A Father's Love by Slaughterdeer

A heavy teardrop rolled down his cheek. He knew it wasn’t his fault, he knew he was the best healer there was. It was Harry's will to die that hindered him from saving him. And that pained him even more. What must the boy have to have endured for him to feel this way? Why didn’t he help earlier? He just watched. Always watched him from a distance. Protected him from the shadows. Just as Dumbledore ordered him to do. He could never fulfil his true role in the boy’s life. And now the only thing that he cared for, his own flesh and blood was dead. He couldn’t save Lily. And now he couldn’t save their son. And all of that just because he needed to spy and treat his own son like a foreigner. And he didn’t even get to tell him the truth. Another tear fell down his cheek. This time it landed not on his coat but on the boy's forehead. It dripped down his scar.

Suddenly the boy's hands that Severus still held onto, gripped his.
“What the- “?
“Harry?”
The boy squirmed a bit. Severus held onto him tighter.
“You are safe with me Harry. I am so glad that you are back. I thought I had lost you.”
Tear after tear the scar began to close, and Harry opened his eyes.
“Professor? Why are you crying? What happened?”
Severus couldn’t hold back a small grin. The cheek of this child.
“Because, Mr. Potter I thought I had just lost you. I think we need to have a little talk about what happened tonight. And what the future will bring.”
“What exactly do you mean, sir?” Harry rasped.
“I mean Harry, that if I am not mistaken, and I seldomly am, you were just saved not by me, but by very old magic which only occurs in between families.”
“So-. I mean. What are you implying sir? Are you saying-?”

“Yes Harry. I am your father.”

There was a long silence that followed.
But after that the color returned to Harry's cheeks and he was feeling a lot
better. Like all the weight and burden was lifted off his shoulders. And warmth. Warmth from the inside. He didn’t know if Snape put a spell around him or if the professor's body kept him warm. But he couldn't remember a more peaceful moment in his life. He was not alone. He did not have to deal with Voldemort alone. He did not have to mourn his mother alone. He had a father. A real one.

He was finally at home.

THE END