Well, I give a simple threat and I get fifteen reviews for a single chapter? Well that's the jackpot right there! I would be overjoyed right now if it wasn't for the fact that I got a massage today and the guy did a crappy job at it. My back still hurts…
Aftermath and Reflection
"What gave them the right to do such a thing?"
There are many who say that they have the right to something, but they really don't. What creates a right of a person? Is it just given, or must you earn it with all the sweat and tears of your existence?
"Now, now, Severus, you need to calm down. They will be prosecuted to the highest degree for their actions, but acting on a hot head is not the best thing to do."
He could remember Hermione telling him this one quote about the rights of people when they were in some fight with some Slytherin prefect. He had taken points away for some lame reason just to take some points away. They were arguing, causing more points to be lost in the process, that he had no right to take anything away from them as they weren't doing anything. But Hermione held her head high and refused to argue back, and she just said the quote.
"What do you know, you should have seen it happening, you should have found out!"
If only he could just remember what she had said. Now it was just bothering him, not knowing what it was. Not that he really cared about it; he had all the time in the world in this little black box of oblivion. It wasn't exactly the swirling room from the Guardian's of Death – wonder what happened to them… - as it was more of a pitch black without any light to even see fog.
"He wouldn't tell anyone!"
"Get out. I don't need to hear any of this. Just get out."
Uh, oh… Snape sounded real angry with that. What was he trying to think about anyway? Oh yeah, the quote on rights. Something about having to giving up your own blood and sweat for your rights, but you can't take someone else's if they disagree with it… or something like that. see note at the bottom
"Severus, Remus didn't know anything. Harry wouldn't tell anyone about this. See reason, my boy."
He wondered what they were yelling about… There had to be at least three people in the room: Severus, Remus, and Albus by the sounds of it. His name was brought up a lot, but he just couldn't care about anything at the moment to try to figure out what they were talking about. Well, he wasn't exactly stupid, he could figure out that it was something he hadn't said or done.
"I thought I told you to get out!"
It seemed to finally work as footsteps retreated and silence filled the room. Not even a fire broke the uneasy silence. Occasionally a ruffling sound would be heard right next to his ear, but he just didn't want to wake up yet. Yet, he couldn't clearly remember how he got to sleep in the first place, especially in Snape's – his father's, he reminded himself – rooms. Something about running… Oh no! He told them his past with the Dursley's or at least a little bit about them. What possessed him to do anything of the sort? He tried to keep it in, but unfortunately it slipped, a groan announcing his consciousness. The ruffling doubled and approached him frantically, almost to an annoying point. The next thing he knew, he was being propped up and a potion forced down his throat.
"You started to worry us," the voice of his father filled the room, "you've been out like a light for three days."
"Three days!" Potion went splattering all over the bedspread as Harry shot out of Draco's hold. It was three days? How in the world? All he could remember was running and then blacking out. "What happened?"
"I might have put too much energy into my spell," Draco answered once he forced Harry back into a safe position, "but its better to be knocked out instead of jumping off the stairway and falling to your death."
"Does everything you say have to be melodramatic?"
Draco looked to be thinking about the question for a few moments before a small smile, a real smile mind you, appeared on his face. "Yes it does," he said, turning fully to the groggy Gryffindor, "and you're going to be stuck with me for a long while, so you better get used to it."
"Great…"
Harry finally got to see his surroundings. Surprisingly, the Potion's Master's rooms were, well, livable. Gone were the thoughts of a cold dungeon cell room with greenish brown cloth so long gone that you could see through it for the draperies and furniture. Instead there royal green couches embroidered with bright silver thread, bringing (oh course) snakes slithering along the sides. The Slytherinistic sense of being too rich for thought came in when he looked at the carved mahogany side tables and coffee table. Uncle Vernon would complain when he couldn't get furniture not even close to this quality. What would they say if they found out that he would probably be living like this when they were trying to keep him away from it?
"We need to talk."
"Ah." He really, truly, desperately did not want to talk, about anything actually. But he knew that the topic Severus Snape was bringing up at that moment would be the topic he would most definitely hate the most. "What is there to talk about?"
"Don't be a smart mouth," Severus answered sharply, sitting promptly on an opposite couch. He probably didn't want to scare his son off though the conversation was doing that job quite well. "You know exactly what I mean."
"Though with such a thick skull, I doubt anything can pass through it."
"Don't get me started on you, young man." Harry tried to ignore the third party member in the room, but he couldn't miss the classic Malfoy Smirk. The Slytherin busied himself with various knickknacks out of place to allow the other two to continue their conversation. "I will allow you to speak your part now before I make any judgments."
Confusion couldn't even describe what Harry was feeling then. What was he supposed to say? That he allowed his muggle family to use him as a punching bag for his whole life, not even stopping them when he knew he was a wizard? No, he couldn't admit that to them, to anyone actually. So he just stayed quiet.
That plan worked for maybe two minutes as Draco lost interest in trying to let the others work out whatever they needed to work out. He finally let out a loud sigh and plopped himself down just next to Harry. "You know, Sansone, you are just going to have to accept this."
"Don't call me that," he murmured fiercely. Severus felt a stab in his chest at the statement; his son did not accept him? "This is just all too new for me…" Well, it wasn't much, but Severus could understand. He knew long before Harry… Sansone did.
"What isn't there to get?"
"I don't know… maybe I just wanted one thing to normal, just once," he said wistfully, even accentuating it with a wave of one finger. "But this is just one more abnormality to add to the list, I guess. And it's so damn annoying." All the lights in the room started to flicker dangerously.
Though Severus looked unsettled by the display, Draco didn't even blink, keeping eye contact with Harry. "Look, we need to you to have a level head or else all hell will break loose. You are the savior, you know," he added with a sarcastic tone. "You'll be placed in situations far worst."
"But I don't want any of this!" His strength all ran out as he collapsed to one green embroidered couch in exhaustion. Severus couldn't bear to see him like this, now that he saw him as his son. Wasn't it his job as a parent to protect his young from all dangers of the outside world?
"Well, deal with it, okay? You're going to have to."
"Why don't you just shut up? Do you think I like being who I am? You wouldn't last one day in my life let alone the whole thing. So don't act all that on something you know nothing about."
"Why don't both of you sit down before I make you sit down." The two students didn't even notice that they were standing up, in a defensive pose, ready to attack. They followed Severus' demand sheepishly. "Now, Draco, just give him time, okay? So just lay off. And Harry, we are trying to help you, so don't push us away."
He was proud to see the two boys he was to take care of relax enough to admit they could be formal. It would not do to see them fight the whole time.
"Everyone has a weakness, not just you," Draco continued slowly, "I'm allergic to cats so I'm forced to take medicine every day because my roommate, Blaise, has his damned cat leave fur all over the place."
"Which reminds me, you need a new batch of that don't you? Let me go get it before anything prevents me front getting it in time."
He left the two students to themselves, sitting silently on the main couch. When he came back, he was disappointed to see they were in the same positions, seemingly to have exchanged no words.
"We all have things we'd rather leave out. I lost the feeling of this finger," he indicated his right hand ring finger, "when chopping onions for some stupid stew your mother wanted."
"You made her food?" Harry asked unexpectedly, until he realized how rude that must have sounded, "I mean wizards usually just conjure food up, don't they?"
"Indeed, they do, but it was our first anniversary and I wanted it to be special. She was so overjoyed that I would give up my pride long enough to cook as if a muggle, even though I had all sorts of resources at my fingertips. Don't ask how it tasted, though," he added with a laugh, a true laugh. Not one from a crazy man, or a cruel one, just a plain joyous laugh that shocked even Draco. He must have been thinking of the joyous times with his beloved wife until cruel fate and a mad man out for some sort of twisted revenge took her away. But that didn't explain…
"How did you not know about me, though?"
Severus sighed. He knew this would come up sooner or later, and he should be glad to get rid of it. "Well, you should know already that we were married in total secrecy, only James and Albus knew about it as they were the witnesses. You see, James is my cousin so I trusted him with her and allowed them the fake marriage. I had to go away on a mission for six months, no letters could be transferred. It was dark times as you could imagine.
"When I had come home, I immediately heard of the new arrival in the Potter home. I knew at once that it had to be my child as James would never do such a thing, but when I saw you in that cradle with his features, I couldn't handle myself."
Harry nodded his head in acceptance. It was just an honest mistake with Voldemort in the middle of it. "Why did I look like him, though?"
Severus never got to answer the question as he was doubled up in pain, clasping his left arm to his chest. When he finally was able to look at it, he saw the Dark Mark burning bright red as if it was newly created.
"He is angrier than usual…" he trailed off as he thought of the situation. The mark was burning stronger than ever, and Draco wasn't even called…
Notes: If you are trying to figure out who said what in the beginning of the chapter, it goes like this:
Severus, Albus, Severus, Remus, Severus, Albus, Severus
And the quote is from Mohandas Gandhi and the whole quote is:
"Proved right should be capable of being vindicated by right means as against the rude i.e. sanguinary means. Man may and should shed his own blood for establishing what he considers to be his right. He may not shed the blood of his opponent who disputes his 'right'."
As I said before, I got fifteen reviews in one chapter just because of me giving the hook of additional chapters. I still haven't written then yet, so you could be getting either one, just depending on how happy I am (hinthint). Especially when my back still aches because of the stupid person sucked on the massage. And then afterward, they stopped us from getting a new one next month because of my sister's and my age. Evilness…
KrazeyForever: Well, what would you say if I got one person who says they don't care how many more chapters there are?
Makalani Astral: Yeah, I kind of did jump from the two scenes, but I just wanted to get the Harry's Past off of my hard drive. That chapter is actually the first chapter I wrote for this story, back before OotP was out. Sirius was actually in there screaming up a storm, but I sadly had to take him out…
Kyra: you are really making your own story because you were impressed with mine? Oh my goodness, I'm so flattered! What type is it (Severitus, General, Sixth book, Seventh book, AU, etc…)?
Serena23: well, the two issues you brought up are pretty much the rest of the chapters. They all know, now just to have them make up, and figure out how to form a family unit! Which sadly is going to be the hardest part…
Trinity 101: Don't, worry, I totally agree with your statement, and I understand (well I think I do) perfectly. I was originally thinking of some grand scene, but as you said it, it has already hit its climax; it doesn't really need another one. It just needs a little more on the problems to keep everything together, and I think next chapter is when it will happen. And actually, now I get to find out how many people looked into my story with the hit counter, so I'll find out how many lazy ones there are! Maybe that will make me a little happier?