Disclaimer: None of this is mine.
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"Mr. Potter, I want you to know that I truly was in love with your mother. She meant the world to me; part of me died when she died. Knowing that you are a product of her and I, has given me a feeling that I am not much akin to – hope. However, if you expect me to change my attitude right away you are sorely mistaken. My goal in your life is not to coddle you or baby you. My goal is to train you up so that you may one day fulfill the prophecy and defeat the Dark Lord once and for all! I believe that this is something that you are capable of, but you will need to work harder than you ever have. He-who-must-not-be-named is gaining power and supporters every day – he is much stronger now than even when you faced him in the ministry. This is my warning to you."
As Professor Snape talked, Harry found himself thinking of how the prophecy would come to pass. Harry knew that he was capable of many things, however did not feel himself to be capable yet of defeating the Dark Lord. He knew that he must take Professor Snape's words to heart and study like never before.
"In order that you may continue classes here without arousing suspicion of our relationship, there is a charm that must be used. It is similar to the one that your parents used to hide you when you were young. Your true appearance will be shown only to those who know who you are. You must state to them specifically these words, 'you may now see me as I truly am – Severus Snape's son.' Are you ready Mr. Potter, as I will now perform the incantation? 'Reproba Scientia Ego'" As Professor Snape said these words he gently tapped his wand to the top of Harry's head.
"The only one that can counteract this curse is the one whom originally cast it. In the event of their death, the charm automatically wears off. Therefore you are in no danger of the Dark Lord finding out. You may tell Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley if you wish. Now I have a different matter to discuss with you." As breakfast was now over and the house-elves had disappeared with the remnants, Professor Snape requested that Mr. Potter move over to the couch and disappeared into his bedchambers.
He emerged with a beautiful chest floating after him. The chest was of course decorated in the Slytherin colors of green and silver. However, it seemed that the silver and green were on top of each other in some weird fashion. The green and silver seemed to swirl and mix while Harry looked at it, and he couldn't quite figure it out.
"This chest is a most remarkable thing, Harry. It is your birthright so to speak. As I know that yesterday was your birthday, consider this as a late birthday present. The thing that is most special about this chest is that it is much like you. When other people look at this they see nothing of what you do. To them it is a typical school chest and if they were to open it they would find nothing of interest. I would like it, Harry, if you would go ahead and look inside and I will explain the contents."
Harry did as he was told and went over to the chest. As he opened it, the first thing he saw was a broom, which bore the name Windrunner. "That is the newest prototype professional broom. It is not out on the market yet, but I have connections and have managed to get one for you. Since Umbridge is no longer here, you will of course, be allowed to play Quidditch again." At this Harry's face lit up and Professor Snape knew that he had already gained the minutest amount of respect with Harry. As Harry pulled the broom out and put that aside he pulled out the next item - a small box. Harry opened the box and saw a small charm. It was about 3" tall and just about as wide. It was a green snake in the shape of an S with a sword running diagonally through. The snake had a diamond as its eye. It was like nothing Harry had ever seen. "This charm has a sticking spell that will stay where it's put until you remove it. It is of course, the Snape Crest. Customarily in wizarding families, the heir is to stick it on the left shoulder under the clothes. This signifies you as the heir. As I am an only child, it seems that you are now the heir." Harry had never heard of this tradition, but was not surprised because of his lack of interface with many wizarding families. "This particular charm is special. I have put a spell on it so that if you press the eye in, it will act as a portkey and send you to a safe place. This is only to be used as a last resort." The last thing Harry pulled from the bottom of the chest was a set of dress robes with the same symbol emblazoned on the left side of the robe. "Once again, Harry this seems like a normal dress robe to anyone looking at it but you and I. That way you may wear it but no one will know. I'm sorry that this all has to be so secretive, but you know as well as I do what the Dark Lord might do if he found out suddenly you are my son. He has many spies well placed around Hogwarts. Even among the students. Now let me show you the last thing that this chest will do. If you tap the bottom of the box with your wand and say 'Libri' it will take you to a special library. It should have all the books you need for your studies. You will also find a special section of books on the Snape family. You will find some interesting things there and it is a good way to find out more about not only my family but me as well. If you tap the bottom and say 'Relaxo' you will be taken to a sitting room where there are silencing charms and nothing you say will be heard. To get the rooms to disappear when you are done just say 'fieri.' Be careful in your use of these rooms. You do not want people to see you going in and out of your trunk."
"Oh, Professor Snape! Thank you! I cannot begin to imagine how useful this will be to me. But may I ask you a question?" Upon receiving a head nod from Professor Snape, he went on. "Why is it that you are being so nice to me all of a sudden? I know you said something about the memory charm leaving a hole, but it doesn't add up. You hated me from the minute you saw me. You insisted that I was always breaking the rules, and you destroyed my potions. So why is it that you hated me?"
"Well, Harry, there is a two-fold reason. First, how would it look to all of the Dark Lord's spies here at Hogwarts, if one of his top death eaters was nice to the boy-who-lived? Even when you first came and he was not in power, I suspected that he was not gone for good. Second, I knew that you had great potential and I pushed you hard just like I do all my students. I even saw in my classes that Malfoy would sabotage your potions, but is a teacher always going to be looking out for you when Voldemort comes? Why did you not just cast a simple shielding spell against him?"
"I must admit that I never thought of that."
"Exactly, Potter, you must learn to think on your feet. Voldemort will not wait for you to go look up a counter-curse in a book. Now, I believe that we have been here long enough that it is lunchtime. Dumbledore has called for Ron and Hermione to come and visit you, and they should be here now. I know that you need to get a lot of things off your chest, so they will be staying for several days. After that you will probably receive your owls and will need to start preparing for the coming term. Let's go out to the entrance hall and see if they have arrived yet. Then we will go to the great room and eat some lunch. How does that sound?"
Harry could only nod as he thought about all the good and bad that had happened to him over the last 3 months. Voldemort was definitely getting stronger, Sirius was dead, He found out that he had a father who was being surprisingly nice to him, and he found out that he was either going to defeat Voldemort or die trying. It was a lot for one newly 16 year old to digest and he was looking forward to sharing some of this with Ron and Hermione.