Summary: Can one person and fate make the difference in Severus' life?
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot, sue me and become poor.
A/N: This fic is AU, not canon. and thanks! to my beta Karri
Now to my reviewers! and do not kill me for it is short, but I will update quick again.
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Now forgive me for it is also short but I will update soon!
Chapter 21
Harry had not slept for very long when he awoke drenched in sweat, and his mouth was dry. He slung his legs over the side of the bed and stood to go into the bathroom for a glass of water. When his feet hit the floor the whole room spun and sent him suddenly to the floor. The cold marble floor felt great on his face, and his world stopped spinning. Harry, thinking it was a fluke, went to stand again, and once again found himself sick to his stomach. Hunching over he found he could at least walk, somewhat an odd way to move, but it worked. Harry was about to forget about the water and crawl back into bed when his entire face broke into a sheen of sweat. Harry could feel his stomach churning, and the bile rising up in his throat. "I will not get sick, I will not get sick," he told himself over and over trying to fight the nausea creeping up.
Harry thought he had calmed his raging stomach, but the second he raised his head up, the vomit came flying out of his mouth, soiling the floor beside his bed. Harry retched over and over, praying for an intake of air. He could not catch his breath in between the outpourings from his mouth. He felt as if he were going to die if he did not breathe in soon, and he began to whimper. Severus would not hear, he told himself, but he did not think about the house elf standing in the doorway. Lotty disappeared with a pop, and soon was standing beside her master's bed trying to pull him from it.
"You better have a damn good reason for waking me in the middle of the night," Severus growled.
"Master Snape sir, it is young master Harry, he is sick and he needs you."
Severus did not wait for any further explanation before he was out of the bed and across the hall. Flinging open the door he saw Harry leaning over the bed still retching. Running over to him, Severus patted him on the back until the waves ended and then performed a quick cleaning charm on the mess. "Harry, why did you not tell me you felt bad?"
"I didn't want you to worry about me. I will be fine, you can go back to bed now if you want." Harry was used to not having anyone to help him when he was sick. No one ever had at the Dursley's.
"I would not leave you while you are sick," Severus said, shaking his head as the child spoke nonsense. " I would call for Madame Pomfrey but she is out for the night on a errand for the Order. Can you sit up?" Harry tried but when his head spun as he sat straight up in the bed he let out a small whimper and fell sideways to lie on Severus. This worried Severus, and when he drew his wand Harry could hear him cursing under his breath. "What is that infernal spell she uses to read a fever?" Severus muttered to himself. When it finally came to him, Harry was shaking beside him on the bed. A quick wave of his wand revealed Harry had a very high fever, and Severus accioed a potion to bring it down. After giving Harry a dose, he sat in the bed with Harry's head in his lap. He stroked Harry's head for a while and then as he was about to fall asleep a couple of hours later, he was being jolted. Severus could not tell what it was, until he opened his eyes and looked down at his son.
Harry was convulsing, his whole body going stiff with each new spasm. Severus bolted from the bed dragging Harry with him when Harry's eyes rolled into the back of his head, for it had scared Severus worse than anything else in his life. As Severus drew a bath of ice water he scanned Harry with his wand and saw that his fever was high enough to be fatal. Without another thought, he laid Harry down in the tub of ice water while he was still convulsing. The sigh on the edge of his lips when Harry grew still, was soon stilled as Harry bolted upright and tried to get out of the tub, and the freezing water.
Severus' heart crumpled as Harry cried out to him. "Daddy, help me. I'm sorry I won't do it again, please Daddy, let me out." Severus let a single tear slip down his normally stoic face. Harry thought this was some form of punishment in his delirium, and Severus loathed having to hold him down as he struggled. Nothing was sweeter than the moment when he pulled him from the tub and pulled the sodden child into his lap. Severus did not wish to let him go, and he walked back to the room, drying Harry's clothes once he laid him back down on the bed. For hours they had to repeat this process, as the fever reducer had no effect on Harry. Each time Severus had to put Harry in the freezing water his heart shattered. The gut wrenching pleas for help took Severus to a place inside him he did not know existed. It was his inner most soul, and he knew then and there he would do anything for his son.