I want to thank you all very much for your reviews. They were a joy to read and I'm tremendously happy that the battle scene was so well-perceived. Please enjoy this next chapter as well!
Chapter 15
Harry stood there in a daze, still reeling from the knowledge that he had come very close to death once more. His eyes were fixed on the limp form of Bellatrix, searching for a sign of life. When he found none, he released a breath he didn't realize he was holding.
"Is she –" came Draco's doubtful voice.
"As a doornail," Harry replied softly. He felt sick to his stomach. With a sudden flood of realisation, he turned around to face his mentor. Snape was breathing heavily, holding himself upright against the tree he had been bound to before. He was deathly pale and Harry knew that they needed to get back to Hogsmeade now.
"Do you know how to apparate?" he asked Draco.
Draco frowned. "I do," he replied, "But I've never tried side-along apparition. I think I could take one person with me but that's it."
"I believe I could be of assistance," noted a voice.
Harry swirled around so fast he thought he might've given himself a whiplash. His wand was still drawn and he trained it on Rabastan Lestrange. The death eater simply raised his hands in surrender, smiling kindly.
"Come now, Mr Potter," he said, "I think there's been enough death for one day, don't you?"
Harry said nothing. He stared at the man who was standing next to the stunned form of his brother and remembered that he had contributed nothing to the fight.
"What's your angle?" Harry spat.
"I made a deal with dear old Severus," Rabastan said. "Go ahead and ask him. Why do you think I allowed you to hold on to your wand? And why do you think I took out my brother?"
Harry glanced at Snape, not sure if he would be able to get a valid response out of the man but their eyes met and Snape nodded.
Harry still didn't trust the man. He was a death eater after all. But he realized that he didn't exactly have a choice in the matter. If Snape didn't get medical attention soon, he might still die.
"You take Severus," Harry told Draco. If anything went wrong, at least Snape would make it to Hogsmeade.
"Harry –" Draco said but Harry held out his hand to stop him.
"We have no time to discuss this," he said, "Go now. We'll be right behind you."
"Out of the – urgh – question," Snape protested but Harry simply looked at him with fierce determination.
"This time, you have no say in the matter," he said and nodded to Draco to signify that they should leave. The blonde did not fight him anymore, grabbed Snape's arm and with a loud bang, he disappeared.
Harry summoned his invisibility cloak to him as well as Snape's wand that was hidden in the folds of Bellatrix' robes. After a moment's consideration, he summoned Severus' severed finger as well.
"We're taking the girl with us as well," Harry said coldly.
Rabastan glanced at the lifeless body of their victim and frowned. "I honestly don't see the point but whatever you say, champ."
Harry lifted the girl into his arms and went to stand next to Rabastan who was kneeling next to his brother.
"If this is a trap," Harry growled, "You can be sure that your fate will be worse than that of your werewolf friend."
"A bit dark but duly noted," Rabastan replied much too cheerily in Harry's opinion. "Well, grab hold, I would say," the man added.
Harry grabbed Rabastan's shoulder tightly while he struggled to keep the girl balanced properly in his arms. Rabastan took hold of his brother's arm and apparated out of the clearing.
When Harry popped back into existence, he was slightly overwhelmed by the crowd surrounding him as well as the noise that emanated from it. They were surrounded by Aurors who were – in turn - surrounded by curious civilians. Dumbledore stood somewhere to the side and had looked at Harry intently when he came back. He smiled at him before turning back to whatever he was doing. Harry couldn't tell because of the crowd surrounding him but since he didn't see Snape anywhere, he presumed that Dumbledore was tending to him.
Rabastan raised his hands in the air, surrendering himself and his brother.
"Gently, fellows," he said, "I did help your golden boy, after all."
Harry sneered and wanted to say something when someone broke through the crowd, hurrying towards Harry.
"Suzie!"
It was Mr Pippin. When he saw the still body in Harry's arm, he released a strangled cry and sank to the floor. Harry kneeled next to him and handed the man his daughter.
"She's still alive," he said softly. But that was all he could say. Frankly, he didn't expect the girl to ever recover from this state if Neville's parents were anything to go by.
The Aurors took Rabastan into custody and awoke Rodolphus before doing the same to him. The befuddled death eater was completely confused and glared wildly at the surrounding crowd but when he looked at Rabastan, his brother merely shook his head in resignation.
"It's over," he said solemnly.
"Thank Merlin," Rodolphus replied.
Harry made his way through the bodies that surrounded him. Some people parted immediately for him while others seemed to insist on checking him over to see if he was alright. But all he wanted to do right now was reach Snape and make sure that he would be alright.
Finally, he broke through the crowd and reached Dumbledore who was now kneeling next to Snape. Draco stood there, looking decidedly lost. Pomfrey, as well as some Aurors that had received medical training, were tending to him fervently.
"Excuse me," Harry interrupted, feeling quite silly for what he was about to do. When one of the Aurors looked up, he produced the finger out of his pocket and handed it over. "I managed to take this with me."
"Oh Harry, there you are," Pomfrey said when she recognised his voice. She glanced towards the finger in Harry's hand and frowned. "I'm sorry but I fear that it's far too late for that."
"Oh," Harry said, dropping his hand. "How is he?"
"We've managed to stabilize him for now," Pomfrey answered, "But he will need time to recover. I would send him to St. Mungo's –"
"He would hate that," Harry interrupted.
"Yes, well, quite frankly I think it's rather ridiculous to agree with the patient's wishes in a case such as this but the headmaster –" she inclined her head towards Dumbledore sharply, "- seems to agree with your sentiment and has made it clear that Severus is to stay at Hogwarts."
"He will be safer here, Poppy," Dumbledore said, "There are still more death eaters out there. I can't be sure if they too would seek revenge but if they do, St. Mungo's is the first place they would check."
Harry kneeled next to Snape where he still found some room to do so and took hold of his hand. Snape's eyes remained closed and he was completely unresponsive. Harry hated seeing him like that. He felt the unmistakable sting of tears trying to force their way out but he refused to allow them to fall. He squeezed Snape's hand a bit tighter and inhaled deeply.
"Please be alright," he said softly. "Please, dad." In an attempt for comfort, he placed Snape's hand against his own cheek, holding it steady, finding at least some smidgen of hope in the warmth of his palm.
"Please move aside for us dear," an Auror told him. Begrudgingly, Harry let go of Snape and got back up, not even noticing it when Dumbledore put a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm so sorry, my dear boy," Dumbledore suddenly said, "I neglected to ask. Are you hurt in any way?"
"Just some scrapes and bruises," Harry mumbled, "Nothing life-threatening."
"Only because you're so damn lucky," Draco growled.
"What?" Harry asked.
"You know what. If Bellatrix' wand had been just a fraction less broken or if she had cast that spell sooner, you would be dead now."
"But I'm not," Harry countered.
"How do you keep finding yourself in these types of situations," Draco sighed, "Can't you ever have a normal year?"
Harry groaned. "Draco, I assure you that Severus will make sure to lecture and punish me properly once he feels up to it. Besides, you came along as well."
"Only because there was no stopping you," Draco countered.
"Let's take him to the castle," Harry heard Pomfrey say. She levitated Snape into the air and started walking, accompanied by three Aurors as she went. Harry was about to go after them when he Dumbledore's hand squeeze his shoulder. He sighed, not really wanting to speak with Dumbledore right now.
"Harry," he said sadly, "Why didn't you leave this up to me?"
"There was no time," Harry replied evenly, "You would have taken too long and Severus would have lost more than a finger."
"Perhaps if you had informed me of your plan, I could have helped you."
"Or they would have spotted you – or whomever you would send along for help – and apparated away, just like they said they would."
"You can't know that," Dumbledore said kindly.
"With all due respect, sir, neither can you," Harry replied, finally glancing up to look into Dumbledore's eyes. There was no sparkle and the wizard look every bit his age at the moment.
"No," Dumbledore agreed, "But if I might be less than humble for a moment, I do have quite a few more years of experience than you. I know which risks I can take and which I can't."
"I don't think I would've agreed with your choices," Harry said quietly, "I just didn't want Severus to suffer."
"As noble as that might be, you put yourself in harm's way. Do you think Severus would have agreed to that?"
"No," Harry said, "But why is it his choice? Especially when he was incapable of making any decision at that point. I know he would rather have died than allow me to come but I would never have been able to live with myself if he did."
Dumbledore sighed deeply. "My boy, will I ever be able to convince you to leave these sorts of things up to the adults in your life?"
"I'm legally an adult myself, now," Harry retorted.
"And a fine one you have become indeed," Dumbledore said. "Your parents would have been proud of you and even though Severus will no doubt be very upset with you, I know that he too is proud of who you have become."
"I'll keep that in mind when I'm scrubbing cauldrons," Harry said glumly.
"And Draco," Dumbledore said as he put a hand on the Slytherin's shoulder. "Your courage today was worthy of that of a Gryffindor." Dumbledore chuckled when Draco's face turned sour.
"Oh come now," he said kindly, "That's a compliment."
"Honestly sir," Draco said, "I was hiding under Harry's cloak most of the time. There was no courage in that."
Dumbledore looked at him fondly. "The way I see it, much of someone's real character lies in what they won't admit about themselves."
"He's right," Harry said, "Thank you for coming with me. I couldn't have done this without you."
"Don't get all mushy, Potter," Draco growled, "Before you start blubbering."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Have it your way Malfoy. I thought you would appreciate having a Gryffindor indebted to you."
Dumbledore laughed and Harry was pleased to see the twinkle back in his eyes. Even in his darkest moments, it was never that far away.
"What say you we go and visit Severus now," Dumbledore said.
"Don't we need to explain what happened to the Aurors?" Harry asked.
"Draco already gave them a brief account of the events," Dumbledore explained, "If they require any more information than that, they will simply have to wait. For now, all of us need to recover from today's events."
It took a while before Snape even woke up. Harry had stopped brewing all together, only going to the dungeons to visit Hedwig and make sure that she had access to fresh food and water. He skipped his classes but dutifully did his homework when Hermione brought it to him. He simply did so while sitting at Snape's bedside.
Harry spoke to Snape often, knowing full well that the man could probably not even hear him. He would've held his hand but refrained from doing so. His hands needed to heal. Out of the nine fingers Snape had left, all of the fingernails had been ripped out so they would be sensitive to any sort of touch. The finger Snape had lost was thankfully just his pinkie finger. Snape would be peeved but he would get over it.
Many of his bones had been broken which explained why Snape had manoeuvred so very little during the battle. It had honestly been a miracle that he had been able to raise his wand at all. Since Bellatrix was quite fond of the cutting curse, it was no wonder that Snape's body was littered with lacerations all over. It had taken Pomfrey hours to tend to all of them. Even his lips had been severely damaged and if that was not enough, he had been dehydrated as well.
The fourth day after the incident, Harry was scribbling away as he focused on his potions essay for Professor Slughorn when he was startled by a gruff voice.
"Shouldn't you be in class?"
Harry dropped his quill and immediately pulled his chair closer to Snape's side, relief evident on his face. "You're awake!" He exclaimed.
"Your skills of observation are as keen as ever," Snape said icily, "Now what are you doing here?"
"Why don't you use your observation skills to figure that out?" Harry replied, "Surely, the answer is not that difficult to deduce."
"Don't argue with me. I –"
"Hold that thought," Harry said before getting up and rushing into Pomfrey's office to inform her of Snape's revival. He came back a few minutes later, the mediwitch close behind him.
"I'm glad to see you re-joined the living, Severus," she said, "How are you feeling?"
"I've been better," Snape replied.
Pomfrey rolled her eyes and ran a diagnostic. "You're very lucky that Harry and Draco acted when they did," she said, "Not that I condone their rash behaviour in the slightest, mind you but their interference probably prevented a lot of lasting damage."
Harry did not miss the malicious glare Snape sent his way which he responded to with a cheeky smile.
"How much longer must I stay here?" Snape asked gruffly.
"I would say at least another week," Pomfrey told him.
"That's absurd," Snape growled, "Who is going to teach defence?"
"I'm sure your students can manage without you for a while," Pomfrey said, "It's not like a half-dead teacher would do them any good."
Snape attempted to sit up but Pomfrey placed a hand on his chest and shoved him back down.
"If you manage to lie still as much as possible, you might be able to heal up enough to get out of bed within five days. But if you act like a certain someone else I know –" her gaze shifted to Harry momentarily who protested with a loud 'Hey!' "- I will be forced to keep you longer."
"Understood," Snape sighed. He raised his left hand and grimaced slightly when he counted only four fingers.
"I'm sorry, Severus," Harry said, "I brought your finger back with me but it was too late."
"I could have guessed as much," Snape mumbled, "You shouldn't have wasted any time on it."
"A normal person would say thank you," Pomfrey chided.
"Quite frankly, Poppy. This sort of thing doesn't happen to normal people," Snape replied easily.
Harry snorted and shook his head. He was happy that Snape was back to his snarky self already. Even if he wasn't quite healed yet, it made Harry feel a lot more relaxed.
Pomfrey handed Snape five different vials. "Drink these," she said, "And don't give me that look. You brewed these yourself. You know very well what they're for."
"I'm quite sure I didn't say anything," Snape said.
"Drink the potions," Pomfrey repeated. "And Mr Potter, I believe it's time for you to leave. This isn't your common room and I don't want you getting too comfortable."
"But Severus just woke up!" Harry complained, "Can't I have a few minutes with him?"
Pomfrey sighed. "Fine," she conceded easily, "But make it short."
"Oh sure," Snape growled, "Him, you placate." Pomfrey chuckled and walked away.
"The perks of being the boy-who-lived-twice," Harry joked before he realized what he said.
Snape glared at him. "Indeed," he growled.
"Oh, don't be so grumpy," Harry chided lightly, "Everything turned out alright in the end."
Snape stared at Harry, unnerving him tremendously. His jaw was clenched and so were his fists, which must have undoubtedly been hurting him.
"Severus, stop," Harry said, grabbing one of his hands and unfurling his fingers. Snape yanked his hand back from him and looked the other way.
"Would you stop?!" Harry said loudly, his own frustration bubbling to the surface, "I sat by your bedside for four days, waiting for you to wake up and this is how you behave when you finally do? I did nothing to deserve this treatment!"
"I told you not to come," Snape said quietly.
"What?"
Snape suddenly sat up straight and made to grab Harry by the collar of his shirt but Harry stepped back. "I told you to ignore that letter," Snape snarled, "There is no way that even you could have misinterpreted my message like that. I didn't want you there!"
"Well, not everything is up to you, is it?" Harry growled, "And I'm of age. I can make my own decisions."
Snape snorted. "Of age," he spat, "Only barely and you still make all the wrong decisions."
"Well, what would you have done?" Harry retorted, "The roles could have easily been reversed. Are you telling me that you would have left me there to rot? That you would have calmly waited for Dumbledore to come find me."
"The difference is that I know what I'm doing," Snape said, "I had a plan."
"Well isn't that just fantastic?" Harry spat, "Plan or not you do realize that you were practically half-dead when we got there, right? There's no way you would have survived much longer."
"I would rather have died than put you into harm's way."
"Hypocrite!" Harry shouted, "If I say the exact same thing, I'm a dunderhead that doesn't act his age but when you say it I should just accept it? No, don't you dare. Just shut up! You are my father and I will never – do you hear me – NEVER abandon you when you're in need. And I don't bloody care that you don't want me to. You can just suck it up and deal with it."
"What is going on here?" Pomfrey suddenly shouted, "Mr Potter, when you asked to stay here I didn't expect you to start screaming at the top of your lungs. Severus needs his rest."
"Fine!" Harry said harshly, "I'm not wanted here anyway." He gathered his books together in a messy pile and shoved them unceremoniously into his bag.
"Don't you dare walk out on me," Snape said.
"Try and stop me," Harry snarled. He flung his bag over his shoulder and stomped out of the infirmary leaving a very angry Snape behind.
Harry stomped off to the potions lab and threw his books into a corner. He knew Snape was going to be angry at him but he was still so infuriating at times.
"Argh!" Harry exclaimed loudly. Hedwig ruffled her feathers in dismay at her master's tantrum but stayed on her perch.
"Can you believe him?" Harry asked Hedwig. "He doesn't even see it! He doesn't understand that he always acts exactly the same but does he ever get reprimanded for it? No, because when Professor Snape does something, he has some bloody fantastic reason for it that negates any argument that he uses against me."
Hedwig tilted her head to the side as if to indicate that she was listening.
"I know that he means well," Harry told her, "But I do too and he doesn't seem to realize it. How could he possibly expect me to just sit there and do nothing? Sometimes I think that he doesn't know me at all."
Hedwig hooted softly. Harry chuckled. "You're right," he told her, "It's not exactly fair of me to shout at an injured man who can't even follow me. The stairs into the dungeon would probably be too much for him."
Hedwig spread her wings and flapped a few times.
"I'm not going to apologize," Harry told his owl, frowning as if she just asked him to rehouse himself into Hufflepuff. "I don't regret what I did. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I just wish I could've gotten there sooner. He must've been in so much pain."
Hedwig flew over and nipped gently at Harry's finger.
Harry groaned. "Yes, the man has just been tortured," Harry agreed, "So maybe it wasn't entirely fair of me to be upset with him for losing his temper. The last thing I want to do is cause him even more pain."
Hedwig started grooming Harry's hair.
"That's just pointless, Hedwig," he told her, "You should know that by now."
When she yanked hard at a particularly knotty strand, Harry yelped and stood up straight.
"Fine!" he told her, "I'll go apologise. There's no need to bully me into it."
Hedwig hooted a few times and flew back to her perch, burying her head underneath her wing.
"Now?" Harry said doubtfully. He sighed. "I suppose you're right." He stroked the feathers on her chest lightly before heading back out. "Thanks, Hedwig. You always know just what to say."
Trying to channel his inner Slytherin, Harry glanced into he infirmary, checking if he could see Pomfrey anywhere. When he couldn't spot her, he silently crept inside, glancing towards the bed Snape had been in. The curtains were drawn so he could not see him.
Harry took off his shoes in an attempt to be quieter and snuck further into the room, skulking towards the only occupied bed with large yet careful strides. So far so good. When he finally reached the edge of the curtains surrounding Snape, he was about to open them when a quiet voice startled him.
"You look rather ridiculous when you try to sneak around, you know?" Snape said.
Flushing instantly, Harry drew back the curtain, hurried inside and closed it again.
"How did you see me?" he whispered.
"You can see the outline of anyone coming in," Snape replied, "How have you been in here so many times already without noticing that?"
"I just don't pay attention to those sort of things," Harry shrugged.
"Clearly," Snape said. Harry was relieved by the lack of malice in Snape's voice. Apparently, they had both calmed down.
"Hedwig told me to come talk to you," Harry said matter-of-factly.
"Oh," Snape replied, "I wasn't aware that you sustained a brain injury."
"I'm sorry for making you worry," Harry continued, "But I hope that you understand that I was worried too."
"I'm sorry, Harry," Snape said, "I was careless. I shouldn't have been caught."
"That's beside the point," Harry said, "And not at all your fault, by the way, but I need you to understand that I would do it all again."
"Why?" Snape said.
"Sometimes, you're a right dunderhead yourself," Harry said in exasperation. "Why do you think? You are my father. I care about you! More so than I care about myself."
"I don't like hearing that, Harry," Snape sighed.
"It's not like that," Harry replied urgently, "You know what I mean. You are my family and I couldn't stand losing you."
"I understand," Snape replied, a small smile tugging at his lips. "I should've realized that there was no way for you to let me be."
"Not a chance," Harry grinned, "It's a good thing that I'm such a wicked dueller."
"A very good thing, indeed," Snape agreed. "For the both of us. Thank you, Harry. For caring so much."
Harry leaned forward and embraced Snape tenderly, trying not to aggravate his injuries too much.
"I love you, dad."
Harry sighed contentedly when he felt strong arms embrace him back.
"I love you too, son."
I'll probably not update until Monday since weekends seem to make for slow traffic. Please do review and tell me what you thought!