Severus' and Harry's Family Experience
by Healer Teddylonglong

All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes.

COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC! sick!Harry, sick!Severus

It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, don't read it.
Reviews are very welcome, as they inspire my muse. Thank you so much for your kind reviews!


"What was that for a flash?" Severus asked horrified, when Harry and Minerva stepped over to him.

Minerva glanced over at the phoenix' perch that stood right next to Albus' desk at the other side of the room. "You just witnessed Fawkes, Albus' phoenix familiar, return from an errand," she explained gently, before she turned to the bird.

"How dare you give Severus such a fright, Fawkes; wait until I tell Albus," she admonished the bird strictly, receiving a pretty melody in return that sounded as if the bird was ridiculing her.

Harry stepped over to the beautiful bird and looked at him in awe. "He's gorgeous," he said, sounding totally amazed. He nearly jumped in fright when Fawkes suddenly left his perch and swept down onto Harry's arm. The phoenix cocked his head to the side, looking intensely into the boy's face, before he once more moved his head, showing Harry his head feathers, which were standing up, inviting Harry to pet him.

Harry instinctively reached out and carefully petted the phoenix with a huge smile on his face.

"Are you feeling all right, sweetie?" Minerva asked softly, turning back to Severus.

"Can I get a headache potion?" Severus asked, noticing that his headache was worsening.

"Of course you can, sweetie; however, I'd like both of you to return to your beds for a moment so that I can apply the healing salve," Minerva replied gently, motioning the boys back into their room.

"Your rash seems to get better, Severus," Minerva said, sounding very relieved while she applied the salve to his skin.

"Is mine getting better too?" Harry asked, hopefully.

"I'll look at it as soon as I'm finished with Severus," Minerva replied, giving Harry a fond smile. "No Harry, I'm sorry," she told him a few minutes later. "Your rash isn't better yet, dear."

During the next two days, both boys were feeling very unwell and spent many hours in bed together, talking about their home life or whatever they could think about.

When they felt better and were allowed to get up and play in the office, Poppy talked to Minerva and Albus about the re-aging process. "As you have probably noticed, Severus' rash is completely gone now, and his fever has come down to a slight temperature. Harry's rash is still there, but it's improving, and his fever isn't too high anymore either. As you know, I'll be away for a week from tonight onwards. I suggest that you wait until tomorrow evening or the day after, until you give them the next dose of the aging potion." She placed two phials on Albus' desk.

"This will bring Harry back to his normal age and make Severus thirteen too. I'd suggest leaving Severus at that age for a few days or even a week, depending on how they behave, and watching them intensely to see how they get along, before you give Severus the final dose that will bring him back to his real age." She gave Minerva a piercing look. "Minerva, you know where you can reach me in case you need me. I don't mind coming here at any time."

"Thank you, Poppy," Minerva replied, looking at her friend gratefully. "That's a great relief."

"Albus, Poppy; what do you think? Should we tell them about the re-aging before we give them the potions? What will they think if they're suddenly thirteen instead of six?"

Albus sighed. "Yes Minerva, I believe that we have to tell them. However, we shouldn't explain about Sev's real age yet and about their relationship, but just let them become thirteen and see how they fare."

The three adults agreed on the procedure, and after dinner the same day, Albus and Minerva gathered both children on the sofa in Albus' office. The headmaster told them that they were de-aged to six-year old children due to a potions accident and that they wanted to re-age them back to the age of thirteen during the next days.

"Will Harry and I still be together and be able to play together and sleep together in the same room?" Severus asked, worriedly glancing from Albus to Minerva.

"Yes, Severus, both of you will remain at Hogwarts, and during the holidays you may stay here in your own room. Only when school starts again in September, you have to return to your normal rooms. But nevertheless, you'll be able to see each other every day," the headmaster promised.

"Okay," Harry replied, shifting closer to Severus.

"We'll always be friends, Harry, regardless of our age," Severus told his friend, obsidian eyes looking straight into emerald ones.

"When will we have to take the potion?" Severus enquired, averting his eyes to the adults once more.

"I suggest that you take the potion in the evening, so that you can rest during the night. Your joints might ache, and it would probably be better if you slept for a while after taking the potion," Minerva suggested.

"Can we take the potion immediately then?" Severus asked hesitantly. "Otherwise we'd have the whole day tomorrow to worry about what might happen."

"I think so too," Harry agreed immediately. "Please give us the potion immediately."

Minerva and Albus conferred quietly for a few minutes but finally agreed, acknowledging that it had been their own fault to tell the children too early. "Well, let's check on you, and then we'll decide," Albus told the children and ushered them back into their room.

Albus sat down on the edge of Severus' bed and quietly talked to the boy while he took his temperature. "Severus, when you become older due to the potion, you will get several uncomfortable memories back, and during the years you will have met other students at Hogwarts, even those who are not nice to you. There are two things, which I want you to remember above everything else. Harry is your friend, regardless of your or his age, and Minerva and I will always be here to help you or to speak with you if you need us."

Severus shot Albus a frightened glance, before he tiredly closed his eyes. He still didn't feel completely well yet, and thinking of the aging potion he felt even more unwell. 'I just hope they give it to us quickly,' he thought.

However, a moment later, Severus could hear Minerva say, "I'm sorry, but we can't give them the aging potion tonight. Harry has quite a fever."

"But I'm fine," Harry whispered, his voice laced with disappointment.

"I'm sorry, dears, but you'll have to wait until tomorrow," Minerva said gently and made Harry drink a fever reducer.

"Go to sleep soon, both of you, and it will be tomorrow before you know it," Albus advised them gently and left the room, while Minerva proceeded to read a story to the children.

Later in the evening, Severus couldn't sleep. He was terrified of what was going to happen. So far, he hadn't met too many children, but Harry had been the only one whom he really liked. The boy had a similar childhood to himself, and he could understand him. Nobody had ever been able to understand him in such a way. 'Well, he'll still be here, but there will be other children as well. What if they all call me 'freak'?' he mused.

'Harry,' Severus thought. 'He'll understand.' He scrambled out of his bed and climbed up into Harry's bed and cuddled him close, enjoying the warmth his friend radiated. "Harry?" he whispered softly.

"Sev?" Harry whispered back. "What's wrong?"

"I can't sleep. I'm so afraid of what is going to happen," Severus replied.

"So do I," Harry whispered, coughing harshly. "I'm afraid of the other children. What if they are like Dudley and his gang and always chase us, calling us freaks?"

"Well, then we'll still have each other," Severus answered calmingly, trying to hide his own anxiousness in order to help his friend.

"Severus, shall we take the potion now?" Harry suddenly enquired.

"I don't know," Severus replied uncertainly. "Are you feeling well enough?"

"Yes of course," Harry lied, knowing that his friend couldn't wait longer. "Can you fetch the potion please?"

Severus quickly retrieved the two phials, handed one to Harry, and returned to his own bed with the other phial in his hand. "Three, two, one, now!" he told Harry, and they gulped down their potions at the same time.

HP

As soon as they gulped down the re-aging potion, Severus and Harry felt their whole bodies convulse in pain as their bodies stretched to the length of thirteen-year olds. Harry felt Severus moan in agony, but he was feeling too bad to get up and walk over to his friend's side in order to comfort him. "Sev, are you all right?" he hesitantly asked.

"It hurts," Severus answered, remembering that there was Harry, his best friend. "Are you all right?" he asked after a short while and noticed that his friend had obviously fallen asleep.

Severus however couldn't sleep well. Memories of his first school years haunted his dreams. There was a boy in his memories that looked like Harry, but he wasn't Harry. He was James, whoever that was. But he looked like the splitting image of Harry. 'Strange,' he thought and cast a wandless Lumos charm, observing his friend toss and turn around for a moment, before he was pulled out of his reverie and got up, hesitantly stepping over to Harry's bed.

"Harry, are you all right?" he asked softly, still wondering why his friend looked exactly like one of the classmates he absolutely despised. 'Where was Harry in my dream?' he mused worriedly. 'Well, at least he's here,' he decided and lightly shook Harry's shoulder, causing his friend to jump in fright.

"Sev; here you are," Harry mumbled relieved, shivering.

"Harry, are you all right?" Severus asked, eying his friend in concern.

"It's okay," Harry mumbled wearily. He was totally confused. In his dreams, he had spent lots of time with Hermione and Ron, but where was Severus? 'Ah well, he's right here; that alone is important,' he mused, cuddling close into Severus' embrace.

Severus observed how Harry relaxed in his arm and soon drifted off to sleep. 'I'm surprised that he was so coherent considering the strange memories,' Severus mused. He was so worried about his friend that he didn't sleep much more during the night. As the time passed, he witnessed several of Harry's nightmares, in which he was begging his uncle not to beat him or trying to explain to his professor that he wasn't a dunderhead at Potions.

HP

When Minerva entered the children's room, she stopped dead in her tracks. However, before she could even think about scolding the children, Severus saw her and motioned her to be quiet. He quickly filled her in about Harry's condition and how he had taken care of him during the night.

Minerva put a calming hand on Severus shoulder and said, "I'm not pleased that you took the potions against my explicit orders, which were in fact Madam Pomfrey's orders. Well, that cannot be changed now, and we'll have to see how to help Harry. You should have called me immediately, even if it was during the night though. Nevertheless, I'm very proud of you, Severus. You did a great job looking after Harry, although I'm sure that you won't be feeling perfectly well either."

"It's all right," Severus replied, blushing slightly.

"However, I want you to return to your own bed for a while, so that I can check on both of you," Minerva said gently, and Severus obeyed immediately. Minerva decided to check on Severus first, since Harry was asleep anyway, and sat down on the edge of Severus' bed. "How are you feeling, Severus?" she asked in a soft voice.

Severus threw her a weary glance, torn between the memories of the Gryffindor head of house that he had seen in his dreams and the experiences he had made in her care as a six-year old. "I'm confused," he said finally. "I can't find Harry in my memories, only a James Potter, who's horrible and looks like a spitting image of Harry. But Harry's here and I feel terribly sorry for him that I didn't protest when he suggested taking the potion because he knew that I couldn't wait. I should have known better, especially after your warning."

Minerva sighed, before she replied, "Don't worry, child; nothing is your fault. We shouldn't have left the potions on the table, where a six-year old could reach them."

"Minerva, or should I call you Professor now?" Severus asked, hesitantly.

"Minerva is all right, child," she answered softly, giving him an expectant look.

"Could you please explain why everything is so strange and doesn't match? Where's Harry? I mean how does he fit in my memories?"

Minerva sighed. "Severus, I really don't want to speak about it right now, but if it confuses you so much, I'm going to tell you everything." Noticing that he was listening intensely, she began, "When you were de-aged, you weren't de-aged from thirteen to six but from thirty-three. James Potter, whom you saw in your memories, is Harry's real father, who died when Harry was a year old. And as you know, Harry is completely different from James apart from his outer appearance."

"Thank Merlin," Severus blurted out, causing Minerva to laugh in relief. "So I am the dreaded Potions professor, whom Harry drew in his picture and whom he had the vision of before he fell so ill?"

"Severus, stay calm, please," Minerva replied in a soothing voice. "Harry and you didn't know each other well until you were de-aged. However, as you now know, you have so much in common and are best friends. You can still remain good friends with Harry, even if you're back to your own age. Look at Albus and me; Albus is eighty years older than me, but we're really good friends."

"But he's my student, isn't he?"

"Well? I was Albus' student until I graduated," Minerva replied, grinning. "That's not a problem. However, I'd like to ask you not to tell Harry about your real age yet. I don't know when you want to take the final dose of the aging potion; however, I'd suggest that you wait at least until you both get used to the situation of not being six-year-olds. We still have two months of summer holidays left, so you can decide if you want to spend a few weeks more at the same age as Harry, of if you wish to return to your normal age faster. That's up to you."

"All right; thank you Minerva, for everything. For telling me the truth and for looking after Harry and me; and don't worry, I will not abandon Harry, provided that he won't despise me after hearing who I am."

"He won't, child. Now, go to sleep for a while," Minerva replied, reassuringly. She gently tucked him in, before she stood up to check on Harry. She considered if she should wake Harry up in order to speak with him too but finally decided to let him sleep and merely take his temperature first to assess, how bad his condition was. 'Oh Merlin, he's burning up,' she realised and hurried to the fireplace to call Poppy.

HP

Five minutes later, Poppy bustled into the children's room and waved her wand over Harry several times. "That was not a good idea. I will reschedule my holidays," she finally said, pulled a few potions out of her bag, and spelled them straight into Harry's stomach, before she motioned Albus and Minerva to follow her into the headmaster's office.

"Harry had a relapse, and the wizard's measles are starting again. Fortunately, I have some of the potion left, which I obtained from St. Mungo's three weeks ago, and we will all, including Severus, have to take the potion with our next meal."

"Excuse me, Poppy, but why do you know that the wizard's measles are starting again? He's not completely recovered yet, is he?" Minerva asked confused.

Poppy sighed. "I know that definitely. If an illness was already on the mend when I do my check-up, the edges would be shown in green; however, if the illness is at its beginning, the edges will be orange. In Harry's case it shows both."

"Poppy, could you check on Severus too, please?" Minerva asked, and the healer returned into the children's room once more.

"Severus is all right," Poppy informed her colleagues a few minutes later. "He is still suffering a bit from the side effects of the aging potion, but let him rest for a few hours, and he'll be right as rain."

HP

When Severus woke up, he felt slightly better. At least, his joints did not hurt so much anymore. He looked over to Harry and saw that Minerva was sitting on the edge of his bed, quietly talking to him. Severus swung both feet out of his bed, feeling a little unsure about the length of his legs after being a small for a few weeks, and knelt down in front of Harry's bed, giving him a worried look.

"Are you feeling better, Harry? I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, Sev. It was me who suggested to take the potion, remember?" Harry raised an eyebrow at his friend. "And yes, I'm feeling a bit better."

"Harry had a setback," Minerva explained, handing Severus a glass of water. "Please drink this Severus; it should prevent that you get the illness once more."

HP

During the next two days, Severus spent much time sitting on the edge of Harry's bed, looking after his friend, who was still suffering from a high fever, and quietly talking to him. Severus tried hard to keep the conversation away from people at Hogwarts, knowing that the teachers were the only persons they both knew. They talked about their holidays, which they both had to spend at their abusive homes, about Hogwarts and the magical world in general, about flying, Quidditch, chess, and of course about potions.

"Harry, if you have so much problems with Potions, which I can't understand because you seemed very adept when we brewed together, why don't you let me tutor you? As you know, Potions is my favourite subject, and I'm sure we'll have lots of fun. Apart from that, you can show your evil Potions professor how adept you are in fact."

"That would be fun," Harry replied hoarsely. "Will you teach me please, Sev? I'd really appreciate it."

"As soon as you feel better," Severus replied, smirking.

On the third day, Harry's extremely high fever broke, just when he developed a new rash on his arms and legs. Severus woke up very early in the morning, noticing that Harry was tossing and turning in his bed while he slept. In the blink of an eye, Severus was at his side, lightly shaking his shoulder. "Harry, wake up and tell me what's wrong," he whispered urgently.

"It itches so badly," Harry croaked.

"Of course, Harry. Hold on for a moment." He reached for the healing cream that was waiting on Harry's night table. "Your rash started on your arms; I'm going to apply the healing salve, and then I'd like to take your pyjamas off to see if it's starting somewhere else too. Or would you prefer Poppy or Minerva to have a look?"

"No, it's fine if either of you does it, thanks," Harry mumbled hoarsely.

"Harry, I don't think you're well enough to brew Potions yet, but do you think you can try to get up and play chess with me?" Severus asked when he was finished with Harry's arms and legs.

"Okay," Harry agreed and followed his friend over into the headmaster's office.

Severus fetched the chess set he had seen on the book shelf before and motioned Harry to begin. Harry noticed soon that Severus played better than anyone else he had seen playing before, and the game only lasted ten minutes.

"I know that I'm not good, but you're absolutely brilliant," Harry stated amazed after losing for the third time, just when Minerva entered the room.

"Are you feeling better today, Harry?" she asked, giving the two boys a fond smile.

"Yes, a bit," Harry mumbled, feeling quite exhausted after an hour of playing chess against Severus.

"We can have breakfast here, and afterwards you can try to sleep a bit here on the sofa," Minerva suggested and Harry grudgingly agreed, knowing that he wouldn't be able to eat anything.

When Minerva called a house elf to order breakfast, Severus asked politely, "Could you bring a plate of fruits for Harry, please?" and to Harry's astonishment, a huge bowl of assorted fruits appeared in front of him.

'Just what I wanted,' Harry thought happily and managed to eat a lot more than he had expected.

Just when they were finished with breakfast, Albus appeared and called Severus over into his private quarters to speak with him in private. "I'll be right back," Severus told Harry, who smiled at his friend and tiredly rested his head on the back of the sofa, closing his eyes.

"I think he wanted to speak to him about the birds and the bees," Minerva said quietly, when she sat down next to Harry, pulling his head over, so that he came to lie on the sofa, his head on her lap.

When Severus came back, he played a few games of chess against Minerva, whom he wasn't able to beat until Harry woke up the next time.

"I'm surprised that Harry still doesn't make the connection between me and his hated Potions teacher," Severus whispered to Minerva, seeing that Harry was still fast asleep.

Minerva sighed. "First of all, he is very ill and was delirious during the last two days since you took the potion. That and the fact that he didn't get to know your last name while you were six years old probably does the trick. Moreover, you're here with him and are just your normal self like you were as a six-year old. You behave completely differently from what you behaved as Professor Snape. However, as soon as his fever comes down and he's more alert, we can expect him to realise the similarity between you and the Potions teacher in your outer appearance, and if he notices that you don't know any of his classmates, he might question you.

Severus sighed. "As you know, he's my best friend, at least at the moment, and I don't want to lie to him. I know that you asked me to keep it from him for a while, but I'd really feel better if I could tell him the truth. However, I'd like to take him to the Potions lab and tutor him for a while before telling him, but as long as his condition doesn't improve there's no chance that I could do that. What do you think I should do, Minerva?"

Minerva fondly ruffled his hair. "I can understand you very well, Severus, and I will leave the decision to you. I know that you have Harry's best interests in mind. Since Harry obviously doesn't feel well enough to be up and about, I'd suggest that you begin your Potions tutoring here. Before you take him to the Potions lab and tutor him, you should teach him general knowledge about potions, about ingredients, or whatever he needs to know."

"Oh, that's a good idea," Severus acknowledged gratefully. "Thank you Minerva."

HP

Later in the afternoon, Severus gave Harry his first Potions lesson. While Harry was resting on the sofa, his friend told him everything about the different kinds of potions ingredients and the various methods to prepare them. Harry was listening with apparent interest and even asked questions from time to time. "I can't understand why you're having problems with Potions; you're very adept, Harry," Severus told him, when he finished their lesson, noticing that Harry was becoming too tired. He questioningly raised an eyebrow, patiently waiting for Harry to reply.

"You know, Severus, I've already had Potions lessons for three years now, but our professor didn't give us these explanations about the ingredients even once. Today, I've learnt more about Potions than in three years," Harry replied hoarsely. "Thanks Sev!"

"You're welcome, Harry. We can continue tomorrow if you wish."

"I'd like that," Harry mumbled tiredly, while he closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep again, leaving Severus to muse about which potions he should teach him first.

HP

Harry soon began to toss and turn around in his sleep. Severus moved to the edge of the sofa, telling him, "Wake up Harry, everything is all right."

"No!" Harry suddenly began to whimper, and by the time Severus managed to wake him up, Harry was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Stop it, Harry; you'll only aggravate your condition," Severus said worriedly, lightly stroking his friend's hot cheeks.

"Severus, what's your last name?" Harry suddenly croaked between his sobs that soon turned into harsh coughs.