This story branches off of To Have a Second Chance. It takes place between chapters 20 and 21. It can be read solo, but reading the previous story may help understand Harry's relationship with both Sam and Severus Snape. I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Do not own Harry Potter

"Harry Snape!" Severus Snape called. "For the last time, get in bed!"

Nine-year-old Harry Snape scrambled off the couch and out of the living room, losing a slipper on the way that he paused to slip back on, and to his room. It was October, so Harry wore long pajamas and kept his slippers on when he walked around. Harry Snape, once Harry Potter in another reality, had entered this reality as a four-year-old, with Severus Snape as his father and Lily Snape (nee Evans) as his deceased mother. According to Dumbledore, who had created the Second Chances Reality, Harry had kept all his previous life's miemory because his magic was incredibly strong. And as long as he never revealed to his father that they lived in a new reality, he could stay in the new world forever.

"Dad! Storytime!" Harry yelled. He crawled into bed and waited for his father to come. Sam, a three tailed kitsune who Harry had met hardly a week ago trotted into the room. The presently wolf-sized red fox leaped onto Harry's bed, sitting down at the end and shrinking down into the size of a normal red fox. He flicked his black tipped ears at Harry.

: Why must you yell so often? The red fox said through telepathy, his ears laid flat against his head.

"Because Dad won't hear me and come in to tell me a bedtime story." Harry replied.

: Of course. The fox sighed. Well, I should be off to hunt.

"Wait!" Harry stopped Sam from misting, or taking the form of a white, misty apparition, and taking off to the Forbidden Forest outside of Hogwarts. "Why don't you tell me a story?"

: About what? Sam tilted his head to the side, his three tails flicking behind him.

"I don't know. Maybe about how you came to this reality? And what happened to you here? The more you talk the more it sounds like a lot has happened to you. What did happen to you?" Harry sat up on his bed, his green eyes sparkling.

Sam was the only other person (or animal) Harry had met that knew about both realities. Harry had yet to figure out why the fox knew, or even how.

: My life isn't really kid-friendly . . . Sam started to say, looking off to the side and allowing one ear to fall to the side, the black tip revealing itself.

"Please?" Harry whined, letting his lower lip pucker out and widening his eyes. It was a look most people fell for, even his father.

The fox huffed, both ears dropping briefly before perking back up.

: Fine. But only because you asked . . . nicely. Sam said.

Harry smirked. Right. That's what they all say. Harry thought.

: Remember, I can hear your thoughts. Sam gave a foxy smile at Harry's frown, his mouth wide open and his lips curved. Anyway, where to start . . .?

"How about the streets? You said your parents left you there. Why?" Harry asked.

: They did, indeed. It is actually where my life in this reality began. When my parents were leaving me . . .

Sam was suddenly lifted off the ground from where he had fallen and restrained by two men while a third attempted to slide a noose around his neck. Sam used the weight of the two people restraining him to lift himself up and kick the man in front of him away. The two men forced Sam back on to his feet and one of the men kneed Sam in his stomach. Pain fired through Sam's entire body, and he suddenly felt weak and his legs gave out from under him. He felt the noose around his neck and suddenly, he was being lifted. Sam struggled against the pressure of the rope at his neck, his body thrashing and his hands clawing frantically at the constricting pain as he was lifted higher until his feet could no longer feel the ground beneath him.

"Go back and rule the hell you came from, Devil. Let me help you on your way." Sam heard the large man say below him. Sam, whose eyes had been squinted shut from the pain, managed to look down and catch a glimpse of what the man below him was doing. He saw the man pick up his tanto that he had dropped and pull back an arm, ready to either throw or impale. Sam closed his eyes again, listening to the whistle of the knife flying through the air, more than likely aimed for his head.

And then everything went silent. Pain disappeared. And Sam could no longer feel the crushing pressure at his neck.

Sam opened his eyes and blinked again at the darkness he saw. His eyes adjusted a bit and Sam saw a strange cardboard brown all around him. He touched his head gingerly, a pounding headache threatening to split his head in two. He ran his hand through his fox red hair, pulling at the ends roughly. He remembered the last events that had happened to him and though about the tanto. That should have killed me; it was aimed for my head. I should be dead right now. He could hear yelling outside. What were they saying? Sam focused his hearing and listened.

"We can't just leave him here! They'll find him! They will!" A female's voice said.

"He'll be fine if he stays in the box. It looks like any other normal box humans make by putting slabs of cardboard together. He'll be safe." Came a deep male voice.

The voices were so familiar, like a very distant memory. Sam felt around and pushed at the loose parts of the box. He looked out into the opening and saw two people with the strong scent of kitsune on them. They both had fox red hair, the male's like his own hair, and the female had hers down and much longer. They man and woman both turned to look at him. Sam gasped.

My parents! What is happening? Sam looked down at himself and realized he was tiny once more. I'm six again! No! No! I'm reliving my life!

"Samuru, get back inside!" The woman stepped forward and gently pushed Sam back into the box. "Stay hidden. Don't make a sound! Don't move!"

Sam pushed himself back out, against his mother's commands.

"Stop! What's going on?" Sam yelled. He wasn't really asking them but the world itself.

A stronger hand fell on his shoulder. Sam looked up at his father who had taken his mother's place.

"We've told you what is happening, Samuru. You'll be okay. You are a gifted kitsune. You will figure out to survive on your own. I know you will. You are very special. You can do this." Sam's father lifted his hand and grasped Sam's smaller hand. "You can."

Sam felt himself nod, just as he did all those years ago the first time his parents left him.

"That's my boy." The man kissed Samuru's hand and stood to his feet. Samuru's mother stepped forward and kissed Sam's forehead for several seconds, tears streaming down her cheeks before she pulled away and gently pushed Sam back into the box.

"Stay hidden." She whispered. Running footsteps could be heard from down the pathway. Sam watched as his parents ran out of the small alleyway, running as fast as they could. Sam peeked out of the flaps. After several long seconds, he finally saw the running legs of what he knew to be hunters of the supernatural, more specifically kitsune. They ran in the direction his parents had gone.

Sam sank back into the box after he watched them pass by. He was reliving his life. Perhaps he had been killed and he was really in hell. Or perhaps it was all an illusion. Kitsune were masters of creating worlds of illusions that seemed so realistic until it decided to kill in the end. Sam would have to find the creator of this illusion and kill the kitsune responsible before it killed him.

"But it wasn't an illusion, was it?" Harry asked, still sitting in his bed but now holding his stuffed tiger, Whisker, a Christmas present from his father when he was four.

: I was so convinced that I was living in an illusion for an entire year before I finally gave up on the idea. Usually, when a kitsune creates an illusion, they create a reality so addicting that whoever the victim is will believe the illusion to be reality and fall into a sense of safety and security. That is when the kitsune kills its victim. However, I had allowed myself to fall into that state several times within the following year; it just became highly unlikely that it was a kitsune's illusion. Sam said.

"What happened next?" Harry asked impatiently.

"Telling stories without me?" Severus asked as he walked into the room. The potions professor of Hogwarts stopped by Harry's bed. "Get under the covers, young man."

Harry crawled under the covers and smiled at Severus.

"What's the story?" Severus asked, raising an eyebrow at Sam.

"Sam was just telling me about his past. He just finished with his parents abandoning him in an alleyway." Harry answered.

"Oh, really?" Severus laid next to Harry. "Mind if I join? I must admit I am curious about your history as well. I'm not too late into the story am I?"

: Of course not. Sam winked slyly at Harry. We've only just begun. And mind you, this is an English version of events, considering I spoke Japanese most my life. I didn't learn English until I was almost two hundred years old. As I was saying, my parents left me in hopes that I would survive without them. They were chased by hunters and their fate was sealed that same night. However, . . .

Sam remained in the box overnight. It had been a cold night and at some point in the morning it had rained. Sam felt tears in his eyes. He had been abandoned. Left to die on his own. Sam cried, his sobs being the only sounds of the early morning. Sam never left the box that next day, refusing to leave its security. Later that night, after Sam had fallen asleep, he was awoken by the sounds of something moving. Sam peeked out of the box.

He saw nothing out of the ordinary. But the sounds continued. Sam crawled out of the box and looked around, staying on his knees as he did so. He finally saw a shape moving quickly on the roofs of the old houses. The shape paused on the roof of the house next to Sam's box and Sam could make out a foxy structure and realized it was a kitsune, and that kitsune was staring right at him.

Sam back-crawled away as the kitsune jumped to the ground before him. The fox had five tails and a completely white chest and underbelly. He was the size of a large wolf. He flicked his ears in curiosity.

: Hello, little one. What's your name? Sam heard the fox's deep, rich voice in his head.

Sam stared at the fox and refused to say a word. He didn't know the kitsune, so why should he answer its question.

: Don't be afraid, I won't harm you. Tell me what your name is.

Sam withdrew deeper into the box as the larger kitsune neared. I can't fight him off on my own – not this size. It's a simple question, though. Why not answer it? Maybe he'll leave me be if I answer it.

"I'm Sa-Samuru." Sam's voice cracked as he said his name. The larger kitsune laughed, a cough like sound coming from the fox.

: Well, Sa-Samuru. My name is Akira. What are you doing out here all alone? Where are your parents?

Sam looked down, studying the crumbling ends of the cardboard. Memories of living in the box for a week before beginning to learn the ways of the street returned to him. His parents were dead and he would relive his life of thievery on the streets. Tears once again filled his eyes.

"They're dead." Sam whispered. Sam angrily wiped the tears away. He unintentionally released a sad sob.

: I'm sorry, kit. It's alright to cry. You have every reason to.

Sam felt his eyes water more and he reached up to try and brush them away. His eyes began to feel hot and his head started to hurt from his resistance. He made another sob sound. The large fox looked over his shoulder, glancing into the streets.

: Actually, I believe now is not a good time for tears. We need to get you out of here. Come now, shift.

Sam stared at the fox. Did the kitsune want to take him? To where? Sam shuffled back into the box.

: Now, now, none of that. Come, I'm not leaving you here. You can't be left on the streets. You don't deserve that. Come.

Akira nosed his way into the box and ripped at the tattered shirt Sam was wearing. Then he began to pull at the shirt, lifting it up. Sam recognized the action as something his mother would do when she was growing impatient and tried to undress him so he would shift. Sam shoved himself away from the fox, backing up deeper into the box.

"Stop! Leave me alone. Go away!"

: No Sa. I can hear hunters close by, we need to leave before they find you. Akira tried to reason.

Sam remembered that in his previous life, hunters would continue to pass his box, but due to its condition and sagging structure, no one bothered to look inside. No one would find him. Sam reached out and closed the flaps of the box.

"I'm safe right here." Sam called out.

It was quiet for a moment. Then Sam smelled smoke. Sam frowned. Then he saw flames swallowing the right side wall of the box. Sam screamed and threw himself out of the box and crawled away from it. He watched as the older fox burned the rest of the box with all five blazing tails covering it. As the last of the box disappeared in the fiery fire that also faded, Akira turned to Sam.

: Shift, now. Akira hissed, fire collecting in the back of his mouth.

Sam stared at the fox, terrified. This wasn't supposed to happen. Maybe he could make a run for it. Old instinct was kicking in as Sam slowly crawled away further before rushing to stand and start running. He took three short jogs when teeth closed on the back of his shirt and yanked him back into the alley. He was pulled against the side of the old house before the fox released him, only to press himself against Sam to keep him still. Sam was about to kick the fox when he heard people approaching. Sam held his breath and he felt the fox's fur bristle, the flames on his tails still slowly dying down.

"Where did you see it?" A deep voice said a good distance away.

"There were two. Male and female. They hid in an alleyway and then went running out when a few hunters approached." Came another voice.

"Did you catch them?"

"Yes. They fought, though. Naturally. And viciously. I believe their might be a baby they hid somewhere in that alley. That is what we are looking for."

The footsteps were coming closer.

As soon as the fox let up the slightest bit, Sam pushed away, breathing heavy. Everything was wrong. This wasn't what was supposed to be happening.

: Easy, kit. You'll be fine. I'll protect you. I just need you to shift. Don't fight me, Samuru. I am not afraid to hurt you if it means saving your life. The fox opened his mouth and fire danced in the back of his throat as he waited for Sam to make a decision.

Sam felt tears in his eyes again but he grabbed the ends of his shirt and pulled it over his head, throwing it to the ground. What choice did he have? He was too little to fight off hunters on his own. And this kitsune seemed pretty insistent that Sam obey him. The footsteps were closer and he quickly pulled his pants off. He had just morphed into his kitsune form, a very small fox kit, when the owners of the footsteps appeared.

"Kitsune!" One of the dark clothed men shouted.

The other man in similar attire whistled sharply.

Sam had only a glimpse of the men before he was lifted by his scruff. Akira jumped up and clung to the edge of a roof, hanging from the ancient house that made up a side of the alley way, his tails swinging for balance. He pulled himself up and glanced back on at the men. Seven more were joining the two, all carrying some kind of weapon. One of the men was carrying a bow and he fired an arrow at the fox at the same time a couple other men threw sharpened spears.

Akira leaped up the slanted roof. The arrow missed and spears missed. Akira set Sam down and released a jet of flames. The length was short, as was typical of foxfire, but the men scattered regardless.

The archer shot another arrow at the fox from behind a nearby tree. The kitsune opened his mouth and coughed up a large ball of fire that exploded and engulfed the tree into flames as it struck. The archer jumped out from behind the burning tree.

Akira picked up Sam by his scruff and climbed up the roof. His tails were ablaze once more and he dragged the fire on the wooden roof, leaping to the ground as the hot heat began swallowing the house and screams could be heard from within.

Sam was thrown as something heavy hit the larger fox and knocked him to the ground. Sam shook himself and looked around. He gasped as he saw a large man running towards him. Once again, old instinct told him to stand his ground and fight, but his small size told him to run and find cover. Sam struggled to run fast on his small, clumsy paws and he was roughly grabbed by his scruff and lifted high into the air. He whimpered at the man in dark clothes and dark brown eyes. The man held up a long knife like weapon to Sam's neck.

Suddenly, a ball of fire struck the man in the face, engulfing the head in flames. Reflexively, the man threw his arms up, sending Sam flying through the air. Teeth closed around his stomach and back in midflight. Akira ran away from the men and burning house, dragging his blazing tails on the ground. Akira performed a half circle as he ran, creating five huge lines of fire due to the dry grass catching easily. Finally, he lifted his tails and shook away the flames. He paused and looked back at the fire surrounded men. One of the men stood at the first line of fire, directly in front of it, presumably the leader of the group. The dirty blond hair and grey eyes told Akira that he wasn't a native, probably hired to kill off the kitsune. However, there was something odd about the man, something . . . animalistic. Demonic. Akira ignored the feeling and carried the little fox away from the small city and towards a large forest that surrounded a mountain.

As the trees grew denser, the fox could feel the kit in his mouth start to squirm and whimper. It wasn't a very comfortable way to be carried, but in the midst of all the chaos, the fox did not have the time to readjust his grip. After coming to a clearing and glancing around, Akira set the little kit down.

Sam gathered his paws under him and sat on the cold forest floor. He lowered his head and closed his eyes, his ears drooping.

"Samuru." The fox wanted his attention.

"What?" Sam growled at the fox, baring his teeth. "I mean, thank you, sir, for saving me. I guess you can go now." Sam surrendered, lowering his head again, ears falling. Sam couldn't help but think that whatever had happened to him, fate couldn't deal him anything worse. Sam knew how his life ended. Why couldn't it have stayed ended? The fur around Sam's eyes began to grow damp and he blinked angrily.

"Samuru, while I appreciate your gratitude, I cannot leave you in the middle of a forest, just like I couldn't leave you in the streets of a city. That wouldn't be appropriate of me."

"Then what do you want to do with me? Just leave me here, I'll be fine on my own."

"No, I'm afraid I cannot do that. You are just a kit. You need parents. I would like to take you in myself if that is alright with you."

Sam looked up at the larger fox. He wanted to take Sam in? Adopt Sam as his own? Sam had lived nearly three hundred years on his own without paternal care, and while he developed a horrible temper, resentment, a dangerous greed, and made several mistakes, he came out all right. Didn't he? What difference would be having a parent make in his life.

Akira said nothing nor did he move. Sam felt a bit uncomfortable with the unwavering stare. He was being given the chance of a family, and whether this was hell, an illusion or not, Sam wanted to take that chance. And perhaps this time around, he could avoid being murdered.

"I . . . guess I could try it out." Sam suggested.

"Try it out?" Akira asked, amused. "I guess I can work with that. But I'll warn you; once we start 'trying it out' I'm not letting you go." The fox picked Sam up by his scruff.

"What? Wait, that's not fair. Then why bother trying it out?" Sam protested, squirming slightly.

"I don't know. But I'm rather fond of you. You're feisty and cute."

"I'm not cute."

"To me, you are. I'll introduce you to my mate and daughter. You are officially a big brother."

"What if they don't like me?" Sam asked, trying to look up at the fox but could only glimpse the tip of Akira's nose.

"Hush, they'll like you. Now, try and go to sleep, Sa. We have a long journey."

Sam relaxed under the scruff hold. He liked the new nickname and figured it was probably inspired by their first encounter. Sam was a bit anxious to meet the vixens in question, but also excited. He yawned and fell asleep to Akira gently rocking him by moving his head side to side slowly and softly.

"I'm glad someone found you, Sam. I can't imagine what living on the streets would be like, especially for a child." Severus commented.

"You can only shift with no clothes on?" Harry asked.

: That's your concern after all that, huh? Sam said. Then the fox snorted. Figures. I believe that is enough story for one night.

"No! What happens next? Does his mate like you? How old's his daughter? Do you still live with them?" Harry started asking.

"Harry, enough. Sam can tell you more tomorrow night if he wants. Right now, it's bedtime." Severus kissed Harry's forehead and ruffled his son's hair before standing.

: I will be delighted to tell you more. However, I must hunt before the night is over. Good night, Harry.

"Goodnight Sam. Goodnight Dad." Harry feel asleep as soon as Severus turned the lights out.

"Thank you for the story, Sam. For Harry, I mean." Severus told the fox.

: He asked. I only answered. If you'd like to hear my story, you are always welcome to join. It's good to reflect.

Severus smiled and nodded to the fox before saying good night and making his way to bed. Sam misted into his apparition form and flew through Hogwarts and out into the great Forbidden Forest.

I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Do you think it'd make a good story?