Disclaimer: I do not own this, it is owned by other people who have a battery of rabid attack lawyers.
I Like it Here
I Love it Here
I finally found a Home
"Good morning Harry" Becky smiled down at him from her customary position by the side of his bed, "and how are you this morning."
"Good morning Becky" he replied with a grin, "and how is my favorite assistant today?"
"I'm not sure Harry" Becky replied in a puzzled voice, "I wasn't aware you had more than one assistant, but if you will give me a few minutes then I'm sure I can provide you with an answer."
"I was talking about . . ." he noticed the corner of her mouth twitching in amusement, "why you little."
The twitching turned into full blown laughter, "I'm sorry Harry but I just could not resist."
"It's fine Becky" Harry replied, "but now I'm going to have to find a way to get you back."
"You may try my Lord"
"So, what's on the agenda today Becky?" Harry asked with a grin.
"The Warden has requested that you spare a few moments of your time to look over some of the new security measures" Becky said after a few moments of checking, "it may also be a good idea to get in some dueling practice or to do some studying."
"Alright" Harry nodded, "I suppose that it has been a while since I got any practice in, and inform the Warden that we shall be over after lunch."
"As you command" Becky replied absently as she began making notations in her ever-present book.
"One more thing" Harry's manner turned serious.
"Yes Harry" she looked up quizzically.
"Are you alright?" he favored her with a concerned look, "after last night I mean."
"Yes I am Harry, thank you for your concern."
"Good because I want you to know that I value you for who you are, and some accident of birth will not change that" grabbing her hand he took a deep breath, "besides you are my godfather's cousin, a cousin that I believe he would have very much wanted to meet."
"Thank you Harry" a few stray tears made their way down her face, "hearing that from you means a lot to me."
Getting out of his bed, Harry gave her another hug, "cancel some of the study time and set aside a few hours for you me and Hermione to talk."
"Alright" she said with a hiccup, "will that be all?"
"Why don't you get Hermione and the three of us can have a bit of time together before breakfast" Harry smiled at her, "and see that we have a bit of time together after as well."
"Yes my Lord" Becky replied with a face splitting grin, "As you command."
Harry smiled as he watched his assistant leave the room; he was unsure as to why but for some reason the thought of spending time around his two girls gave him a warm feeling.
Getting dressed in what he privately referred to as his 'Lord Azkaban Uniform,' He stepped out into the corridor to meet with the other two members of his little group.
"Becky said that you wanted to spend some time alone with us before breakfast?" Hermione's voice asked in warm tones.
"I figured that after yesterday's revelation that the three of us could use some time together" He smiled at her, "besides, there is nothing in the world that I'd rather do."
"We feel the same way" Becky added causing the three of them to share a smile.
The next several hours were some of the happiest that Harry could remember in a long time, for a time he could forget that he was the Lord of a small island nation, he could forget the prophecy, and he could forget the world and pretend to be a normal teenager without any real responsibilities.
"It is time to visit the prison Harry" Becky's regret filled voice signaled the end to their time together, "Though with your permission I would like to schedule another of these gatherings in the future."
"Excellent idea Becky" Harry turned to Hermione, "that is if you have no objections?"
Hermione suddenly found herself being regarded by a pair of warm green eyes, "not at all Harry, not at all."
Regretfully the group separated, Hermione traveling the familiar route to the library and the other two walking to an exit in order to meet the carriage.
As he snapped his fingers to summon his coach, Harry marveled at the changes that had occurred over the summer; he had gone from an angry young man with no control over his destiny to the Lord of a small nation that controlled the destiny of thousands.
Absently motioning Becky to enter the carriage ahead of him, Harry spent much of the trip lost in thought.
It was a series of sudden turns that brought Harry back to the present and looking out the window he realized that they had nearly reached the prison.
As the coach slowed to a stop, Harry immediately jumped up in a futile attempt to beat his assistant to the door, losing by mere seconds, he did not fail to notice the smirk adorning her face as she opened the door before he reached it.
Stepping out of his carriage, Harry was met by the warden and several guards in full regalia.
"I thank you for taking the time to visit us your Lordship" the Warden nodded to him, "I think that you will be quite pleased by some of the measures that we have put in place."
"I'm sure I will be" Harry was a bit bemused, "shall we start?"
"Of course my Lord" the Warden nodded, "as you can see the prison has been surrounded by several concentric rings of walls and fences, between these walls are several paths on which we are running roving patrols and three mine fields."
"Mine fields?" Harry asked a bit surprised.
"Yes my Lord, a mine is a muggle explosive that is buried and . . ."
"I know what mines are" Harry interrupted, "Please continue."
"The main wall is topped topped by electrified strands of concertina wire and there are a series of check points that one must go through to reach the main gate."
"I didn't see any check points"
"The guards all opened them upon recognizing my Lord's carriage"
"See that they stop me in the future" Harry replied after a moment of thought, "security like this only works if it applied to everyone."
"Yes my Lord" the Warden nodded as he made a mental note to enact the order, "around the perimeter we have emplaced several 35 mm air defense revolving cannons to insure against any possible outside threats."
"What about detection?" Harry asked, becoming interested in the various measures that had been emplaced at his orders.
"We have dropped several 'sonar buoys 'around the island to detect any incoming ships and a RADAR dish is in the process of being constructed to detect any intrusions from the air."
"And on the ground?"
"Several motion and pressure detectors have been placed"
"Excellent" Harry nodded, "shall we take a look at the prison?"
"Yes my Lord" the man agreed, "if you will just place your hand on this pad . . ."
"What does this do?" Harry asked eyeing the strange object.
"It is a device that verifies my Lord's identity using several magical and muggle techniques" the Warden answered proudly, "it's one of the few measures that is a mix of muggle and magical techniques, many of the other items are either strictly magical or strictly muggle."
"Such as" Harry's eyebrows raised in interest.
"Such as the detection charms verses the motion detectors" the Warden smiled, "or the wards verses the electronic locks."
"Electronic Locks" Harry blinked, "I thought that electronic devices wouldn't work around strong concentrations of magic."
"Normally they wouldn't my Lord' the Warden looked like a child on Christmas morning, "but some of our muggle workers have discovered that the electronic equipment that had been 'hardened' against EMP would still function."
"I see" Harry nodded, "please continue."
"Yes my Lord" the Warden checked his notes, "due to security concerns we will not be going into the prison but it has been reorganized into three sections on the advice of our muggle consultants."
"Could you give me a bit more detail?" Harry asked mildly.
"Of course my Lord, the first section is for prisoners that are of minimum risk to the guards and other prisoners and one of the muggle consultants has suggested using these prisoners as a source of labor menial tasks such as to keep the prison clean" the warden took a breath, "the second section is for prisoners of moderate risk such as smugglers and black marketers, and the third section are for prisoners of maximum risk such as Death Eaters."
"Excellent work" Harry nodded in satisfaction, "tell your staff that they are a credit to the Island and that I am proud of them."
"Thank you my Lord" the Warden straightened up visibly pleased, "we are of course in the process of putting into place several more security features but we wished to show you the first completed stages."
"As I said before, you have done an absolutely marvelous job."
"We live to serve my Lord"
Harry took one last look around the prison yard before stepping into his carriage for the ride back to the castle.
As Harry was leaving the prison, a rather interesting conversation was about to occur at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Strolling through the halls of Hogwarts was a sight so terrifying that had classes been in session the students would panic, screaming the phrase 'there's two of them' and causing anarchy to rule.
Strolling through the halls of Hogwarts was the Lord of Azkaban's Potions mistress . . . a woman who looked quite a bit like Hogwarts' transfiguration professor.
Her mission was quite simple; she was to speak with Hogwarts' Potions Master in an attempt to lessen his hostility towards their Lord.
Rapping gently on the door to his quarters she waited and prepared herself for what she assumed would be one of the more unpleasant conversations of her life.
"Come in" Snape's voice barked out rudely.
"Good evening Potions Master Snape"
"Who are you?" Snape replied with just a hint of politeness, the use of his proper title giving him pause.
"I am Potions Mistress Winters and I have a few matters that I wished to discuss with you."
"Of course" Snape replied brightening at the thought of an intelligent conversation with a colleague, "have a seat, can I get you anything?"
"Thank you and no" Winters replied, a bit surprised by the man's behavior.
"Forgive me but before we begin our conversation, there is one thing that I wanted to ask" the Potions Mistress began in a mild tone, "I was wondering why a man of your ability was teaching children?"
Snape's shoulders dropped, "That question cannot be answered without revealing information that I do not believe you are cleared for, please forgive me."
"Is the information that you are referring to your status as a current Death Eater, or your status as Dumbledore's spy?"
"Yes, both" the man's eyes shot open, "how did you know that?"
"My Lord Azkaban has seen fit to inform those of his inner circle of why he did not choose to lock you in one of his cells after the attack."
"I see" Snape nodded in understanding, "and as you are aware of my background then I may answer your question."
"Excellent" the Islander nodded, "though it is a shame that my Lord Azkaban did not choose to keep you."
"Why" Snape asked in shock and disappointment, "why would you condemn me to that?"
"Because I believe that within a day I could have convinced him to give you over to me" she smiled, "and imagine the potions that two people with our combined abilities could create."
"Yes" Snape agreed in a daze, "it would be wondrous."
"I believe that you were going to answer my question?" she prompted gently.
"Yes" Snape nodded, "it all starts with my decision to join the Dark Lord."
"Why did you do that anyway?" she interrupted, "my research into your character hasn't shown much distaste towards muggle-borns."
"Because of the research opportunities" Snape shot her a shy smile, "he had access to tomes that I couldn't imagine and ingredients that I could never have gotten myself."
"I see"
"After a time I choose to betray the Dark Lord to Dumbledore and he placed me here" Snape smirked, "I suppose that he wanted to keep an eye on me."
"Why not quit?" Winters asked, unable to understand why the man would continue in a job so far below his ability.
"If I quit, it would remove the one thing that makes me valuable to the Dark Lord" Snape smirked, "he no longer has any interest in research, and has recently recruited several competent potion makers."
"I see" she nodded, "I may have a solution to your problem."
"What's that" Snape replied with polite interest, "If you are suggesting that I commit another crime just to be sent to Azkaban . . ."
"Nothing like that" she hastily assured him, "were you aware that the Lord of Azkaban has one of the largest and best sections of rare potions books in his library in the world?"
"I was not" Snape replied with interest, "It must be wonderful having all that material."
"Another fascinating fact is that he has access to ingredients that most masters can only dream about."
"I find myself turning green with envy" Snape replied without a hint of his normal sarcasm.
"And he could also protect you from any reprisals that you might suffer from leaving the Dark Lord" she smiled, "would you be interested in a job?"
In his carriage, Harry's peacefully ride to the castle was interrupted by Becky's face contorting into a rather odd expression.
"My Lord" she started a bit hesitantly, "Potions Mistress Winters has a man that she would like you to hire."
"I have no problems with that" Harry replied absently, curious about Becky's rather odd behavior.
"Um" she fidgeted, "there's just one thing you should know before agree."
"And that is?"
A few minutes later, Potions Mistress Winters nodded in satisfaction when she received her reply.
"Potions Master Snape"
"Please call me Severus" he replied pleasantly, "after all if we are going to be sharing our research . . ."
"Then I insist that you call me Neleba or Nele" she smiled, "his Lordship has reached a decision regarding your employment."
"And" Snape asked in a voice filled with apprehension.
"His Lordship has agreed to provide you with an unused structure on the far side of the Island" the Potions Mistress began, "the only problem is that the location he has in mind is a bit isolated . . ."
"Perfect" Snape gave one of his rare genuine smiles, "a lab free of distractions where I have no responsibilities but those I choose has always been a dream of mine."
"Then it seems we have come to an agreement" she replied returning his smile, "do you need any help packing?"
Hours later, after they had gathered his personal effects, the two Potions Masters approached the imposing stone building that was to serve as Snape's new home and laboratory.
Walking through the front door, Nele was a bit embarrassed by the dark imposing atmosphere, the corners filled with cobwebs, and the faint smell of mildew.
However, before she could comment her attention was drawn to an uncharacteristically joy filled voice at her side.
"It's perfect" finally after many years of searching, Severus Snape had found a home.
AN: If you can say why the carriage had to make several sharp turns on the approach to the Prison then you get a cookie (my beta got it). Snape may be a bastard but he has ability, in this way I can deal with him in a way that makes him happy (and in a way that doesn't require me to have Harry's bodyguards beat him into a coma for doing something stupid). The other thing is Snape will not suddenly turn nice, nor will he suddenly like Harry. Concertina wire aka Razor wire. EMP, Electro Magnetic, Pulse, the reason that a nuke going off will fry the electronics around the surrounding area.
Thanks go to my beta Aphy Snape for all the work put into correcting my mistakes, including one rather bad one where my spell checker changed McGonagall into the transformation professor. Thanks also go to userid822000 for coming up with some of the prison security and the theory about electronic devices and magic fields.
"For the last time Hermione I can't do it" Harry replied in exasperation.
Hermione gave a superior smile, "according to 'Azkaban a History' the Lord of Caer Azkaban can shoot fire out his eyes."
"Arg" Harry stormed off.
The second their friend had left the room, the two girls began to giggle uncontrollably, "so Becky, what do you think we should tell him next?"
C. Rose – Hermione knew, Harry did not.
Night-Owl123 – Depends on RL issues, right now it's rather hectic.
midnight.musings – So am I
critic unknown – Glad that you decided to take a chance on this story, this chapter has a bit more Snape then any of the previous ones so I hope that you found it enjoyable.
devilishly dreamy – At the moment it is looking like a three way relationship, though I don't have a clue on how to write it that way.
Lunatic Pandora1 – Heh
"Are you sure that this is a good idea master?" Wormtail whined, "they don't seem particularly fierce, they seem more . . . cute."
"That's the point Wormtail" the Dark Lord cackled with glee, "they are so 'cute' that the public will never allow the Aurors to destroy them, thus bringing me to victory."
"But master" Wormtail tried another argument, "kittens?"
"Cats are natural predators" the Dark Lord looked down at the tiny ball of fur in his hands and began to speak in a rather different voice then his normal hiss, "whose a fierce little monster that's going to topple the Ministry . . . you are."
"Um master" Wormtail was trying not to stare, "after all these years of faithful service, I think I have some vacation time coming so . . ."
"Wormtail" the Dark Lord looked up from his kitten, "CRUCIO."
ashibabi – Heh heh heh, it's all part of my evil plan.
BenRG – Hmmm, hadn't thought of that.
tessa3 – Thank you