A/N: Yay! We have a title! I've also added a bit of back story at the start of the first chapter, I'll continue to add the years in between Halloween 1981 and July 1991 this way, to show the development from Snape being Harry's semi-reluctant guardian to Severus being a strict but caring parent (in his own way). So go read that, before reading this next chapter.


14th of November 1981 - Bottesford, Lincolnshire

"Stop that incessant whining and crying, you brat! I do not have a clue what it is you want." Snape shouted at the one year old, looking rather dishevelled and at his wit's end. Short of actually giving the boy a sleeping potion or spelling him asleep, he'd done everything he could think of.

"You won't finish your bottle, your diaper is clean and you don't have a rash either. You are neither hot nor cold and you reject your fop. What else could you possibly want?!" He'd started out muttering to himself, but ended up shouting the last bit, which caused the child to start crying even louder.

Snape picked up the child, in a moment of weakness truly intending to fling the brat against the wall, before a rather painful memory of his childhood came to his mind and the toss became a twirl. The crying stopped.

He looked down at the child in his arms in surprise. On a whim, he did it again. This time, the child actually cooed at him, causing him to scowl at the boy again. After a second or two, his scowl softened and he spun again, making her eyes shine at him as her son smiled and laughed at him.

He'd been ready for the cleaning of vomit and bottom, for the changing of diapers, for the sleepless nights as the boy would eventually get growth spurts, but he'd never imagined he would feel any sort of affection for it. That of course, had been before he'd even seen the boy. He'd have to reserve his judgement of the child for a while.


24th of July 1991 - Bottesford, Lincolnshire

Sighing, Severus grabbed some Floo powder and, in a fit of irritated adventurousness, said "Oleander's" as he stepped into the fireplace while simultaneously throwing the black powder into the fireplace. He made sure his face was set in a proper scowl to show his intense distaste and disappointment, even as a strange feeling of freedom overcame him. He decided he'd think on that a bit later, as he now had a ten year old to scare.

He stepped out of an unfamiliar fireplace and no longer had to fake his scowl, as he found Harry talking to a short, busty, red-headed woman. "Harry! How do you pronounce the wandmaker's name?" he said as he put his hand on Harry's shoulder, spinning him round roughly. Harry gasped and opened his mouth before closing it quickly again. "Ollivander's, sir."

"It seems you DO know how to pronounce it, so, tell me, why are we….. Where are we anyway?" Harry looked at the ground, not at all sure where they'd ended up, though he was sure they were somewhere in the Wizarding World, as the red-headed woman was clearly a witch.

The woman turned around and gave Harry a smile as she said: "You're Severus Snape, aren't you? So pleased to finally meet one of the few professors that can actually keep my twins in line. I'm Molly Weasley and this would be Oleander's, the cutest little herbal shop in Diagon Alley."

"Indeed" Severus lifted an eyebrow. He let his eyes sweep over the woman once and the turned away. "Let's go." He said to Harry and left the shop. He waited just outside the shop, so the dunderhead couldn't get away from him and horribly lost in the process. Harry exited the shop, smiling broadly. "She's invited us over to dinner, so I can meet her youngest son, who's starting this year as well."

"No"

"But, sir, I-"

"No, you are being punished and now be quiet." Did the brat seriously think he'd get to go on a playdate after such blatant disobedience? "Ollivander's is this way, keep up and don't get distracted by the shops!"

"Yes sir!" Harry said, rather disappointed he wouldn't be meeting the redhead's son. She seemed nice, so her son probably was as well. He only thought about that for a second before he saw the street they were in. There were witches and wizards everywhere! He'd never seen so many of them in one place. The only other wizards he'd ever met were a few of Severus' friends and then only because he'd disobeyed.

People got out of the way for the scowling man and so the walk to Ollivander's was over far too quickly for Harry's liking, though he still felt he needed at least another set of eyes.

The shop they ended up at was, compared to the other shops, rather plain-looking, with a single wand on a pedestal on display and the name Ollivander's on the façade of the building. Harry looked up at Severus uncertainly and Severus looked down at Harry expectantly. "Are you ready for your wand, Harry?" He asked gently, remembering how much it meant to him all those years back to finally get a wand.

"As I'll ever be." Severus opened the door and motioned for Harry to go through. There was a single bell that jingled as they walked in, but not a sign of anyone else in the store.

Severus looked completely lost in thought, so Harry approached the counter alone, trying to look over it, maybe the shopkeeper had fallen asleep? He jumped when an old man suddenly came into his field of vision, sliding on a ladder and stopping behind the counter with a bang.

The man smiles at Harry. "I wondered when I'd be seeing you, Mr. Potter. It seems almost yeste-" "That's enough babbling, he's here for a wand." Snape rudely interrupted. Ollivander looked between Harry and Snape curiously. He cleared his throath and handed Harry a wand. "Here you are, Mr. Potter."

Harry took the wand. "My name's not Potter, why d'you keep calling me that?"

"Just wave the wand, please." Ollivander replied, throwing a look towards Severus Harry couldn't describe, nor figure out the meaning to. Harry waved the wand and promptly flew back two yards, leaving the wand behind. "No, definitely not that one." He muttered and looked for a different wand.

This process seemed to repeat itself endlessly, with results varying from his hair turning purple to everyone gettng drenched. "I wonder" Ollivander said softly, as he handed Harry a final ditch effort at finding a wand. Harry took the wand and was immediately felt a warm glow shoot from his hand all the way through his body.

"Curious this wand should choose you, as its twin gave you that scar." Ollivander said as Severus quickly paid for the wand and pulled Harry out of the shop.

"We are going to apparate back home, Harry." Severus said tensely, in a tone that promised death for anyone daring to say otherwise. Harry merely nodded, his head filled with questions about 'Potter'.


A/N 2: Holy shit, my story was added to the Potions and Snitches community, which is waaay too much honor imho.

To think that someone thought: 'this is some of the BEST Harry Snape GEN fics I've ever read' is just mindboggling to me.

Eternal gratidtude to you all :)