Disclaimer: If you don't know it, it is mine, if you do, it's not.
Chapter 17 - August 2nd - Day Thirty One
Downs and Ups on the Rollercoaster of Life
Parseltongue is in italics
---------------------------------------------
Last Chapter:
"It can't be." said Snape softly as he looked at the chain clasp.
"What is it?" asked Harry.
Snape looked up at Harry and handed back the chain. Without a word, Snape swept out of the room. Harry looked at Hedwig in confusion and said, "I wonder what that was all about."
---------------------------------------------
Snape quickly cast a silencing charm before banging his fist against the wall. Why did all of his memories of Regina have to resurface now of all the times? The clasp on the chain proved that it was Regina's chain. The letters RNVHS were engraved on it. Those where her complete initials. However, he wasn't even sure he wanted to find out how Harry had truly gotten the chain.
His head was starting to pound. He missed Regina so much, he had tried over to years to forget all about her. That is why he left Snape Manor after her death. The place was just too painful and he felt like he had to escape. He didn't want to feel the pain.
He went over to his liquor cabinet and took out a bottle of Firewhiskey. He planned on calming his nerves through alcohol. He never was one to get drunk. In fact, he had only gotten completely drunk two times in his life. The first time was after he had been initiated as a Death Eater, the second time was the night Regina died. Yes, alcohol was the best way to ease his pain.
He took a swig from the bottle and felt the liquid burn down his throat. Snape then proceeded to chug down the whiskey until he was completely and utterly drunk. However, the memories of Regina didn't go away and neither did the pain. The pain crawled into his heart and through his soul. It was almost too much for Severus to bear. Why did Regina have to leave him all alone? He threw the glass against the wall and it shattered into pieces.
Twinkle then appeared in Snape's room. She had sinced her master's distress and came to see what was wrong. When she saw Snape's condition, she was unsure what to do. On instinct, she raced to Harry's room to get help.
-----------
Harry was fast asleep when Twinkle came in to his room. She shook him and with a groan he ignored her. She continued to shake him until he looked blearily at her and said,
"What's the matter? What did you wake me up for?"
Twinkle wrung her hands nervously and said, "Master is in trouble and I is not knowing what to do."
At those words, Harry completely woke up. "What do you mean? Is Severus okay?"
"Oh no," said Twinkle, "He is throwing things and I is very scared for him."
"Do you know why?" asked Harry in disbelief.
"No, but you must do something to stop Master!" wailed Twinkle.
"Okay, I'm going to go and get Remus. Just calm down. Maybe he will know what to do." said Harry as he got up and went out into the hallway. Before he could even ask Twinkle where Remus's room was, she pointed to a door next to Harry's room. He knocked a few times on the door and Remus opened it. He was dressed in pajamas, but it appeared that he had been awake.
"What's the matter?" he asked when he saw Harry at his door with Twinkle.
"Twinkle says that Severus is throwing things in his room." said Harry.
"I haven't heard anything, but knowing Severus, he probably used a silencing charm." replied Remus, "Do you know where his room is?"
"It's the one at the end of the hall." said Harry.
"Let's go." said Remus and they all went to Snape's door. "Severus? Are you okay?" called out Remus as he knocked on the door.
They received no answer, so Remus cautiously opened the door. What met their eyes, shocked Harry and Remus. Broken glass was scattered all over the room and Severus was collapsed on the ground and was sobbing. Remus walked over to where Severus was a saw an open bottle beside him. He picked it up and looked at the label.
"Firewhiskey," he said as he shook his head, "Oh Severus, what made you resort to this?"
However, Severus ignored Remus and continued to cry. He muttered a few words and Remus could barely make out 'Regina', 'why', and 'alone'.
"What's wrong?" asked Harry nervously, "Is he okay?"
"He's drunk. I've never seen Severus get drunk before." said Remus, "We have to find away to get him out of whatever he seems to be in."
Remus grabbed Severus' arm and said, "Severus! Snap out of it! Look at me. Everything is okay!"
Severus yanked his arm back and said in an empty voice, "It's not okay, I'm all alone. Why did she have to leave me? Why did Regina have to leave me all alone?"
Harry stood by, unsure of what to do. However, something inside him knew what to do. "You aren't alone." he said quietly, as he knelt beside Snape.
Remus looked at him surprised. Harry was even surprised at his words, however he decided to trust his heart and he said loudly, "You are not alone. Sure life might suck, but that happens to everyone! You have to believe that everything will work out in the end. Regina might have died, but she didn't leave you all alone. Dumbledore trusts you, and the Order depends on your information in order to fight that monster. You can't give up, because people need you! You are not alone because you have Dumbledore, and McGonagall, and the Slytherins, and... and... you have me! Get a hold of yourself Father!"
The words seemed to get through to Snape and he looked up at Harry and seemed to notice that he was there for the first time. Harry was a little startled by Snape's tear stained face, but that didn't stop him from saying, "You are definitely not alone because you have me. We might have our differences, but we are family and family has to stick together."
"Harry's right." said Remus as he put a hand on Snape's shoulder. "I know that we haven't had the greatest history, but I'm willing to start over and maybe become friends. You are not alone Severus. You need to realize that you have friends and a son who cares about you. It's time to put away your grief and start over."
"I'm not alone." said Severus in a small voice that didn't suit him at all. "I have a son." He then gave an exhausted sigh and passed out.
"Let's get him to bed." said Remus, "He's going to have a horrible hangover in the morning."
"Is can do it." said Twinkle as she raised her hand and levitated Snape to his bed.
"Does Severus have any potions to cure hangovers?" asked Remus.
"Yes, Master does, Twinkle will get thems for you." said Twinkle as she popped out.
"I think we should get back to bed." said Remus, "Twinkle will handle everything else."
Harry nodded and they both went to their respected rooms, exhausted.
----------------------------
Harry and Remus were sitting in the sitting room the next morning. Remus was reading a book and Harry was studying some spells for his training. Harry glanced at the clock on the wall and noticed that it was 11 o'clock and Severus still hadn't come down.
"I wonder if I should check up on Father. He hasn't come down yet and I'm worried." said Harry.
Remus gave a small smile when Harry referred to Severus as 'Father'. "He had a bad night and is probably tired." he said to Harry, "He'll get up when he's ready to."
Seeing Harry's worried look, Remus then said, "Although I don't think he would mind if you just looked in on him to make sure he really is okay."
"I think I will." said Harry as he left the room.
From his portrait, Myrrdin said, "I believe that those two will be alright if Severus just fights his demons."
"I agree." said Remus, "They just need to settle a few things before they can really be family."
---------------------------
Harry slowly opened the door to Severus' bedroom. He stepped inside and looked around the room. Snape appeared to be still asleep and so Harry decided to take the liberty of looking around. There was a picture on the bedside table of a woman surrounded by flowers. Harry picked up the picture and on closer inspection, realized that it was his birth mother. Harry gazed at the picture for several minutes before he was startled by Severus shifting in the bed. Harry put the picture down and left the room as quietly as he could. It wouldn't do to wake up Severus and have to explain why he was in his bedroom.
He went downstairs and was startled to see Dumbledore standing in the entryway.
"How did you get in?" asked Harry, "I didn't hear a knock at the door or anything."
"I have a key to Snape Manor in case of emergencies." said Dumbledore with a smile, "I was given it a long time ago, and apparently it still works on the front door."
"Harry, who are you talking to?" asked Remus as he came out of the sitting room. He then noticed Dumbledore and asked, "How did you get in?"
"Spare key," said Dumbledore simply, "How are things going here? Where is Severus?"
Harry was unsure of what to say so Remus replied, "He is still in bed, there was a minor incident last night that left him quite tired."
Dumbledore nodded in understanding and then said, "Harry, if you don't mind, why don't be go through the pensive you received on your birthday. After lunch, I will be training you in Occlumancy. How does that sound?"
"That sounds fine, the pensive is in my room though." said Harry.
"It would probably be better if we do it in an environment in which you are most comfortable, so perhaps we could look through it in your room." said Dumbledore.
Harry agreed and after informing Remus of their plan, they went to Harry's room. Dumbledore conjured a chair to sit in and Harry sat on the bed after he had retrieved the pensive and placed it on the floor between them.
"Before we start, I would like to tell you a little about the history of your family. As you know, Regina was my distant cousin. However, the Dumbledore family was quite large at one time. I believe that you are aware that I had a brother?" said Dumbledore.
Harry nodded and Dumbledore continued, "My dear brother Aberforth is still alive. Although he's not been in good shape ever since tragedy struck the family. You see, Aberforth had a lovely wife and 3 children, as well as 3 grandchildren. Sadly, the Dark Lord Grindiwald killed his wife and youngest son. Voldemort killed his oldest son, his wife, and their 3 children, in order to get to me, during Voldemort's first uprising. Also during that time, Aberforth's daughter and her husband were killed in a muggle cafe during a random Death Eater attack. Regina's Grandfather was my only cousin. We were very close friends and I was very close to his daughter, Melissa. I kept in contact with Melissa when she moved overseas to America and met and married Jonah Van Hardy. He was a pureblood American wizard with a very high reputation. However, Jonah contracted a deadly wizarding disease and died soon after Regina was born. As you know, Melissa came back to Great Britain with Regina and lived in my ancestral home. Did you know that I was married once?"
This question surprised Harry and he was shocked as he said, "No sir, I had no idea."
"I was," said Dumbledore sadly, "She was killed by Grindiwald when he was starting to come to power. We were both very involved in our work and so neither one of us had time for children. I saw Regina as a chance to raise a child as my own. That is why I never told you about the prophecy. I cared too much for your happiness because you were her child. I see now that it would have been better if either Snape or myself had raised you. I thought that Petunia Dursley would take care of you because you were her 'nephew'. I never imagined that you would be treated the way you were. I made a mistake, and I know that I will never be able to erase it, but I hope that we can someday put it behind us. After all, we are the last of the Dumbledore bloodline."
"Are you serious?" asked Harry, "We are the only ones left?"
"I'm being completely truthful with you. We are the last people who are in the bloodline besides Aberforth." said Dumbledore, "Well, perhaps we should look in the pensive now."
Harry agreed and they sifted through the pensive for the rest of the morning.
------------------
Severus didn't wake up until after lunch was already over. Dumbledore was go over the basics of Occlumancy when Twinkle popped into the room announcing that he was awake. After getting Dumbledore's permission to leave, Harry ran to Snape's room. Instead of entering it, he chose to knock on the door first.
"Who is it?" answered Snape in a very drowsy voice.
"It's Harry." shouted Harry through the door.
"Come in." said Snape, "And don't speak so loudly, I have a horrid headache."
"It's no wonder, the amount of liquor you drank." said Harry, "You probably have a wicked headache."
Snape pointed to his chest of drawers and said, "Look in the top drawer and give me the vial with the purple potion in it."
Harry did this and after Snape took the potion, he sighed in relief. He then looked up at Harry sharply, "What are you doing in my room? I told you to stay out!"
Harry shrugged and said, "I was worried about you and just wanted to make sure you were okay. I mean after last night..."
"I remember," said Snape, "I lost control when I shouldn't have." he grimaced as he pushed out, "Thank you for helping me last night."
"It was nothing." said Harry, "I would have done it for anyone."
'You would have wouldn't you?' thought Snape to himself, aloud he said, "I think that we should have a talk."
Harry appeared a little worried and Snape added, "Could you tell me about your childhood with the Dursleys?"
"Okay," said Harry, surprised, "I didn't really care about living with them, but I suppose there wasn't any other option in Dumbledore's eyes. My bedroom was the broom cupboard under the stairs. I stayed there until I received my letter from Hogwarts. There were some spiders there, and it was a little cramped. Ever since I could remember, I always cooked for the Dursley's or did chores for them. If I didn't do my chores properly, they would lock me in my cupboard for a week and give me water and a piece of bread to eat every day. They let me out once a day to use the bathroom and take a bath. I was pretty much like a house elf to them. It probably could have been worse, I mean they didn't beat me or anything. Well, Dudley would beat me up occasionally, but it was nothing damaging."
By this time Snape was shocked. He knew Harry wasn't spoiled, like he thought before, but this was bordering on abuse, "Nothing damaging you say?" he said, "I don't know how you stayed relatively normal throughout your childhood."
"I suppose it's simply the charm of being the 'Boy who lived'." said Harry, "What was your childhood like?"
"It was horrible." said Snape, "My parents were both hard core Slytherins. They despised muggle borns and drilled anti-muggle thoughts into my head from the moment I was born. I barely saw them most of the time though and the house elves were the main ones to raise me. When the Dark Lord started to gain power, they quickly joined him. In my sixth year, I had to tutor Regina Van Hardy in Potions. She wished to become an Auror, but her Potions grade wasn't high enough. We slowly became friends and then fell in love. Regina changed my views on muggles. This was supported by the Death Eater rallies I witnessed that were held here. However, during the Christmas break of my seventh year, my parents forced me to pledge my allegiance to the Dark Lord and take the Dark Mark. When I returned, Regina found out and told me to tell Albus. I couldn't, so I decided to try and find a way out while acting like a loyal Death Eater. However, after Regina's death, I told Albus the truth and became a spy."
"What happened during the rallies?" asked Harry.
"I refuse to tell you. It is something I never want to remember as long as I live. It won't hurt you to not know and I believe that it would be best if you never find out."
Harry decided not to push it and said, "Thank you for sharing with me. I'm glad that you trust me enough with the information. Twinkle will bring some lunch up for you."
Snape nodded and Harry got up and headed toward the door.
"Harry," said Severus.
"Yes?" said Harry.
"Thank you for putting the past behind us."
Harry said, "It's no problem Father." He then left the room.
Snape stared at where Harry had left and whispered, "He called me Father."
-End Chapter 17-
A/N: I FINALLY FINISHED THIS CHAPTER!! cheers This chapter was by far the hardest one to write. There was a bunch of bonding moments. I was out of the state for a good portion of June, and then I had a family reunion and then I was attacked by a horrible case of writers' block. Then, it was my parent's 24th wedding anniversary and we had to go and celebrate it. Mainly though, it was the summer slum. I hope that this chapter meets your expectations. I hope to update faster for chapter 18.
-Lilyanphino-
Chapter 17 - August 2nd - Day Thirty One
Downs and Ups on the Rollercoaster of Life
Parseltongue is in italics
---------------------------------------------
Last Chapter:
"It can't be." said Snape softly as he looked at the chain clasp.
"What is it?" asked Harry.
Snape looked up at Harry and handed back the chain. Without a word, Snape swept out of the room. Harry looked at Hedwig in confusion and said, "I wonder what that was all about."
---------------------------------------------
Snape quickly cast a silencing charm before banging his fist against the wall. Why did all of his memories of Regina have to resurface now of all the times? The clasp on the chain proved that it was Regina's chain. The letters RNVHS were engraved on it. Those where her complete initials. However, he wasn't even sure he wanted to find out how Harry had truly gotten the chain.
His head was starting to pound. He missed Regina so much, he had tried over to years to forget all about her. That is why he left Snape Manor after her death. The place was just too painful and he felt like he had to escape. He didn't want to feel the pain.
He went over to his liquor cabinet and took out a bottle of Firewhiskey. He planned on calming his nerves through alcohol. He never was one to get drunk. In fact, he had only gotten completely drunk two times in his life. The first time was after he had been initiated as a Death Eater, the second time was the night Regina died. Yes, alcohol was the best way to ease his pain.
He took a swig from the bottle and felt the liquid burn down his throat. Snape then proceeded to chug down the whiskey until he was completely and utterly drunk. However, the memories of Regina didn't go away and neither did the pain. The pain crawled into his heart and through his soul. It was almost too much for Severus to bear. Why did Regina have to leave him all alone? He threw the glass against the wall and it shattered into pieces.
Twinkle then appeared in Snape's room. She had sinced her master's distress and came to see what was wrong. When she saw Snape's condition, she was unsure what to do. On instinct, she raced to Harry's room to get help.
-----------
Harry was fast asleep when Twinkle came in to his room. She shook him and with a groan he ignored her. She continued to shake him until he looked blearily at her and said,
"What's the matter? What did you wake me up for?"
Twinkle wrung her hands nervously and said, "Master is in trouble and I is not knowing what to do."
At those words, Harry completely woke up. "What do you mean? Is Severus okay?"
"Oh no," said Twinkle, "He is throwing things and I is very scared for him."
"Do you know why?" asked Harry in disbelief.
"No, but you must do something to stop Master!" wailed Twinkle.
"Okay, I'm going to go and get Remus. Just calm down. Maybe he will know what to do." said Harry as he got up and went out into the hallway. Before he could even ask Twinkle where Remus's room was, she pointed to a door next to Harry's room. He knocked a few times on the door and Remus opened it. He was dressed in pajamas, but it appeared that he had been awake.
"What's the matter?" he asked when he saw Harry at his door with Twinkle.
"Twinkle says that Severus is throwing things in his room." said Harry.
"I haven't heard anything, but knowing Severus, he probably used a silencing charm." replied Remus, "Do you know where his room is?"
"It's the one at the end of the hall." said Harry.
"Let's go." said Remus and they all went to Snape's door. "Severus? Are you okay?" called out Remus as he knocked on the door.
They received no answer, so Remus cautiously opened the door. What met their eyes, shocked Harry and Remus. Broken glass was scattered all over the room and Severus was collapsed on the ground and was sobbing. Remus walked over to where Severus was a saw an open bottle beside him. He picked it up and looked at the label.
"Firewhiskey," he said as he shook his head, "Oh Severus, what made you resort to this?"
However, Severus ignored Remus and continued to cry. He muttered a few words and Remus could barely make out 'Regina', 'why', and 'alone'.
"What's wrong?" asked Harry nervously, "Is he okay?"
"He's drunk. I've never seen Severus get drunk before." said Remus, "We have to find away to get him out of whatever he seems to be in."
Remus grabbed Severus' arm and said, "Severus! Snap out of it! Look at me. Everything is okay!"
Severus yanked his arm back and said in an empty voice, "It's not okay, I'm all alone. Why did she have to leave me? Why did Regina have to leave me all alone?"
Harry stood by, unsure of what to do. However, something inside him knew what to do. "You aren't alone." he said quietly, as he knelt beside Snape.
Remus looked at him surprised. Harry was even surprised at his words, however he decided to trust his heart and he said loudly, "You are not alone. Sure life might suck, but that happens to everyone! You have to believe that everything will work out in the end. Regina might have died, but she didn't leave you all alone. Dumbledore trusts you, and the Order depends on your information in order to fight that monster. You can't give up, because people need you! You are not alone because you have Dumbledore, and McGonagall, and the Slytherins, and... and... you have me! Get a hold of yourself Father!"
The words seemed to get through to Snape and he looked up at Harry and seemed to notice that he was there for the first time. Harry was a little startled by Snape's tear stained face, but that didn't stop him from saying, "You are definitely not alone because you have me. We might have our differences, but we are family and family has to stick together."
"Harry's right." said Remus as he put a hand on Snape's shoulder. "I know that we haven't had the greatest history, but I'm willing to start over and maybe become friends. You are not alone Severus. You need to realize that you have friends and a son who cares about you. It's time to put away your grief and start over."
"I'm not alone." said Severus in a small voice that didn't suit him at all. "I have a son." He then gave an exhausted sigh and passed out.
"Let's get him to bed." said Remus, "He's going to have a horrible hangover in the morning."
"Is can do it." said Twinkle as she raised her hand and levitated Snape to his bed.
"Does Severus have any potions to cure hangovers?" asked Remus.
"Yes, Master does, Twinkle will get thems for you." said Twinkle as she popped out.
"I think we should get back to bed." said Remus, "Twinkle will handle everything else."
Harry nodded and they both went to their respected rooms, exhausted.
----------------------------
Harry and Remus were sitting in the sitting room the next morning. Remus was reading a book and Harry was studying some spells for his training. Harry glanced at the clock on the wall and noticed that it was 11 o'clock and Severus still hadn't come down.
"I wonder if I should check up on Father. He hasn't come down yet and I'm worried." said Harry.
Remus gave a small smile when Harry referred to Severus as 'Father'. "He had a bad night and is probably tired." he said to Harry, "He'll get up when he's ready to."
Seeing Harry's worried look, Remus then said, "Although I don't think he would mind if you just looked in on him to make sure he really is okay."
"I think I will." said Harry as he left the room.
From his portrait, Myrrdin said, "I believe that those two will be alright if Severus just fights his demons."
"I agree." said Remus, "They just need to settle a few things before they can really be family."
---------------------------
Harry slowly opened the door to Severus' bedroom. He stepped inside and looked around the room. Snape appeared to be still asleep and so Harry decided to take the liberty of looking around. There was a picture on the bedside table of a woman surrounded by flowers. Harry picked up the picture and on closer inspection, realized that it was his birth mother. Harry gazed at the picture for several minutes before he was startled by Severus shifting in the bed. Harry put the picture down and left the room as quietly as he could. It wouldn't do to wake up Severus and have to explain why he was in his bedroom.
He went downstairs and was startled to see Dumbledore standing in the entryway.
"How did you get in?" asked Harry, "I didn't hear a knock at the door or anything."
"I have a key to Snape Manor in case of emergencies." said Dumbledore with a smile, "I was given it a long time ago, and apparently it still works on the front door."
"Harry, who are you talking to?" asked Remus as he came out of the sitting room. He then noticed Dumbledore and asked, "How did you get in?"
"Spare key," said Dumbledore simply, "How are things going here? Where is Severus?"
Harry was unsure of what to say so Remus replied, "He is still in bed, there was a minor incident last night that left him quite tired."
Dumbledore nodded in understanding and then said, "Harry, if you don't mind, why don't be go through the pensive you received on your birthday. After lunch, I will be training you in Occlumancy. How does that sound?"
"That sounds fine, the pensive is in my room though." said Harry.
"It would probably be better if we do it in an environment in which you are most comfortable, so perhaps we could look through it in your room." said Dumbledore.
Harry agreed and after informing Remus of their plan, they went to Harry's room. Dumbledore conjured a chair to sit in and Harry sat on the bed after he had retrieved the pensive and placed it on the floor between them.
"Before we start, I would like to tell you a little about the history of your family. As you know, Regina was my distant cousin. However, the Dumbledore family was quite large at one time. I believe that you are aware that I had a brother?" said Dumbledore.
Harry nodded and Dumbledore continued, "My dear brother Aberforth is still alive. Although he's not been in good shape ever since tragedy struck the family. You see, Aberforth had a lovely wife and 3 children, as well as 3 grandchildren. Sadly, the Dark Lord Grindiwald killed his wife and youngest son. Voldemort killed his oldest son, his wife, and their 3 children, in order to get to me, during Voldemort's first uprising. Also during that time, Aberforth's daughter and her husband were killed in a muggle cafe during a random Death Eater attack. Regina's Grandfather was my only cousin. We were very close friends and I was very close to his daughter, Melissa. I kept in contact with Melissa when she moved overseas to America and met and married Jonah Van Hardy. He was a pureblood American wizard with a very high reputation. However, Jonah contracted a deadly wizarding disease and died soon after Regina was born. As you know, Melissa came back to Great Britain with Regina and lived in my ancestral home. Did you know that I was married once?"
This question surprised Harry and he was shocked as he said, "No sir, I had no idea."
"I was," said Dumbledore sadly, "She was killed by Grindiwald when he was starting to come to power. We were both very involved in our work and so neither one of us had time for children. I saw Regina as a chance to raise a child as my own. That is why I never told you about the prophecy. I cared too much for your happiness because you were her child. I see now that it would have been better if either Snape or myself had raised you. I thought that Petunia Dursley would take care of you because you were her 'nephew'. I never imagined that you would be treated the way you were. I made a mistake, and I know that I will never be able to erase it, but I hope that we can someday put it behind us. After all, we are the last of the Dumbledore bloodline."
"Are you serious?" asked Harry, "We are the only ones left?"
"I'm being completely truthful with you. We are the last people who are in the bloodline besides Aberforth." said Dumbledore, "Well, perhaps we should look in the pensive now."
Harry agreed and they sifted through the pensive for the rest of the morning.
------------------
Severus didn't wake up until after lunch was already over. Dumbledore was go over the basics of Occlumancy when Twinkle popped into the room announcing that he was awake. After getting Dumbledore's permission to leave, Harry ran to Snape's room. Instead of entering it, he chose to knock on the door first.
"Who is it?" answered Snape in a very drowsy voice.
"It's Harry." shouted Harry through the door.
"Come in." said Snape, "And don't speak so loudly, I have a horrid headache."
"It's no wonder, the amount of liquor you drank." said Harry, "You probably have a wicked headache."
Snape pointed to his chest of drawers and said, "Look in the top drawer and give me the vial with the purple potion in it."
Harry did this and after Snape took the potion, he sighed in relief. He then looked up at Harry sharply, "What are you doing in my room? I told you to stay out!"
Harry shrugged and said, "I was worried about you and just wanted to make sure you were okay. I mean after last night..."
"I remember," said Snape, "I lost control when I shouldn't have." he grimaced as he pushed out, "Thank you for helping me last night."
"It was nothing." said Harry, "I would have done it for anyone."
'You would have wouldn't you?' thought Snape to himself, aloud he said, "I think that we should have a talk."
Harry appeared a little worried and Snape added, "Could you tell me about your childhood with the Dursleys?"
"Okay," said Harry, surprised, "I didn't really care about living with them, but I suppose there wasn't any other option in Dumbledore's eyes. My bedroom was the broom cupboard under the stairs. I stayed there until I received my letter from Hogwarts. There were some spiders there, and it was a little cramped. Ever since I could remember, I always cooked for the Dursley's or did chores for them. If I didn't do my chores properly, they would lock me in my cupboard for a week and give me water and a piece of bread to eat every day. They let me out once a day to use the bathroom and take a bath. I was pretty much like a house elf to them. It probably could have been worse, I mean they didn't beat me or anything. Well, Dudley would beat me up occasionally, but it was nothing damaging."
By this time Snape was shocked. He knew Harry wasn't spoiled, like he thought before, but this was bordering on abuse, "Nothing damaging you say?" he said, "I don't know how you stayed relatively normal throughout your childhood."
"I suppose it's simply the charm of being the 'Boy who lived'." said Harry, "What was your childhood like?"
"It was horrible." said Snape, "My parents were both hard core Slytherins. They despised muggle borns and drilled anti-muggle thoughts into my head from the moment I was born. I barely saw them most of the time though and the house elves were the main ones to raise me. When the Dark Lord started to gain power, they quickly joined him. In my sixth year, I had to tutor Regina Van Hardy in Potions. She wished to become an Auror, but her Potions grade wasn't high enough. We slowly became friends and then fell in love. Regina changed my views on muggles. This was supported by the Death Eater rallies I witnessed that were held here. However, during the Christmas break of my seventh year, my parents forced me to pledge my allegiance to the Dark Lord and take the Dark Mark. When I returned, Regina found out and told me to tell Albus. I couldn't, so I decided to try and find a way out while acting like a loyal Death Eater. However, after Regina's death, I told Albus the truth and became a spy."
"What happened during the rallies?" asked Harry.
"I refuse to tell you. It is something I never want to remember as long as I live. It won't hurt you to not know and I believe that it would be best if you never find out."
Harry decided not to push it and said, "Thank you for sharing with me. I'm glad that you trust me enough with the information. Twinkle will bring some lunch up for you."
Snape nodded and Harry got up and headed toward the door.
"Harry," said Severus.
"Yes?" said Harry.
"Thank you for putting the past behind us."
Harry said, "It's no problem Father." He then left the room.
Snape stared at where Harry had left and whispered, "He called me Father."
-End Chapter 17-
A/N: I FINALLY FINISHED THIS CHAPTER!! cheers This chapter was by far the hardest one to write. There was a bunch of bonding moments. I was out of the state for a good portion of June, and then I had a family reunion and then I was attacked by a horrible case of writers' block. Then, it was my parent's 24th wedding anniversary and we had to go and celebrate it. Mainly though, it was the summer slum. I hope that this chapter meets your expectations. I hope to update faster for chapter 18.
-Lilyanphino-