and gaze cold and accusatory.

Harry frowned at the headmaster's reaction in the face of Snape's obvious distress.

"I...I heard..." Snape stuttered in a way Harry had never heard from the man before. "The prophecy...I...it was a mistake...he believes it is about them, about her child."

"What are you asking of me?" Dumbledore asked. 

The look Snape gave the headmaster was desperately imploring.

"Help her," Snape said, voice just as desperate.

"You wish for me to fix your thoughtless mistake?" Dumbledore said and Snape winced. "Why should I? Why do you pretend to care now when such compassion was clearly not present when you chose to pass on the prophecy?"

Harry couldn't help but feel it was a fair question, but also couldn't ignore the way his heart ached when a tear rolled down Snape's cheek. Despite the change in their relationship and the displays of affection Snape had shown, Harry hadn't been sure Snape was capable of such deep emotion.

"I never meant..." Snape swallowed thickly. "I didn't think..."

"No, you didn't," Dumbledore said, "despite the chances you were given."

Harry was startled to see quick flashes of scenes involving Snape and a variety of others, only Snape was clearly a teenager in each. Remembering Snape's explanation about how these memories would work, he assumed that the flashes could have been thoughts Snape had at the time, remembering the ‘chances' Dumbledore was referring to.

"Please," Snape whispered pleadingly. "He'll kill her."

"What are you asking?" Dumbledore asked again.

"Save her," Snape whispered. "Protect her."

"And James? Their child?" Dumbledore said. "Are you so selfish you would only protect Lily? You would let a child die for your mistake?"

Even Harry winced at the callousness despite, again, finding it to be a fair question. He'd been a baby at the time and was his father truly that terrible? He knew from passing comments from Sirius that it was very likely the Marauders had targeted Snape in some capacity while they were all students. Had it been so awful that Snape wanted James Potter dead?

‘Why would I want Potter to be protected? What makes him deserving of protection, of the life handed to him?'

Snape's voice echoed around them, sounding distant and slightly muffled. 

‘The child is his, not mine. It will be just like him and those Marauders.'

Harry chewed his lip at the small stab of pain the thoughts caused. He'd been a baby and Snape didn't care if he lived because he could have turned out like James?

‘The child is hers as well. They are her life.'

What sounded like a sigh breathed around them.

‘No child deserves to die. They make her happy. If they live, she lives.'

"Protect all of them," Snape said, clearly convincing himself that he couldn't just ask this favour for Lily, no matter his feelings about James. 

Harry was impressed at the man's ability to put a man he hated before his own bitter experiences and hateful memories. He may not have actually cared if James lived or died, but he cared enough about Lily to know James' death would hurt her and Snape didn't want that. 

"Just...do something to save them, please," Snape added desperately.

"What will you do for her life?" Dumbledore said and Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "What is she worth to you?"

"Anything," Snape said, sounding broken.

"If I do this, you will do something for me," Dumbledore said and Harry frowned deeply at the very obvious emotional blackmail. "You will be my eyes on the inside."

Snape met Dumbledore's eyes and Harry was sure he saw terror in Snape's own eyes.

"You do this, I protect them," Dumbledore said.

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. His and his parents' protection, their very lives, were conditional to Dumbledore? 

"Yes," Snape breathed and Harry couldn't help but notice how small and lost the man sounded as he agreed to give up his life to Dumbledore's conditions.

The scene disappeared behind a swirling white fog. Harry wanted to ask questions, wanted to react to the first memory, but had no chance before the next memory formed. It was nearly identical to the first only with Dumbledore standing at a window, Snape sitting in one of the chairs, and tears very clearly running down Snape's face.

"Halloween," the Snape next to him said quietly.

Harry felt his stomach twist painfully.

"You said you would protect them," Snape whispered brokenly.

"They put their trust in the wrong person," Dumbledore said, gazing out the window, "much like you."

Snape choked on a sob, startling Harry with the display, and dropped his face into his hands, shoulders shaking. 

"They boy has survived," Dumbledore said. "He will need protection."

Snape dropped his hands, remaining hunched over. "From what? The Dark Lord is gone."

"For now," Dumbledore said. "I believe he will return and, when he does, he will come after the boy. Harry will have a hard life, but you must never tell him of this task."

"Why?"

"He will have a job to do one day, one that can only be done alone," Dumbledore said. "He will never trust you, not after what you caused."

Harry absently rubbed his chest at the second painful tug. Dumbledore was so harsh, resorting to his emotional blackmail tactics once again and making decisions on Harry's behalf. He couldn't say one way or the other, but how could Dumbledore have made the deduction that Harry would never trust Snape? Perhaps he could have if he'd known the truth from the beginning. Lies were something Harry hated most. Maybe knowing someone was helping him, was protecting him, was looking out for him, no matter the reason, would have helped him feel not so alone the last few years. What right did Dumbledore have to take away the mere opportunity for him and Snape to have had something different from the beginning?

Dumbledore turned from the window and gazed at Snape's back, blue eyes steely. "You wish for redemption, do you not? You wish to fix your mistake that has led to this moment?"

"Yes," Snape whispered, more tears falling down his cheeks.

"You failed Lily," Dumbledore said. "Do not fail her son. Do not fail me."

The memory froze then and Harry walked forward to get closer to Snape. He gazed down at the man, face crumpled in grief and agony, eyes red as tears left tracks on the thin cheeks.

‘I failed her,' Snape's voice echoed around them again. ‘How could I do anything other than fail the boy? I will only cause his death, as I caused hers.'

Harry frowned at the sadness in the man's thoughts, at the automatic assumption the man made that he would cause Harry nothing but harm. As he stared at Snape, he wasn't sure he'd ever seen such pain in someone, not even himself. There was nothing there but regret and despair. The tugging in his chest and twisting of his stomach continued.

"He made you do these things?" Harry said, glancing over at Dumbledore. "Spying, dealing with me."

"I made my choices," Snape said. "He simply gave me opportunities to fix what I'd done, what I'd caused."

"If you hadn't done what he asked, would he still have tried to help my parents?" Harry asked, remembering Dumbledore's use of ‘if' when Snape begged for his help.

There was a pause before Snape answered.

"I do not know," he eventually said quietly and Harry frowned again.

"I don't have any of her in me, do I?" Harry said. "It's why you hated me. I'm only like my father."

"That's all I chose to see, but that is not all there is," Snape said. "You are so much like her, but you are also very uniquely you. After all, you changed my mind about you."

Harry gazed at the memory Snape. "For her?"

"For you," Snape said gently.

Harry turned to him. "I don't want to be a term of redemption. How do I know that's not what this is?"

"Because I was not supposed to care for you," Snape said and Harry gazed at him. "Because, despite how hard I tried to hate you all these years, you erased that in seven weeks. Because giving you the life and happiness you have been denied because of me is not a term, is not a box to check. It is what you deserve and, somehow, you have decided that I could be a part of giving it to you."

"You helped me," Harry said. "Even before this summer. You're the only one that ever tried to help me."

"It may have started as Dumbledore's terms, as a way to redeem myself, but that is no longer what it is," Snape said. "This is something I want because you are a child that deserves more than you've been given and you have managed to convince me that perhaps it is something I could deserve as well. You have changed my life in ways I never believed possible."

"How?" Harry asked.

"By being you, not your parents," Snape said. "You showed me I can still do the right thing. You showed me light still exists in this world. Like you, I never believed I could find what you and Draco have given me."

"What?" Harry asked, his heart pounding with what he was hearing.

"A second chance," Snape said.

Harry looked at the memory Snape again before walking to the real Snape. He pressed himself to the man's chest before he could convince himself he would be rejected and wrapped his arms around Snape's waist. Snape's arms quickly came up around him, holding him close.

"You didn't fail her," Harry said quietly, "or me. Not anymore."

Snape's arms just tightened around him and Harry felt a tiny part of him heal.