I want to thank everyone who has reviewed. I put a lot of effort and heart into the last chapter and was very happy to find it so well-received. I think you'll find this next chapter quite entertaining as well. Please enjoy it!
Chapter 35
When Harry had completed the potion for himself it had turned into an emerald green, much like his and his mother's eyes. It had tasted sweet with a tangy hint to it and as Harry drank it, he felt warmed, as if he had just drunk a hot cup of tea.
The location his mind was sent to was not at all a familiar one and it looked rather plain. It was clearly a sitting room, decorated in the garish colours of Gryffindor. A fire was burning in the hearth, inviting him to sit.
"It's so good to see you again," a familiar voice said.
Harry snapped his attention away from the fire to look into the mischievous gaze of his godfather.
"Sirius!" he exclaimed, rushing forward to embrace the man. "I missed you so much."
"I know," Sirius told him soothingly. "And I'm so sorry that I put you through that. I was… rather impulsive."
"It was not all your fault," Harry said bitterly.
"You're right," Sirius replied as he drew back and placed a hand on each of Harry's shoulders. "It was Bellatrix's fault. But you certainly avenged me, didn't you?"
"And nearly got himself killed in the process," came a disapproving voice. Harry smiled even brighter when he recognised his mother leaning against the doorpost.
"Mum," he said, standing frozen to the spot.
Lily huffed. "Oh sure, rush into the arms of your godfather but not in mine. What am I, chopped liver?"
Harry laughed as he shook himself from his stupor. Moving forward as Sirius pushed him a bit, he fell into his mother's arms as well.
"Hello, scamp," Lily greeted. "You did so well brewing that potion. I certainly know who you got your talents from."
"Please," scoffed a second male voice. "He may have your potioneering skills but he has my talent for Quidditch and mischief."
Harry was beside himself with joy as James appeared next to Lily, putting his arm around his wife and son both. "Good to see you, son," he said.
"Why don't we all sit down," Sirius suggested. "I'm feeling somewhat left out here."
Lily snorted. "You've had more time with him than we had," she chided. "You can be without his attention for five minutes." But she did let Harry go and guided him towards the chairs that waited in front of the fire.
"So," James said. "The youngest seeker of the century? By Merlin, you have no idea how proud I am of you."
Lily sighed. "He did also defeat Voldemort, you know," she pointed out.
"And that's a very close second," James told Harry with a wink.
"And this potion you created," Lily said. "I have to admit that I would have never been able to. Severus has certainly taught you well."
Sirius growled. "Speaking of that greasy git," he said, "what in the world happened there?"
Harry glared a bit at Sirius. "I'm not sure what you mean."
"You even glare like him!" Sirius pointed out. "And you're calling him dad now?" He put a hand on James's shoulder and pointed at his friend's bespectacled face. "This is your dad."
Harry felt a pang of guilt as he looked at James, but the man was glaring pointedly at Sirius.
"Padfoot," he growled. "We've been over this. Severus was there for Harry when no one else was. He adopted him so he could have a home. How can you be mad about that?"
"That's all well and good," Sirius said. "But I don't like that he's trying to take your place. It's like the ultimate payback!"
"Sirius Black!" Lily exclaimed as she hit him on the back of his head. "you ought to be ashamed of yourself. Look what you're doing to Harry!"
Harry was feeling less than happy about his godfather's disapproval but he was trying his best to hide it. Apparently, his best wasn't good enough, though.
"Oh Harry," Sirius said, properly mollified. "I'm so sorry. I know you didn't do anything wrong. It's just that when it comes to Snivellus –"
"Severus," Lily interrupted.
Sirius sighed dramatically. "Severus," he growled. "There is some bad blood there."
"And yet he hasn't tried to disparage you," Harry pointed out. "Even though he's had all the time in the world to do so."
James laughed. "Looks like Severus is the more mature one, isn't he?" he said.
"Point taken," Sirius said but then his expression turned into a sadder one. "Harry, why haven't you ever told me about the abuse your relatives put you through?"
Harry managed not to flinch but averted his gaze anyway. "I was ashamed," he admitted.
"You've done nothing to be ashamed of," Sirius told him sternly. "I don't know why you would ever think that."
"I know that now," Harry said with a slight smile. "But I used to feel bad that I wasn't able to defend myself against a few muggles."
Lily kicked the existential table angrily. "When my sister dies, you can be damn sure that she's not going to have a peaceful afterlife."
"Her husband as well," James snarled. "I will make sure to make their afterlives hell. Dares to put his hands on my son, does he?" He punched his fist into his flat hand and glared angrily into the fire.
"Yeah," Harry said awkwardly. "That would be great."
"Oh look at us," Lily sighed. "We're getting all worked up about the past again." She scooted closer to Harry and drew him into a brief hug. "I'm sorry my sister is such an awful person, Harry. For now, we'll have to take satisfaction in the punishment Severus has already dealt them."
Harry blinked. He had never known what exactly Snape had done to them but the reminder of that day warmed his heart.
"Now, speaking of Severus," Lily said, "How are things going with him and Maya?"
Harry groaned. "That was so awkward," he complained. "Some time ago – right after he spoke to you – he strutted into the great hall and snogged her right in front of everyone!"
James laughed loudly. "No way!" he exclaimed, "That doesn't sound like him at all! Did you confund him or something, Harry?"
"I told him to act like a Gryffindor," Harry explained.
"That goes to show what he thinks of Gryffindors," Sirius snorted. "I bet she slapped him right then and there, didn't she?"
Harry huffed. "No," he said, "She was all too happy to return the favour. It was horrible!"
"Don't act out," Lily chided. "I saw you initiating that round of applause."
"It was a spur of the moment thing, okay?" Harry defended himself. "But having to retell it just makes it so much more mortifying!"
"So, Sn – Severus has a girlfriend now?" Sirius asked incredulously. "About bloody time." James punched him on the shoulder. "Ow- what?!"
"I think he's trying to point out that you're a prat," Harry said. "Severus had a lot of things to work out."
"I'm just glad he finally did," James said honestly. Lily looked decidedly smug.
"It's a good thing you sleep in Gryffindor tower," Sirius pointed out. "Young love can be quite loud."
"Argh, Sirius!" Harry exclaimed as she scrunched up his nose. "Why are you doing this to me?!"
Sirius snorted. "don't tell me you've never considered it," he said. "How long has it been since they hooked up?"
"A little over a month," Harry begrudgingly admitted.
"Yeah," Sirius said smugly. "Even Severus will have gotten some action by now."
"It's more than you get nowadays," James laughed as he pushed against Sirius's shoulder playfully.
"Well, I have a good excuse," Sirius said. "I'm dead. Severus only looks dead."
"Please stop insulting him," Harry groaned. "I don't think you understand just how much he helped me. In fact, he's even saved my life many times way before he even started to like me."
James clapped Sirius roughly on the back of his head. "If you don't stop this foolery now, I'm kicking you out," he warned.
"Sorry," Sirius mumbled. "I'll be good."
"More importantly, Harry, you've got a girlfriend of your own," Lily pointed out.
"I do," Harry said sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head in discomfort. "But I'd really rather not get into too much detail."
"Whatever the details, I like her," Lily said with a definite tone of voice.
"As long as you remember to treat her with respect," James told Harry importantly.
"Am I a Gryffindor or not?" Harry asked smugly.
"As long as a certain Slytherin isn't rubbing off on you," Sirius complained.
"Please, I'm rubbing off on the Slytherins," Harry said easily. "Even Draco Malfoy has come around."
"See?" Lily said, "You're already doing better than your father and godfather were doing back in the day. They just couldn't get past their rivalry with Severus."
"And a good thing too, or Harry might have been a Snape," Sirius muttered. This earned him a cuff to the head from both Lily and James but Harry just laughed.
"I take it you'll be a Potions Master soon now?" Lily asked proudly.
Harry chuckled. "Not so fast," he said. "Severus is taking me to a guild-meeting first where the board will assess my skill and contributions. And then they'll vote."
"I doubt anyone could deny the hero that is Harry Potter," Sirius pointed out.
"I hope that's not the case," Harry objected. "I want to be recognised for my skill and not for my reputation. I worked hard on this, you know?"
"And we're all very proud of you, son," James said.
"Yeah, even if you're a potioneer now," Sirius sneered but in a teasing sort of manner.
Harry regarded the three parental figures in the room with a big smile on his face, enjoying the warmth that came from his mother and relishing in the proud gazes of the two marauders.
"I wish we could stay like this forever," Harry said wistfully. The adults regarded him sadly.
"That's not possible, Harry, you know that," James said. "You get this moment but after that, it's probably not a good idea to try and talk to us again."
A part of Harry wanted to protest and ask why that was but he already knew the reason. It was the same reason why he first had to master Occlumency before attempting to brew this potion. Too much of this and any person could become insane. Harry recognised the dangers of wanting to stay here and knew that his dad was right.
"I know," he said solemnly. "I'm just glad that I got this opportunity."
"And it's all because of your own genius," Lily said fondly. "My little boy is all grown up!" She embraced him in a crushing hug that left Harry gasping for breath until James loosened her grip with a chuckle.
"Don' smother him, love," he said. "We wouldn't want him to join us just yet."
"I mean, in a way we do," Sirius interjected, "But in another way, we don't."
Harry smirked. "I get it," he said. "I know exactly what you mean. But let's face it, Severus needs me!"
James ruffled his son's hair. "He really does," he said. "Oh, and do me a favour when you see him. Could you tell him that I really am sorry for the way I behaved back in school? I really was an arrogant prat."
Harry flushed a bit but nodded. "Of course," he said.
"Sirius," Lily said in a warning tone of voice.
Sirius rolled his eyes and sighed. "Okay, so I suppose that trying to get him attacked by a werewolf went a bit too far."
James cuffed the back of his head again.
"Would you stop that?!" Sirius asked incredulously. "But seriously, kid, I am sorry. I crossed a line there."
"You were so far over the line that you couldn't even see the line anymore," Lily growled.
"I'll tell him," Harry said. "Just try to get along in my absence, okay?"
"We will do our very best," James promised solemnly.
Harry cast one last longing look at his family, then sighed in resignation. "I love you all," he said.
"We love you more," Lily said.
Harry chuckled softly and whispered, "I love you the most." He closed his eyes and felt the sensation of leaving the existential room and being warped back into his body. When he knew he was securely back, he refused to open his eyes just yet. He tried to soak up the entire experience before being forced to go on living again.
His nose wiggled slightly when he smelled herbs and spices. He sighed again and opened his eyes. Snape stood vigil nearby. A book lay opened in his hand but his gaze was affixed on Harry.
"You're crying," he noted.
Harry rubbed his eyes. "Your observation skills are keen as ever," he replied sardonically as he hoisted himself off the ground.
"I apologize," Snape said. "I simply didn't know that your physical body might experience the normal responses to what you're feeling when your mind is out of your body."
"Oh," Harry replied uneasily. "So it was an academic statement."
Snape placed a hand on Harry's shoulder and gave him a knowing smile. "How was it?"
"It was nice," Harry replied. "Scary; comfortable; confronting…" Harry sniffled and yet he smiled. "Wonderful."
"Was it enough?"
"No," Harry admitted. "How could it be?" He sighed and felt as if a burden fell off his shoulders. "Close enough, though."
"You did very well," Snape noted.
"Oh, and I have a message for you," Harry said seriously.
Snape quirked an eyebrow. "From whom?"
"Dad and Sirius," Harry admitted.
Snape growled. "Do I want to know?" he asked doubtfully.
"They are sorry for what they did," Harry said. "Though dad seemed more apologetic than Sirius."
Snape regarded Harry carefully for a moment and sighed. "It would not do to linger in the past." He said. "Your mother told me as much. Therefore, I forgive them."
He looked at a spot somewhere behind Harry and smirked. "Do you hear me, Potter? Black?" he asked loudly. "I forgive you. You can go frolic in the afterlife in peace."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "That was almost nice," he chuckled. "Thank you."
Snape huffed. "Come now," he said. "Maya is waiting for us."
It had been less of a hassle than Harry had thought to bring a muggle into the sanctity of Hogwarts. He knew that any muggle approaching the castle would normally see nothing but a ruin and be compelled to walk away, but when Alex approached the gates after Snape apparated him into Hogsmeade, nothing of the sort happened.
Harry was waiting for them and waved excitedly when he saw the man approach. "Alex!" he shouted. "Welcome to Hogwarts!"
Alex clearly had to hold himself back not to break into a sprint. When he reached Harry, he grabbed the boy's shoulders and gasped eagerly. "Harry," he said importantly. "You never told me your school was this epic!"
Harry chuckled but Snape appeared less than amused. "Come," he said before he began stalking towards Hogwarts.
Alex walked next to Harry as they followed the Potions Master inside. Snape didn't look back even once, confident that his order to follow was being obeyed.
"Look at his robes," Alex whispered in awe. "They are so… floaty!"
"I know," Harry whispered back. "I'm still not convinced that he doesn't use a spell to make them so."
As they walked towards Dumbledore's office, many students leapt aside as they saw Snape approach, many of them pressing themselves against the walls as if that would somehow protect them from Snape's wrath. But today, Snape ignored them all as he marched towards his goal.
"Geez," Alex muttered. "You guys weren't kidding, were you? Severus is not very popular here."
Harry shrugged. "The older the students become, the less afraid they are but he still manages to give most first – and second-years quite a freight."
"No kidding," Alex said. "Just look at those billowing robes, the twitch in his lips, that one raised eyebrow and those flaring nostrils! Who wouldn't fear such a –"
"Would you kindly shut your mouth?" Snape snarled as he whirled on Alex. Harry was biting his lip to keep himself from bursting into laughter and Snape's angry expression did not make that any easier.
"Yup," Alex said slyly. "Definitely flaring nostrils."
"Alexander, I'm warning you," Snape said. "You are a guest here but I assure you that I have the means and the patience to transform you into an obedient puppet without anyone ever suspecting I had anything to do with it. Alternatively, I could simply poison your food. Do. Not. Give. Me. A. Reason."
Alex didn't seem too impressed with Snape's tirade but he did keep his mouth shut for a while. Five minutes later he couldn't contain himself anymore, though. "Do you think you could show me this chamber of secrets, Harry?" he asked innocently.
"Lemon custard," Snape snapped at Archibald. The gargoyle leapt aside and Alex's mouth dropped open when he saw the winding staircase move all on its own.
"Wicked," he said in awe, then climbed on for good measure. "This is the best day of my life!"
Harry chuckled as he followed close behind while Snape waited until the staircase stopped moving to climb it himself rather than ride it like some overexcited toddler as he would say.
When all three had arrived upstairs, Snape knocked three times on the door. Harry thought his annoyance was clear by the way the sound reverberated of the walls. Alex didn't notice or didn't care. He was still taking in all the moving portraits and magical thingamabobs.
"Come in," came Dumbledore's friendly voice.
Snape opened the door and immediately walked to a corner where he leaned against the wall, leaving the two chairs for Harry and Alex.
"Albus!" Alex greeted amiably. "It's so good to see you. Love what you've done with the beard."
Dumbledore chuckled. "It's so very good of you to come here, Alex," he said kindly. "Would you care for a lemon drop?"
"You know me, Albus," Alex said cheekily as he grabbed a sweet out of the offered bowl. "I would never turn down free food."
Snape scoffed and Harry smiled.
Suddenly, Alex gasped when he spotted Fawkes. "What is that?" he asked in reverence. "That must be the most beautiful bird I've ever seen. Hello gorgeous, what's your name?"
Fawkes thrilled magnificently and gently nipped the fingers of Alex's outstretched hand.
"That's Fawkes," Harry supplied. "I think he likes you."
"Hello Fawkes," Alex said gently. "I'm Alex. It's very nice to meet you."
Fawkes spread his wings in a gentle fashion and stepped onto the hand Alex had still offered.
"Ooh, you're a tad heavy aren't you?" Alex chuckled. He carefully stroked Fawkes' feathers as if he were scared the phoenix might break. Fawkes clicked his beak contentedly.
"Stop playing with the bird, Alexander," Snape snarled out of the blue. "You're meeting with the most powerful wizard of our time. It would do you well to pay the proper respect."
"It's quite alright, Severus," Albus said calmly. "Fawkes is normally never that fond of newcomers. Especially not muggles. I think that young Alex here might have an exceptionally pure heart."
"Yup, that's me," Alex said proudly. "The heart of a hero."
When Snape glared at him again, he chuckled and allowed Fawkes back on his perch. "But Severus is right, Albus," he conceded. "I'm sorry. I forget myself."
"It's fully understandable for a muggle to get lost in our world," Albus said kindly. "But one that might appreciate its wonders will always find his way back. Please have a seat."
Alex sat down next to Harry, beaming from ear to ear.
"My dear Alex," Dumbledore said happily. "Welcome to Hogwarts. As I understand it, you're here primarily to spectate Harry's next quidditch match and perhaps even try and fly a broom yourself?"
"That was my understanding," Alex replied easily. "And anything else you would have me do here, really. I'm willing to try everything!"
"Truly?" Snape asked. "Care to sit into one of my first-year potions classes?"
"Severus," Dumbledore chided, but there was amusement in his voice. "Alex, you are welcome to our facilities but I must urge you to remain close to either Harry or Severus as you roam these halls. You never know what you might encounter after all." He winked mischievously at Harry who chuckled in response. Snape just growled.
"Severus, please lend Alex one of your robes so he might blend in more easily, would you? Oh, and no roaming the forbidden forest, if you will."
"Why would I go into a forest that is literally called 'the forbidden forest'?" Alex asked incredulously.
"Excellent question," Snape replied. "Harry?"
"Why do teachers give first graders detention in the same forest?" Harry asked smartly, "That kind of gives the impression that it's not all that dangerous after all."
"Oh, so it's fine?" Alex asked.
"Er… no," Harry conceded. "It's very dangerous. Don't go there unless you want to be eaten."
"Indeed," Dumbledore added cheerfully. "Now Harry, shouldn't you be getting ready? I hear that Slytherin has quite a good team this year."
"We'll see about that," Harry chuckled. He got up from his seat and made to leave. "See you in the stands, Alex," he added, then left in a hurry.
"Ah youth," Dumbledore said happily as he popped a lemon drop into his mouth. Alex took another as well while Snape just shook his head in dismay.
"There are so many wonderful things happening today," came Luna's airy commentary. "Gryffindors are facing off against Slytherins, as you probably already know, and one of Professor Snape's best friends came here to watch. Isn't that nice of him?"
Harry chuckled when a large amount of the bystanders visibly looked over at Snape to get a look at the newcomer who was sitting next to him. Alex waved cheerily and even blew kisses at a few of the female parents that had also come to watch.
"He seems like a nice person, doesn't he?" Luna asked. "He does have that gentle aura about him. Where do you think he knows Professor Snape from? I heard –"
"For Merlin's sake, Ms Lovegood," McGonagall's voice suddenly shouted. "20-10 to Slytherin!"
"That's alright," Luna assured her. "The match has only just begun and I'm sure it can still go both ways. Harry knows what he's doing even when he doesn't. I think it has a lot to do with confidence, don't you? I really like that about him, among other things."
Harry chuckled and tried to tune out the wonderfully weird commentary that Luna provided. He needed to focus on the snitch.
"Is your girlfriend distracting you?" Draco taunted.
"Perhaps you're the one who is distracted," Harry pointed out. "Since you're here, talking to me instead of looking for the snitch."
"I'll find it," Draco said confidently.
"You will," Harry agreed. "In my closed fist!" He didn't wait for an answer but started flying circles while he occasionally glanced at the stands. Alex was clearly beside himself as he watched the players toss the quaffle and dodge bludgers.
Narrowly, Harry dodged one himself, only to have it redirect itself at an unfortunate Slytherin.
"Okay snitch," Harry said. "Where are you?"
"50 – 50," McGonagall shouted, interrupting Luna's monologue about thestrals and their mating habits.
And then he saw it. The snitch was flitting somewhere near the goalposts, seemingly undisturbed by Ron as he did his best to block the quaffle. He didn't know where Malfoy was but he didn't see him anywhere nearby so he sped off towards the tiny golden ball.
While it was always dangerous when the snitch was close to the ground or the bleachers, Harry found it easier to try and catch the snitch when none of the other players was nearby. Now, the snitch was relatively easy to reach but he would still need to bypass an obstacle course that consisted of players in both red and green.
A speeding stripe of green alerted Harry to the fact that Draco had now also seen the snitch and was going after it himself. It was on.
Harry zigged passed the players in his path and tried his best to avoid those who would purposefully collide with him. He managed to dodge a bludger as well as a bat that was aimed at his head rather than at a violent ball. He was getting close and knew that if he would just keep up this speed, he would get the ball before Malfoy did.
But naturally, he could not be so lucky as to have that come easily. Right ahead of him, a bludger came his way, Harry's head right in its collision course. None of the Gryffindor beaters was nearby and Harry knew that he should take a chance. He wanted to dodge by veering upward but noticed that he wouldn't be able to move fast enough to both dodge and catch the snitch, so instead, he positioned a foot on his broom and pushed himself off at the very last moment, effectively jumping over the bludger, Newton's first law keeping him headed in the snitches direction.
His fist closed around the snitch and for a very small moment, he felt absolute joy until he realized that he was now without a broom. But it was still very close by. He flailed helplessly as he grasped at the broomstick, only narrowly managing to grab it again. But now he was falling. Cursing himself in his head, Harry tried to get his broom to slow down his fall as he clumsily managed to hook one leg over the wood. He managed to do so, but only slightly. So when he finally connected to the ground, the crash still knocked the wind out of him and an all too familiar pain shot through his wrist.
Harry grinned. His wrist was probably broken but if that was the cost for winning this match, he would gladly pay it. Triumphantly, he raised the uninjured fist containing the snitch into the air and relished in the cheers of the crowd, congratulating him on his victory. The jeering of the Slytherins only made his triumph that much more glorious.
Harry chuckled as he sat upright. Alex must be freaking out right now.
Finally Alex has come to view a quidditch match! I hope you like it. Don't forget to review!
On another note, I'm not sure how much I'll be updating this week. I've got the necessary chapters written but with the holidays, I don't know how many people will actually be reading so I suppose it will depend on the traffic I get. I think I'll definitely update again tomorrow and see from there.